After seeing what happened when she accidently changed her friends destinies, Twilight is curious about about the 'what if'. Like, for example, what if Luna had ponies a thousand years ago who noticed her.
It all started with a simple question: What if? What if Luna had ponies who noticed the beautiful nights she created. Would she have turned into Nightmare Moon? Would she and Celestia rule together for a thousand years? Would Twilight meet the rest of the bearers of the elements and become friends with them? Now, with the help of a new magic spell that she created, Twilight is going to find out!
Twilight grinned as she hovered over her work. The main room of the library had been cleared of all books and furniture. She needed it to be if she wanted there to be enough room for her latest spell. That and she didn’t want anything to get damaged if something went wrong.
On the floor were hundreds of black markings. Shapes like crescent moons, suns, hearts, and many others spiraled around a purple crystal that was levitating in the middle. The crystal itself seemed to pulse with powerful magic that the new alicorn had placed within. Soon it would be ready to unleash a spell that could change the face of magic as the world knew it. That, or blow up the library.
“Twi, ya in there?” came a loud southern voice from outside.
“You can come in,” said Twilight. A moment later Applejack and the rest of her friends entered the library to see their purple friend flying about her work with a checklist. Twilight looked at them and grinned even larger. “You all saved me a lot of time. I was just about to get you.”
“Darling,” began Rarity as she looked at what Twilight had been working on for the last several days. “We have been worried sick about you. Ever since you became a princess you have been, well, not yourself.”
“Yeah,” grumbled Rainbow Dash as she pointed an accusing hoof at Twilight. “You were supposed to meet me for a flying lesson yesterday but completely blew me off. You need to practice in order to build up your stamina so you can fly longer than a few minutes!”
“And you missed the party I threw for you,” said Pinkie Pie with a slight frown. “A lot of ponies showed up but not the pony the party was for. And if the pony the party was made for doesn’t show up then the ponies that did show up don’t feel much like partying.”
“I’m really sorry girls,” said Twilight as she landed in front of them. “It’s just that I’ve been thinking about that spell that changed your cutie marks.” There was a sudden ‘meep’ sound that came from Fluttershy who backed up against the wall and began to cover her cutie mark.
“Y-You’re not going to try that spell again, are you?” she asked softly.
“I definitely don’t wanna go back to makin dresses.” muttered Applejack.
Twilight sighed. “No, that’s not what’s going on this time. See what I’ve been doing is making a spell that will let ponies view a ‘what if’ scenario. Like, for example, what if there was another element of harmony? Think of all the things that would be changed because of that one little difference. Or, how about, what if the Grand Galloping Gala hadn’t been a complete disaster?”
“Or, what if I was made a Wonderbolt when I was a filly?” asked Rainbow Dash loudly, causing all the girls to stare at her for a moment. “What? I did my first Sonic Rainboom as a filly, and I say that should have made me a Wonderbolt!”
“So this spell can show you any possible outcome?” asked Rarity who suddenly became very interested. “Why with this spell I’ll be able to avoid possible fashion disasters!”
“Ah, it kind of doesn’t work like that,” said Twilight as she looked a little embarrassed. “Right now it only works on past experiences, not possible future outcomes. Also, you have make a specific request.”
“So what are you planning on asking it?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“Well I thought a lot about it,” began Twilight as she took a breath. “Like, what if Princess Cadence was never my foalsitter? Think about it! It was because she was foalsitting me that she met Shiny. If they never met then they won’t have gotten married! Would that also mean that there wouldn’t have been a Changling invasion?” Twilight looked down at the ground for a moment. “Or what if Rainbow Dash had never done a Sonic Rainboom? It was because of it that we all got our cutie marks and I became Princess Celestia’s student. But if that never happened, would we still be who we are right now? I’m a little afraid to ask that one.”
Rarity walked over to Twilight and placed a hoof on her friends shoulder. Twilight looked up to see Rarity’s conforting face smiling at her. The young alicorn couldn’t help but do the same.
“So tell us darling, what did you decide on. I’m simply dying to know!”
“Well, I decided to ask what if Princess Luna hadn’t been ignored a thousand years ago.” said Twilight.
“Say what now?” asked Applejack.
“Well think about it,” said Twilight. “Nightmare Moon was created due to Luna’s loneliness and her jealousy towards Celestia. Because of this, when she returned after her banishment we became the bearers of the Elements of Harmony.”
“We know all of this,” said Rainbow Dash as she began to hover in the air. “Get to the point!”
“Ok,” said Twilight as she took a deep breath. “What if there were ponies back a thousand years ago the noticed Luna’s night sky. Then she wouldn’t have become jealous and become Nightmare Moon. If she didn’t become Nightmare Moon than she would never have been banished resulting in there being no need for use to become the bearers of the Elements. I might have never have befriended you all. However, at the same time, Equestria might be a better place with both sisters ruling it for a thousand years. At the very least Princess Celestia would be happy. I know that she wonders what it would have been like as well.”
“Ah can understand that,” said Applejack. “Bein’ away from family is tough. Can’t even imagine what the princess went through with her sister bein' gone fer a thousand years.”
“Yeah, I’m sure she’ll be happy if she never would have had to banish Luna to the moon!” said Pinkie as she began to bounce up and down.
“So would you all like to join me?” asked Twilight. They all nodded, including Fluttershy. Twilight smiled happily at them as she expanded her wings to their full, and glorious extent. She called for Spike and a moment later he came downstairs wearing hoofball gear. Which caused all of the girls to look at him strangely.
“What?” he asked. “I’d like to be prepared.”
“So how’s this going to work?” asked Rainbow.
“Well, if everything goes as planned, once I start the spell we’ll be able to watch everything that happens like we are ghosts,” explained Twilight. “I set the spell to take us to the day before the Summer Sun Festival and should end within a couple of days. There is also a temporal distortion spell that will cause time there to move at a faster place. So we could be there for a week or so and only a couple of hours will have passed here.”
“What if there’s a problem?” asked Fluttershy.
“That’s why Spike will be remaining outside of the spell seal,” answered Twilight. “If it looks like something is going wrong then he will contact the princess and ask for her assistance.” Spike gave Fluttershy a thumbs up causing the scared pony to smile lightly.
Once everything was all said and done, the six mares stepped onto the black markings. When they were ready, Twilight began to charge her horn with magic and then blasted the crystal with her magic. As soon as this was done the crystal began to glow brighter and brighter as everypony began to shield their eyes. Then it simply stopped.
Twilight’s ears flattened in confusion. Unless she had missed something, this should have worked. Perhaps she had made a mistake in the magical formula, or she had started up the spell prematurely. As she was thinking about all the possible ways she could have messed this spell up, the purple crystal began to glow with life once more. Without warning it shot out several lavander mana tentacles that attached themselves to the foreheads of each pony. The girls screamed as the world around them began to spin rapidly. Faster and faster it moved until everything melted away leaving only blackness when unconsciousness overtook them all
-x-
Twilight rolled in her bed as she heard a knocking at her door. Opening an eye she glanced at the clock near her bed to see that it was a little past six in the morning. Still very tired, Twilight closed her eye and hoped whomever was at the door would just go away. No such luck as the knocking continued, only louder this time around. There was also a hit of urgency that caused Twilight to let out a sigh as she pushed aside her silver sheets aside and got out of bed.
Despite how early it was, the light from outside shinned into her room. The walls were made of a seamless white metallic substance. The room itself was rounded and smooth. Bookshelves filled her room as well as the rest of her two story home. Heck, even her kitchen had at least two bookshelves in there. Hearing more knocking, Twilight walked down the spiral staircase to the main floor. She quickly made her way to the door and opened it.
Standing in front of Twilight was a Pegasus mare. She wore black metal boots which went up to her knees that were trimmed with gold. Her body was protected by similar armor which held up a sheathed long sword on her side. Her head, however, was uncovered allowing Twilight to see a grey face staring back at her with slightly disturbing eyes.
“Morning Twilight.” said Derpy Hooves, the princess’s royal messenger pony.
“Hey Derpy,” said Twilight with a yawn. “What’s up?”
“Nothing much. Just a message from the princess.” Twilight stared at her friend for several long, uncomfortable moments waiting. Yet, Derpy just stood there looking at her with one eye while the other looked upwards.
“And?” asked Twilight after awhile.
“And what?”
Twilight facehoofed. “What’s the message?”
“Oh right! The princess wants you to head over to the castle as soon as you can.” Twilight smiled before walking back into her home and coming back a moment later with a muffin. She handed it to Derpy who ate it on the spot while Twilight locked up her home.
The purple unicorn walked down the street, glad that she lived in an area close to a platform station. As she did she passed several homes, each one looking just like her own. The homes looked almost like giant oval eggs. At the top of each one, as a ring that looked like they were floating near the top. Those rings were really solar collectors, turning light into energy to heat the pony’s homes. The rings seemed to hum with energy as they magically transferred the solar energy they collected into the owners home.
A short time later, Twilight approached the platform station. It was a simple, square building that had several large tubes coming in and out of it. Walking into it, she was met by an earth guard pony and a unicorn technician pony. Twilight knew them both very well. The guard pony was known as Bronze Shield while the unicorn was called Boarding Time. Behind them was a single tube that held an opening.
“Morning Twilight,” said Bronze with a small smile. “Off to the capital?”
Twilight laughed. “Where else do I go?”
“True,” laughed Bronze as he checked Twilight to make sure she wasn’t hiding anything. This seemed pointless since she was naked, however, one could never be too sure.
Once she had passed the inspection, Twilight walked over and stood on a long, flat piece of metal. Boarding Time’s horn lit up as he moved both it and Twilight into the tubes opening. As soon as she was inside, the platform began to float of its own as Boarding set her destination on a small device that he kept with him. When that was done the platform began to shot down the tube. Even though she was moving at amazing speeds, Twilight didn’t feel like she was moving at all. In fact the only way she knew that she was moving as because of the change of scenery through the tubes.
Eventually she left residential area as well as the rest of her Dome. Within minutes the only thing she saw around her was a barren wasteland, full of white rocks and craters. She knew that the princess had be best ponies working to fix this problem, however it was going by slowly. Personally she hoped that she would live long enough to see the day when ponies no longer had to live in Domes. That their world would be able to support life on it’s own. Some ponies said that it was just a pipe dream, but Twilight didn’t care. It was still a good dream.
A few moments later, Twilight saw Dome Zero just up ahead. It was easy to tell it was Dome Zero because it of the castle. From above, Twilight knew that the outer walls took on the shape of a five pointed star. At the end of each point was a tower, and the top of each one looked a lot like a droplet of water. The rest of the building towered above the outer walls, looking like a rectangular building with a clock tower in its center. It was strong and well defended in case it were ever to be attacked. Not like that would ever happen.
The Lunar Republic was well protected from enemy invasions since it was on the moon.
“Your majesty, I must say that I am completely against this!”
Luna frowned as she gazed at the pony who had just spoken. It was Senator Gigawatt from Dome Seven, which was mainly a residential Dome. He was a bright blue unicorn with a silver mane that had three bright yellow streaks running through it. His cutie mark is a single bolt of bright yellow lightning. Around him the other senators nodded agreement as they sat around the circular table which Luna was at the head.
There were a total of thirteen senators that made up the Lunar Senate, not including the princess. Each one came from one of the thirteen Domes that made up the Republic and were voted into office. To make sure that no pony who was unfit for office ran, Luna had made a law that required candidates to take a series of tests to ensure that they were up to the task. In the one thousand year history of the Republic, there hadn’t been a single case of corruption or incompetence. However, that didn’t mean that they didn’t cause Luna headaches from time to time.
“I understand your concern,” said Luna in a strong, commanding voice. “For a long time we have remain independent and strong. My heart soars with the knowledge of what we have accomplished. How we have continued to push our understanding of magic and technology. How our nation has no poor or homeless ponies.”
“Then why are you thinking about accepting Equestria’s offer?” demanded Senator Peaceful Meadow from Dome Four. Luna turned her head to look at the lime green Pegasus mare with a bright red mane. Her Dome was mainly woodland that helped create air for the Domes. Thus it would make sense that her cutie mark was nature related. Three pink flowers represented her special talent.
“Because I fear we have little choice....” said Luna as her head dropped slightly.
“I refuse to accept that,” said Gigawatt angrily. “Their offer is an insult to every pony in the Lunar Republic. They are asking for us to be integrated into ‘their’ nation. For us to become apart of Equestria! What will that make us? A colony?! We will have to hoof over all of our nation's secrets, everything that we have worked hard for. You, Princess Luna, will be demoted to co-ruler. What will we be getting in return?”
“Water,” said Princess Luna. “As you all know, our population has been growing at a steady pace and we need to expand. Three new Domes are in the middle of construction as we speak. There is still plenty of room left to grow, but without more water our subjects might die of thirst.”
“Sad but true,” said April Showers from Dome Two. Dome Two was one of the oldest Domes in the Republic, in charge of controlling water flow to all the other Domes as well as weather in the forested and residential Domes. They obtained the water by having specially trained unicorns grab a comet that was passing by. Once they had collected the comet they would mine out ores and frozen water. April was a grey Pegasus mare with a blue mane and had a raindrop as her cutie mark. “The Princess is right. We are pressed thin for water right now and there is no telling when the next comet will pass by, but surely there must be another way!”
“We could trade with them,” said Senator Stock Market, a brown earth pony with a bar graph for a cutie mark. He was from Dome Five which was mainly a business Dome; from shopping to factories, Dome Five seemed to have it all. “We have plenty to offer them in return. There is no need for use to submit to their demands.”
“I am afraid my sister will not bend so easily for there are really only two things that she desires,” said Luna with a frown. “Two ponies to be precise. And one of them is me.” Her face softened a bit. “But do not fret so. I will only do what I think is best for my little ponies. I have a few plans on hoof to see if this is truly the best course. If not then we will find a new way of securing water. On that you have my word.”
The senators began to talk all at once again when the doors to the chamber opened. Everypony turned their heads to see Twilight Sparkle standing at the doors. At first she looked confused and then embarrassed.
“I’m so sorry,” she said as she began to close the door. “I didn’t know that there was a meeting going on. I’ll just-”
“It’s fine Twilight,” said Luna to her personal student. “I was just about to call for a recess anyways.” The senators grumbled, but got up anyways. One by one the thirteen of them filed out of the room until it was just Twilight and Princess Luna.
“So, ah, may I ask what’s going on?” began Twilight. She felt a bit uneasy seeing the senate so upset. For as long as she could remember the senators had always worked together with the princess in a strong and positive way. But today they looked more like they were furious with the princess.
“Yes you may,” said Luna with a smile. “But first I think a pop quiz is in order.” Twilight’s heart nearly stopped when she heard that last sentence. Luna was giving Twilight a pop quiz?! She hardly ever did that! “Please tell me about the founding of the Lunar Republic.”
Twilight blinked in confusion. The last time Princess Luna had given her a pop quiz it was to run a magical obstacle course while levitating an egg. If she dropped the egg or it broke then she failed. It had been one of the most difficult tests she had ever had to undergo. Now she was being given something so…simple. The founding of the Lunar Republic was something that was taught to every filly and colt when they were in the first grade!
“Um, alright,” said Twilight as she cleared her throat. “The founding of the Lunar Republic began over one thousand years ago in the land of Equestria. During those times it was ruled by two regal sisters. The eldest was Princess Celestia who used her magic to raise and lower the sun while the younger sister, Princess Luna, used her magic to raise and lower the moon.
“For many years, ponies mainly slept during the night and ignored the beautiful nights that younger sister created. But slowly that began to change. There came ponies that viewed night and day as two sides of the same bit and wanted to experience them equally. There came scientists who wanted to study the night sky as well as poets and writers who drew inspiration from the star filled sky. These ponies were well ahead of their time, asking many questions that made other ponies nervous. Like, for example, why should the nobles get a place in government? What made them qualified to rule? Just because they were born into a certain family?
“As time went on, these ponies were treated like outcasts. It started small, with merchants who refused to sell them their wares. They were greeted with icy glares and soon hostility. Things continued to spiral downwards as the ponies who didn’t sleep through the night were being arrested on false charges and later being attacked in their homes. While this was going on, Princess Celestia did her best to find a peaceful way of resolving the situation. A way that would get both sides to see that they weren’t so different. Yet she was taking too long and her younger sister could not stand the thought of the ponies who appreciated her suffering.
“Princess Luna decided that if the ponies in Equestria would treat their neighbors in such a way then it wasn’t worth staying here. But the problem became clear: Where were they to go? Most of the surrounding land was already occupied and they were too few to start up a new nation with so many enemies on all their sides. And what if Equestria decided to attack them? So Princess Luna decided to take her ponies to a place where they would be safe: the moon. And thus the Lunar Republic was founded.”
“Very good Twilight,” said Princess Luna with a nod. “As expected of my prized student. Now to answer your question, I have received a letter from my sister. She is asking that we rejoin Equestria once more.” As Luna spoke, she walked over towards a large window that overlooked Domes One and Two. Twilight followed her leader. “She has made offers like this in the past. This time she is not only offering us water that we desperately need but also assistance in our plans to terraform the moon. If that happens we will no longer need the Domes and my subjects will have real valleys and forests to run and play in.”
“But at what cost?” demanded Twilight. “We’re being asked to give up our independence!”
“The senate has said the same thing,” said Luna as she turned around to look at Twilight. “But I must do all that I can to protect my subjects. I can not just simply do whatever I want. Besides there is more at stake.”
“Like what?” asked Twilight.
Luna sighed. “A thousand years ago, me and my sister fought many enemies. We defeated them and then banished them in one form or another. However, banishment only lasts so long. Take, for example, Discord who used his magic to spread chaos all over the place. When he was defeated my sister and I turned him into a stone statue. Sooner or later the magic that keeps him as such will end allowing him to resume what he started. If that happens and we remain divided there I can’t guarantee that he will not find his way up here and spread his chaos.” As Luna said this, she felt a sense of disappointment. For the last nine hundred years or so, the ponies of the Lunar Republic had been working on ways to defend themselves against such a threat instead of sitting on their plot. Naturally they had come up with several methods, but had no way to test them out.
“I see,” said Twilight softly.
“Now then,” said Luna. “Later today I will be meeting with my sister to discuss the changes that will be happening in greater detail. Things like what will change and what will stay the same. She also wants me to meet some ponies and so forth. The next day, during something called the Summer Sun Festival, we will be announcing our decision.”
“Is that why you called me?” asked Twilight. “Am I going with you?”
“No my prized student,” said Luna as she shook her head. “I have another task I’d like you to do. My sister likes raise the sun in a different town each year for the Summer Sun Festival. This year it will be in a place called Ponyville. I’d like you to go there ahead of me and get to know the ponies that live there. I’d like to know what they think of the night and if they would truly welcome us. Just think of it like a field research assignment.”
Twilight beamed when she heard this. She was being given an opportunity to study another culture, something that no pony in the Republic had ever done. She was a little scared due to the fact that she had never left the moon before. But the princess was counting on her and she wouldn’t let her done.
“So when do I leave?”
“Soon Twilight, but I never said that you were going alone. Why don’t you ask the captain of the Royal Guard if he would like to go with you? I’m sure he would like the alone time.” Luna fought back a snicker as she saw Twilight blush.
“T-Thank you Princess.” She stammered. Without another word, Twilight bowed and departed. As she left, Luna took a moment to reflect on how much her student had changed since the day they first met. It had been the day the poor filly’s parents had died and Luna had taken both her and her brother in. For a while, Twilight interacted with very few and Luna had allowed this. But after a year and a half the Moon Princess put her hoof down, wanting Twilight to make new friends. It was hard for her student to pry herself from her books, but in the end it was worth it. Now Twilight had many friends even a very special somepony.
In a way, Luna felt like a proud mother. As this feeling of pride filled her, Luna turned her head to look out a different window. One that showed her the planet that the moon orbited. Looking at it, her eyes narrowed. “If you end up hurting her there shall be no forgiveness,” swore Luna.
-x-
Twilight raced through the castle as she searched for the captain of the guard. He could be anywhere and she had a limited amount of time, the sooner she found him the sooner the two of them could get going. Then they could have some time alone together without any interruptions from a certain stallion who kept interrupting her love life.
As Twilight ran at full speed, she turned a corner and ran right into a member of the Lunar Guard head first. The impact caused them both to fall down, yelping in pain. As Twilight got up she noticed the cutie mark of her victim. “Sorry Lightning Dust,” said Twilight as she helped her friend up. “That was reckless of me. I should have been watching where I was going.”
“I’ve had worse,” admitted the Pegasus as she dusted off her armor that looked very similar to Derpy’s. However, instead of being black it was metallic silver with no trimming. Another difference was that on the chest plate was Luna’s cutie mark. And instead of a sword there was instead a crescent moon style glaive with blades that glowed a light blue color. “So where’s the fire?”
“No fire this time,” said Twilight with small grin. “I’m just looking for your boss. Any idea where he might be?”
“If I had to guess he’s on the training grounds,” said Lightning.
“Great thanks,” said Twilight right before she teleported away. A moment later she reappeared in the middle of an open field that existed between the castle walls and the castle itself. All around her she saw various types of ponies working on their training. Unicorns blasted dummies with arcane beams. Pegasi flew in the air at amazing speeds as they dodged various obstacles. Earth ponies practiced with their weapons in simulated combat.
As she stood there, Twilight became aware of a shadow that fell upon her. Looking up she saw a bat pony with the deepest black coat she had ever seen. The stallion soon landed in front of her and his golden slit eyes stared into hers. He had a thin scar on his forehead that was partly hidden due to his messy purple mane. She knew that on his flank was a grey sword that had a batwing style guard. “You shouldn’t be here right now.” he said in a rich, deep voice.
Twilight grinned. “Oh, it’s ok. My coltfriend is the captain of the royal guard.”
“So you think that just because you’re dating Captain Shadow Blade means that you can magically appear in the middle of a training season whenever you please,” said the bat pony with a slight smile. “Some ponies might have a problem with that.”
“But not the ones that count,” said Twilight as she leaned forward to kiss her coltfriend.
“You’re going to the planet?” asked Lightning Dust in awe. Currently she was in the locker room with Shadow Blade as he took off his armor. “That sounds so awesome! Can I go to? Can I? Please?”
“No,” said Shadow as he rolled his eyes. “Princess Luna wants me to go so that I can protect Twilight in case the ponies haven’t changed. And this will be mostly undercover work, something you failed at in training.” In response to this, Lightning Dust did the mature thing and stuck out her tongue.
To be honest, Shadow was very happy about all of this. Both he and Twilight had a certain celebrity status within the Republic. It was unwanted but what could they do. He was the young captain of the Royal Guards while she was the prized student of the princess. Also they were both survivors of the Deep Tunnel Tragedy that claimed the lives for four hundred ponies including both their parents twelve years ago. As soon as they became an official couple the paparazzi was all over them. Every time they tried to go out the camera’s seemed to follow. So, going to a place where no pony knew them would be pleasant. The two of them could finally relax.
Once Shadow had taken his chest plate off, he placed it into his locker with the greatest of care. He had worked long and hard to get to where he was. He was the pony’s sword that would fight to protect the Lunar Republic. Treating his armor in disrespect would be the same as treating his position the same way. However, as he withdrew his hooves he accidentally knocked out a small black box. He tried to catch it, but Lightning reacted fast then him.
“What’s this?” she asked with a cocky grin. “A gift for Twilight?” She opened the box and her eyes went wide. As she lifted her head to look at her captain he grabbed the small box and but it back in his locker. “Was that what I think it was?”
“It is,” said Shadow as he shut his locker door and locked it.
“When are you going to ask her? Oh, can I do it? Can I be the best mare? Please, please, please, please, PLEASE!”
Shadow rolled his eyes. “I was going to ask her in a couple of days, but with everything that’s going on I thought I’d better wait. No, you CAN’T tell her and if you do I’ll make sure you’re polishing the Domes for the rest of your life!” With that, Shadow began to walk out of the locker room.
“But can I at least be the best mare?” yelled Lightning Dust.
-x-
“I’m telling you I should be going with Twily,” said Shining Armor. Before his was Princess Luna as her attendants were putting the finishing touches on her outfit. She was wearing a black dress was imbedded with thousands of tiny diamonds to look like the night sky. The neckline was trimmed with silver that looked a bit like it was levitating. She was wearing star shaped earrings and had on a black tiara with a white crystal in the middle. Shining Armor on the other hand looked a bit more rugged. He was wearing a black shirt with a black leather trench coat over it.
“Are you telling me that the captain of the Shield Corps is refusing to guard his princes?” asked Princess Luna. The Shield Corps was a branch of the Lunar military that served to protect. One of their main duties was it reinforce the Domes incase of emergences. The other duty was to protect members of the senate. Each member of the Shield Corps was a skilled unicorn who specialized in defense and barrier magic. And there was no unicorn better with both of these than Shining Armor.
“Look, I’m the only family she has left,” began Shining Armor but stopped as Luna raised a hoof.
“That is one of the reasons why you shouldn’t go with Twilight,” began the Moon Princess. “You are a bit overprotective of her. If you go with her you will glare down any pony that tries to talk to her. Also, I am not going to see Celestia by myself. Three members of the senate will be going with me and thus we will need some extra protection if things take a turn for the worse.”
“Then take your captain of the guard,” said Shining.
“I would except he is unable to create a defensive barrier,” said Luna. “You, on the other hoof, can create a power defensive barrier that can repeal meteorites in less than four point five seconds.”
Shining looked like he wanted to say more, but didn’t. The truth was he knew that Shadow Blade would take care of Twilight. He had once seen the bat pony take down fifteen solders bare hoofed during a training exercise. The real problem Shining was having was letting Twilight be alone with her coltfriend. He could just picture it. The two of them being alone and wanting to make the most of it. It would start with nuzzling, then kissing, followed by that fiend stealing his little sister’s innocence! For that act alone he would die a thousand deaths by the bare hooves of Shining Armor.
“Now that’s a face you shouldn’t be making in front of the princess,” said a voice from behind him. Shining Armor turned around and saw Land Share, the senator from Dome Three. He was a muscular grey earth pony with tan colored eyes and a brown mane. His cutie mark was a plow because before he went into politics he was a farmer. He was also a good friend to his family. Before his and Twilight’s parents died, they would send a couple weeks each year helping out on his farm.
“You’re going down to Equestria?” asked a stunned Shining Armor.
Land Share nodded. “Darn right I am. April Showers and Gigawatt are coming along to. I don’t know why Giga wants to go, but I know April wants to check on the water that we might be getting to see if it’s enough. As for me, well, somepony has to be on Princess Luna’s side through all this. I’ll go just so she knows she has somepony watching her back.”
“Uncle Land Share!” The grey pony turned around just in time to receive a big old hug from Twilight. “It’s so good to see you when you’re not in a meeting. We hardly ever have time to talk.”
“I’m sure we’ll get time to do that later,” said Land Share. Just then he noticed another figure enter the room. It was Shadow Blade. He motioned Twilight to look behind her and when she did she walked right over to her coltfriend to nozzle him. This caused Shining Armor’s eye to twitch.
“Captain Shadow Blade, may I have a word with you in private?” said Shining Armor as he walked over to the two. Shadow nodded and pulled away from Twilight. Twilight reluctantly accepted this and went over to Princess Luna to talk. Once she was gone, Shining spoke softly. “Alright now, I’m only going to say this once. If anything, and I mean anything, happens to my little sister then I will make sure that you are ejected out of the nearest air lock into the vacuum of space.”
“Believe me, I will take down any threat before it hurts Twilight,” said Shadow in an equally soft tone.
“And you better keep your hooves to yourself buddy,” growled Shining Armor. Shadow just rolled his eyes.
“Oh get a fillyfriend already,” he groaned. “If anything happens between me and Twilight it will be because we both want it. And if you can’t accept that then that’s your problem.”
“I wonder if they know everypony here can hear them,” whispered Twilight to the princess. Luna shook her head with a grin. The senators were doing their best to hide their smirks while her attendants were giggling to themselves. Apparently both captains had forgotten that these rooms were created so that a pony could hear a pin drop from the other side of the room.
“I’d better stop them before a fight breaks out,” whispered Luna. “After all, it won’t make a good impression if my captain of the Shield Corps shows up with a black eye.”
-x-
“Where is she?” asked Princess Cadence as she galloped down the halls of the Canterlot Castle. Around her servants bowed as she passed them by as she looked for her missing aunt. It was almost time for Princess Luna and members of the Lunar Republic to arrive. Everypony was tense making them feel no better now that they couldn’t find Celestia.
As Cadence searched, she couldn’t help but reflect on her own feelings towards the Republic. As had no memories of Princess Luna and had never been to her kingdom. No pony had. They kept themselves isolated from the rest of their kind doing who knows what on the moon. However, there were dark rumors about that place. Princess Celestia had tried many times in the past to get her little sister to return, but her requests had been met with flat out refusal. To have her come to the castle so suddenly had been a shock to the young alicorn.
The other nobles had several different reactions. For example, Prince Blueblood saw this as something good mainly so he could pass several new taxes. He was even trying to convince Princess Celestia to make they pay a heavy amount just for rejoining Equestria. Lady Bottombit, on the other hoof, had sent her entire family away in fear that Luna would attack Celestia as soon as she got here thus beginning a war. However the majority of the nobles just wanted to know why they even needed the Lunar ponies. These were the more ignorant of the nobles. According to Guard Captain Iron Wall there were several enemies of Equestria that might soon launch an attack. The two most likely candidates were the gryphons and the Changelings. Iron Wall predicted that if war were to happen right now with either of these two it could last up to six years with heavy casualties on both sides regardless of who won.
Cadence felt like she had been galloping from tower to tower. Soon she came down a deserted corridor that was rarely ever used. As she went down it, she slowed her pace. On the wall were portraits of various important ponies like Clover the Clever, Starswirl the Bearded, and so on. As she came to the end, Cadence spotted her aunt. She was standing in front of an old painting of herself when she was younger. And sitting next to Celestia was another alicorn. A blue one with teal colored eyes.
“Is that Luna?” asked Cadence, causing her aunt to jump a bit. She then turned her head to look at her niece.
“Oh, it’s just you Cadence,” said Celestia quietly before returning her gaze to the painting. “Yes, that is Luna. Back when things weren’t so…complicated.”
Being the alicorn of love, Cadence was able to sense it in all of its forms. As she looked at Celestia, she found feel a profound amount of love as she stared at the painting. But there was also sadness that came with it as well as anger. But Celestia’s anger wasn’t directed at Luna, but more at herself. Slowly, Cadence approached her aunt and gently placed a hoof on her shoulder.
“I’m sure things will be alright,” said Cadence in a calm manner. “She is coming down to see you for the first time in a thousand years.”
“Only because I twisted her foreleg,” muttered Celestia as she got up. It wasn’t how she wanted to do this, but she felt she had no choice in the matter. Once Luna left the harmony that they had with each other was broken and so was their connection to the Elements. Since then Celestia had been using them as a bluff as she search for the new Bearers. So far she had identified five of them who were all living in Ponyville. However, several years ago, Celestia had sensed the awakening of the sixth one on the moon.
Celestia realized the importance of getting the Bearer of the Element of Magic and soon. The sooner she found him or her, the sooner she could introduce him/her to the other Bearers so they can build a friendship. Once that was done she could sleep a bit easier knowing that foes like Discord will be dealt with easier. That and she would get her little sister back. She had wanted to explain it to Luna like that, but she feared that Luna would take it the wrong way, that Celestia only wanted the Bearer.
“So,” began Cadence as they started to walk down the hallway together. “Where is Trixie? I haven’t seen her all day.”
“I sent her off to Ponyville to prepare for tomorrow,” said Celestia with a sigh. “When she found out what was going on with the Republic she was very vocal against it. I thought it best that she be elsewhere while Luna and I are discussing things.”
“I understand,” said Cadence. For the rest of the walk the two were silent. Eventually they reached a balcony that was used mainly for flying chariots. There waiting for them was captain Iron Wall, Prince Blueblood, several guards, and a few nobles. Each one had been hoof picked by Celestia in the hopes that they would be the most civil with their guests.
For several long moments the group waited as they watched the sky. Cadence wondered how Princess Luna and here group would arrive. Would it be in a craft of some kind or would they simply appear like with a teleportation spell? What kind of ponies would Luna be bringing with her?
Cadence was pulled from her thoughts as the sky seemed to explode in a brilliant white light. It was so bright that everypony had to raise a hoof to shield their eyes. Both Celestia and Cadence reach out with their magical senses, but whatever magic that created this seemed dull their senses. Slowly the light began to fade until a single, star like spec remained. Quickly it began to descend, twinkling all the way. Once it was right in front of them the star vanished to reveal Princess Luna in a beautiful gown. Behind her stood four ponies, one of them sporting a black eye.
Meanwhile, over in Ponyville, Pinkie’s tail began to twitch.
For a moment, no pony spoke. All were silent as both parties stared at each other with a feeling of unease. For the first time in a thousand years, both royal sisters were face to face. There was a slight tension that filled the air, enough to make Celestia’s guards nervous.
Cadence was quick to note a few things as she waited silently. First of all, Luna was dressed to impress, whereas Celestia’s nobles were dressed to show their own importance. It was easy for somepony like Cadence to tell the differences between the two. First off, Luna’s dress was beautiful, but it also had a hint of subtlety. Celestia’s nobles, on the other hoof, looked a bit flashier and their outfits practically screamed ‘I’m a noble and your not’. There was also a difference between the nobles and the ponies that had come with Princess Luna. The nobles were all unicorns but only two of Luna’s were unicorns as well. Not that Cadence had anything against earth and Pegasus ponies; it was just that she was so used to seeing one group of ponies in government. For example, in Saddle Arabia, all the ponies in their government were earth ponies while in Equestria they were unicorns. Yet if what she was seeing was correct, the Lunar Republic seemed to allow all types of ponies to participate in their government.
As Cadence scanned the group, her eyes fell on the stallion with the black eye. He looked rather dashing in her opinion. Even if he did have a shiner. But what struck out most about him were the emotions he was giving off. The alicorn of love could feel the love he had for another that was causing his mind to be elsewhere. It was a very strong and powerful kind of love that Cadence could see as clear as day.
After a bit, the young princess began to wonder why no pony was speaking. Luna, when she first arrived, had a somewhat pleasant expression on her face. However it was quickly turning into one of irritation. That’s when it hit her; Luna was waiting to be welcomed. She turned to look at her aunt only to see her staring at her younger sister while trying to figure out what to say.
“It is nice to have you here Princess Luna and honored guests,” said Cadence. “In the name of Princess Celestia, we welcome you to Canterlot.” Luna’s head snapped in the direction of Cadence’s voice. The Lunar Princess’s eyes widened when she noticed that the one who spoke was an alicorn.
“What is your name?” asked Luna.
“I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza but you can just call me Cadence,” replied the alicorn of love. “I am Princess Celestia’s niece.” Luna gave her a nod before turning her head back to Celestia.
“I am glad to see that she has such good manners,” said Luna as she began to walk forward. “I just hope that this is not how you treat all diplomats.”
“O-Of course not Luna,” said Celestia as she found her voice. “I’m just a bit overwhelmed to see you once again. So much has changed and-”
“Yes I’m sure,” interrupted Luna. “I’m sure that things have changed on both sides. But whether it be for better or worse, only time will tell. Now then, let us begin these discussions. The sooner they are done the sooner we can make a decision.” Celestia looked hurt by these words and, truth be told, Luna resented herself for using them. However, she could show no weakness during these proceedings. If she did then there was a good chance that the Equestrian nobles would cut her to ribbons.
As Luna began to walk towards the entrance a small creature began to buzz around her. It looked like a small blue ball with wings and big green eyes. Luna held out a hoof and the small creature landed on it while making a very cute sound. It looked very familiar, yet Luna couldn’t place where she had seen it before.
“Princess, what is it?” asked Shining Armor as he and the others went to her side. Luna turned and proceeded to show them the strange, but cute creature she had found.
“What an adorable little thing,” said Celestia before turning to look at Iron Wall. “Tell me, do you have any idea what this creature is?” While her back was turned, the senators began to give each other uneasy looks. Celestia had been this lands ruler for a thousand years and didn’t know what this was. Granted they didn’t know since they were new to this land, but still it made them worry about her ruling style.
“I do auntie,” said Cadence in a nervous tone. “It’s a parasprite. I saw one of these things when I was in Roam last summer. These little creatures have an insatiable appetite and as they eat they multiply at an alarming rate. In less than two days this one will have become thousands and have eaten almost all the food here.”
As Cadence continued to speak of her experience in Roam, Luna’s eyes went wide. Now she remembered where she had seen this creature before. She had created them!
-Flashback-
“It’s not fair!” screamed Luna as she slammed the door to her room shut. She was just a little filly, didn’t even have her cutie mark yet, but she slammed the door so hard that it nearly broke. Tears were rolling down her face as she ran to her bed. It was one of the few things in her room that gave her any comfort. She owned very little compared to her older sister.
While on the bed, she began to sob loudly as she reached for her prized possession: a teddy ursa. It was bright blue with a little white star on it. What had it special to her was that she had won at a carnival all by herself. Celestia had also tried to win it, but for the first time in the older sister’s life she had failed at something. This stuffed animal represented to Luna that she could beat her sister at something.
“Oh Teddy, you won’t believe what Celestia did today,” said Luna to her stuffed animal. The toy stared back at her blankly, but Luna continued as if it had asked her to continue. “She ate the last slice of my birthday cake! The one I had been saving with the big fancy L on it! Mommy even told her not to eat it but she did it anyways. And all she had to say for herself was that she forgot.”
For a moment the room was silent as Luna stared at her toy bear. She nodded several times as she wiped away her tears. She then jumped off the bed and went into her closet.
“You’re right Teddy, we need to teach her a lesson,” said Luna as she exited the closet. She was now wearing a white lab coat and black goggles. On her back was a small box that read ‘My First Monster Maker Kit’. This, once again, was another prize she had won at the carnival. “I’ll show her what it’s like to have your food eaten right in front of you. And who knows, I might get my cutie mark for this!”
With that Luna went to work. For several hours she mixed potion after potion and added various things into the mix. She wanted it to be small thus making it easier to handle so she used some parts of an insect like fly’s as the base. She then added an empty belly potion as well as a cutie potion to make the thing more appealing. When all was said and done, Luna had the first parasprite in a glass beaker.
“Well making this didn’t help me get my cutie mark,” said Luna as she looked at her flank for a moment. But as she turned her head, the parasprite began to squeeze its way out of the beaker and flew out the window. But the time Luna spotted this it was too late. “Wait, come back!” she yelled but it was too late. Her head dropped as she began to pack up her kit. She had used too much of the materials in it to try again. And as for the monster, how much harm could one of them really do.
-End Flashback-
“Oops,” said Luna softly. Luckily for her, no pony could hear her.
“Is this how you run your country?” demanded Gigawatt as he pointed an accusing hoof at Celestia. “Not only do you let a dangerous creature near our princess, but you didn’t even know it was a threat! How can you justify this?”
“Enough,” said Luna as she cast a shield around the parasprite so that it wouldn’t get away. “I do not expect my sister to control everything that moves in her land. And while I am disappointed that she has no knowledge of this creature, it is no cause for anger. Now, let us waste no more time and begin these proceedings.” Her senators bowed to her as Luna prayed she didn’t look as guilty as she felt.
As the group began to walk into the castle, Shining Armor took position right behind his princess and in front of the senators. This way, should something happen, he could cast a shield around them more easily. As they walked, he also heard one of Celestia’s nobles speaking in a hushed tone.
“Did you see that dress,” said the noble. “It’s so droll. Even country bumpkins have more fashion sense than that. If she thinks that’s good fashion then I’d hate to see how she manages a government.” Hearing that, Shining Armor slowed down a bit until he was walking next to the noble.
“I just wanted to say that you have a very large castle,” said Shining Armor as the noble raised an eyebrow. “It’s much larger than the one we have on the moon.”
“Ah, I see,” said the noble as a smug grin appeared on his face. “We are very proud of it as well. No other kingdom in the land has a castle larger or more grand than ours. I’m sure that your castle on the moon is…cozy, but nothing says power like a large castle.”
“Or the need to overcompensate for one’s shortcomings,” said Shining Armor with a grin. The noble looked flustered for a moment as Shining Armor moved back into position.
-x-
“My hoof still hurts,” whined Twilight as she and her coltfriend walked down a long dusty road. Off to the side were rows and rows of apple trees. Shadow barked out a laugh.
“That’s what happens when you punch a stallion in the eye,” he said in good humor. “I never thought I’d live to see the day you’d do something like that.”
“Hey, did you really think I’d let Shining Armor say those things and get away with it?” demanded Twilight. Before the two had left for Ponyville, Shining Armor had pulled Twilight to the side to give his Big Brother Lecture. During this, he insinuated that Shadow might try to take advantage of a young and helpless mare like herself. This resulted in a shouting match that ended with Twilight ramming her hoof in his eye.
Shadow laughed again before looking up at the sky. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this. It’s a bit unnerving to look up and not see the stars. Do you think it’s always blue like this?”
“Maybe,” said Twilight as she too looked up. She hated to admit it but she felt a little lost without the stars. But it was nice to know that Shadow felt similar about it all.
As the two continued walking they soon came across a large farm, presumably the one that owned all of these apple trees. Feeling hunger the two decided to see if they could grab a bite to eat real quick. As they entered the farm ground they saw dozens of ponies working in the fields gather apples. Soon they were approached by an orange earth pony mare wearing a Stetson hat.
“Well howdy there,” she said in southern accident. “Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres. The name’s Applejack an’ it’s a pleasure ta meet ya. Y’all from Canterlot?”
“Sorry but no,” said Twilight. “Why would you think that?”
Apple Jack shrugged. “Well, Ah never seen neither of ya two before and we’ve been expecting somepony from Canterlot ta show up and check on the food preparations for tomorrow.”
“Well we are definitely not from Canterlot,” said Twilight. “Allow me to introduce ourselves. My name is Twilight Sparkle and this is Shadow Blade.” Applejack turned to look at Shadow and her eyes widened a bit when she saw his slit eyes. Applejack's eyes then darted to Shadow’s side and when she saw his bat wings she took a step backwards on instinct.
“Is something wrong?” asked Shadow. He knew that bat ponies were very rare; one being born to a Pegasus family was about one in a thousand. The scientists in the Republic had studied this occurrence and had decided that it was just a rare genetic mutation for more nocturnal activity. That being said, he had never seen any pony act in fear upon seeing him.
“N-Nothing’s wrong,” stammered Applejack. She then took a deep breath as she looked around as if to check possible escape paths. “Now, what can I do ya both for?”
“Well, we were wondering if we could get a couple apples,” said Twilight. Applejack nodded as she slowly backed up in the direction of an apple barrel that happened to be nearby. She then pulled out two and then walked back to the couple.
“That’ll be four bits,” she said. Twilight reached into her saddle bag and then pulled out the money before handing it to the farmer mare. Applejack took the money but frowned when she looked at it. It didn’t look like any bit she had seen before. First of all it was silver and not bronze. Second of all, on one side of the coin was a crescent moon while on the other was an odd looking palace. “Now what in the hay is this? Some kinda joke?”
“Is there something wrong?” asked Shadow.
“I think it’s our currency,” said Twilight as she face hoofed. She then looked at Applejack. “I promise we’re not trying to cheat you. There is actually a very simple explanation of all of this. We’re not from Equestria and I guess we never got our money changed.”
Applejack blinked for a moment. Twilight sounded like she was telling the truth. It also explained why she was hanging around with a bat pony. Customs must be different in other countries.
“Sorry about that,” said Applejack as she tried to smile. “Simple mistake is all. Do ya have any other way of payin’?”
“Well we have some gold,” said Shadow as he pulled out several gold nuggets from his bag. The gold had been given to them by Princess Luna as a ‘just in case’ measure. Turned out they needed it sooner than they had hoped.
“Well, ah reckon ah don’t have enough bits for change,” admitted Applejack. “Tell ya what, ya can have them apples on the house. An ah know a mare that might be able to help ya out. Ah got a friend named Rarity who might like ta buy that gold.”
“That’s very kind of you,” said Twilight. “But we don’t know where this Rarity pony lives.”
“That’s alright,” said Applejack. “I’ll ask my brother ta show ya the way.”
Big Mac walked silently as he led two newcomers to Carousel Boutique. On his back was Apple Bloom who was staring at the bat pony with wide eyes. Personally he didn’t want his baby sister to tag along, but knowing her she would have followed them anyways. And at least this way he could keep an eye on her if things turned sour.
It was just a little while ago when Apple Jack had come running up to him at full speed. Once she stopped, she began to talk quickly about two ponies that needed to be shown the way to Carousel Boutique. He asked her why she couldn’t do it herself and she replied that he would be more useful. He didn’t understand what she meant until he saw that one of the ponies was a bat pony. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the stallion and simply nodded. He would watch this one very closely. If he did anything fishy, Big Mac would put a stop to it quickly.
As they walked, Apple Bloom was crouched low as she stared at the strange pony. She had seen several pegasi before, but never one with bat wings or yellow slit eyes. Also he looked a little scary as well.
Meanwhile, both Shadow and Twilight were trying to make sense of the situation.
“They’re acting like they’ve never seen a bat pony before,” muttered Shadow in a low tone.
“Well maybe they haven’t” whispered Twilight. “Bat ponies are rare back home. They might not even have them here so it is possible that they are a bit nervous around you.”
“Maybe. But the way they’re acting is a little off putting. It’s like they expect me to attack them at any moment.”
“Excuse me,” said Apple Bloom as she got the couple’s attention. She was looking directly at Shadow. “But ah was wonderin’, are ya her special somepony?”
“Yes,” said Shadow slowly, not knowing where this was going. That question seemed to come out of nowhere. “Why do you ask?”
Apple Bloom shrugged. “Just curious I guess. Ya seem close, but not like a bother and sister thing.” She then paused for a moment. “So are you two from out of town? Are there more ponies like you around there?”
“Yeah, we are,” said Shadow. “We’re in town just for the Summer Sun Festival. And yes, there are other bat ponies out there. Just not a lot of us.” Big Mac let out a snort causing all the ponies to look at him. He then gestured with his hoof at a large building in front of them.
“We’re here,” said Big Mac as he walked over towards the door. Once he was right beside it he sat down life he was a guard dog or something. As he did, Apple Bloom rolled off his back. The little filly then walked over to the door and knocked. After a short while the door opened and revealed a small unicorn filly.
“Hey you’re Sweetie Belle, right?” asked Apple Bloom. “From my class?”
“Yeah,” said Sweetie Belle. “And you’re Apple Bloom. What’re you doing here?”
“A couple of folk’s wana talk ta your sister,” said Apple Bloom. She then looked behind her and Sweetie Belle did the same. Now both Twilight and Shadow were looking a bit nervous.
“So what do you need my sister for?” asked the little white filly. “Do you just need to talk to her or something?”
“I guess you could say that it’s business,” said Twilight with a small smile. The filly gave her the biggest grin anypony had ever seen. Sweetie then took a deep, deep breath.
“RARITY!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. It was so long and powerful that Twilight and Shadow were nearly pushed back. “YOU HAVE SOME CUSTOMERS! She’ll be here soon.”
Almost as soon as she said that, a figure came running towards them. At first, Shadow thought that it was a giant marshmallow that had grown legs. However it turned out to me a white unicorn with a purple mane. There was an angry scowl on her face as she stopped in front of the little filly.
“Sweetie Belle, this wasn’t what I meant when I said to contact me if I had any customers,” said the mare.
“But you also said not to leave,” said Sweetie Belle. “So what was I supposed to do?” Rarity face hoofed before turning to face Big Mac assuming that he was the customer. The red stallion, however, pointed behind her. The Ponyville dress maker turned around to look at the lovely young couple.
“I am so sorry about that,” she said quickly. “Now then why don’t you both come inside.” The two nodded and entered the boutique while the Apple siblings stayed outside. Once the door was closed, Rarity went right to business. “Now then, what can I do for you two dears? Are you looking for something fancy for tomorrow?”
“Not really,” said Twilight. “We were told you could help us exchange some gold for bits.”
“But of course darling,” said Rarity with a wide smile. “I have been meaning to get some gold around here for awhile to use in some lovely capes. This will actually save me some time. Getting a pony to run all the way to Canterlot to pick up gold up is just so expensive these days.”
As she spoke, Shadow pulled out the gold from his saddle bag and held it out in front of Rarity. As she took it with her magic, she noticed his eyes for the first time. Her mouth dropped for a moment but quickly regained her composer. Unfortunately for her both Shadow and Twilight noticed this.
“Why does every pony act like this?” demanded Shadow.
“Oh, I’m terribly sorry,” said Rarity. “It’s just that this is the first time I have ever seen a bat pony before. I-I have only seen them in pictures before now.” She also didn’t want mention the whole Dusk series thing to him. Most stallions had expressed their extreme hate for the series and she was sure that he would especially hate it.
“So what does everypony here have against bat ponies?” demanded Twilight. Rarity sighed as she walked over to her safe. Using her magic she began to spin the dial to put in the combination.
“You two must have been living a sheltered life not to know,” said Rarity as she opened the safe. “Every story I have ever heard about bat ponies have been less than encouraging. Mostly they are thieves.” Shadow’s eyes widened when he heard this. “Now I’m sure not all of them are bad. Most of them seem to just steal food or a pony’s saddle bag. But I hope you can understand why some ponies will have similar reactions.” Rarity turned around while levitating a heavy looking bag of bits. As she released it with her magic Twilight’s took a hold of it. “There you go. I gave you a little extra than what the current market price for that much gold.”
“Oh but you didn’t have to do that,” said Twilight.
Rarity shook her head in disagreement. “No, I absolutely insist.” She then suddenly got a gleam in her eye. “But, if you feel that strongly about it, there is something that you could do for me.”
Meanwhile, Big Mac and the two little fillies had been waiting outside for some time. The red stallion kept his ears open, listening hard in case something happened inside. If Rarity so much as screamed he would break down the door and show that bat pony the error of his ways. By his side, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom had been chatting amongst themselves. Big Mac wasn’t really paying any attention to what they were saying however.
It suddenly became quiet. Big Mac turned his head and saw both fillies were looking at him, as if they were waiting for him to say something. It took him a moment to realize that they had asked him a question. A moment later Apple Bloom sighed and gave her older brother a deadpanned expression.
“Ya weren’t paying attention, were ya?” she asked. Big Mac shook his head. “Alright, me and Sweetie Belle here were wonderin’ why ya don’t like Shadow. Has he done something wrong?”
“Nnope,” answered Big Mac.
“Then why ya bein’ so mean ta him?” Apple Bloom asked.
Big Mac sighed. “Ah never heard of no good bat pony. Bunch of liars and thieves.” The two fillies looked at each other for a moment before turning their confused faces back to Big Mac.
“Has Shadow ever stolen for you?” asked Sweetie Belle.
“Not yet,” was the stallions answer.
“But what if he doesn’t?” asked the white filly.
“Then that means ah never gave him the chance,” said Big Mac. Yet as he said this he began to wonder. If Shadow wanted to he could have swooped down into the apple orchard, taken as many apples as he wanted, and there would have been very little they could have done to stop it.
“So is it impossible for there to be a good bat pony?” asked Apple Bloom. “Ah mean, remember when ah come home from school that one time and told ya about how Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were being mean ta me? Ah said that they had ta of been born nasty by the way they acted and ya told me ah was wrong. That no pony was born bad, that they were just makin’ poor decisions. So why are bat ponies any different?”
Big Mac opened his mouth, but no words came out. He was stumped. What made it even harder was that Apple Bloom had used his own words against him. And, truth be told, she was completely right. Shadow had done nothing to deserve the treatment that he was getting from him. He had acted friendly and Big Mac had shown him nothing but distrust.
He was then broken out of his thoughts by a scream followed by laughter. The laughter of a stallion. ‘Looks like ah was right all along,’ he thought. ‘That Shadow fella was nothing but trouble.’ Narrowing his eyes, Big Mac bucked the door down. He raced into the boutique and his jaw dropped to the floor. Shadow was on his back laughing his head off while pointing a hoof at a figure standing next to Rarity. The figure was Twilight dressed in a dress that looked like somepony had vomited pink all over. Pink bows and ribbons were in the mare’s mane as well as her tail. It looked more like an outfit a filly would wear.
“Big Macintosh,” said Rarity as she looked over at the stallion. “I would appreciate it if you would refrain from breaking down my doors in the future. However, while you’re here, could you please give me your honest opinion of my latest creation? I was told that mares are looking for dresses to make themselves look a tad younger.” She then glared at Shadow. “When I asked this fellow what he thought he just fell down laughing.”
Big Mac looked at the dress for a moment before shaking his head no.
“Y-You should have seen Twilight when she saw what she was wearing,” said Shadow as he tried to control his laughter. “She took one look at that dress and just screamed.” His laughter continued until his marefriend chucked a mannequin at him.
“What’s with all the screaming,” said a loud voice. A moment later a bright pink pony came bouncing into Rarity’s shop. She looked at Twilight and grinned. “Rarity, are you making outfits for some pony’s cute-ceanera again? Because that looks just like the one I wore.”
“That’s it I’m taking it off,” growled Twilight. By this time Shadow had gotten back on his hooves, causing Pinkie’s attention to focus on him. He turned to look at her and her eyes widened. Shadow held back a groan and prepared for her to act out of fear. However, Pinkie pulled out a giant spotlight from out of nowhere, turned it on, and pointed it at Shadow.
“Ah, no sparkle?” said Pinkie in a slightly disappointed voice. “But I thought that all bat ponies sparkled.”
“By the star, why would you ever think that?” said Shadow as he raised his forelegs to shield himself from the light that was still on him.
“The Dusk series said that bat ponies sparkle,” said Pinkie like it was obvious. “That’s why they rarely ever go outside during the day. And you’re the first bat pony I have ever seen so I wanted to see you sparkle.”
“Please turn off that light,” barked Shadow. A moment later Twilight used her magic to turn it off. Before Shadow could thank his marefriend Pinkie’s face was inches from his at an alarming speed.
“Say, are you two staying here for awhile?” she asked.
“Just until tomorrow,” said Shadow. As soon as he said that the pink mare began to jump up and down like crazy.
“Well you can’t leave until I’ve thrown you a party!” she exclaimed. “No pony should ever have to leave Ponyville without having a party thrown for them. Even if they’re only staying one night. But don’t worry, I can whip one up in a couple of hours.”
“That’s very kind of you,” began Shadow, but he stopped when he felt a hoof being placed on his shoulder. He turned his head to see Twilight like she usually was in her natural beauty.
“It’s just that we have a lot we have to do today,” said Twilight as she gave Shadow a wink. “But, if you don’t mind, could you hold the party tonight? Maybe even outdoors?” Pinkie Pie’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head.
“That’s a great idea!” she exclaimed. “We can have all sorts of fun party game and have FIREWORKS!” She raced out the door only to come back a moment later. “Oops, I forgot to get your names. I’m Pinkie Pie.”
“My name is Twilight Sparkle,” said the purple unicorn. “And this is Shadow Blade.”
“Great!” cheered Pinkie Pie. “See you both tonight!”
-x-
“What’s that for?” asked Shadow as the pair made their way to the Ponyville hotel. Next to him was Twilight who was levitating a piece of paper and quill.
“I’m just making a score sheet so that we can evaluate Equestria better,” she replied. “So far I really want to give them a point for being friendly. It’s just they way they are treating you is giving me some pause.”
“Yeah,” agreed Shadow. “But at least Rarity was kind enough to explain the reason. And that pink mare didn’t even seem bothered by it. She was more disappointed that I didn’t sparkle.”
“Which doesn’t make any sense,” said Twilight with a scowl. As the two entered the hotel, Twilight decided that they needed to find more about Equestrian literature and culture.
“Hello there,” said the pony behind the counter. “How can I help you today?”
“We just need a room for the night,” said Twilight. She scanned the counter and spotted a newspaper. ‘Might as well see what’s going on in Equestria,’ she thought. “Also, can I please get a newspaper?”
“You’re in luck,” said the pony. “We have one room left. That will be twenty nine bits for the room. The paper will cost you one bit”
Elsewhere, as Twilight paid for the room and newspaper, a chariot pulled by pegasi landed in the middle of Ponyville.
“Ok, Equestria loses another point,” said Twilight. Shadow looked up from his menu to give her a curious expression. After leaving the hotel the two were beginning to get hungry and decided that they needed a proper meal. They managed to find a nice place and got a table outside. As soon as they sat down Twilight began to read the newspaper.
“Bad article?” he asked. Twilight just handed him the paper before picking up her own menu, grumbling all the way. Curious, Shadow began to scan the paper very quickly. Most of it seemed harmless. There was a weather report, something about a group call the Wonderbolts, and a couple of adds. But when he got closer to the bottom of the page he found what he was looking for. The article talked about a scientist named Professor Kettle who had just revealed his greatest invention: a steam engine. “You have got to be bucking kidding me.”
“See the problem,” said Twilight as she looked up from her menu. “The Republic has anti-gravity lift technology while Equestria is only now considering using steam power! I mean, I made a steam engine in magical pre-school!”
“The technology level difference is just too much,” said Shadow with a nod. “It will take them a decade or two just to begin to understand our tech, let alone use it. One wrong move and ponies could die. We should tell the princess about this in case Canterlot decides to not share this information.” Twilight opened her mouth to say something when their waiter walked up to them. The waiter was about to say something until he noticed Shadow, and his eyes narrowed a bit.
“Can I help you two?” he asked in a slightly cold tone.
“Ah yes,” said Twilight as she picked up her menu again. “I’ll try the spaghetti and hay bales.”
“And I’ll just have a fruit salad,” said Shadow as he put down the newspaper. Fruit salad was his normal order whenever the two ate out. It was just what bat ponies normally ate. He didn’t mind hay for flowers that much, but nothing satisfied him like nice, juicy fruit.
“What kind?” asked the waiter.
Shadow blinked in confusion. “There’s more than one?”
“We have garden fruit salad, tropical fruit salad, passion fruit salad, apple lover’s fruit salad, and Pinkie Pie fruit salad,” said the waiter.
“I guess I’ll try the tropical one,” answered Shadow.
“I will need to see that you can both pay,” the waiter said as he glared at Shadow. Twilight sighed as she pulled out their bag of bits.
“Would you like us to pay now so that we don’t eat and run?” asked Twilight with some venom in her voice. The waiter actually nodded and Twilight paid him. As he walked away, Twilight knew that he wasn’t going to get a tip! A few moments later their food arrived. As soon as they took their first bite. Both their eyes lit up.
“I have never tasted anything like this before!” exclaimed Shadow. “This is simply amazing.”
“We never had food like this back home,” agreed Twilight as she took another bite out of her meal. “Maybe they just prefer to perfect their culinary skills.”
Shadow nodded eagerly as he swallowed. “Man, if mom were here she’d give…” The excitement in Shadow’s voice faded as he realized what he was saying. Even after all these years, talking about his parents was still hard. He then felt a hoof touch his own and he looked up into Twilight’s caring eyes.
“I know how you feel,” she said with a slight half smile. “I miss them too.” She then paused for a moment, unsure what to say next. She then looked down at her food, used her magic to swirl some noodles onto her fork, and then hovered it in front of Shadow. “Here, try this.” Shadow smiled as he opened his mouth and took a bite.
For the next half an hour the two shared their meals with each other. It was a bit harder for Shadow to do it due to hooves, but he did his best. After all, if his marefriend was going to feed him he should at least try to do the same.
“I have got to get some more kiwi before we leave,” said Shadow. The kiwi had been the best part of his fruit salad. At least in his mind. Twilight had found it to be a bit on the tart side. “So, what’s the plan for the rest of the day?”
“Well I was thinking of talking to more ponies,” she said as she pulled out a scroll. “But I think it’ll just be more of the same. We have met some nice ponies, but they seem to all react badly towards you. So I’m a bit on the fence on were to put that point. Right now I have one for Equestria, one against, and one undecided.” Shadow opened his mouth to speak, but whatever he said was drowned out by another pony’s loud voice.
“What do you mean there is no room in this hotel for the Great and Powerful Trixie?” The two turned to see a light blue unicorn with a pointy hat and cape standing before a tanned earth pony.
“I-I’m truly sorry,” said the tanned pony looking rather timid and scared. “B-But when Princess Celestia contacted me, she asked if you could stay in the library.”
“Then you must have misheard,” said Trixie. “Do you honestly think that the faithful student of Princess Celestia would make the Great and Powerful Trixie sleep in a library of all places?! Trixie thinks not.”
“But what can I do?” asked the mayor. “I-” The tanned pony paused as Twilight walked up to them.
“Excuse me, but I couldn’t help but overhear the problem,” said the purple unicorn with a smile. “If you don’t mind I think I have a solution to our little problem.”
“Then tell Trixie,” said Trixie with a hint of annoyance.
“Well me and my coltfriend just got the last room at the hotel,” said Twilight. Trixie huffed and looked like she was about to shout at Twilight, but the student of Princess Luna continued. “But to be honest we would prefer something a bit…different. Seeing that you are unhappy with your arrangements, perhaps we could just swap rooms.”
Trixie blinked when she heard this. For the first time in a long time, she was speechless. But it was for a short time. Soon the arrogant unicorn cleared her throat as she turned to look at the mayor once more.
“It seems to Trixie that you, my dear mayor, are performing pitifully,” she said. “You are lucky that this stranger came along to save your flank.” She then turned to face Twilight and held out her hoof for the keys to the hotel room. A few moments later Trixie walked away without a single word of thanks. Not that Twilight really cared.
“Y-You gave away our room?” asked a wide eyed Shadow.
“Yep,” said Twilight with a happy nod. “Now we can look up a lot more information without looking too suspicious. I mean, how are we supposed to ask about holidays and other types of events without looking too weird? Looking up this information would be easier, but we are still supposed to get a feel for the ponies in Equestria. This way we get a place to stay, can continue to meet ponies all day, and when we are done we can go to the library and look through hundreds of books.”
“Well, yeah, that does make sense,” admitted Shadow. “But what about-” Suddenly a cap fell on his head. “What the hay is this?” He then heard a noise above him. Looking up, Shadow saw an angry looking Pegasus mare with a rainbow mane flying down towards him. Once he saw the problem, Shadow simply side stepped causing the mare to crash into the ground. This resulted in the creation of a small crater next to the couple.
“You jerk,” yelled the mare as she pulled herself out. “Give me back my hat!” With that she jumped into the air and landing in a battle position. Shadow did the same, ready to strike if she dared to attack him. The mare then lunged at Shadow with incredible. Shadow’s eyes widen as he quickly realized that she was much faster than Lightning Dust. In less than a second the Pegasus mare was an inch away from his face, ready to strike him with a right hook. Yet she found she couldn’t as a purple aura surrounded her.
“Remind me again who is supposed to be protecting who,” said Twilight as she kept the angry Pegasus at bay who was struggling to reach Shadow.
“Hey, I could have taken her,” said Shadow as he pointed at the mare. He then turned to face her. “If you had just waited a second I would have given you the damn thing back.” This caused the mare to stop all her movements.
“Really?” she asked. Shadow nodded as Twilight let her go. A few seconds later the hat was on its owner's head. “Sorry about that. I guess the wind blew off my lucky hat and I panicked. The name’s Rainbow Dash by the way.”
“I’m Shadow Blade and that’s Twilight Sparkle,” responded Shadow. He then looked a bit closer at the hat. “Who are the Wonderbolts?” Rainbow gave him a horrified expression.
“You have never heard of the Wonderbolts?” she asked, no demanded. “They are only the greatest flyers in all of Equestria! The best of the best! They’re going to be performing tomorrow during the Summer Sun Celebration! Isn’t that AWESOME?!” She then held out her hoof to Shadow as well as giving him her best ‘I’m sorry’ face. “No hard feelings, right?”
Shadow hesitated for a moment. He looked at Rainbow’s face and saw that her expression was genuine. Slowly he held out his hoof to shake hers.
“No problem,” he said. “By the way everypony’s been acting, I guess it’s natural that you’d think I stole your cap.”
Rainbow blinked. “What the hay are you talking about?” she asked. “The only reason I thought that was because I saw you wearing it.”
“You mean it has nothing to do with him being a bat pony?” asked Twilight. To be honest, she believed that Rainbow was pretending to be ignorant or something. However Rainbow just shook her head.
“Being a bat pony doesn’t make you bad,” she said. She paused for a moment and then looked very serious. “Look, I have a cousin named Color Scheme and she’s a bat pony too.” Both Shadow and Twilight’s eyes widened when they heard this. “When my aunt found out it was a big deal with the family. We all got together to tell her that we would stick by her no matter what happened. And Scheme turned out to be really nice and really cool. I remember back when I was in grade class she entered a painting in this contest and won first prize. But as soon as they found out she had bat wings they claimed she must of entered somepony else’s painting!”
“That’s awful,” said Twilight. She could only imagine what it must have been like for the poor dear. To work hard on something, win first prize, and then have everything taken away by stupid distrust.
“It was,” said Rainbow angrily. “It broke her heart for awhile. Heck, I was ready to go buck those judges in the eye!”
Shadow smiled. “Nice to know that she has somepony like you standing up for her.”
“Of course I’d stand up for her!” said Rainbow with a grin. “I’d never leave my family or friends hanging like that. Besides, she’s doing alright for herself. Ponies around here might not know it but she’s the one writing the X-Ponies comics! Color Scheme says that when she’s about to retire she’ll make her first and only appearance. There’ll be no way they can deny her skills then.”
A few minutes later the two bid farewell to Rainbow. While Twilight didn’t say anything out loud, she was beginning to think she had misjudged most of the ponies in this town. Maybe the Republic should join up with Equestria so that they could help fix the ponies feelings towards bat ponies. It was definitely something worth pursuing.
As they went to the market, Shadow and Twilight decided to split up for a while. While Twilight went to talk to some of the vendors Shadow went to see if he could find some kiwi seeds. If the talks broke down then he wanted to be prepared.
As he walked down the street he heard a commotion coming down one of the alleyways. For a moment he hesitated. Whatever was going on most likely wasn’t his problem. But at the same time he was a member of the Royal Guard. Even if this wasn’t his homeland, he just could let something bad go down when he was right there. Slowly he walked down the alley. As he got closer he spotted the source. It was just three fillies. Two of them, both earth ponies, were apparently bullying an orange Pegasus. Near the orange filly was a broken scooter.
“Ah look Silver Spoon,” said one of the earth pony fillies to the other. “She looks like she’s going to cry.”
“I know Diamond Tiara,” said Silver Spoon. “That is, like, so uncool.” They both began to laugh as the orange Pegasus tried in vain to repair her wheels. However, from what Shadow could tell, it was a futile gesture. The base was completely broken and looked like she had originally gotten it from a dumpster.
With a sigh, Shadow turned to leave. He had thought some pony was in trouble but it was just a couple of brats picking on a classmate. It was nothing for him to worry about. If he did get involved then the parents of all parties would get involved and they might ask some questions that could blow his cover. He felt bad for the poor girl but her situation wasn’t life threatening. In fact, solving it was simple. All the orange filly had to do was talk to her mother tonight about what happened.
However, what he heard next caused him to stop dead in his tracks.
“Look on the bright side,” said Diamond Tiara. “Now your mommy will buy you a new scooter. Oops, I forgot. You don’t have a mommy. You’re just some orphan that no pony wants. That makes you the lowest of the low. You’re just a blank flank gutter foal!” With that both earth ponies began to laugh cruelly at their victim.
A half second later the two bullies found a large figure standing in the way of the orange mare. They both looked up to see a pair of golden slit eyes glaring at the two. The figure then lifted his two large bat wings into the air. He opened his mouth to say something, but Diamond Tiara pushed Silver Spoon to the ground and ran away without ever looking back at the friend she had sacrificed to save her own plot. As for Silver Spoon, she heard the bat pony say “Run” and did as he commanded.
As the two left, Shadow turned to look at the poor filly who looked like she was about to use the remains of her scooter as a weapon. He gave a light hearted laugh and held out a hoof to show he meant no ill will.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “I just meant to give those two a scare. Maybe I went a bit overboard.” He then looked at the pieces of the scooter. “You know, if you want my marefriend might be able to fix that if you want.”
The filly’s eyes brightened instantly. “Really?” she asked. “That would be so cool.” She then smiled. “Sorry about being scared of you.”
Shadow shrugged. “I was going for scary,” he said with a laugh. “My names Shadow Blade. What’s yours?”
“Scootaloo,” she replied. Shadow grinned as he patted the filly on the head. As he did, however, he felt something that caused his eyes to widen.
Shining Armor let out a sigh of boredom as he stood guarding a large wooden door. The hallway was completely deserted. He didn’t even see one of the castle servants since he got here. If he had to guess, he’d say they were avoiding this area. The only time something had happened was when the pink alicorn had left to go to the restroom a few minutes ago.
Part of him wanted to be in the same room as Princess Luna and the senators. After all, he was brought down here to guard them. However, Celestia’s nobles had refused to allow Luna’s bodyguard into the conference room. One said that he might attack them on some silent command given by the night princess. Others simply believed that he had no place within those halls. Princess Luna, on the other hoof, said that she would not continue if she were to do so in a room that was full of Canterlot guards and she wasn't allowed to have one of her own to protect her. In order to please the pig headed nobles, Celestia ordered all guards to leave the room.
Even though he wasn't in the room, that didn't mean that Shining couldn't hear anything. From the moment they began their talks it had been one argument after another. The first point that they wanted to discuss was how the two sisters would divide their power. Prince Blueblood had several options for Princess Luna. One of them being in change of waste management. For Princess Celestia he had suggested thing like power over the courts, military, and various other high powered positions. Needless to say that Luna’s party wasn’t thrilled by this. It took awhile, but eventually both sides were able to come to an agreement.
The next big issue was the sharing of government secrets. The nobles wanted all high calcified documents handed over to them as soon as the deal was done. In turn, the senators asked for the exact same thing. Not a problem right? Wrong! The nobles responded by asking why they should give members of the ‘former’ Lunar Republic anything when they would no longer have any position of political power. This soon turned into a large debate that had been going on for several hours.
As for Shining Armor, he had to wonder if this was really worth it. He understood what Princess Luna was saying. They needed water, and if Discord or any other villains like him ever showed up again, having two alicorns working together might be their safest bet. That being said, they could easily just take the water. Heck, they didn’t even need to get it from Equestria! They could simply get it from one of the oceans on this planet, remove the salt, and be done with it. Also he doubted that anything could really threaten them.
Shining then heard a commotion going on. He looked down a hallway and saw several guards running towards the main entrance of the castle. The white unicorn frowned, wondering what was going on. He wanted to dismiss it at nothing at first, but as the number of guards going to the entrance kept increasing a feeling of dread began to grow within him. Were they under attack? No, if they were then the guards should have gone to the princesses to protect them. Perhaps an intruder?
The captain of the Shield Corps frowned. What should he do? His duty was to be nearby in case something goes wrong. Yet something was going wrong in the castle. He hesitated for a moment or two before his curiosity got the better of him. All he would do was see what was going on and, if it was something serious, offer a helping hoof. Spirit of cooperation and all that.
Quickly Shining galloped down the hallway in the direction he had seen the soldiers go. As he did, he began to hear a ruckus. Several times he paused as he tried his best to remember which way he should be heading. All these hallways looked the same to him. It almost made him feel like the first time he was at Luna’s castle.
After awhile he finally found where the noise was coming from. There weren't as many guards as he thought there should have been. The ones that were there were circled around something small on the ground. There was also what looked like a chief with a big, long moustache who was speaking very loudly.
“When will you start doing your jobs?!” the chief demanded angrily. “I found this…this rat in my kitchen! Now I will have to get the whole place sterilized!” The chief then kicked what was in the middle.
“Hey, how do you think we feel,” said one of the guards as he also gave the object a kick as well. “We don’t like pests like these in the castle.”
“Let’s just put it out of its misery,” said the voice of Iron Wall. “And we should be quick about it. If Princess Celestia found out then-”
“Found out about what?” demanded Shining Armor as he made his presence know. All the ponies stopped what they were doing and looked at him. Some even jumped, like they were caught doing something that they knew they shouldn’t. Yet they kept their circle as Iron Wall moved over to the white stallion.
“This isn’t any of your concerns,” said Iron Wall as he did his best to look intimidating. “Now, walk away and I won’t tell your princess that you left your post.” Shining looked at Iron dead in the eye, not flinching in the slightest.
“Move aside,” said Shining Armor. “Or else I will tell your princess about what I saw here. Whatever it is, I can tell that she wouldn’t be happy.”
Iron Wall wasn’t a stupid pony in the slightest. He was usually able to see sixteen moves ahead of his opponent as well as several different outcomes. Threatening him seemed to have little affect and violence wasn’t an option. Should anything happen to him, then Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would be pissed. Iron Wall knew that Shining was a captain of some kind. Having him sent to the hospital by their hooves could end up in an all out war. If Shining Armor really did follow through with his threat, there was a very good chance that the Princess might decide to investigate. All it would take was one pair of loose lips or a truth revealing spell for her to find out. Yet, if he showed him what was going on, the Lunar unicorn would understand and the matter would be kept quiet.
Or so he hoped.
“Very well,” said Iron Wall as he gestured to his troops to stand aside. They hesitated for a moment but then did as commanded. And what Shining saw nearly caused his heart to stop.
Lying there on the floor was an unconscious little filly no more than four or five. She was a bat pony with a midnight purple coat and a cream colored mane. He could see that she had several large bruises all over her tiny body. But that wasn’t the worst of it. She was thin, nearly skin and bones. Never before had he seen anypony looking like that. It was almost enough to cause him to vomit.
“Found this little rat in the kitchen stealing my food,” said the chief. “Knocked it out and called the guards to help me throw it into the trash were it belongs. But not before we make sure that it’ll never sneak its way back in.”
“No,” said Shining Armor.
“Excuse me?” asked the chief.
“No,” said Shining with more force. “I will not allow you to hurt this child anymore that it already has been! You are all disgraces to your uniforms!”
“Who are you to judge us?” demanded one guard. “We are simply taking care of a serious threat.”
“Yes,” said Iron Wall. “This thing snuck into the castle. Now, I don’t know how you moon ponies deal with dangerous intruders but around here we-” The captain got no further as he was slapped by Princess Cadence. She had just teleported in front of him and slapped him with her right hoof, nearly knocking him to the ground. “P-Princess Cadence?”
“I heard the noise and saw that Shining Armor wasn’t where I had last seen him,” said Cadence as she glared at Iron Wall. “So I got curious. Now imagine my surprise when I saw several grown stallions beating a clearly starving child!”
“But,” began Iron right before he was slapped again. This time, however, he hit the floor. As he looked up he saw the child being magically lifted onto Cadence’s back.
“Believe me,” said Cadence as she looked down upon Iron Wall. “Princess Celestia will be told about all of this. And action will be taken” She then looked at Shining Armor. “Will you please escort me to my room?” Shining Armor nodded.
-x-
“You want to look at what?” asked Dr. Blue Cross. He was right now in Cadence’s room which was nice and cozy. There was a large bed, a dresser, beauty station, desk, and a closet. But the room didn’t matter to him right now. He had apparently been summoned to tend to a bat pony child.
“I want you to treat this poor child and do all you can to help her,” said Cadence. The doctor grunted and while moving over to the bed he muttered that they should have just taken it to a vet. But he was the royal doctor. If the princesses asked him to treat somepony it was his duty to do so.
Yet as he worked, Shining Armor kept a close eye on him.
Blue Cross went to work right away. He first scanned her body with his magic to see if she had any broken bones. Luckily for her she had none. He then pulled a few pills out of his saddlebag and almost shoved them down her throat. After a few more minutes of treating her bruises he returned to the princess and Shining Armor.
“I gave…her, some nutrient pills,” he said with some hesitation. “She’ll live, but only if she starts to eat regularly again. I also used some of my magic to soothe her pain and heal some of her bruises.”
Cadence was about to say thank you when they heard a slight groan from the bed. Three heads turned to see that the little filly was slowly opening her eyes. At first she looked a bit confused, yet soon became afraid. She had no idea where she was or how she got there. Not only that there were three strangers in front of her. The poor girl cringed as she feared for the worst.
“Don’t be afraid,” said Cadence as she reached out a hoof to the girl. The bat filly whimpered and began to shake. “I promise we won’t hurt you. Would you please tell me your name?”
“It,” whispered the bat pony. “That’s what everypony calls me.” She then began to cough and Blue Cross used his magic to put her to sleep.
“She needs her rest,” said the doctor as he moved towards the door. “I’ll write you up a list of foods to feed…her, and an eating regimen.” As the doctor exited the room, two more ponies came in. Two alicorns.
“Shining Armor, why were you not at your post?” asked Princess Luna with a slight frown. She then noticed the other two occupants in the room. And when she noticed the condition of the child, her eyes went wide in horror. Shining Armor began to tell her the whole story, being as brutally honest as he could. Yet as he spoke, memories of a thousand years ago began to wash over Luna as she stared at the sleeping child. She could smell fire and soot all around her. She could hear the cries of ponies calling for the death of the monsters. The cries of foals who had lost their parents.
“This is just awful,” said Celestia once Shining Armor had finished his story. “I never thought that things were getting this bad.”
“I was a fool,” said Luna softly.
“Sister?” asked Celestia. Luna turned to face her older sister and glared at her with a look of utter hate.
“I was a fool to think that you and your ponies had changed! A thousand years and you are making the same mistakes! The only difference is that you have found a new target. And what are you doing to fix it? The same as before: nothing!” Luna then turned her back on a flabbergasted Celestia.
“Sister wait,” Celestia managed to say. Luna paused for a moment. She wanted to leave right then and there. However, Twilight and Shadow were still in Ponyville. If she acted too rashly then it would make things more difficult to get them in the long run.
“We shall remain here until the morning as we had promised,” said Luna without looking at Celestia. “We shall both make the announcement that there will be no merger between our nations and then we will leave. After that, dear sister, you shall never contact me again. I hope that is clear.” And with that, Princess Luna left the room.
Luna sighed as she laid on her bed. The room Celestia had given her was an exact replica of the one she had a thousand years ago. It probably wasn’t very hard to do seeing that she had left nearly all of her personal possessions at the old castle when she left. When she left with her ponies she told them to take only the items they needed to survive and she did as well.
Next to her pillow was Teddy, still in the same condition she had left him in. It truly brought back memories of the past, both good and bad. Of all the things she missed it was this one stuffed animal. It was pleasant to see something good was still around after all these years. Perhaps she would take it with her when she returned to the moon.
A frown appeared on her face. Once again, she would be leaving to go to a desolate, freezing sphere in the middle of space to escape the hatred of the ponies who worshipped her sister like she was some kind of god. She had hoped that they had changed, but it seems the Celestia’s ‘plan’ was still ongoing.
She could still remember the day when her patience with her sister reached its end.
-Flashback-
Luna shuffled through document after document as she skimmed each one. Most of them were from the nobles, complaining about various things. ‘Perhaps I need a secretary,’ she thought to herself. ‘I’ll have her sort out the letters from the nobles from the ones that really matter.’ That brought a hint of a smile to the lunar princess’s face.
But truth be told she was already very happy. Never before in her long life did she have so many ponies showing interest in the night. There were the bat ponies, of course, who had been the first of her short list of supporters. Yet over time it began to grow. Poets, scientists, and thinkers of all kinds now to seemed active during the night. Their reasons varied, but still they were out and about under the night sky.
There were even those ponies that came to her for help. Several times normal, common ponies came to the Night Court asking for an audience with her. It seemed that one of the nobles had raised their taxes by an extra fifteen bits a pony. They came to Luna because the nobles usually kept ponies like them away from Celestia, but slept during the night. She knew she had passed by a document from said noble detailing how he didn’t like the fact the Luna had order an investigation of his finances. She had just gotten the results and found out the extra tax money was going to the stallion’s mistress. She looked forward to handing the result to Celestia as well as his wife.
There were also letters from various commons in this pile. Most of them were asking for some kind of help. Like, for example, from a family of earth ponies that were asking for help so that their daughter could get an education. Normally an education was reserved for the nobles and the super wealthy. However, whenever Luna read something like this she felt like that was wrong. Knowledge was the right for anypony who wants it. Sadly, even though she was a princess, there was a limit to what she could do. So to letters like this one she would respond by telling the family to bring the child before her for an evaluation. In indeed the child does have potential, then she would arrange for the child to receive a scholarship.
But her favorite letters were always thank you letters from the children. Some would even send her a hoof drawn picture that she would later put in a scrapbook.
Among these documents were also the answer to a few petitions she had sent to her sister. One of them, in her opinion the most important, was for the creation of a research and development division. She wanted to start expanding what other ponies could do without the use of magic. One pony had come to her with an idea of something called an ice box. Normally, if a family wanted to preserve food they needed a unicorn whose special talent was ice magic or something like that and pay a heavy amount of bits for their service. But this idea would put them out of business and create several new jobs in the process. Now she wanted an entire group of ponies thinking up new ideas for both magic and science. Just think how much better Equestria would be!
The doors to her court opened with a loud bang. Looking up, she saw her most trusted adviser Starlight Sparkle. The purple unicorn ran right up to her like she was being chased by timber wolves, stopped before her, and bowed quickly.
“Princess *pant* Luna, there is trouble *pant* in Hoofshire,” she said quickly.
“What does thou mean?” said Luna quickly as she set down her documents.
“I received a document by magical flame,” said Starlight who was catching her breath. “A mob has appeared and is attacking your supporters.” Luna’s eyes widened in fear as she quickly stood. There was no time for questions, only action. Every moment she wasted meant that there was a chance that ponies were dying. Behind her were her two guards, both bat ponies, with Starlight taking up the rear.
“We want every pony in thy Night Guard to get down there as soon as possible in flying chariots,” commanded Luna as Starlight took note. “Be sure they are not only armed for the worst, but also bringing with them relief aid. There will no doubt be ponies that are injured. We demand as well that blankets and tents brought as well. While you do this, we shall go ahead of thee.”
Starlight said no objection. Princess Luna and her two guards were the fastest night fliers in the kingdom. If anypony could reach Hoofshire in time it would be them. So, with a bow, Starlight left to go and do as her princess had commanded.
As Luna flew through the night sky, the red moon felt ominous this night. ‘Her supporters’ as ponies like Starlight would call them had been facing many hardships over the years. It had started with mild curiosity as to why any pony would want to be awake when the sun went down. Nothing bad really, however as time went the ponies that slept during the day began to distrust the ponies that stayed up past sundown. And that distrust slowly became hate.
Luna had no idea why this was. For once she had subjects that loved her like they loved Celestia, and they were being hated for that. In some corner of the princess’s mind she blamed herself. In a way, she was the cause of her subjects suffering. It was cruel and unfair for neighbors to turn on each other like this. Her only hope was that no pony would be seriously hurt before it ended.
Within the hour the three ponies reached the skies above Hoofshire. It was a small town with a population of a hundred or so. But tonight the streets seemed crowded and four large fires that seemed like beacons. As the three got closer she realized to her horror that they were not bonfires but homes set aflame. Quickly Luna dived downwards and her guards followed. As they descended the crowd began to scream and disperse. The night princess could hear ponies yelling that monsters were coming but she paid them no mind. They soon stood before a large home bathed in orange flames. And inside she saw the unmistakable form of movement from within.
“Night Owl, Sonic Echo,” she called to her two guards. “Get to the other homes and try to rescue as many as thou can.” The guards began to argue, but an angry glare from her silenced the two.
As her guards left, Luna charged into the inferno. Smoke was everywhere, making it hard for even one like her to breath. The heat was unbearable causing her to wondering how anypony could still be alive. Everything seemed to be caught in flames and she could hear the building beginning to give way. Common sense and self preservation told her to get out, but instead she moved upstairs where she had seen the movement.
When she reached the top of the stairs she was greeted by a wall of flames. She began to bat her wing and using a bit of magic caused it to vanish, if only for a while. She had one spell that could easily put out all the flames at once, but it involved removing all the air in the area. Using it would end up killing anypony that was still in here.
A moment later she found who she was looking for. It was a stallion earth pony, covered in ash. In his mouth was a young foal. Luna moved over to him and started to cast a teleportation spell only to find herself unable to due so. Her eyes widened in fear and rage as she realized that somepony must have thought something like this would happen and prepared accordingly. The stallion, on the other hoof, set his son down.
“Princess, please get my son out of here,” he begged.
“We shall get both of thee out,” said the princess but the stallion shook his head.
“My wife is still up here,” he said. “I’m going to go back and get here. We’ll be right behind you.” There was no time to argue. Luna quickly picked up the foal and made her way out of the house. And as she galloped out the house finally collapsed.
“Look, she’s eating a foal,” Luna heard somepony whisper. “What kind of monster is she?” Looking around, Luna could see ponies peaking out their windows. She wanted to growl in frustration but the child in her mouth kept her from doing so. These ponies called her a monster, but they were the most likely ones who started the flames. And even if they didn’t, they just stood back and watched. As Luna’s rage began to build her two guards returned, both looking worse for wear.
“Princess Luna,” began Night Owl, not even bothering to bow. “The other homes have burned to the ground. There were no survivors.”
“There was one,” said Luna as she gently placed the child on the ground. She looked at the child and her face softened for a second. He was breathing and as soon as Starlight and the others got here she would make sure this foal was taken care of. And soon after that, justice would be delivered. “This town shall be placed under martial law! If any pony leaves their home they are to be placed in shackles until an investigation is completed!”
“I beg your forgiveness princess,” said Sonic Echo with a loud gulp. “But the law states that b-both princess must approve martial law being placed on any city in Equestria.”
Luna glared at him, causing her guard to flinch. Then her expression softened a bit. He was right and only doing his job. It was the law after all. And when the sun came up, something would be done.
-End Flashback-
Luna was then pulled out of her thoughts by a knock on her door. Wordlessly, Luna used her magic to open the door and a moment later Princess Cadence walked in.
“Good afternoon Princess Luna,” she said. Her cheerful voice sounded forced, yet still pleasant. “I hope I am not interrupting you.”
“Only my thoughts,” said Luna as she got off the bed. “Displeasing ones at that. An interruption to them is most welcome. Now, what brings you to my door?”
“Well, I wanted to get your opinion on something,” she said as she pulled out a parchment and held it up in front of Luna magically. “Doctor Blue Cross gave me a diet for the filly in my room. But, to be honest, the way he was treating her made me think that maybe-”
“He doesn’t have her best interests in mind,” finished Luna with a sad smile. “And you want me to look over what he gave you.”
“I am really sorry to be asking you this,” said Cadence. “But I really don’t know who else to ask.”
“There is nothing for you to worry about,” said Luna as she took the list. She gave it a once over and then sighed. “And you are right in doing so. It doesn’t look like the doctor meant any ill will, but his lack of knowledge of what bat ponies eat is very clear. ‘Fresh blood’ is not at the top of their menu. Juicy fruit is what the poor dear needs. The juicier the better.” With that, Luna magically pulled out a quill and began to make changes.
“I’m glad I came to you,” said Cadence with a relieved sigh. “I was worried that my first steps into motherhood would be short lived.” Luna, in shock, dropped everything onto the floor.
“W-What was that?” she asked.
“You didn’t think I was going to patch that poor filly up and then send her on her way, did you?” she asked. “No! I have already called my lawyer to get the forms needed to adopt her as my daughter. She will need a better name than ‘It’. Maybe Moonflower or Midnight Blossom.”
“Both would make good names I think,” said Luna as she picked up what she had dropped. “But aren’t you worried about the nobles? Surely they will not sit ideally by and allow this?”
“Well they can go buck themselves,” said Cadence. “I’m not just going to sit back and allow this to happen without doing anything.” She then gave Luna an odd look that made the Moon Princess feel…uncomfortable. “I mean, even if you take all the bat ponies with you, things won’t really change. They will still be born and they won’t have the option of running away from their problems.”
Luna narrowed her eyes. “Is that what you think I’m doing? I did what I had to do back then and it was the right choice! Do you think I didn’t try to fix things? It wasn’t easy back then. I did what I did to save lives.”
“And so you left, leaving Auntie Celestia to deal with the problem all by herself,” said Cadence who didn’t back down. “She-”
“Did nothing,” said Luna quickly. “Like she always does. Always sending some other pony to try and fix the situation. Always making a gamble of some kind. Did you know that we knew about the horrors going on in the Crystal Empire for three years? THREE YEARS?! Day one I wanted to go down there and show Sombra a thing or two. To have his horn cut off and placed in a cell for the rest of his life. But my dear, kind sister refused. She tried to talk with him. Reason with him. And each time she talked with him she came back saying that he would think about it. Think about ending his slave labor of the crystal ponies. Think about reducing his armies. For three years he and my sister danced around each other until finally I grew tired of it all. And as I got there, it was then that Celestia had a change of heart. But rather than ending his life then and there for all the unspeakable crimes he had committed, Celestia in her GREAT WISDOM wanted him turned into shadow. And how did that work out for the crystal ponies? Oh, that’s right; they are lost until he returns!” Luna then paused to take a breath.
“Yes, it is good to show mercy and be kind. To think the best of everypony. But just doing that is a poor way to run a government. Sometimes it just allows them to run amuck until somepony gets hurt. She relies on the same old things to solve her problems when she lets them get too big. The Elements of Harmony and me. That’s what this is all about.”
For a moment, neither pony spoke. Outside a storm had been growing, fueled by Luna’s rage at her sister. For the first time in a long time, she had been able to get these feeling off her chest. But Cadence kept her eyes on Luna not flinching in the slightest.
“I don’t know about the Elements,” said Cadence. “And I don’t know what happened between the two of you. What I do know is that sisters are supposed to help each other. For a thousand years you hid on the moon, knowing that there was a problem in Equestria. Did you ever try to help? Ask to see how she was doing? You could have done so much, but instead looked over a selected few. And when you leave here, Celestia won’t be alone with this mess anymore. I’ll be here trying to help her.”
And with that, Cadence left the room. And Luna just sat there alone with her thoughts.
Celestia had not left the room since Luna had left. She just sat there, staring at the bat filly while tears ran down her face. They just would not stop.
‘A thousand years and still things like this are happening,’ thought Celestia. She had thought that things had improved since Luna had left, that her subjects were making better decisions. She had spoken out against the poor treatment of bat ponies and encouraged her subjects to treat them with respect. But that was all she did. She passed no new laws nor did she set up any new organizations. She believed that her subjects would act on her words only. And with staring at the results, she could no longer deny that that what she had done was enough.
Now she understood why Luna was so upset that day.
-Flashback-
Celestia awoke early, as she always did, and moved over to the balcony where she raised the sun. As the sun rose, she could not help but marvel over the kingdom that she ruled over with her sister. Everything seemed to be so calm and peaceful. Their subjects were able to run and play all day in relative peace. Truly, Equestria was a wonderful place to live.
There was a sudden knock on her door. Before she could say or do anything it opened and in came Lord Divine Right. He was a white unicorn with a dark red mane. Normally he would never enter her private chambers like this which caused Celestia to grow concerned.
“Princess Celestia,” he said with a bow. “I bring word of your sister’s actions. She took her Night Guard and went to Hoofshire last night. She now demands that it be placed under martial law.”
“Does thou know why?” asked Celestia.
“No my princess,” said Divine. “But her actions late have caused me and my fellow nobles to wonder if she has the kingdoms best interests at heart. She treats some of us like we are common criminals. She constantly speaks to the common pony and treats their words like they were made of gold. She seeks to undermine magic with more of this, oh what’s the word, science I think. And then there is the fact that her main guards are those…those things!”
“The bat ponies are also subjects of Equestria,” said Celestia gently. “They have as much right to live here as any other pony.”
“If you insist,” said Divine in a less than thrilled tone. He then let out a short sigh. “Now than, I hope you will talk to Princess Luna on our behalf. She is still in the royal court chambers.” Celestia nodded and then proceed out of the room.
To a point she could understand what Divine Right and others like him were getting at. Luna acted far too quickly without considering other options. Their subjects needed to learn to solve their own problems from time to time. Luna had some ideas for replacing some things with her science, but Celestia felt that things were fine the way they were. What if some of the things that science created would later harm them down the road? As for the bat ponies, well she did find them sort of intimidating. Most stories that were spread about them, ones that dated back to when she was a filly, said that they were born under and evil star and would drain the blood of good, decent ponies. But despite these stories, Luna sought them out and made them part of her guard and after a time even Celestia saw that they were nothing to be afraid of.
When she reached the main court chambers, she found Luna in there pacing back and forth. Near her was a small colt sleeping peacefully. As soon as Celestia walked in Luna turned to her.
“Sister,” she said quickly. “We must place Hoofshire under martial law! There isn’t a moment to lose!”
Celestia raise a hoof to silence her. “Not before I hear the reason why.” Frowning Luna nodded and proceeded to tell her story. She told of how Starlight Sparkle informed her of the mob and that when she arrived several homes were set aflame. A shiver went down her spine as Luna told her about the father who stayed behind to try and save his wife only to die in the flames. But not before giving his son to Luna. “Thy story is…most unsettling.”
“Then you should agree that we must respond to this quickly,” said Luna hopefully. “I believe that most of the town was in on it. Marshal law will help contain the problem, allow the guard to perform interrogations swiftly, and send a strong message to all other who would do the same.”
“I…disagree,” said Celestia. “Martial law seems a bit harsh for a one time event.” Luna’s ears flattened as she glared at her sister. Seeing this, Celestia decided to elaborate. “Right now it does look like a large group did this intentionally. But what if it was only one in the crowd? Or perhaps it was just an accident. And does thou know that many ponies are buying anti-teleportation charms and placing them in their home? It is a way of keeping out unicorn thieves.”
“Then tell me, what does thou propose?” she demanded.
“You can look for evidence,” said Celestia. “But until you can bring some back, I can’t in good conscience allow marshal law. But what we can do is speak out against this tragedy. Let’s say at the next Hearth’s Warming pageant.”
“But that is two months away,” said Luna angrily as she turned to look away from her sister. “And while I waste time, the criminals could move to the next town and strike again! What then? We add them to the list of tragedies that we could prevent?!” She paused and looked at her sister. “I can’t accept that! How many fathers will be taken away from their children while we just sit on our plots? How many mothers will have to bury their children because they liked to go out at night? What will I tell them when they come to me looking for answers and hope that their leaders are doing everything in their power to stop this?”
“Luna, I know this is hard,” said Luna. “I know you feel like acting now might help. But until we find a way to stop the underlying problem then it will never go away. And that will take time. We can’t force our subjects to change.” Luna took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them, there was a look of determination.
“One of the first things I learned from mother was the reason governments were formed,” she said. “It was to protect those under them. That’s what all of our laws and soldiers are for sister. Pretty words done during a holiday won’t stop this from happening again.” She then pointed to the sleeping colt. “And I refuse to allow something like this to happen again!” She then paused for a moment as she lowered her hoof. “Tell me something. If the situation had been reversed, would you be saying the same thing?”
Celestia could not hide the shock on her face. How could Luna even suggest such a thing? Did she think that she was playing favorites? Sure, it hurt that some of her subjects were spending less time during the day and looking to Luna for advice. Sure, she might have felt a little betrayed but that didn’t mean she wanted them dead. Did she?
“No sister,” said Celestia after a moment. Perhaps a moment too long.
“Then I will do you a favor sister,” said Luna as she began to walk out the door. “I will make sure that you never are faced with the same situation. I shall speak with those who dwell during the night. Together we shall find a route that will not lead to a civil war. And I shall do this without your delayed help.” And with that she left Celestia alone.
-End Flashback-
That was the last time the two talked as co-rulers of Equestria. Now, staring at this child, Celestia realized that she should have put her hoof down a bit more. She could have tried to do something other than speaking out against this racism more than once in a while. She knew about the problem but was waiting for her own subjects to figure it out on their own.
Celestia heard the door open slowly. The sun princess raised her head to see that it was her sister who was looking a bit nervous.
“Hi,” said Luna slowly as she walked into the room. A moment later she sat next to Celestia. “Um, I was thinking of contacting one of my doctors on the moon. We have technology that would speed up her recovery.” But Celestia said not a word. “Well then, I guess I better tell the senators about what happened.”
“Luna,” said Celestia as her sister got up to leave. “You were right.” Luna’s ears stood up straight and her eyes went wide. She turned to face her sister with a look of shock. This was the first time in her entire life that Celestia had ever said that.
“S-Sister?”
“I didn’t want to believe what you were saying was true,” continued Celestia. “There was a time when my words alone could cause our subjects to listen to reason. But as time went on they stopped hearing my words. They still listen, but they do not hear. Then they began to ask my why bat ponies were so different, but I had no answer. And when I couldn’t they made up their own reasons. I tried to tell them it didn’t matter but to them it did. And now I am looking right at the results of everything I haven’t done in the last thousand years.”
For a while, neither spoke.
“I will tell you right now sister,” began Luna, “you messed up. Part of me wants to leave in disgust while another part of me wants to stay only long enough to collect those who wish to join the Lunar Republic.” Celestia’s tears began to fall even faster as she heard this. “But there is a small part of me that…still wants to help you. To give you one last chance.” Celestia turned her head to look at her sister so fast that it might have snapped off. “But it will cost you sister.”
“Yes, of course,” cried Celestia happily.
Luna pointed a hoof at the filly. “First off, you start dealing with this. I want it over as soon as possible. Second, I will be in charge of the military as well as overseeing all technology from the moon. It will fall to me to decided what goes to Equestria and when. And finally, I want half of your nobles replaced with my senate until their term ends. Then we can have a more proper election and slowly replace the nobles.”
“T-That seems a bit too fast,” began Celestia but a glare from Luna caused her to stop. “But very well. It is good to have you back sister.”
“Do not get the wrong idea,” said Luna. “I am only coming back to fix this mess you have made. I am still very angry at you. It will take a long time for me to trust you again. And if I find out that you are hiding or plotting something I will leave.” Luna then got up and began to head to the door. “Now to get a real doctor in here.”
-x-
Applejack grumbled as she walked into the kitchen. A few minutes ago the unicorn from Canterlot had finally shown up. Once she did she looked over the food, made several snide remarks, and told her to redo everything by morning. If she were any other pony, Applejack would have bucked that Trixie girl in the head.
As Applejack opened the oven to pull out some pans, Pinkie Pie jumped out of it with several balloons.
“Hey there Applejack!” yelled Pinkie as Applejack stumbled backwards.
“Pinkie Pie, what in tarnation are you doing in there?” yelled Applejack as she got up. Pinkie just grinned.
“I’m here to invite you to a party,” she said. Applejack, despite herself, grinned back. What pony didn’t like a good party.
“Well that’s nice,” she said. “Who’s it for?”
“Three ponies who just got into town,” said Pinkie. “Twilight, Shadow, and Trixie.” Applejack felt the color drain from her face.
“A party for them?” asked Applejack with a raised eyebrow. “You sure? Twilight seems nice and all but that Trixie is a real character. And that bat pony-”
“Oh, you mean Shadow?” said Pinkie as she tilted her head to the side. “Are you upset that he doesn’t sparkle to?”
“What? No! Don’t you know what they say about bat ponies?” asked Applejack. Pinkie shook her head no.
“Oh don’t worry, she’ll be there,” came the voice of Granny Smith. Applejack turned around to see her grandmother standing at the door of the kitchen. “Applejack, can ah see ya for a moment.”
Applejack nodded and went to follow her granny. Pinkie Pie just shrugged as she bounced out the door. In the next room Granny pulled out an old photo album.
“Ah probably should of shown you this years ago sugar lump,” said Granny as she turned the pages. She stopped on a page showing the family farm back when she was just a little filly. Applejack looked at the photo, trying to see what Granny was trying to show her. It was just the family and what looked like a farm hand. But after a moment, she noticed that the farm hand had bat wings.
“G-Granny what’s a-” began Applejack, but Granny placed a hoof on her shoulder.
“Back when the farm was gettin’ off the ground, my pa needed an extra set of hooves,” said Granny as she looked fondly. “It was back when the first crop of apples came in. He was a drifter, flying around the country where there were no towns, foraging for food. He saw our farm and asked to work for food. My ma uneasy around him but my pa said we needed the extra hoof. He stayed with us for two years until the town began to form. Pa said he could stay as long as he wanted but he declined. Said he liked us too much to let us go under just because ponies didn’t like him.”
“Because he was most likely a thief,” said Applejack. Granny, oddly enough, nodded.
“He admitted to me once that he stole a couple times in his life,” she said as she put away the album. “I asked him why and he said that nopony would hire him. I asked why and he told me he only stole because no pony would hire him. It’s a vicious cycle. So please sugar lump, give a pony a chance before ya pass judgment.” And with that, Granny Smith left the room.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” asked Legally Binding, lawyer to Princess Cadence. “It’s not too late to change your mind!”
“I am sure,” said Cadence as she signed the last document. There were both in her room as she finished filling out the adoption paperwork. Also in the room was Celestia and Shining Armor who were watching over the sleeping filly as they waited for Princess Luna to arrive with a doctor from the moon. There was also Dr. Blue Cross who was also checking on his patient.
Legally let out a sigh. “Very well then,” he said as he began to look over the paperwork. “Everything seems to be in order. All I need now is a name for the…filly, and she’s all yours.”
“I think I will name her Midnight Blossom,” said Cadence. Legally shrugged and he took note of the name. He then gathered up the papers that were his, put them in his saddle bag, bowed to the princess, and then left the room.
A few moments later the door opened again to reveal Princess Luna with another walking behind her. She was a grey earth pony with a dark red mane. Her cutie mark was covered due to the white lab coat that she wore. Also, there was what looked like a four foot egg floating behind her.
“Allow me to introduce Dr. Healing Touch, one of the finest doctors of the Republic,” announced Luna. Rather than bow to the royalty in the room, Healing Touch simply nodded before walking over to the patient. Frowning, she reached into her coat pocket and pulled out what looked like a metal popsicle stick. She then placed it above Midnight’s head and a light blue light began to appear from the bottom of the device. Slowly she began to move it down her body.
“Princess, this is a waste of time,” said Blue Cross. “She’s not even a unicorn. How can she treat wounds or search for wounds without magic! I have already looked at the…filly and given her the best treatment there is.”
“Then I take it you have already treated her for parasites?” asked Healing. The heads of all three princesses looked up and stared at the Republic’s doctor for a moment with wide eyes.
“W-What was that?” asked Blue Cross. “S-She doesn’t have any parasites! I would have known!”
“According to this,” said Healing as she showed them her metal device, “this little filly’s small intestine is full of them. Poor dear must be in a lot of pain right now. I assumed that’s why you place a sleeping spell on her.” She then put the scanning tool away before checking her coat pockets for something else. She pulled out what looked like several pens until she found the one she was looking for. She placed this pen at the neck of the filly and when it did everypony heard a slight hissing noise. “There we go. The nanomachines will take care of the pests.”
“What are nanomachines?” asked Cadence as she looked at Midnight. “Will they hurt her?”
“Oh no,” said Healing as she shook her head. “Nanomachines are these tiny little machines that are no bigger than the tip of a pencil. The ones I injected into her will seek out and destroy the parasites as well as any eggs that they placed in her body. Once they had done that they will make sure that they are removed from the body.”
“Impressive,” said Celestia with a nod. “But why not leave them inside her body to help heal all of her wounds? Is that not possible?”
“Oh it is possible,” said Healing with a slight laugh. “In fact we have nanomachines that heal all sorts of wounds. But there is a slight problem with just leaving them inside a pony’s body. See, when we were first starting out we just injected a patient with nanomachines that were programmed to heal all wounds. At first there were no problems until one pony’s heart stopped. Turned out the nanomachines did that in order to enact repairs. Once they were done they started up the heart again, but by that time it was too late. The brain had gone too long without oxygen causing damage. The patient lost all of her memories, making her a blank slate.”
“And you put those things inside her?!” demanded Cadence.
“You misunderstand,” said Healing quickly. “After we discovered this, we tried to fix the problem. But it was hard to teach a machine to protect a sense of self when they didn’t know what that meant. It’s very complicated. In the end we gave up and just made them to take care of specific problems like those parasites. They are also programmed to stay away from places like the heart and brain. Finally, to make sure there are no other problems, after they are done they are to exit the body.”
“I see,” said Cadence with a relieved sigh. “I’m sorry.”
“No need to be sorry,” said Healing as she reached into her coat and pulled out a thin black box. “It just goes to show how much you care.” The doctor then pressed a button on the black box and the egg began to move. A line appeared down its middle and began to move downwards until it was at the halfway point. Then the upper half of the egg split open. Healing picking up Midnight and placed her into the open device where she simply floated in midair. Once she was set, the device closed.
“What the buck is that?!” demanded Blue Cross.
“It’s a revitalization chamber,” said Healing Touch. “I would go over how it works but that would be too complicated. Lets just say it will have her up and walking around in an hour or so.” Healing then looked at Cadence. “But I must warn you that it is not a permanent solution. She will need to start eating more or else she will quickly return back to her original state.”
Cadence nodded as she walked over to the strange floating egg, fully intending to wait for her new daughter. She heard Luna say something about informing both parties as to what was going on. Celestia agreed and soon all of them left. She turned, however, when she heard somepony cough. Shining Armor had stayed behind.
“Don’t you have to guard Princess Luna?” asked Cadence with a raised eyebrow.
“You shouldn’t worry about it,” he said with a slight grin. “Besides, I think I’m more needed here. Plus I can keep you company.” Cadence allowed herself a small smile. To be honest, she felt safe around him. It felt…right. She then looked at the device and frowned as a thought appeared in her head.
“You have such great technology,” she said. “But you still have a need for a machine like this.”
“Actually no,” said Shining as he walked next to her. “Machines like this one are rarely used. In fact, now that I think about it, the last time this particular machine was used was six years ago to treat some fashion model who was starving herself. Made the holo-papers and everything.”
“If it’s such a rare occurrence then why was this machine even made?” asked Cadence. Shining rubbed his mane while looking a bit embarrassed.
“I once asked Princess Luna a similar question back when I started my military training,” he said. “I wanted to know why we needed weapons and stuff like that when there weren’t any enemies around. She said it was like having condoms. She would rather have one and never need it than to need it but not have one.”
-x-
Shadow walked through town with a slightly heavy load. On his back was Scootaloo along with the remains of her scooter. There was also a bag of seeds that he had been very fortunate to find.
“Wow mister, you must really like kiwi,” said Scootaloo as she eyed the bag for a moment.
“Best fruit I’ve ever had in my life,” he replied as he licked his lips. “And none of that ‘mister’ stuff. Makes me feel older than I am. Just call me Shadow.” He then paused and began to look around. “Now where is she?”
“Your marefriend?” asked Scootaloo. She had been wondering what his marefriend was like. Whoever it was, she had to be as awesome as Shadow. In her mind she pictured a mare like Rainbow Dash. But ten percent less cool because no pony was as cool as Rainbow.
“Yeah,” said Shadow. “We split up, which in hindsight might not have been the best idea.” He tilted his head to the side to think for a moment before he spread his wings. All the ponies in the area left out a gasp as they saw them. “Hang on; we’re going to find her the easy way.” With that the two flew into the air.
For Scootaloo this was an amazing experience. She had always wanted to fly on her own, but for some reason she seemed unable to. The best she could get on her own was to use her scooter on a ramp. It really annoyed her that there were younger pegasi that could fly through the air much better than she could. But right now none of that seemed to matter. She was up in the air where she knew she belonged and so dearly wished to stay.
The two flew around the market place for awhile, not once spotting their target. So Shadow decided to extend the area of their search. A few minutes after that Shadow swooped down towards two mares: a yellow Pegasus Scootaloo knew to be Fluttershy and a purple unicorn whom she didn’t know but looked a little nerdy. Silently Shadow glided downwards and landed near the two. As he did Fluttershy mad a mad dash for the nearest bush.
“Oh come on,” groaned Shadow as he face hoofed. “Am I really that scary?”
“I’m sorry,” said a tiny voice from the bush.
“Don’t worry,” said Twilight. “She did the same thing when I saw her.” Shadow raised an eyebrow. “Well, I sort of charged towards her at full speed.”
“Why did you do that?” asked Shadow.
Twilight pointed a hoof at a tree branch. “That’s why,” she said. Shadow looked up and his jaw dropped. On the branch were several creatures that he had only seen in old books: birds. “I saw her working with them and I guess I lost control of myself for a moment. No pony back home has seen a real bird in a thousand years.”
“What?!” cried out Fluttershy as she jumped out of the bush. “Neither of you have ever seen a cute little birdy before?” Both Shadow and Twilight shook their heads no.
“Sadly, our homeland has no animal besides us,” said Shadow sadly.
“T-That’s just awful,” said Fluttershy who looked like she was about to cry. “Y-You’ve never had a doggie or a k-kitty to play w-with. I-It’s just so sad.” She then wiped away her tears and gave them both a serious look. “Well I’m not going to let you two leave without getting the experience.” She then made a mad dash down the road.
“She…seems passionate about animals,” said Shadow after a while.
“You have no idea,” said Scootaloo. “She once did a presentation in front of my class, showing us all sorts of animals that she takes care of. She was really shy and nervous at first. But when she saw Diamond Tiara dumping glue on some of them she gave her this stare that actually caused her to apologize without Ms. Cherilee telling her to.”
“Who’s your friend?” asked Twilight as she just noticed Scootaloo.
“I’m Scootaloo,” said the orange filly as she jumped off Shadow’s back. “Shadow told me that his marefriend could fix my scooter.”
“Well I’ll see what I can do,” said Twilight as she went to pat Scootaloo on the head. Yet when she did she felt something on the filly’s forehead. She gave a quick glance at Shadow how nodded his head. ‘So he noticed as well,’ thought Twilight as she checked Scootaloo’s wings. “So, can I ask you why you need a scooter?”
“Well I need to get around, duh,” said Scootaloo as she rolled her eyes.
“Well I guess I walked into that one,” said Twilight. “Let me rephrase, do you prefer the scooter over flying?”
“I…I can’t fly,” said Scootaloo. “I’m the only Pegasus in my class that can’t. Everytime I try it feels like I’m too heavy or something.” Scootaloo fought back the tears that were beginning to build up behind her eyes. “So I thought that if I exercised more and built up my wing strength I could eventually get off the ground. But so far…” At that her voice trailed off. It was just too painful to say anymore.
Shadow sighed. “I guess it’s like I thought,” he said. “You’ve got mixed blood.” Scootaloo snapped her head to look at Shadow.
“W-What does that mean?” she asked.
“When I felt your head there was a tiny bump,” he said. “A bump shaped like a unicorn’s horn in the exact same place. Meaning that one of your parents was a unicorn and the other was a Pegasus.”
“It’s very rare when something like this happens,” said Twilight as she stepped between the two. “Usually a foal will be born one or the other. But there is a one in a fifteen million chance that the two side will fight for dominance causing the foal to be born with weakened traits of both parents. In your situation, your horn didn’t grow out all the way and your wings are a bit too small for your age. Also, your bones might weigh you down a bit due to the unicorn blood inside of you.”
What Twilight didn’t tell her was that something like this could also be caused by a spell. There is a spell that a unicorn can use to change the child inside of her into another pony type. However, in order for this spell to work the foal must have the blood of the pony type that she wants running through its veins. Also, it must be done early in the pregnancy, otherwise things wouldn’t form the way they should. Like, for example, in the case of Scootaloo.
“I-Is that why m-my parents sent me to the orphanage?” asked Scootaloo. Tears were now beginning g to flow down her face. “Because I’m some kind of freak?”
“You’re not a freak,” said Shadow sternly. “Never think that way about yourself again. And any real parent would never do something like that!”
“Besides,” said Twilight gently as she walked over to Scootaloo and held her close. “Back home we have a procedure for events like this one. Our doctors will be able to make you a full unicorn or Pegasus.”
“You mean I’ll be able to fly on my own?” asked Scootaloo as she looked up at Twilight. As the purple mare nodded, Scootaloo began to cry again.
As the sky began to darken, the large egg in Cadence’s room began to open. Once open, Cadence was amazed by what she saw. Midnight Blossom looked like any other normal filly. The machine had plumped her up, her coat and mane looked shinier, and all around healthier. As she stared, Shining used his magic to place the filly on the bed. As soon as she was on the covers she began to stir.
The first thing she noticed was that the pain was gone. She had lived with the pain of hunger for so long that not having it was almost a cause for alarm. Slowly the bat filly opened her eyes and found herself on the nicest, softest bed she had ever been on. Everything looked so clean and pretty. Looking down at her body, she saw herself looking fuller than she had ever been in her life.
“Am I dead?” she whispered. To her, it was the only possibility that made sense to her mind.
“No, you’re not dead,” said a voice nearby. The bat filly looked up with her golden slit eyes and saw two adults. Fearfully, she began to back up until she fell off the bed. She landed on the floor with a large thud before racing under it for some added protection. However, she knew it would be short lived. She had noticed the horns on the heads of both adults. That meant they could use magic to move the bed and then harm her.
Cadence was shocked by Midnight’s behavior. Had her life been so hard that this was the way she would react to her presence? But she had to admit that waking up in a strange place would make any pony act that way. Probably more for a filly as young as her.
Gently, Cadence moved the blanket out of her way as she crouched down. She could easily see Midnight’s eyes shaking underneath the bed. She then heard a small rumble coming from the foal’s stomach. With a slight smile she used her magic to grab a nearby bowl of fruit and brought it over to her. She then set it between her and the filly. Midnight looked at it and licked her lips, but stayed where she was. Cadence had a good idea what was running through the filly’s head. Once more she used her magic to grabbing a single piece of fruit. She then bit into it, showing the filly it was safe to eat before backing up.
Few the next few minutes, both she and Shining could hear the sounds of crunching coming from beneath the bed. Even though she looked better, she was still very hungry. Eventually the noise stopped and a small head popped out from underneath the bed. She looked rather confused.
“Are you going to hurt me?” she asked softly.
Cadence slowly shook her head. “No dear, I don’t want to hurt a single hair on your head,” said Cadence. “I want to do the opposite. You see, a short while ago I adopted you.” The filly moved back further under the bed.
“What does adopted mean?” she asked.
“It means that you are now my daughter,” said Cadence. The bat filly’s eyes widened in shock and her mouth hung open.
“Y-You mean I get to live here?” she asked.
“Yes,” said Cadence with a nod. “You will also get a real name. You will no longer be called ‘It’. From this day on you will be called Midnight Blossom.”
Midnight was at a loss for words. She was getting a real name. Not only that but she would be living here as well. The nice pink adult would be taking care of her. Slowly she got out from underneath the bed and asked one final question.
“Are you sure I’m not dead?”
-x-
“This is foolish,” said Gigawatt as he slammed the door to the room he was sharing with Land Share. Both senators had just been informed of the new deal between Celestia and Luna. While personally Gigawatt liked it far better than the old one, he still didn’t trust the ponies of Equestria. He had heard about the bat filly and the idea of ponies from the Republic joining a nation like this sickened him.
He had always hated Equestria. He remembered looking at it from his home as a child. He would think about how nice it must be for the children to play in a real ocean or run outside in a real meadow. To not have to worry about the dome above their head breaking it a meteor should hit it. To not have to fear the cold vacuum of space. To have an entire world to explore while the ponies of the Republic were confined to their domes. All of this was made worse when he learned in school the reason they had to leave the planet.
It always seemed so unfair. Why did they get this nice, big planet while ponies like him had to settle with living on the moon? Not that he hated the moon, it was just that there was always a limit. But here on the planet there wasn’t a limit. They seemed to have unlimited resources and opportunities. Both, however, they wasted everyday.
Slowly Gigawatt walked over to a nearby desk and looked at a book he had been reading while they had been on break. The book was entitled ‘Equestrian Wars’ and had done nothing to improve his mood. The book had told him about the wars that had occurred over the last thousand years which made him worry. According to the book, there were still many unresolved issues with the griffons and the changelings still posed a very real threat. If they did join with Equestria then they would be forced to join in and help in these kinds of conflicts.
This also gave rise to a new line of worries. What if the griffons or, more likely, the changelings managed to get a hold of their technology? They could use that technology to invade other countries and through this entire world into chaos. Or worse, what if the Equestrians decided to do that. He could just see it now: Princess Celestia’s nobles encouraging her to attack their enemies before they have a chance to attack them. From then on they would encourage her to attack other nations until they became an empire.
Gigawatt had tried to share these worries with Land Share. His family had always been close with Luna since the Republic began. If any pony had a chance to get the princess to call this off it would be either him or Twilight Sparkle. Sadly, after he had shared his fears with Land Share the earth pony had told him that Princess Luna would never allow something like that to happen.
“Something must be done,” said Gigawatt as he stared at the book. “And soon.”
-x-
Twilight hummed a happy tune as the trio made their way through town. There was a bit of distance between her and Shadow due to Scootaloo separating them. The little filly was on her fixed scooter which Twilight had fixed using her magic. However it would only be a temporary fix since her magic was the only thing keeping it together.
Scootaloo was ten pounds of happiness in a five pound bag. Her head was full of tricks she would do once she was in the air. She could fly around doing barrel rolls, kick lightning out of clouds, make it rain over Diamond Tiara, and so much more! Then she could ask Rainbow Dash if she would teach her some cool moves.
But then something occurred in the young Pegasus’s mind. What did she really know about Twilight or Shadow? They both seemed really nice and all, but what if it was all an act? What if there was no way for her to fly again? Maybe they made it all up so that she would go with them to some strange place where they would do horrible stuff to her. Stuff worse than what Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon would do.
“Something wrong?” asked Twilight as she noticed that Scootaloo was slowing down slightly. Scootaloo just gave her a funny look.
“Can I ask you something?” said Scootaloo. Twilight nodded. “I just have to know: why are you helping me? I mean, I’m grateful and all but this is starting to sound too good to be true.”
Twilight nodded. Now that she herself thought about it, it did seem odd. The idea of two strange ponies promising to give her the power of flight for no real reason did sound like one of those ‘beware of strangers’ classes that she took when she was younger.
For Twilight, it was difficult to explain. Her special talent was magic in all of its glory. Back in the Republic, magic was still held in high regards despite all the technological advancements they had made. The two actually worked together to help make their society better. But if magic had been what had caused Scootaloo to lose her ability to fly, then she felt like it was her responsibility to fix it. There was also the fact that she was an orphan with no parents to help her see this through.
“Well, I guess it’s because we sort of know what you’re going through,” said Twilight after a while. “Both me and Shadow lost our parents at really young ages. Also, is it wrong to want to help another pony?”
“Well I guess not,” said Scootaloo. Still, however, she looked a little worried.
“Don’t worry about it,” said Shadow. “If you are worried then maybe we can bring a doctor from our homeland here.”
“Good thinking,” said Twilight with a nod. “That way we can-” Twilight stopped in her tracks as three ponies headed towards them. It looked like a family of earth ponies. The stallion in front of them had a slicked back mane and a brown coat. He was also wearing a red tie with a dollar sign on it. Behind him was a filly with an ugly smirk on her face and a mare who just seemed angry. The three stopped right in front of Twilight’s group. “Ah, can we help you?”
“That’s him daddy,” said Diamond Tiara as she pointed at Shadow. “That’s the stallion that scared me for no reason!”
“I see,” said Filthy Rich as he looked at Shadow. Shadow, in returned looked Filthy in the eyes. For a moment it was like a staring contest, neither of them said a word. It was like they were both trying to feel other out. “My daughter tells me that you flew down in front of her and her friend just to scare her. Is this true?”
“She’s lucky that’s all I did to her,” said Shadow. Filthy opened his mouth to yell, but Twilight stepped in between the two.
“Lets calm down everypony,” she said. “Now then Mr.-”
“Filthy Rich,” said the earth stallion. “But please call me Rich.”
“Alright then Mr. Rich,” said Twilight with a nod. “My name is Twilight Sparkle and this is my coltfriend Shadow Blade. Now lets try and keep a cool head so that we can resolve this peacefully. So first lets all take a deep breath.” Shadow opened his mouth to say something but a quick glare from Twilight silenced him. So, reluctantly, the two stallions took a deep breath. “Good. Now then Mr. Rich I will not deny that Shadow could have handled the situation better. Usually he has a much cooler head. Do you know what your daughter was doing before Shadow scared her?”
“If you are trying to blame our little girl,” began Mr. Rich’s wife but her husband held up a hoof. He then let out a hum as he turned to look at his now panicking daughter. When he had first heard this he had felt that she was not telling the whole story. However, when she described what happened and that a bat pony did it, his fathering instincts kicked into high gear.
“Diamond, is there anything that you left out?” said Mr. Rich in a calm tone. He could see that his daughter was avoiding eye contact as she shook her head.
“I was there too,” said Scootaloo. Filthy turned to look at the little filly. “I was trying out some wicked cool tricks on my scooter when I crashed in an alley and it broke. Then Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon saw me and began to make fun of me. That’s when Shadow appeared.”
“And the rest I already know,” said Filthy with a nod. He then looked at Shadow. “Is all this true?” Shadow nodded.
“Dear, don’t tell me that you believe them,” demanded his wife.
“I would, if Diamond hadn’t already received six letters from her teacher saying that she was caught bullying,” said Mr. Rich as he kept his eyes on Shadow. “Now, I am still angry at how you handled the situation. However I will not press charges since you were not doing it to be cruel. But if you do it again I will not be so forgiving.”
“We understand,” said Twilight. She then elbowed Shadow.
“Ouch, alright I promise not to do that again,” said Shadow. Somewhat satisfied, Filthy Rich turned around and began to herd his family home. Yet as they did, Scootaloo could hear Rich giving his daughter a long list of chores she would be doing for a very long time.
-x-
Trixie sat in the cheap hotel room as she looked out the window. The sky was beginning to darken. Outside the ponies of Ponyville were finishing up with the preparations for tomorrow while at the same time getting ready for a party. Celestia, she hated it here.
Using her magic, she began to fill a glass with her expensive cherry wine that she had brought with her from Canterlot as she thought about how her day went. First she had checked out the food from that apple farming mare. It tasted like commoner fare that would have been seen at a carnival. The decorations looked all wrong and the music was being done by stupid birds. The only thing that this town had done right was that the sky was clear.
Trixie quickly drained her glass and then filled it up again. She had no idea why Princess Celestia would send her to this little town in the middle of nowhere. She was the princess’s most faithful student and should have been in Canterlot when those lunar ponies showed up. Trixie had tried to tell her princess and mentor that they didn’t need those monsters from the moon. Everypony knew they couldn’t be trusted, but then again Princess Celestia always seemed to try and see the best in ponies.
And it didn’t help that the other students in her class were whispering about her as she got ready to go. Trixie refilled her glass as she tried to forget what they said about her. How she was just full of hot air. How she was nothing special. That the reason she was being sent away was because Celestia was embarrassed by her.
Trixie frowned as once more she drained her glass, but the memories wouldn’t leave her head. Perhaps a few more would help.
“Come on everypony,” said Lightning Dust from behind a table in the mess hall. “Fifteen bits gets you into the pool.”
As soon as Twilight and company left, Lightning had decided to cash in on her little discovery. She had started up a betting pool for when Shadow finally proposed and word spread quickly. Nearly everypony who worked in Dome Zero was placing some large bets. One pony had put in her entire life savings believing that Shadow would pop the question on the planet.
“Hey Lightning,” said a voice besides the speedy Pegasus. Nearly jumping out of her armor, Lightning turned to see Derpy standing next to her with a big smile. “How’s it going?”
“Can’t complain,” replied Lightning as she eyed the jar full of bits. “Care to test your luck?”
Derpy frowned. “No thanks. I’m not risking my muffin money for the week.”
Lightning shrugged. “Suit yourself then,” she replied before raising an eyebrow. “So what brings you down here? You usually eat dinner with your family.”
“Work,” replied Derpy. “Even though the princess is gone I still have to carry out messages in her name. Right now I have a message to you from the LBI.”
Lightning’s eyes narrowed when she heard this. The LBI, or Lunar Bureau of Investigations, was a collection of ponies that investigated any odd behavior in all the high profile areas. Like if a pony was altering test results in the science and research division for whatever reason. Once they had sufficient evidence of some kind of misconduct they would then send word to the Royal Guard to detain the pony/ponies involved until their trial.
“Ok then,” said Lightning as she motioned all the other ponies to leave. “So who am I arresting?”
“Dr. Blue Star,” replied Derpy. “She’s in charge of the Crescent Hope project.” Lightning nodded as she took off into the air. Crescent Moon was the second most important project going on in the Republic. The first was the terraforming project. Crescent Hope was a star ship that would allow ponies to travel to other planets within this star system. Once the project was completed they could just take the water of uninhabited planets. Maybe even set up an outpost station or something like that.
Lightning Dust hoped that it was a mistake or something. Because if not, Dr. Star would be in some serious trouble.
-x-
Cadence walked down the hallways towards her room while levitating a plate of cookies. So far things were moving well with Midnight. As well as one could expect at least. Midnight had completely left her sanctuary from beneath the bed to play some games with her and Shining. However she was very nervous, jumping at any sudden noise or movement. One time, when Shining raised a hoof while they were playing, Midnight got down to the ground and place both of her forelegs over her head as if to protect herself from some kind of an attack.
Cadence let out a sigh. It would take a long time for her to let go of these fears. They were understandable considering the filly’s past. But if Cadence kept working with her new daughter then she would eventually get her to realize that those days were gone. That she was safe now.
As the alicorn of love neared the door to her room, she found Blueblood standing out in the halls. Out of everypony in the castle, he was her least favorite. He cared only for bits and power with no love for anything other than himself. His treatment of the common ponies was horrible but not as horrible as how he treated his servants. Holding back a groan, Cadence walked towards him while hoping that he wouldn’t talk to her.
“Ah Cadence, just the princess I was looking for,” said Blueblood.
“Blueblood, how nice to see you,” lied Cadence. “How can I help you?”
“Well I heard about your recent adoption,” said Blueblood. “I thought it would be best to inform you that somepony has leaked this to the papers. By morning everypony in Equestria will know that there is now a bat pony princess. I don’t think many would be happy to hear that.”
“They will soon realize that there is nothing to worry about,” said Cadence. “She is a sweet little filly who has done nothing to deserve such a hard life.”
“Perhaps,” said Blueblood with a nod of his head. “But if I may be so bold, you are putting that freaks life in even more danger than if she were back on the streets where she belongs.”
“She is not a freak,” snarled Cadence. “And what do you mean by that?”
“I mean that not all of the good ponies in Equestria will feel as comfortable having one of those things living in the center of our government,” said Blueblood in a matter of fact tone. “You can be sure that many ponies will most likely complain non-stop. But there will be others who might try something more…drastic, if you get my meaning. As long as that winged freak is living in this castle there will be a target on its back. So please dear cousin, get rid of it before there is a blood stain on the marble floors.” With that said, Blueblood walked away.
Cadence took several deep breaths as she tried her best to regain control of her emotions. The way he talked about Midnight was both insulting as well as demeaning. He was more concerned about the floor than another pony’s life! How in the wide world of Equestria did he ever become Celestia’s favorite nephew?
As Cadence began to walk again, she felt a twinge of worry. While Blueblood most likely didn’t care about Midnight, there was a hint of truth in his words. Many ponies wouldn’t like the fact that one of their princesses had just adopted what they considered to be a freak. Some may even try to harm the poor filly in some misguided sense that Cadence was being fooled by her. Still, Cadence would not back down from doing what she thought was right. Midnight was now her daughter and she would not throw her back into the streets. She would protect her from as much harm as she could until the ponies of Equestria came to their senses.
Once Cadence got close to her door she could hear Midnight giggling. Slowly she opened the door to find something she had never seen before. Midnight was on the bed with Shining sitting next to it. The captain of the Shield Corps looked like he had just had a makeover. There was blush on his cheeks, a lot of lipstick, and he was wearing eye liner. The two of them turned to look at her once she began to laugh uncontrollably.
-x-
“So, have you informed your nobles?” asked Luna as she sipped her sparkling cider. Right now she and her sister were in Celestia’s room doing some last minute talks.
“I have,” said Celestia. “They were not too thrilled at the idea, but I gave them little choice. After we make the announcement I will begin the selection process of who goes.” Celestia paused to have a sip of punch. “How did it go on your end?”
“Varied,” answered Luna. “Land Share seems to be all for it. April Showers is a bit more conserved about the water situation. As long as we get that I don’t foresee any real problems from her. Gigawatt, on the other hoof, is completely against this. He-” There was a knocking at the door that silenced the moon’s princess. Slowly, Celestia got up and moved over to the door. When she opened it she allowed a smile to appear on her face.
“Hello there Spike,” said Celestia. “What are you doing here this late?”
“Moon Dancer wanted me to drop some things off before the break ends,” said Spike as he handed Celestia some papers. “She was afraid she would lose them again like last year.”
“What a wonderful assistant you are,” beamed the solar princess as she patted the baby dragon on the head. She then bid him goodnight before closing the doors. When she turned around she saw that Luna was giving her an odd look.
“What was that about?” she asked.
“Oh nothing much,” said Celestia as she set the papers down. “Just something with one of my students.”
Luna nodded. “I see, so you’re still taking on students. Is this Moon Dancer your faithful student?” For as long as Luna could remember, Celestia had always hoof picked one student to be her faithful student. That one would have either the most potential or the greatest dedication to his or her studies. The faithful student would then be given private lessons with Celestia as well as receive some extra benefits.
“No,” said Celestia with a slight sigh. “Right now my faithful student is Trixie. She’s a nice filly, but her magical skills are a bit weak. I can still remember the day I took her on as my student.”
-Flashback-
The air outside the castle was cooling down as fall approached. After such a long, hot summer Celestia found this cool to be refreshing as she stood upon a balcony that overlooked her school. From here she could hear the children laughing as they either returned to their homes or went back to their dorms. Some were leaving from their entrance exams with either good news or pure disappointment.
Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns was her prized creation. It was still relatively new as were most schools in the country. This one served two purposes. The first was to teach those special unicorns that had the most talent when it came to magic. The second was to find that one who would become the bearer of the Element of Magic. Ever since Luna left the harmony between the two of them had been broken causing the Elements to seek out new bearers. Over the years there had been several of each one except for the one who would wield magic.
As her eyes scanned the crowd she noticed that one filly was being dragged away by a stallion that Celestia assumed to be her father. They stopped by a secluded fountain and the filly began to talk while the stallion began to pace back and forth like a drill instructor. As Celestia watched this, she had a growing sense of unease as to what she was watching. So using her magic she used a spell that would allow her to hear what was being said.
“What do you mean you failed?” growled the father as he continued to pace. “Do you realize how many bits I paid for a tutor just for this day? How could you fail so miserably?!”
“Trixie is sorry,” wept Trixie. “But the test was hard. They wanted Trixie to-” She was then interrupted as she father smacked her with his hoof.
“No excuses,” he growled. “I should have expected his much from a failure like you.” He raised his hoof and smacked her again, but harder this time leaving a red bruise. “But you said you could do it!” Another smack. “That I should-”
“Enough,” said Celestia as she appeared behind the stallion along with two of her guards.
“P-Princess Celestia,” said the stallion as he turned to face her. “I was just-”
“Beating and berating a child for failing a test,” said Celestia with none of the usual warmth in her voice. “I saw the whole thing. Guards, take him away.” Within moments, the stallion was dragged away while kicking and screaming. Once he was gone, Celestia looked down at the sobbing filly before her. “It’s ok,” she said as she placed a reassuring hook on her shoulder.
“But Trixie did her best,” cried Trixie. “T-Trixie was a-asked to hatch a-an egg but Trixie didn’t know how. Trixie really wanted to p-pass. Now where will Trixie go?”
“Do you live with just your father?” asked Celestia. Trixie nodded her head causing Celestia to worry about what to do. She had just seen her father taken away and was soon to be sent to an orphanage. She felt bad for the filly since she had been given one of the most difficult tests at the school. Then, Celestia had a thought. Usually she took one of the most promising students as her faithful student. Perhaps it would be more challenging if she took one that wasn’t already the best.
-End Flashback-
“Has it been a challenge?” asked Luna once Celestia had finished talking. To be honest, she was surprised that Celestia put her hoof down like that. If only she did that a bit more often.
“It has,” admitted Celestia. “I know that Trixie tries her best. Everyday she comes in, ready to work and give it her all. But we have been moving so slowly compared to the rest of my past faithful students. Then there is her high and mighty act. She does this to hide her fears as well as her insecurity, but it has resulted in her having few friends.” Celestia took a deep breath, wishing to redirect the conversation. “So, what about you Luna? Do you have a student of your own?”
“I do indeed sister,” said Luna with a confident smile. “Twilight Sparkle is my prized student. I have never before seen a unicorn with such talent, such a desire to learn everything that she can.” Then Luna’s smiled dropped as she looked up at the moon that she had just raised in the sky. “I just wish I could have found her under better circumstances.”
-Flashback-
Luna watched the planet from one of the windows of her palace. There was much going on today and she needed a bit of time to unwind. Looking at the planet they had left behind brought an odd sense of peace. No matter how much time had passed, she could not forget the days she had sent down there.
As she continued to stare she noticed something odd. It looked like a rainbow colored shockwave. But before she could wonder what it was the palace began to shake!
“Guards!” Luna called out. “What is happening?” Her eyes darted towards the shockwave, fearing that her sister or, more likely, her nobles might have found a way to attack them.
“There is nothing to worry about princess,” said one of the guards. “We received a report a few days ago that a meteor would strike soon. I guess today was the day.”
“Where any of the Domes hit?” asked Luna as she began to walk out of the court chambers. The guards flanking both sides as they walked with her.
“No your majesty,” said the second guard. “It was predicted that the meteor would miss all of the Domes as well as the tubes. Everypony is safe.” As Luna let out a sigh of relief, another guard came running towards them with a horrified expression on his face.
“We just lost contact with the Deep Tunnel,” the new guard cried out. “The meteor that just hit landed right above the tunnel causing a cave in!”
Luna’s eyes widened in shock as she took off. The Deep Tunnel project had been set up by a unicorn named Night Light. He had suggested that there should be a series of underground tunnels linking each Dome together in case of back up in the tubes. He also suggested having small businesses in the tunnels as well. The way he explained it, ponies would be able to walk between the Domes while doing some light shopping. Luna liked the idea of having an alternative method of travel between the Domes as well as allowing more business to grow. However, she had never thought what could happen if a meteor were to strike above one of the tunnels as it was being made!
Within an hour, Luna arrived at the entrance to what was going to be the first tunnel. Guards as well as civilians were already hard at work trying to move the rubble that blocked their advance. One of the rescue ponies moved towards her.
“Princess,” she said with a quick bow. “This is bad. Our scans have revealed that the atmosphere in the tunnels is being depleted. There…there are most likely no survivors.”
Luna gave a sad nod before looking out of the Dome. Outside she could see where the meteor had crashed as well as where the tunnel had collapsed. She knew that there were at least three hundred ponies down there. Three hundred dead.
“Continue the work as quickly as possible,” said Luna. “Maybe if we are lucky we may find one or two under a shield spell. The rest we will collect so they may have a proper burial. Once this over, a memorial shall be set up for those who died.” The rescue pony nodded and bowed as she took her leave. Yet, as she did, the ground began to tremble once more. Fearing the worse, Luna quickly cast a shield spell to protect all of those in the area. She looked out of the Dome only to see something she never expected.
Erupting from the ground was a purple blob of magic. Powerful magic that was almost on par with hers. Squinting her eyes, Luna saw three children in the blob. The one in the middle was a young purple unicorn whose eyes were glowing white. The other two were a bat pony and a white unicorn colt.
Luna reacted instantly, dropping her shield before teleporting to the children. Once there she cast another shield spell and filled it with an atmosphere. The lunar princess then reached out a hoof, gently touching the filly on the shoulder to not only help calm her down but to disrupt the magic. It worked like a charm as the three fell to the ground.
The purple filly then looked up at Luna with teary eyes. “Did mommy and daddy make it?” she asked. “Are they ok?” Luna could not bring herself to lie to the poor girl. Slowly she shook her head causing the filly to begin crying as she did.
-End Flashback-
“I later found out that she was Night Light’s daughter, Twilight Sparkle,” said Luna as she looked at her glass. “The other two were her brother, Shining Armor, and a friend named Shadow Blade. Sadly they were the only survivors. After that I took them to the castle and looked after them. I had been the one who had failed to realize something like this might happen so I felt it was my responsibility to look after them. Twilight, it seemed, was a bit of a genius absorbing all kinds of knowledge. Both magical and scientific alike. So in the end it was only natural that I made her my prized student.” Luna paused and sighed. “Now, let us continue with these talks.”
Scootaloo sighed as she watched the two adults accompanying her move out from underneath a tree. It was all really strange to her. One moment they were all walking towards town then, without warning, the two began to freak out while pointed at the sky. Something about the sun setting and the sky changing colors. It wasn’t until the sky became full of stars that they calmed down and left the safety of the tree.
“Are you two going to be alright?” asked Scootaloo with some concern.
“Well I feel fine,” said Twilight as the three continued to walk. “If memory serves me right, I believe that was called a sunset.”
“Will we be alright?” asked Shadow as he checked his wings.
“How can you two not know what a sunset is?” asked Scootaloo as she rolled her eyes. “It’s almost like you’re from another planet.” Twilight and Shadow exchanged a look.
“Actually our home country doesn’t have sunsets,” said Twilight. ‘Well, technically we do but the sky doesn’t change colors like that. Also the moon isn’t a planet.’
Scootaloo opened her mouth to speak, but Shadow made a sudden dash towards the town. The two girls watched him as he paused in front of some decorations. Hanging from building to building were brightly colored streamers. On each lamppost were multicolored balloons with big, happy smiles on them. Further down they noticed that tables had been set up full of sweets. A crowd had already gathered in the streets as they began to party.
“Don’t tell me you don’t have parties were your from!” exclaimed Scootaloo as she and Twilight caught up to Shadow.
“We do,” said Shadow as he stared at the decorations. “We just don’t pull out things like this for just any old party. Usually they are reserved for the big three.”
“You see Scootaloo,” began Twilight as she went to lecture mode. “Our homeland has very little resources so we can’t just go around wasting them on a common everyday party. So we save them for Hearts and Hooves Day, Founders Landing, and Dreamers Eve.”
“What’s Dreamers Eve?” asked Scootaloo. She knew what Hearts and Hooves Day was and had a pretty good idea what Founders Landing, going just by the name. It sounded something like Hearth's Warming Eve where ponies celebrate the founding of Equestria. However, Dreamers Eve was something she couldn’t figure out right away.
“It’s just the best holiday EVER!” exclaimed Shadow as he broke out into a grin. “It’s really awesome. Ponies dress up in costumes and go door to door and then get treats and…” Shadow suddenly got a faraway look as he licked his lips as he remembered all the sweets he used to get on that one night.
“There is a legend that goes with the holiday,” said Twilight, deciding to pick up where Shadow had left off. “A long time ago, there was a sick little filly who sent every day in bed, dreaming of all the things she would do when she got better. Princess Luna, who ruled over the night as well as dreams, one night walked into her dreams to discover her secret desires. Feeling sorry for her, she used her magic to make it come true. As the moon came up, the foal awoke to find herself a jester. All night long she danced around her village as she did what jesters do, make ponies laugh. The townsfolk, in return, gave her candy for her performance. And as night began to fade, as well as the magic, the foal gave some of her candy to the Princess who made one of her dreams come true. A year later, Princess Luna decided to grant every foal the same wish allowing them to run around as whatever they wanted to be for one night. And to thank her for her gift, the children gave her a small portion of their candy as thanks. A few years later, the day became known as Dreamers Eve.”
“Of course we use customs to dress ourselves up as, well, whatever,” said Shadow. “Like this one year a certain purple mare I know dressed up like-” His mouth was suddenly surrounded by purple magic that silenced him. He looked over to his marefriend whose face had turned a bright red.
“I thought we agreed that you would never bring up that costume again,” she all but growled. Shadow, in return, just gave her an apologetic smile.
“We kind of have a holiday like that,” said Scootaloo as she began to scratch her mane with her hoof. “I mean with the dressing up and the candy. Except we call it Nightmare Night because-”
“Hi everypony!” said Pinkie Pie as she appeared out of nowhere. Twilight and company jumped into the air, startled by her sudden appearance. “I really hope you all enjoy the party. If you do I’m sure you’ll be able to make lots of friends!”
“I’m surprised you were able to set this all up so quickly,” said Twilight.
“Please, all I need is my party cannon and I’m all set to go,” said Pinkie as she pulled out said cannon. Shadow moved in front of Twilight, thinking that it might go off at any moment, thus hurting the girls. Instead Pinkie pointed it towards the sky before firing it. A sparkling blast shot up into the sky only to later explode in a bright flash of colored lights.
“Beautiful,” whispered Twilight as she stared at the sky.
“And we have more than that,” said Pinkie as a hundred cannon just suddenly appeared out of nowhere. “We also have lots of goodies from Sugar Cube Corner. There is a karaoke stand over near town hall if you feel like jamming. We also have a jamming station in cause you want to jam some jars! And to drink I made my special strawberry kiwi punch!” Shadow’s eyes widened when he heard this. Opening his wing the bat pony took to the sky in search for his prize.
A few moments later Shadow found what he was looking for. Silently he landed right in front of the punch bowl, scaring a few of the nearby ponies. As he filled his glass he felt somepony tap his side. The stallion turned to see Applejack who was looking slightly nervous.
“H-Howdy,” she stammered.
“Hey,” replied Shadow as he took a sip of his drink. Thinking that she wanted something to drink, Shadow began to move to the side. However the earth mare kept her eyes on him. “Ah, can I help you?”
Applejack let out a sigh. What she was about to do was difficult for her. She had thought that she was ready to do this, had thought about all the things she would say. All the ways she could defend her actions and feelings. But now, her mind was almost completely blank. So, as she took off her, hat, she would just be as honest as she could.
“Look, ah’m sorry about earlier,” said Applejack as she lowered her head. “You’re the first bat pony around these parts an I should’ve treated ya better. Ah was just so afraid of ya an, well, ah hope ya can forgive me.” She waited a moment in silence. The only sound she heard was Shadow going through his bags. Then a few moments later she was looking at the bottom of his hoof. And on it were four bits. Applejack looked up to see Shadow with a grin on his face.
“You said those apples were four bits, right?” he said as he continued to hold out the coins.
“But ah said they were on the house,” said Applejack quickly. Shadow shook his head.
“Sorry, but I don’t really like charity all that much,” he said. Applejack opened her mouth to argue, but Shadow interrupted her. “Look, how about this: you take the bits and we start over with a clean slate. Deal?” Applejack looked down at the coins once more before looking back at Shadow Blade and grinned.
“Deal,” she said as she accepted the coins.
For a while, the two just began to talk. It was nothing major really, Applejack just wanted to know what was true and false with bat ponies. Shadow did his best to answer each question while doing his best not get offended by some of the more ridiculous rumors. No, he didn’t hang upside down when he slept. He didn’t drink the blood of ponies or other animals. He didn’t have any mind control powers or anything to that effect.
“Seriously, who would think a bat pony could do that,” groaned Shadow. “I mean, our eyes are like this so that we can see at night. That’s all! No ‘super natural’ powers or anything like that.”
“Sorry,” said Applejack through a thin smile. “Now that ah think about it, it doesn’t make a lick of sense. If ya could control me, ya could have just order me ta give ya the apples then make me forget the whole thing.”
“Shadow, you have to see this,” said Twilight who was now walking towards him. Shadow looked over to his side to see his marefriend surrounded by small creatures. Next to her was Fluttershy who seemed to be worried that being around all these ponies might scare them. However, all the ponies in the area seemed to flock to them which the creatures didn’t seem to mind.
“Ah, what are they?” asked Shadow. Twilight said nothing. Instead she held out a small white animal with eyes similar to his, but green.
“Just pet it,” said Twilight. With a sigh, Shadow did as his marefriend asked. When his hoof touched the fur he was amazed by how soft it was. Slowly he began to stroke the creatures fur causing it to make a strange sound. “Interesting, isn’t it? According to Fluttershy it’s called a kitten.”
“Wow,” was all Shadow could say as he continued to pet the kitten. After a while he moved on to the other animals which Fluttershy introduced.
When they got to the birds, the air was suddenly filled with horrible music. To be fair, whoever was singing was trying but really needed to work on it. Twilight turned her head towards the source, seeing a stage with a small band next to it. On top of the stage was Scootaloo who was trying her best to rock the crowd only to fail horribly.
As the music ended, Twilight made her way to the stage. As she did, she noticed that a few of the ponies were clapping politely. Most, however, looked relieved that she was done.
“Not bad,” said Twilight as she stopped in front of Scootaloo.
“It was horrible,” muttered the orange Pegasus. “I guess singing isn’t my special talent.”
“That’s no reason to give up,” said Twilight as she walked onto the stage. “You just need a little practice.” Twilight then magically produced some music sheet before handing them to the musicians. A few minutes later they motioned to Twilight they were ready and the purple unicorn began to sing into the night air.
“Fly me to the moon Let me swing among those stars Let me see what spring is like On Jupiter and Mars In other words, hold my hoof In other words, baby, kiss me Fill my heart with song Let me sing forever more You are all I long for All I worship and adore In other words, please be true In other words, I love you Why don't you fill my heart with song? Let me swing forever more Because you are all I long for All I worship and I adore In other words, please be true In other words I love you, I, I love you”
By the time the song was done, the crowd was clapping their hooves against the ground and cheering. Even Scootaloo was impressed. Sure, it wasn’t the kind of music that she normally listened to but Twilight had a beautiful voice and sung it well. She watched as Twilight walked down the stage, Shadow walked up to her and gave her a big hug. The purple unicorn returned it then whispered into the stallion’s ear. Once they release, Twilight gave the musicians more music sheets while Shadow got on stage. As he did, the crowd grew silent and cold. Scootaloo got a chill just by being near them.
Then the music started as Shadow began to show that he could sing as well.
“Now that she's back in the atmosphere With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey She acts like summer and walks like rain Reminds me that there's time a to change, hey, hey Since the return from her stay on the moon She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey Tell me did you sail across the sun Did you make it to the milky way to see the lights all faded And that heaven is overrated Tell me, did you fall for a shooting star One without a permanent scar And did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there Now that she's back from that soul vacation Tracing her way through the constellation, hey, hey She checks out Mozart while she does tae-bo Reminds me that there's room to grow, hey, hey Now that she's back in the atmosphere I'm afraid that she might think of me as plain ol Jane Told a story about a man who is too afraid to fly so he never did land Tell me did the wind sweep you off your feet Did you finally get the chance to dance along the light of day And head back to the milky way And tell me, did Venus blow your mind Was it everything you wanted to find And did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there Can you imagine no love, pride, deep-fried hay Your best friend always sticking up for you... even when I know you're wrong Can you imagine no first dance, freeze dried romance five-hour phone Conversation The best soy latte that you ever had... And me Tell me did the wind sweep you off your feet Did you finally get the chance to dance along the light of day And head back toward the milky way”
Shadow continued to sing another chorus and the crowd couldn’t help but get swept away by the music. When it was over the crowd let out another cheer.
-x-
As the night carried on, Twilight went over her check list one more time in her mind. The technology issue was still a big thing. There were also some major racial issues. However, there were only a hoof full of bat ponies living in the Republic. In time, with the help of the Republic, they could help the ponies of Equestria see that the bat ponies were nothing to be afraid of. Also, the planet ponies had amazing food!
Twilight was broken from her thoughts as she was suddenly splashed by a red, alcoholic liquid. She turned her head to yell at however did it but stopped when she saw Trixie. The bright blue mare was red in the cheeks and looked like she was having trouble standing.
“Trixie is *hic* sorry about that,” said Trixie as she stumbled over to Twilight. The purple unicorn got a good whiff of Trixie’s breath which caused her face to scrunch up.
“Trixie, you’re drunk!” declared Twilight.
“Well that won’t do,” said Pinkie as she came out of a potted plant. She then reached over and somehow grabbed Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. “We got to help her! She can’t enjoy a party like this!”
“How did she-” began Twilight, but Applejack just shook her head.
“Best to stop right there sugarcube,” said Applejack as she helped Trixie lie down on the ground. “No pony can explain Pinkie Pie.”
“Darling, you look like a wreck,” said Rarity. “Is there anything we can do to help you? Anything you need at all? Like maybe a less tacky cape?” Trixie grinned at them.
“Such *hic* nice ponies,” said Trixie as she tried to stand up. “Don’t know why the princess *hic* wants to destroy Equestria.”
“Hey,” growled Rainbow Dash. “What do you mean by that?! There’s no why Princess Celestia would ever let anything bad happen to Equestria!” Trixie looked confused for a moment before she nodded.
“Oh that’s *hic* right,” said Trixie as she sat back down. “You all don’t know. Well *hic* Princess Celestia would be mad at me for *hic* telling you this, but she’s going to be allowing the *hic* Lunar ponies into Equestria.” Once Trixie had finished that sentence, all noise stopped. Twilight looked a bit uneasy as she felt a chill go down her spine.
“Y-You mean ponies from the m-moon are coming here?” asked Fluttershy. When Trixie nodded, Fluttershy made a mad dash under one of the tables.
“She’s just fibbin,” said Applejack. “No way Princess Celestia would ever let a bunch of murderers into Equestria.” Twilight’s eyes widened when she heard this while she wondered what was going on.
“I hear they’re all cannibal ponies,” said Rainbow Dash. “Eating each other when the others aren’t looking and laughing while they do it.”
“And that awful ruler of theirs,” said Rarity. “Nightmare Moon is nothing but a beast. I mean, really, what else can you call a pony who watches over such a murderous land. I hear she enjoys eating foals.”
“Princess Celestia *hic* calls her by a different name,” said Trixie. “A prettier name, but I knew who she was talking about.” As the crowd began to talk, no pony seemed to notice that Twilight, Shadow, and Scootaloo had left.
Fly me to the Moon by Frank Sinatra Drops of Jupiter by Train
“Auntie, are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” asked Cadence. She as well as her two aunts were currently in Cadence’s bed chambers. Midnight was sleeping peacefully on the bed. The poor dear had been afraid to go to sleep believing that if she did and woke up she would find that this had all been a dream.
Celestia nodded. “I am sorry, but I feel it is for the best. In the morning the news that you adopted a bat pony will be at the doorsteps of everypony in Equestria. I am sure that there will be reporters here to question you, as well as many of our citizens.” Cadence opened her mouth to protest, but Luna stepped in.
“I know you want to go and show your support towards Celestia,” said Luna calmly. “To be honest, it would be best if you went if only to show that, for the most part, the royal family is all for this union. But if you go you might put Midnight in harm’s way. She is still scared of most ponies. Who knows how she will react when suddenly placed in such a large crowd. If she is left here by herself, however, I fear that some of the guards might want to take advantage of your absence. Or some reporter could somehow sneak in. On the other hoof, if you stay here you will be able to answer questions in relative safety as well as keeping Midnight safe.”
Cadence slowly nodded, understanding what Princess Luna was saying. While Captain Iron Wall and the guards who had hurt Midnight were being detained, they were only the ones they had caught. She worried that there might be other guards who might feel the same way they did and attack her daughter. Taking Midnight with them might scare the filly or put her in harms way. Who knew how the ponies in Ponyville might react when they saw her? At least here she could keep an eye on her while staying in an environment that she was getting used to.
“I understand,” said Cadence. “But perhaps Shining Armor could stay? For added protection?”
“I’m sorry, but I feel that he and the other ponies from the Republic should head to Ponyville,” said Celestia. “They are representatives of their nation after all.”
“I agree,” said Luna. She then smiled slightly. “But don’t worry, once this is over we will return to the castle.”
-x-
As Twilight led the group to the library, her thoughts were flooded with questions. What had happened at the party was somehow different from what had been going on with Shadow. They all seemed so certain that ponies from the Lunar Republic were evil. Not to mention that they referred to Princess Luna as Nightmare Moon. What was that about anyways? Why did the ponies here think that they were cannibals?
When the trio reached the library, Twilight used the key she had gotten from Trixie earlier to open the door. For being inside of a tree, the building was somewhat cozy. It was smaller than her home back on the moon, but it had more books which was a plus for the young unicorn. Had she come here on different circumstances, Twilight was sure that she would have enjoyed her visit here.
“Now to see what is going on here,” muttered Twilight to herself. As she used her magic to pull several history books out, Shadow noticed that Scootaloo was beginning to look like she could fall asleep at any moment. Not wanting to interrupt Twilight as she her research he took Scootaloo over to a couch so that she could get some shut eye.
For the next few hours, Twilight scanned over a dozen books. Each book was harder to stomach than the last. Some books seemed to treat the Lunar ponies like criminals while others depicted them as non-pony like creatures. As Twilight read them she took notes and sited each source so that her Princess could see the proof for herself if she so wished.
The first book she found was a children’s history book. According to the author, the events in Hoofshire were caused by supporters of Celestia’s younger sister. How they lurked through the dark, set fire to the homes of innocent ponies before running away into the night. The book continued by informing the reader that there had been an attempt to investigate what had happened, but that it went nowhere. Yet after the supporters of the younger princess left for the moon there were no more fires. So, in the author’s ‘expert’ opinion, the culprits most likely fled to the moon to avoid punishment.
There were also several other books like this one, who saw fit to note several other ‘criminal behavior’ that vanished when Luna and her ponies left the planet. Most of these examples seemed to be rather vague like questioning authority or suspicious behavior. Another thing that Twilight also noted was that all of these books simply referred to Princess Luna as Celestia’s younger sister. It was almost like they were trying to avoid mentioning her as much as possible, perhaps even trying to forget about her.
Twilight, feeling her blood boil as she read these history books, decided to check up on what this Nightmare Moon thing was all about. She found the answer in what appeared to be a children’s story book. The story went that there was were two sisters, one who raised the sun while the younger raised the moon. All ponies were happy, except for the younger sister who became jealous of her older sister. Desperately wanting to feel loved, she reached out to the wicked ones of Equestria who, over time, corrupted her. Twilight’s eyes narrowed as the story continued to insult her princess saying that she wished to create a kingdom of darkness for her and her new subjects. She even went as far as to call herself Nightmare Moon, the Queen of the Night! They were then defeated by Celestia and ran away like cowards to the moon. For the first time in her life, Twilight threw a book against the wall.
Taking a few deep breaths, Twilight reached over for another book. This one talked more about Nightmare Night. She had suspected that there was a connection between Nightmare Night and Nightmare Moon. To her horror, she was right. The stories told around this holiday seemed to be a continuation of the one she had read about in the last book. The wicked ponies had changed their shapes to better survive on the moon and soon spent their nights doing horrible things. One night a year they came down to Equestria to snatch up foals. They could be fooled, however, by wearing costumes. It was also recommended that foals offer them up treats unless they wanted to be eaten instead.
Twilight had no words to describe what she was feeling. These books were full of outright lies! It was one thing if they were rumors, but having them published in books was an entirely different matter! Ponies would believe that these were facts!
Slowly, the gears in Twilight's head began to turn as she began to write down her report to Princess Luna.
-x-
Town Hall was full of ponies. In the past, they would be talking with each other as they waited for Princess Celestia to make her appearance. However news of the Lunar Republic had caused a bit of unease. They waited quietly for their princess in hopes that it was a joke or the delusion of a drunk pony.
On the stage were both the mayor and Trixie. As the mayor began to speak to the townsfolk Trixie rubbed her head. Right now she had a hangover that could kill an immortal. Pity there was no magic that could cure something like this so she had to settle for a pain relief spell that she knew by heart. There was also something nagging at her. Last night was a blur and she was sure that something had happened. She didn’t know what, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had done something that she shouldn’t have. Maybe she kissed that red farm stallion or something.
A moment later the sun began to rise, getting a light cheer from the crowd. Once the sun was up, Princess Celestia appeared on the stage as well along with a couple of others.
“Ya think that’s her?” asked Applejack in a low tone as she looked at the blue alicorn.
“She’s pretty,” said Fluttershy.
“Doesn’t look that tough,” commented Rainbow.
“Her dress is… interesting,” said Rarity. “Of course if I had been the one to make it-”
“Fillies and gentlecolts,” said Celestia as she cut into Rarity’s fashion dialog. “As the sun rises, a new day in Equestria has begun. But not just for those living in Equestria, but also to our distant cousins on the moon. A thousand years ago they left us, but now both sides are ready to work together again in the spirit of love and harmony. Allow me to introduce to you the leader of the Lunar Republic, as well as my younger sister, Princess Luna.”
As Princess Luna stepped forward she was met with silence as well as looks of confusion. From most of them anyways. In the back, Snips and Snails were standing next to a small pile of rocks that they had collected during the night. Once Luna stepped forwards the two began to pick some of the rocks up, preparing to throw them. Luckily, a certain orange pony noticed what they were about to do, quickly moved over to the two without being noticed, and knocked the rocks out of their hooves.
“Hey, what do you think you are doing?” Snips almost yelled.
“Keepin’ ya from doing something that might start a war,” hissed Applejack.
“But Trixie said that-” began Snails until Applejack covered his mouth with her hoof.
“Ah don’t care what she said,” said Applejack. “She was drunk! Now if ah see ya both doing something like this again ah’ll tell yer folks about this.”
“Citizens of Ponyville,” began Princess Luna. “For so long our two-” She stopped speaking as the doors in the back opened suddenly to reveal Twilight. The purple unicorn as well as her colt friend made their way up to the stage. All eyes were glued on Twilight as she walked up to the stage and bowed before Princess Luna.
“Hey, what’s going on?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“I have no idea,” said Rarity. “But it looks like…oh no.” Realization hit the white unicorn first and soon the others began to realize it as well. Twilight was from the Lunar Republic as well as Shadow Blade. That’s why they didn’t seem to know about things in Equestria.
“My prized student,” addressed Luna. “What is the meaning of this?”
“Forgive me Princess Luna,” said Twilight Sparkle as she lifted her head to look her mentor in the eyes. “But I feel I must give you my report before you go any further.”
“I have already talked to Luna about the many-” began Celestia, but Twilight cut her off.
“As my princess commanded, I was tasked with the order of finding out if the ponies of Equestria would accept us,” said Twilight in a loud voice. “They will not. This merger of our nations will only end up hurting the ponies under your care princess.” As Twilight said this, Gigawatt gave her a triumphant smile. If there was anypony who would talk the princess out of this mess it would be her.
“Let me see your findings,” said Luna quietly. Twilight simply pulled out a few scrolls with her magic and then gave them to Luna. The night princess read them swiftly, gritting her teeth as she went from page to page. The words on the pages stung her heart. She was angry, but not at her student.
“Sister may I please-” began Celestia but was cut off as Luna punched her sister to the ground. The crowd gasped in horror as they saw their monarchs spit out blood as Luna stood above her with a glare that could melt ice.
“Say nothing, ‘sister’,” said Luna as she stomped a hoof to the ground causing lighting to shoot across the sky. “Never again speak to me again. I want nothing to do with you or your Equestria. You can all rot for all I care.” Out of the corner of her eye she noticed an object flying towards her. However, before it could hit her Shining Armor had already cast a barrier spell to protect them from the rock.
This was it for Princess Luna. She gathered her magic to create a white hole next to the stage. It was a portal that would take them right to the palace on the moon. One by one the senators walked into it, followed by Shadow Blade. Twilight hesitated for a moment before her horn glowed for some reason. It lasted for just a moment and once it faded she too walked through the portal. Once she had, Luna flung the papers Twilight had given her at Celestia before she too walked through the portal with Shining Armor.
Night had ended about an hour ago. For a bat pony, the night was their friend. Due to their darker colors, it hid them better. Because of their eyes they could see clearly despite the lack of light. So, for a bat pony to be flying during the daytime was somewhat unusual in Equestria.
Ruby Moon, a dark blood red mare with a black mane, kept looking over her shoulder to see if she was being followed. She knew it was dangerous to head back to the hideout during the daytime, but she had seen something that had caused her to linger back in the town of Hayberg. In order to throw anypony off her trail she had taken several wrong turns before heading back to the caves.
The entrance to the caves was found on a hillside several miles away from Hayberg. It wasn’t a large entrance, just big enough for a single pony to slip through. But once one got through that, the caves were large enough to hold hundreds of ponies. It was dark inside, but to one such as herself the darkness meant nothing. As she walked she felt thirteen pairs of eyes fall upon her. Sighing, she set down her saddle bag and opened it up to reveal the oat she had stolen from the farming community. She then took her share before walking away so that the other could get theirs.
Ruby continued to walk into the caves until she found who she was looking for. It was a stallion by the name of Lone Wolf. He had a dark purple coat with a silver colored mane. The left side of his face was covered with dirt bandages to hide the scars he had received during his childhood. Wolf was just sitting there, staring into the darkness as if he were trying to find something that wasn’t there.
“What do you want?” he grunted as Ruby sat down next to him. Silently Ruby pulled out a newspaper she had been carrying and laid it on the ground in front of the two. Wolf looked down to see that the headline read ‘Insanity in the Capital: Princess Celestia Adopts Bat Pony!’ Slowly the stallion read the article before turning to look at Ruby. “Is this some kind of sick joke?”
“It’s for real,” said Ruby with some excitement in her voice. “She said that she is going to do her best to start helping all bat ponies. Isn’t this exciting?” Wolf scowled as he stomped on the paper.
“It’s rubbish,” he growled. “So some princess adopts a bat pony. Big deal! She probably did it so she could dress her up like some sort of pet. That’s probably what she means by helping us, dressing us up like we’re some sort of animals that can be shown off. For forty years I’ve been told that I wasn’t a real pony by the ‘good ponies’ of Equestria. I won’t let them demote me even further by calling me a pet.”
Ruby let out a sigh as she turned to leave. She had hoped that he would have at least given this some more thought. However, she could not blame him. Out of all the bat ponies in this cave, he had suffered the most from the cruelty of the day ponies. But Ruby was not going to give up hope. She believed that a day would come when bat ponies would be welcomed in Equestria.
She only hoped she could live to see that day.
-x-
“Twilight, what you have done could be considered a serious crime!” Those were the words that awoke Scootaloo. Opening her eyes she found herself in a bright, silver colored throne room. It was circular shaped with twelve large plain glass windows that went straight up to the ceiling. At the top of each was a black flag with two silver crescent moons in-between an alicorn in flight.
She then noticed a large throne at the far side of the room. Sitting on it was a blue alicorn with a mane that looked like a clear summer’s night. Standing to the side of her were four ponies whom she didn’t know. She also noticed that Twilight was there as well, standing before the throne while the alicorn was looking at her angrily.
“I just couldn’t leave her there,” said Twilight without looking up at her princess.
“What you did was kidnapping,” said Luna as she pointed a hoof at Twilight. “What if her parents are worried sick about her?”
“She’s an orphan,” said Twilight. “And she has crossbreed syndrome. If I left her there then she would have been made fun of her entire life.”
“And I understand that,” said Luna quickly. “Believe me Twilight; I know what its like to be different. But she is a foal of the state. She is under Equestria’s care until she is legally adopted. Once they realize that she has gone missing they will file a missing foals report and sooner or later they will connect the dots.” Luna paused for a moment to let out a sigh. Her eyes then softened somewhat. “My sister may normally slow to act, but after what just happened I’m sure she’ll use the filly in some way. I’m sorry Twilight, but I’ll have to send her back.”
Scootaloo had only a vague idea of what was going on. It seemed to her that Twilight had taken her out of Equestria without permission. But why? Didn’t they say they would bring a doctor to Ponyville if she didn’t want to leave? Did something go wrong?
“If I may speak,” said Land Share as he stepped forward until he was standing in front of Luna. The Princess of the Night nodded. “If I recall my history correctly, wasn’t there a similar case like this a thousand years ago? One where a princess took ponies from a country she ruled alongside her sister and brought them to the moon?”
“That was completely different,” snapped Luna. “I did that to save lives.”
“But, in a way, Twilight Sparkle did the same thing,” replied Land Share. “While the filly lived there we can only hope that she got three meals a day, shelter, as well as everything needed for a healthy life. However, what about her ability to function? The filly would never be able to fly or use magic. She would be seen as a failure or an outcast. You saw the way they treat bat ponies! There is a good chance she would have been treated the same. What kind of life would that have been?”
“I have to agree with Senator Land Share,” said Gigawatt as he stood next to Twilight. “Twilight was only thinking about what was best for the child. I would also like to add that we can show her our society. Perhaps here she can flourish in a way she never could in Equestria.”
Luna closed her eyes for a moment. She could see the points they were making. There was weight to their words. Yet she knew that Celestia would not give up so easily. All she needed was a little leeway that she could use to get what she wanted. While Luna was certain that her main prize was Luna, she would settle for Twilight. Slowly she opened her eyes once more.
“Twilight, are you sure this is what you want?” asked Luna in a low voice. “If she stays then you will have to take responsibility for her. That means adopting her.” Twilight nodded right away with a smile on her face. “Very well then. From this day forth, the filly known as Scootaloo will be under the care of Twilight Sparkle.”
“Thank you,” cried Twilight as she ran up to her mentor to hug her.
“Don’t thank me just yet,” chuckled Luna. “And don’t worry about Celestia. I don’t think that she’ll start a war over this.” Twilight nodded as she let go of the princess and went to Land Share to give him a hug as well. She then tried to do the same to Gigawatt, but he simply shook his head.
“No need for that,” he said with a half smile. “I owed you one.” Somewhat confused, Twilight turned and walked over to Scootaloo who was now sitting up. Her face seemed to be frozen in a look of surprise.
“W-What just happened?” asked Scootaloo after a moment.
“The princess just made you my daughter,” said Twilight. “Or maybe little sister. Either way you’re now part of the family. Now we have to get going.”
“Wait up,” said Scootaloo as she got up and began to follow Twilight who was walking towards the doors. They opened to reveal that Shadow was on the other side, dressed in his armor.
“Alright then,” said Luna once the doors closed. “Did anything happen while we were away?”
“Yes Princess,” said Shining Armor as he produced a piece of paper. Using his magic he handed it over to the princess. “Bring in Dr. Blue Star!”
Once more the doors to the chambers opened. Two Royal Guard ponies walked in, escorting a third in a lab coat. In many ways, she looked like Celestia’s faithful student Trixie with the only visible difference being the color of her yellow eyes. There was also her cutie mark, which was a single white star, but that was hidden by her clothing. Blue Star looked scared, looking around for a way to escape. But she knew that escape was impossible. No pony escaped the justice of the Lunar Republic.
“Dr. Blue Star,” said Luna as she read from the paper. “You have been brought before me for the crime of misuse of government funds. You withdrew twelve thousand bits that belonged to Project Crescent Hope earlier today. You then traveled to Dome Five where you spent the bits on a new designer dress. The LBI has already searched your office to find not only the dress but a receipt for it as well. They have also spoken with the stallion who runs the shop who was confirmed that you were there.” Luna lowered the paper to look at the trembling doctor. There was no mercy in her eyes. “I find this inexcusable. We need Crescent Hope now more than ever! Your selfish actions could doom the entire Republic! Do you have anything to say in your defense?”
“P-Please forgive me princess,” begged Blue Star as she got on knees. “It was a moment of weakness. The dress was on sale and I thought-”
“That no pony would notice,” Shining Armor cut in.
“I beg your mercy princess,” pleaded Blue Star as tears began to fall down her face. “I’ll return the dress and put the money back into the account. It will never happen again, I swear.”
“No, it won’t,” said Luna with a sigh. Lunar justice was different from that of Equestria. Lunar ponies believed that the higher the position, the more power a pony wielded, the greater the punishment. A thousand years ago, they had seen nobles get off lightly from crimes that a normal pony would have been sent to the gallows for. So when they came to the moon, Luna and the new Lunar ponies worked out a new system to ensure that something like that wouldn’t happen. Or at least make a pony think twice before they committed some kind of crime. “I, Princess Luna of the Lunar Republic, sentence you to twenty years in the royal dungeons.”
Blue Star let out a wail as the doors opened again. Fearfully she turned her head to see another guard walking towards her with what looked like a black floating egg. The two original guards picked her up by her forelegs, dragging her to the egg while the new one opened it. Blue Star began to scream for help, for mercy, for anything she could think of. Yet no pony even bothered to tell her to be quiet. Once the egg had been opened, her hooves were strapped into several automatic locks. From one of the sides a tube appeared from out of the wall. Like a snake it made its way over to her mouth and slithered in. Blue Star continued to struggle as the egg began to close up trapping her in darkness. Once it was fully closed, a gas began to fill the insides causing her thrashing to stop. When it was finally over, the area in front of her face became transparent.
Helpless to do anything, Blue Star watched as the guards began to take the egg out of the chambers. She knew for the next twenty years she would be in here, unable to move or speak. There was no way she could break out or cause any trouble for the rest of the Republic.
-x-
It was about thirty minutes later when Twilight, Shadow, and Scootaloo got to the office of Healing Touch. Luckily, being the prized student of the princess came with some perks. Twilight quickly explained the situation to her and the medical mare went right to work while the young couple waited outside. After about fifteen minutes, Healing Touch came out closing the door behind her.
“Well she definitely has crossbreed syndrome,” said Healing Touch as she went over the test results. “But it isn’t natural meaning that the mother tried to change her while she was still in the womb. She was either an unskilled magic user or found out she was pregnant too late.”
“But you can help her, right?” asked Shadow.
“Of course I can,” stated Healing Touch with a confidante grin. “Normally I would give her a retrovirus, but since magic was involved I will need some help. I’ll get a couple of unicorn doctors to lend a hoof. They’ll be able to help sort out the magical flaws while accelerating the speed of the retrovirus. Should be done in no more than two hours.”
As the couple thanked the doctor, Twilight let out a yawn. She had been awake for more than twenty-four hours. Now that she had a moment to relax she was realizing how tired she was. She moved over to a corner of the waiting room and laid down. As she closed her eyes she felt Shadow lay down next to her. He then draped a wing over her body to keep her warm. Smiling, Twilight drifted into dreamland.
Cadence let out a shiver as she walked towards the balcony. It was close to ten, but there was a bitter chill to the air despite it being the middle of summer. It was almost as if all warmth had left Equestria.
So far her day had been every bit as eventful as she had predicted. As soon as the sun came up reporters had gathered at the front gates demanding answers. Cadence and Midnight had gone out to speak with them, the small of the two scared out of her wits. While the reporters yelled out accusations that Midnight might be plotting something, the bat filly hid behind her adopted mother. The alicorn of love stood tall while she did her best to squash every vile question they had. She stated that Midnight wasn’t plotting anything evil nor did she have any ill intent. The whole thing had taken almost two hours ending with many of the reports returning to their offices to find some way to twist Cadence’s words around.
“Why are we up here mommy?” asked Midnight as she broke Cadence out of her thoughts.
“We’re waiting for waiting for Auntie Celestia, Princess Luna, and Shining Armor to return,” said Cadence with a smile which Midnight returned.
“Do you think we can play some more with Mr. Shiny?” asked Midnight. “I really liked him.” Cadence let out a giggle as playfully messed up her daughter’s mane.
“I do to,” admitted Cadence. Just then, she heard the guards begin to shout something. Looking in the direction of Ponyville, Cadence saw a single chariot flying through the skies. As it got closer she grew worried due to the fact that the only pony she could see was Celestia. When it landed Cadence held back a gasp at the sight of her aunt’s bruised cheek. “Auntie, what happened?”
“My sister,” said Celestia in a quiet voice as she left the chariot. “It seems she had sent her own student to Ponyville as well. It seems that she found out some things that upset the both of them and, before she could give me a chance to explain, lost her temper. She then canceled the union between our nations before demanding that she never hear from me again.”
Cadence narrowed her eyes. “What ‘things’ did she find out Auntie?”
“I will tell you once this is over,” said Celestia as she walked part her niece. As she did a scroll and quill appeared next to her. “Right now I have to try and reason with Luna.”
-x-
Shining Armor let out a sigh. Currently he was staring out of a window in the palace that faced the planet. Even though he had been there for a brief amount of time, he now found himself missing it for some reason. ‘Or perhaps’, he thought to himself, ‘you’re missing somepony.’
It was true; he had felt a connection to the pink princess. She was different from the mares here on the moon. She was…good. There was no other way he could explain it. Cadence was so determined to do the right thing and to help. He liked how quickly she took to her role as a mother figure as if she had been practicing it for years. The time they spent playing with Midnight had been the most fun he had since Twilight had moved out. Speaking of Twilight, he regretted that they never got the chance to meet. If they had he was sure that they would have become friends.
Slowly he pulled himself away from the window…only to crash into Princess Luna.
“P-Princess,” stammered Shining as he backed up. “Please forgive me! I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“At ease,” said Luna with a hint of a smile. “I think I might know what has my-” She was then cut off as a scroll surrounded by a golden glow appeared next to her. Sighing in irritation she picked up the scroll with her magic before magically summoning a recycling bin. With a look of annoyance, Luna then dropped the scroll into the bin.
Shining blinked. “Princess, what was that about?” he asked.
“Just another letter from my sister,” said Luna as she rolled her eyes. “This is the third one she has sent this hour. We will have to do something about this. That or enchant the shield spell surrounding the palace to redirect her mail to the recycling plant.”
“I will get on it right away,” said Shining Armor as he bowed. Luna, however, shook her head.
“There are others in the Shield Corps that I can ask,” she said. “I want you to go home and relax.” Shining Armor opened his mouth to argue, but Princess Luna gently placed a hoof on his shoulder to silence him. “You have been up for over twenty four hours. You’re thoughts are also focused on Cadence right now. It’s written all over your face so please don’t say it isn’t.”
“I never get to say goodbye,” said Shining as he looked out the window once again. He then shook his head. “I don’t know why I’m feeling like this! I knew her for barely a day! I…I just don’t understand why I’m feeling like this. It makes no sense.”
‘Love rarely ever does,’ thought Luna as a sad smile appeared on her face. She had seen the signs clear as the night under a full moon. It might not have been the moment the two of them made eye contact, but it happened. A connection had been made, one she had seen countless times in the Republic. Sadly, however, it looked like it was never going to be.
“Shining, please go home and get some rest,” she said. “Or you can go spend some time with your new niece. Whatever you do just relax, get your mind off the planet, and…you’re not listening to me anymore, are you?” It was true. As soon as Shining heard the word niece his mind went into overdrive as a look of horror appeared on his face.
‘She’s adopted,’ he thought to himself. ‘Even though she has a purple mane like Shadow’s, it’s impossible for her to her to really be Twily’s daughter. I mean, Twily would have to use a birth acceleration spell and then and age spell to make her look like a nine year old filly. Unless she had her nine years ago and has been hiding it from me! No, I would have noticed something! My imagination is just running away with me right now. She’s part of the family. Twily will make a great mother. And Shadow…I guess he’ll take on the role of father.’ Shining’s eye began to twitch. ‘He might try to take advantage of the situation. Spending more time with Twily then pushing her into doing things she is NOT ready for!’
“I think I’ll go home now,” said Shining as he began to walk away. As he did, Luna smirked as she wondered what the captain of the Shield Corps was going to do. But before she could wonder about anything in great detail another scroll from her sister appeared next to her only to be tossed into the recycling bin.
-x-
“THIS IS THE GREATEST DAY EVER!” Twilight groaned as she heard somepony practically screaming in her ear. Slowly Twilight opened her eyes to see Scootaloo buzzing through the air. The look on the young filly’s face was that of pure joy as she simply circled around the room. However she was going too fast and soon crashed into a wall. “I’m ok,” she said as she peeled herself off said wall.
“Well it seems like everything went well,” said Twilight as she gave Shadow a nudge. The stallion grunted in response causing Twilight to nudge him again only a little harder. Clicking his tongue, Shadow opened his eye and then yawned loudly.
“So, is flying everything you thought it would be?” asked Shadow as the couple stood up. Scootaloo turned to look at them with a big smile on her face. Once again she took to the air.
“Yes! Yes! A thousand times YES!” she cheered as she tried to do a summersault only to crash into the ground. Shadow chuckled.
“Looks like I’m going to have to give somepony some flying lessons soon,” said Shadow with a grin. He then glanced at a wall clock and then groaned. “I have to get back to work. Knowing Lightning, she’s probably been goofing off since we left.”
Twilight giggled. “It’s alright,” she said as she gave her coltfriend a peck on the cheek. “I’ll take Scootaloo home for now and then later we can see if she can be enrolled at Princess Luna’s School for Gifted Ponies.”
“Can I fly there?” asked Scootaloo as she once again started to fly. Sadly her lift off was a bit too powerful and she crashed her head on the ceiling.
“I think it would be better if you walked for now,” laughed Twilight as she patted Scootaloo on the head. “Just until you get a few flying lessons.”
“Okay,” grumbled Scootaloo. With that, the trio parted ways. As Shadow made his way down the corridor leading towards the training grounds, Twilight and Scootaloo walked towards the main entrance. As they did, Scootaloo kept skipping happily next to Twilight. Her body felt lighter and she felt like she had more energy than before. She also noted that her wings were slightly bigger as well.
As the two stepped out of the castle, Scootaloo looked up at the sky…and her jaw hit the ground. Above her were countless stars as well as a blue and green planet. The filly’s knees began to shake as confusion began to take over. She then looked around her only to notice the white, rocky surface around her. It almost looked like a desert. She didn’t know where they were, but it certainly wasn’t anywhere near Equestria.
“Is something wrong?” asked Twilight as she noticed Scootaloo’s confusion.
“W-Where are we?” asked the orange filly.
“Oh that’s right,” said Twilight as she face hoofed. “I forgot to tell you earlier. Now please stay calm. You are in the Lunar Republic on the moon.” Scootaloo blinked for a moment before fainting.
Twenty minutes later Scootaloo woke up wondering what happened. The last thing she remembered was Twilight telling her… Jumping up, Scootaloo saw that Twilight was standing a few feet away from her. The orange filly began to back up until her hind legs told her that there was no more ground. Looking behind her she saw that she was on a floating piece of metal that was zipping across the ground.
“Scootaloo, please stay calm,” said Twilight.
“But you said we’re on the moon,” said Scootaloo as she pointed a hoof at Twilight. “Isn’t the moon full of pony eating monsters?!”
Twilight shook her head. “Scootaloo, you’ve been mislead your entire life,” said Twilight calmly. She then gave the filly a small smile. “I’ve lived here my entire life. Tell me, do I look like a pony eating monster? Does Shadow?”
“N-No,” admitted Scootaloo. “But the stories-”
“They’re all lies,” said Twilight. “A thousand years ago, we left Equestria because of the way they treated us. They were afraid of us because we enjoyed the night instead of the day.”
“Really?” asked Scootaloo as she raised an eyebrow. “That’s it? That sounds dumb.”
Twilight giggled. “Yes, it does sound dumb today. But a thousand years ago it was a really big deal.” The platform the two had been standing on began to slow down until it stopped altogether. “Well, this is our stop.”
As the two left the platform station, Scootaloo’s eyes were trying to take everything in. The ponies looked just like the ones back home. They were walking down the streets, talking to others, laughing with each other. From time to time she would see a street performer playing an instrument. It was…so normal. When Scootaloo pictured what it was like to live on the moon, she saw a nightmarish place were death lurked around every corner. Or at least that’s what she had attempted to draw for a Nightmare Night assignment for Miss Cheerilee.
Another thing that Scootaloo noticed were the houses. Each one looked exactly the same, a giant egg with a ring floating around the top. As Scootaloo noticed this, she wondered how Twilight could tell her home from the others. The homes were placed directly next to each other, the same space apart. It was like all of the ponies in the Republic owned the same amount of space.
The Twilight just stopped right in the middle of the sidewalk causing Scootaloo to bump into her. Looking forward, Scootaloo saw there were several ponies moving large boxes into one of the egg homes. One of the ponies, a white unicorn she had seen in the princess’s throne room, was standing outside barking orders to the other ponies. Twilight then snorted before charging towards him.
“Hey Twily,” said the stallion as he saw the two racing towards him.
“What’s going on here Shiny?” demanded Twilight. She then pointed a hoof at the building. “Why are you bringing all this stuff into my house?”
“Well I thought I’d help out by buying you some stuff for your new daughter,” said Shining Armor with a nervous grin. Twilight blinked at him for a moment before she walked inside the house. As Scootaloo followed, she felt she was back in the Ponyville Library. There were shelves filled with books everywhere. The only furniture she could see in the living room were a sofa with a small table next to it. Of course on the table was a couple of books.
Scootaloo noticed that Twilight was heading up a spiral staircase. Not knowing what else to do the young filly followed her up to a room halfway between the living up and the top of the stairs. Inside the room was a brand new bed, a couple of dressers, some stuffed creatures that Scootaloo had no idea what they were, and a brand new metal scooter. Scootaloo’s eye went wide as she fought the urge to cry. She had never had this much stuff before. Back in Equestria, the only thing she owned was a scooter that she had dug out of a trash can.
“Shiny, I…I don’t know what to say,” said Twilight as she turned to look at her brother. “I thought you were trying to move in with me. Again.” Shining let out an uncomfortable laugh.
“Yeah well I learned my lesson the last time I tried that,” said Shining as shifted on his hoofs. “Anyways, I also got you some new books as well. They’re in you room if you are interested.” Interested she was indeed. As soon as Shining finished speaking Twilight ran right out of the room towards her own. This left Scootaloo and Shining alone. “Well, I hope you like all this.”
“I do,” said Scootaloo as she bounced. She then began to hug Shining Armor. “I don’t know what to say!”
“Thank you works,” chuckled Shining. He then leaned down so his head was next to Scootaloo’s. “I was wondering if you might do me a big favor.”
The orange filly’s ears flattened. “What kind of favor?” she asked as she took a step back, slightly worried.
“Nothing bad,” said Shining calmly. “I just would like it if you could keep an eye on Twily for me. Let me know if Twilight and Shadow are getting a little too close or if he spends the night. Can you do that for me?”
Scootaloo blinked. “You mean if I see them sleeping together?” she asked innocently. Shining slowly nodded. “Well, I sort of saw them doing that earlier today in the doctor’s office.”
For a moment, Shining said nothing. He just stared into empty space. ‘They did THAT in a doctor’s office? And in front of a filly?!’ However, it never occurred to Shining that Scootaloo might have been literal when she said she saw them sleeping together. But, with his protective big brother mode in overdrive, Shining Armor raced out of the room to hunt down Shadow Blade.
Meanwhile, up in Twilight’s room, the purple unicorn was checking out the books Shining had given her. They were all about foal raising and a guide to being a single parent. All in all, they looked like they were good choices. She would really have to thank Shining for all of this later. It much of cost him a small fortune.
Out of the corner of her eye, Twilight thought she saw something shine. She put down the book she had been looking at to investigate. It turned out to be a stuffed star that was on her dresser. Funny, she never had one there before she left. She then shrugged, thinking that one of the movers put it in her room by mistake. Yet as she picked it up she noticed something odd about it. One part of the star was a slightly different shade of yellow. As her eyes narrowed she cast a detection spell only to find there was a camera in the stuffed star.
Twilight growled. So this was what Shining was really up to. He had placed nanny cams in her house to spy on her. Most likely to make sure she and Shadow didn’t do anything that he didn’t like. Slowly a smile appeared on her face as she thought of her first mother/daughter bonding exercise: hunting down all the expensive nanny cams and destroying them!
The streets of Ponyville looked deserted. There was a chill in the air which had dropped the temperature down to the upper fifties. The sun seemed smaller in the sky, as if it had suddenly taken a step back. A chilling wind blew past the few ponies that wandered out into this weather.
As Rarity walked to the spa, she couldn’t help but notice the differences from last night. The night of the party had been full of happy laughter as they waited for the sun to come up. Now nearly every home had been shut tight to keep the warmth in. There was also a sense of fear that seemed to radiate from every building. She was happy to see that the one exception was the spa.
As the white unicorn mare walked in, the atmosphere felt so different that she felt she was on another world. She scented candles seemed to help calm her down and the warmth of the building helped her to relax. In the waiting area she saw several familiar faces, one of them being that of a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane.
“Oh Rarity, you’re here,” said Fluttershy as she got up from her sitting position.
“Yes, sorry for the wait dear,” said Rarity as the two were brought to the spa area. In the large tub was Applejack while another pony was getting a mud wrap. Aloe and Lotus, the main ponies who ran the spa, sat them down to begin giving their hooves a pedicure. “Once I got back to the shop I had several ponies cancel their orders. When I asked why they said that they were afraid a war was about to break out thanks to the little incident.”
“I sort of know how you feel,” said Fluttershy. “All of my little animal friends have been all huddled up together since this morning. But maybe that’s because it’s a bit colder than normal.”
“You’re right about that,” commented Rarity as she looked out a window. “It’s been chilly ever since Princess Celestia left.”
“Of course it’s been chilly since she left,” said the pony getting the mud wrap. Rarity managed to hold back a groan as she recognized the pony’s voice. “Princess Celestia controls the movement of the sun and sometimes it can be affected by her mood. The Summer Sun Festival was a disaster thanks to that moon pony! Why, Princess Celestia was so distressed by the attack that she left Trixie here.”
“That Twilight gal made a mess of things,” said Applejack in agreement. “Ah mean, she comes in here acting all friendly and such. Gets us to warm up ta her only ta spy on us. Then she goes an tells her princess that we won’t accept them without givin’ us a chance!”
“That’s right,” said Trixie with a nod.
“Well, to be fair, we did say a few nasty things about lunar ponies,” admitted Rarity.
“Then she should have been honest with us about where she was from,” said Applejack. However, as she said this, she felt a little uncomfortable.
“I don’t blame her,” said Fluttershy. All heads turned to look at her which caused her to ‘eep’ before continuing. “I mean, she wanted to find out more about us. She and Shadow probably felt that we might act differently if we found out they were from the moon.” Applejack opened her mouth to argue, but no words came out. She knew that if they had been honest then the two of them would have been chased out of town before they got a word in edgewise. “And they all looked so sad when they left.”
Trixie snorted. “Trixie thinks they looked more angry than sad.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “I know what sad looks like. I could see it in their eyes. Especially Princess Luna’s. When she first started to speak she looked so happy. But once she began to read Twilight’s notes there was a moment when I thought she was going to cry.”
“Of course she would cry,” said Pinkie Pie as she popped out of the tub in a snorkel.
“How’d you do that?” asked Applejack. When she had gotten in the tub it had been completely empty. Also she had been in there for a while, longer than anypony could hold her breath.
“Do what?” asked Pinkie.
“Never mind that,” said Rarity. “Pinkie dear, what did you mean when you said ‘of course she would cry’?”
“Oh that,” said Pinkie as she took off her snorkel. “Well after I noticed that Twilight, Shadow, and Scootaloo left the party I went to look for them. I found them in the library looking at all sorts of books about Nightmare Night and lunar ponies.” Pinkie paused for a moment as her smile disappeared. “Twilight looked very mad when she read them. And I guess that makes sense since Princess Luna looks nothing like Nightmare Moon. I can only imagine how Princess Luna felt when she found out.”
Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy nodded in agreement. The stories about Nightmare Moon portrayed her as a large mare with the darkest black coat imaginable with teal colored eyes that were slit like a cats. She also had large fangs like a changelings so that she could better eat young foals. However, Princess Luna looked nothing like that. The only thing they had gotten right was the eye color, but the pupils weren’t slit.
“Still she didn’t have to hit Celestia like that,” said Trixie. “That pony needs to learn some manners.”
Applejack then got out of the tub and began to dry off. ‘Something about all this seems a might off,’ she thought to herself. ‘Ah know all the stories about the moon and lunar ponies. Not to mention all the Nightmare Night tales. If they have been wrong for so long then why didn’t Princess Celestia correct them?’ Now, Applejack was a pony who valued honesty. She always tried her best to tell the truth. But one of the things she couldn’t stand was being lied to. Right now she didn’t know if she had been given the whole truth in school or had been just plain lied to. Putting on her hat, Applejack vowed to find out.
-x-
“I found another one,” said Scootaloo. Twilight nodded as she placed a little x mark on the spot where Scootaloo had found the nanny cam.
After Twilight had found the first nanny cam in her room she had gone to Scootaloo to inform her of what was in their home. Unfortunately the young filly had no idea what a camera was so it took a while for Twilight to explain what it was and what it was doing. But once Scootaloo understood its significance she was more than happy to hunt down the small devices. Right now the two were checking each room in the house while marking the spots where they found the cameras. So far they had found forty-six.
“Great job,” said Twilight as Scootaloo gave her the small nanny cam. “I think that’s the last one in the kitchen. Next lets try the-” Twilight’s voice was suddenly drowned out by loud music. The purple unicorn face hoofed as the door to her home opened up to reveal a white unicorn mare with a blue mane and wearing sunglasses. Behind her were several speakers that were pumping out the loud music.
“Hello Twilight!” said the new mare in a loud voice. “What’s goin’ on with my number one best friend in the entire Dome One community?”
“Hey Vinyl,” said Twilight while covering her ears with her hooves. “Do you mind turning down the music?”
“Sure thing,” said Vinyl as her horn began to glow. The speakers began to glow for a second before they were silenced. Once they were off Vinyl grinned at Twilight. “So tell me, how was it planetside?”
Twilight took a step back. “H-How did you know I was on the planet?” she asked.
“Twilight, Twilight,” said Vinyl as she wrapped a foreleg around Twilight’s neck. “I’m DJ PON-3! Whenever there is anything newsworthy going on in the Republic it’s my job to get it to my listeners. Besides, it’s not like Princess Luna kept it a big secret or anything. Derpy told me all about it over muffins yesterday.”
Twilight let out a sigh a she deadpanned. “Of course she did.”
Vinyl gave Twilight a big, toothy smile. “Now everypony is dying to hear about what Equestria is like after a thousand years. So I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind coming on my show tomorrow to talk about your time there. Maybe even answering some questions regarding some juicy rumors that I have been hearing.”
“What kind of rumors?” asked Twilight as her ears flattened in confusion. DJ PON-3 opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she saw movement behind Twilight. Leaning her head over to the side, she saw a small orange Pegasus filly. In shock, Vinyl took off her trademark sunglasses.
“Well this answers one of the questions,” muttered Vinyl as she slowly put her glasses back on.
“What?” asked a very confused Twilight. Turning her head around she saw Scootaloo, who looked very confused, before returning her attention back to Vinyl. “You mean news has already gotten out that I adopted a filly from Equestria?”
“Ah…yeah,” replied Vinyl before laughing nervously. “That’s right. So, anyways, how about you introduce me to the new kid in the dome.”
“Ok,” said Twilight as she motioned Scootaloo to come forward. “Vinyl, this is Scootaloo. Scootaloo, this is my friend and neighbor Vinyl Scratch.”
“Oh come on Twilight,” said Vinyl as she stood up on two legs while pointing a hoof towards the ceiling. “You can introduce the awesome DJ PON-3 better than that. I am the premier DJ for the entire Republic! I am the master of wubs from Dome Zero to Thirteen! The master of the coolest jams on the radio that Republic has ever seen!” She then got back down on all fours. “That is how you introduce somepony as wickedly awesome as myself.”
“Sorry for trying to make you sound humble,” muttered Twilight.
“What’s radio?” asked Scootaloo. The glasses flew off Vinyl’s face when she heard this. Her mind quickly began to process the horror of the words uttered by the poor filly in front of her. Tears began to fall down her face as she bent down to embrace Scootaloo in a bear hug.
“You poor thing,” whispered Vinyl before turning her head to look at Twilight. “Now I understand why you adopted her. Life without radio and awesome jams just isn’t the way to live.”
“Can’t…breath,” gasped Scootaloo. They two were then enveloped by Twilight’s magic as they were then separated. The orange filly wondered for a moment if there were going to be more ponies like Vinyl on the moon. If there were then she would have to watch what she said.
“Well, now that we’ve met, how about you both come on my show?” said an excited Vinyl. “I’m sure the entire Republic would love to ask you both questions in between some killer jams!”
“Maybe,” said Twilight. “But before we make any plans I have to take Scootaloo to Princess Luna’s School for Gifted Ponies to see when she can start classes.”
“Can I go too?” asked Vinyl. “I’d love to see the old stomping ground again. Plus, while we’re there I can tell the squirt all about our old adventures there. Like that one time, after Sex Ed you-” Vinyl suddenly found herself unable to speak thanks to Twilight’s magic.
-x-
Over at the castle walls of the Lunar Palace, two guards stood watching. One was a chubby orange Pegasus and the other was a maroon unicorn. Both of them were in their armor with their helmets on.
“Hey,” said the maroon one suddenly. “Do you ever wonder why we’re here?”
The orange Pegasus growled. “Oh no, you are not doing that tired old joke. It has been done to death. I am not going to go on, getting all philosophical as I contemplate my existence with you only to find you are wondering why we are here in this exact location. Seriously, it was funny the first few times I heard it, but now it’s just getting old. And just so you know, I have no idea why we are here! Princess Luna told me to stand guard here with you. That’s it!”
For a moment, not a sound was heard. Then the maroon one began to tear up.
“I just wanted to talk to you about my worries,” he cried. “I was hoping I wasn’t the only one who was afraid that our existence wasn’t a fluke or not.”
“Ah…sorry buddy,” said the orange one. “I guess maybe I overreacted. Since we got nothing better to do I guess we can talk about your problems. It beats talking about mine.”
“Really,” asked the maroon one as he wiped his tears away.
Before the orange one could respond the two of them heard a crash down by the gates below them. Looking down, they saw Shining Armor trying to enter the castle but seemed unable to get past the magical field.
“Let me in!” screamed the captain of the Shield Corps. “I need to kill Shadow Blade for defiling my sister!”
“Huh, I guess this is the reason we’re here,” said the orange one.
Rainbow flew through the air near Cloudsdale. The city of clouds looked awesome as always to the speedy Pegasus. All around she could see the winged ponies flying from cloud to cloud as they went about their day. Part of her wished she could hang back and just chill with them since this was her hometown before she moved to Ponyville. Sadly she had no time to waste.
A few miles away from the aerial city, Rainbow stopped in front of a cloud home that stood alone in the middle of the sky. Unlike her home, or the homes of any other sky dweller for that matter, this house was made completely out of dark thunder clouds. It had no windows, no rainbow waterfalls, or anything that would make it look friendly. But then again, that was the point of its appearance.
Rainbow landed in front of the only door and knocked four times. A moment later she heard several looks being unlocked before the door opened to reveal her cousin Color Scheme. Like Rainbow she had a multicolored mane. But instead of it being striped like hers it looked like a tie dye style shirt with blood red in the center followed by dark green, purple, and then black. Stuffed between both ears of the midnight blue mare were several colored pencils and pens. While she couldn’t see it, Color’s cutie mark was a paintbrush covered in rainbow colored paint.
“Hey Rainbow,” said bat pony with a grin. “What’s up with the visit? You usually stop by at the end of the month to pick up my transcript.” In order for Color Scheme to actually have a job, practically the entire family had to help out. For example, Color’s mother went shopping for her once a week. Rainbow’s job was to pick up Color’s transcripts for X-Ponies and deliver them to her publisher.
“I, ah, need to talk to you about something,” said Rainbow as she looked a bit embarrassed. Color said not a word, she just moved to the side to allow her older cousin to come in.
As Rainbow entered the house, she couldn’t help but notice the differences from the outside. Inside it was bright and colorful. She had managed to fuse paint vapor into the clouds so that each room was a different bright color that didn’t match the furniture. In the family room, for example, the room was a bright red while the rugs were green, the tables were pink, and the sofa was orange. Sometimes Rainbow wondered if her cousin was color blind or just plain weird.
As the two walked into the kitchen, a green room with neon pink seats. Color pulled out two mugs before filling them both with hot chocolate. Once she handed one of the mugs to her cousin, Rainbow began to go into the details of what had happened yesterday as well as this morning. Color sat there, not saying a word, as Rainbow told her about Twilight and Shadow and what had happened with Princess Luna. By the time Rainbow had finished Color picked up her mug to take a sip only to find the liquid had turned ice cold.
“Well it looks like it was an eventful Summer Sun festival,” said Color as she set down her mug.
“I know,” said Rainbow. “And the weirdest part about all of this is that I feel…confused. I really liked them both. They seemed cool and all, but then they go up there and say that the Republic shouldn’t join Equestria.” Rainbow then let out a sigh. “I just don’t know what to think right now. It’s all so confusing. Lunar ponies are supposed to be these big jerks, but neither Shadow nor Twilight seemed to be that bad.”
“Maybe things got out of hoof back in the day,” said Color as she got up. She then walked over to cabinet and then pulled out a pad of paper. She then returned to her seat so she could be comfortable as she began to draw something.
“What do you mean?” asked Rainbow.
“Well,” began Color slowly. “Remember when you had to do that project with Sunny Sky back in Flight School.” Rainbow nodded. Sunny Sky was a big time fillyfooler back when she went to school. One day the two of them had been assigned a big project for class that was worth a major portion of their grade. On the first day Sunny had asked Rainbow to meet her at a café close to school to talk about what they were going to do. Wanting to get it over with as soon as possible Rainbow had agreed. Once they got there, Sunny had tried to flirt with Rainbow every other minute. While she had rejected every advance others in the café, including three very annoying stallions who she hated, saw everything. By the next day ever Pegasus in Flight School had heard about her ‘date’ with Sunny.
“It was horrible,” grunted Rainbow as she crossed her forelegs. “No pony would listen to me when I said it wasn’t a date! I was being hit on by mares, parents would give me dirty looks, and don’t get me started about what they did to my parents home! After over a year of that crap I had to drop out.”
Color nodded. “And you moved to Ponyville only to find that they had also heard the rumors.”
Rainbow groaned. “It was so unfair! They never met me before and they already assumed that I slept around with every mare I could get my hooves on. It took years before they realized that I was into stallions.” Rainbow paused before raising an eyebrow. “What does any of that have to do with what happened at the Summer Sun Festival?”
Color shrugged. “I was just thinking that it could be the same,” she said. “I mean, we only know what the history books said happened back then. But most of them were written long after Nightmare Moon or Princess Luna left. Who’s to say that what we have learned about wasn’t a small thing that was later blown out of proportion? Also, most of what we know about moon ponies is mostly guesswork. This is the first time in a thousand years that we have ever had any contact with them. I guess they didn’t like the rumors that were being spread about them like a certain blue Pegasus I know.”
Rainbow felt her ears flatten against her skull. She had never thought about it like that. She had assumed that they, the ponies of Equestria, were in the right. It had never occurred to her that they might be wrong about the Republic and that Twilight was just making a scene. As always, Color was able to give an outsiders perspective on the subject.
“You are really good at this,” said Rainbow.
“I have to be,” said Color as she set down one of her pencils. “I tell stories for a living. Maybe I can incorporate some of this into the next saga of the X-Ponies. Like having the tensions between the ponies and the mutant ponies become so bad that Magneta feels like she has to create an asteroid that will be the new home for ponies like her. A place they can be safe. Who knows, maybe that’s what Princess Luna did a thousand years ago.”
-x-
Princess Luna’s School for Gifted Ponies was one of the largest buildings Scootaloo had ever seen. It was shaped like a giant silver dome with thousands of windows on it. Off to the side there were several athletic fields as well as dorms. According to Twilight, they were for students who didn’t want to commute from different Domes everyday.
When Scootaloo had first heard about this school she had assumed that it would be similar to Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns in the way that it was just for unicorns. She couldn’t have been more wrong! Watching from the sidewalk she saw hundreds of student leaving the building. Most were walking while the pegasi flew through the air along with some earth pony that were on devices that Vinyl called hover cycles.
After gawking at the sight of these machines for a bit the young Pegasus felt someponies hoof gently touch her side. Looking up, she saw it was Twilight. Wordlessly the three of them left the sidewalk outside of the school and began walking down the long walkway towards the school. On both sides of the walkway were stone statues of various ponies. They were each posed in some epic fashion while their names were engraved below their feet.
“So who are these guys?” asked Scootaloo as they passed the statue of a Pegasus who had his wings extended. As she looked a bit closer she noticed that one wing looked a bit smoother, like it didn’t have any feathers.
“These are all Princess Luna’s previous prized students,” said Twilight. “Once a prized student graduates, a statue of him or her is built so that they will always be remembered as well as their achievements.” She then pointed at the statue of the Pegasus. “That one, for example, was called Jet Wing. He went on to create cybernetic attachments so ponies who had lost limbs could once again function.”
Scootaloo was about to ask another question when they passed by the only broken one. No, broken wasn’t the right word. It looked like somepony had tried to smash it up a long time ago. It also looked like no pony either noticed or cared. The ruble looked like it had been left there for a long time. Only an inscription remained, ‘Genetic Code: May you Suffer till the end of time for your Crimes’. Just passing by this spot made Scootaloo shiver.
Once inside the group decided to split up. Twilight was going to find the Dean while Vinyl was to show Scootaloo around. Once the Dean was ready to see them, Twilight would then teleport them outside of his office.
To be honest, it looked like any other school to Scootaloo. Student’s lockers were on both sides of the hallways and the doors seemed to just lead to the various classroom. It didn’t look very impressive, just bigger than the one back in Ponyville. As they walked, Vinyl began to tell stories about her time here with Twilight. However, some of the things Vinyl said made no sense to the filly. Like, for example, how the two of them made a fusion reactor for a science project and how somepony name Star Scream tried to steal it from them right before them could turn it in. He had not only failed, but also almost caused the reactor to malfunction. While the thing was about to blow, Twilight had been trying to fix it not only to save the Dome but also their grade.
As the two walked, Scootaloo began to hear the sounds of ponies her age. She ran towards two doors that lead to a large gym. Looking through the window she saw three ponies standing in the middle. One was an adult wearing a black and white striped shirt. The other two were closer to Scootaloo’s age. One was a bright red unicorn with a black and red striped mane. The other was a white Pegasus with an orange spiky mane. Both of them were holding metallic sticks, one by magic while the other held it in his mouth.
“Alright, I want a good clean fight,” said the adult as he took a step back. “Begin!” What happened next caused Scootaloo’s eyes to widen in utter shock. Both metallic sticks began to emit a light that seemed to take the shape of a sword. The unicorn swung his light blade downwards at his opponent’s skull. The Pegasus, on the other hoof, backed away before taking to the air. Scootaloo watched in awe as the white one circled around before making a diving motion towards the unicorn. The unicorn managed to block the attack but was pushed back by several yards due to its force.
“Awesome, right?” said Vinyl who was now standing next to Scootaloo.
“What are they doing?” asked the orange filly while keeping her eyes on the fight.
“Light Dueling,” answered Vinyl. “It’s a sport up here in the Republic that is very popular. The point is to strike one of your opponent’s vitals first with just the light blade. The ref there decides if the attack was a glancing blow or a serious blow.”
“This is…the most awesome thing I have ever seen!” exclaimed Scootaloo. The sports back home were not nearly as cool as this. Or at least the ones that Ponyville Elementary would let them play. Mostly it was straight up racing. Hoofball was alright, but it was more of an earth pony sport since ponies weren’t allowed to fly or use magic. Light Dueling didn’t seem to have that restriction.
“You should see the team matches,” said Vinyl with a grin. “Twilight and Shadow took the championship three years in a row.” Scootaloo’s head snapped in the direction of the DJ as her mouth dropped open. Twilight had done this to?! Scootaloo was about to start asking questions when the two were suddenly covered in a purple glow. A moment later there was a flash and the two of them were standing in front of Twilight.
“Well I hope you two had fun,” said a smiling Twilight. “And I hope you like the school because now we get to meet the Dean.” She then knocked on the door.
“Come in,” said a stallion’s voice from inside. Twilight opened the door to reveal a bare office. The only things in it were a deck and a couple of chairs. Sitting behind the desk was a light brown earth pony with a white beard and mane. When he saw Twilight entering, he smiled. “Well, I never thought I’d live to see the day you would walk through these doors again.”
“It’s nice to see you again Dean Learning Curve,” said Twilight as the group walked towards him.
“Hiya Deany,” said Vinyl, causing the Deans smile to flatten.
“Vinyl,” he said in a less cheerful tone. “What are you doing back here?”
“Just chilling with my friend,” said an oblivious Vinyl.
“We’re here to see if we can enroll Scootaloo into the school,” said Twilight quickly as she gestured to the orange filly.
“I see,” said Learning in a more pleasant tone. “But you must know that we are in the middle of a semester right now. Putting her in might be a little difficult. Did you bring her transcripts?”
Twilight bit her lower lip. “There are none,” she said. “Well, there might be. It’s just that I don’t have them. See I adopted Scootaloo from Equestria.” When she said this, the Dean’s eyes grew very wide. He then began to stare at Scootaloo for a moment before turning his attention back towards Twilight and clearing his throat.
“Well that, ah, complicates things,” he said. “Twilight, you know I would do anything for one of the brightest students ever to enter this academy. But I just can’t allow a filly into the school who has no written transcript halfway through the semester. It just wouldn’t be fair to all the other students who studied hard to get in. But…I’ll tell you what. Come back at the end of the semester and I’ll give her the entrance exam. If she gets above a seventy-five we’ll accept her. Does that sound fair?”
Twilight thought about it for a moment. Doing this she would be able to give Scootaloo some time to adjust to live if the Republic. She would also be able to help Scootaloo study so she wouldn’t be so far behind. For Scootaloo, it seemed like the best thing for right now.
“Twilight, can I ask you something?” asked Scootaloo. Twilight looked down at the young filly. Since they had started the walk home she had been very quiet. At first Twilight had worried that they were moving a bit too fast for her. After all, Scootaloo had just moved to a whole other world, cured of her crossbreed syndrome, found out that everything she had been told about lunar ponies was a lie, and might soon be enrolled in one of the best schools in the Republic. That was a lot to happen to a filly in just a day.
“Sure,” said Twilight as she hoped she could answer whatever question the filly had.
“Do you think you could teach me about Light Dueling?” asked Scootaloo. Twilight stared at the filly for a moment with a curious expression.
“How do you know about Light Dueling?” she asked.
Scootaloo shrugged. “While we were exploring the school me and Vinyl saw a match going on in the gym,” she said simply. “Vinyl also told me that you used to be a champ.”
“In the team matches,” said Twilight humbly. “Shadow was the muscle while I analyzed our opponents. By myself I’m just ok. But maybe later, after we get done studying, I can show you the basics. How does that sound?”
“Ok, I guess,” said Scootaloo. She was worried that she was going to let Twilight down. She wasn’t that good in school, having an average of seventy. From what she could tell, this place would be a lot harder that Ponyville Elementary. If she failed this test, or perhaps the more correct thing to say would be when she failed, she would let down one of the two ponies that had taken any real interest in her. Sports she could do, no problem. Get a seventy-five or above on a test, she might as well try to fly in quicksand.
“Come on,” said Vinyl as she jumped in front of the two. She then pointed a hoof at Scootaloo. “You need to cheer up before Twilight starts one of her mega long study sessions. So how about we see a movie before we head home?”
“What’s a movie?” asked Scootaloo. Once again Scootaloo found herself in the forelegs of the crying DJ.
“You poor, poor thing,” cried Vinyl. “Does Equestria have no rocking arts?” She then looked at Twilight as she used her magic to take off her glasses so the other mare could see her teary eyes expression better. “Now we have to take her to see a movie. It just wouldn’t be right!”
“Ok Vinyl,” snapped Twilight as she pried her neighbor off her new daughter. “I guess taking a moment to relax and enjoy ourselves wouldn’t be such a bad idea. Do you know what’s playing?”
Vinyl grinned as she put her glasses back on. “Yeah, the new one by Michael Hay. It’s a romantic tragedy based around the Deep Tunnel Tragedy.”
Twilight frowned at this. As a survivor of that incident, she really had no desire to see anypony try and make a movie about it. Especially so soon after it happened. Yet, at the same time, she was curious as how the director would present it. Perhaps it would honor the brave ponies who died that day. It would also be a good learning experience for Scootaloo. And if they did get anything wrong, Twilight would be there to correct it.
Finally, Twilight let out a sigh and nodded her head. They were going to the movies.
-x-
Once again, before Princess Luna sat the thirteen senators of the Lunar Republic. After she had talked to Shining Armor she had sent word out to each one of the remaining senators. Luna wanted to inform them personally about the events in Equestria; both her own experiences as well as Twilight’s findings. Behind her were not only her guards but also a large pile of scrolls. Celestia was apparently not taking the hint.
“As you can see,” said Gigawatt after Luna was done speaking, “The ponies in Equestria have not changed a bit these last thousand years.”
“Barbarians,” growled Senator Scorpio. He was not only the senator from Dome One, but also the only bat pony currently on the Lunar Senate. He was an elderly stallion with a black coat and a grey mane. His tail had been tied up to look like a scorpion he had seen in one of the ancient books in the Palace Library. Even his cutie mark was the constellation Scorpio. “I fully agree with your decision to abandon the merger. Clearly it would not have been in the best interests of the Republic as a whole.”
“Perhaps we were moving too fast,” suggested Peaceful Meadows. “Maybe we should try to contact them again, but move a bit more slowly. Let them get to know us.”
“I’m sorry to say this but Gigawatt is correct,” said Land Share with a sigh. “If we had tried to continue it would have caused us more problems. But we are right now back to where we started!”
“Perhaps we could try one of the other counties on the planet,” suggested Stock Market. “We could try to contact the griffons or the minotaur. We wouldn’t even have to merge with them, just have a trading alliance.”
“But they would be just as technologically inferior as Equestria,” snapped Scorpio. “Whatever we give them would give them an advantage against the other races.”
“We could try to find another source,” suggested April Showers. “Maybe find some frozen wasteland or isolated lake and just take that water. The planets poles are covered in ice for miles without anypony around.”
“I say we just take Equestria’s water,” said Gigawatt. Every head at the table turned to look at the senator, have expecting it to be a joke. After a moment of silence he continued. “As it stands now, we hold not only the high ground but also technological superiority. I doubt that any battle that occurs would last more than a week.”
“You’re kidding,” said Luna. “You’re kidding, right?”
“The Republic has never gone to war in its history,” said April as she slammed her hoof on the table. “We may not like what they are saying about us or how they run their country, but that is no reason for us to attack them just to get what we want! There are ways of doing this without bloodshed.”
“I have to agree with Senator April,” said Scorpio. “We should not bother with Equestria ever again. There is no need to waste our resources fighting those fools when we could just take the water from a safer location. As Senator Gigawatt pointed out, we have the high ground. On the moon we are safe and secure from them. They are no threat.”
“They may not be a threat right now, but that doesn’t mean that they won’t be in the future,” said Gigawatt as he stood up. “They had held on to the idea that we are monsters for a thousand years. Sooner or later they will try to attack us again just like they did when our ancestors lived on the planet. They could start working on advanced teleportation magic or something in the future so that they can come up here to wipe us out!”
“They could,” said Land Share as he nodded his head. “Just as they could have during these thousand years we have lived on the moon. If they really desired our deaths they would have at least tried to make more of an attempt.” Various senators nodded their head.
“Fine then,” said Gigawatt. “Then how about we make sure that they never become a threat to us in a different way. I suggest we begin Operation Umbrella!” As soon as he finished saying this the entire room burst into an uproar. Senators began to shout at each other making it impossible for anypony to understand them. Finally, Luna had enough.
“SILENCE!” she roared in a voice so loud it knocked them all down. “What you are suggesting was never meant for oppression. Operation Umbrella is only to be used as a last ditch effort against Discord.”
“If we do as you suggest then it will effect more than Equestria,” said Land Share as he looked at Gigawatt. “If we weren’t hated by the other counties on the planet we will be!”
“Think of all the lives we will put in danger,” said Peaceful Meadows. “Hundreds might die, maybe thousands. Do we really have the right to do that just because of Equestria?”
“But this will ensure that they will never be a threat to us,” argued Gigawatt. He then looked at Luna with pleading eyes. “I implore you Princess. We must strike them down now while they are a low threat!”
“Enough,” said Luna. “Senator Gigawatt, I know you want only what is best for the Republic. I agree that using Operation Umbrella will cripple Equestria in a way that it would take hundreds of years for them just to recover. However, if we do that then we will become the very monsters they claim us to be. We will also be affecting other innocent nations.” She then closed her eyes for a moment and let out a sigh before opening them again. “I will talk to the Assistant Director of the Department of Research and Development and as her if it is possible to focus the effects of Operation Umbrella on just Equestria. If so then we will have an ace in our hooves no matter what happens. But for the time being we shall focus our efforts on the planet’s ice caps.”
-x-
“That was the worst movie ever,” grumbled Vinyl as the group left the theater. Scootaloo walked in the back while quietly munching on some popcorn. The movie experience had been, like many things in the Republic, amazing. Seeing a story with pictures and sounds was something that she thought only happened in plays. Only with a movie there were a lot more effects and no waiting for the cast to change their outfits or change of scenery. The movie itself however was a bit annoying. Most of the ponies watching it left angrily halfway through. Vinyl would have joined them if Twilight hadn’t stopped her.
“I can’t believe it,” growled Twilight. “How could any pony twist the events of what happened that day into something like that? Does Michael Hay have any shame at all?”
“So did that really happen?” asked Scootaloo.
Twilight snorted. “Not that way,” she said. “The cave in was caused by a meteor, not an attack from Equestria! My father was not a greedy slimeball who cut corners to save a few bits. Nor was my mother sleeping around with every stallion she could find. And afterwards we did not attack Equestria!”
“It’s an insult to every pony that lost family that day,” said Vinyl with a frown. “Princess Luna will be extra pissed when she see’s how she is portrayed. Mr. Hay might be the first pony ever to be sentenced to a prison pod for making a bad movie.”
“That or some angry mob will kill him,” said Twilight.
-x-
“OK everypony, listen up!” said Shadow Blade to a large group of Royal Guard ponies. Each one was fully dressed in their armor while standing at attention. Shadow stood next to a large screen which was displaying several of the vehicles that the Royal Guard utilized in their training. One was a hover tank, a large metallic vehicle that hovered above the ground and shot a powerful energy blast at its target. There were also hover cycles with mounted weapons and hover boards.
“Ok, now that I have your attention,” began Shadow, “I would to remind all of you that the Silver vs. Black War Games are going to be starting soon.” This got their attention. The Silver vs. Black War Games occurred every four months. The Royal Guard would then be split down the middle so they could be divided into two teams. The computer would then randomly select equipment for both teams as well as a random location away from the Domes. Last time it was held on an asteroid that the lunar ponies had collected and kept in orbit around the moon. The game was usually something like capture the flag or something of that nature.
“I have a question,” said Lightning Dust as she raised a hoof. As she did all the ponies around her groaned, knowing what she was about to ask.
“Go ahead,” said Shadow with a nod.
“Well, this year could we make it a bit more of a challenge?” she asked. “Maybe give one team a disadvantage? You know, really push ourselves a bit more.”
“You mean like we did last year and your team lost in less than five hours,” said Shadow as he did his best to keep his eyes from rolling. That had been a disaster. Lightning had suggested that they fight with no weapons at all.
“Well, maybe something else,” said Lightning as everypony who had been on her team that time began to glare at her.
“We talked about this Lightning,” said Shadow calmly. “It’s good to push yourself, but not at the expense of your team. Remember, as always, the losing team will polish the Domes both inside and out while the winners receive some well deserved rest.” He looked around to see if anypony else wanted to say anything. Seeing that no other hooves were raised he gave a short nod before dismissing them.
A short while later Shadow was in the locker room as he began to remove his armor. Once he was halfway done the doors to the locker room burst open as Shining Armor charged in. The white stallion began to charge at Shadow as the magic from his horn held the bat pony in place. As soon a he was close enough Shining slammed Shadow against the locked door.
“You fiend!” roared Shining Armor. “How dare you defile my sister!”
“What are you talking about?” asked Shadow as he kicked Shining off of him. The white unicorn back away a bit, slightly injured from the kick.
“You slept with her,” said Shining as he pointed an accusing hoof at Shadow. “Don’t deny it. Scootaloo said she saw you two doing…that in the doctor’s office.”
“Is that what’s this is all about,” growled Shadow. “We took a nap. Nothing bad happened!”
Shining took a step back. “But when I asked Scootaloo-”
“She probably didn’t understand what you were implying,” said Shadow flatly. “Now this overly protective big brother thing you have going on has got to stop. Look at you! You’re freaking out over nothing.”
“NO!” yelled Shining Armor as he raced over to Shadow’s locker and began to search it. “I know you have something in mind for Twilight. Something evil like… like this!” Shining had pulled out a small black box causing Shadow’s eyes to go wide. “I bet you have some pills in here to mess up Twilight’s judgment! Admit it!”
Holding the box up with his magic Shining open the box to reveal a silver engagement ring. It was beautifully crafted with a nicely sized purple gemstone in the middle. Shocked, Shining looked into Shadow’s eyes to see pure anger in them. Smiling nervously, Twilight’s older brother placed the black box in Shadow’s outstretched hoof. As soon as he did the door opened and a cadet saw Shadow holding a box with an engagement ring in it to another stallion.
“NO!” screamed the cadet. “I lost my entire life savings!”
-x-
Meanwhile, back in Equestria, six mares were standing in front of Rarity’s shop.
“Thanks again for spottin’ us the money Rarity,” said Applejack. “It was mighty kind of ya.”
“Think nothing of it,” said Rarity. “I have been meaning to visit Canterlot for awhile now. Besides, I want to find out the truth as much as you do.”
“And don’t worry if you forgot your spy pajama’s,” said Pinkie who was dressed all in black. “Because I got enough for all of you!”
“That’s, ah, nice Pinkie,” said Fluttershy.
“Tell me again why the Great and Powerful Trixie has to show you where the Royal Achieve is?” demanded Trixie.
“Because that’s the price you have to pay if you want to get back to Canterlot,” said Rarity.
Rainbow let out a grunt as she took to the skies. “I’m tired of all this waiting,” she said. “I’ll see you all there.” And with that, she took off towards the capital.
Princess Luna had though she had seen it all. In the thousand years she had been ruling the Lunar Republic many ponies had come before her asking for some kind of justice. Most of the time it was something serious like destruction of property. However there were those times when the dispute would be, in her opinion, trivial. But today she had been surprised as a large group of ponies entered her court while dragging a tied up stallion behind them.
Luna, shocked to see her subjects acting in such a way, demanded that the group explain themselves. They explained that the tied up pony was named Michael Hay before going into detail the problems with his movie. In the end they demanded justice for the ways he had not only insulted those who had died that day, but also the Royal Guards who looked completely incompetent.
Sighing, Luna asked them to release Mr. Hay while she went to watch the movie. There was no way it could be as bad as they made it seem, right. One movie viewing later Luna was seated in front on the director pony while mentally counting to ten.
“Michael Hay,” said Luna as she did her best to keep calm. “I have reviewed the evidence and find that the film you created is beyond insulting. There was no group of school foals on a field trip in the Deep Tunnel that day! You have insulted the Royal Guard when you had one of them say he didn’t know how to use a shovel! Then you have them work until noon and then call it a day! Even you should know that’s a lie. Royal Guards as well as civilians worked around the clock for days trying to recover the bodies. Then you have the audacity to claim that Twilight Sparkle, Shining Armor, and Shadow Blade were saved by a machine that could transform into a pony form. You have lied about our history and offended not only the ponies that died that day but also the families that they left behind.”
“Don’t forget what he did to you Princess,” said a pony in the crowd. Slowly Luna nodded. She didn’t want to add that to the list of offences for fear that it might look like she was taking it personally. The movie Luna had order her subjects to stop digging, saying that there was no point in trying to recover the bodies. They were dead and already buried.
Luna turned to look at Mr. Hay. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” she demanded.
Hay just shrugged. “It’s just show business,” he said. “I took some liberties.” This earned an angry outburst from the crowd.
“You may take liberties when working with fiction,” growled the Princess of the Moon. “But when making a movie about a real event you must get the facts right. But you didn’t! It was an accident, not a military attack from Equestria.” Luna paused for a moment to take a deep breath. Just saying the name of that country fueled her anger. She would not let her subjects make the same mistakes as the ones made in Equestria. “During my short trip to Equestria, I found that many things were said about us. All of them false. My sister had allowed these things to be said to the point were they became part of their historical books. We shall not do the same!”
She then looked directly at Mr. Hay. “While I would love to see you in a prison pod, there is no law currently in existence that would allow such an action. However, you will be forbidden from making another historically based movie, will return all the bits the movie made, and will do community service for the next six months. Perhaps then you will gain some small degree of respect for the Republic and those who work hard in it. Finally your movie shall be removed from all theaters and destroyed.”
-x-
Twilight and Scootaloo had just sat down to dinner when there was a knock at the door. Wishing she had an assistant or something to get it instead of her, Twilight got up. She moved as quickly as she could to the door so that her dinner, apple stew with flower petals, wouldn’t get cold. Opening the door she found three ponies with gifts.
“Hey Twilight,” said Lightning Dust as she handed Twilight a large wrapped box. “So, where’s the kid?”
“At the dinner table,” said Twilight as she set down the box. “We were just about to eat dinner.” Twilight turned her head to look at the doorway leading to the kitchen to see that Scootaloo was standing there.
“So this is her,” said Lightning as she walked over towards Scootaloo. She looked the filly up and down before she began to circle around her. Finally, she stopped and looked at Twilight. “I guess she looks somewhat cool.”
Scootaloo opened her mouth to say something when a filly about her age ran up to her. She was a unicorn with a pale purple coat, a blond mane, and yellow eyes. In a way she sort of looked a bit like the last pony that had come to visit, a grey Pegasus with weird eyes.
“Hey, I’m Dinky,” she said quickly. “What’s your name?”
“Scootaloo,” replied the orange filly as she was handed a gift.
Dinky leaned in close to whisper in Scootaloo’s ear. “Don’t mind Lightning. She thinks she’s the coolest pony in the Republic. Actually, I think she was giving you a compliment.” Dinky then pulled back a bit and spoke in a normal voice. “I hope you like the presents we got you. How about you open mine?”
Scootaloo nodded and began to unwrap the gift Dinky had brought with her teeth. It took awhile, but soon Scootaloo was looking at a board game called ‘Starship’. Curious, Scootaloo turned it over to read the back. From what she could tell, it was a two player game where both players place their starship on a grid and then try to guess where they were. It sort of reminded her of the game Rainbow Dash liked to play.
“So, how did you two find out?” asked Twilight as she watched Scootaloo pull out the game.
“Princess Luna told me,” said Derpy as she handed Twilight her gift. “It was very nice of you to do that for her. Raising a filly isn’t easy, but very rewarding.”
“Thanks Derpy,” said Twilight. She had known Derpy for years and had been there when Derpy found out she was pregnant. It was at a dance when she met this unicorn from Twilight’s school. He had charmed her and offered her muffins if she came back to his place. Several weeks later, Twilight had gone with her friend to confirm what they both had feared. Derpy’s family took the news hard at first, but they still supported her decision to keep the foal. Sadly, Derpy had to drop out of school in order to take care of Dinky. Normally it would have been very difficult for her to get a decent job without completing her education, but Twilight had talked to Princess Luna and got her the job of the royal messenger.
“Tell her the news,” said Lightning as she gave Derpy a nudge. Twilight raised an eyebrow at Derpy who began to blush a bit.
“Well, I guess I should tell you this first,” said Derpy as she burst into a big smile. “There’s going to be another addition to the family.” As she said this, Derpy placed a hoof on her stomach.
For a moment, Twilight stood there in stunned silence. Then, without warning, let out the biggest squeal of her life. She began to talk a mile a minute as she began to make mental plans about the baby shower. She also began to wonder if it would be a Pegasus or an earth pony. She thought about asking Derpy, but she knew that she would most likely wait so that it would be a surprise.
“I’m so happy for you,” said Twilight as she calmed down enough to give her friend a hug.
“Thanks,” said Derpy as she hugged her friend back. Once they released each other Derpy remembered that she had something else to tell Twilight. “Ah, the Princess also wanted me to tell you something. She needs you to go into work tomorrow.”
“What?” Twilight nearly yelled as her happy mode came to a sudden stop. “How come?”
Derpy shrugged. “All I know is it has something to do with the senate. Well, maybe Project Crescent Hope as well.”
Twilight tried her best to hold back a groan. It had to be something like that. Something must of happened to Dr. Blue Star. Normally something like this wouldn’t have been a problem for Twilight. All the Princess had to do was ask and she would come running without any second thoughts. But now things were a bit different.
“I can’t go to work and leave Scootaloo all alone,” Twilight moaned. “And I can’t take her to work either. How could I have overlooked this problem?” Twilight brought a hoof to her head as she tried to think of a quick solution. Vinyl might be able to help, but the DJ was know for her wild side and Twilight feared what might happen if she left a foal in her care. Derpy was out since she had to work as well and…That’s when Twilight had an idea. “Hey Derpy, doesn’t Dinky have a Lunar Troop meeting tomorrow?”
“Oh no you don’t,” said Lightning before Derpy could say anything. “I know what’s going on in that head of yours and the answer is no. Tomorrow is a big day.”
“What are the Lunar Troops?” asked Scootaloo.
“They’re this thing that Princess Luna set up a really long time ago,” answered Dinky. “What happens is they take foals like us on trips and do all sorts of fun activities so that we can get our cutie marks. They also show us all the different jobs in the Republic. Lightning Dust is the Troop Leader for Dome One.” Scootaloo nodded in understanding. The way Dinky put it made it sound like she could have a lot of fun. Please she might finally get her cutie mark. No more being a blank flank and having fillies like Diamond Tiara bullying her.
“Please Lightning,” begged Twilight.
“No way Twilight,” said Lightning stubbornly. “Tomorrow is the big Laser Tag Free For All between all the Troops. My kids have been working extra hard so that we might actually win this time. If she joins then she has to compete as well. She’ll be a sitting duck!”
“We suck,” whispered Dinky as she lowered her head in defeat. “Dome Nine wins first place every time. Don’t worry, when we lose nopony will blame you.”
“I’m pretty good at sports,” said Scootaloo as she stood up to face the adults. “I promise I won’t get in the way.”
“Well,” began Lightning as she looked at Derpy and Twilight for help. However, Twilight’s face was full of hope that Lightning would relent. Derpy, well, she looked like Derpy. Sometimes it was hard for her to figure out what Derpy was thinking. So, in the end, Lightning Dust let out a sigh of defeat. “Alright, you can come. But I don’t want to hear any whining if you’re the first one out.”
“Please,” said Scootaloo in a confident tone. “How hard could it be?” All the adults, as well as Dinky, all looked away.
-x-
Cadence let out a sigh as she watched the moon rise from her balcony window. Things weren’t going well, not well at all. Nearly all the guards were shooting daggers at Midnight, causing the Princess of Love to keep her new daughter close to her at all times. She knew she couldn’t do this forever. Sooner or later she would have to leave Midnight alone or with a guard due to her work. But how could she do that when she didn’t trust the guards anymore?
Then there was the problem with the nobles. It seemed like all day they had been arguing with her that Midnight should not get the title of princess. Cadence held firm that her daughter, while adopted, was now part of the royal family and would be treated as such. The nobles, however, refused to acknowledge this. They said it was bad enough that she had adopted Midnight and was allowing her to stay in the castle. Giving her the title of ‘Princess’ was pushing it. Some left, saying that they would bring this before Princess Celestia herself in the hopes that she would set her crazy niece straight.
‘Good luck with that,’ thought Cadence bitterly. So far nopony had seen her aunt since she locked herself in her private chambers. Whenever Cadence got close she could barely make out the sound of a quill writing on parchment. She could only guess that Celestia was still trying to get Luna to listen to what she had to say.
Down in the courtyard a commotion began to rise. Looking down, Cadence saw dozens of guards racing towards three thin ponies with their spears drawn. Quickly the Princess of Love looked in the direction of her aunt’s window to find it sealed shut. It seemed like Celestia wouldn’t be getting involved in this incident. Sighing she place Midnight on her back as she flew downwards to the growing crowd.
“Princess, please go back inside,” said one guard as she landed. “It’s not safe.”
Cadence ignored him as she walked towards the three intruders. All three were bat ponies, each one looking very thin. Not as bad as Midnight had been but Cadence could see that they rarely got much to eat. When the three saw her they took a step forward only to have a dozen spears pointed at them.
“At ease,” commanded Cadence as she stepped in front of the guards. As she did, a bat pony mare stepped forward as well. Most likely the leader of this group. “What is your name?”
“Ruby Moon,” answered the mare. “The other two are called Dusk Blitz and Thunderclap. It is a pleasure to met you as we had hoped.”
Cadence raised an eyebrow. “You came to see me?” she asked.
“Yes,” said Ruby as she began to bow. The other two did the same, much to the surprise of Cadence. “We have heard that you plan on making things better for bat ponies. While most of us think that it is a lie of some kind, we believe that your actions say that you really mean in.” Ruby then raised her head to look Cadence in the eye. “We have come here today to ask that we may join the royal guard.”
Scootaloo turned under the covers of her new bed. Both the bed and the blankets were softer than anything she ever had back in Ponyville. To her confusion, she had asked Twilight why that was only to receive a long, confusing explanation that caused the filly’s head to spin. Not that she needed anymore confusing things in her head.
After everypony had left and the two ate dinner, Twilight had decided that they should start studying. The purple unicorn started by asking what Scootaloo already knew. The filly did her best to tell Twilight what they had been going over in class but it was clear by the unicorn’s expression that she wasn’t impressed. She then began to pull a large number of books off her shelves until there were ten piles with were each larger than Scootaloo.
The first thing they started on was math. Twilight had opened up several math books and began to lecture. Scootaloo did her best to pay attention, but there was too much that didn’t make sense and she was afraid to raise her hoof to ask a question. Once Twilight finished she wrote down several sample problems and gave they to Scootaloo to try and figure out. The filly got everyone incorrect.
After that, the two worked on a couple other subjects until nine. By that time Scootaloo was dead on her hooves as well as confused. Everything that Twilight had tried to teach her was all jumbled around. Perhaps soon Twilight would see that she wasn’t smart enough to go to this school and give up. But until then Scootaloo would at least try her best.
-x-
“What was that?” asked Cadence as she stepped back a bit. Ruby Moon looked up at Cadence to stare her directly in the eye.
“We wish to become part of the Royal Guard,” she repeated.
Cadence nodded. That was what she thought she heard but she had to be sure. She didn’t have anything against these ponies nor did she think it was a bad idea to let them join the guard. In fact, it was just the opposite. It would be the first time in a thousand years that there were bat ponies protecting a princess of Equestria. But why were they asking her? There was an administration office a few blocks away from the castle. They could have easily applied there.
The Princess of Love then noticed that the spears held by the guards were getting closer to the bat ponies. Not by much, but they were defiantly closer than they were a moment ago. Some of the guards looked like they were ready to attack at any moment. Then, one of the guards spoke.
“Bat ponies can’t join the guard,” he growled. “Any pony with a criminal history is banned from joining, thus it is impossible for scum like you things to join us.” With that he spat on the ground near the three ponies.
Ruby looked at Cadence with a sorrowful look. “We do what we have to in order to survive,” she said simply. “If there was another way, believe me, we would. But since no pony will give us work or land to grow food we are forced to steal. It is that or death.”
“Death is the only thing your kind-” began a different guard. However, Cadence took a step forward while keeping her eyes on Ruby.
“I see,” said Cadence. “Believe me when I say how sorry I am for the way ponies like you are treated.” She paused for a moment before speaking in a louder voice. “As a Princess of Equestria I hereby pardon Ruby Moon, Dusk Blitz, and Thunderclap of all previous crimes. They will also be allowed into the Royal Guard. After their training has been completed they shall become my personal guards.”
Normally, only Princess Celestia had her own personal guards that stayed with her almost around the clock. Guards were assigned to ponies like herself or Blueblood by Celestia or the captain of the guard. But it was well past time that changed. Cadence may not be a ruler like her aunt, but she was still a princess. This was her decision and she would not back down from it.
“You can’t do this!” yelled one of the guards. “We shall take this to Princess Celestia!”
“Go right ahead,” said Cadence as she motioned the three bat ponies to follower her. “You will find her still locked within her private quarters. If you do manage to find her, I will be in the dining hall making sure these three get a good meal before they begin basic training.”
-x-
“What do you mean Trixie is not allowed inside,” demanded the student of Princess Celestia. She, as well as the ponies from Ponyville that had given her a ride, were standing in front of the Royal Archives. It was a tall, spire like building that stood in the back of the castle. Inside was nearly every document that had ever come out of Canterlot. If there was any information about what really happened it would be in this building. However, the guard stationed in front of it seemed to be taking a great deal of join in giving Trixie a hard time.
“Just as I said,” came his reply. “No pony is allowed inside without Princess Celestia’s permission.”
“But Trixie is Princess Celestia’s faithful student!” cried the blue mare.
The guard smiled. “Yes, I know who you are,” he said. “But being her majesties student does not mean that she has given you permission to enter. Even if she did you still couldn’t go in. The Royal Librarian for the Archives left hours ago. So you have until she comes back in the morning to get Princess Celestia’s permission. Have a good night.”
Trixie felt her anger rise as she snorted. She was about to say something nasty to him when she was suddenly grabbed by the ponies she had brought along. As they dragged her away the farmer pony apologized to the guard as did the shy yellow one. Trixie began to shout only to find Rainbow’s hoof covering her mouth. The group turned the corner and kept going until they were out of the guard’s sight before letting Trixie go.
“What is the meaning of this?!” demanded Trixie. The girls exchanged looks except for Pinkie Pie who was missing.
“Well I think it obvious that we’re not getting in through the front door,” said Rainbow. “So it looks like we’re going to break in.”
An amused smirk appeared on Trixie’s face. “Oh what a wonderful idea,” she said sarcastically. “Tell me; just how do you all plan on taking down a member of the Royal Guard?”
“Well dear, you could teleport us in with your magic,” said Rarity. As she said this, Trixie’s smirk vanished only to be replaced with a look of fear. It, however, lasted only for a moment.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie shall not use her incredible power to break into a building,” stated Trixie with her nose in the air. “You will have to think of a different way to get inside.” The girls gave each other another look that said ‘she can’t do it’.
“Well there’s gotta be a way in there,” said Applejack as she looked at the spire. As she looked upward, she thought she saw something pink.
“Impossible,” said Trixie as she turned her back towards the mares. “This is a twenty story building with windows only at the top. Even if the two pegasi did try to fly up there are magic spells keeping unauthorized pegasi from opening them. The outer walls are completely smooth making it next to impossible to climb up. Even if somepony tried they would be caught by the-” Trixie’s long explanation was cut short as a large amount of rope fell on her head, completely burying her. A moment later Pinkie Pie, still in her ninja outfit, slid down with a smile on her face.
“Um, are you ok?” asked Fluttershy.
About fifteen minutes later everypony had climbed up the rope and gotten into the Royal Archive. The window they had climbed into was on the nineteenth floor which was lucky for them. The higher up the older the document. Or at least that was how it was done the last time Trixie had visited this place. All around them there were stacks of dusty books and scrolls. It was clear to anypony that few ever came up here.
“My word,” said Rarity as she covered her mouth with her hoof. In front of her was a spider web twice the size of her body. “I don’t mean to be rude but perhaps the royal cleaning staff has been slacking off a bit.”
“They don’t need to come up here,” said Trixie as she used her magic to pick up a book. She then blew on it to remove the dust, revealing it to be a journal that had belonged to a noble named Proper Manners. “Every record that is kept here has a magic spell placed on it to make sure it is preserved. According to what Trixie has been told the building could flood, crumble, and then explode without losing a single piece of parchment.”
Deciding not to waste anytime, all the mares decided to split up as that they could search the archive a bit faster. Applejack had used her hat to destroy the spider web to see what she could find past it. Slowly the farmer mare picked up a scroll and began to read. Finding nothing she picked up another and then another. After a while she began to wonder what she was even looking for. Would one of these scrolls just say ‘Make Luna evil to the public’ or ‘Lets make up stuff about moon ponies’?
After awhile she found one book written by a stallion name Divine Right. She began to skim the pages only to find that a lot of them talked about Princess Luna. Or rather complained about Princess Luna. From what Applejack could gather, Princess Luna had been poking her nose into the business of the nobles. He also whined about how Luna was giving aid to ‘dirty peasants’ so that they could attend school. The more Applejack read the more it seemed that she was despised by the nobles simply because she didn’t play their game.
Then came a passage that really made the orange mare wonder. ‘The light at the end of the tunnel has finally begun to shine,’ wrote Divine. ‘Princess Luna and her low brow followers have left us. When I heard the news I simply had to tell Princess Celestia. Several times she asked me if I was sure. I revealed my sources who had witnessed the account. Truly it is a glorious day. Equestria needs not two princesses but one. Lowly, young Luna has caused nothing but trouble since the day she set hoof into the castle. It seems that Princess Celestia herself has realized this as well for she has decreed that Luna’s name shall never be spoken again. Blessed Celestia has even order a halt to that annoying Hoofshire incident. Who cares if a couple commoners die? But Royal Bit did say something to me about that. Now there are fewer ponies to tax!’ Applejack fought hard not to slam the book shut after that part. She was sure that he was laughing as he wrote that part.
After a bit longer she did eventually close the book. Placing it on her back Applejack began to look for the others to see if they had found anything yet. After a minute or two of walking she found Rainbow Dash. She was sitting there, staring at something in a dusty book while looking like she could start crying at any moment. Her hoofs trembled as she bit her lower lip. Slowly Applejack walked over to her friend only to trip over a book that was on the floor. Hearing this, Rainbow quickly closed the book.
“Ah hey AJ,” said Rainbow in a somewhat forced cheerful tone. “What’s up?”
“Something wrong sugarcube?” asked Applejack as she ignored Rainbow’s question.
“Never better,” said Rainbow as she stood up. “Let’s go see what the others found. So far I’ve only found this old history book.” Before Applejack could say another word Rainbow had walked past her.
-x-
Another letter written. Another letter sent. Another letter ignored.
Celestia sighed as she began to wonder if Luna would ever answer a single one. Since this morning she had been writing non-stop in the hopes that her little sister would listen. But so far she hadn’t even gotten a letter telling her to stop.
For a brief moment, she felt anger towards the pony named Twilight Sparkle. Had she not appeared at that moment, both sisters would have united their two countries and Celestia’s plan to change the ponies views on lunar ponies would have begun. But this feeling only lasted for a moment. Now matter what Celestia knew it was mostly her fault for letting things get this bad. And because of that she might not see her sister again for another thousand years.
Quickly Celestia shook her head. ‘No,’ she thought. ‘I will not let her go again without a fight! If she won’t answer my letters then I will just go to her so that we may speak face to face!’ With this new resolve Celestia’s horn began to glow. Golden light began to cover her entire body, shining as brightly as the sun. There was a flash and then she was gone.
-x-
Outside the Lunar Palace, Shining Armor was giving chase to Shadow Blade. The bat pony had the nerve to say that he was going to ask Twilight to marry him regardless of how Shining felt about it. Shining had decided to respond in the mature fashion by pulling out an energy cannon and trying to kill his sister’s coltfriend. Shadow, in response, dodged each shot with ease. He knew sooner or later the cannon would run out. He would let Shining Armor get the crazy out of his system so that he would be too tired to try and stop his proposal later.
Suddenly there came a beeping sound from inside a pocket from Shining’s jacket. The two stallions ceased their antics at once, knowing what that sound meant. Normally, life in the Royal Guard and Shield Corps was mostly fun and games. After all, they had no enemies that could get up to the moon. So unless there was an emergency, Luna allowed them to be a bit flexible when it came to their behavior as long as they knew when to be serious.
And that beeping sound meant it was time to be very serious.
“What’s going on?” asked Shadow as he landed next to Shining. The white unicorn stallion pulled out a thin black device with a screen in the middle which was displaying a lot of information.
“Some unauthorized pony just tried to teleport into the palace,” said Shining as he placed the device back in his pocket. “Luckily for us, we were able to redirect whoever it was into the anti-magic holding cell. A group of guards are heading towards it to find who was stupid enough to try something like that.”
Shadow nodded before he took to the air again. However, it was not to run away from Shining Armor. He flew in the direction of the palace to personally interrogate this prisoner.
Celestia looked around in confusion. She had attempted to teleport close to where she had sensed Luna. Yet looking around she did not see her younger sister. In fact, she was the only pony in the room. All she could see were smooth, white walls that seemed to give off a soft glow.
‘I guess my aim is off,’ thought Celestia as she began to power up her teleportation spell. To her surprise her magic seemed to fail her. There was no glow coming from her horn or any other sign that her magic was working. She could feel her magic still inside her but she just couldn’t reach it. Like a jar of pickles with the lid on too tight.
To her right came a hissing sound that caused the sun princess to turn her head. A door seemed to have appeared in the wall which opened up to allow three ponies to enter the room. Two of them were heavily armored while the third was completely bare. Celestia raised an eyebrow as she remembered that she had seen this pony before. He was the one who had accompanied Twilight at the Summer Sun Festival. The two armored guards took their place in front of the doorway while the bat pony walked towards Celestia.
“I am Captain Shadow Blade of Princess Luna’s Royal Guard,” stated the bat pony as he stopped. “You attempted to teleport into a restricted area. We caught your spell and redirected it into this room. Here your magic has been neutralized until your fate has been decided. Now, why have you come here?”
“I am Princess Celestia,” said the princess in a kind but firm tone. “Sister of Princess Luna. I was only trying to talk to her face to face. May I see her?” She saw Shadow hesitate for a moment, as if he were having an internal debate with himself.
“My Princess has made it clear that she does not wish to have any contact with you,” said Shadow after a moment.
“Please,” said Celestia as she took a step towards Shadow. “I need a chance to explain. That’s all I’m here for.”
Shadow tilted his head to the side before letting out a sigh. “I will tell her you’re here. If she still does not wish to speak to you then there is nothing I can do. But until then you are to remain in this room. Any hostile actions will be met with force and you shall be detained in a prison pod. Do you understand?” Not having any other option, Celestia nodded. Shadow did not return the nod nor did he say anything else. Silently he turned around and walked out the door.
-x-
“Noob,” gloated Luna as she held her controller in the air with her magic. In front of her was a large monitor at least three times her size. On the screen was a pony in black armor with a shotgun. Next to them was a similarly clad pony, except her armor was pink.
Some ponies thought that being a princess was all fun and games. Well, in Luna’s mind, they could go buck themselves. From the moment she left her private chambers it was usually work, work, and work. She had to make decisions on water usage, listen to reports from research and development, work with the senate to make sure everything was fine within the Domes, and million other things. And when she went to sleep another part of her job was to check on her subjects dreams. So whenever she got a few free moments Luna would unwind with video games. Right now she was in the middle of a multi-player gamed called Modern Pony Warfare.
Looking at the top right hoof corner of her screen she saw a player heading towards. Grinning, Luna began to look for an ambush spot while thanking her good fortune that she saved up the points needed to get the motion tracker option for her helmet. After a few seconds of looking around she found a couple of large boulders that she could hide behind and wait. Luna waited in her hiding stop for a moment or two before her latest victim arrived. The moon princess grinned when she saw who it was, a red armored stallion named Sarge. Luna knew him well as being a loud annoying pony with little to no skills.
Luna aimed her characters shotgun at him. He kept walking, not knowing that Luna had him in her sights. She concentrated her magic on the fire button, ready to press it when the time came. She could easily smell her easy kill. Her target then realized she was there, but it was too late.
“PRINCESS LUNA!” shouted somepony outside her door causing Luna’s head to turn. Letting out a curse she quickly turned her head back towards the screen to find herself dead with Sarge holding her shotgun.
“You just got Sarged,” said Sarge on the screen. Groaning, Luna turned off her game station as she stood up. ‘This better be important,’ she thought to herself as she walked towards the door. Opening it she saw Shadow Blade looking a bit nervous.
“Shadow, has something happened?” asked Luna as her anger was replaced with fear. Shadow had never come to her like this. Usually he would try not to bother her during her time of rest.
“I, uh, that is we captured an intruder that tried to teleport into the castle,” he said while trying not to look at her. “Right now we have her in an anti-magic cell.”
“Is that all?” asked Luna as she raised an eyebrow. “Well I guess it has been awhile since some poor fool tried that. Tell me, was it an accident or intentional.”
“Intentional,” said Shadow Blade with a nod. “Definitely intentional.”
Luna rolled her eyes. “Then if you have this foolish pony I see no reason why you should bother me,” she replied. “Just place her in a prison pod and be done with it. Now, if you'll excuse me.” Luna began to shut the door when Shadow stuck out a hoof to stop it.
“It is a bit more complicated than that,” said Shadow. “You see, the pony in the anti-magic cell is your sister. She wishes to speak with you.”
-x-
Twenty five minutes later, Luna found herself standing at the door to the prison cell. When she had heard that they had captured Celestia her first response was to have her sent back to Equestria. However, Shadow suggested that Luna should at least speak with her before that. If she didn’t, there would be a good chance that Celestia would just try again and again. Perhaps if they spoke for just a little bit then Celestia would get the message that Luna wanted nothing more to do with her. Deciding to trust her Captain of the Royal Guard, Luna agreed.
As Luna took a deep breath, she pressed a button on the wall to open the door. Once open she saw her sister standing in the middle of the room. At first she had a dejected look on her face, but when she saw her sister entering the room it quickly became much brighter.
“Sister,” said Celestia as she took a step forward. “I am glad you came.”
“You shouldn’t,” said Luna coldly. “When I said that I never wanted to speak to you again, it didn’t mean until later tonight! I am here now to inform you that you going to be sent back to Equestria and never to return again.” Luna then turned and began to leave the room.
“Please wait,” cried Celestia. “I know I messed up. But we must put all this behind us and move forward. We were meant to rule together.” When Luna heard this she stopped dead in her tracks. Her eyes narrowed in rage as she turned to face her sister once more.
“Rule together?!” she yelled as she pointed a hoof at Celestia. “When did we ever do that?! Everything always went your way. It was always ‘Trust me little sister’ or ‘Please wait and see sister’. You never thought I could do anything on my own nor did you value any of my ideas!” Luna then began to slowly walk towards Celestia who had a shocked look on her face. “And it was always you in the spotlight. You were always the one to host those grand parties. Always you who were invited to those big events like the Best Young Flyers Competition. Did you ever bring me along? No.” Now they were face to face, barely an inch apart. “Don’t pretend that it wasn’t like that. I was always in your shadow. I was falling into despair when I finally found ponies who noticed me and what I was trying to do. They saved me from myself and for that I will always protect them.”
Celestia looked away, unable to look at Luna as she made her accusations. Luna was panting from her long speech.
“Luna, please know that I never meant for things to get this out of hoof,” said Celestia as she slowly turned her head to look at Luna again.
“Then what did you mean?” demanded Luna. “Did you mean allow bat ponies to become outcasts barely able to survive? Did you mean to turn my ponies into monsters for foal’s bedtime stories?”
“Luna I-”
“Did you mean to turn me, your sister, into a monster that ate children?”
“No, I just-”
“What did you mean?”
“I was angry!” shouted Celestia. Luna took a step back in shock before narrowing her eyes at her older sister. Celestia lowered her head in shame. “Sister, when you left I was hurt. You did say anything to me, not even a goodbye. I had to hear about it from one of the nobles. It…hurt so much. You were always the one constant in my life. The one I knew who would always be there when everypony else left us. Having you around was what made immortality bearable.” Tears began to fall down Celestia’s face. “After that, I decreed that your name was never to be spoken again. I turned my back on all of the things that reminded me of you.
“Then one day I woke up on Dreamers Eve. It had been two hundred years since you left. I decided to go into town to partake in the celebration only to find that it had been changed to Nightmare Night. The stories they told about you were like a stab into my heart. I tried to talk to the historians, but it didn’t work. They wanted to know, if what I said was true, why didn’t I correct it sooner? Where was my proof that they were wrong? It hasn’t been easy to fix this without looking like a dictator.”
“Do you think it was easy for me?” growled Luna. “I did what I had to do back then. That day, when I met my subjects to discuss what we were going to do, they were so afraid. I had a mother telling me nopony would sell her anything at the market because she stayed up during the night. I had an earth pony inventor telling me how his lab was burned down along with all his notes. And after what happened Hoofshire they were all afraid they were next! I tried to calm them down, reassuring them that everything would be alright. That the two of us were working hard to stop this before any more lives were lost.” Luna then looked away. “Some began to talk about getting revenge. Hurting them the same way they hurt us. They wanted blood Celestia!”
“Then why didn’t you come to me about this?” demanded Celestia.
“Because I knew it would be like all the other times I came to you,” said Luna with a sad laugh. “You’d think up some grand plan, manipulating ponies as if they were pieces on a chessboard. I would then be cut out of it while you took a gamble on whatever plan you had in mind.” Luna then shook her head. “I was not willing to take a gamble with their lives. I also knew that if I did come to you then you would do everything in your power to change my mind. I had already prepared myself for this. I knew what needed to be done no matter how much it pained me inside.”
“Luna,” said Celestia as she reached out a hoof. “Please, we can still make this work. If Twilight had not-”
“Do NOT blame Twilight for this!” screamed Luna as she knocked away Celestia’s hoof. “If you thought that I would be too stupid to figure out that things were still that bad then you really are a fool!”
“No Luna I just-”
“Guards,” called Luna as she kept eye eyes glued on Celestia. “Bring out the prison pod. And prepare the cannon.”
-x-
“We have you surrounded,” called out a guard. “Come out with your hooves in the air.” He, along with many of his fellow guards, had surrounded the Royal Archives. Pegasi ponies flew around the tower as the kept an eye out for the intruders while unicorns prepared their spells in cause they needed to attack.
Within the building Applejack, her friends, and Trixie were beginning to panic. They didn’t know how they had been discovered. At first they thought that Trixie might have been able to smooth things over, but one look at the blue mare showed them that she would join them in the dungeons as well.
“Well girls, no sense in waitin’ any longer,” said Applejack with a sigh.
“I do hope that whatever cell we are put in is at least clean,” said Rarity. “It is the least they can do after all.”
As they stepped out, all of them had their heads down. Even Rainbow Dash who had the book she had been reading earilier tucked under her wing. As the girls walked out a star began to sparkle in the night sky. A moment later it began to glow red and seemed to be getting closer. Eye’s wide, everypony began to run away from the tower as the prison pod smashed into the Royal Archives.
Canterlot was in an uproar like never before. Nobles had actually gotten out of their beds in the middle of the night to appear in court. Not only had Princess Celestia’s private student snuck into the Royal Archives along with five other ponies, but the tower itself had been destroyed. Normally, one or both these things wouldn’t have angered the nobility so much to get them out of the comforts of their homes at this hour. However, it seemed that the object that had crashed into the Royal Archives had been carrying Princess Celestia inside.
“This is an outrage!” yelled Blueblood. “Those Lunar ponies have gone too far. This is a direct attack on our fair and just land. We must act now with the same amount of brutality!”
“And how should we go about that?” demanded another noble. “They are on the moon! No normal unicorn can just teleport up there. We would need the magical powers of an alicorn!”
“We also don’t know the terrain,” said Vice Captain Hard Shell, who was filling in for the imprisoned Iron Wall. “Even if we could go there we have no idea what we are walking into. Attacking them blind will cost us dearly. Not to mention that our other enemies might take advantage of the situation.”
“So you are saying that we let this assault slide?” accused Blueblood as he pointed a hoof at Hard Shell.
“Is this what court is usually like?” whispered Applejack to Trixie. Trixie let out a sigh before nodding. The six mares were currently in the middle of the royal audience chambers, surrounded on all sides by guards wielding spears. After the destruction of the Archives, the girls had been shackled and escorted into the castle. Next to them was the Lunar pod with still held Celestia.
“This is a sight that Trixie is used to,” said the blue mare. “They will continue to argue like this until one side loses or Celestia is set free.” She shook her head only to notice the book that was still hidden under Rainbow’s wing. “What do you think you are doing with that?! That belongs in the Archive!”
Rainbow shrugged. “It’s not like I can take it back,” she said. Rainbow then looked down at the book for a moment. “Besides, I need to ask Celestia about it.”
“Ah reckon we all need some answers,” muttered Applejack. She then raised an eyebrow as Pinkie Pie seemed to be dancing where she stood. “And what in tarnation is wrong with ya?”
“I really, really, REALLY need to pee,” said Pinkie Pie
“Silence all of you,” shouted a noble in a powdered wig. Everypony in the room became quiet except for Pinkie Pie. Within the silent room the sound effects caused by her jumping up and down were more easily heard. “Before we decide to go to war or not there is a matter we must attend to first. The fate of these six terrorists!” All eyes turned towards the six mares who gasped in surprise. The only one who had a different reaction was Fluttershy who fell on her back and fainted.
“This is outrageous,” yelled Rarity. “How can you accuse us of terrorism without any proof?”
“You all broke into the Royal Archives,” said Iron Shell as he pointed at the white mare. “Then, after you were found out, the building was destroyed. The timing seems almost too perfect to be a coincidence.”
“What were you doing in there?” demanded another noble. “Were you gathering information for the Republic? How far does this treason go?”
“You dare to accuse the Great and Powerful Trixie of treason?” yelled Trixie as she took a step forward. However, as soon as she did she found several more spears pointed in her direction. “Trixie would never betray Princess Celestia. Nor would anypony in her Great company.”
“Silence,” shouted the pony in the wig again. “We shall now hold trial for-”
“What is going on here?” said Cadence as the doors to the chambers opened. On her back was Midnight while Ruby and her two fellow bat ponies walked behind her. All three of them were wearing bright pink armor with their princess’s cutie mark on their chest piece. “I was in the armory seeing that my new guards were fitted properly when I heard there was an emergency meeting.”
Cadence continued to walk forward until she stood next to the six mares who stared at her in amazement. As the pony in the powdered wig began to talk, she turned her head to look at the six accused. For the most part they looked either scared that they would be found guilty or angry that they were being accused. The pink one looked like she had to use the bathroom. Finally, Cadence gaze became frozen on her aunt. Celestia looked utterly helpless within the confides of the pod. The only thing she seemed to be able to move was her eyes.
“As you can see,” said Blueblood once the other noble had finished speaking, “we are in a state of emergency. We have no time for-”
“For a member of the Royal Family who spends her time with bat ponies,” finished Cadence calmly. Blueblood, who had momentarily lost his composure, looked flabbergasted. “I am well aware that most of you see my actions of late as, putting it lightly, ‘untasteful’. That is, however, not an acceptable reason to keep me out of something of this magnitude. Before we talk of war or any such thing I believe there is something far more pressing.”
“And what may that be?” asked Blueblood with a sneer. Cadence simply pointed at the pod.
“I believe that getting Princess Celestia out of this device should take top priority,” she said calmly. All the nobles looked like they had been smack upside the head. Some began to look embarrassed while others looked shameful. But there were those who looked angry at Cadence for one reason or another.
“And how do you propose we do that?” demanded Blueblood. “Should we just begin to randomly press buttons and hope for the best?”
“Buttons?!” cried out one of the guards. He was a blue earth pony with a yellow mane. He dropped his spear before instantly appearing in front of the pod. “Oh Celestia, I love buttons! Beep bup bup boop beep bup boop.” The blue stallion began to randomly press against the pod until his hoof touched a blinking red light. When he did the pod opened up, launching Celestia into the air. She then landed a few feet in front of her prison looking a little light headed but otherwise fine.
“I can’t hold it anymore!” shouted Pinkie as she dashed into the pod. As it began to close with her inside it everypony could hear her sigh of relief.
-x-
Twilight and Scootaloo were currently enjoying a nice breakfast of oats and water. It might not have been the fanciest meal, but it would fill them up until lunch. Normally her breakfast table was quiet, but that was to be expected since it was usually just her. Yet for some reason the quiet seemed eerie. As the unicorn looked at the filly who seemed to be glued to her meal, eating it rather slowly.
‘Am I failing her already’, thought a worried Twilight. ‘Yesterday she seemed so happy. I wonder what has her looking so down.’ This was a situation Twilight wasn’t very familiar with. She had gone over a couple books last night and, sadly, none of them had given her any information that she could use in this situation. So she did what she had done when there was a quiet breakfast with Shining Armor: turning on the radio.
“And that is how a cannon saved the Lunar Republic last night,” came Vinyl’s voice with a laugh. “In other news, a stallion was found trying to blow up a section of the dome in Dome Six this morning. The explosion went off leaving several large growing cracks. Luckily for residents, members of the Shield Corps were able to get there in time to reinforce the Dome as well as apprehend the stallion who they believe to be suffering for Space Madness. He will be detained until a proper diagnosis can be performed. But enough this depressing news! Let’s jam!”
“Twilight, what’s Space Madness?” asked Scootaloo over the music.
“I’ll tell you as we get ready,” said Twilight as she looked at the clock. It was almost time for them to leave. With a nod, Scootaloo picked up her bowl while Twilight used her magic to put stuff away. “Space Madness is one of the most common occurrences here in the Republic. It’s basically a mental breakdown, feeling trapped within the Domes. I have heard that most often it is caused when ponies stare into the empty vacuum of space for too long. It doesn’t happen as much as it used to, but somepony does get it from time to time.”
“But they get better, right?’ asked Scootaloo. “I mean, you have stuff that helped fix me.”
“That’s a bit different,” said Twilight with a sigh. “Fixing the body is much easier than fixing the mind.” She then noticed that Scootaloo seemed to look frightened. “It just takes a bit longer. A couple weeks or even months. So, if you are ever feeling trapped, just let me know so we can talk about it.”
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. As Scootaloo ran to get her stuff for today Twilight went to see who it was. She opened the door to see Shadow standing before her with a confident smile.
“I thought I’d walk you to the palace,” said Shadow before kissing his marefriend on the cheek. Twilight blush and nodded as Scootaloo came down the stairs on her new scooter. While she now had the ability to fly she still had a habit of crashing into things. So, until she got some flying lessons, she was still ground bound.
As the three made their way to the platform station, Scootaloo’s silence was becoming deafening. Yesterday she had seemed so happy about everything. That was until after they returned from school. Did something happen there that Scootaloo didn’t want to talk about? Was she scared of something? Finally, Twilight couldn’t take it anymore.
“Scootaloo, is something wrong?” asked Twilight.
“Ah, no,” answered the filly in an unconvincing manner. Both adults gave her a ‘yeah right’ look that caused her to sigh. She didn’t want to tell Twilight the truth, that she was afraid of letting her down. There was no way she could get into the Royal Academy or do any of the things Twilight or Shadow did when they were younger. They were so awesome and she wasn’t. But she didn’t want to come out and tell them that. So she decided to tell them something else. “I’m just wondering if joining the Troop is such a good idea. Can’t I just stay with you?”
“I see,” said Twilight as a look of understanding appeared on her face. “You’re worried that you won’t make any friends.”
“A little,” admitted Scootaloo.
“I was the same way when I joined,” said Twilight.
-Flashback-
A young filly Twilight stood next to Princess Luna. Before them were at least a dozen or so fillies and colts, running around while a mare tried her best to get them at attention. One of them looked at Twilight for just a moment causing her to hide behind the Princess.
“Do I really have to go?” asked Twilight in a quiet voice.
“Yes,” said Luna as her horn began to glow. Her magic surrounded Twilight and lifted her off the ground in order to move her back to the princess’s side. “It will be good for you to interact with other ponies your own age. After all, you can’t spend every day just reading books.”
Luna said nothing at first. It had been a year and a half since Twilight had lost her parents. She still refused to talk about what had happened and what she had seen. The Moon Princess couldn’t imagine what she was going through. But, one thing she did know was that it wasn’t healthy for Twilight to retreat into her own little world. She needed to spend some time with ponies other than herself, Shadow Blade, and Shining Armor. She needed to make some friends and to enjoy life.
“Twilight, can I tell you something?” asked Luna in a low voice. The filly nodded. “When I was small, I didn’t think I needed friends either. I just wanted to read my books or play in my lab all by myself. At first I thought that I was fine. But, as I got older, I realized that I missed out on so much fun that can only be found with your friends. I just don’t want you to make that same mistake. Do you understand?”
Whatever Twilight was about to say was suddenly interrupted as a Pegasus with a turquoise coat and an amber mane crashed into her. The two rolled forwards until they both came to a stop in front of the Troop leader. Both looked very dizzy as they tried to stand.
“Well it looks like your on time for once Lightning,” said the Troop leader. “And it seems like you ‘bumped’ into our latest addition.” Lightning let out a light laugh as she turned to face the pony she had crashed into. The purple filly growled in response, not looking amused at the situation.
-End Flashback-
“So is that how you met Lightning Dust?” asked Scootaloo as the three of them neared the platform station.
Twilight nodded. “I was sore at her for a while,” she admitted. “But Princess Luna was right, getting out of the palace and making friends was just what I needed. I don’t think I’d be the mare I am today without meeting them.”
“Hey Scootaloo,” yelled Dinky. The group looked up to see the little unicorn running towards them with a big smile on her face. “We’re going to have so much fun today! Come on, I want you to meet everypony.” With that she began to drag the Pegasus pony towards a larger group of fillies and colts.
Twilight let out a giggle as she watched as Scootaloo was surrounded by ponies her age. She then looked over to the platform station to see that Shadow was already talking to Boarding Time and Bronze Shield. Deciding that it was time to go, Twilight began to walk towards the three stallions who suddenly became silent as she neared. The body search went quicker than usual which was odd. Normally Bronze was very meticulous with his searches, taking his time to make certain he didn’t miss a thing. But today it seemed like he was in a hurry to get them going. Before she knew it the two of them were on the platform heading for Dome Zero.
As the platform moved, Twilight began to silently ponder what had happened. Then the platform just stopped causing her to break out of her thoughts. Looking around she saw that the two of them were in-between the two Domes. All around was white rock that reflected the light of the sun. Twilight gulped. She knew that her teleportation spells limit and there was no way she could teleport the two of them to the castle in one go. They could make it if they did it in jumps, but if a platform came this way they would be sitting ducks.
Then an important question entered her head. Why had this happened? The platform wasn’t broken. Each night and morning they were inspected to make sure every function was working perfectly. Even if it did suddenly happen the platform should have fallen to the ground by now.
“Hey Twilight,” said Shadow, breaking the purple mare out of her thoughts. She turned to look at him and found that he was staring out into the wasteland. “Do you remember how we first met?”
Twilight blinked. “Yeah, of course I do,” she answered. “I remember that I was sitting in the living room, reading the first ever Boldly Go book. I was so fascinated with it I didn’t even hear you or your mom come in. One moment I was alone and then when I looked up you were standing right in front of me.”
“And then you screamed,” said Shadow with a laugh which caused Twilight’s cheeks to turn red.
“Hey, you startled me,” said Twilight as she tried to defend herself. Shadow smiled as he walked over to her until they were standing face to face. For some reason, this was causing Twilight’s heart to race. She took a deep breath while silently counting to ten.
“I remember that day as well,” said Shadow. “When I first saw you, I thought that you were just a little bookworm.” Twilight gave him an annoyed look. “But then I got to know you better. I got to know the real Twilight Sparkle. And that’s what you do, you sparkle in the darkness. You have been my light when I needed it the most. Somepony who has always been there for me when I was afraid and scared. And I want to be there for you as well. To protect the light you give out. I know this all sounds a bit corny, stars help me, but its how I feel.” With that, Shadow reached behind him and pulled out a small black box. He opened it, causing Twilight to gasp when she saw what was inside it. “Twilight Sparkle, will you marry me?”
Twilight said nothing. She just stared at him for a moment with her eyes wide as dish plates. Shadow began to get nervous as the waiting continued. He began to fear that she would say no, that they weren’t ready for something like this. Then with no mercy she tackled him to the ground while laughing. She began to kiss him deeply as her magic placed the engagement ring on her horn.
-x-
“Well they seem happy,” said Luna as she watched the scene unfold. In front of her was large holo screen that was floating in mid air, displaying the happy couple. Next to her was Shining Armor who was crying.
“I believe that congratulations are in order,” said Princess Luna as both Twilight and Shadow entered the throne room. The Princess was sitting on her throne while Shining Armor was sobbing next to her. The couple looked at their ruler with a bit of confusion. Smiling, Luna decided to answer their silent question. “I was informed the moment the platform shut down. Fearing something was wrong I decided to check on it from one of the secret cameras in the tubes leading to Dome Zero.”
“I guess Shining must have been with you,” said Shadow as he looked at the white unicorn. “That must be the reason his liquid pride is all over the floor.” Luna laughed as she stood up to walk over to Twilight. Once she was close enough the blue alicorn wrapped her in a big hug.
“I am so happy for you,” whispered Luna softly. This was now one of the biggest days in Twilight’s life. To be able to share it with her, as if she really were Twilight’s mother, made her feel so proud. And as such, Luna wanted to help out as much as she could with what would come in the following months. Reluctantly she released Twilight and began to speak louder. “To celebrate this joyous occasion, the wedding shall be held here in the castle.”
“B-But Princess,” stuttered a wide eyed Twilight. “In the thousand year history of the Republic, no pony was ever had a wedding here.”
“There is a first time for everything,” said Luna with a smile. “Besides, in the past thousand years, I have never seen the Captain of the Royal Guard marry my prized student before. Besides, this is my home after all.”
“W-We are honored Princess,” said Shadow.
“Good,” said Luna. “Now that that’s settled, I believe the two of you have work to attend to.” Nodding, Shadow kissed Twilight on the cheek before he walked over to Shining Armor.
“Ok,” said the bat stallion as he picked up his future brother in law. “Let’s go for a walk before we get to the training grounds. Can’t have your ponies seeing you like this, now can we?” With that the two left the room followed by Twilight and Luna. As the two mares walked through the castle, Luna continued to talk.
“I am so sorry for pulling you away from your days off, but this is a matter of great importance,” she said. “Gigawatt put up a motion to use Operation Umbrella on the planet to ensure that Equestria will never be a threat to us.” Twilight couldn’t hide the shock or horror on her face even if she tried.
“B-But what of the other kingdoms on the planet?” she asked. “They’ll be affected too.”
“I know my little pony,” said Luna with a sad sigh. “If they didn’t see us as monsters before, they certainly will if we ever have to use Operation Umbrella. I know this is our best chance to keep Discord at bay, but perhaps we could make some changes to the plan as a whole. Find a way to only affect Equestria.”
“Well,” said Twilight as her mind began to go into overdrive. “I think it is worth a try. However, the reason why we originally planned it this way was out of fear that Discord could leave the containment zone. If we do it the way you are suggesting it might lower the chance of success by a significant amount. There is also the possible problem of overexposure. We designed Operation Umbrella to last for only a short while. A week at most. However, if we do as Gigawatt suggests then there is a chance that the effects will become permanent. But…I do see what you are saying. We should try to spare as many countries down on the planet as possible.”
Luna nodded. “I hope we can,” she said. “While I am personally against using Operation Umbrella to oppress, it can still be useful in case Equestria ever becomes a serious threat against us. It is unlikely given their current state, but it isn’t impossible that one day they may try to find a way to attack us. Even using Umbrella for a few hours will send a strong message of the consequences of messing with the Republic!”
Twilight nodded. From what she and Shadow had seen on the planet, the ponies there were still afraid of them. That fear might push them into trying to attack them. Right now that was impossible given the level of both their technology and magic. But given time, as well as the right incentive, there was no telling what they could do. It wasn’t something Twilight wanted to do, but in order to protect everypony in the Republic she would do what had to be done.
“There is something else,” continued Luna as the two turned a corner. “Dr. Blue Star was recently imprisoned for misuse of government funds for a period of twenty years.” Luna paused for a moment as she watched Twilight shivered in fear. “Because of this, Crescent Hope will need somepony else working on it. I know I am dumping a lot on you, but this will only be until I can find somepony else who can take over.”
Twilight nodded as the two came to a set of large steel doors. On the wall next to it was a circular device in the wall which Twilight walked over to. Once she was in front of it the purple unicorn moved her head close to it. A moment later a red beam of light shot out of the device, covering Twilight’s body. It lasted for only a few moments before the doors opened. Twilight turned to face the princess, bowed, and then walked through the open doors.
“Bio-print scanned. Identity confirmed,” said a computerized voice as Twilight walked into the corridor. “Welcome Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle.”
-x-
“Princess Celestia, it is good to see you are doing well,” said Blueblood as he stood before the princess in her throne room. Off to the side were Cadence, her bat ponies, Trixie, and the five ponies from Ponyville. Sunlight shined through the stained glass windows as the morning sun traveled through the sky. “We feared the worst.”
“I’m sure you did,” said Celestia as she tilted her head. “I’m sure that’s why you didn’t see fit to try and release me from my containment.”
Blueblood gulped. “W-We feared what might happen if we started pressing buttons without knowing what they did. For all we knew one of them might have killed you.”
“I see,” said Celestia. “I suppose that I must take your word on that my dear nephew. But in the future, I suggest that you not exclude Cadence from such meetings. Cooler heads make better decisions.”
“Yes,” said Blueblood slowly as he turned to look in the direction of Cadence. It wasn’t an obvious glare, but more like a masked look of distain. “I will make sure I do that from now on.” He then turned to look at Celestia once more. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“No,” replied Celestia as she shook her head. “You may take your leave.” Blueblood bowed before leaving, As he walked away, however, he cast one more sideways glance at Cadence as well as her bat ponies. It wasn’t a look that the pink princess liked yet she kept her composer. She would not give him the satisfaction of showing that he was getting to her.
Rarity, who had a long time crush on the prince, saw it as well. When she had first seen the prince in person she had thought that he would approach her, dazzled by her beauty. Yet he looked down on everypony he saw that didn’t wear a crown. She saw him as arrogant and cruel. The more she saw the more she began to wonder how he could be Princess Celestia’s favorite nephew!
As the doors closed, Celestia let out a sigh. Blueblood, as well as the other nobles, would need a new approach than what she had been doing. In a way, what Luna did to her was an eye opening experience. She saw with her own eyes how they would react with her incapacitated. Things would have to change around here and soon.
“No then,” said Celestia as she motioned for the other to approach her. Her eyes fell upon the five mares from Ponyville. “Can you tell me why you were in the Royal Archives last night?”
“Well ya see Princess,” began Applejack. However she stopped as Rainbow rushed forward and threw the book she had tucked under her wing in the direction of Celestia. It didn’t hit her; it just landed in front of her hooves. Shocked, everypony stared at the aggressive mare as guards pointed their spears at her.
“We wanted to know why the hay you’ve been lying to everypony!” yelled Rainbow who didn’t seem to care about the possible danger she was in. Tears where once again began to appear in her eyes. “Everything I was taught in school was wrong! And you KNEW! You knew about Nightmare Moon! You knew the truth about the Republic! And you knew about THIS!”
Slowly, Celestia used her magic to pick up the book. Looking at the title, she closed her eyes as she took a guess as to what Rainbow saw in it. Seeing no point in denying anything, Celestia opened the book up and began to flip through the pages. Finally she stopped at a black and white copy of a picture that had been drawn before Equestria had been founded. It was a city in the clouds as beautiful as Cloudsdale while below it were dozens of Timberwolves who sat down with their jaws opened towards the sky. In the middle was a mare who was throwing her new born bat pony foal down to the wolves below. The title of this piece of work was called ‘The Proper Tradition’.
“Yes, I knew about this,” said Celestia slowly as she looked up. She handed the book over to Cadence who also looked at the book in shock. One by one the book was passed around, each pony having a similar reaction with Fluttershy’s being the worst. The poor girl broke down into tears.
While this was going on, Celestia looked upon Rainbow Dash as she calmed down. Personally, she didn’t blame the mare for her reaction. She knew that what had caused this outburst was her loyalty to both Pegasus ponies as well as her cousin. To see something like this must have been a huge blow.
“I-Is this true?” asked Ruby as she stared at Celestia.
Celestia nodded. “Before the founding of Equestria, bat ponies were seen as a cursed foal. They wrongly believed that the best thing to do was to end their lives as you saw in that book. But, when my mother took the thrown the first thing she did was to outlaw this behavior. Then, when me and Luna took the throne, a few ponies decided to try and bring back this old tradition. After they were caught I decided to hide this part of Pegasus history as well as any other dark moments from our past.” She paused for a moment before looking at Applejack. “How much do you know about my sister?”
During the next several minutes the only ones who spoke were the mares from Ponyville. Celestia was amazed by how much they were able to piece together within such a sort amount of time. Most of it was guess work, however, and there were still some holes that needed to be filled in.
“An that about sums it up Princess,” finished Applejack.
“But we still don’t know where this Nightmare Moon thing came from,” said Rarity.
“That is actually very simple to answer,” said Celestia. “A thousand years ago very few ponies knew how to read or write. After what happened in Hoofshire the story was told from pony to pony, changing a little each time. For example, my sister ran out of a burning building while carrying a colt she had saved from the flames. A few years later the story that was being told was that she had set fire to the building and eat a foal while she watched it burn. After I decreed that my sister’s name was never to be spoken again, new names were created until one came that matched the over blown story. Eventually my sisters one and only holiday, Dreamer’s Eve, was changed into Nightmare Night.”
“Excuse me,” said Fluttershy weakly. “But why didn’t you tell ponies the truth?”
“I did try,” said Celestia as she hung her head. “But because I waited too long, ponies demanded proof. Which is one of the reasons I decided to hold the Summer Sun Festival in Ponyville. The plan was to allow a small community of ponies to see my sister and the lunar ponies for who they really were. News would have spread and ponies would begin to question what they had been told. I would have been able to go before the so called experts and point out that most of their theories of the lunar ponies were based on guesswork. However, I never expected a pony like Twilight to be there working for my sister.”
“So it is Twilight’s fault,” said Trixie. “Trixie knew there was something she didn’t like about her.”
“You can’t blame her,” said Cadence. “How was she supposed to know what Auntie Celestia had in mind?”
“That is true,” admitted Celestia. “The last few days have been an eye opener for me. It is well past time I dealt with certain problems with my own two hooves. Princess Cadence, I will allow you to keep your own guard and will allow it to grow. I will also give you the great task of helping the bat ponies become accepted in Equestria.”
“I,” began Cadence as she gulped loudly. “I will do my best.”
“I know you will,” said Celestia with a smile. “Now, I have something I must get to work on. Hopefully this will get Luna to give us one more chance.”
Miss Foster sighed as she looked at the empty bed in front of her that belonged to Scootaloo. It wasn’t unusual for this particular filly to go missing every once in a while, but she never missed hay burger day. And even when she stayed out past her curfew, Miss Foster would have at least seen her around town.
The last time any pony had seen Scootaloo had been the day before the Summer Sun Festival. According to some of the other orphans, the young pegasus had been seen with the purple unicorn and the bat pony that worked for Princess Luna (otherwise known as Nightmare Moon). As soon as she found out, she had gone straight to the local sheriff’s office to inform her of the missing filly. Sheriff Morning Star had patted her on the back and said that there was nothing she could do until the filly had been missing for more than twenty four hours.
Since then, all Miss Foster could think about were the horrible things that were most likely happening to the young filly. She had probably been taken to the moon to be boiled in oil or eaten alive by giant moon worms. While she waited, the caretaker of the orphanage did her best to stay calm as well as keep up a strong appearance. She had to be strong for the other orphans that depended on her.
But, it was hard when all she could think about was all the ways Scootaloo could be in trouble. At one point in the day, she nearly lost it when Sweetie Belle had come over with another filly named Apple Bloom. They had only wanted to ask it Scootaloo could come out to play, but Miss Foster, who did not want them to panic or worry, had told them that Scootaloo couldn’t and simply asked them to leave.
Once it had been over the twenty four hour grace period, Miss Foster’s fears were at an all-time high. Believing that this was an emergency, she quickly wrote a letter to Princess Celestia, begging her to do everything in her power to bring young Scootaloo back. To make sure it got there quickly, she paid extra to have it sent by magical fire. Hopefully the Princess would bring back Scootaloo back to where she belonged before something horrible happened to her.
-x-
Scootaloo stood in amazement as the platform went down the tube as it traveled to Dome Four along with about ten other fillies and colts. All around her, she saw things that no other pony in Equestria had ever seen before. Like, for example, the white barren landscape that was just outside this tube. The young filly had been told that no pony could survive outside, yet still she saw glimpses of ponies in odd suits with a lot of equipment. Scootaloo wished to see what they were doing out of pure curiosity, but the platform was simply moving too fast.
It was the same when they reached Dome Two. Scootaloo tried to take in as much as she could in the few minutes they passed through at seemly lightning speed. The main focus of this Dome was a single, giant container of water that almost went up to the ceiling. Along the ground were hundreds of tubes that went off in every direction.
Scootaloo also noticed several other small containers on the ground with several ponies working around them. The orange filly also noticed that there was a small cloud town within this Dome as well.
Several minutes after exiting Dome Two, the group found themselves in the next Dome. Dome Three reminded Scootaloo of Ponyville. She saw what looked like hundreds of farm fields on the ground. Every once in a while, she would see a machine hovering over the farm land as it collected the crops below.
Seeing all of this made the filly a little homesick. She began to wonder if anypony back home missed her or even noticed she was gone. Hopefully Sweetie Belle was at least wondering where she had gone. She also wondered how Miss Cheerilee would, when Scootaloo didn’t show up for class.
Several minutes after the platform had left Dome Three, Scootaloo noticed that they were heading towards a dark area. Gulping, Scootaloo turned to Dinky and asked her what it was.
“Don’t worry,” said Dinky with a reassuring smile. “That’s just the dark side of the moon. Don’t worry, that just means that it’s nighttime there.”
“Oh, cool,” said Scootaloo as she let out a sigh of relief. It was so dark over there that the filly thought that they were heading out into empty space or something like that.
As they moved into the darkened landscape, Scootaloo saw something she thought she would never see on this barren rock. Up ahead was a brightly lit Dome and inside of it was a forest. Large trees, taller than any Scootaloo had ever seen in her life, seemed to dominate the entire Dome. Or, at least from what the filly could see, since she was still a ways from the Dome.
As they got closer, something above them caught Scootaloo’s eye. It was a flash or a spark of some kind directly above the platform. Squinting with her eyes, the filly waited to see if there would be another one.
After a couple of moments, her patience paid off as two more sparks appeared in the sky above them. Then, a couple more happened, close to where Dome Four was. Turning her head in that direction while looking up, Scootaloo was able to see what it was thanks to the light of the Dome.
What she saw nearly stopped her heart. It was a giant mass of rock floating in the space above them. It was huge, spanning for miles in every direction. Scootaloo knew that if it fell down then no pony would survive. So, why was it placed here? And what were those sparks she had seen?
“I see you’ve met TOM,” said Lightning as she appeared next to Scootaloo.
Scootaloo blinked. “You named it Tom?” she asked. “That’s a funny name for something that could smash everypony into pancakes!”
Lightning Dust let out a laugh. “TOM isn’t really its name,” she explained. “It’s an acronym. TOM stands for Total Obliteration Meteor. That one there is about one fourth the size of Equestria. If that thing even made contact with the planet, it would end all live on it in a matter of days at the most.”
“Wait, you have more?!” yelped Scootaloo. Lightning nodded causing the filly to feel dizzy. It was hard to imagine that the ponies of the Lunar Republic had more than one of these monsters. “Are you insane? What if one of them falls on us? Won’t that kill us all?”
“We need them,” said Lightning with a shrug. “TOM’s sometimes pass by and they provide valuable materials that we desperately need. Things like water and metals. They have to be close so that we can use our shuttles to bring ponies back and forth from there quickly.”
“I mean, think what would happen if somepony gets hurt up there. If it’s close by, then it is faster to get that pony medical attention. Also there are a ton of safe guards in place to make sure it doesn’t fall on us. Take that TOM for example. It has a large rocket engine in back, so that if it does start to fall, we can adjust it so it will either return to orbit or get shot into the sun.”
“Then why are they on the dark side of the moon?” asked Scootaloo as the platform entered Dome Four.
“That was Princess Luna’s idea,” answered Lightning. “She was afraid that if Celestia ever saw a TOM orbiting around the moon, then she might fear the worse and attack us. From what I’ve heard recently, if the nobles from Equestria ever found out about them, they might fear us using them as weapons.” It was at that moment that the platform stopped. When it did, all of the fillies and colts raced outside onto the grassy landscape with just Lightning and Scootaloo brining in the rear.
Scootaloo was amazed by the forest-like feel of Dome Four. All around her, she saw trees of all types. She also noticed several park benches, as well as trash cans, that made her think that this Dome was used more like a park.
She was only half right. This Dome also served to provide sixty percent of the air for the Republic. Without it, the inhabitants of the Lunar Republic would surely die. To ensure that nothing happened, several ponies from the Shield Corps were constantly present, and it was given state-of-the-art security to prevent any foolish pony from tampering with it. In short, it was the second most protected place in the Republic, next to Dome Zero.
“Well, well. Look who we have here,” come a voice off to the side of Lightning Dust’s group that made Scootaloo think of Diamond Tiara. Everypony turned their heads to see orange unicorn mare with a red and yellow mane. Behind her were several other ponies that looked like they were two or three years older than Scootaloo. “I would have thought that you losers would have been smart enough not to show up. I guess I gave you all too much credit.”
“Shut it, Sunset,” said Lightning as she glared at the mare. “Besides, this isn’t going to be like last time.”
“For once you are right,” said Sunset as she smirked wickedly. “This time you and your Troopers won’t last three minutes.”
“Oh, they’ll last more than three minutes,” said Lightning confidently. “In fact, I’m willing to bet that they’ll beat the stuffing out of your Troopers!”
If it were possible, Sunset’s grin grew even more. “Oh, will you now,” she said slowly. “Very well then, I accept. As for what’s at stake, let’s have it so that the leader of the team that loses first has to eat the special at Diner 51. Sounds good?”
When Lightning Dust heard that, her coat turns a shade or two lighter. No pony in their right mind would eat that stuff! She didn’t even know why it was still on the menu. Slowly Lightning turned her head to look at her Trooper who had been silently watching the two of them. Gulping, Lightning turned her head to look at Sunset once more.
“Deal,” she said. Grinning, Sunset walked away.
“Who was that?” asked Scootaloo as she set her scooter next to a tree. “And what’s her problem?”
“Sunset Shimmer,” said Lightning with slight disgust. “At one point in time, she was a contender to be Princess Luna’s prized student. I don’t know all the details, but I heard that she got impatient and then somehow lost to Twilight. I asked her what happened, but all Twilight said was she didn’t want to talk about it. Ever since then, Sunset’s held a grudge against Twilight along with anypony close to her.”
Lightning then looked Scootaloo dead in the eye. “I want you to be extra careful around her. If she finds out that Twilight adopted you, then she might try to get to you somehow.”
With that, Lightning pulled together her Troopers so that they could all get ready. One by one, the foals were fitted with a black, leather-like belt that had a strange device attached to the side. The device was about half the size of Scootaloo’s body with a hole at one end. Along with the belt, she received something like a headband that also had a red, see-through piece that went over her right eye.
As soon as she put it on, a target symbol appeared in front of her eye. When she turned her head, she found that the device on the belt moved to point where she was looking. As she looked around, Scootaloo saw that all but Dinky had on the same thing she did. As for Dinky, she had a large crystal strapped to her back.
“Ok everypony,” said Lightning Dust as she got everypony’s attention. “I going to give you all a quick refresher before we begin. These laser guns you all have are the same kind we use for training in the royal guard.”
“In order to fire them, you have to focus on your target and think ‘fire’. Each laser gun shoots six times before it runs out. If you run out, you just need to stand next to Dinky who is carrying the recharger crystal, and your weapon will do the rest. If you are hit, you will be unable to move until somepony comes to get you or the game is over.”
“The rules of the game are simple, last team standing wins. There are only two rules. The first is that you’re not allowed to modify your equipment under any circumstance. The other is that you are not allowed to use any performance enhancing drugs. Are there any questions?”
No pony raised their hooves nor said anything. “Ok then, we starts in a couple of minutes. If you want to, you can practice using you laser guns or work on your aim. I’ll let you know when we are starting.”
With that, most of the fillies and colts began to talk with each other. Only Scootaloo and a couple others decided to try out the laser guns. Deciding to play it safe, Scootaloo took aim at a tree. She stared at it for a second or two while thinking ‘fire’ over and over in her head. Nothing happened.
Slightly frustrated, the little filly tried again but thought about firing a little louder in her head. Again, nothing happened. Now she was starting to lose her cool and screamed ‘FIRE!’ in her head. This time a red light shot out of her weapon and hit the tree exactly where she had been looking.
“Nice shot,” said Dinky as she walked up to her new friend.
“Thanks,” said Scootaloo as she grinned at Dinky. “So, how come you’re stuck with the recharger thingy?”
“Because I’m the worst shot here,” said an embarrass Dinky. “I get distracted easily and end up shooting the wrong thing.”
-x-
Meanwhile, over with the Troopers from Dome Nine, Sunset Shimmer was busy at work. After the Troopers under her charge had equipped themselves, the crafty unicorn had started removing the power cell for each laser gun and replacing them with a stronger one. The new power cell would not only allow her ponies to fire up to thirty times before needing a recharge, but it would also cause a slight amount of pain to whoever they shot.
“Uh, are you sure this is a good idea,” asked one of the ponies. “I mean, we can take them down no problem without cheating.” Sunset looked up from her work and glared at the one who spoke.
“Let me ask you a question,” she said slowly. “Do you like to lose?”
The younger pony gulped. “Well, uh, not really.”
“No, of course you don’t,” replied Sunset as she began to pace back and forth. “I also don’t like to lose. I especially don’t like to lose to Twilight Sparkle or her friends. When that happens, I’m not happy. And when I’m not happy, nopony around will be happy. Do I make myself clear?” All five ponies nodded.
-x-
“Ok, listen up,” said Lightning Dust as she called all of her Troopers together. Next to her was a unicorn stallion wearing a black and white striped vest. “I just found out that there will be a total of ten Lunar Trooper teams out today. That mean there will be nine teams you will have to defeat in order to win.”
“Now, before you begin, I just want you all to know that as long as you give this all you got I’ll be proud of you. Even if you come in last place. Just remember that we’re here to have fun.” After she was done talking, the stallion pulled out a whistle and a watch. He stared at his time piece for a bit before blowing into the whistle to signal the beginning of the games.
For several minutes, the Troopers from Dome One maneuvered through the woods, doing their best to keep a look out for the other teams. Scootaloo stuck close to Dinky since her friend couldn’t defend herself in a fight. Also, Scootaloo felt that somepony should defend the one holding all the extra ammo. She knew this would be difficult, seeing that the laser guns weighted them down a bit. The orange filly noticed that one of the other pegasi on her team trying to fly every once in a while, yet never getting more than a foot or two off the ground.
All at once, the silence of the forest changed. Several shots were fired in their direction, hitting two members of their group. The two cried out in pain, tears falling down their faces. The rest of them began to hide behind trees or under bushes to escape the onslaught of laser fire. Scootaloo did her best to keep Dinky safe while trying to fire back.
From behind her tree, Scootaloo waited for one of them to stop firing so she could shot back. But something seemed odd. The same shooter hit her tree seven or eight times before stopping. Unless Scootaloo had forgotten how to count, that meant that they had more shots than they did. Taking a deep breath, Scootaloo look out from behind the tree and saw who they were fighting.
It was the ponies from Dome Six! There were four of them ahead. Three of them were shooting, keeping the ponies from Dome One pinned down, while the fourth had the recharging crystal on his back. As soon as she took all this in, they began to fire in her direction once more.
“What did you see?” asked Dinky. Quickly, Scootaloo relayed the information while they heard another pony on their team cry in pain. Once she was done, Dinky nodded. “They used this strategy last time. Those guys are going to pin us down while the fifth circles around to pick us off one at a time. Looks like we’re going to lose again.”
“Oh, no we’re not,” growled Scootaloo. “There’s got to be a way to win.”
“Unless we can get around them, I don’t think so,” said Dinky miserably. Scootaloo, on the other hoof, scrunched up her face as if she were thinking about something. A moment later, her face lit up before hugging her friend.
“I think we can!” exclaimed Scootaloo. “Follow me. I think I have an idea.”
Several minutes later, the ponies from Dome Six were counting the heads of their victims. So far they had counted eight fillies and colts with laser guns. That meant that there was one more out there with a laser gun and another with the recharging crystal.
Everypony had a different idea where the two had gone. One suggested that they were trying to spring a trap of some kind, while another believed that they had simply run away. Then, they heard an odd noise.
“Hey, do you guys hear that?” asked one of them.
“Yeah,” said the one holding the crystal. “It sounds like wings flapping.” Without warning, there were three flashes of light and three of them were on the ground. Looking in the direction that was fired, the Troopers from Dome Six saw an unusual sight.
Scootaloo was riding her new scooter with Dinky holding on to her for dear life. It seemed that the laser guns also adjust do to a ponies position, since Scootaloo’s guns was still able to fire while she was standing up. And with her larger wings, she was able to flap them faster than ever before.
The orange filly fired three more times to hit the remaining two. Sadly, she missed as they jumped out of the way to hide behind trees. Once she was out of ammo her gun spun around in the direction of Dinky’s crystal. A beam of light shot out of the device on the unicorns back into her friend’s gun. Once the beam of light faded, it once again pointed in the direction of their enemies.
As she swerved back and forth to avoid enemy fire, Scootaloo began to feel something stirring inside of her. It was a feeling of fulfillment. Moving at high speeds and jumping over obstacles had always given the filly a rush. But now, it was different somehow. Maybe it was because of something the Lunar doctors had done when they made her a full pegasus. Or maybe it was because there was an added amount of danger. Whatever it was, Scootaloo felt like this was something she was meant to do.
The two remaining Troopers from Dome Six tried in vain to hit their target. However, the moving target was too fast and their reflexes were too slow. Soon they wasted their last shots and without a recharging crystal, they were left helpless. They both saw the orange filly grin as she relieved they were out of ammo. The two of them no longer bothered to dodge as they were hit by Scootaloo’s laser blasts. As they fell, Scootaloo cheered happily as she and her passenger continued on to look for more teams.
-x-
Several hours later, Diner 51 was filled with laughing, happy foals. Those from Dome One were cheering “Third Place!” over and over. Over off in the corner, a very unhappy looking unicorn was eating what looked like mashed potatoes with blue, pulsing veins. Everypony else were drinking milkshakes and eating pie that a very happy pegasus bought them. Sitting next to Sunset were Lightning Dust and Scootaloo.
“I’m proud of you kid,” said Lighting Dust. “You were amazing today.”
“Thanks,” said Scootaloo who had conflicting emotions. Part of her was happy that they had made such a big comeback. The other part was disappointed that they didn’t make it to first place. At first, she had been really hard on herself, but once she saw how happy everypony else was, she cheered right up.
“You’ll do better next time,” said Lightning who was somehow able to sense what Scootaloo was feeling. “And you were very good for your first time. I’m willing to bet you’d be great in the Royal Guard. We have high speed vehicles that need pilots with your reflexes.”
“She cheated,” growled Sunset, before she almost barfed up her meal.
Lightning snickered. “There’s nothing in the rules about using a scooter,” she said before pulling out the modified power cells. “And, if anyone is going to be charged with cheating, it’s you. I’m sure the LIB would love to hear about this.” If Sunset was going to say anything, it was interrupted by a loud rumble coming from her stomach. Holding her stomach, the unicorn mare fell to the ground while looking like she was in a plot load of pain. “Looks like in a few hours, it’ll come out.”
Before Scootaloo would ask what the older pegasus meant, Dinky let out a gasp. “Scootaloo, you got your cutie mark!”
Every filly and colt suddenly gathered around Scootaloo who was as excited as they were. Looking at her flank, she could see it and it looked awesome. It was a winged wheel with flames coming out of it. The happy filly began to jump up and down with joy. However, that came to an end with what Lightning Dust said next.
Twilight let out a frustrated groan. Currently she was sitting in her office which was large enough for fifteen ponies to walk around freely and comfortably. It had to be since she had teams of scientists in there everyday going over the projects that had been assigned to them. Before her was a screen that floated in midair from a device the same size and length as a ruler on her deck. Bit it wasn’t the device that was the cause of Twilight’s anger, rather what was being displayed on it.
Since she had gotten to the research department, Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle had been working non-stop on possible alterations to Operation Umbrella. She had hoped that narrowing the field wouldn’t lower their chances much; however the end result was that they had only a thirty four percent chance of success. All Discord had to do was leave the containment area and he would then be able to strike back at the Republic. With such a big area it would make it easier for Discord to evade them.
Taking a deep breath, Twilight did her best to try and find ways around this. She entered situation after situation into the computer to try and increase there chances. Each time the purple unicorn held her breath, hoping that she would get better odds. While these changes did improve the odds, they just weren’t as high as she wanted. It wasn’t even at fifty percent yet!
“Cookie?” said a voice suddenly which caused Twilight to jump. Turning around she saw another one of her good friends, Pumpkin Slice. She was an earth pony with a light brown coat with a bright, curly orange mane. On her flank was a pumpkin cutie mark signifying her skills at cooking pumpkins into delicious treats. It was because of this skill that allowed her to become Princess Luna’s personal desert chief. On her back was a tray on cookies that smelled so mouth-wateringly delicious it caused Twilight’s stomach to growl.
“I think that sounds like a good idea,” replied Twilight with a grateful smile. Using her magic, she picked up one of the cookies. They were large brown cookies with bright orange frosting. Just by looking at them Twilight knew that they were pumpkin cookies, Princess Luna’s absolute favorite. With wide eyes, Twilight turned to stare at her friend who simply smiled back at her.
“Princess Luna asked me to make a batch for you,” she said while setting the plate on a nearby table. “After all, you have had a pretty busy week. Not only did Shadow propose but you also adopted a filly.”
“I see,” said Twilight with slight relief. There were only a hoof-full of things that normally set off Princess Luna. One of them was when somepony eat her pumpkin cookies without asking. The last time somepony had tried to do this the Lunar Princess order that the perpetrator wash the entire outside of Dome Zero with the absolute minimum supplies before he was allowed back inside.
Taking a bite, Twilight moaned in pure delight as she realized why these cookies were so special. The cookie was nice and moist while its flavor reminded her of pumpkin pie. She could fully understand why Princess Luna loved these cookies so much.
“Do you like them?” asked Pumpkin. In response, Twilight took another large bite as she nodded. “Oh that’s good. The Princess asked me to cater your wedding so I thought I’d add these cookies to the desert table.” Twilight stopped in mid bite before looking at her friend.
“You’re not, ah, going to make it a pumpkin themed wedding, are you?” asked Twilight nervously. While she loved her friends to death, sometimes they had a habit of taking something a bit too far. Right now Twilight was afraid that every dish at her wedding would have pumpkins in it. Even the cake! A little variety would be nice after all.
Thankfully, Pumpkin shook her head. “Oh no,” she said with a laugh. “Even I would get sick of pumpkins if I had them with every meal. For right now I was thinking just having the pumpkin cookies as an option for desert along with a few other things. I’m also going to be getting a few extra hooves to help out in the kitchen so there can be a better variety.”
Hearing all this, Twilight let out a relieved sigh before finishing off her cookie. She was about to ask what Pumpkin had in mind when another pony entered her office. Both ponies turned towards the door to see that it was Derpy with a big smile on her face.
“Great news,” said the crossed eyes pegasus happily. “I just heard from Dinky that her Trooper team won third place in the laser tag free for all!”
“That’s great news,” said Twilight as she turned off her computer. After all the simulations she had done, she had reached a very depressing conclusion. Talking with her friends would defiantly put her in a better mood.
“That’s not even the best part,” said Derpy. “I heard from Lightning Dust that Scootaloo got her cutie mark. She’s taking the lucky filly to get Programmed right now!”
Twilight couldn’t hold back the shock from her face. It was there for a moment or two as what Derpy had told them echoed in her head. Then her eye narrowed in anger as she marched out of the room. ‘What the hay is she thinking,’ thought Twilight. ‘I know Lightning gets impatient when she gets excited, but she should have talked to me about this first. I just hope she told Scootaloo what being Programmed means.’
-x-
Meanwhile, a certain orange filly sat in what looked like a waiting room a dentist or a doctor would have. The room was cool. Temperature wise that is. The seats were made of hard plastic making them slightly uncomfortable to sit in. Over in the corner there was a playset for foals to use as well as several toys. In the opposite corner was a table which had several magazines and books on them.
Having been here for a while, and being very bored, decided to look at some on the books. Most of them looked uninteresting, but before she turned to leave one cover caught her eye. It was called ‘Boldly Go and the Stellar Temple’. On the cover there was a mare that looked a lot like Rainbow Dash except that her coat was yellow and, instead of a rainbow colored mane, hers went from black to grey in the same pattern as Rainbow’s. The mare was in some kind of vehicle heading towards what looked like a sinister looking castle floating in the middle of empty space.
“Scootaloo,” said the receptionist causing the filly to look up from the book. “Your Programmer is ready to see you now.” Gulping, Scootaloo walked towards a door that had opened on the other side of the room.
Now more than ever she wished that Lightning Dust had stayed with her. After what happened at Dinner 51 the pegasus mare brought everypony back to Dome One. Scootaloo was about to head back to Twilight’s, but Lightning said that they should get her Programming done sooner rather than later. Scootaloo asked Lightning what she was talking about, but all the older mare would say was that she would find out when she got there. At least Lightning said that she would try to get in contact with Twilight so she could be there for her. Finally, after being dropped off at an office building, Lightning said she had to split and left the filly all by herself.
Scootaloo walked through the door and into a very friendly looking office. There was a deck with all kinds of interesting nick-nacks on it. In front of the deck was a nice cushioned chair. Along the walls were a couple of bookshelves and pictures. Behind the desk was a brown unicorn stallion with a messy black mane with glasses. He looked up as Scootaloo entered the room to give her a friendly smile.
“Hello there Scootaloo,” he said happily. “Come in. Come in. Have a seat. My name is Daily Planner and I’m going to be your Programmer. Now, before we get started, is there anything you want to ask me?”
“Well, ah, I was wondering what Programming means,” said Scootaloo after she had sat down. Planner, for his part, lost his smile for a second or two. Has jaw seemed to drop, but he quickly recovered.
“Well, that’s new,” he said as his smile returned. “I don’t think I’ve ever had to answer that question. Well, simply put, being Programmed just means that we talk about options with a filly’s or colt’s future based on their cutie mark. Take your cutie mark for example. It means that your special talent is operating high speed vehicles.”
“You mean my scooter?” asked Scootaloo.
“For now, yes,” answered Planner as he reached into his desk. He searched for a moment or two before pulling out a large stack of papers. “I’m sure that, in time, you will be able to move on to other methods of transportation and excel in operating them at high speeds as well.
“Now then, I tried to look up your grades so I can help you narrow down your options but was unable to find them for some reason. Don’t worry, I’m sure its just a glitch or something like that. So, rather than keep you waiting, I thought we could just go over as much as we can until we find something that interests you. Sounds good?”
“I guess,” said Scootaloo.
“Excellent,” said Planner. “Now then, there is always room in the Lunar Postal Department and they only require a diploma.” He then flipped through some of the papers. “But I think we can find something a bit better for you. Have you ever considered being a shuttle pilot? Taking crews of miner ponies up to the TOM’s and such? This job requires ponies with special talents like the one you have. Now, you need to have at least a C average when you graduate to apply for this job. In addition, while you’re in school you will have to take some specific classes. Don’t worry thought, their not that hard.”
“Ah, I think I might have something in mind,” said Scootaloo in a slightly timid tone. “Lightning Dust told me I might do well in the Royal Guard and…” In a way Scootaloo felt embarrassed for bringing this up. But, at the same time, she couldn’t help it. Back when she lived in Ponyville, the adults never gave her ideas on what she could do when she grew up. Not even Miss Foster encouraged her towards a goal. The only pony who had ever suggested that Scootaloo could do something in the future before she got her cutie mark (or maybe didn’t notice that she had one at the time) was Lightning Dust. She had to admit that Lightning was almost as cool as her ideal Rainbow Dash. Not to mention that both her and Shadow were both in the Royal Guard. But the biggest reason of them all was that she simply had a good time with laser tag. And, from what she had heard, the Royal Guard did things like that all the time!
“I see,” said Planner as she searched through his papers again. It took him a couple of minutes, but he soon found a very fancy looking document. “Well before we start on this one I want you to know that the Royal Guard is very hard to get into. Just to apply you will need to have a B average when you graduate. You will also need to take honors mathematics and engineering. They also need you to show them that you participated in at least one sport or after school activity. After all that you will begin private training for six months. After that, if they don’t think your skills are good enough, you are dropped out of the program.”
Scootaloo’s heart sank when she heard all this. She could barely scrape by with C’s. She didn’t know what honor’s were, but she had a feeling that they were harder than normal classes. And on top of all that school stuff, they wanted her to do something after school. How was she supposed to do all that?
Daily Planner watched as the filly in front of him sank deeper into her seat. Now, he had been doing this job for many, many years. He knew the actions of a filly who was watching her hopes vanish before her eyes and it gave him no joy. He to once sat in a seat like that one while being told that some of the things he wanted to do were out of his reach. Normally there was nothing he could do. Normally.
“Scootaloo is this something you really want to do?” he asked. The filly nodded. “Well then, perhaps there is some hope. You see, want usually happens is that I input your decision into the education network so that the schools will know which classes to assign you. But, like I said earlier, there is some kind of glitch that is keeping me from looking up your school information. Now, you need to start taking these classes two years from now. So what I’m going to do is schedule another appointment with you one year from now. Take your time and work on your grades the best you can. Get a tutor and work on some extra credit. When we next see each other we can go from there. If your grades aren’t good enough then I really can’t recommend you going for the Royal Guard and we can talk about your other options again. How does that sound?”
“Good, I guess,” replied Scootaloo who felt a little better.
“Great,” said Daily Planner. “Now, let’s go over some of your other options so you have more time to think about them.”
-x-
By the time Twilight got to the Programming office, the orange filly was walking out of the building. The little pegasus was carrying a bag full of pamphlets in her mouth. As soon as she saw her, Twilight made a mad rush towards Scootaloo.
“Are you ok?” Twilight asked quickly. “I’m so sorry Scootaloo. I wanted to wait for you to get used to the Republic before having you go to a place like this. When I find Lightning I’ll-”
“It’s ok Twilight,” said Scootaloo after she set down the bag. “It wasn’t so bad. I was just a bit confused since nopony would tell me what was going on. I guess Lightning was playing a prank on me or something.”
“Or something,” agreed Twilight as she took a breath to relax. “Well then, let’s get going home.”
“Ah, Twilight,” said Scootaloo as the two began to walk. “I was wondering, when we get home can we start studying?”
-x-
Princess Luna looked down at Sunset Shimmer with a mixture of sadness and disappointment. Sunset, at one time, had showed so much promise. However, she had allowed her jealousy to guide her actions causing her to make horrible mistakes. Now, there was nothing Luna could do for her.
“Sunset Shimmer,” said Luna in a loud tone. “I am very displeased by your actions today. It has been confirmed by the LBI that you not only cheated in what was meant to be a fun game, but you did it in a way that caused pain. Seeing how close I once was to you, I shall leave your punishment up to the Lunar Senate. Before we throw you in a cell, is there anything you have to say for yourself?”
Sunset could only moan in pain. She was laying on her back while holding her stomach with her hooves. It was doubtful that she even knew what was going on around her.
“What is wrong with her?” asked Luna to one of her guards.
“She (gulp) ate the special at Diner 51,” replied the guard. Luna’s eyes widened when she heard that. She then turned to look at Sunset once more who had begun to gag as if she felt something pushing its way up her throat. Luna then saw the lump coming up the more mare’s throat. Sunset opened her mouth and then a small black alien jumped out of her mouth. The alien then went over to Sunset, forcibly opened her mouth, and pulled out a straw hat and a cane. The alien put the hat on and tucked the cane under its armpit as it began to sing and dance.
"Hello, my baby! Hello, my honey! Hello, my ragtime gal! Send me a kiss by wire. Baby, my heart's on fire! If you refuse me, Honey, you lose me. Then you'll be left alone. Oh baby, telephone And tell me I'm Your own!"
When it was over, the alien held out its straw hat in front of the Princess of the Night. With a nervous smile, Luna levitated a few bits into the alien’s hat. As soon as he had the coins, the alien danced out of the throne room.
-x-
Princess Cadence sighed as she walked down the corridors of the Canterlot Castle. She knew that the nobles wouldn’t like the changes she would be making to help the bat ponies, but it didn’t make things any easier. After Celestia had giver her the task of improving things for the bat ponies, the pink pony princess had been met with more resistance than she had thought possible. Some of the laws were simple, like making it illegal for an employer to deny employment to a bat pony without reason. Other laws dealt with orphanages to make sure they were treating the bat foals properly.
Sadly, the nobles were making everyone of her efforts difficult. They were using every trick in the book to ensure that what she was doing would take as long as possible to take effect. Some were downright insulting her to her face with no care of the consequences. The only relief that the Princess of Love had right now was that the mares from Ponyville were watching her daughter. At least this way she could work with fewer worries.
Just then, a messenger pony came running up to her in a panic.
“I was told to get this to Princess Celestia as soon as possible,” he said as he showed her a scroll. “But she’s locked herself in her room again. I-I don’t know what to do! There was a foalnapping in Ponyville and-”
“I will look into it,” said Cadence as she took the scroll.
“Thank you princess,” said the pony as he walked away. As he did, Cadence began to read the scroll.
Sunset Shimmer stood on a before the entire Lunar Senate. On both her sides was a member of the Royal Guard. Of course that wasn’t the only thing that kept her from trying to make an escape. All four of her legs had been cuffed and chained to the ground while an anti-magic ring had been placed on her horn so that she couldn’t use any magic. The only thing missing here was Princess Luna who had chosen not to be here at all. Whatever the Senate decided on, Luna would honor.
So far her trial had gone by at a snails pace. One by one the Senate spoke to her former Troopers as they recounted what she had ordered them to do. They then spoke to experts in the LBI about the alterations she had done to the stun guns.
“Sunset Shimmer,” said Senator Land Share after the last witness had finished speaking. “We have now heard and seen all of the evidence. In a moment you shall be returned to your cell while we decide on your fate. However, before we do so, we will allow you to speak your mind.” Suddenly, a light began to shine down upon the mare. As it did, she began to feel a bit light headed. “Now, is there anything you would like to say?”
“Yes,” came an automatic response from Sunset. “I think you’re all fools.” Sunset’s eyes widened when she said this. It was true that this was how she felt, but she didn’t want to say it out loud. It then clicked in her brain: she was under a truth light. As long as it shined on her she would be forced to tell the truth to anything she was asked.
“How so?” asked Senator Scorpio with a raised eyebrow.
“Because you all think that Twilight Sparkle is so great!” yelled Sunset. “She’s the one who should be here instead of me! She stole what should have been mine! I should have been made Princess Luna’s Prized Student! I should be the Assistant Director of the Department of Science and Research! Everything she has should have been mine by right!”
“And you believe that gives you the right to hurt foals?” asked Peaceful Meadows.
“If it will hurt Twilight then of course,” said Sunset. “If it will hurt her friends. If it will hurt whatever project she’s working on. As long as she suffers even just a little it will be worth it.” Suddenly the light on Sunset was turned off. The mare fell on her flank as reality came crashing down upon her. She had just confessed how she really felt to the Senate. Any hope she had of getting off light had now vanished.
“I believe we have heard enough,” said Gigawatt. “Guards, take her away.”
-x-
“Is everything alright Princess?” asked Pumpkin in a worried tone. Luna sighed as she looked over to the plate of cookies sitting next to her throne. The pumpkin cookies, her favorite, laid their untouched. Normally Luna would have had at least one before the plate touched the table. Today, however, it seemed that her appetite was gone.
This was not much of a surprise for the Moon Princess. Ever since Sunset had been placed under arrest, all of Luna’s joy from this morning had vanished. She wanted to help Sunset, give her another chance. But sadly, she had already done that once already and look where things ended up.
Perhaps it was because she had gone so easy on Sunset the first time that things ended up like this. As a filly, Sunset had done horrible things at Princess Luna’s school which some believed deserved a much harsher punishment than being expelled. However, Luna had seen a bit of herself in Sunset. She had hoped that, if she showed mercy, in time Sunset would realize that what she had done was wrong. Heck, the only reason Luna had allowed Sunset to be a Trooper’s leader was because she believed that Sunset was starting to change. Oh how wrong she was.
“I guess I’m-” began Luna when a scroll appeared in front of her. Growling, Luna grabbed it with her magic and, thinking it was from Celestia, was about to tear it up. She was in no mood for her sisters meddling right now. As she began to cast a spell that would shred the scroll into thousands of tiny pieces, Luna noticed the pink crest on the scroll. It resembled a crystal heart making it not Celestia’s.
Slowly, Luna began to mull over what she should do. It could be a trick of Celestia’s in order for Luna to read what was inside. However, last she checked, placing a false seal on a scroll was a serious crime in Equestria. While Celestia may bend the laws from time to time, she would never break them. Deciding to take the chance, Luna opened the scroll and began to read.
‘Dear Princess Luna,
Today, it was brought to my attention that a filly named Scootaloo has gone missing in Ponyville. Miss Foster, the mare who runs the orphanage, is deeply worried about her. According to several eye witnesses, they claim that the filly was seen in the presence of Twilight Sparkle and Shadow Blade for the majority of the evening before she went missing.
I hope you can understand the severity of this implication. There are already many stories of how Nightmare Moon and those who follow her stealing foals out of their homes before eating them. If news of this ever got to the public’s attention it would only serve to make those stories true. More importantly, two of your subjects foalnapped a foal of the state which I am sure you know is a very serious offence. You are very lucky that I heard about this before it reached Princess Celestia. You know how much she wants you back and might have used this to her advantage.
First off, I don’t think that you knew anything about this before hoof. I know that before you left Canterlot you were ready to merge our two countries. I doubt that you would allow any pony under you to take a filly during such a critical time. Also, I don’t think that your subjects did it to be cruel. I know that Twilight is Shining Armor’s little sister and, if she is anything like her brother, had her heart in the right place. She most likely thought that she was helping the poor filly somehow.
But that beings said, I can not just let this slide. I am requesting an audience with you at your earliest connivance so that I may find out the condition of Scootaloo as well as find out how well she is being taken care of. If everything looks good then I will smooth things over with Miss Foster. If not, I’m afraid I will have to ask that she be returned to Equestria. I hope you can understand. Who knows, if all goes well then maybe we can also get to know each other a bit better.
Your friend in Canterlot, Princess Cadence’
A smile appeared on Luna’s face as she finished reading the letter. Truly, she did have a friend in the capital of Equestria if she was willing to help her out like this. Not only was she saving her subjects from more bad publicity, but also keeping Celestia in the dark about all of this.
As Luna used her magic to reach for a cookie, she read the last sentence once more. ‘She wants something,’ thought Luna while she took a bite out of her cookie. ‘But I don’t think that she’s the type who would blackmail another pony to get what she wants. From what I’ve seen from her, she’ll put the needs and safety of the foal before her own desires.’
For a moment, Luna considered her options. The first one would be to simply ignore the letter and go about her life like nothing happened. If Cadence ever attempted to enter the Republic, she would be detained just like Celestia was. She also doubted that the fools in Canterlot would go to war with them over the life of one orphan. Still, Luna could not bring herself to do this. Cadence was one of the few decent pony’s she had met in Equestria. She wasn’t like Celestia, not willing to just ignore the suffering around her. Plus it wouldn’t hurt to hear what she wanted to talk about.
Hoping that she wouldn’t regret this later, Luna used her magic to summon a scroll and quill.
-x-
“I say we should put her in a prison pod and be done with her,” said Gigawatt as he slammed his hoof on the table. The Senate had been in deep discussion since Sunset had been taken out of the room. So far no pony could agree on the right course. Some, like Gigawatt, felt that she should be punished harshly. Others felt that what she had done didn’t deserve such drastic actions.
“She cheated at a silly game,” said April Showers calmly. “I will agree that she didn’t need to harm the poor foals, but putting her in one of those pods just seems like a little much.”
“Don’t forget that she was forced to eat the special at Diner 51,” added Stock Market with a laugh. “I’d say that she got what she deserved. A simple fine and maybe some community service should be enough.”
“I agree eating that stuff is a punishment,” said Scorpio with a small grin. However it was short lived. “However, Sunset has clear issues that have been going on for far too long. It wasn’t that she cheated that concerns me, but why she did so. She wanted to hurt those foals so Lightning Dust would be hurt and finally Twilight Sparkle. She doesn’t care what happens to another pony as long as she gets what she wants.”
“Does that remind any of you of somepony else?” demanded Gigawatt. “She’s just like Genetic Code!” Several members on the Senate gasped at this declaration. To compare this mare, or anypony for that matter, to a monster like Genetic Code was uncalled for.
“I think that’s going a bit too far,” said Peaceful Meadows. “Genetic Code was a monster that Princess Luna trusted. He did many great things for the Republic, but they are over shadowed by his crimes. Sunset’s crimes pale in comparison.”
“That is true” admitted Gigawatt. “The things Genetic Code did are unforgivable. But I was not comparing their actions, but their mind frames. The both of them share this: they would do anything to get what they wanted regardless of the lives they hurt along the way.” Gigawatt then looked over to Land Share, their eyes meeting briefly. “And this isn’t the first time she has been made to answer for her misdeeds. Isn’t that right Senator Land Share?”
“Yes,” said Land Share after a moment. “It was several years ago, back when she was still a student at the academy. She was one of six students who were competing for the position of Princess Luna’s Prized Student.” All the members of the Senate nodded. They all knew that, when it came time to pick a new Prized Student, she would gather foals whose grades and abilities shinned above the rest. She would then grade them for a period of time before making her final decision. Those that weren’t chosen still went on to do great things and were usually given high end jobs.
“At the time,” continued Land Share, “it looked like Sunset was going to win. Her grades were well above the rest and had strong magical abilities. Then, one day, a seventh student was added to the mix. Twilight was the youngest by two years causing Sunset to think she wasn’t a threat to her future position. When their next test results were posted she found out she had been dead wrong as Twilight had gotten a hundred and twenty percent.
“Now, this was after Twilight had lost her parents. Not only was she staying with Princess Luna, but the princess was paying their tuition out of her own pocket. Rumors were quickly spread claiming that Twilight hadn’t earned the right to be a student at Princess Luna’s School for Gifted Ponies, let alone to be a candidate to earn the right to be the princess’s Prized Student. Sunset herself lead these rumors claiming that the test must have been dumbed down for her. She, as well as the rest of the students, soon found out that Princess Luna wasn’t going easy on her at all. In fact, it was just the opposite. Twilight received three times the amount of work than any other student there and never once complained.
“As time went on trouble began to follow right behind Twilight’s hoofsteps. The school’s lab was found smashed one day and that afternoon the dean found a disk containing footage of Twilight using her magic to smash everything in there. It was examined in great detail only to find that it was false. A few weeks after that drugs were found in the filly’s locker and after that she began to receive threatening letters.”
“Let me take a wild guess,” said Scorpio with a frown. “Sunset was behind all of these.”
“It is possible,” said Land Share with a shrug. “Whoever did all this was good at covering their hoofprints. Things, however, reached a boiling point when lewd pictures where placed all over the school with Twilight’s face plastered on them. Up until this point, the princess had done her best to keep out of these affairs and let the school handle them. But when Twilight returned to the castle in tears she had lost her patience. An assemble was called and Princess Luna threatened the entire school body that if one more incident like that happened she would send the LBI in to investigate.
“After that, the incidents stopped. The Lunar Assessment Tests were coming up and every student was studying like mad. I’m sure you all remember what those were like.” Indeed, every member on the Senate cringed a little in their seats as they recalled the days and nights studying for this one test. For most ponies, a poor grade could ruin their futures.
“The day came and went,” continued Land Share. “Yet when the grades were posted the next day, many ponies received very low grades. In fact, out of all the candidates that were trying to become Princess Luna’s Prized Student, only Sunset Shimmer got an A while everypony else received a zero. Several teachers believed that they had simply buckled under the pressure while some others believed that the grading machine malfunctioned. It wasn’t until one colt came forward saying that he had seen Sunset leaving the school late at night while he had been taking a walk. Security camera’s were checked and scanning spells were done on the papers revealing that Sunset had been behind this sabotage. With clear evidence against her, Sunset was brought before the princess to pay for her wrong doings. Princess Luna, who had known Sunset since she was a filly, found this to be very difficult. In the end, she did not place her in a prison pod like she normally would have. Instead she was expelled from her school and barred for life from applying to any high government job. She hoped that, in time, Sunset would see the error of her ways and apologize.”
“Clearly, that isn’t going to happen,” said Gigawatt. “If we let her off easy then something like this will just happen again.”
“Yes,” agreed Scorpio. “We can not just send her on her way. The lesson needs to sink in and she needs to be placed in an area where we can keep watch over her. Placing her in a prison pod might do the trick, but I still feel that her crime doesn’t warrant such an action. Her position within the Republic is far too low after all. I think I have an idea that might be for the best.”
-x-
Meanwhile, Celestia gazed at her work. Since she had left Cadence practically in charge, the sun princess had been at work drawing a magical circle in her room. In it’s center was Luna’s cutie mark while around it were various words written in a long forgotten language. Four candles had been lit around it facing north, south, east, and west.
‘It’s finally done,’ thought Celestia with a small, sad smile. ‘Now all I have to do is wait until nightfall. Then I can start my plan. No matter what happens, I know for a fact that Luna will return.’ For a moment, Celestia felt slightly guilty for what she was about to do. She was going to open some of her sister’s oldest wounds in order to get her to return to her. Wounds that had been the starting place of her anger towards Celestia. But she had to do it. The reason for all of this was the statue sitting idly in the castle gardens.
Walking onto the balcony, Celestia looked down at the statue of Discord. All over its deformed body were cracks that had started to appear several decades ago. Celestia was sure this meant that the creature inside was trying to get out. Luckily for her, she had been in the garden the day the first cracks began to appear. Using her magic she was able to patch up them up as best she could yet it would only delay his return. Without the Elements of Harmony or her sisters help, Celestia knew that Equestria would be doomed.
-x-
“Ah, Captain Hard Shell,” said Blue Blood as he walked down the halls. Hard Shell turned his head to look at Blue Blood and bowed in respect. “You seem to be in a hurry. Has something happened?”
“Yes,” said the temporary captain of the Royal Guard. “We received a letter from a newly formed town called Appleloosa. Apparently there is a bat pony colony that has been hiding there for years. The ponies down there didn’t even know about them until one was seen chatting with the buffalo. The townsfolk are afraid of an alliance between the two groups and have asked for troops to be sent down to wipe the two groups out.”
“Interesting,” said Blue Blood. “Are you going to do it?”
“No,” said Hard Shell instantly. “Princess Cadence forbade any action of the Royal Guard against bat ponies without her or Princess Celestia approving it. There are also new laws in place that forbid law enforcement from taking action against bat ponies for simply being bat ponies. Even if that law wasn’t in affect I wouldn’t send our forces down there. We are spread too thin to be trying to commit genocide. All it would take was for one of our enemies to notice this and there will be an invading force at our borders.”
“We do seem to have a lot of enemies,” admitted Blue Blood. “But hopefully we will be able to do something about that. You see, my dear captain, I have been talking to several of the more open minded lord and ladies of the court over the whole ‘Lunar Republic’ thing. We all agree that if we had pressed our advantage a bit more than they would have folded.”
“With all due respect sir, it would never happen in our life times,” said Hard Shell. “The current situation is simply a mess. It will take years for both sides to get over what has happened.”
“But what if something happened that would force the pony’s of the Lunar Republic to return to the table,” said Blue Blood calmly. “What if they suddenly had a shortage of food and water? Why, they would submit to all of our demands. Their troops, their technology, their land would be all ours!”
Hard Shell narrowed his eyes. “I hope you are not suggesting what I think you are. Now, I am going to forget this little conversation and bid you good day.” With that, Hard Shell walked as did Blue Blood. However, the temporary captain had made a powerful enemy at that moment. One that would deal with his rejection soon.
-x-
“Sunset Shimmer, we have decided on your punishment,” said Scorpio. Around him sat the Lunar Senate as they stared at the mare who sat before them. “For the next ten years you shall work as a mining pony on one of the TOM’s. During this time your magic will be sealed away and a tracking chip will be placed in your skull. Also you shall receive counseling three times a week. After a period of three years, if no progress has made, we shall reconvene to decide on a more potent punishment. If you are suspected of any wrong doings during this time, there shall be no mercy from us and you will receive the maximum punishment. That is all.
Princess Cadence walked through a large set of doors with Midnight on her back. As they walked in, they were greeted by several of Princess Luna’s Royal Guard who stood at attention. As Cadence looked around, she began to wonder if bringing only Midnight with her was such a good idea. Right now she was completely drained of her magic due to the teleportation spell she used to bring the two to the moon. Also, she had left her newly formed guard back in Canterlot to continue their training. If anything should go wrong then the two of them would be defenseless.
On the other side of the room, sat Luna on her throne. Standing before her was a brown earth pony with a white mane whose left foreleg looked like it was made of metal. The guards motioned to Cadence that she should stop.
“Your petition is… interesting to say the least,” said Luna. “But I have a great many concerns, Dr. Robotics.”
“There is no need for concern,” said Dr. Robotics in an elderly voice. “What I am suggesting would allow ponies to live almost indefinably.”
“By removing their brains and placing them inside the body of a machine,” said Luna in a short tone. “Some may find that unsettling to say the least.”
“But think about it,” said Dr. Robotics in an urgent tone. “If we did this, nopony would ever have to experience neither the pain of loss nor fear of death. You would never have to watch your subjects grow old and die. There would be no need for food or water. We could explore the universe ourselves!”
Luna closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath before speaking again. “I take it you brought this to either the director or assistant director of the Science and Research Department?”
Robotics let out a cough. “Yes I did,” he replied. “I took it to Twilight Sparkle who looked at it for a moment before flat out denying me. She was worried about this like how we would have families and other such useless things like the emotion suppression chip. I tried to explain to her how important it was, but she just didn’t seem to understand. Then I went to the director, only to have Bunsen Burner agree with her. That’s why I’m here. The only pony that can override their short sighted opinion is you!”
Luna shook her head sadly. “I must agree with her on this,” said Luna firmly. Dr. Robotics opened his mouth to speak, but Luna silenced him by holding up a single hoof. “I am sorry, but the idea of trapping one of my little ponies in on of these mechanical shells while stripping them of their emotions is a sickening thought. There would be no point in living without emotions.”
“But Princess,” began Dr. Robotics before he had a couching fit. As she watched, Cadence noticed that the poor stallion was coughing up blood. Once it was over he wiped his mouth clean and began to speak once more. “We have cybernetic limbs like legs and wings for when we lose one of them. When our bodies fail, shouldn’t we discard them for something that would last longer?”
“I am sorry, but I have made my decision,” said Luna firmly.
“Princess Luna!” shouted Dr. Robotics causing all the guards to reach for their weapons. “I need this! I am dying! By refusing to help me with my research you will be sentencing me to death!”
“No,” said the moon princess. “I am sentencing you to live out the rest of your life like any other pony in the Republic. Now, please return to your home and do not continue this research.” Dr. Robotics did not say a word nor did he bow. Instead he turned him back and left in a fury. As he left, Princess Luna let out a sigh. She knew that he was afraid and would probably do everything in his power to stay alive, even something illegal. That was why, before this little meeting of theirs, she had ordered the LBI to raid his office and home. They were to seize all his research as well as locate any evidence that he had attempted to do this to another pony. If he had then he would be placed under arrest as soon as he got home. If he hadn’t, the LBI would continue to keep an eye on him for the rest of his life.
“Announcing Princess Cadence and her daughter Princess Midnight Blossom,” shouted a guard. Looking up, Luna noticed the pink princess carrying her adopted daughter on her back.
“Thank you for seeing me on such short notice,” said Cadence as she did her best to forget about what she had just heard. She didn’t understand what a machine was really, but she did understand the part of a device that could surpass emotions. The idea made her feel sick to her stomach. However, since Princess Luna had denied his request she figured that it was best just to move on for now.
“It’s not a problem,” said Luna as she walked over to the two. She then peaked at Midnight who had been doing her best to remain unseen. “Hello there little one.”
“H-Hi,” replied Midnight.
“Still nervous around other ponies I see,” said Luna. “Well maybe when Shining Armor gets here that will change.” At the mention of the stallions name Cadence did her best to hide her blush while Midnight began to jump on her mothers back.
“Mr. Shiny is here?!” she exclaimed happily.
“He is,” said Luna with a laugh. “In fact, he’s going to be your guide while you two go to check out Twilight’s home.” Luna then looked at a nearby clock and nodded. “But it will still be some time before he gets here since I wasn’t expecting you until later tonight.”
“Sorry about that,” said Cadence as Luna motioned her to follow her. The two princesses walked out of the throne room into a move cozy sitting chamber. The room was filled with book and what looked like a fireplace. What Cadence didn’t know was that it was a holographic fire mixed with a heater. On the ground were several sitting cushions as well as a table full of snacks. “It’s just that I wanted to get her before you went to sleep. I guess I made the assumption that you slept during the day.”
Luna let out a laugh as she used her magic to give her two guests some cookies and tea. “I guess I can see why you would think that. To be honest, it’s only during the winter months that we are awake during the night. When we first arrived here on the moon many of my ponies believed that we should truly become night dwelling ponies. This lasted for a very short amount of time however.”
“Why’s that?” asked Cadence.
Luna sighed. “Not enough hours in the night to get anything done during the summer. And think about this, one of the reasons my ponies like to stay up was to appreciate the nights I created. Here on the moon we see the stars all the time. So we decided we would be up during the time that had the most hours so we could get more work done.” Luna paused for a moment to take a sip of her tea. “Now then, what is it you want?”
Cadence, who had also been sipping her tea, to an epic level spit take. “W-What do you mean?” she asked innocently.
Luna smiled. “Cadence, have you forgotten who my sister is? She has used much more elaborate schemes in order to get the desired results. You, thankfully, are a bit less skilled in that department.”
“I guess I was being a bit obvious,” admitted Cadence with a slight grin. “Well you are right, I do need something from you. You see, after you shot auntie out of a canon she gave me the task of trying to get Equestria to accept bat ponies. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but I still have to do everything in my power. Then I received a letter stating that two of your ponies might have taken a filly named Scootaloo. As I read the letter, I realized that there was one place that had bat ponies that were treated like any other pony out there: the Lunar Republic.”
Slowly, Luna set down her tea cup. “I see,” she said slowly. “I’m sorry but I really can’t help you.”
“B-But why not?” stammered Cadence.
“Because it was more of the situation that helped matters,” said Luna. “Back when I still lived in Equestria, many ponies feared and down right hated bat ponies even from those that preferred me over my sister. True there were some that were willing to give them a chance seeing that most of them belonged to my personal guard, but they were in the minority. Then, when we all left Equestria, my ponies were placed in difficult situation. In order to keep my little ponies alive I needed to create a small dome using my magic until they could make one using the materials we brought with us. This forced the earth ponies, unicorns, pegasi, and bat ponies to all work together thus making them realize that while their appearances may vary it was what they had in common that mattered. They were all creating a new nation in order to get a fresh start.”
“So they decided to get rid of old hatreds,” finished Cadence.
“So to speak,” said Luna. “It didn’t happen over night and even after the first Dome was finished there were still those who clung to the old ways. Luckily they were now in the minority. Over time those feeling vanished.”
“So that’s how it happened,” said a disappointed Cadence. “I doubt I will get a situation like that.”
“I won’t lie to you,” said Luna sternly. “You have a lot of work ahead of you. It will take a lot of time and work. But, perhaps we can work something out.” Cadence raised an eyebrow as Luna took a bite out of a cookie. “Now I realize this might hurt your efforts of cooperation, but maybe we could put in place a system that would allow bat ponies the option of leaving Equestria.”
“I think that might completely undermine it,” said Cadence. “We need the ponies of Equestria to get over these stupid lies and make them see that bat ponies are no different from any other pony. That won’t happen if they all leave.”
“Perhaps your right,” said Luna. “But, if things look like they are getting worse or something feel free to send me a letter so we can work something out.” She then gave Cadence a very conforting smile. “Well, now that that’s settled, why don’t we have a nice friendly chat while we wait for Shining Armor?”
-x-
Meanwhile, over at that home of Twilight Sparkle, the entire household was busy. Shadow Blade was busy in the kitchen making everypony their dinner. While he did this, Twilight was giving Scootaloo a history lesson.
When Scootaloo first heard that they were going to be studying history, she thought they were just going to be talking about the stuff that happened on the moon. She quickly learned that she was very, very wrong. It seemed that the Lunar ponies seemed to consider events that happened in the pre-Equestria period as part of their history. Or maybe it was because Twilight was her tutor and was pounding as much information as she could into the filly’s head. Regardless, Scootaloo did her best to pay attention and ask questions when she didn’t understand something.
“Now when the three tribes finally came together, their main problem became how they would rule. Each tribe had come from a different type of government that placed high importance on different values. The unicorns came from a feudal system where their royalty were born into power. The feudal lords and ladies were given could do pretty much whatever they wanted in their fief as long as they didn’t break any of the kings laws and paid their taxes. Also, they were the first group of ponies to create a system of higher learning as well as fund groups that studied magic. The pegasi came from a militaristic government where the highest ranking officer was in charge. They believed in strict discipline and that every problem had a military solution. Finally, the earth ponies had a form of democracy were they voted amongst themselves who would be in charge. Sometimes this worked and they got ponies who took the job with the upmost seriousness. Other times, however, ponies who were simply the most likeable or funny got the job while having no clue as to what they were doing.
“In order to solve this problem, the leaders of the three tribes came together and formed a council. They believed that they could easily work together in order to solve any problem that came their way. They quickly found out that they were sadly mistaken. One of the first decisions that they made was land distribution. They discussed the issue for a total of fourteen days before deciding that the majority of the land would go to the earth ponies to be used for farmland. The unicorns would get the rest while the pegasi would go to create their own cities in the clouds. This did not go over so well with the pegasi and unicorns.”
“Why not?” asked Scootaloo. “I mean, it makes sense for the earth ponies to have more land.”
“Well, let’s look at it from their point of view,” said Twilight. “The unicorns were used to grandeur, the best of the best. They had given up their large estates in the hopes of getting newer and larger ones. Now they were being told that they had to settle with something smaller and more reasonable. Also some unicorns and pegasi wanted farm land of their own.”
“But I thought that all the farmers at that time were earth ponies,” said a confused filly. “Why would they want to do something they had never done before?”
“Well that has more to do with some of the other changes,” answered Twilight who was very happy at how involved Scootaloo was being. “Instead of trading bartering, the newly formed council believed that they needed a currency. That way the earth ponies would no longer be under the yoke of the other two tribes. Now, when this was announced many earth ponies believed that they would be able to live the good live. They could farm their land and make a fortune so that they could live like the unicorns did. But there were some unicorns and pegasi that thought the same thing. The unicorns believed that they could use their magic to make the crops grow faster as well as larger. The pegasi believed that they could control the weather and make sure that their crops always had plenty of sunshine and water.
“The idea of currency also created more problems. Like, how much should a pegasus get for moving the clouds? How much should the unicorns get for raising and lowering the sun and moon? Every decision that the council made was met with complaints and ponies pointing out why it wasn’t fair. Some say that the other two tribes out voted the representative from their tribe. Others claimed that it wasn’t fair that some ponies got stuck in roles they no longer wanted to do.
“Finally, after a year of nothing getting down, the three leaders looked to Clover the Clever, Private Pansy, and Smart Cookie for help. The three put their heads together and came to the realization that they needed one leader, a pony that could make objective decisions. So the three set out to look for a pony that wasn’t earth, unicorn, or pegasus. After traveling for two months the three found what they were looking for: an alicorn.
“His name was Molten Fury, the alicorn of the earth. It was his job to manage the flow of magma below the planets surface, keep volcanoes from erupting near villages, and so forth. They approached him, telling him of their situation, before asking him to be their king. Almost immediately he said no, that their problems were none of his concern. The three turned to leave when Molten Fury’s wife, Oceana, appeared. She had heard their plight and managed to convince her husband that they should help them at least for a little while.
“Their return to Equestria couldn’t of come at a better time. The unicorn nobles, who had grown tired of the council, had decided to stage a coup. These nobles where the laziest, most over privileged of their tribe. But, they had under their command a group called the Celestial Horns who were the ninety unicorns who moved the sun and the moon. Using them, the nobles threatened that unless the other tribes bowed before them they would shroud Equestria in complete darkness.”
“But didn’t they learn their lesson from the windigos?” asked Scootaloo.
“This wasn’t about hatred,” said Twilight simply. “Power was their soul motivation. Also, they felt safe since they had Clover the Clever’s spell. They felt so confident that they ordered Molten Fury to bow before them saying that he had no power over him. This was somewhat true since both Molten Fury and Oceana knew that they were unable to move either the sun or moon. It just wasn’t within their power. But, Molten Fury spoke with the Celestial Horns and made a deal with them. If they swore their allegiance to him and his wife then they would make them the new noble class. The Celestial Horns quickly agreed and the previous noble were thrown on their plots.
“For the next several years, King Molten Fury and Queen Oceana ruled over Equestria while forming its foundation. But, the two rulers knew that soon they would have to leave. But they feared that, if they left, the nobles might true to take over like before. As luck would have it, Oceana eventually gave birth to a filly whose special talent would allow her to move the sun all by herself. Molten Fury believed that his daughter would be the one who would one day take the thrown. Some time later, another princess was born who would eventually learn that she could move the moon. Queen Oceana spoke with her husband to make them co-rulers. Reluctantly, the king agreed.
“Now, knowing all of this is important for knowing about the Republic. When our nation was created, Princess Luna took aspects of the original three tribes. Like allowing ponies to vote on its representatives, stressing the importance of the pursuit knowledge, and a strict system. But, as the Republic was being made Princess Luna feared the whole thing might fail apart. She knew that her own greatest weakness was her short fuse. So to make sure she didn’t do something drastic in a fit of rage she gave up several of her powers to the senate. One power was to declare war. If Princess Luna ever wanted to attack another nation, she would have to go before the Senate and ask that they vote on the issue. The vote must be unanimous. Another power was the death penalty.”
“Has anypony every received the death penalty?” asked Scootaloo. As soon as she finished asking, Shadow stopped in the middle of setting the table and Twilight looked uneasy. It was clear to the filly that they were uncomfortable talking about this. Scootaloo was about to say never mind when Shadow walked in between the two.
“I’ll handle this,” he said. Twilight bit her upper lip, but nodded just the same. A moment later she walked into the kitchen.
“Before I tell you this, I want to make one thing clear,” began Shadow. “Not many ponies like to talk about this. Most of us consider this pony to be a monster and our greatest shame.” With that Shadow took a deep breath. “His name was Genetic Code, former researcher and Prized Student of Princess Luna.” Scootaloo’s eyes widened at that. She remembered the smashed statue at the school and the words written under it. Now she was going to find out what he did that caused such hate.
“Genetic Code was, at one point, one of the most respected ponies in the Republic. He had over come what some consider a huge handicap since he was born with crossbreed syndrome.” Shadow paused so that Scootaloo could take a moment to realize what he meant. Genetic Code was like she had been, born with both wings and a horn but unable to use either. “Now Genetic wanted to understand his condition. He studied like mad to come up with some kind of answer. It was this that caught the attention of Princess Luna and helped her pick him to be her next Prized Student. From what she could tell he had only one major flaw: Genetic hated to be reminded of his failures. In fact, he would go out of his way to destroy anything that turned out a failure.
“As time passed, Genetic became the top scientist in the Department of Science and Research. His field of expertise was genetics. For years he studied his own DNA and worked on a way to change himself into either a full unicorn or pegasus. Eventually he succeed, creating the method that we used to cure you.
“When he went to turn in his findings to the princess, he was stuck by a thought. Why couldn’t he become an alicorn? He had the wings and horn, so why couldn’t he find a way a use them both. After much thought he came to the theory that it was because he didn’t have any earth pony DNA. Without the strength or stamina that earth ponies are born with, his body would be too weak to use his wings or horn.
“After this realization, Genetic went before the princess with a proposal to see if this was true. Genetic wanted to use magic to influence unborn foals so that they would have the traits of the three tribes. Princess Luna was, at first, completely against this. However Genetic was persistent. He promised he would follow the book and find parent willing to volunteer. In the end, Princess Luna gave him her approval.
“About a year later, the twelve mothers who had volunteered gave birth. Each one of the foals had been modified to include earth pony, pegasus, and unicorn. Genetic Code had promised them that their foals would be returned safely. Then, once the tests were finished, there would be a way to change them back into normal ponies. So the parents left their newly born foals with a well trusted pony, not knowing the horrors that were about to happen.
“Genetic Code went right to work with his research. He tested their magic reserves, wing strength, and hoof power. Only three seemed to be able to use their magic and fly, but not to the same degree that a normal foal could. The others seemed to lack anything special. Seeing this as a complete failure, Genetic did the most unthinkable thing imaginable: he ejected them into the vacuum of space to get rid of them.”
Scootaloo couldn’t hide the horror on face if she even tried. How could anypony kill a foal, let alone twelve? Why did he feel he had to do this?
“The bodies were found quickly,” continued Shadow as he closed his eyes tightly. “Guards came to his lab, demanding that he come with him. He refused saying he had to make up for his last failed experiment. He was then forced out and brought before the Senate where he acted like he did nothing wrong. He didn’t even call them foals! To him, they were just failed lab experiments that needed to be tossed out with the trash. As the trial went on, the Senate found out that he had done experiments to the foals to see if they were immortal like injecting acid into ones veins.
“This broke Princess Luna’s heart in a way no pony could ever imagine. To see her own student commit such a crime and feel no guilt was bad enough. But she was the one who had given him the go ahead because she trusted him. She was responsible for the foals suffering and death. She was responsible for the parents pains. She couldn’t even bring herself to look at him as the Senate ordered his death. He died three days later, killed in the same manner as those poor foals.”
Scootaloo nearly jumped out of her seat when she felt a hoof touch her shoulder. Turning around she saw Twilight, who looked like she was fighting back tears. Forcing herself to smile, the mare told her that it was time to eat. They could move onto a different subject after dinner.
Shining Armor stood outside Princess Luna’s private study as he performed a personal ready check. His mane was clean, as was his jacket. He then blew into his hoof in order to check his breath. So far, everything seemed all right.
Normally, he did do this sort of thing. He had known the Princess since he was a colt and knew that she didn’t care how clean he appeared when it was just the two of them.
‘But, that’s just it,’ thought Shining. ‘We won’t be alone. She’ll be in there, too.’
Ever since Shining had heard that Cadence was coming to the moon, the stallion had been on Asteroid Nine. To add to his joy, he was going to be escorting both her and Midnight to Twilight’s place. That would mean he would have some time alone with the two of them.
Taking a deep breath, Shining Armor opened the door…and his jaw hit the ground at what he saw.
“I’m not going to lose this time,” said Midnight as she held a remote in her hooves. Sitting next to her was Princess Luna with a similar remote in her hooves. In front of them was a large screen that had two ponies fighting each other.
“We’ll see about that,” said Princess Luna with a playful laugh. A moment later, her character did a back flip to get behind Midnight’s before bucking her. The health bar over Midnight’s character shrank and began to glow red.
“Nononononono!” said Midnight quickly as she began to press random buttons.
Shining Armor did his best to regain his composure. He knew that the Princess loved her video games. Why, when he was younger, she forced him to play a few of them with her. But, how was anypony supposed to beat an immortal princess, who had been playing these games since they first came out?
Shaking his head, Shining looked around and found Princess Cadence curled up in a corner. “Cadence,” Shining Armor called out, walking over to her, concerned and confused. “What’s wrong?” As soon as Midnight heard Shining’s voice, she dropped her remote and raced towards him.
“No idea,” said Luna, who didn’t even turn her head away from the screen. “Her character gets decapitated one time and she goes into the fetal position.”
“S-She just a-asked me to play a-a little g-game,” stammered Cadence. “S-So much b-b-b-blood.”
“Ok,” comforted Shining as he used his magic to gently pick up the pink princess. Once she was up, Cadence quickly latched onto the white stallion, causing him to blush. “Um, I think we should get you out of here. Let’s go see Twilight and Scootaloo. Is that alright with you?”
Cadence nodded, right before she buried her nozzle in Shining’s side, causing his blush to increase. A few minutes later, the three left Luna alone, who broke her poker face to let out her own mischievous giggle.
-x-
About an hour later, Twilight heard a knocking at the door. For a moment, she wondered who it could be at this hour. She thought it might be one of her friends, but it wasn’t possible. Vinyl, since she was on the air, was doing a special radio show. Pumpkin Spice was at the castle, along with Derpy and Lightning.
Quickly, Twilight made her way to the door and opened it. On the other side was a light brown earth pony with a dark brown mane and an hourglass for a cutie mark. Around his neck was a bright green tie that Derpy had given him as a gift.
Twilight raised an eyebrow in confusion. “It’s a little late for a visit, Turner,” she said.
“Please, just call me the Doctor,” said Time Turner.
Twilight let out an annoyed sigh. “For the last time: no. I know you don’t like your name all that much, but we are not going to call you the Doctor.”
“But, I like it,” whined Derpy’s husband like a foal. “I think it suits me very nicely.” Upon seeing Twilight face-hoof, Turner began to act his age before continuing. “Anyways, I know it’s late and all, but we have almost finished the time machine.”
Twilight ears perked at this. Time Turner was one of the scientists who worked under her at the Department of Research and Development. His section had been working on space-time manipulation of years. Of course there was a spell that would allow a pony to travel back in time for a few moments, but to actually go back in time for long periods of time was something that the ponies of the Republic had wanted to do for centuries.
“Y-You’ve almost finished?” asked an excited Twilight. “That’s amazing. How long till you’re finished?”
“We don’t know,” said Turner with a sigh. “You see, we hit a bit of a snag with the design.” As Twilight raised an eyebrow, Turner continued. “See, I want to make it simple. Let’s say something in the area of a big blue box.
“But, Brown wants something with style. Says he has this old car we can use. It just sounds so stupid. Who ever heard of traveling through time in a Delorean?”
Twilight felt her jaw drop. That was what was keeping them from completely probably the greatest scientific inventions in pony history? She couldn’t believe it! Realizing she needed to calm down, Twilight took a deep breath before slowly exhaling.
“Look,” said Twilight, “When you get back to the lab in the morning, I want both you and Brown to write up a report. I want details; I want to know how many ponies each of your designs can hold; I need to know how they travel; and, I also need to know how much they will cost to make. Once I have all the information, I will make my decision.”
“So, this is about bits,” assumed a slightly annoyed Turner.
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Well, it wouldn’t be a problem if you two weren’t over budget. Besides, this is just for the prototype. If it works out, we can then make several types.”
With that, Turner nodded and left after wishing her a goodnight. Relieved to have that problem solved, the purple mare made her way up to her bedroom to get some sleep. As she made her way up, she stopped by Scootaloo’s room to see the filly was just now falling asleep. Smiling to herself, Twilight slowly shut the door, and then headed for her original destination. Once inside her own room, she found Shadow lying on her bed.
“Hey there,” said Shadow as he began to pat the space next to him. “I saved you a spot.”
“Isn’t it a bit early to be doing something like this?” asked Twilight with a slight blush.
“Well, I just thought that since we are getting married, we could try sleeping together,” said Shadow innocently. “If something more happens, then it happens.”
“I don’t know,” said Twilight at first. Shadow did have a point; they were going to be doing this sooner or later, so why not sooner. They had napped together before and she trusted him not to do anything without her permission. But, then there was Shining and how he would react if he found out.
‘Wait a moment,’ thought Twilight unhappily, ‘why should I be worrying about what Shiny thinks? This is my life and Shadow is my fiancée! If Shiny has a problem with it, then he can go buck himself.’
“You know what,” said Twilight after a moment, “make some room for me.” With that, Shadow moved over a bit allowing Twilight to get into bed. Using her magic, Twilight brought the covers over them as the two snuggled close together. Kissing each other goodnight, the two slowly began to fall asleep. Nothing could ruin this moment.
“ALERT! ALERT!” came a mechanical cry, which seems to be a provoked call to the universe, that decided to bucking ruined the moment to prove her wrong. Both Shadow and Twilight woke up with a start as the voice continued yelling “ALERT!” at full volume. Looking around, both ponies noticed that the walls were flashing red. Before they could get out of bed, Scootaloo ran into the room looking panicked.
“What’s going on?” she cried out in fear. “Did somepony blow up the Dome? Are we all going to die?!”
Before Twilight could reassure the filly that they weren’t going to die, there was a bright white flash of light. Once it faded, Twilight saw that it was Shining Armor who had teleported into her room, along with two others. One was a bat pony filly, while the other was a bright pink alicorn. The two of them looked a little startled, as if they had been suddenly whisked here. Shining Armor, on the other hoof, calmly pulled out a small remote device. There was a clicking noise and then both the noise and flashing stopped.
“Shining,” said the pink alicorn, feeling confused. “Why did you teleport us here all of a sudden?”
“Well, the ‘Virgin Alarm’ I set up in Twily’s place went off,” said Shining as he placed the remote back into his jacket. “It’s set to go off before anything can happen. Since we were close, I thought I’d just tele-” Shining Armor’s voice died in his thought as his sister jumped into the air. Her coat turned white and her mane became flames. Her now red eyes glared at her brother with the intent to kill.
A moment later, the entire Dome One could hear Shining screaming like a little filly.
-x-
Back at the castle, Luna crawled into bed. Today had been a tiring one for her. Twilight was getting engaged, Sunset going into forced labor, and finally a visit from Cadence. Not to mention all the other little things she had to do to run her country properly. Now was the time to rest, so that she could do it all again in the morning.
Once her eyes were closed, Luna found herself in the realm of dreams. However, she was startled by what she saw. Normally, when she fell asleep, she would find herself floating above a patchwork planet.
Each piece was a different dream that only she could walk between. Some dreams were pleasant, like a pony winning the Lunar Games or being with that special somepony. Other dreams were darker, like being chased by demons that their own minds had created.
Instead, however, Luna found herself in an old hallway made of stone that was lit by burning torches.
As Luna walked along the corridor, she began to get a strange feeling. She felt like she had been here before, mixed with fear as well as anxiety. As she walked, she used her magic to give the walls a light push. They remained solid which confirmed one of her fears. Whatever had brought here, something, or somepony, wanted her to stay here.
And, whoever it was had enough magical power and knowledge to hold her here. Taking a breath, Luna began to gather her magic into her horn. In a few minutes, she would have enough power to blast her way out of here. Until then, she might as well look around.
After walking for a while, Luna turned a corner to find a small filly. The small one wasn’t looking at her; rather, she was looking into a room a short distance away. Slowly, Luna approached her, allowing more of her features to come into few.
It wasn’t until she was a few feet away that she realized that this filly was a younger version of her, just after she had gotten her cutie mark in fact. Luna also noticed that the filly was peeking through a half closed door. Light panic touched the moon princess’s heart as all this was becoming more and more familiar.
Then, she heard the voices in the room.
“I have made my decision, that it’s final,” said a rough voice, which caused all warmth in Luna’s body to leave her. She knew that voice very well. It was the voice of King Molten Fury, her father.
Slowly, Luna moved over to the filly to peak into the room, along with her younger self. Now she could see her father in all of his frightening glory. His coat was pitch black, and on his flank was a cutie mark of a volcano erupting. Both his mane and tail were ethereal like her own, but instead of looking like the night sky, his looked like lava flowing down his back. His beard looked like it was on flames, giving him the appearance of a demon.
“You made that decision years ago, dear,” said a calmer, warmer voice. “Things have changed since Celestia was born.” Luna turned her head a bit to see her mother Queen Oceana. She was a sea blue alicorn with a bright green ethereal mane. Her ears were slightly longer and curved back. Her tail was like no other pony, for it was shaped like a dolphin’s. Her cutie mark was three sea horses.
“I said I have made up my mind,” growled Molten as he stood up, his eyes glowing bright red. “Celestia will take full control of Equestria once we leave.”
“And what of Luna?” asked Oceana.
“What about her?” demanded Molten as he stomped his hoof on the ground. “She has been a problem ever since the day she was born. She always questions everything thing I do; always wants to know why. She is also impatient! She makes snap decisions without thinking of the long term consequences.
“Celestia, on the other hoof, is obedient and patience. She has studied dutifully under me for years all in preparation to take the throne. Besides, why should Luna get to share in Celestia’s birthright?”
“Because they balance each other out,” said Oceana pleasantly. “You are right about both of them. Luna is impatient and quick tempered, while Celestia is more patience and logical. But, while under the crown, if Celestia takes her time to overanalyze every little problem that comes her way, then nothing will get done.
“Luna can urge her to make a decision a bit quicker. At the same time, Celestia can calm Luna down while getting her to think of other options. Look at their cutie marks! Celestia controls the sun, while Luna controls the moon. Isn’t it interesting that they were both born with celestial cutie marks? I believe it is a sign that they were meant to rule together.”
“I wouldn’t trust Luna to rule over an ant farm,” growled Molten.
Luna slowly shook her head as tears began to fall down her face. ‘No,’ she silently begged. ‘Not this day. Any day, but this one.’ Luna turned to leave, but a wall had appeared behind her, trapping her near the door.
Turning her attention back to her younger self, she could see that filly Luna also had tears running down her face. Luna wished she could tell her younger self to leave, or to plug her ears, but it would do little good. So far, her younger counterpart hadn’t noticed her, even when they stood side by side.
“That’s not fair,” said Oceana in a slightly irritated tone. “You have always been hard on Luna. I have watched the pain on her face as you shower your love on Celestia, while Luna knows only neglect. You gave Celestia a phoenix for her birthday, while Luna got a Get Well card. You talk to Celestia, while you growl orders at Luna. Can’t you see how much you’re hurting her?”
“It’s not like I ever wanted her here,” muttered Molten. “She’s nothing but an accident, a mistake.” Upon hearing this, the younger Luna fell on her plot, while the older Luna began to cry even harder.
“H-How can you even say such a horrible thing?” demanded Oceana.
“Because it’s true,” said Molten in a cold tone. “You know I only wanted one foal. What else should we call her? A miracle? Bah!”
If Molten had wanted to say anymore, the words most likely died in his throat as the room became icy cold. From in the distance, everypony could hear thunder booming loudly as Oceana’s anger was unleashed.
“I will hear no more of such talk,” she roared. “Until you change your attitude, you can sleep with the animals. And I pray to the oceans that Luna never-”
Oceana was cut off by the sound of the door creaking. Using her magic, she opened it all the way, revealing her teary eyed daughter. “Luna, we-” Before she could finish, filly Luna ran with all her might, leaving her adult version behind.
“Are you happy, Celestia,” said Luna between her sobs. For the moment, nothing happened. The only sound in this entire dream was Luna as she fought the tears that never seemed to stop. Then, a new sound had finally decided to answer her, from the one she was expecting.
“I am sorry, sister,” apologized the voice of Celestia, right before she stepped through the wall. “You left me no choice. I wanted you to remember who fought so hard to see that both of us ruled Equestria.”
“Just leave me,” cried Luna, not even looking at her sister. There was no anger in her voice, only a deep sadness. However, Celestia did not leave. Slowly, she placed a hoof on her sister’s shoulder, only for it to be knocked away. “I SAID GO AWAY!”
With that, the magic in Luna’s horn finally exploded. Celestia was shocked by the amount of magic her sister could wield, knocking her out of the dream. When the sun princess opened her eyes, she found herself back in her room in the middle of the magic circle.
“I’m sorry it had to come to this, sister,” said Celestia to herself as a tear ran down her cheek.
“Murder,” came a yell down the hall. “Captain Hard Shell was murdered!”
It was the dead of the night as Sheriff Silver Star made his way into the desert, along with two of his deputies. The ponies of Appleloosa had recently moved to the desert about four and a half months ago. Most of them had ties to the Apple family, whom donated some of their trees from each farm. Up until now, they had been having trouble with the buffalo, who were stealing the trees as they were coming in. So far, that had been their biggest problem. Until now, that is.
A few days ago, a bat pony had been spotted talking to one of the buffalo. When word of this hit the town, there was a mass panic. Many worried that they would steal their crops, which would cause the town to starve. Others believed that they were plotting to kill them and then take their town for themselves.
Realizing the threat, Silver Star had sent word to Canterlot, in the hopes that they would send troops as quickly as they could. But, until then, they would have to play it safe. That was why he had sent word to the buffalo, asking for a meeting with both them and the bat ponies.
After walking for about an hour, they spotted a campfire in the distance. Slowly the three approached it, taking care as to not step into an ambush. When they reached the fire, they found two figures next to the flames.
The first was a large brown buffalo that Silver Star assumed was their leader. On the ground, next to him, was an elderly bat pony mare. She had a grey coat with a white mane, most likely due to her ancient age. In fact, she looked so old that she was nothing but skin and bones, making it unlikely that she could fly.
“You asked to meet us,” noted the buffalo, once the three ponies were close enough. “I am Chief Thunderhooves. Next to me is Flight Mother Weeping Willow.”
“I am Sheriff Silver Star,” replied the sheriff. “We are here to demand that you stop stealing our apple trees, as well as to surrender all the bat ponies to our custody.”
Thunderhooves snorted. “Typical of you ponies. You trample over our sacred stampeding grounds, and then make demands. You lack any respect for those who have lived here for generations.”
“This land is the property of Equestria,” said one of the deputies. “That makes it ours.”
“We have signed documents claiming this land,” added the other. “That makes the two of you as trespassers.”
“The buffalo do not need any paperwork to claim this land, for it belongs to no creature,” replied Thunderhooves. “It does not belong to us, but it is sacred as is the path we take when we stampede. Because of those trees, we are unable to continue on our path.”
Silver Star nodded. ‘So it’s something like that,’ he thought to himself. He, like most ponies, didn’t have an exact religion. Yet, that didn’t mean that they understand the value of sacred rituals and what not. And thus he now better understood the situation they were in. As long as the trees remained where they were, the buffalo would not alter their path.
“And why are ‘they’ here?” asked Silver, pointing at Weeping Willow.
“‘We’ came here a little over a hundred years ago,” replied the older mare. “The first ones came here; looking to escape persecution, figuring that nopony lived out here. They were half right. They encountered the buffalo, who were wary of them at first, yet still showed them how to survive in this harsh land. We live in small caves on the wall of a canyon, so that we do not get in each other’s way.”
“And they have been good allies,” added Thunderhooves. “During the time when my father was chieftain, many buffalo were being taken by the diamond dogs to be used as slaves. My father traveled to Canterlot to ask your princess for help. Instead of sending your royal guards, she asked her faithful student to handle the situation.
“My father was furious that she would leave the lives of his buffalo in the hooves of one mare. Yet, while he was gone, Weeping Willow found out about our plight and got all of the bat ponies to help out. They helped navigate the dark tunnels, as well as helping fight alongside us.”
“Well, that’s all well and good,” stated Silver Star, before his tone become darker, “but, it doesn’t change what they are! No matter how nicely they act, they are still scum. Now, I’m willing to make a deal. I will talk to the other ponies in Appleloosa to see if we can move the trees. But, I’ll only do this if all the bat ponies turn themselves in!”
Thunderhooves snorted as his eyes narrowed. However, Weeping Willow spoke first. “And, what will you do with us, once we turn ourselves in?”
“Your kind will be placed in a cell where you belong,” declared Silver Star in a matter of fact tone. The sheriff then turned to look at Thunderhooves, believing that he would see reason. That he would choose a chance at getting back their scared stampeding over the bat winged freaks. But, instead the chief looked furious.
“We refuse,” said Thunderhooves. “You come here, plant your trees, insult our friends despite them doing nothing to you, and then threaten to place them in cages. Now I tell you this: if those trees don’t come down, or if you harm one bat pony, you ponies will now feel the rage of all the buffalo tribes!”
“A-All of them?” stammered a deputy.
“All of them,” repeated Thunderhooves as his eyes narrowed once again.
Silver Star stared back at the chief for a moment before he turned to walk away. No more words needed to be said here. Mentally, he cursed at himself for letting his anger get the better of him.
He was supposed to buy them time, but his hatred of those bat winged freaks drove him instead of reason. Hopefully, Canterlot would send troops in soon, before all the buffalo could gather. If not, Appleloosa would be destroyed.
-x-
“Murder!” somepony continued to shout as Celestia ran down the hall. She wasn’t alone, for alongside her were several guards galloping at full speed. As she ran, she couldn’t help, but wonder who would want to kill Hard Shell. He was only the temporary Captain of the Guards.
As of now, the only ponies that knew this were in the capital. Within the guard, he was very well liked, as well as respected by many of the nobles. It was because he was so well liked that Celestia had chosen him to replace Iron Wall.
After several minutes of galloping, Celestia came upon a sight that caused her to raise a hoof to her mouth in horror. In the middle of the hallway lay Hard Shell. Or, at least what remained of him. All over his body was slash marks that made Celestia believe that a wild animal had attacked him. But, if that were the case, where was the animal?
“Let us go!” yelled a voice down the hallway. Looking up and thankfully away from the dead body, Celestia saw Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Cadence’s guards in chains. Those that had wings had them tied to their bodies, while Rarity’s horn had an anti-magic ring on it. Her guards had their weapons out and looked eager to use them at a moment’s notice.
“What is going on here?” demanded Celestia, teleporting over to them.
“We have arrested the murderers, your majesty,” said the lead guard, a grey pony named Steel Hoof, as he shot a glare at the bat ponies.
“But, they di-” began Rainbow, but a swift blow by one of the guards silenced her.
“We told you to...” began the guard that struck her, but stopped as a fiery heat washed over him. He looked over to see that his princess was looking at him with great displeasure.
“We will have none of that,” said Celestia in a stern tone. She then looked over to Steel Hoof. “Now, what evidences do you have that connects them to the murder?”
“Two things,” replied Steel Hoof. “The first is manner of Hard Shell’s death. The body looks like it was ripped apart by a wild animal. The kind of creature their kind lives like. The second reason is that there have been no murders within the castle until they showed up! When we went to question them, they reacted hostilely.”
“Of course they would have, considering the ill-mannered way you brutes behaved,” commented Rarity.
Celestia turned her head to look at her, who looked somewhat scared that she too might be struck if she talked again. But, an urging nod from the princess told her it was alright to continue.
“I was with Dusk Blitz and Thunderclap since they were done with their training. I simply had to get their measurements to make them some marvelous suits; once I found out they had no formal attire. Then, those ruffians broke down the door and accused them of murder. I told them what we had been doing and they then claimed I was an accomplice!”
“And, I was chilling with Ruby,” added Rainbow as she got back onto her hooves with some difficulty. “I tried to tell them that she had been with me for hours, but they just locked me up as well.”
“Look, you little...” began Steel Hoof. However, he was interrupted by somepony shouting “Enough!” But, to everypony’s surprise, it wasn’t Celestia who shouted, but Prince Blueblood. Behind him were Blue Cross and several more guards.
“Is this how the Royal Guard acts when it finds its captain dead?” demanded the prince as Blue Cross began to examine the body. He then turned to the guards behind him. “Start looking for clues. We need to get to the bottom of this.”
Celestia turned to face her nephew with a smile on her face. It hadn’t been that long since she had last seen him, but he was finally maturing and taking his role as a leader seriously.
After a few minutes, the soldiers finally found something. It was a single brown feather. Both Celestia and Blueblood shared a look before they both cast a spell on it. The magic they were using was one that would create an image of the owner of the feather.
If it had fallen from his or her wing, or had been dropped their deliberately, they would soon know. Heartbeats later, an image appeared above the floating feather. It wasn’t a bat pony nor a pegasus, but a griffin.
“Your majesty,” began Blue Cross. Both the prince and princess turned to look at the doctor. “I will need to move the body soon, so that I can do more tests.”
“Very well,” said Celestia. “But, before you go, can you tell me how long Hard Shell has been deceased?”
“If I had to guess,” began Blue Cross, “perhaps an hour. But, that’s all I can really tell you right now.”
“I see,” said Celestia. “Thank you.” She then turned to the rest of the ponies. “I hope everypony here has learned something from this. Blind hatred can only hurt us in the end. It is time for us to let go and move on together in harmony.”
“B-But, Princess,” stammered Steel.
“Enough,” roared Blueblood. “Princess Celestia is correct. Because of hatred, three new member of the guard were arrested while the real criminal got away. We might not be able to bring this murderer to justice!
“We can no longer afford to be fighting with each other! Now, let the recruits and the two mares go. Now!”
“Well said, my dear nephew,” said Celestia as the guards began to unchain the five. “I must say that I am very pleased by this.”
“It was the least I could do after my recent behavior,” replied Blueblood with a bow. He then looked behind him to see that Hard Shell’s body was being moved. “But, I fear that the worst is yet to come. If the griffons are behind this-”
“That is still uncertain,” interrupted Celestia. “Right now, all we know is that a griffon killed Hard Shell. We have no proof that Emperor Eagle Eye ordered this, or is planning to attack us. I will contact him and inform him of the situation. Hopefully, he will cooperate in finding the fugitive.”
“Very well,” said Blueblood as he bowed before the princess again. He then turned to leave, a smile appearing on his face for a brief second. Now his aunt would be looking for threats outside the castle, as well as the kingdom, leaving him to do what he needed to get done.
“I am sorry for the way my guards treated you,” said Celestia as she turned to Rainbow and Rarity. “They shouldn’t have done that. Also, I must thank you both for being with the bat ponies. Your alibis helped.”
“It was nothing, your majesty,” exclaimed Rarity. “We were just helping out Princess Cadence while she’s away.”
“She’s…away?” asked Celestia slowly.
“Yeah,” said Rainbow. “She said she was going to the moon for a bit, and asked us to make sure the guards weren’t giving the bat ponies a hard time. So, we decided we’d just chill with them.”
Sweat began to appear all over the princess body when she heard this. Cadence was on the moon right now! What if Luna, once her sadness had turned to anger, suspects Cadence of helping Celestia in some way. She might shoot her out of a cannon, or something even worse! Right now, her plan didn’t seem so perfect anymore.
-x-
“Princess,” said Twilight, knocked on the door that led to Luna’s bedroom. “Is everything alright in there?”
Silence greeted her, which made the mare worry all the more. About an hour ago, one of the palace guards had appeared in Twilight’s home to inform her that something was wrong. They had heard crying within the princess’ chambers, as well as her talking to herself. Fearing something was wrong with Princess Luna, one of the guards had decided to get the one pony the princess trusted the most in the entire Republic. Once she found out what was going on, Twilight decided to stop slamming Shining Armor’s face into the wall to see what the problem was.
Taking a deep breath, Twilight used her magic to unlock the door and slowly opened it. Looking inside, everything seemed eerily normal. Nothing was broken or out of place. But, in one of the corners, was Princess Luna. She had curled herself into a ball, while she silently wept.
Twilight watched as her beloved princess trembled, as if she were cold, as she continued to cry. Taking a breath, the purple mare slowly approached her, taking great care not to make it look like she was rushing at her. Then, once she was next to her, Twilight gently placed a hoof on her shoulder.
Luna lifted her head from the floor to see her Prized Student. “T-Twilight,” she stammered as she tried to hide her tears. “W-What are you doing here? It’s late.”
“The guards heard you cry and became worried,” said Twilight gently. She then looked at the moon princess with pleading eyes. “Please, tell me what’s wrong.”
Luna opened her mouth to try and tell her that everything was fine, but the words wouldn’t come out. She couldn’t bring herself to lie to one who was as close to her as a daughter. She also knew that Twilight wouldn’t believe her if she told her nothing was wrong. Especially after being found like this.
So, when Luna began to talk, she told her everything that had gone down in the dream. Several times, Luna broke down and Twilight never left her side. She would just pat her on the back or use her magic to get her a tissue.
“Before my parents left, my father pulled us both over,” said Luna once she was finished. “He told Celestia that she would now have to work harder than ever to rule over a nation, as well as me. He said how much he believed in her, but then told me to stay out of her way.
“Back then, all I ever wanted was to show him I was just as good as Celestia. Then, maybe, he would tell me how sorry he was and that he loved me. But, he never did. In fact, no matter what I did, Celestia always got the praise. I hated her for so long, because she always got everypony’s attention.”
“But, you eventually found ponies that appreciated you,” said Twilight simply.
“And look how things ended up,” wailed Luna. “We’re here on the moon with few resources, always worrying when they will run out. How many families did I split when I brought my followers to the moon? How many ponies have died here when they would have lived a long full life on the planet? How many foals would still be with their parents? If I had just stay out of the way like my father had wanted, none of this would have happened.”
“Princess,” said a shocked Twilight. It quickly dawned onto her the true extent of the damage that dream had caused. Princess Luna had lost her confidence. Perhaps it was due to the sad nature of the dream, or that Celestia had invaded the realm that was supposed to be under Luna’s control. But, whatever the reason, Luna was now second guessing herself.
Perhaps this was what Celestia had in mind, to get her sister to doubt herself enough that she felt she had made a mistake in leaving Equestria! And it was up to Twilight to snap her out of it!
“I have never once blamed you for my parent’s death. Neither have Shadow or Shining for that matter. I know it was an accident that no pony could have predicted. You were the one who took us in, gave us a home, and tried to fill in the role of the parents we lost. And, we couldn’t have asked for a better surrogate mother.
“No pony blames you for bringing us here, because it was our choice. We wanted to leave, because we were being persecuted just for enjoying the night. When I was on the planet, I saw the moon from their sky. It was beautiful! It shined brightly when everything else was dark, giving hope, just like you have done for a thousand years.
“Look where we are now! We have advanced far beyond what they have in Equestria, or any other nations on the planet. We live long, happy lives under the stars with few illnesses. And that is all because you brought us here.”
Luna looked at her student for a moment, her eyes wide with shock. It had been so long since she had heard a pony talk that way about the moon. In fact, the way Twilight described the moon was the same way her mother had over a thousand years ago.
Her mother. Just thinking about Oceana almost brought the tears back. Her mother had defended her against her father, which eventually allowed her to become co-ruler. She had loved Luna, making her feel special and wanted.
If it hadn’t been for her, Luna had no idea where she would have ended up. Celestia would never have allowed her to live on the street like their father wanted, but she might have agreed with her father that letting Luna co-rule would be a mistake.
Now, Luna wondered what her mother would think of the decisions she had been making lately. Was she upset when Luna left the kingdom she had fought so hard to give to her? Was she angry that she had not spoken to her sister in so long? Was she disappointed in her? Stealing a sigh, the princess of the moon knew what she needed to do.
“Thank you for that, Twilight,” said Luna as a small smile appeared on her face. “Now I must ask you to speak to the senate on my behalf. Tell them I will be back as soon as I am able to.”
Twilight couldn’t hide her shock, even if she tried. “W-Where are you going? Are you going to see Celestia?”
Luna shook her head. “No, my little pony,” she said calmly. “I need to see the one who is far wiser than both me and my sister. Perhaps she can provide some insight.”
Twilight simply nodded as she took a step backwards. As she did, Luna’s eyes began to glow with pure white light. There was a flash of light and Luna found herself falling into the ocean. Using her magic, she cast a spell that would allow her to survive underwater as she swam downwards.
For a long time, all she saw were the various sea life that lived there. Sharks, whales, fish, and more. They all seemed to ignore Luna as they went about their business. It wasn’t until she was half way to the bottom that she saw them. Their upper bodies looked just like a normal ponies, but their lower half looked just like a dolphin’s flukes. These were the sea ponies.
The sea ponies noticed her immediately. Two quickly swam towards her, before motioning her to follow them. Wordlessly, she agreed and did her best to keep up with them. This was a bit harder than it seemed, since she wasn’t used to swimming. But, she did her best, until they came to a large castle made of pure coral at the oceans bottom. Still following the two, Luna entered the castle that was lit by strange glowing fish.
Luna was led down several corridors until she reach a large steel door with her mother’s image on it. Placing a hoof on the door caused the princess’ heart to beat even faster than before. It had been a little over a thousand years since she had last spoken to her.
She was always afraid that her father might be there, or her mother would tell her how disappointed she was in her. Luna couldn’t bear to hear that from her. For a moment, she thought of turning back to the moon, but stopped herself. She was going to do this, no matter what.
Slowly she opened the door, revealing an audience chamber. Along the sides were sea pony guards who carried tridents. At the other end of the room sat Oceana, who was in a deep discussion with another sea pony. As Luna stepped into the room, Oceana looked up and her eyes widened.
Luna stopped right where she was, unsure on what she should say or do. Before she could think of something, her mother flew off her throne and raced towards Luna to embrace her with both forelegs. Even though they were both underwater, Luna could feel the tears roll down her mother’s eyes.
“You’ve returned to me,” cried her mother. “I’ve waited for so long to see you again, I almost feared that this day might never come. But now, here you are.”
“I’m sorry I made you wait so long,” said Luna through her own tears.
Shining Armor let out a soft groan as he laid on the couch in Twilight’s living room. On his face were two ice packs that hid his bruised face from the rest of the ponies in the room. After a moment, he felt the more melted ice pack lift off his face. Opening an eye slightly, he saw that it was Shadow who was replacing it. However, he didn’t have to drop the new one on his face.
“Ouch!” cried Shining. “Can’t you be a little gentler? I’m injured here.”
Shadow snorted. “You had it coming,” said the bat pony as he walked back into the kitchen. “You’re just lucky Twilight left when she did, or else she’d still be beating your sorry flank.”
“You should have stopped her,” noted Shining.
“And get on Twilight’s bad side?” asked Shadow, right before he shivered in fear. “Not a chance in the void. Besides, you deserved it!”
As he walked back into the family room, he had with him a few drinks that he carried on his back. First, he gave two of them to the two fillies that were looking through picture books on the floor. Shadow knew it was late and Scootaloo should have been in bed, but the incident with the virgin alarm had shaken up the orange pegasus pretty badly. So, Shadow felt it best not to force her to sleep just yet. Also, he felt since there was another filly in the house, Scootaloo wouldn’t want to go to sleep anyways.
Once the two girls were given their drinks, Shadow gave the last glass to Cadence. After Twilight had left, the pink alicorn had explained to him who she was and what she was doing on the moon. Shadow listened to her, while watching for any tells that might signify that she was lying. Averting her eyes, twitching her wings, or any of the usual signs. After finding none, he decided that there was no harm in letting her see Twilight’s home.
He showed her Scootaloo’s room, but not before showing her the kitchen, so that the princess could see that they were eating right. After that, the two of them sat down so that Cadence could ask him a few questions. What did Twilight do for a living? Could she support the two of them? What was Twilight planning on doing about Scootaloo’s education? All of these questions felt very standard to Shadow, so he eventually began to relax in the presence of this new princess.
As this went on, Scootaloo and Midnight were looking through various picture books on the floor. At first, Midnight was a little afraid to be around a new pony like Scootaloo, due to her past. However, it seemed like Scootaloo didn’t care what kind of wings she had, or that she had slit eyes. She treated her like she was just a regular pony, allowing Midnight to relax around her.
“Your mom seems real nice,” said Scootaloo out of the blue.
“Thanks,” said Midnight, unsure as to how to respond. She wanted to say the same thing, but the image of Twilight levitating Mr. Shiny in the air, before slamming him face first into the wall appeared in her head. Not wanting to make her new friend upset, however, she decided to be honest. “I bet your mommy is nice, too. A little scary, but nice.”
When Scootaloo heard this, she felt something warm rise in her chest. It was the first time somepony had ever really referred to Twilight as her mother. Sure, after Twilight adopted her, she said that she would be like a mother or big sister, but no other pony had said anything yet. And, after hearing it, it felt so right, so natural to begin thinking of Twilight as her mother.
“Yeah,” said Scootaloo as she turned the page with a small smile. “She is.”
Just then, the door opened and in walked Twilight. All the heads in the room turned to look at her. She looked really tired and her mane was slightly undone. However, she did her best to smile at everypony and show that she was alright.
“Welcome home,” said Shadow, walking over to kiss his fiancé on the cheek. “Is everything ok?”
“I don’t really know,” admitted Twilight. “Princess Luna was really worked up. She just left to go somewhere and asked me to inform the Senate. Most of them just seemed to accept, but wanted to know if she’s alright.”
“Will she be ok?” asked Scootaloo before she let out a yawn.
“I think she will,” said Twilight hopefully. Then, a small, playful smile appeared on her face. “But, don’t you think it’s a little for you to be up?”
“That’s our fault,” said the pink alicorn as she walked towards Twilight. “Hi, I’m Princess Cadence of Equestria. It’s nice to meet you.” Smiling, Cadence extended her hoof.
Twilight looked at it for a moment, but made no sign that she would accept it. She didn’t trust this ‘Princess of Equestria’. Not after what Princess Celestia had done to Princess Luna. Slowly, Cadence’s smile faded as she lowered her hoof.
“Ah, Twilight,” whispered Shadow. “She’s here to check on Scootaloo’s living conditions. You know, to make sure she has everything she needs. If everything doesn’t check out, then she will have to ask that Scootaloo be returned to Equestria. She told us that Princess Luna gave her the ok earlier today.”
Hearing this, the purple mares eyes widened in shock. She was here to check on Scootaloo? Why hadn’t any pony told her? She felt sure that the place was a mess. Then, there was the way that she attacked Shining Armor. Not to mention the way she was treating her guest so rudely.
“And, I can see that everything is in order,” said Cadence after seeing the shock and fear that suddenly appeared on Twilight’s face. “After you left, Captain Shadow Blade here was very kind as to answer all my questions, as well as showing me your lovely home. I can see that she is in good hooves.”
“I am sorry,” said Twilight quickly. “It’s just that-”
“Relationships between Equestria and the Lunar Republic aren’t at their best right now,” interrupted Cadence. To her great surprise, Twilight shook her head.
“It’s not that,” said Twilight. “Well, that is sort of right. Maybe half right. But that’s not why I reacted the way I did just now.”
Cadence raised an eyebrow as the purple mare took a breath. Then, she slowly began to tell them all about what had just happened to the moon princess. She didn’t go into too much detail about the dream, feeling that it was a very personal thing for Luna. She did, however, inform them that Celestia had forced Luna into a very painful memory dream and what happened when she woke up.
As she talked, the adults in the room became very quiet. Shadow began to grind his teeth as he listened to the ordeal. Shining Armor got off the couch and began to pace back and forth.
Princess Cadence’s reaction was the worst. She looked completely outrage. Her eyes narrowed as she dug her hooves into the ground. She couldn’t believe that her aunt would do something like that. It was beyond cruel to dig up such memories and force her sister to sit back and watch them like some sick play.
Twilight continued to tell everypony about the state she had found Luna in. That she had begun to question herself. That she had left to go and speak with somepony, and had would be gone from the Republic for an unknown amount of time.
“I guess I better get to Dome Zero, then,” said Shadow with a sigh. “Once the senators get there, I’m sure Gigawatt will try to convince the rest of the Senate to do something rash, like declare war. If he does, then I’ll have to remind him that only the princess can initiate a war vote.”
The bat pony then walked over to his fiancé and whispered in her ear. “Sorry I can’t stay, but maybe you can find that virgin alarm while I’m out.” He then kissed Twilight real quickly on the cheek before heading out the door.
“I’d better go as well,” said Cadence. She gave Twilight an ‘I’m sorry’ look as Shining Armor and the bat pony filly got up as well. “I need to speak to my aunt about this…this mess! Please tell Princess Luna I had no idea what Celestia was planning.”
“I’m sure she knows,” said Shining. “If she did suspect you, then she would have left orders for your arrest.” He then gave her a small smile, which she returned. “Now don’t you worry, I’ll make sure that the two of you get back home safe and sound. No cannons.”
-x-
Big Mac silently walked through the Everfree Forest by himself. Normally, he would be in bed sound asleep. Yet, during the night, he had gotten up to use the restroom. Once he had done his business, he had looked out the window to see smoke coming up from the forest. Worried there might be a fire or something, he decided to go check it out. If it was a fire, he needed to inform the town, so that they could put it out before something horrible happened.
As the large stallion walked slowly between the trees, he began to wish that Applejack was here with him. Not that he couldn’t handle something like this without her, it was just that he missed her since she headed off to Canterlot. With her leaving so suddenly, he was left to take care of Apple Bloom, Granny Smith and the farm by himself. Sure, Apple Bloom was trying to help pick up the slack, but she just wasn’t strong enough to help out with all the big things that needed to be done.
A sudden noise off to the side interrupted the red stallion’s thoughts. Turning his head and squinting his eyes, he began to look for the source. At first, all he could see were dark trees with crickets chirping away in the background. Then, a few heart beats later, he heard the noise once again.
Whatever it was, it sounded close by.
Slowly, he began to walk in the direction he believed he had heard it. With each step, he scanned the area, until finally he came upon a patch of tall grass. Using one hoof, he pushed it out of the way to reveal a figure lying in the middle.
He had seen this mare before. It was hard not to recognize the black and white stripes of a zebra. But, mixed with the stripes was blood that caked parts of her fur. There were also several bruises and one of her eyes was swollen. It took all of Big Mac’s might not to vomit.
Big Mac’s ears stood up as the sounds of galloping hooves filled the air. Not knowing what to do, the red stallion let go of the grass and turned around to face whoever was approaching him.
Less than a minute later, a bright yellow stallion with an orange afro mane stopped in front of him. Around his neck was a large red polka dot tie. In one hoof was a large rubber chicken as long as a shovel that looked a lot like the cutie mark on his flank. Big Mac blinked in surprise. It was Silly String, the stallion who ran the joke shop.
“Big Mac, is that you?” asked Silly String.
“Eeyup,” replied the red stallion. It was then that Big Mac noticed the scent of hard cider on Silly’s breath. It was pretty strong, too.
Silly let out a sigh of relief. “That’s good to know. For a moment, I thought you might be a minion of the evil enchantress. By the way, what are you doing out here?”
Wordlessly, Big Mac pointed upwards towards the sky. Silly looked up and spotted a bit of the smoke that could still be seen.
“Oh, I see,” sheepishly replied the joke shop pony. “Really sorry about that. I suppose you want to know what’s going on?”
“Eeyup,” came the reply.
“Well, me and several of the guys were down at the pub when Miss Foster came in,” began Silly String. “Poor mare was crying into her cider before she even took a sip. Me and the others did our best to cheer her up, but nothing worked. Not even my collection of knock-knock jokes! But, I guess I won’t be in a smiling mood if I had a filly who had just been foalnapped!”
Big Mac’s eyes widened at this revelation. He had known Miss Foster since he was a young colt. The poor mare loved all the fillies and colts that lived under her roof like they were her own. She worked hard to make sure they were well cared for as if she were their real mother.
“After she told us what was wrong, we did our best to reassure her that the poor filly was alright,” continued Silly. “But, she insisted that Scootaloo, that’s the filly’s name by the way, was in serious danger because she believes that those lunar ponies took her. On her way out, she said she was going to send another letter to the princess.
“As for the rest of us, well, we didn’t know what to do. Couldn’t go to the moon, that’s for sure. But then, Icy Cold pointed out that it might have been Zecora who took her.
“After talking about it for a bit, we got a few more stallions together and went to confront her at her home. Scary place, I tell you. Full of evil looking masks and such. When we got closer, we heard her talking in a weird language over a bubbling cauldron.
“So, we broke down the door and demanded that she tell us where the filly was. She started to talk in gibberish rhyme, so Icy suggested that we might have to get a little physical with her, while some of us looked around her place. We didn’t find anything, but we decided we’d better not take any chances so we burned the place down. That’s when the enchantress snuck away. By the way, have you seen her?”
Big Mac hesitated for a moment as he looked back at the tall grass. He knew the things that ponies said about Zecora. Pinkie Pie had even made a song about her that the stallion heard before, around the time that the enchantress first came to town.
However, his recent experience with the bat pony Shadow had caused him to start rethinking everything about what others had said. He didn’t know anything about Zecora. In fact, no pony did! Everything that he knew about her was rumors. If he gave Zecora over to them, there was a good chance they might kill her, despite the fact that she might be innocent.
“Nnope,” said Big Mac, realizing what he had to do.
“Ok then,” said Silly as he walked in the opposite direction. “Hey, if you see Pinkie Pie, tell her to swing on by my shop. I got a great deal on some new merchandise that I know she’ll love.”
Once Silly String was no longer in sight, Big Mac waited an extra moment or two before parting the grass once again. He watched Zecora for a moment as her chest rose and fell, signaling to the stallion that she was still alive. Carefully, he picked her up before placing her genteelly on his back. Giving the area around him one last look, Big Mac raced back to the ranch as if timberwolves were on his tail.
-x-
It was late in the night, but Celestia’s court was still very active. After finding out about the murder of Hard Shell, Princess Celestia had called all of her nobles for a very important meeting. For once, not a single one of them complained. They knew that if a griffon assassin would strike in the heart of the capital, there was a good chance that war would soon follow.
Only a few ponies, however, believed that it might be the work of a single individual rather than the will of a nation. They were quick to point out that, despite there still being major issues between both countries, the majority of the griffons were against the idea of war right now, including Emperor Eagle Eye.
Sitting on her throne, Celestia listened carefully to every suggestion. Some ponies believed that they should begin a search of the area and arrest all griffons. Others suggested that they raid the griffon embassy to search for clues. Then, there were those who believed that they should launch an immediate attack and take the griffons by surprise. As she listened, the princess did her best to think about each option that was tossed around, as she tried to figure out what would be their best option.
It was only when a sudden flash of light appeared in the middle of the room, that it became as silent as the grave. Guards rushed to protect the royals. Those already at the scene could use magic-created barriers, while others used their shields. But, when the light died down, they all saw that Cadence was standing in the middle of where the light had been, while Midnight lay on her back.
“Cadence, thank the sun your back!” cried Celestia as she stood. However, Cadence looked at her rather coldly. “Is something the matter?”
“Yes, Princess Celestia,” said Cadence in an angry tone. Celestia’s jaw opened and looked like she had just been slapped. The use of her title, as well as her tone, told the solar princess that something must of had happened on the moon.
After a moment, Celestia cleared her throat before addressing the room. “I believe that we are all a little tired right now. Let’s take an hour break.” One by one, the nobles shuffled out of the room, until only the three princesses remained. It wasn’t until the door closed that Celestia spoke once more. “I take it something happened on the moon?”
“Something happened alright,” Cadence all but snarled. “I went up there to talk to Princess Luna to see if she had any advice on helping the bat ponies. In time, we could have come up with a plan, or a way to explain why some pegasi are born as bat ponies. But then, you had to invade Princess Luna’s dreams! The few ponies that know about it right now are furious! I’m just glad none of them suspected us of being accomplices!”
“Did Luna do anything?” asked Celestia with a hint of worry.
Cadence shook her head. “No, she left after Twilight Sparkle talked to her. According to her, Luna left the Republic to talk to some other pony.”
Celestia let out a sigh of relief as a small smile appeared on her face. “That’s a relief. It looks like everything is going according to my plan.”
“Plan?!” roared Cadence. “This is all part of your plan? I don’t think you realize what you have done! From what Twilight Sparkle said, Luna was found in the corner crying her eyes out! And if Shining Armor hadn’t been there, then I might have been suspected as an accomplice! So please, enlighten me, how is this all part of your plan?”
“My plan was to remind Luna about our childhood,” said Celestia softly as she walked over to one of the stain glassed windows. On it was the image of the royal family, back when all four of them were still together. “I wanted Luna to remember who originally fought for her, so that she could become co-ruler. If she didn’t come to her senses right away, I knew that she would go to her eventually. It’s what she always does when she gets really upset or needed to be reassured.”
“I don’t believe this,” uttered a dumbfounded Cadence. “How could you do that?”
“She left me no choice,” noted Celestia. “She refused to talk to me, or answer any of my letters. We don’t have time for her to be stubborn. There is a crisis looming ever closer to us, and I need her here.” Celestia then turned her head to see that Cadence was slowly walking away. Then, right in front of the door, she stopped.
“I once defended you,” said Cadence without turning around. “I defended you in front of Princess Luna. She was so angry at you for letting things get so out of control with the bat ponies. Now…I’m beginning to regret that.” With that, Cadence opened the door and walked out without letting Celestia say a word.
Celestia sighed and turned to walk toward another stained glass window. She stopped in front of one depicting a large kingdom that wasn’t Canterlot, but of the Crystal Empire. She stood there, looking at it for a moment as she remembered back on the years before Celestia and Luna attacked Sombra.
Luna had wanted to go right away, but Celestia refused. Despite the horrors that they both knew were going on in there, it would make them look like invaders. She needed proof that Sombra was up to something, so she could justify the attack. So, while she had her talks with the Emperor, the spies she had sent in secretly could uncover anything she could show to the other nations, to justify attacking the Crystal Empire.
This was kept completely secret. While she trusted Luna completely, she wanted to make sure as few knew about this, in case Sombra also had spies in Equestria. So, while this was going on, and Luna kept insisting that they attack the Crystal Empire, all Celestia could say was ‘trust me’.
It wasn’t until three years later, that they finally came back with something. They had found out that Sombra had discovered a rare gem that could enhance his magical powers to the level of an alicorns. This had been the reason for the forced labor within his empire, searching for more of these gems. Luckily, he had only found one so far. He had attached it to a necklace and called it the Alicorn Amulet.
Realizing the danger of this gem, her spies stole it and began to head home. Yet, as they traveled back to Canterlot, something happened. Exactly what, the sun princess didn’t know. All of them, along with the amulet, vanished. However, they had sent her proof, via magical fire, before they departed from the Crystal Empire. Most of them were documents with Sombra’s seal on them, with details on the crystal as well as battle plans to attack Equestria and the surrounding kingdoms.
After receiving this information, Celestia went to tell Luna that they were going to attack Sombra together. Sadly, Luna had already lost her patience and gone on ahead. The sun princess eventually caught up with her sister and the two managed to defeat Sombra. As the battle neared its end, Luna charged up her magic to kill the tyrant.
Celestia, wishing to show mercy, stopped her. She watched as Luna reluctantly helped turn Sombra into a shadow before banishing him. Yet, before they could finish, the evil emperor cast one finally spell on the empire that caused it to vanish.
Once it was all over, Luna lashed out at Celestia. How if they had just attacked when they first found out, or if they had just killed him when they had the chance, the Crystal Empire would still be standing. Celestia stood there as Luna yelled at her, not saying a word. She wanted to explain to her sister her reasons, but wanted to wait until she felt the time was right. But, that day never came.
Now she felt as history was repeating itself. There had been no real time to explain to Cadence what she was doing. Did she really think that Celestia wanted to do this? There was no other choice!
Luna wouldn’t listen to her, nor would she see her, without shooting her out of a cannon. If she tried showing her positive memories of the two of them in her dreams, then Luna surely wouldn’t have come back. She would have believed that Celestia was just trying to manipulate her.
So, Celestia had to get crafty. She had to break Luna, so that she couldn’t think straight. Cause her to doubt herself and go to somepony that she knew cared about her to reassure her. Celestia had slightly hope that it would have been her, but all hopes of that happening vanished, when Luna realized that she had been behind this.
Celestia had, however, prepared for that. That was why she chose that memory. Luna would go to their mother to seek her love and guidance, asking her what she should do.
Then, she would return to Celestia.
-x-
Meanwhile, Cadence fumed as she walked down the corridors. She still couldn’t believe what her aunt had done. Why couldn’t she just wait a while for her sister to cool down, and then talk to her? Really talk to her like she was an adult, and stop with these mind games and half-truths.
“Ah, there you are, Princess Cadence,” said a voice that Cadence really didn’t want to hear right now. She turned her head to see Blueblood walking down a different hallway towards her. “I have been looking all over for you.”
“What for?” asked Cadence, wanting to get away from him as quickly as possible. Blueblood wordlessly produced a letter from his coat and handed it over to the pink princess.
“I found this letter in Hard Shell’s desk,” he said as Cadence began to read it. “I don’t know if anypony has told you yet, but our dear Captain of the Guards was murdered a few short hours ago. This letter isn’t relevant to the investigation, but it is relevant to your little crusade to help the bat ponies. Something about bat ponies near a new settlement called Appleloosa. I think you should handle this one yourself.”
“And what are you up to?” asked Cadence immediately.
“Why whatever do you mean?” asked Blueblood.
“You know exactly what I mean,” said Cadence in a short tone. “You don’t care about Appleloosa or bat ponies. There is nothing in it for you. You could have just left it in the desk, or had some other pony deliver it to me.
“But, instead you brought it to me yourself, meaning that you wanted to make sure I got it. The only time you do anything around here is when it affects you in some way. So tell me, what are you up to?”
“Why nothing,” answered Blueblood in his normal voice, like this was nothing out of the ordinary. “There is a crisis and a possible war coming up. We simply don’t have the troops to help in a messy genocide. Fewer troops on the battlefield mean it’s more likely that we will lose.”
“Meaning the more likely your life of luxury will be at an end,” said Cadence bluntly.
“I suppose you could put it that way,” admitted Blueblood.
Cadence could literally feel like he wasn’t telling her the complete truth. There was something going on that she couldn’t put her hoof on. Knowing her aunt, she would take this sudden change of character as a sign that he was finally living up to his title of prince. But, Cadence knew better than to trust anything he said. Sadly, she had no proof that he was up to anything and the letter looked very real.
“Very well, then,” said Cadence. “I’ll be heading out right away.”
“Wouldn’t you rather wait till morning,” asked Blueblood. “You could get some sleep, as well as take some of guard.”
“No,” said Cadence. “This matter is too important to wait. I will rest in my chariot and take members of my own personal guard.”
“Very well,” said Blueblood as Cadence walked away. Once she was out of sight, a smile appeared on the prince’s face. Now she’d be out of the way for a while. This would help his own plans greatly.
-x-
“Luna, would you like some more seaweed casserole?” asked Oceana as she looked at Luna’s mostly eaten plate. The moon princess shook her slightly greener face no. It turned out that her mother hadn’t cooked a meal for anypony in over a thousand years. But, when her daughter came to see her, she decided the best way to celebrate was with a home cooked meal.
Right now, the two alicorns were in the servant’s kitchen. It was a small room with an underwater oven that used lava to heat the food. There was also a small, round table big enough for three or four ponies. Finally, there was also a sink that was next to a cabinet that held all the dishes. A room like this gave a cozier feel than the grand dining hall.
“T-that’s alright, mother,” said Luna after she gulped down the last of the ‘food’. “I wasn’t that hungry, anyways.”
“Alright, sweetheart,” said Oceana as she took Luna’s plate with her magic. In the process of doing this, she noticed that Luna was tensely checking the door. “And, don’t worry about your father. He doesn’t live here anymore. We got a divorce a long time ago.”
“What happened?” asked Luna.
Oceana sighed, putting the plate in the sink. “To be honest, a lot of things. We only stayed together as long as we did, because of you and Celestia. After you and your sister took over Equestria, we separated. We thought some time apart might help, but it didn’t.”
She paused for a moment, before giving Luna a small smile. “So tell me, how have things been with you?”
“Alright,” said Luna with a smile of her own. “Got my own country now.”
“So I’ve heard,” said Oceana as she sat next to her daughter. “Celestia told me how you just up and left her without saying a word.”
“Did she ever tell you why?” asked Luna in an angry tone.
Oceana nodded her head. “She did eventually,” she said. “A couple of days after it all happened, she came here. I asked her what happened and she told me that you were making a fuss over nothing. It wasn’t till two hundred years later that I got the full story from her. She came here crying at what she had done to you, as well as the image of the lunar ponies. Needless to say, I was disappointed in the both of you.”
“But,” began Luna, however Oceana raised a hoof to silence her.
“Now before you say anything, let me explain,” she said calmly. “Celestia had asked you to get her proof that what happened in Hoofshire wasn’t an accident. Personally, after hearing what happened, I don’t think it was. Then, you took all of your followers to the moon, while leaving a mess of problems behind, instead of working together with your sister.
“On the other hoof, Celestia was wrong in thinking she could wait two months, just to make a speech on the issue. Also, while it was true that you left, Celestia should have been trying to fix the problems in Equestria that caused you to leave. Instead, she refused to have your name spoken out and carried on like nothing happened.”
Oceana then let out a sigh. “Luna, I can understand why you did what you did. But, if you want my approval, then I can’t give it to you. There were other things you could have done.”
“It wasn’t like it was an easy choice,” said Luna. “My little ponies were being persecuted because of me. I tried to tell Celestia that, but she wouldn’t listen to me. She never did!
“She never valued anything I said or tried to do. I think she never really wanted me to rule beside her. That it was just because you wanted us to.”
“That’s where you’re wrong Luna,” said Oceana. “I wasn’t the only one who stood up to your father. Celestia, from time to time, would hint that the job would be easier if there were two ponies ruling. And then, the day before she was to take the thrown, Celestia walked right up to your father and told him that if he didn’t make you her co-ruler, then she would refuse to take the throne.”
Luna couldn’t hide the shock and surprise from her face. Celestia, daddy’s little girl, had done that for her?! But, why?
“I-I don’t believe that,” stammered Luna. “If she really wanted me to rule beside her, then why did she never listen to what I said?”
“I don’t know,” admitted Oceana. “Maybe it’s because she’s as stubborn as you are, when it comes to getting things done. Or, maybe she thought that, since you didn’t study politics for as long as she had, that you needed a guiding hoof. She forgot that the reason I wanted you both together wasn’t so you wouldn’t be lonely, but to help each other. To help balance each other out. But, neither of you really likes to give in.”
“So, what should I do?” asked Luna. “After what Celestia did to me and my little ponies, do you think I should just do what Celestia wants and merge our two nations? They hate and fear us!”
Oceana didn’t answer her at once. Celestia had told her what had happened to Luna’s holiday, and some of the stories that were told about the Republic. While Celestia held most of the blame on this one, Luna wasn’t guiltless either. If Luna hadn’t kept her little ponies so isolated for so long, then maybe there wouldn’t be so many horrible stories told about them. But, she did understand what Luna was saying.
“I’m not going to tell you what you should do,” said Oceana. “Go back to Celestia and try to work out your problems, or keep things the way they are now. Whatever you decide, I’ll respect. But Luna, don’t make a decision based on anger towards your sister. Do what you think is right for your little ponies.”
Luna blinked before nodding her head. Oceana was right. There were many issues between her and Celestia. Just like there were many issues between Equestria and the Lunar Republic. Right now, she needed to put away her issues with her sister and think about what would be the best thing for her subjects.
For a long time, Luna just sat there. What conserved her the most was the safety of her subjects. If the two nations just merged like Celestia wanted, then there would surely be fighting. It would be just like a thousand years ago. Only this time, the ponies of the Republic would refuse to take it lying down again. They would fight back and might possibly end in a civil war.
Then, there was the huge gap in their technology. The Republic was working on interplanetary travel, while Equestria was just starting to accept steam technology. If they just gave Celestia’s ponies one of their advanced generators, she was afraid they might blow themselves up. Or, what if they used the Republics weapons to fight their enemies. It would be a huge and unfair advantage.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Luna came to a decision.
-x-
As the morning light began to shine across Equestria, Celestia sat on her throne. She looked tired from everything that had been going on. A new Captain of the Guard needed to be selected soon. The griffon embassy had been surrounded, while a letter had been sent to the Emperor about the situation. There were a dozen more items on her list that she needed to do along with her usual work.
Just then, there was a flash of light that appeared at the end of her audience chambers. Her guards quickly reached for their weapons, when they saw that it was Princess Luna.
“Lower your weapons,” said Celestia as Luna began to walk towards her sister. Slowly, the guards obeyed. “It is good to see you little sister. I’m sure that we have much to talk about.”
“Not really,” said Luna, stopping in the middle of the audience hall. She then cleared her throat before continuing. “Princess Celestia, as the ruler of the Lunar Republic, I, Princess Luna, hereby rejects your offer for our nations to merge.”
In Ponyville, almost all of its citizens were still in bed. Tucked away in their homes, as they dreamed sweet dreams or horrible nightmares. Yet, there were a few that were up. One of them was Filthy Rich, who was checking the inventory for one of his stores. Then, there was the pegasus mare, who was filling in for Rainbow Dash as she got the early morning weather ready.
Finally, there were the Apples. Each one had gotten up, before the sun had, to begin a hard day’s work. Big Mac was already out working the fields, while Apple Bloom did her best to help. While the little filly couldn’t buck a tree hard enough to get any apples, she could help with picking up the apples that had fallen to the ground. Even Granny Smith was up cooking breakfast for four.
Yet upstairs, there was one ‘pony’ that was just now opening her eyes.
Last night had been one of the worst nights she had ever had in her life. She had moved to the Everfree Forest from her homeland, so that she had better access to the magical herbs and flowers that only grew in Equestria. However, she had found the ponies that lived in the town of Ponyville to be an odd bunch. Whenever she came to town, all the stores would be closed and no pony would be on the streets.
Then, last night, as she made herself a nice stew for dinner, a bunch of ponies charged into her home. They then began to accuse her of foalnapping, but she denied this. Then, came the pain. It was only by luck that she was able to escape, but collapsed. But, now as she woke up, she found herself lying on a very comfortable bed.
Slowly, she began to get up. As she did, she found that her wounds had been bandaged up. While she had medicine that could have healed her, as well as taken away the pain, she did smile at the gesture.
Yet, that smile only lasted a second, as fear began take hold. Why was she here? Was this an act of kindness, or did they have something else in mind? Perhaps they only patched her up, so they could continue to harm her.
Whatever the reason, Zecora wasn’t willing to wait to find out.
Moving slowly, so that the floor boards didn’t creak, the zebra made her way towards the door and opened it. Moving with the same slow carefulness, she made her way down the hallway and down a flight of stairs. When she was halfway down, she spotted an old green mare in the kitchen with her back facing Zecora, making something that smelled delicious. Smiling at her good fortune, Zecora continued to move downwards, until she reached the ground floor.
The door was just a few feet away. Zecora turned her head to make sure that the old mare hadn’t noticed her. Sure enough, she was still working on the breakfast. Now was Zecora’s chance. Once she got out of here, she would return to her homeland. Or, perhaps she would go to the griffin kingdom. Quickly, Zecora reached for the door handle.
“Just what do ya think yar doing, missy?” asked the old green mare without turning around. Zecora blinked. How had she been spotted? She hadn’t made a sound.
It was then that the elder of the house turned to look at her. “Ha! Ya were good, but Ah’m better! Think ya can get by me? Raised enough youngens ta know when somepony is tryin’ ta sneak down them stairs.”
“Breakfast time!” came a joyful shout from the other side of the door. It opened up quickly, revealing a small yellow filly that stood in front of a red stallion. “Hey, look Big Mac, Zecora is awake!”
“Eeyup,” replied Big Mac, his eyes falling on Zecora. This caused the zebra to take a few steps back before gulping loudly.
“Alright ya’ll, get yar behinds in gear an’ sit,” said Granny Smith. Her two grandchildren moved out of the doorway and towards the table. Both took their seats as Granny Smith began to pour them both her homemade apple oatmeal.
Zecora looked at the unguarded doorway for a moment. It would probably be her one chance for freedom. Then, she looked over at the table. Only the filly was looking at her. The other two were eating their meals in silence. It was almost like they were telling her she could leave if she wanted to.
As Zecora moved towards the outside, her stomach began to growl loudly. Behind her, she heard the filly giggle. Looking back at the table, she realized that there was an extra bowl on the table. Not knowing when she would be able to eat next, Zecora closed the door and walked over to the table, so that she wouldn’t have to leave on an empty stomach.
“Hiya, Ah’m Apple Bloom,” said Apple Bloom as she reached out to the zebra. Zecora, however, was startled for a moment by the gesture. “Is something wrong?”
“Forgive me for my reaction, little Apple Bloom,” said Zecora. “But, it was by pony hooves that I almost meet my doom.” She then looked up towards the red stallion and the green mare. “To my hosts that I wish not to offend, pray tell who was the one to help me mend?”
“Oh, that was me and Big Mac over here,” said Granny. “This big old lug found ya lying on the forest floor and brought ya here. Then, he woke me up and together we patched ya up real good.”
Zecora nodded as Big Mac raised his head from his bowl. For a moment, their eyes locked, causing Zecora to blush for some reason she didn’t understand. In a desperate move to hide her face, the zebra mare began to dig into the bowl in front of her. It wasn’t hard, because it tasted so good and she was so hungry. A half a second after her bowl was clean, Big Mac got up to refill it.
“You need ta eat up ta regain yar strength,” he said when Zecora gave him a questioning look.
“Your generosity I shall not waste,” said Zecora with a smile. However, the smile was quickly replaced with a frown. “But, after I finish this bowl, I must make haste. I do not wish to cause you alarm, but there are those in this town that wish me harm.”
“What?” cried Apple Bloom. “Yar leavin’ us already?”
“Again, I thank you all for what you did last night,” said Zecora. “But, I can’t involve you all in my plight.”
“Well yar free ta leave whenever ya want,” said Granny. “This ain’t no prison.”
“But, ya should wait either till night or till ya fully heal,” said Big Mac. “Ya’ll be more easily spotted durin’ the day. Since ponies are lookin’ for ya an all.”
“I-” began Zecora.
“Ya should stay Zecora,” said Apple Bloom. “Besides, if ya wait awhile, this whole thing might just blow over.”
“The little missy’s got a point,” said Granny with a smile. “Besides, I’m sure ya can make more tracks if yar fit as a fiddle.”
Zecora thought about this for a moment. She was still in some pain and her movements might be affected by her injuries. If she was spotted before she got out of Ponyville, then the chances of her getting away would be slim. Not only that, she didn’t have any supplies to help her on her journey. She would need at least a week’s worth of food.
Sadly, every moment that she stayed, her hosts would be in danger as well. After what had happened at her home, she was sure that the ponies of Ponyville would do everything in their power to take her life for a crime she didn’t commit. They would even go through members of their own community that opposed them. The last thing that Zecora wanted was for her rescuers to suffer because of her.
“Are you sure you don’t mind having on this farm one of my kind?” asked Zecora.
“Nnope,” replied Big Mac with a smile.
-x-
Scooter sighed as he walked down the long hallway. It was unusual for him to be up at this time, but his work demanded it. He was a bright orange pegasus stallion with a bright red mane that looked like flames. His cutie mark was a golden chariot with flaming wheels.
He knew he shouldn’t complain. In fact, he counted his lucky star every day that he even had this job. Back when he was young, he dreamed of being one of the greatest flyers ever to live.
However, he had a bad habit of sticking his nose into places where it didn’t belong. This eventually got him in trouble with the law. It was a case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time; furthermore, his family was poor, so they couldn’t afford a good lawyer. This resulted in Scooter serving two years in juvenile prison, which prevented him from getting into the Wonderbolts. Heck, it kept him from getting almost any decent job!
Then, one day he was sitting at a bar, trying to drown his sorrows in hard cider, when a mare sat next to him. She was a young pink unicorn with a purple mane and a scepter cutie mark. They started chatting, one thing led to another, and in the end they both checked into a motel. It was a few days later that he found her standing at the doorway of his apartment, offering him a job.
It turned out that her name was Majesty, one of the nobles of Canterlot. According to her, her father had squandered the family fortune, leaving her with nothing but a title and an empty mansion. For years, she had struggled to keep up appearances for the other nobility, pretending that everything was fine.
But, the debts that her late father still owed were catching up. In the end, she married a wealthy stallion named Bit Pincher. There was no love between the two. She wanted his money and he wanted the title.
The job that appeared on his pay stub was chariot driver. All in all, it was a decent job. By himself, he could pull up to three ponies into the air and get to the destination in a reasonable amount of time. Not only did he get a nice salary, but he also got free food and lounging. But, when Bit Pincher was away, that was when Majesty wanted to play.
One day, Majesty told him (while Bit Pincher was away on business) that she was with foal. She was, at first, delighted by this since she needed an heir. But, when she used magic to check on the baby, she found out that the filly inside her was a pegasus. Once she gave birth, all of Canterlot would soon know about the affair. Bit Pincher might leave her and take with him all of his money!
Desperately, she searched for a spell or potion that could help her, while she used her magic to hide her pregnancy. She eventually found one and used it, only to find out it was too late. Now her filly’s wings were smaller than they should have been, and she had a small bump on her forehead.
After that, Majesty turned to Scooter for help. He suggested that he take in the filly. He had always liked the idea of having his own foal.
At first, Majesty agreed, saying it was probably for the best. But, as time went on, she became paranoid. There were times when she would accuse him of only wanting the filly, so he could blackmail her. Time and time again, he denied it, trying to reassure her that he didn’t want her money.
Then, the day came. She left in a rented chariot to a small town called Ponyville to give birth there. She wanted no records in Canterlot that would expose her. Scooter waited on pins and needles as he prepared for his new daughter arrival, using a lot of his savings to decorate a corner of lounging in preparation. But, when she came back there was no foal. She told Scooter that the foal died shortly after she was born.
After that, he tearfully returned everything he had bought. Majesty gave him a couple days to get over their daughter’s death, which he took. After that, everything was back to the way it had been. He still continued his affair with Majesty, but he was a bit more careful.
Now Scooter found himself at Prince Blueblood’s personal estate. He had no idea why Majesty, as well as several other nobles, had been invited there so early in the morning. Especially after being up all night at the castle. But right now, Scooter didn’t care, because he really, really needed to use the bathroom.
Then, as he walked past a door, he thought he heard a voice. At that moment, two forces battled for control. One was the need to relieve himself, while the other was pure curiosity. It was a short battle, with curiosity winning. Taking a deep breath, he placed an ear against the door.
“What you are proposing is simply insane!” yelled a stallion. “There is no way we can force the Republic to join us.”
“I agree,” said Majesty. “Besides, why would we even want those mangy mongrels to be a part of Equestria?”
“Please, don’t be so short-sighted,” replied the voice of Blueblood. “So far, we know they have a cannon that can hit any target on this planet, as well as a device that can contain an alicorn. Not to mention a device that can turn a half starved, filthy bat freak of a filly into the picture of perfect health in a few short hours.”
“Oh, so now you’re back to your senses,” said a third voice. “Last I heard, you were defending those pieces of thrash that are guarding Princess Cadence. So tell me, what changed?”
“Nothing changed,” said Blueblood. “Believe me, it took every ounce of control for me not to vomit after saying what I did. I wouldn’t have to, if the royal guards had just done their jobs and searched the crime scene. What’s the point of going through all the trouble of framing the griffins, if they arrest those things?”
Scooter felt his jaw drop when he heard this. The news of Hard Shell’s death was pretty well known to him, hearing most of it from nobles as they walked by him. But, what he was hearing now sounded a lot like Blueblood did it.
“With the threat of war looming over our heads, Princess Celestia will be forced to focus most of her attention outside the kingdom,” continued Blueblood. “She knows that if we go to war right now, the outcome will not be favorable. So, she will try even harder to get the Republic to join us.”
“That might be true,” said Majesty. “But, have you forgotten what the Republic wants? To replace us with elected common ponies? Is that what you want?” Scooter then heard several ponies mutter in agreement. “They will know that we need them more than they need us!”
“But, what if it wasn’t like that?” asked Blueblood. “What if they needed us more than we needed them? I am the only one if this room who has spent any time with they so I know how limited their resources are. Right now, they will be able to survive for a bit longer without our help.
“But what if something were to happen to those resources? What if all their food and water just vanished right before their eyes? If Luna cared about them at all, they would have to bow before any demand we make. Like making the Republic an Equestrian colony!”
“You fool,” shouted the first pony. “What makes you think they won’t blame us?”
“Because they’ll be too busy blaming this thing,” said Blueblood. A moment later, Scooter heard everypony in the room gasp.
“It isn’t polite to listen to other ponies’ conversations,” said a voice behind Scooter. The pegasus began to turn around, but was slashed from behind by a set of talons. He fell to the floor as he began to bleed out fast. As he looked up, he saw a snow white griffin standing over him with bloody claws. And, the last thing he saw was those same claws coming down towards his neck.
“I can’t believe it,” cried a happy Ruby Moon as she bounced next to Cadence. “We’re going to meet the Appleloosa bat ponies. T-This is just so exciting!”
Cadence chuckled softly to herself. After she talked to Blueblood, the first thing she did was gather her personal guard. It was then that she had found out about what had happened to them, causing the pink princess to feel a pang of guilt. If she had brought them with her, then they would not have been accused of murder. She was also very surprised when she found out that it was Blueblood who helped them out.
While Cadence apologized for not being there, she began to wonder what Blueblood was up to. What did he gain by helping them? The first, and most obvious, answer was that he looked good in front of Princess Celestia. But, there had to be more to it than that. She could feel it in her horn and wings that Blueblood was up to something more. But, sadly figuring out what would have to wait until after she returned.
“I take it you have heard about these bat ponies?” asked Cadence gently.
Ruby stopped bouncing and began to get a bit more serious. “Um, yeah,” she said a bit nervously. “I mean, all bat ponies have.”
“Ruby, is something the matter?” asked Cadence.
“Well, it’s,” began Ruby before she sighed and shook her head. She knew that information about the colonies was a heavily kept secret for the bat ponies. How could she explain this to her Princess without saying too much?
“Ruby,” said Cadence calmly. “I know that we haven’t known each other very long, but I’d like you to trust me. The more I know, the better I can help the bat ponies in Appleloosa. In fact, the more I know about bat ponies in general, the better I can help them. But, if you can’t tell me, I’ll respect that.”
“Princess Cadence,” utter a shocked Ruby as she stared at her. “I’m sorry; it’s just that secrecy has been what keeps us safe. But, if it will help you, then I guess I can tell you some things.”
“Thank you, Ruby,” said Cadence. “I promise that you won’t regret this.”
“I hope so,” said Ruby softly as the two turned a corner. “Well, for starters, the Appleloosa Colony is the youngest of all the colonies. It’s also the safest, since there were no pony towns close by. I remember back when I was younger, some of the ponies from my colony were talking about moving there. However, Lone Wolf said that if too many bat ponies moved there, it might draw unwanted attention.”
“Whose Lone Wolf?” asked Cadence.
“He’s the Flight Master of the colony I belonged to,” said Ruby. She then saw Cadence giving her a questioning look, so she decided to elaborate. “A Flight Master is basically the leader of a bat pony colony. He’s also the pony that brought me to the colony.”
“So you weren’t born there?” asked Cadence.
Ruby shook her head. “No, I was born to a pegasus family like every other bat pony I have ever heard about. I’ve heard a lot of stories about where the other from my colony comes from. They range from ok to nightmarish.
“Me, my parents were very loving. It didn’t matter to them that I was a bat pony. The thing was, however, they kept me homeschooled and only let me go out to play when it was dark. They said it was for my safety.
“One day, I snuck out of the house to practice my flying. I flew for what seemed like hours and when I realized how late it was, I didn’t recognize where I was. I tried to ask some ponies for help, but the nicer ones just ignored me. Others were, well, not so nice.
“I wandered around for days trying to find my way back home. Finally, I collapsed on the street and passed out. I don’t know how long I was out, but when I woke up, I was on Lone Wolf’s back as he carried me to the colony. That was twelve years ago.”
“Did you ever find your family again?” asked Cadence out of concern.
Ruby sadly shook her head. “I…I tried to find them, but I’ve had no luck. I don’t know the name of my hometown, or anything like that.”
“I’m sorry,” said the Princess of Love. Cadence felt for the young mare walking next to her. But, despite how sad her story was, it did give Cadence some hope. This was the first time that she heard of parents who seemed to generally love their child, despite the bat wings. This made Cadence wonder if there were more ponies out there like that, who could see past the physical differences.
“It’s ok,” said Ruby with a smile. “Actually, they’re the reason I’m here right now. I’ve heard a lot of stories from other bat ponies about how they wound up at the colony. Most of them are pretty bad. But, there are those who have similar stories like mine. Bat ponies who had real friends and families that loved them.
“For the longest time, I wanted to do something to show that they were right to love us, despite what all the other ponies said. So, when I heard that an actual princess had adopted a bat filly, I realized that now was the time. I just hope that when I see my parents again, they’ll be proud of me.”
“I’m sure they will,” replied Cadence, as the two walked out onto a chariot platform. It was a small, circular space on top of one of the many towers of the castle. In the middle was her other two guards, who were hooked up to a chariot. Off to the side were the ponies from Ponyville.
As soon as Pinkie Pie saw them, she reached behind her and pulled out a cannon. Ruby moved quickly to step in front of the princess, only to have the cannon shot confetti in her face. A moment later, the platform was full of balloons and streamers that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Also, there was a large banner that read ‘We’ll Miss You, Princess Cadence’.
“Where did all of this come from?” asked Ruby, turning to look at her fellow bat ponies. This, however, proved to be pointless as the two of them looked as confused as she was.
“I set it up just now, silly,” giggled Pinkie Pie.
“Are you a unicorn or something,” asked Ruby, racing over to Pinkie and began to search her mane for a horn.
“Nah, she’s just being Pinkie Pie,” said Rainbow in a tone that said ‘just go with it’. It was at that moment that Rarity walked over to the princess.
“We thought it be best to see you off before we departed for home,” said the dressmaker of the group. “While we have, ah, enjoyed our stay here, we really must be getting back to Ponyville.”
When Cadence heard the word ‘Ponyville’, her eyes went wide. A moment later, she facehoofed herself. She had completely forgotten about Miss Foster and her worries about Scootaloo.
“Pony feathers,” swore Cadence as she used her magic to summon a quill and a scroll. Right then and there, she quickly wrote a letter telling Miss Foster that Scootaloo was alright, and was being looked after by a loving couple in the Republic. She noted that they just wanted what was best for her and that if she wanted to check up on her, then all she would have to do was write to Cadence to set up a trip.
“That should do it,” said Cadence as she signed the scroll. She then looked at the group. “I don’t suppose I could ask you girls for another favor? I need this letter delivered to the Ponyville orphanage.”
“I’ll do it,” said Rainbow Dash, quickly snatching up the letter.
“Thank you,” said Cadence as she and Ruby walked over to her chariot. After she got on, she turned to face them again. “And thank you all for everything you have done. I hope that we see each other again.”
“Don’t worry none, sugarcube,” said Applejack, earning a gasp from Rarity for talking to royalty in such a familiar fashion. “Ah’m sure we’ll see each other again.”
Smiling, Cadence nodded towards her guards and took off into the air.
-x-
Lone Wolf looked up at where the ceiling should have been as the sun’s light beamed down. Right now, a lack of a ceiling would be a problem in this section of the ruins, but overall, it shouldn’t pose too much trouble. There were still several areas that did still have a ceiling, so that the bat ponies under his care would be safe from the elements. And, right now, that was all that mattered.
After Ruby had left, along with two other bat ponies from their colony, to try and get work as Princess Cadence’s guards, Lone Wolf had packed up everypony. He knew there was no way the royal guard would ever accept a bat pony into their ranks. More likely, as soon as they had approached the castle, they were shot down by magic and spears. If they survived that, then they would be tortured into revealing the location of their home. He had seen and experienced too much of Equestria’s treatment of bat ponies to think any less.
So, they had flown under the cover of night, looking for a new place to call home. This proved to be difficult, since they didn’t want to settle in an area that already had another colony. Too many of their kind in one place might cause them to be spotted.
After passing over several towns, they began to fly over the Everfree Forest. It was there that Lone Wolf spotted an old abandoned castle sitting near its center. With caution, his group flew down to inspect it for a possible dwelling, even if for only a day. For what they could tell, no pony had been in it for hundreds of years. This pleased them greatly.
Lone Wolf himself had to admit that this would be a very good location for his colony. There was a cliff that surrounded the castle, and the only way across was an only rope bridge that he had personally cut. The forest it was located in was dark, making it easier for ponies who entered it to get lost.
Not to mention there were all sorts of creatures that dwelled in there, like the timber wolves. Last, but most important, there was plenty of food. Lone Wolf was certain that they could forage for plenty of wild fruit to keep they all well feed. And, in case they couldn’t, in Ponyville, there was one of the largest apple orchards he had ever seen.
Right now, he needed to decide what to do with the large stone sculpture at the front of the building. It looked like it was holding five stone orbs with different symbols on each. Whatever they meant, he didn’t care. All he knew was that it was taking up a lot of space. But, then again, this room would most likely not be used all that much, since there was no ceiling.
“Lone Wolf,” came a cry that shook the stallion from his thought. He turned to see a young, bat pony colt running towards him. “You have to come quick. I think I know whose castle this is.”
Slightly worried, Lone Wolf followed the colt down a hallway, up a flight of stairs, and then down two more hallways, until finally they reached their destination. In the room were several other bat ponies, who were gathered around a wall painting. As soon as Wolf saw what it was, he began to grind his teeth.
It was Celestia! It showed her, larger than life, with her wings spread over all of Equestria. The only thing that seemed to be above her was the sun. Below her were ponies who seemed to be praising her.
‘So, this castle once belonged to the oh-so-great Sun Princess,’ thought Lone Wolf as he felt his anger rise. There were few bat ponies who didn’t hate Celestia for one reason or another.
For Lone Wolf, it was because he had once heard her speak out against the poor treatment of bat ponies. He had listened, hoping that she would announce some law or something. Some sort of shelter program for bat ponies who needed some place to go. Open up jobs that were best suited for bat ponies perhaps. But, she didn’t do any of that. She was basically waving a hoof in front of all the ponies who were there, saying to behave and then walked back into her sheltered, pampered life!
It infuriated Lone Wolf. Were they not also citizens of Equestria? If so, then why were they treated as such? Why didn’t Celestia do something more to help them? Where was her great love and compassion for all creatures, when it came to them?
Feeling his rage get the better of him, Wolf lunged at the painting and bucked it. On impact, the wall began to crumble away, leaving a mound of rubble behind him. All of the bat ponies let out a gasp of surprise and Wolf turned to look behind him. What he saw caused his jaw to drop.
For some reason, there was another wall behind the one he had knocked down. And, on this wall was another painting. Celestia was on this one as well, but there was a line down the middle, and on the other side of that line was a blue alicorn. On Celestia’s side, it looked like it was daytime and she was flanked by a dozen or so pegasi guards. On the side of the blue alicorn, it was nighttime and she was flanked by only two ponies. Two bat ponies.
Lone Wolf could not believe his eye. Slowly, he approached the painting to touch it, just to make sure it was real. However, once he got close, some kind of magical barrier appeared and repealed his hoof. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that there was a magical protection spell placed on this painting to keep it safe. For whatever reason, some pony had tried to hide this wall painting, but in order to do that had to make another wall in front of it due to the protection magic.
“Who is that?” asked one bat pony.
“I think its Nightmare Moon,” said another. “But, why is she standing next to Princess Celestia?”
Lone Wolf didn’t have an answer. But, as he looked up at the two bat ponies, he saw something in them. Something that he hadn’t seen in a bat pony in a long, long time. Pride.
-x-
“This is unbearable,” muttered Sunset, lifting her pickaxe above her head. She had been working with this primitive tool for over an hour now. Other workers in the TOM were given state-of-the-art laser drilling tools that made the work much easier. Apparently, they believed that she might use one of them as a weapon. Not like she could really do anything with two armed members of the Royal Guard watching her every move.
As she struck the rock in front of her, she imagined she was striking Twilight’s head. In her mind, she still blamed Twilight for her current situation. She had lost her home, her job, and everything else, all because of her. It was because of Twilight, she was forced to live in a tiny, two room cabin while being monitored like a common criminal. The only luxury item was a small radio she could listen to.
After a few more minutes of chipping away at the rock, the music stopped and was replaced by the voice of Vinyl Scratch.
“Well, I hope you all enjoyed all those wicked jams tonight,” said the DJ pony with a laugh. “But, sadly it’s time for me to hit the road and turn you over to Tune In.”
‘Good,’ thought Sunset as she hit the rock once more. ‘At least now I won’t have to hear your annoying voice anymore.’
“But, before I leave for the night, I got some killer news for all you rocking ponies out there,” continued Vinyl. “Earlier yesterday morning, Captain Shadow Blade of the Royal Guard proposed to Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle. Naturally, she said yes! In a few months the two of them will be wed in the castle, making them the first to ever receive this honor. Twilight’s newly adopted daughter, Scootaloo, was overjoyed when she heard the news.”
Vinyl continued to go into a bit more detail, but Sunset was no longer listening. Her pupils shrank until they were the size of pin needles. Her jaw tightened, while her teeth began to grind against each other.
‘No FAIR!’ she screamed in her mind. ‘Now Twilight is getting married, and her wedding is being held at the castle?! That should be me!
‘Wait a second; she has a daughter named Scootaloo? That’s the stupid looking filly that Lightning Dust was talking to at the dinner. She was the one who defeated my Troopers! I’ll make them BOTH pay!’
With that, Sunset swung her pickaxe once more, causing the rock to be cut in half.
The audience hall in Canterlot castle was completely quiet after Luna made her announcement. Princess Celestia stood there with a look of shock on her face. Her plan should have worked. Luna should have gone to see their mother, who would tell her to do the right thing. So, why wasn’t Luna doing that?
“S-Sister, I don’t understand,” stammered Celestia. Luna had, until this moment, had been looking at Celestia in a very calm manner. Like she was doing nothing out of the ordinary. But, as soon as Celestia spoke, her eyes narrowed slightly.
“Princess,” said Luna simply.
“I don’t understand,” replied Celestia.
“You will refer to me as Princess Luna,” stated Luna in a serious tone. “The mare that stands before you is a ruler of her own country and will be treated as such. Unless, of course, this is how you treat all delegates for other nations.”
“But, I don’t understand, sister,” said Celestia, earning a glare from the other mare. “Our nations should merge. Didn’t mother tell you-”
“She told me to do what is best for my little ponies,” interrupted Luna. “With your ability to plan things out for the long run, I’m surprised that you couldn’t see the problems with our two countries merging. There are just so many problems that if we did, it would only be a disaster.”
“Such as?” asked Celestia.
“First off is the way your ponies treat bat ponies and view the Republic,” began Luna. “Bat ponies are treated only slightly better than they were when I left. According to Twilight Sparkle’s report, your ponies believe that they are born thieves and scum.
“Then, there are of those rumors like drinking blood or having supernatural powers. You should also remember that I saw the state that poor filly was in. Rather than fixing the mess yourself, instead you passed it on to Princess Cadence, which speaks volumes to me. The bat ponies in the Republic will refuse to take this kind of injustice if we are to merge.
“While the view your ponies have of bat ponies is bad, their opinion of the Republic is far worse. The only time we are mentioned are in children’s books and are depicted as the boogey mare! That we come to Equestria once a year to eat foals and do horrible things. The books, that aren’t from the children’s fantasy section, say that we were the ones who set fire to Hoofshire and left to avoid being punished.
“In the end, the views your ponies have about mine are still the same. They see us as monsters! If our nations were to merge, then my ponies will eventually have nowhere left to run to. When that happens, they will fight back, which will result in a civil war, causing far more chaos than there is now!
“Then, there is the difference in our two countries’ technology. My ponies have almost perfected nanotechnology; have working anti-gravity technology, cold fusion generators, and, someday soon, inter-planetary travel. Your ponies, on the other hoof, have only recently realized that steam can be used as a power source. Not a very effective one, but still a power source just the same.
“My ponies have worked long and hard to develop what we have today. For your ponies to simply be granted access to this technology due to a merger would be a crime. You would not have earned it, and thus, have no respect for it. In the end, you and your ponies would either abuse it or be destroyed by it.
“Let’s not forget how different our governments are. You have your nobles, while I have my senate. My ponies are used to voting for their government officials. They are used to having a say in how their government is run. How do you think they will feel when your nobles take over? Once again, all I can see ahead of us is more fighting leading to bloodshed.
“Lastly, Princess Celestia, there is the simple fact that I don’t trust you. When I first came to this castle, I found out that you had done very little to fix the mess that was created over a thousand years ago. I then found out you were withholding even more information that was important to the merger. You not only invaded my country, but also my dreams. You attempted to manipulate my actions to suit your needs, as though I were a chess piece. Nor will I allow you to do the same to my subjects!
“Even now, you only see me as your little sister. For years, I ruled beside you and later built a nation, which I ruler over for the past thousand years. Yet, still you treat me like a filly, only telling me what you think I am able to handle or should know. You keep the details to your great plans a secret, never truly trusting anypony else. If that is how you intend to treat me, then this merger will defiantly not take place. I will not be shoved into a corner, as you make decisions over my little ponies that I have ruled over for a thousand years.”
As Luna spoke, Celestia hung her head in shame. Everything her sister was saying was true. There were so many differences between the two countries that just merging them together would just cause more problems than solving them. Normally, Celestia would have thought that Luna was speaking in anger, but that wasn’t the case this time. Her sister had spoken to her calmly, and in a well thought out manner.
But, was Luna right about how she treated her?
Back when they both started to rule over Equestria, Luna had no idea what she was doing. So, she had helped her sister out, gently guiding her without her knowing. Yet, as time went on, she had never stopped. She never considered that Luna, the rash and easily angered pony, didn’t always need her help. She never thought that Luna could have her own ideas that might be better than her own.
Celestia then began to think about other things. Like with Sombra and the Crystal Empire. Even to this day, Celestia believed that she made the right choice in not killing the evil emperor.
However, perhaps she should have made Luna feel like she was being heard. Or, maybe even tell her about the spies. Just the act of including her might have made her feel like she really was a co-ruler. That she wasn’t sitting in a corner as Celestia ran things.
But now, it was too late and Celestia knew it. It was time for her to accept the truth. The alicorn in front of her wasn’t the same filly she used to read stories to calm her down when it was storming outside. Instead, there was a mare who had worked hard every day of her life. One who had built a powerful nation out of nothing. Standing before her was the ruler of the Lunar Republic, Princess Luna.
“That being said,” continued Luna, “we cannot leave things as they are.” When Celestia heard that, her head whipped up at lightning speed. She stared at Luna with a mixture of shock and hope.
“What do you mean by that?” asked Princess Celestia.
Luna dug her hoof into the floor for a moment before speaking. “What I mean is that if things remain as they are, it will only get worse. You saw what happened a thousand years ago, to the ponies who enjoyed my nights. After a few years, hostility began to grow. Sooner or later, the same thing might happen again. My senators believe that, for the moment, we are safe.”
Celestia nodded. “It takes a great amount of magic to travel to the moon,” she said. “It’s not something an average unicorn can do.” She didn’t bring up the teleportation spell defenses that she knew the Republic had. They had been able to redirect her spell into an anti-magic cell with ease.
However, as she thought about this, Celestia began to wonder if that kind of defenses were only at the castle. It made some sense since it would keep out anypony who might try to sneak in and cause trouble. But, if it were everywhere, then it would be a great inconvenience to other unicorns. Or, at least that was her assumption.
“But, several unicorn working together would stand a better chance,” Luna said. “I am many things, Princess Celestia. But, one of the things I am not is blind. I know how fragile the Republic truly is. If we are caught off guard, a single pony could do a considerable amount of damage.
“As I said, your ponies hate and fear mine. While I mostly blame you for that, I cannot deny holding some of that blame myself. I kept my ponies isolated in order to keep us safe. And, without the truth, the ponies in Equestria made it up themselves. This must be corrected as soon as possible.
“To do this, I will make this proposal: an alliance. It will be a small one at first. We will due light trading, as well as allow a few ponies to travel to each other’s nations. We will both be allowed to have an embassy as well.
“However, the Republic will not assist in your wars. Instead, we will provide a third party that will hopefully help avoid war. The only times the Republic will get involved is if there is a serious threat, like Discord. As time goes on, we will talk about adjusting this alliance, depending on how things either improve or get worse. Do you accept?”
“Yes!” cried Celestia happily. This wasn’t what she had really wanted, but it was better than nothing at all. In fact, having this alliance right now could really save Equestria.
“Very well then,” said Luna with a nod. “I will now be heading-”
“Before you go, Princess Luna,” interrupted Celestia quickly. “There is something that I must show you as part of our new found alliance.”
Luna eyed Celestia for a moment. While she did like the fact that Celestia was using her title, she was a little concerned. The last time she had been planet-side, she thought she had seen, as well as heard, the worst that was going on. Was Celestia hiding something else from her? Something worse than what has happening to bat ponies, as well as how her own ponies were being viewed?
At the very least, Celestia was now informing her. That was something at least. So, with a nod, Luna began to follow Celestia as she led the two out of the throne room.
-x-
“I DON’T BUCKING BELIEVE YOU!”
All over Canterlot, Luna’s voice could be heard. In the city area, the Canterlot locals, who normally walk around with their noses in the air, jumped up in fright. Many began to look around for the source of the noise, but couldn’t find anything other than hundreds of birds taking to the air. So, they did what seemed most logical to them, they stuck their noses back into the air, and continued along their way as if nothing had happened.
But, closer to Canterlot Castle, the effects of Luna’s voice could be more easily noticed. Many trees close to the royal garden had lost their leaves, and some had fallen over. The guards who were in the area had temporarily lost their hearing. Even Celestia herself was not immune to her sister’s volume as she was knocked back several yards with a ringing in her ears. In fact, the only thing that was still standing near the lunar princess was the statue of Discord, which now had several more cracks on it.
Luna herself was panting as she did her best to keep her anger in check. It had been a very, very long time since she had yelled like that. But, then again, it had been a long, long time since anything had angered her this much.
“I don’t believe this,” growled Luna. “Discord’s banishment was supposed to last for at least a few more years. How could you allow this to happen?! And, why is his statue out in the middle of a bucking garden in plain sight? What if some crazy cult stole him in order to resurrect him? And why-”
“You can berate me latter, Princess Luna,” said Celestia, struggling to stand up. “Don’t you think that patching up Discord takes a bit more priority?”
Luna snorted, but otherwise didn’t respond. She knew that Celestia was right. She turned to face the statue, and a few moments later, Celestia joined her. As soon as they were standing side by side their horns began to glow.
The two of them then began to focus all of their magic on the cracks, which began to glow either gold or blue. For several long minutes, the two princesses watched as the cracks began to shrink. Some even disappeared completely.
This took several long minutes to complete. When they were final finished, the two alicorns fell to the ground, panting. Yet, their relief was very short lived. They both heard the stone begin to crack again, and when they looked up, they saw some of the cracks that they fixed returning.
“This isn’t good,” growled Luna as she struggled to get back on her hooves. “I hoped we had at least a few years. But, by the looks of things, we will be lucky to have a few months.”
“Now you can see what we are dealing with,” said Celestia, walking over to her sister. “We must set aside our differences and work together, so we will be ready for the upcoming danger. Princess Luna, war might be in Equestria’s future. If that is to happen, Discord will be freed sooner. Bringing together the Elements of Harmony are our best bet right now.”
Luna glared at her sister. Oh, she was pissed. There was no doubt about that. But, she knew that this wasn’t the time to let her anger rule her. Grinding her teeth together, she had to admit that Celestia was right. That is, if she didn’t want to use Operation Umbrella.
“Very well, then,” said Luna. “So tell me, how do you propose we proceed?”
“We will go forward in the alliance you suggested,” replied Celestia. “I will gather my five Element holders, and have them sent to the Republic as part of a learning journey. While they are there, they can meet your Element holder, while at the same time getting to know the ponies of the Republic.
“That way, when they return, they can help change the views my ponies have of yours. While they are doing this, hopefully you can help me talk with the griffons, so that we can avoid war. Once they feel the spark of friendship, we shall bring them to where I have hidden the Elements of Harmony.”
“I have to admit, that does sound like the best course of action right now,” replied Luna. “Very well, then. But, just where are the Elements?”
“I have them hidden in our old, abandoned castle,” replied Celestia. Luna did not seem happy to hear this. A look of shock, rage, and horror appeared on her face.
“You mean to tell me that you left the most powerful objects, known to ponykind, in an old castle, where anypony can just walk up and take them?” demanded Luna as her eye began to twitch. “Not in a vault or anything like that? Please tell me they aren’t still on display where we left them a thousand years ago.” Rather than answering, Celestia looked away, causing Luna’s face to turn red. “Why the buck would you do something that BUCKING STUPID?!”
“Because no pony goes into the Everfree Forest anymore,” replied Celestia.
“That you know of!” snapped Luna.
“Princess Luna, please,” begged Celestia, pointing a hoof at the statue of Discord. Luna turned to look at it, finding there were more cracks in it.
“Fine,” said Luna through gritted teeth. “I will return to the Republic and inform Twilight what is going on.”
“Be sure not to tell her that she is the Element of Magic,” said Celestia.
Luna gaped at her sister. She figured that somepony like Celestia had a better chance at figuring out that Twilight would be the one to receive the Element of Magic, but it was still a shock to hear it.
“Are you asking me to lie and manipulate Twilight?” demanded Luna. Celestia nodded. “I refuse. Twilight is smart enough to handle this information. S-She is like a daughter to me. I trust her as much as she trusts me. I refuse to break that trust for no reason.”
“It needs to be like this, Princess Luna,” noted Celestia sternly. “Friendship needs to be forged naturally. If you tell Twilight, you risk the chance of her pretending to be their friend, just to please you. I know how much you care for her, but think about the wellbeing of all your subjects.”
Luna heard what Celestia was saying. Her subjects’ wellbeing had to come first. Telling Twilight might put them at risk. But, at the same time, she knew Twilight very well. She would never fake or lie about something this important.
Luna turned around so she couldn’t see Celestia giving her a ‘you know I’m right’ look. After she had done so, Luna noticed one of Discord’s cracked toes. After staring at it for a moment, she got an idea. Now all she needed was to wait for the right moment, for she knew Celestia would never go along with this.
“Very well,” said Luna as she walked past Celestia. “I shall do as you request. But, before I take my leave, there are a few things from my room that I would like to take with me this time.”
“Of course,” said Celestia as Luna walked past her.
-x-
About an hour later, Celestia sat on her throne. Luna had left about a half hour ago, carrying with her several small items, like her stuff teddy ursa minor. She watched as the night princess walked back out into the garden, and then vanished a few moments later.
“Am I interrupting anything, Princess,” came a voice behind her. Celestia turned around to see a unicorn stallion wrapped in a black cloak.
“Not at the moment, Stalker,” replied the sun princess. “So tell me, is there anything I should be worried about.”
“About Blueblood?” asked Stalker. “No, I have been following him all night. Right now, he’s just finishing up a late breakfast with some of the other nobles. Had to listen to them whine about how this lack of sleep will affect their looks.”
“I see,” said Celestia with a smile. “Looks like his change of heart might be genuine.”
“I guess,” said Stalker as he began to fade away. As he walked away, he could feel a large bag of bits pressing against his body. ‘Blueblood is lucky he pays so well,’ he thought with a sigh.
Twilight walked out of the platform station with Scootaloo in tow, along with several other ponies. The purple mare had some light bags under her eyes from staying up most of the night, only getting in a quick nap. The young filly’s saddle bags contained several books to study.
Twilight hadn’t wanted to take the young pegasus to work with her, but there was no other option. Originally, Derpy had volunteered to foalsit Scootaloo, as well as her own daughter. However, due to the situation going on at the castle, she had to go to work. In fact, nearly everypony who worked there was going to work. This was most likely due to Princess Luna leaving in the middle of the night.
Twilight could only imagine how scared and confused everypony was right now. Rumors had already begun to circulate. Some said that Princess Luna had gone down to the planet to fight Celestia, while others said she was trying to take what the Republic needed. Twilight had also heard, from some of the royal guards, no less, that Gigawatt was trying to get the other Senators to go to war.
Luckily, Senator Land Share held firm to the letter of the law saying that only Princess Luna can issue a war vote. The only exceptions to this were if she had been captured or incapacitated. Without proof of either, they could not proceed.
While this was good news for Twilight, she was still worried. She had no idea what her Princess was doing right now. Nor did she have any idea what was going to happen next. It was like there was an error in their computer systems that was causing everything to go wacky, that would eventually led to something horrible.
“Ah, Mom,” said Scootaloo behind her. When Twilight heard this, her eyes widened with some confusion. Did Scootaloo just call her Mom? Quickly, she turned her head to look at the filly.
“Did you just call me Mom?” she asked. There was no anger in her voice or anything to suggest that she was upset. Just a little confused.
“Y-Yeah,” stammered Scootaloo. “Is it ok if I call you that?”
“Yes, of course it is,” said Twilight with a smile. “It’s just that I’m surprised that you started to call me that so soon.”
“Oh,” said Scootaloo as she scratched the back of her head while looked a little embarrassed. “Well, last night Midnight called you my mom and it felt really good. Back in Equestria, I always imagined what it would be like to have a mom. She’d be able to help me with my homework, cook amazing meals, and be awesome! And that’s what you’ve been so far.”
For a moment, Twilight didn’t say or do anything. She just stood there with her head lowered. As time passed, Scootaloo began to wonder what was going on. Twilight had said that calling her mom was ok, didn’t she?
Before Scootaloo could ask what was wrong, Twilight raised her head to show the filly the tears running down her smiling face. Then, Twilight quickly wrapped Scootaloo in a big hug.
‘If only Mom and Dad could have met you,’ thought Twilight.
Scootaloo, at first, was a bit uncomfortable with the hug. It was, well, too cheesy for her tastes. But, after a few moments, she began to feel the same warmth that she felt last night. It was coming from inside her.
It was a warmth that told her that this was alright. That everything would be ok. And, Scootaloo began to wonder if this was what a mother’s love felt like. And, if it was, then she liked it.
-x-
Meanwhile, in Equestria, Applejack was heading to her family’s farm as fast as she could. It was only several minutes ago when their flying chariot had landed in Ponyville, but it wasn’t going anywhere for at least another hour. That was how long she had to get packed for a very important trip.
After seeing Princess Cadence off, the farming mare thought that she and her friends would be heading straight home. Instead, waiting in front of their ride home was none other than Princess Celestia. To their surprise, she announced that they would be the first ponies from Equestria to visit the Lunar Republic. Not only that, they were leaving today!
Applejack, Fluttershy, and (to everypony’s surprise) Rarity stated that they couldn’t go. According to Rarity, she had a mountain of orders she had to finish and that this trip had already put her far behind. Applejack said that she had been away from the farm long enough, and that she had to get back to work. Finally, Fluttershy informed the princess that she had to take care of her animal friends. Before she had left, she made sure that they had plenty of food for a couple of days. Any longer and they might go hungry.
Rather than being put off, Princess Celestia promised them that everything would be taken care of. She would have one of the royal dressmakers take care of Rarity’s shop, the royal grounds keeper look after Fluttershy’s cottage, and have several guards help out at Applejack’s farm. She was also going to let them head home to pack and say their goodbyes.
So, there Applejack was, heading back to her house as fast as her four legs could carry her. When she saw the front door, she came to a screeching halt. As she prepared to open the door, her ears stood up as she heard two ponies laughing inside. One of them was Apple Bloom, but she had no idea who the other was. It sounded like another mare.
When Applejack opened the door, the laughing stopped. She turned her head to look into the kitchen to see her sister and the other pony covered in flour. On the kitchen table were several pie tins.
“Howdy, sis,” said a happy Apple Bloom as the other mare took a few steps back. “We all thought ya’d never get home. What took ya?”
“I’m sorry, Apple Bloom,” replied Applejack. “Things kind of got a bit complicated. Ah wish ah could stay and tell ya more, but ah got ta get going soon.”
Apple Bloom opened her mouth to ask why, but at that moment Granny Smith walked into the room. The elderly mare surveyed the kitchen with her ancient eyes for a moment, taking in the mess and the lack of pies in the oven.
“Hurry up, ya silly fillies,” said Granny. “We got ta make at least a dozen apple pies before noon. Now shake ya caboose, Apple Bloom. Ya too, Zecora.”
At the mention of that name, several ponies in the room had different reactions. Applejack’s eyes went wide when she realized that the flour-covered mare was the evil enchantress of the Everfree Forest. Apple Bloom looked surprised and confused as her sisters eyes narrowed at her new friend. Zecora simply facehoofed.
“What in tarnation is she doing here?!” demanded Applejack. Then, to her great surprise, both Apple Bloom and Granny Smith moved so that they were in-between them. “What’s goin on with ya two? Don’t ya know who that is?”
“Applejack,” said Granny Smith in her best nagging voice. “Is that how we treat a guest of the Apple family? No siree!”
“There’s nothing to worry about sis,” said Apple Bloom. “Zecora is a nice pony.”
“Nothin’ to worry about?!” yelled Applejack. “Don’t ya all know what ponies say about her?!”
Zecora let out a sigh. “I did not mean for my presence to cause a feud. Please listen to my story before you brood.”
Applejack looked at Zecora for a moment before looking at her family. Granny Smith was giving her a disappointed glare, the same one she always gave her whenever she messed up. Apple Bloom, on the other hoof, was giving her an innocent pleading look. Snorting in frustration, Applejack sat her plot on the ground. She would listen to Zecora and that was all she could promise at this point.
-x-
“Ok,” said Twilight after their hug ended and she wiped away her tears. “W-We’d better get going or else I’ll be late for work.”
“Do you think we can visit Shadow first?” asked Scootaloo. “I’d like to see where the Royal Guard trains!”
Twilight thought about this for a moment. The training grounds were along the way, so it wouldn’t take up too much of their time. Also, she wanted to see how Shadow was doing. Twilight knew he could take care of himself and all, but with everything that was going on, seeing him would be a big relief.
Of course, Twilight knew the most likely reason why Scootaloo wanted to see the training grounds. Last time she was in Scootaloo’s room, she had noticed one of the pamphlets the pegasus had brought back from the programming office had been taped to the wall. It was one for the royal guard.
“Well, now that I think about it,” said Twilight as she scratched her chin with her hoof. “I believe the Department of Research and Development is revealing a new fighter jet today. Might as well take a look.”
Scootaloo let out a cheer as the two hurried over to the training fields. But, when they got there, the two were greeted by an odd sight. Usually the field would be full of ponies in various forms of simulated combat, weapons training, or doing exercises. Instead, they saw that everypony was crowded up in the middle while looking up at the sky. Slowly, the two walked over to Lightning Dust, who continued to stare at the sky above without even noticing that they were standing next to her.
Finally, the two looked up to see what the big deal was. When Scootaloo saw it, her jaw dropped. It was a craft that moved faster than anything Scootaloo had ever seen before. It was almost half the size of her old school in Equestria with long silver wings. Whoever was piloting it was doing some impressive stunt work, like barrel rolls and the like.
Then, from underneath its wings, it fired six objects towards the opposite side of the grounds where nopony was. When they hit the ground, they erupted in a huge ball of fire. Moments later, the dirt that was shot up into the air began to fall on the crowd. Luckily for them, Twilight saw this and reacted by creating a magical barrier to protect them.
Just then, the fighter jet began to hover in the air, before it slowly began to lower itself to the ground. As it got closer, Scootaloo noticed a pair of strong metal legs that looked a bit like a chickens coming out of the fighter near the back. Also, two more smaller objects that looked like cylinders come out near the front. Once it landed, the fighter walked over to an area that had target dummies. From the cylinders came red laser blasts that shot holes right through all of the targets.
As all of the Royal Guard, as well as Scootaloo, began to cheer, the filly realized something. Sure, the legs did remind her of a chicken. A chicken of pure metal awesomeness!
There was, however, one pony who was not impressed. ‘That is what all those bits went into,’ thought Twilight with a frown. ‘What’s next, a high tech suit of armor?’
“Ok everypony,” came Shadow’s voice. The young filly moved to the outer edge of the crowd to see Shadow Blade standing in front of them in his armor. “This concludes the field test of the latest addition: the Windigo! Now let’s hear it for the inventor of this fine machine, as well as the pilot, Poindexter!”
The hatch on the Windigo opened up to reveal the nerdiest looking stallion Scootaloo had ever seen. He was a white earth pony with a slicked back brown mane wearing a green bowtie and thick glasses. As he tried to get out of the metal awesomeness, the stallion tripped and landed on his head. In this position, Scootaloo could see that his cutie mark was some kind of robotic figure.
Poindexter then rolled onto his back. “I-I’m ok,” he said as he touched his head with one of his front hooves. “Just feeling a little…dizzy.”
“Private Silent Strike,” yelled Shadow. A moment later, one of the unicorn guards appeared next to him. “Take him to the medical wing.” The unicorn saluted his commanding officer before picking up the fallen scientist and taking him to see a doctor.
“The rest of you, I want to see you all sparing.” This received a collective groan. “I know you all want to try the latest toy, but you will have to wait. Now, if I catch any of you paying more attention to the Windigo, then you will be giving me fifteen laps in the gravity hall. And it’ll be set to three times normal gravity.”
As soon as he finished speaking, all of the guards raced to begin their training while Shadow let out a little laugh. Once they were all on their way, Shadow notice his fiancé along with Scootaloo.
“That thing is awesome,” said Scootaloo, racing over to Shadow.
“It is, isn’t it?” replied Shadow.
“I guess,” said a slightly unimpressed Twilight. “I just don’t see why it needs legs.” This earned her a stare from the two.
“Well,” began Shadow. “Poindexter is a fan of those old cartoons. You know, the ones with the colts who piloted those giant mechs? Can’t remember what it was called. But, anyways, he’s always wanted to make one and the Windigo is the first prototype.”
“But, we have tanks that can fire laser cannons that can fire six times the energy that that thing does,” replied Twilight. “I will admit that it can only fire one blast at a time and then takes six seconds to recharge, while the Windigo can fire multiple energy blasts without needing to recharge, but that’s its only improvement. Also, the hover tanks are far more maneuverable on land.”
“Sometimes, you just have to go for style points,” said a voice behind the purple mare, causing her to jump. When she landed, Twilight turned around to see Land Share’s smiling face. “Trust me, Twilight, some ponies just prefer things like that.”
“What brings you out here, Uncle Land Share?” asked Twilight as she hugged the old stallion.
“Just doing a favor for the princess,” he replied. “The senate just got out of a meeting with the princess.”
“She’s back?” asked a relieved Twilight.
Land Share nodded. “Yes and she wants to see you,” he said. “Since Derpy is busy right now, I volunteered to get you. This works out pretty well for me, since I also needed to talk to you. I wanted to invite you to lunch at my place. You know, to celebrate your adoption and upcoming wedding.”
“I’d love to go,” said Twilight with a smile. “It’s been so long since we had shared a meal.”
“Good, but I think there might be some company,” noted Land Share with an odd look on his face. “Anyways, we’d better get going.”
Before Twilight took a step, she realized that she forgot about Scootaloo. A meeting with the princess might take a while and were usually private. She couldn’t leave Scootaloo sitting outside the door for an unknown amount of time. Luckily for her, Shadow realized the situation and had already come up with a solution.
“Why don’t you leave Scootaloo here with me,” said the bat pony. “While you’re with the princess, we can get some flying in.”
The orange filly’s wings buzzed with excitement. “That sound awesome,” she said happily. “Can I, Mom?”
When Shadow heard this, he looked at Twilight with a raised eyebrow. He felt that it was a little fast for Scootaloo to be calling her that. But, when he saw the happiness in Twilight’s eyes, it no longer mattered.
“I suppose so,” said Twilight. “It’ll give the two of you some future father-daughter bonding time.”
“Well then, now that that’s settled,” said Land Share as he got eveypony’s attention. “We really have to get going. I also have to inform you, Twilight, on just what is going on.”
-x-
“Now Apple Bloom, I want ya ta promise me that ya’ll be careful while Ah’m away,” said Applejack as she and her sister made their way to where the chariot was.
“Ah will,” said Apple Bloom for the thousandth time. “Geez, ya said you were fine with Zecora staying with us.”
This was true, to a point. She had, as promised, listened to Zecora’s story, believing that nothing the zebra said would change her mind. At first, she was right. She could understand why the good ponies of Ponyville would believe that Zecora would do something like that.
But, as the story continued, Applejack began to think back to the events of the last couple days. She remembered how she treated Shadow with fear and mistrust, because of what other ponies said about bat ponies. Then, she thought about Twilight, who was from the Lunar Republic. If she had told the farmer mare where she really was from, then Applejack knew she would have treated Twilight like a monster. Now that she knew the full truth, she didn’t blame either one of them for being upset with her and Equestria.
Then, her thoughts turned towards Zecora. The simple truth was that all she knew about her was from the rumors. She had never seen her do anything wrong nor do anything that could suggest that she had evil intensions. In fact, this was the first time the two of them had really spoken to each other.
As she looked the zebra over, Applejack noted the wounds she received. Zecora paused before talking about how she got them. She looked at Apple Bloom before saying that she got hurt, and then moving on. This gesture didn’t go unnoticed by either Applejack or Granny Smith. Zecora didn’t want Apple Bloom to hear the details of what she went through.
When the story was done, Applejack didn’t know what to think. On one hoof, she still felt there was something off about Zecora. Maybe it was because she talked weird or looked weird, or whatever. On the other hoof, the rest of her family let her stay at the farm. And, if they were willing to give her a chance, then maybe Applejack should too.
But, that didn’t mean she wanted her little sister to let her guard down.
“Ah just worry about ya sometimes,” said Applejack as they got close to the meeting spot. Looking dead ahead, Applejack could see everypony was there, except Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie was there with balloons tied to her waist. Fluttershy was there with her animal friends as she said goodbye to each and every one of them. And Rarity was dressed in some fancy blue dress, observing ahead toward another little filly that was putting her bags in the chariot.
“Sis, could you please lend a hoof?” asked the filly.
“And get this dress dirty?!” gasped Rarity. “Never! We are going to be representing not just Ponyville, but all of Equestria, so we simply must look our best.”
“Well, why don’t ya help Sweetie Belle out with your magic?” asked Apple Bloom.
“Well,” said Rarity slowly. “I guess that won’t be too much work. Don’t want to get a stain on this dress, after all.” She then sighed. “Very well, then.” With that, all of her seventeen bags were lifted into the air before being neatly placed in the chariot. While this situation was taken care of, a new problem was noticed by everypony, except Rarity.
“Great, now where do ya suppose the rest of us are goin’ sit?” asked Applejack.
“Well, it’s not my fault that-” began Rarity before Rainbow Dash crashed into her. The two ponies rolled around in the dirt for a few seconds before stopping in a muddy puddle. “MY DRESS! Rainbow Dash, I know you are used to-”
“Sorry,” interrupted Rainbow, getting to her hooves. “But, I just found out something big! Did any of you hear that Scootaloo has gone missing?” A few of the ponies nodded their heads. “Well, it turns out she’s in the Republic!”
-x-
“Come in,” said Princess Luna after hearing somepony knocking on the door to her private chambers. The door opened, revealing Twilight Sparkle. The Moon Princess smiled as her student walked in. “Good morning, Twilight. I take it you heard about what’s going on?”
“Yes,” replied the purple unicorn. “Land Share told me about the alliance.”
“And?” asked Luna.
“I think it better than merging with Equestria,” answered Twilight honestly. “Not only will we get what we need, but we will also keep our independence. Plus, over time, Equestria will see us for what we really are. But, by allowing ponies from Equestria into the Republic, we run the risk of them attacking us.”
“Senator Gigawatt said the same thing,” replied the princess. “Steps are already being taken to ensure that something like that doesn’t happen. Now then, do you know why I wanted to see you?”
“Uh, no actually,” replied Twilight.
“I called you here because I have an important mission for you,” said Luna. “Later today, Equestria will be sending their representatives to the Republic. I want you to show them around.”
“But, why me?” asked Twilight. “I mean, sure, I was down there for a while with Shadow, but surely there are ponies better qualified for something like this?”
Luna let out a soft sigh. ‘It’s now or never,’ she thought to herself.
“Twilight, what I’m about to tell you is something that my sister doesn’t want me to,” said Luna. “But, I’m going to anyways, because I believe you are ready to hear it.” Twilight’s eyes widened when she heard this. All kinds of possibilities raced through her head as she tried to figure out what it could be.
“Long ago,” began Luna, “my sister and I used several powerful artifacts, known as the Elements of Harmony, to fight the most powerful evil forces on the planet. The Elements were capable of doing what normal magic couldn’t. However, not just any pony could use them. Only ponies who represented each of the six Elements could use them. The Elements are Laughter, Honesty, Kindness, Generosity, Loyalty, and Magic. But, when I left Equestria, the connection we had to the Elements vanished.
“Over time, the Elements reached out to various ponies. Some had a strong link, while other had a weaker one. Sometimes, a few Elements found ponies that could be a bearer for their power, while at other times they couldn’t find any. It was only until a few years ago that all the Elements found ponies suitable to be new bearers.
“In Equestria, there are five. But, the sixth was born here in the Republic. And that is you, Twilight Sparkle.”
When Twilight heard that, her jaw dropped. How could that be true? She was no different from any other pony in the Republic. Ok, maybe she was a bit more knowledgeable than the average citizen. But, other than that, there was nothing that she felt made her worthy to be connected to such an amazing source of power.
“I don’t believe this,” said a shocked Twilight. Then, she looked up at Princess Luna. “How long have you known?”
“I knew you were a bearer the day your parents died,” replied Luna as she lowered her head.
Now, a new emotion entered Twilight: Rage. Princess Luna, the pony she trusted more than any other, had been keeping something like this a secret from her for years. She said that Princess Celestia told Luna not to tell her about this. Well, she didn’t have a problem with that before!
“Then, why didn’t you tell me?” demanded Twilight. “Why were you keeping this from me?!”
“Because, you had already been through enough,” replied Luna, which caught Twilight off guard. “You had just lost two of the most important ponies in your life. Reporters wanted to talk to you, wanting to talk to you about what happened in that cave-in. At the time, I thought that the connection you had with the Element was a temporary one. That you had instinctively called out to it with your magic in order to survive. So, I kept quiet and hoped that soon you could return to a normal life.
“As time went on, the link didn’t vanish. You entered my school and became my Prized Student. Again, I thought about telling you. But, I became aware that you were being bullied. Those students thought that I was giving you special attention. I thought that if I told you the truth, you might believe that as well. That I was only keeping you around, because of this link.
“So I let you live your life, like any other filly. Every day, I was so proud of you. You were once a shut in, but you worked past that to make many wonderful friends. You passed every test I gave with flying colors.
“And with all of your successes, you never let it change who you were inside. You remained the same kind filly I met all those years ago. You didn’t turn into an egotistical mare like some others. How could I not be proud of you?
“But then, I began to get letters from Celestia. She also sensed that the last Element had chosen its bearer. I became worried for you.
“I knew she wanted our countries to unite, so that she could get to the both of us. Me, her sister, and you, a new pawn. Once she had you, you would be sent on dangerous missions that should have gone to trained soldiers. I never wanted that kind of life for you.”
“That’s why you wanted the Department of Research and Development to find a way to stop enemies like Discord,” said a shocked Twilight.
“I started those long ago,” said Luna. “But, as time went by, I put more pressure in that department to make progress. I had hoped that the day would never come that I would have to tell you about the Elements.
“But, the situation has changed. We don’t have years until Discord awakens. We have months! I understand the need for the Elements, but I still refuse to let Celestia have you, just so she can use you. This alliance will allow you to remain a citizen of the Republic, so Celestia will have no power over you.”
“Princess,” whispered Twilight. All anger she had vanished. Princess Luna had done all of this for her own good. Because she cared about her.
And in the end, did it matter? She was still the same Twilight. Knowing this changed nothing about her past, for it could never be a lie. She had lived each day of her own free will. This was just some new data for the future.
“I understand,” said Twilight firmly. “And…I’m sorry I got mad at you.”
“There is no need to apologize,” said Luna with a smile. “I felt the same way every time I found out my sister kept something from me. It’s never pleasant to find out that somepony you trust is keeping something from you, no matter what the reason is. But, the reason can help speed up the forgiveness.”
Twilight nodded. “So, what happens now?”
“Now, we wait for the other bearers to arrive,” said Luna. “Sadly, they don’t know the real reason they are hear is to become your friend.”
“My what?” asked a shocked Twilight.
“Friendship is the key to awakening the full power of the Elements,” said Luna. “Without it, they will be useless.”
“Great,” sighed Twilight. “I just have to make friends with ponies who think that we’re monsters that eat fillies and colts. No pressure there.”
“Well, maybe this might help take some of that pressure off,” replied Luna as her horn began to glow. A moment later, a stone claw appeared in front of Twilight who took a hold of it with her magic. “This is one of Discord’s toenails. I took it with me after I talked with Celestia.”
“Did you tell her?” asked Twilight as she examined the object with great interest.
“No,” replied Luna. “She wants to use the Elements of Harmony to seal Discord away again. She has never considered any other possibilities. Perhaps reforming him, but that is much more risky. With this-”
“With this, we can test some of our anti-Discord technology,” interrupted Twilight with a gleam in her eye. “We might even be able to make sure that Operation Umbrella only affects Discord!”
“Very true, my little pony,” said Luna. “But, that doesn’t mean that I don’t want you to try and befriend those coming from Equestria. This isn’t just about Discord, but the fate of both the Republic and Equestria. Just keep an open mind. Who knows, after a while, you might realize you all have something in common.”
“Yes Princess,” said Twilight. “I’ll give them a chance.” And she meant that.
To say that the griffons were a brutal race would be untrue. Far from it, but it was understandable why so many of the races thought that. They were a warrior race, much like the pegasi were a thousand years ago. Their eyes were sharp during the day, able to see a fly bussing by from a block away. Their powerful claws have been known to rip a timberwolf to pieces with a single swipe. The land they inhabited, the Drakecrest Mountain Range, was an unforgiving piece of land where only the strong could survive.
Yet, griffon culture was very different from what many thought it was. Any griffon that had any sense of pride valued honor above all else. It was the corner stone of their very culture. An honorable griffon served his family, his community, and, above all else, his emperor. Those who thought only of themselves, or caused too much trouble for their neighbors, were shunned, eventually leaving the Drakecrest Mountains.
A griffon would wake up and start his or her day with a prayer to the family’s ancestors. Once that was done, the family would eat breakfast before going to work. A majority of griffons were peasants. Some worked in the rice fields, while other hunted for whatever game they could find. Then, there were those that built homes, traded, and so on.
The most well regarded profession in the griffon culture was the blacksmith. Griffon steel was the envy of all the races. Their sword and armor making skills were a well-kept secret. In any of the towns, a blacksmith held the same amount of respect as a noble. Those who had reached the highest level were then offered a place in the capital, where their work would be used for the good of the empire.
The capital of the griffon empire was known as known as the Talon Palace. It was built into a mountain that had once been an active volcano. Now the griffons used the heat and lava to not only to help some of the finest blacksmiths in the land, but also to save on coal during the winter months. After all, heating a place this large without magic was not cheap.
In his room was Emperor Eagle Eye, who sat in front of a table as he sipped his morning tea. He was a large, brown griffon with teal eyes, wearing silk robes that had a summer pattern on them. On the table in front of his was a 3D replica of his kingdom. This diorama had been made with the greatest of care and dated back to the time of his great grandfather. In that time, nothing had been added to it, except for three red X’s, which were giving Eagle Eye no small amount of grief.
As he was about to take another sip of tea, the emperor felt a tug on his robes. Turing his head around, he saw a sight that made him smile. On the floor was a four year old female griffon with golden feathers.
“Papa, papa,” she cried out happily, while bouncing up and down. “Play with me?”
The emperor’s smile fell. “I’m sorry, Goldie,” he said, causing his daughter to become still. “But, there is a really, really big mess that papa has to take care of.”
“W-What is it, papa?” asked Goldie.
“The tickle monster!” cried Eagle Eye as his smile quickly return. Goldie cried out in surprise as her father grabbed her and began to tickle her without any mercy. The young griffon struggled to get out of her father’s grasp, but he was too strong.
“Emperor,” came a loud voice above the laughter and giggling. Eagle Eye looked towards the door to see Tundra, his most trusted adviser, bowing to him at the doorway. He was a snow white griffon who wore red silk robes. Letting out a sigh, Eagle Eye released his daughter who looked both relieved and disappointed that their play time was interrupted.
“Rise, my friend,” said the emperor as he himself stood. “Please tell me that you do not come bearing bad news.”
“I am sorry, but I can’t do as you say,” replied Tundra as he pulled out two scrolls from his robes. “These came from Equestria. They require your most urgent attention.”
A groan escaped Eagle Eyes as he took both scrolls. He slowly opened the first one and began to read it silently. The scroll informed him of the death of the Captain of the Royal Guard, and that a griffon feather had been at the scene of the crime. It continued on with news that his embassy in Equestria was, at this very moment, surrounded by Celestia’s guard. The only good news was that they hadn’t invaded it yet.
As he finished reading, Eagle Eye felt mixed emotions. The first was anger at the idea that he would order something like that. True, ponies and griffons had been at odds for a very long time. But, just because a griffon killed a high ranking member of the Equestrian military, didn’t mean that it was under his orders.
Yet, there was also understanding. Celestia was doing her best to take care of her subjects, and had to be ready for the worst. She had to play things safe.
Once he was done with the first scroll, Eagle Eye began to read the second. Apparently Celestia wanted to meet with him later today in order to talk. The talks were to happen in a neutral country called the Lunar Republic.
“I take it you have read these already,” said Eagle Eye, setting down the scroll. It wasn’t the first time Tundra had done so. He usually read documents before the emperor, so that he had time to digest the information in order to better advise his ruler. Normally, reading such documents without the emperor’s approval would have been a serious offence. Eagle Eye, however, trusted Tundra with not only his life, but also that of his daughter.
“Yes,” said Tundra with a nod. “I do not recommend this. They accuse you of plotting, and then want you to go to a neutral location. I smell a trap.”
“Have you ever heard of this ‘Lunar Republic’?” asked Eagle Eye.
“No, my Emperor,” replied Tundra. “And we only have their word that they are neutral in all of this. The decision is easy.”
“Sadly, there is never an easy decision for any ruler,” replied Eagle Eye with a sigh. “If I agree to their terms, I run the risk of being captured in a foreign land. If I don’t, then it will make me look guilty, and might end in war.” Eagle Eye glanced at the diorama. “And, war is something that we cannot afford to have at this moment.”
“But-” began Tundra, however Eagle Eye held up a claw to silence him.
“I will agree to go, but not alone,” said the Emperor. “I will only go if I am allowed to take thirteen of my own warriors. They will consist of the fastest flyers we have. Now, while I’m away, I want you to prepare the army, in case something happens.”
Tundra opened his beak to say something, but Eagle Eye was no longer looking at him. Instead, he was looking at his daughter. The white griffon knew what his friend was thinking. He would go in the hopes of preventing a war. If this was a trap, or something went wrong, his soldiers would be forced to abandon him in order to war the empire.
“I will have everything ready for you,” said Tundra with a bow.
“Thank you,” said Eagle Eye as his friend walked out and closed the door behind him. Once he had, the emperor looked down upon his daughter with a smile. “Now then, how about we spend the next couple of hours playing? Just you and me.”
Goldie let out a cheer, happy to have her papa all to herself.
-x-
“Seriously, what is taking her so long?” asked Rainbow Dash aloud.
“Calm down, Rainbow,” said Applejack as she helped Rarity unload her luggage. “Fluttershy only left for the bathroom a few minutes ago.”
Rainbow sighed, tapping her hoof on the ground in order to ease her boredom. A short while ago, they were in Ponyville as the rainbow maned mare told everypony what she had found out about Scootaloo. Apparently, Miss Foster had been waiting for the letter that Rainbow had delivered and explained the situation. However, she was far from relieved as she read it aloud.
The girls were not alone as they heard this. Both Rainbow and Applejack noticed that, as Rainbow talked, several stallions looked shock, while other looked away with guilt written all over their faces. However, the strangest reactions were from Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle, who huddled together for a bit and began to whisper to each other. Then, they simply left without saying a word to anypony. Heck, Applejack and Rarity never saw their sisters leave.
Shortly after that, a second chariot from Canterlot arrived with the help Princess Celestia had promised them. Fluttershy made sure to tell the stallion, who would be looking after her animals, to treat them nicely. Rarity told the dress maker to simply follow the designs she had left for her. Applejack informed the three guards to listen to her brother at Sweet Apple Acres. Once that was done, the girls piled into the second chariot since Rarity’s luggage took up all the room.
After a while, the two chariots landed in front of an open plot of land in Canterlot. As the mares climbed out, Fluttershy excused herself to use the little filly’s room.
“Hmm, that’s odd,” said Rarity as she took out the last suitcase. “I was sure I only packed seventeen bags. Oh well, must of miscounted.”
“Ah good, you’re here,” said a familiar voice behind them. The girls turned around to see Prince Blueblood walking towards them, with Fluttershy next to him. For some reason, the yellow pegasus had a blush on her face.
“Fluttershy,” cried Rarity. “What are you doing with Prince Blueblood?”
“Well, I, um,” stammered Fluttershy, bringing a hoof to lightly touch her mane. For a moment, it looked like she was touching something inside of it.
“It’s very simple,” said Blueblood as he gently touched Fluttershy’s hoof, earning a squeak from the mare. “I was asked by my aunt to come see you off, since she couldn’t be here herself. Something about getting ready to go on a diplomatic mission with Princess Luna. On my way here, I ran into this lovely creature.”
“Really, is that all?” demanded Rarity. She hadn’t forgotten the last time she had seen Blueblood. She knew he thought himself above anypony that wasn’t a noble. So, why in the wide world of Equestria was he being so nice to Fluttershy? There had to be a reason.
“It is,” replied the prince as he pulled out a pocket watch. “Now then, where are those two?”
“Ah, who are ya talking about?” asked Applejack.
Before Blueblood could answer, there was a flash of pink that forced every pony, but Pinkie, to look away. Oddly, the pink mare had sunglasses already on. When the light died down, there stood Trixie and Spike.
“The Great and Powerful Trixie is here,” she announced, standing on her hind legs as fireworks shot out behind her. After that, there was a moment of silence before Spike spoke up, getting everypony’s attention.
“Seriously?” he asked before letting out a sigh. “Why couldn’t the princess just send me and Moon Dancer?”
“Is that a baby dragon?” asked Fluttershy. Not waiting for an answer, she rushed right towards and stopped as soon as they were face to face. “I’ve never seen a baby dragon before. Oh, I have so many questions!”
“Well, that will have to wait till later,” said Trixie. “The Great and Powerful Trixie has been given a job only Trixie can do. Spike here is only coming along, so that he can send progress reports to Princess Celestia. So, tell me Blueblood, when are we departing?”
Blueblood opened his mouth to speak when there was another flash of light. When it cleared, there was a pink unicorn standing in front of them with a blond, curly mane. The pony’s cutie mark was covered up by silver armor with Princess Luna’s cutie mark on the chest plate.
“Hi, guys,” said the pony with a very male sounding voice. “Private Donut Hole of the Lunar Royal Guard and it’s a pleasure to meet you!” As he did this, he pulled out a business card with his name on it. Like his coat, the card was pink and the O’s were shaped like hearts.
Rainbow began to giggle. “I’ve never met a stallion with a pink coat before,” she noted with glee.
“Oh, Dashie,” said Pinkie with a wave of her hoof. “He’s not pink. He’s more of a lightish red. Trust me; I know pink when I see it. My name is Pinkie Pie after all.”
“Finally, somepony who sees it,” said a happy Donut.
“I take it that you are one of the Lunar ponies who will be working at the embassy?” inquired Blueblood.
“That’s right,” said Donut with a smile as he looked at the noble. “I’m in charge of security. That mean I get to do all the coolest jobs, like performing full body cavity searches.” The way Donut said that made Blueblood take an uneasy step backwards.
“Just one of ya?” asked Applejack with a raised eyebrow. “Seems like a bit much for one pony ta handle.”
“Oh, don’t worry about me,” said Donut. “I’m part of the Shield Corps, because of all the protection spells I learned during my training. And, I studied under some of the top instructors, like Rear Passageway and Backdoor Assault. They taught me everything I know today.”
“Well,” said Blueblood with a fake cough. “This has been… informative. Now, where is the rest of your party?”
Donut blinked. “Oh, right,” he said, pulling out a small black pyramid shaped object with a red blinking light on top. “Thanks for reminding me. I need to set this on the ground, where the embassy is supposed to be, before they can come. Where is it, anyways?”
Blueblood pointed to the vacant lot. Nodding, the pink stallion walked right in and stopped in the middle, before settling the device on the ground. As soon as he did, a beam of red light shot out of the top. Then, for a moment, nothing happened as Donut walked away with the device in hoof. A moment or two later, everypony in Canterlot saw it.
It was shaped like a five story silver egg, falling towards the capital at an alarming speed. All over Canterlot, the elite citizens began to scream and run around like chickens that had just lost their heads. Blueblood himself dropped to the ground, put his hooves over his head, and began to cry. But, as the object got closer, it also seemed to be slowing down. When it finally touched the ground, it did so lightly. A moment after it landed, a door opened up.
“Ok, then,” said Donut. “Right now our embassy is empty, but they should be sending somepony down really soon. For those of you going to the Republic, you will find a red circle in the middle of the room. Just stand on that and you will be teleported to the Republic. Once you get there, you will meet our representative who will be showing you around. But, before that, I will have to check your bags.”
With that, Donut’s horn began to glow pink. A second later, everypony’s bags were covered in his magic as he scanned for anything metallic. The first bag he checked was one of Rarity’s only to find several necklaces.
Next, came Applejacks saddlebags. Inside Donut found several bottle of Sweet Apple Acres cider, whose metallic caps set off his metal alarm spell. He also found a couple of metal apple peelers that looked a bit dangerous. Each one was shaped like a knife with the part that peeled the apple in the middle. The handle was green and ended with a red apple.
At first Donut wondered if he should allow her to bring them with her, since they could be used as a weapon. But, then Applejack explained that she was planning on giving both the peelers and cider away as gift, in order to encourage the lunar ponies to visit Sweet Apple Acres. Seeing nothing wrong with wanting to give somepony else a gift, Donut allowed her to take them with her.
Last bag that needed to be checked was Pinkie Pie’s. Apparently, she had her party cannon on her. As she pulled it out for Donut to check, all of the sweets she planned on bringing with her fell to the ground.
“Wow, you must really have a sweet tooth,” commented Donut as he hand back her stuff.
“Yeah, and I really can’t wait to try out all the delicious treats on the moon,” expressed a bouncing pink mare. “I mean, there is no way they can compare with Sugarcube Corner. But, I’m sure they’ll be just as tasty.” She then let out a gasp. “But, what if the treats on the moon are tastier than what the Cake’s make. Then, I’ll have to tell them and that’ll make them super disappointed! Oh, I know, I’ll just have to bring back of the sweets, so that they can try for themselves. Then, they might be able to taste the difference, so that they can make their own amazing treats even more amazing! Pinkie Pie, you are a genius.”
“Ok then, you can all carry on,” said Donut.
Together, the mares, plus Spike, walked into the embassy to find it oddly empty. In the center of the main room on the first floor was the circle Donut spoke of. Wanting to go first, Rainbow Dash landed on it and instantly vanished before everypony’s eyes.
Taking a breath, Applejack then stepped on it, as did the others, until it was just Rarity and Fluttershy. Fluttershy, who was terrified beyond all accounts, decided to make a dash for the door to go home. However, Rarity’s magic prevented her from doing so, picking her up and sat her on the circle.
Then, before Rarity stood on the circle, she heard Donut speak from outside. “Ok, time for random security inspection. I’m going to have to frisk you.”
“But, I’m not going to the Republic,” shouted Blueblood. “Hey, keep your hooves away from there!”
Laughing, Rarity stepped onto the circle. In an instant, she found herself no longer in Equestria, but in a very cramped white room. All around her were her friends, Trixie, and Spike, as well as all of their stuff. Sadly, most of the room was being taken up by Rarity’s luggage. If it weren’t for that, they all would have been able to fit in there comfortably.
Luckily, a door opened up from the wall, and in walked a very familiar purple unicorn, flanked by two members of the Lunar Royal Guard.
“Hello,” said Twilight. “My name is Twilight Sparkle and I…” It was at that moment that she realized who had just arrived. Her jaw dropped for a moment as she realized that the mares she and Shadow had encountered in Equestria were the other bearers.
Twilight was about to say something, when she noticed that one of them wasn’t a pony. The small reptile-like creature looked at her, and she at it. For a moment, the two stood there staring at each other, before Twilight took a step back as her eyes widened in fear.
“A-a dragon!” she screamed, before racing out the door. The girls all looked at each other in confusion, especially when Twilight returned a moment later with a weird looking object. She pointed it at Spike, and a moment later, it shot him with a weird, green projectile. It hit the baby dragon, piercing right through his hard scales. And, a moment afterward, his world went black.
“Good golly!” yelled Applejack as she watched Spike fall to the floor. In his chest was the green, oval shaped object that Twilight had shot into him. Looking closer, the farmer mare could see that it had broken past the baby dragon’s scales, but there wasn’t any blood.
“That’s a relief,” they heard Twilight say with a sigh as all heads turned to face her. Before Twilight could say or do anything, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity were in her face giving her angry looks. The only two who weren’t were Pinkie Pie, who was staring at Spike curiously, and Trixie.
‘This is bad,’ thought Trixie with a horrified look on her face. ‘Moon Dancer made Trixie promise to take good care of Spike. And, she’s the most popular mare back at school! When they find out that Spike died under Trixie’s watch, then Trixie will be so dead.’
“Why did you do that?!” roared Fluttershy. “He was a sweet, innocent baby dragon who had never done anything to you. Yet, you shot him with…with whatever it was that you shot him with! What do you have to say for yourself, missy?”
“I was following the law?” replied a slightly frightened Twilight.
“What kind of law says it’s ok to shot a dragon?” demanded Rainbow Dash.
Twilight facehoofed. “You seriously didn’t just say that,” said Twilight. “Look, do any of you know anything about dragons? Sure, he looks small and innocent looking now, but he won’t when he grows up.”
“Lookie-lookie,” exclaimed Pinkie Pie all of a sudden. The girls looked over at Spike and most of them felt their jaws drop in shock, except for Twilight who looked on with a knowing smile.
The oval object had melted right into him, causing Spike’s body to grow bright green and began to shift around rapidly. Hard scales became soft purple fur, while the rounded spikes on his head turned into a green mane, and his dragon tail was replaced with a green-coated tail. His clawed hands began to merge together and harden, until they became hooves. Finally, a small horn grew out of his head.
Everypony stared in surprise that Spike was now a unicorn colt!
“That was so cool!” exclaimed the pink pony, beginning to bounce up and down. “Can you shot me with one of those things next? Maybe I can turn into Gummy!”
Spike then let out a moan. “Can you keep it down,” he grumbled. “I’m trying to sleep right now.”
“S-Spike,” stammered Trixie. “Trixie thinks you s-should really get up now.”
Groaning, Spike rolled onto his stomach and tried to stand up. However, as soon as he did this, he found himself on all fours. It was then that he noticed his hooves and proceeded to freak out. The dragon turned unicorn began to check every part of himself in a mad panic.
“See, he’s completely unharmed,” said Twilight. Then, her expression changed to an apologetic one. “Look, I’m sorry if I scared anypony. But, the law is very clear on what we are supposed to do when we see a dragon. I guess I panicked when I saw him here.”
“Don’t say you’re sorry to us,” said Fluttershy firmly. “Say you’re sorry to him.”
“She is right, you know,” said Rarity. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to be suddenly attacked for no reason.”
‘Trust me, the irony is not lost,’ thought Twilight as she nodded and walked up to Spike. When she was standing right in front of him, the dragon turned pony looked up at her with wide green eyes.
“I’m really sorry,” said Twilight, lowering her head. “But, dragons are forbidden inside the Republic. If you went on a greed-induced growth spurt, you could do a lot of damage.”
“A-a what?” asked Spike.
“According to Princess Luna, it’s basically when a dragon gets too greedy, it can cause them to artificially age at an alarming rate,” explained Twilight. “You could go from a baby to an adult in a matter of days, depending on how greedy you get. While this is happening, the dragon’s mind begins to regress to a more primitive state.
“Just think what that would mean to us! The damage a giant creature like a dragon could do: the loss of homes, food, and maybe even lives. It’s even possible that a dragon going through this could even destroy the Dome.”
“So you turned me into a pony?” asked Spike.
“Well, yeah,” said Twilight. “It’s one of the methods we have of dealing with creatures that could pose a threat. I know I scared you and turned you into a pony against your will, but I hope you aren’t too angry with me.”
“No, I’m not angry,” said Spike sternly, causing Twilight to gulp. Then, Spike’s face lit up. “This is the best day ever!”
“WHAT?” shouted everypony in the room.
“But, darling, she shot you,” said Rarity. “Aren’t you mad about that?”
“Yes,” agreed Fluttershy with a nod. “Not only that, you’re no longer a cute baby dragon.”
“Well, I didn’t like being shot,” admitted Spike. “But, you have no idea what it’s like being a dragon growing up in Equestria. Sure, everypony is nice and all, but I just have never felt like I truly belonged. It’s like…it’s like being the only orange in a barrel of apples. You just stick out too much. Do you get what I’m saying?”
The mares in the room looked at each other for a moment. One by one, they tried to picture themselves in Spike’s horseshoes. What would their lives be like if they were surrounded by dragons, instead of ponies? Not having another pony to talk to. Having to eat a special diet compared to others. It didn’t seem all that appealing.
“Well,” said Applejack after a bit, “ah guess ah can see where you’re comin’ from.”
“Oh, we should throw him a party!” cried Pinkie Pie. “An ‘I was just turned into a pony’ party. I’ve never thrown one of those before. I wonder what kind of streamers I should use?”
“But, are you sure this is what you want?” asked Rarity. “I mean, sure it might be great now, but this is a serious change. You are going to have to adjust and relearn everything.”
“And, what about Moon Dancer,” added Trixie. “She’s been taking care of you ever since you hatched. What about how she feels that her assistant is now a pony?”
“Don’t worry, the change isn’t permanent,” said Twilight. “In a few days, Spike will return to being a dragon. But, if he really wants to, there is a special procedure that he can undergo that will make it permanent. But, I would wait a day or two before doing something like that.”
“Does it hurt?” asked Spike.
Twilight shook her head. “Not at all,” she replied. “In fact, it’s very similar to what Scootaloo went through.”
“What happened to Scootaloo?” demanded Rainbow as she appeared in front of Twilight.
Taking a breath, Twilight began to explain what she and Shadow had discovered when they found Scootaloo. As she continued on to how they managed to cure the filly’s crossbreed syndrome, Twilight began to use bigger and bigger words that Rainbow didn’t understand. But, what she, and every other mare in the room for that matter, began to understand was that Twilight had taken Scootaloo, in order to help her.
Spike, however, wasn’t listening to Twilight’s lecture. Instead, he was checking out his new body. The fact that he had a horn excited him. Now he could use magic! That meant that cleaning up after Moon Dancer would be a breeze! He could never understand how such a talented magic user couldn’t put her own stuff away in a flash.
As he continued to look over his body, Spike noticed something on his flank. It was a scroll with the bottom part being consumed by green flames. It only took Spike a half second to figure out what it was.
“Hey, I got a cutie mark,” exclaimed Spike.
“WHAT?!” a high pitched voice shouted from somewhere in the room. “That’s not fair!”
“Shh,” came another voice. “Ya’re gonna give us away.”
“That sounded like Sweetie Belle,” exclaimed Rarity.
“And mah sister, Apple Bloom,” added Applejack. The two elder sisters began to search the room, looking for their own younger sister. Eventually, they stopped at the extra bag Rarity had brought. Using her magic, Rarity opened it up to reveal the two fillies, who looked rather nervous now that they had been caught.
“Um, hey sis,” said Apple Bloom sheepishly as the two got out of the bag.
“What the hay were ya both thinking?” demanded Applejack.
“Well, we heard that Scootaloo was here,” said Sweetie Belle. “I hadn’t seen her for a while and I was getting worried.”
“So, we thought that we could come with ya’ll and see her,” finished Apple Bloom.
“And it never crossed either of your minds to ask?” asked Rarity. “Honestly, did either of you think about how many ponies are wondering where you are? What about our parents, Sweetie Belle? Don’t you think that they’ll be worried when you don’t show up for dinner?”
“Same with Big Mac and Granny Smith,” added Applejack, looking at her sister. “They must be frantic lookin’ for ya.”
“We’re sorry,” said the two fillies in unison.
Applejack sighed. “Now what are we gonna do?” she asked.
“Well, I see no reason why they can’t stay,” said Twilight, much to their surprise.
“Really?” asked Rarity. “I mean, I thought that you would be mad, thinking that we are sneaking more ponies into the Republic.”
“To be honest, I’m angry at Donut for not doing a better job checking everypony’s bags,” admitted Twilight. “But, I can see that they didn’t mean any real harm. So, if it’s alright with the two of you, they can stay and spend some time with their friend.”
Both Applejack and Rarity exchanged a look for a second. They knew how crazy their little sisters could get. Right now, they were representing not just Ponyville, but all of Equestria. If something bad were to happen, then it would reflect poorly on them. But, on the other hoof, Twilight didn’t seem to mind. And, they did want to see a friend that had gone missing.
“Are ya sure it won’t be a bother?” asked Applejack.
Twilight nodded. “Trust me, it’ll be fine,” she replied. “Tell you what; I’ll arrange to have messages sent back to your families, telling them that your sisters are safe and sound with you. And, if anything goes wrong, we can just send them back down. How does that sound?”
“Well,” began Rarity with uncertainty in her voice. But then, she looked at her sister and Apple Bloom, who were giving her the biggest puppy dog pout that any filly could produce. Rarity had no chance against the intensity of this innocent look. “Ah, very well.”
“YAY!” shouted the two fillies together.
“Alright, then,” said Twilight with a smile. “Now that that’s all taken care of, we have to get going. I have a big day planned out. First, we are going to Dome Three to have lunch with one of the senators. After that, I thought we could go and see a play, before heading to Dome Five for some shopping.”
“Shopping!” squealed Rarity in delight. “Oh, I can’t wait to see the latest fashions here in the Republic. Or, maybe I can see if they have any scented bath salts. Or, a new, advanced conditioner.”
With Rarity rambling away, Twilight and the others began to move out the door. As they did, Spike moved close to Twilight, so that he could ask her all sorts of questions about being a unicorn.
-x-
Meanwhile, waiting near the Shield Corps’ barracks, were three stallions. One was a unicorn with an orange and white coat, a green mane, and green eyes. Next to him was a brown pegasus with a light blue mane. Finally, there was Poindexter.
“Alright, are we all ready?” asked Gaffer as Shining Armor walked towards his oldest friends. Out of his leather jacket, Shining was instead wearing a t-shirt that said ‘Hocus Pocus: The Get Together’. The same kind of shirt that Gaffer, 8-Bit, and Poindexter were wearing.
“You know I am,” said Shining Armor, stopping in front of them. “I’m just glad that everything calmed down at the castle. If it didn’t, I’d miss the tournament.”
“What happened?” asked 8-Bit. “Did something happen to Princess Luna? She is coming to judge, right?”
It was a well-known fact within the Republic that Princess Luna loved games. It didn’t matter if they were card, board, video, or even carnival. If it was a game, the Princess of the Moon (or Games as she was nicknamed) would be there. However, as a self-imposed rule, Princess Luna never participated in a tournament. She believed that some ponies might let her win, or would complain that she was getting special treatment.
So, instead, Luna had decided that she would simply judge tournaments when her schedule allowed. And, when she did, she usually gave a special treat to the winner. Like, for example, a kiss on the cheek for some lucky stallion or colt.
“Not this time,” said Shining as he shook his head. “She has to get ready for some big meeting between Equestria and the griffons. Seems like they want to get it done today.”
“That sucks,” moaned Gaffer as kicked the ground. “I was really looking forward to seeing her.”
“Does that mean you’re not going to enter?” asked Poindexter.
“What the buck do you think?” asked Gaffer. “Of course I am. Now come on, we have to get going before the admittance line gets too long.”
“No worries,” said Shining. “I got a-”
Shining’s voice trailed off as he saw a sight that caused him to freeze on the spot. Walking out of the castle was his sister followed by a group of mares. But, that wasn’t what caused him to freeze. It was the single purple unicorn colt that seemed to be talking to Twilight about something.
‘He looks a bit like Twilight,’ thought Shining Armor. ‘I mean, that fact that he’s purple and a unicorn. Could he be… No! I am not going down that line of thinking again! I did it once before and it blew up in my face.
It’s not like Twilight had a foal, and then used an age spell to make him older, so no pony would know. I mean, sure she knows age magic, but it’s not like she would really use it. Would she?’
At that moment, Shining’s friends began to notice a twitch in his right eye. For a moment, they wondered what was wrong, until they saw Twilight. Realizing what was going on, they all rolled their eyes.
“Shining,” said Gaffer, touching Shining Armor’s shoulder.
“Twily has been defiled!” yelled Shining Armor as he jumped six feet into the air.
“That’s what you said last year, when Twilight started foalsitting,” noted 8-Bit, pointing a hoof at the overprotective stallion. “You saw that one had the same mane stripe, and you jumped to the conclusion that Twilight had a foal and used an age spell to cover it up. You then grabbed Twilight and began demanding that she tell you who the father was, before crying that she didn’t trust you enough to tell you what was going on. In the end, she had to stop foalsitting, since she didn’t want to deal with that situation again.”
“Or, when she became a Lunar Trooper leader a few months after that,” said Poindexter. “I remember because we were on our way to see the Boldly Go movie, and we had dressed up like the aliens. You saw Twilight with a pegasus filly who had the same coat as her. You then ran right up to them, still in costume, and scared the poor filly into wetting herself. After that, Twilight had to quit being a Trooper leader. Are you seeing a pattern?”
“But,” started Shining as he looked at his younger sister.
“Guys,” said Gaffer, “we all know Shining isn’t going to be able to focus on anything until we get this out of his system. So, how about we just use the camera and the profile matching system to get an ID on the colt. Then, you can see that it’s just your overactive, and overprotective, imagination.”
“I guess that sounds good,” admitted Shining. Then, a thought came to mind causing his pupils to become the size of a pin needle. “But, what if she has already altered the data base?!”
His friends let out a collective groan.
-x-
Within the caves of the TOM, a ringing sound was heard signaling lunch. Tired, Sunset Shimmer set down her pickaxe for a moment, so that she could catch her breath for a moment. The first day of work had been hard, harder than anything she had ever done before this. What made it even worse was that she could no longer use her magic.
“Alright,” declared one of the guards, both of them walking behind her. “Time for lunch. Let’s get moving.”
Letting go of the pickaxe, Sunset let it fall to the ground as she walked towards the mess hall. Behind her, the two guards followed, not averting their gaze from her for even a moment. This would make her eventual escape more difficult.
Ever since she had heard about Twilight’s wedding, as well as her adopting Scootaloo, all Sunset could think about was how she was going to escape. With every swing of her pickaxe, Sunset’s mind had been busy coming up with every single method of leaving this hell hole. While she knew it wouldn’t be easy, it was still possible. Ponies in the Republic were used to having their criminals sentenced to prison pods, and not in forced labor on a TOM. As such, there was bound to be a few holes in her security.
The first was the magic suppression ring that was on her horn. It was an electronic device that created a barrier between her and her magic. She had studied these devices while trying to ruin Twilight’s life, so she knew there were only two ways to deactivate it. The first was if one of the guards used the remote. The other was if it sensed an emergency like a fire or meteor strike. That way the pony wearing the device could teleport out in order to save his or her life. However, once the emergency was over the device would reactivate.
If making an emergency situation was step one, the second step would be getting off the TOM. Three times a day, a shuttle came to pick up and drop off workers. This meant that her best shot at this would be when the shuttle has opened, and can’t leave.
Appleloosa was a growing town. For the most part, the ponies who lived here were members of the Apple family, who were working hard to keep the town feed. But, there were others who were constantly arriving. Mining ponies arrived to check and see if there was any potential for coal, gold, or any other precious metals. Then, there were ponies who had come to set up shops, banks, and other businesses that a growing town needed.
So, it didn’t seem odd to Sheriff Silver Star when two new ponies showed up out of nowhere. He had seen the two flew in on pegasus wings, while wearing heavy hooded cloaks that hid most of their feature. The taller of the two was light blue with a barely visible cutie mark of a lightning bolt in a bow. The shorter of the two was bright yellow with a quill cutie mark. They carried with them heavy saddle bags, which most likely contained all of their valuables.
At the time, the sheriff had been going around, making sure everypony was helping to defend the town, while they waited for help from Canterlot that they were sure was coming. They had been busy making pies to be used as weapons, building up their fortifications, and making sure that all of the young ones would be safe. When he saw the two newcomers enter town, Silver Star felt conflicted. While they did need everypony they could get their hooves on, it seemed wrong to force two newcomers, who didn’t have a stake in anything, to fight for them.
So, doing what he felt was the best course of action, he walked up to the two. As he did, he made sure that his sheriff’s badge was out in plain sight, so that they would know they could trust him.
“Howdy,” said Silver Star, once he was close enough. “Welcome to Appleloosa.”
“Thank you,” the blue pegasus commented with gratitude. Judging by the voice, Silver Star assumed that the blue one was a stallion. “We have been traveling for the last several days with little food or water. Finding this place is like a blessing from Celestia herself. Didn’t even know there was a pony town out here.”
“Was just built this year,” replied the sheriff. “Sadly, you picked a poor time to show up. We’re gearing up for a showdown between us and the buffalo and bat ponies.”
This got a reaction out of the two. At the same time, the two turned to look at each other before returning their unseen gaze at the sheriff.
“D-did you say bat ponies?” questioned the yellow one in a flowery sweet mare voice. “But, why would they even be out here in the desert?”
“That doesn’t matter,” replied Silver Star. “Because we plan on making sure that they won’t be here for long. We’re going to be ready for them and the buffalo when they show their faces. Hopefully soon, soldiers from Canterlot will be arriving, so we can drive them all out. Now, I know this isn’t really your fight and all, but we would really appreciate a few more pairs of hooves.”
The two pegasi looked at him for a moment, before they turned around and began whispering to each other. Silver Star tried to listen in, but their voices were so quiet that he couldn’t make out a thing. He didn’t really mind much that they were acting like this. This was a difficult situation and he wouldn’t be surprised if they said no. It wasn’t their fight after all. But, that didn’t mean he wasn’t hoping that they’d say yes.
After a minute or two, the couple turned around.
“If bat ponies are involved, we’ll help,” said the stallion.
“Good,” said Silver Star with a nod. “I’ll show you both around real quick. Please follow me, er…”
“Thunder Shot,” said the stallion. He then gestured to the mare. “And this is my wife, Dreamy Words.”
Sheriff Silver Star nodded as he gestured them to follow him. Yet, as they walked away, nopony noticed a pony flying above them as they laid their traps. This pony watched with a smile on his face as he flew back to tell the buffalo and other bat ponies what he had seen.
-x-
“Ok, Scootaloo, let’s try it one more time,” called out Shadow. The orange filly nodded as she prepared to give the current exercise one more goes.
After Twilight had left her in the care of Shadow Blade, the stallion had gotten to work showing her the basics of flying. The first was a simple exercise in controlling her height. Shadow flew up several yards straight up and told Scootaloo to fly up to his level, before hovering in place.
At first, Scootaloo thought this would be easy. Yet, to her shock, it was harder than it looked. Each time she took to the air, she would zoom in one direction or another. And, when she did go straight up, she shot right past Shadow.
Eventually, she managed to get to his level, but found hovering there to be difficult. She had to keep flapping her wings at just the right speed to keep herself in place. Anymore and she would begin to rise. If she slowed down too much, she would then begin to fall.
Falling wasn’t something that Scootaloo was worried about. Once she was in the air, the pegasus filly was under the watchful eye of Shadow. Whenever it looked like she was going to go out of control, the bat stallion would swoop in to catch her. Then, he would tell her what she was doing wrong and how to fix it. With him around, she felt safe.
Once she had gotten the hang of the first exercise, Shadow began to set up the next more. In the air above the training fields, there were several cloud poles that Shadow had moved so that they were spread a bit farther apart than usual. The point of this exercise was to weave back and forth between the poles. In order to do this, Scootaloo would have to shift her weight from one side of her body to the other.
“I think you can handle this one,” Shadow had told her at the start. “It’s very similar to how ponies ride a bike or, in your case, a scooter. Just shift your weight to the right or left, depending on what direction you want to go. And take your time, there’s no need to rush it right now. Just worry about getting the basics down.”
That had been six tries so far and Scootaloo felt like she hadn’t made any real progress. The first time she tried, she leaned too much to the right and ended up doing a barrel roll. The second try she didn’t lean to the side enough, which caused her to fly right into the first cloud pole. After that, she got a little better but still ended up hitting the second.
“Just like riding my scooter,” muttered Scootaloo to herself, taking off again. This time, she tried going a bit slower. Leaning to her right, she avoided the first pole. As soon as she passed it, she began to lean left and avoided the second. As she went, she could hear Shadow shouting out encouraging words to her, telling her she was doing great. By the time she was finally done, she felt so tired that she began to fall slowly to the ground.
Luckily for her, Shadow caught her and helped her land.
“You’re doing great, Scootaloo,” said Shadow with a grin.
“Really?” asked Scootaloo, who was a little surprised by this.
“Definitely,” answered Lightning Dust as she flew towards the two. “Kid, let me tell you something. Back when I was learning to fly, it took me a week before I got to where you are. But, then again we were learning it as a class, and the instructors couldn’t watch everypony like Shadow is with you.”
“That could be it,” said Scootaloo as she looked over at Shadow. “I do have a great teacher.”
“Thank you,” said Shadow with a grin. “And, speaking of teachers, I think it’s time you took a short break and did some studying. Your mother would be very unhappy with the both of us if we spent all of our time having fun.”
“Sure thing, Dad,” said Scootaloo without any hint of sarcasm in her voice. Truth was she had begun to think of him like a father figure ever since he told her about Genetic Code. And after today, he fit the bill of what she believed a dad should be.
A father, to her at least, does all the fun outdoorsy things, like teaching his foal how to play hoofball, going camping, or teaching them how to fly. A father tells his kids the hard things, like when Shadow was telling her about what Genetic Code did. A father protects with actions, rather than words, like when Shadow scared away Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon when they were bullying her.
Besides, he and Twilight were going to be getting married soon, thus he was going to be her father soon anyways, so he might as well get used to being called that.
If Shadow was shocked to hear this, he sure didn’t show it. To be honest, he hadn’t expected anypony to call him that for a few more years. Heck, he didn’t even think he’d be ready by then. But, hearing Scootaloo call him that didn’t make him nervous in the slightest. Instead, he felt proud to be called that.
As Scootaloo walked over to the side of the training field to get her bags, she noticed a group of ponies heading her way. A moment later, she was tackled to the ground by two fillies.
“Scootaloo!” cried Sweetie Belle, wrapping her hooves around the pegasus’ neck. “I was so worried about you!”
“Heavy,” groaned Scootaloo as she tried her best to push her friend from Ponyville off of her. “Can’t breathe.” As the two got off her, Scootaloo took a moment to notice who the other filly was. It was Apple Bloom, a filly she had seen in class back in Ponyville, but never really spoke to. The only thing she really knew about her was that she lived on a farm and didn’t have a cutie mark.
“Howdy, ah’m Apple Bloom,” introduced the earth filly as she reached out a hoof. “Sorry for tackling ya like that.”
“No prob,” replied Scootaloo as she hoof-bumped. “The name’s Scootaloo.”
“Is it true?” asked Sweetie Belle. “I heard you got adopted!”
“Yep,” replied Scootaloo with a nod and a grin. “And my new parents are really awesome!”
“Not as awesome as I am,” said a voice from above them. The three fillies looked up and saw Rainbow Dash hovering above them.
Scootaloo felt a little nervous being this close to the mare she idolized for so long. In fact, for the longest time, she wished that Rainbow could be something like a big sister to her. But now, things were a little different. And, in a strange sense, she felt a little different. After everything she had seen and done in the Republic, her definition of awesome had been expanded upon.
“And who are you?” asked Lightning Dust, walking over to the rainbow-maned mare.
“Rainbow Dash,” proudly come the reply as she landed on the ground. “Fastest pony in Equestria.”
As Twilight and the rest of the ponies from Equestria walked over, they could hear Lightning snicker at the comment. In fact, many of the other lunar ponies in the area had an amused look on their faces, like they had heard somepony tell a really funny joke.
“Fastest in Equestria, huh,” said Lightning once she had stopped. “Is that an official title, or just something you like to say?”
“Hey, I am the fastest,” said Rainbow defensively.
“It’s true,” said Applejack. “Rainbow here is one of the fastest mares ah know. Defiantly the fastest in Ponyville. Wouldn’t surprise me none if she was fastest in Equestria.”
“Thank you, Applejack,” said Rainbow with nod to her friend.
“Whatever,” said Lightning, rolling her eyes. “Like being the fastest in Equestria is really something to brag about here. Around these parts, I’m the fastest.”
“You mean second fastest now that I’m here,” said Rainbow as she locked eyes with Lightning Dust. The two mares then began a stare down, actually beginning to sweat as their looks grew more and more intense.
Sensing that things might go the wrong way soon, Twilight thought it best that she stepped in. Shooting Spike had gotten things off to a rocky start and she didn’t want things to go any further downhill. Also, she didn’t want one of her best friends to get into trouble. So, taking a deep breath Twilight stepped forward.
“Ok, how about we-” began Twilight, but stopped as the two began to snort at each other like bulls.
“There’s only one way we can settle this,” said Rainbow Dash. “A race!”
“Fine!” shouted Lightning Dust as she began to take off her armor. “First to do ten laps around the castle wins.”
“You’re on!” said Rainbow.
Twilight looked at the two and then at everypony around her. For the most part, she seemed to be the only pony worrying. The Royal Guard seemed to be taking this very lightly as they were passing bets between themselves. The mares from Equestria seemed to be cheering on their friend, who was stretching her wings. Quickly, Twilight trotted over to Shadow.
“Aren’t you going to stop this?” she whispered in his ear.
“I don’t see why I should,” he replied with a shrug.
“Because a member of Princess Luna’s Royal Guard is about to race against a representative of Equestria for no real reason,” hissed Twilight.
Shadow shook his head. “Trust me, Twilight,” he soothingly declared, placing a hoof gently on her shoulder. “They need to do this.”
Sighing in defeat, Twilight looked at the scene in the hopes that nothing went wrong. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Scootaloo was standing near the other two fillies and Spike. It seemed that both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were both staring at the pegasus’ flank with jealousy.
“I don’t believe it,” whined Sweetie Belle. “First Spike gets his cutie mark, and he’s not even a real pony! Then, when we find you, we find out that you’ve got one as well! How did you get your cutie mark?”
“Laser tag,” said Scootaloo simply.
“What’s laser tag?” asked Apple Bloom.
Before Scootaloo could go into the details, somepony blew a whistle. All head turned to see the two speedy pegasi standing in front of a big red line. Both of them were wearing similar expressions of confidence as they crouched low to the ground, their wings up and ready.
In front of them was a guard pony with one of his front hooves held high in the air. The two pegasi mares watched the hoof with the same intensity as a lion watching its prey. Then, in a split second, it was lowered, signaling the start of the race.
Rainbow was the first to spring into the air, while Lightning seemed to be waiting. Thinking that the lunar pegasi was chickening out, Rainbow smirked as she started her first lap at a medium pace for her. There as she turned a corner, she thought to herself that it was too easy.
“Is this really what the best flyer in Equestria can do?” asked a voice above Rainbow. The multi-maned pegasus looked up to see Lightning Dust flying on her back with her hooves behind her head. From the way she was flying, she was easily keeping up with her. “If this is the best you got, then you might as well just give up now.” With that said, Lightning righted herself and took off, leaving Rainbow Dash far behind and took the first lap.
“What the hay?” shouted Rainbow in surprise.
Lightning Dust looked behind her and grinned. “There’s a reason they call me Lightning Dust,” she gloated. “I move as fast as lightning and I leave everypony else in my dust!”
“Oh yeah,” called Rainbow with a grin. “Then, you’re going to have to change your name after this race!” With that, Rainbow sped up to her full speed. At first, it looked like it wasn’t enough. But, with each second, she inched her way closer and closer to her opponent.
This didn’t go unnoticed to the trained eyes of many of the ponies below. Many of the guards were cheering not just for Lightning Dust, but also Rainbow Dash. They could clearly see that she did have the skills and the speed that a true racer had. Many of them began to believe that if Rainbow hadn’t taken it easy, then Lightning would have already lost. But, in the end, it didn’t matter for they were right now watching a very close race.
Lightning looked to her side and was shocked to see that she and Rainbow were almost neck and neck. Using all of her might, Lightning tried to push more speed out of her wings. She managed to get another inch ahead of Rainbow as they made their way to the final lap.
Yet, Rainbow only responded by pulling out even more speed. Finally, in a blur, the two crossed the finish line. Once they did, the two landed on the ground, sweating up a storm and panting hard. Together they looked at the others.
“Who won?” they both asked at the same time.
“Ah don’t know,” said Applejack. “Looked mighty close.”
“Dear, I couldn’t even make either of you out, because you were both going at such ridiculous speeds,” exclaimed Rarity.
“It was a tie,” noted Shadow with confidence. He then looked at the two to see if they would argue with his verdict.
At first, the two just stared at him with a ‘you gotta be kidding me’ look. But then, after a moment, the two just looked at each other with a bit of respect in each other’s eyes. Lightning was the first to hold up her hoof and point it in Rainbow’s direction. Smiling, Rainbow lifted her own hoof and the two bumped.
“It was a good race,” said Lightning as she lowered her hoof. “We should do it again before you leave.”
“Yeah,” agreed Rainbow. “Next time, it’ll have to be more awesome.”
“Totally,” agreed Lightning. “With some explosions and obstacles.”
“Wicked,” said Rainbow as the others either cheered or shook their heads.
Today had been an interesting day for Big Mac. A few short hours ago, the royal guards from Canterlot had arrived asking him what he wanted them to do. The large stallion showed them what to do and which fields he needed bucked. Once the guards had begun their work, both he and Granny Smith went down to the market with a load of fresh apples to sell. Once they got there, Big Mac had left the selling of the apples in the capable hooves of Granny Smith who was filling in for Applejack.
While he was in town, the red stallion had found out that news that Zecora had not foalnapped anypony had spread like wildfire. Not only did they now know that Zecora was innocent, but also that several of the citizens had tried to kill her the previous night. Some of them, like Silly String, seemed to act ashamed of what they had almost done.
Others, however, felt that they did nothing wrong, even if Zecora hadn’t actually foalnapped anypony. After all, they said, she was the evil enchantress that lived in the Everfree Forest. Just because she didn’t do anything wrong, this time, didn’t prove that she wasn’t evil.
To say the town of Ponyville was split on the issue was an understatement. Some ponies, mostly the younger ones, were asking why they were even afraid of Zecora in the first place. If it was because of how she looked, well, what did that prove? Weren’t there ponies of all shapes, colors, sizes, and types?
So, did living in the Everfree Forest mean she was evil? These ponies stated that at one point in time, Princess Celestia lived in the Everfree Forest. Also that there were several ponies that lived near its edges, but no pony ever accused them of being evil.
Then, there were the ponies that remained stubborn to the bitter end. It was just the way things were. She acted different and lived differently. She was not a normal pony, so she had to be evil.
‘At least Zecora is safe to go outside,’ thought Big Mac as he reached the farm. He had decided to tell her the news, and then she could begin planning her next move. He knew that telling her might cause her to leave, but she deserved to know.
He only hoped that she would wait before leaving Ponyville. In the short time he had known her, he had grown fond of her company. While her manner of speaking did confuse him at times, he saw that she was a wise mare with a good heart.
When he had gotten halfway from the road to the farm, he saw Zecora open the door and rushed towards him. For a moment, the stallion panicked. Looking around for signs that other ponies were after her, he began to ready himself for a fight. Yet, it was just Zecora who stopped a few feet in front of him.
“I have searched and searched every room,” she said quickly. “But, I fear that I have not found little Apple Bloom. It is almost lunch time and I’d hoped she’d be back, but it is now that I fear that danger in on her track.”
Big Mac placed a reassuring hoof on the zebra’s shoulder. “Ah’m sure she’s fine,” he replied. “She goes off like this all the time. If she’s not back by dark, then we’ll worry.”
Zecora opened her mouth to respond, but a sudden whistling noise silenced her. The two ponies looked around for the source of the noise, before something hit the ground only three feet away from them.
Once the shock and confusion faded, the two ponies walked over to a hole that had appeared before them. Inside, they both heard a weird clicking noise and the sound of scraping dirt. Before they knew it, ten thin metallic spider-like limbs were coming out of the hole. Big Mac moved in front of Zecora just as the thing, that the legs were attached to, crawled out. Oddly, it looked like a smooth metal cylinder with the legs starting from the middle.
Once the device was out of the ground, the top began to glow blue. After a second or two, an image of Applejack appeared above it, causing Big Mac’s jaw to drop. It was like this little thing, whatever it was, was doing magic!
“Are ya sure this’ll work?” said Applejack as she stared right at Big Mac.
“AJ, what happened to ya?” asked the red stallion.
“Of course it will work,” said another voice that sounded a lot like that purple mare that was with the bat pony. He looked from side to side, but couldn’t see her. “Just stand there, look into the device, and talk as if your brother was standing right in front of you.”
“Uh, if ya say so,” said Applejack with a look of uncertainty. She then smiled and waved. “Howdy, Big Mac. Ah know ah’ve only been gone a bit, but ah miss ya something fierce. Ah’m here in the Lunar Republic right now, and boy, is it different from Equestria!
“Anyways, ah got something ah need ta tell ya. See, Apple Bloom snuck in one of Rarity’s bags. Both she and Sweetie Belle are both up here.”
Big Mac couldn’t hide his shock. How could he have not seen something like this happening? He was supposed to watch after Apple Bloom. It was his duty as an older brother.
Suddenly, he felt a hoof on his shoulder. Turning his head, he found himself looking into the gentle eyes of Zecora, calming him down.
“Now, before ya freak out, she’s ok. Going ta be gettin’ a talkin’ ta, but other than that, she’s fine. She’ll be stayin’ with us, so she can see her friend Scootaloo for a bit. Maybe in a day or two, we’ll send her back. So, ah hope ya don’t get all worried about her. She’ll be in good hooves.”
Applejack then stared off-screen and asked, “Now what?”
“Nothing,” said the voice of Twilight. “I’ll just put this in the cannon and have it set to fire at Sweet Apple Acres.”
“Say what?!” yelled Applejack before her image cut off.
Once the transmission ended, the device pulled in its legs before shooting up into the air. As the two pony watched it zone into the air, they failed to notice that another device was making its way to Sweetie Belle parents’ home.
-x-
Deep within the desert, the buffalo were preparing for battle. Each one was putting on traditional battle paint and making sure their horns were as sharp as possible. The younger ones, who were not going into battle, help by preparing food medicine.
But, it wasn’t just the tribe/herd of Chief Thunderhooves. Ten of the eleven buffalo tribes had arrived earlier that morning. Each chief had brought with them no less than a hundred of their biggest and strongest buffalo to help. The only tribe not to come was the one belonging to Chief Rumbling Ground, who was simply too far away to be of any help.
Once they had all arrived, Chief Thunderhooves met with his fellow chieftain to discuss their battle plans, as well as what would happen after words. In the end, they had all agreed that they would destroy the town and the apple orchard, while doing their best to keep casualties as low as possible. Once that was done, the ponies from Appleloosa would be given enough food and water to make it out of the desert, along with a message to their sun princess that her ponies were not welcome.
Sitting by herself, Weeping Willow watched all of this with sadness in her heart. ‘So, this is what happens when we try to live peacefully,’ she thought. ‘All we wanted was to live here in peace, in a place we thought they would not want. But now, all we have brought is danger to our friends.’
“You seem deep in thought, my old friend,” said the voice of Chief Thunderhooves as he approached Willow from behind.
“I hardly feel like a friend right now,” replied Willow. “Because of us bat ponies, the buffalo are going into war.”
Thunderhooves let out a sigh, sitting down next to Willow as he too looked out on the preparation. Like her, he felt a pain in his heart. This was not the path that he wanted for his tribe, but there was no other option.
“Do not blame yourself, for I do not,” he stated after a moment. “The land we have stampeded upon for generations is now full of trees that keep us here. This battle was bound to happen sooner or later.”
“Perhaps there is a way we can stop it,” said Willow, looking at her larger friend. “I will turn myself in, while the rest of the bat ponies leave this area. You can say you had a change of heart, and when you went to turn us in, all you could get was me. Maybe then, you’ll have your sacred path back.”
Thuderhooves could not hide the shock in his eyes. “But, what of you?”
Weeping Willow let out a sad laugh. “I am old,” she replied. “Each day I grow weaker, less fit to be Flight Master of my colony. I will die in the prison, or by their hooves, as they try to find out where the rest of my ponies went. But, I will die happily knowing that I have given you and the rest of the buffalo a chance.”
“Wh-what?” shouted Thunderhooves.
“I second that,” said another voice. The two elders looked up and saw a dark blue bat pony stallion with dark green mane. On his face was similar paint as the buffalo. He landed on the ground and walked up to his leader. “We must fight.”
Weeping let out a sigh. “It is pointless Darkwing,” she said. “Even if we win this battle, more will come. And, if we defeat them, even more will show up. We will spend the rest of our lives fighting, until we can fight no more.”
“Then, let us fight,” said Darkwing. “I would rather go down fighting to defend my home, than just running away. I have lived here my entire life! And, even if we do, what you suggest there is no real guarantee that they will honor their word.”
“I agree with Darkwing,” said Thunderhooves. “Sometimes, in order to protect what is important, you must fight. And, fighting for your home and family is very important.”
Weeping opened her mouth, but Thunderhooves gently place a hoof on top of it to silence her. “Yes, my friend, you and those of your colony are a part of our family. You have shared with us the good times and the bad. You have sat beside us many times around the campfire to share a meal. You have respected our traditions. And, when we needed you the most, you stood beside us to fight the Diamond Dogs.”
“The bat ponies have done more than that,” said Chief Desert Wind as he and the other chieftains walked over to stand beside Thunderhooves. “When one of my tribe was bitten by a rattlesnake, it was one from your colony who flew to gather the herbs needed to make an antidote.”
“And it was the bat ponies, who warned us of that horrible desert wind several years ago,” said another chief. “Without that information, we would not have been able to seek shelter in time, and many buffalo would have died.”
“You have always said that you owe us a great debt,” said Thunderhooves. “But, there has never been a need, nor will there ever be one. You are one of us, and we will fight to defend you as we will this land.”
Weeping Willow sighed. “There is no stopping this, is there?” she asked in a sad tone. “Then, do what you feel is right.” And, with that, the old mare walked away.
-x-
“Is it safe to open my eyes yet?” asked Fluttershy as she sat on the platform. The yellow pegasus’ hooves were covering her eyes, trembling in fright.
“I’m sorry, Fluttershy, but I have my eyes covered too,” noted Rarity.
After making recordings for both Rarity and Applejack, Twilight and her guests got onboard a platform heading towards Dome One. While Twilight had brought a lot of lunar bits to pay for everypony’s tickets for the show, as well as their shopping trip, it still wasn’t enough. She hadn’t expected the additions of Spike, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom. So, she needed to stop at her home first.
When the ponies from Equestria first saw the platform, they scratched their heads, wondering how it was going to help take them anywhere. It didn’t even have any wheels! But, when it lifted off the ground without any help of magic, they were speechless. The youngest of them looked around with curious wonder, while some of the older members of the group were not afraid to show how scared they were.
Rainbow Dash was one of the few ponies who weren’t covering her eyes. While she was impressed by the speed of the platform, she was a bit more concerned by what Scootaloo was doing, which was one of the most uncool things a pony could be doing. The little filly was reading a book! And, it wasn’t a comic book or something like that, but a large text book. Rainbow couldn’t help, but wonder what had happened to the filly to make her an egghead.
Another pony who didn’t have her eyes closed was Applejack. The farmer pony was looking outside of the tube system with a sad look on her face. Outside were miles upon miles of white wasteland. There were no trees, no grass, and no rivers. There was nothing out there, but white rocks. As she looked out, Applejack couldn’t help, but wonder how any pony could live like this. It all seemed so…depressing.
As she continued to look around, Applejack noticed the starry sky above them as well as the planet. She began to wonder if it was day or night. When she left, it had been daytime back in Equestria, but here she wasn’t so sure. Was this a land of eternal night? If so, how could they survive?
The last two ponies who didn’t have their eyes covered were Trixie and Pinkie Pie. The bright pink pony was bouncing around the platform, which worried some of the ponies from Equestria, in the fear that she might break the device they were on. Trixie, on the other hoof, was doing her best to look as dignified as possible. She had already failed her princess once before, at the Summer Sun Celebration, and she was not going to do so again. That was why she had left all of her cherry wine back at home.
When the platform finally stopped at Dome One, Twilight calmly walked off, while some of those from Equestria rushed off and began to kiss the ground for some strange reason. Rolling her eyes, Twilight turned to see Bronze Shield and Boarding Time were watching a TV screen that was apparently just put up.
Before Scootaloo got off the platform, she put away the book she had been reading. Once off the transportation device, she too noticed the brightly lit screen. She walked over to it as did Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Spike. Once there, the three fillies and one colt looked up to see what looked like ponies dressed in spandex, while wearing helmets on their heads, as they did a series of back flips, spinning kicks, and other various fighting moves against what looked like pony monsters.
“What is this?” asked Apple Bloom, to which Scootaloo simply shrugged. Ever since she had moved in with Twilight, she hadn’t watched anything on this device. She had inquired about it earlier, and was told it was like going to the movies, but in your own home. This had made Scootaloo curious, but she had never had the time to watch anything on it.
“It’s ‘Mighty Morphing Pony Rangers’,” exclaim an excited Bronze Shield, pulling himself away from the television set in order to check on all the ponies who had just arrived.
“There’s a whole channel dedicated to the show,” added Boarding with a grin. “I remember when this show first began. That was back when I was a colt.”
“What’s so awesome about—DID THAT THING JUST BLOW UP A BUILDING!” shouted Rainbow Dash in midsentence as she walked up just in time to see a monster destroy a building with an energy attack.
While this was going on, nopony seemed to notice that Pinkie Pie had gotten very still. Her nose was high in the air as she sniffed it. A moment later, her tongue began to hang outside of her mouth, dripping with saliva.
“Alright, everypony,” said Twilight, trying to get everypony’s attention. “We didn’t come here to watch an old, violent foals show.” Both Bronze Shield and Boarding Time looked at her in shock. How could she call a show, that had been loyal for over twenty years, an ‘old, violent foals show’.
“Trixie agrees with Twilight,” said Trixie. “Let us do what we came here to do and move on.”
“Right, right,” said Rainbow absentmindedly as she watched the zoids combined into one machine of pure metal awesomeness. She was so into what she was seeing that she didn’t even feel it when Applejack bit her tail and pull her away.
“Now, let’s get moving and…where is Pinkie Pie?” asked Twilight, looking around. Sure enough, the bouncing pink mare was nowhere to be found. Sighing, Twilight began to cast a location spell and hoped that she found Pinkie Pie before something bad happened to her.
-x-
“Here you are, Senator,” said Strawberry Turnover as she handed Senator Scorpio a large box. “Three dozen cookies for your niece’s cute-ceanera. I do hope the dear likes them.”
“Oh, I’m sure she will,” replied Scorpio, handing over a large amount of bits to the strawberry-colored mare. But, before she could touch them with her hoof, the door burst open.
Pinkie Pie looked around the strangest bakery she had ever seen. The place looked completely bare, except for a counter that seemed to block guests from going into the back room. Sure, she could smell delicious goodies, but they were nowhere in sight, and there were no sugary goodies on display. No tables for ponies to sit, eat, and enjoy themselves. It was very different from Sugarcube Corner. In fact, if the sign on the door hadn’t said bakery, then she would have thought she was somewhere else.
“May I help you?” asked the mare behind the counter slowly as Pinkie Pie sniffed the air. Instead of answering, Pinkie made a mad dash towards the bat pony holding the box of cookies.
“Hey, can I have some?” she asked quickly. Without waiting for an answer, the pink mare quickly grabbed the box and opened it. But, before she could go any further, she was smacked on the head by a thin, metal pole held by Strawberry.
“The nerve!” she shrieked as she began to whack Pinkie, over and over again, until she finally released the box. “Have you no shame? These cookies are for a little filly’s cute-ceanera, and they are the last batch I can make this week, until more supplies come in. Don’t you know how tight certain foods are right now until they finish building the new Domes? And, here you are, trying to steal another pony’s food, when he has waited two weeks for his order. By the void, what’s the matter with you?”
“But, they smell so good,” said Pinkie as she took another whiff of the box. Scorpio, however, sealed the box up again before the pink mare could do anything. As he did, Strawberry whacked Pinkie once more. “But, I just wanted to try one to see how they compared to the ones at Sugarcube Corner!”
“Well, I don’t care,” replied Strawberry, putting the rod away.
“Sugarcube Corner,” said Scorpio softly. “Never heard of it. Tell me, my dear mare, which Dome has this ‘Sugarcube Corner’?”
“It’s not in a dome, silly,” replied Pinkie with a grin. “It’s in Ponyville, back in Equestria!”
The two pony’s eyes widened when they heard this. Strawberry then glared at Pinkie Pie as she walked back into her kitchen, where the sounds of cabinets began to slam shut before they were locked. Scorpio also looked angry, but did his best to compose himself.
“I see,” he said slowly. “Then, you must be one of representatives. Well then, I guess it is safe to assume that you have strayed from Twilight, seeing that she wasn’t here to stop you. Now, I have heard many things about how ponies conduct themselves, planet side, so let me warn you that your behavior here is not welcome.
“For now, I will let it slide, since I am in a hurry and that you are new here. But, if I find out that you are doing something like this again, then I will go to Princess Luna myself, and have you and your greedy mouth removed from the Republic!”
And, with that, he left the bakery, just in time to see Twilight get to the door.
Once again, Twilight and her group exited the platform station of Dome Three. After they had found Pinkie Pie, Twilight had quickly gone home to get some more bits while bringing the other with her. After that, she made sure to get them back to the Dome One platform station as quickly as she could.
During the whole process, however, Rarity barely noticed something off with Pinkie. She looked around to see if anypony else had noticed as well, but they was too consumed with the surroundings to notice. She stopped her for a moment and asked her if everything is okay, but Pinkie just simply smiled and nodded before continue onward. She didn’t prod any further and shrugged it off, since Pinkie did seem reasonably happy, but there was a nagging feeling that something was still not right. It might have been her mane, she figured as she stared at Pinkie a moment more, since it does look slightly less puffy than normal.
When they got back to the platform station of Dome One, they saw Bronze and Boarding were still watching television, causing Twilight to roll her eyes. But, despite this distraction, they still did their job and searched everypony. They did, however, try to start up a conversation with Twilight. Apparently, they had gotten into a conversation on which was the worst season. Bronze believed that it was Turbo, while Boarding insisted it was Wild Force. Twilight simply said she didn’t care, so that they could just get moving.
Unlike Dome One, Dome Three was simply field upon field of farmland as far as the eye could see. For the ponies from Ponyville, this was a welcome change from what they had seen so far. To them, it looked a bit more like home. Being in Dome One felt more like being in a giant egg carton.
“So, ah, why are we here again?” asked Rainbow Dash, hovering above the group.
“We’re going to see Senator Land Share who has invited us for lunch,” disclosed Twilight.
“Why, that’s mighty kind of him,” said Applejack. “But, ah got ta ask, what’s a ‘senator’?”
Scootaloo let out an excited gasp. “I was just reading about this,” she exclaimed. “They’re elected officials that represent each Dome and carry out Princess Luna’s orders. They’re like the nobles back in Equestria, except that they have a six-year term and can only stay in office…four times?”
“Three times,” Twilight corrected gently as she patted Scootaloo on the head. “Other than that, you did a very good job. Right now, there are thirteen senators, but that will be changing soon with the new Domes that are being built.”
“So, we’re going to be having lunch with a very important pony and I left my bags at the palace?!” exclaimed Rarity in horror. When Twilight had first mentioned the lunch, she had wondered what a senator was, but before she could ask, she heard the word shopping and it was completely forgotten.
“Um, I’m sure it’ll be fine, Rarity,” noted Fluttershy as she saw her friend’s distress.
“Fluttershy, darling, you simply don’t understand,” said Rarity. “We are going to be dining with one of the higher ups of Lunar Republic society. If it is anything like having dinner with Canterlot nobility, the slightest mistake could be THE…WORST…THING…EVER!”
“Oh,” was the only thing that Fluttershy could say.
“Chill out, Rarity,” stated an annoyed Rainbow. “I’m sure you’re making it out worse than what it really is.”
Rarity narrowed her eyes at her flying friend to give her a dirty look. “Rainbow Dash, please try to understand that I know a bit more about how the upper crust of society acts. They are in the public eye and must always act refined. I am sure that this senator will have a huge mansion to show off not only his considerable wealth, but also the importance of his position. There will be dozens of servants there to make sure that the table looks like it should be in a painting.”
As Rarity continued on her little rant, Applejack moved up a bit, so that she was next to Twilight. She was still a bit ashamed about how she had acted back in Ponyville, and while she had done a bit to make up with Shadow, she never got the chance to apologize to Twilight about how they had behaved when the Republic had been first brought up. However, she was a bit nervous and unsure as how proceed. So, she decided she would try starting up a conversation.
“So, ah, ah was curious about how the domes were set up,” said Applejack awkwardly. “I mean, why not have farmland in each dome?”
“Well, the Domes are separated so in order to maximize space, as well as to keep things organized,” explained Twilight. “Each Dome is separated so that it can focus on producing something that the Republic needs. Take, for example, Dome One where I live. While that is a residential Dome, it also has some of the best schools in the entire Republic.
“Dome Nine, which is also a residential Dome, is well known for their theaters, art galleries, and music programs. Dome Four is where we have all of our trees and forest land. It’s there that wood is harvested to make paper and other things that can be made from wood. Of course, we can’t take too much.”
Twilight then stopped for a moment, which caused the entire group to halt as well. In front of them was a very simple looking two story farm house. It, like Twilight’s, looked like a metallic egg, but it did have another building next to it, which looked a bit more like a normal barn. Behind both building were several silos.
But, what surprised the group, as well as shock Rarity, was that in front were several park benches that were put together in a straight line. On top of the table was a collection of simple looking meals containing oats, apples, and flowers. Sitting at the table were three ponies that only Twilight recognized as Senators Land Share, Stock Market, and Gigawatt. The three were talking together in very hushed tones, but stopped when Land Share began to stare in the direction of Twilight and her party.
Gigawatt, who had his back turned towards the group, turned around and glared at the Equestria ponies for a good minute before getting up from the table. Personally, he wanted to avoid these ponies if at all possible, but sadly he was out of luck. The only way towards the platform station was in their direction.
For a moment, Twilight watched as Gigawatt seemed to hesitate for a moment before walking towards the group. The ponies behind her were beginning to wonder what the holdup was. Little did they know that Twilight was doing her best to try and prevent another poor run in with another senator. It didn’t help that Trixie had pushed herself up front and was now standing next to Twilight.
“Could we please keep moving,” said Trixie in her usual tone. “The Great and Powerful Trixie is beginning to get hungry and would like to eat as soon as possible.”
“Well, the ‘Great and Powerful Trixie’ should take a refresher course in manners,” said Gigawatt, stopping in front of the group. He stared at Trixie from a moment, his dislike of her clearly showing.
“Senator Gigawatt, I didn’t know you’d be here,” said Twilight quickly.
“I had to talk to Senator Land Share for a moment,” noted Gigawatt as he turned his attention towards Twilight, his expression softening as he did. “Needless to say, that it went longer than I intended it to.”
“What about, if you don’t mind me asking?” asked Twilight.
“Normally, I would tell you,” replied Gigawatt. “But, with your current…company, I think it would be unwise.” He then turned his attention to Scootaloo. “And, how are you adjusting to life in the Lunar Republic?”
“Ah, pretty good, I think,” replied Scootaloo honestly. “There’s a lot I still don’t know, but there are a lot of ponies helping me learn.”
Gigawatt nodded. “That is good,” he replied. “I have heard through my connections that you wish to become a member of the Lunar Royal Guard. If the rumors are true about your victories during that laser tag match are true, you will make an excellent addition. I wish you the best of luck.”
“Thanks,” said Scootaloo as she tried to hide her embarrassment.
Gigawatt then leaned his head closer to Scootaloo and began to whisper in her ear. “If you think that you’re up to it, I got an assignment for you,” he said softly. “Can you watch after your younger friends? Twilight has her hooves full watching after the older ones, so it would help her out tremendously. Just do your best to keep them out of trouble.”
“I-I think I can do that,” whispered Scootaloo back.
Little did Scootaloo, or many other ponies, know that Gigawatt had a bit of a soft spot for foals. He himself had three colts of his own and loved them dearly. Even the foals from Equestria he found he just couldn’t hate as much as the adults.
The reason for this was actually very simple: they didn’t know any better. Foals were supposed to listen to their parents, older brothers, and so on. But, once a foal reaches adulthood, that was when they should begin to think for themselves and draw their own conclusions. Also, it was easier for a foal to learn and accept a new idea than it was for an adult.
Satisfied with Scootaloo’s answer, Gigawatt walked past the group, while giving the adults from Equestria one last unkind glare before he headed off.
“Sorry about him,” said Land Share, walking over to the group.
“It’s no problem, Uncle,” replied Twilight as she shook her head.
“U-Uncle?” gasped Rarity in surprise. “You never told us you were related to him?”
“Never pegged ya for a pony with some farmin’ root in ya,” said Applejack.
“Ah, we’re not really blood related,” replied Twilight, who was a little embarrassed.
“But, it feels like it at times,” said Land Share as he gestured the group towards the table. “Both my family and Twilight’s have been close since the founding of the Republic. Some ponies even think of us as the two founding families, because of our roles in helping build the Republic. Just a bunch of talk though, that’s all it is.”
As the ponies got to the table and sat down, they realized that there wasn’t a great selection of choices. Apple slices, applesauce, daisy salad, oat bread, just plain oats, and so on. Everything there looked very basic and simple. And, as Pinkie sadly noticed, there were no sugary treats. Also, in the middle of the table, trapped under magical glass box was a burnt piece of word.
“I think you overcooked the wood,” said Pinkie when she noticed what it was.
Land Share laughed as he sat down. “Oh no, that’s not for lunch. That there is a family heirloom that has been passed down from generation from generation. It was brought here by my ancestor Stone Plow, when he left Equestria.”
“Greetings,” said Stock Market who could no longer keep quiet. “I’m Senator Stock Market of Dome Five and it’s a pleasure to meet you all. I’m so glad to have this chance to sit down, so we might talk about future trade.”
“Business at the table?” asked Applejack. “Well, why don’t you take a sip of this.” With that, Applejack pulled out some of her family’s apple cider and passed it to both of the senators, who both took a sip.
“Impressive,” said Land Share as he put down the bottle.
“Good quality,” agreed Stock Market. “But, I was hoping for something more. I mean, we have plenty of apples and apple related treats. We need something…different.”
“Well how about some Zap Apple Jam?” Applejack suggested.
“Zap Apple Jam?” said Stock Market slowly. “Hmm, never heard of it. Might be interesting to try. But still, we are in the market for something…different. I heard that when Shadow Blade visited Equestria, he brought back a bag of kiwi seeds. Don’t know what they taste like, but there are ponies here who are desperate just to try something new. After all, we’ve been eating the same food for a thousand years!”
“Well, that’s a little outside my department,” admitted Applejack.
“But, are you sure, darling, that you just want food?” asked Rarity. “I’m sure I could send up some of my dress designs.”
“I, ah, heard that you don’t have any animals,” mumbled Fluttershy. “Perhaps you would be interested in some cute baby bunnies, kitties, or puppies?”
Stock Market asked them to elaborate and the two mares were happy to tell them everything they knew about their fields of interest. What they soon noticed was how different both the two senators sitting before them were, from the nobles they knew as well as Gigawatt. They seemed to take an interest with what they were hearing, never told them to hurry up, and were down right pleasant to talk to! It was little wonder that these two had been voted into office.
“Well, your dresses sound nice,” said Stock Market when they were done. “But, we have plenty of dress makers in Dome Five. But, perhaps you might be interested in setting up your own shop around here, once the alliance has gotten a bit further along. You might, however, find yourself with a lot of competition.”
“And, to you, Miss Fluttershy,” began Land Share, “your animals sound wonderful. But, I don’t think it would work out.”
“But-” Fluttershy barely tried to counter, however Land Share held up a hoof to silence her.
“Please, don’t think that we wouldn’t love to have them around,” reasoned Land Share. “I’m sure there are plenty of fillies and colts who would love to have one of these creatures you talk so fondly of. But, it just wouldn’t be fair to these animals if they came here. You see, space is limited in most of the Domes. The only reason farmers like me have so much land is because we need it to grow our crops. But, in residential areas, there just isn’t enough room for them to run around as much as they are used to in Equestria.”
“Not to mention our overall ability to care for them,” Stock Market added with a sigh. “I’m sure our nanotechnology will be able to help keep them healthy, but what about food? We are having a hard enough time right now feeding ourselves. And water? More creatures living up here mean more thirsty mouths. The both problems can be fixed in time, but right now, I’m not so sure bringing these animals to the Republic is in our best interest.”
“Oh,” disappointedly and somewhat quietly declare Fluttershy, lowering her head. “I see.”
“But, that doesn’t mean that we would try to get them sooner or later,” said Land Share. Fluttershy looked up to see that the older stallion was smiling. “Right now, it would be a bad idea. But, once this trading alliance gets underway, perhaps we can get some smaller animals that won’t take up so much space.”
“Indeed,” said Stock Market as he pulled out a piece of paper. “I just hope that they will accept what we are willing to trade. Miss Rarity, I heard from Twilight’s report that you helped change some gold into the local currency while she was planet side. Right now, we have a surplus of various metals and gems that we have farmed from space. Would you take a look and give me your best estimate?”
“Why, of course,” said Rarity as she took the paper with her magic. She glanced at the paper and her eyes nearly popped right out. They had how many tons of gold? And, the amount of diamonds, surely that number had to be a mistake. Before she could get halfway down the list, the poor mare fainted due to shock.
As everypony rushed to see what was wrong with Rarity, no pony noticed the small creature flying out of Fluttershy’s mane.
-x-
“It is good to see you again, Emperor Eagle Eye,” said Celestia with a bow as she stood before the griffon’s throne. She was dressed in her finest pink and red dress, which she had spent the last few hours picking out before teleporting to the Talon Palace. Around her, the griffons stared at her with an icy look in their eyes.
“As do you,” said the emperor, out of courtesy. He himself wore golden colored robes with a mail shirt underneath, in case something happened. “I wish this meeting was under better circumstances. As I said in my letter, I insist on bringing with me my own guards for protection.”
“You will have to run that by Princess Luna, since it will be her country where these talks will take place,” replied Princess Celestia. “But, I am sure she will agree.”
“I-” began Eagle Eye when the doors to his audience chambers opened. Looking up, he saw one of his guards leading another alicorn into the room. All noise was silenced as she walked in. The only motion was from Celestia as she face-hoofed from the sight of how her little sister had decided to make her entrance.
Princess Luna looked like she was ready for war. She had on four metal boots that looked like they were made out of silver. Her chest plate was also made of the same metal, while having her cutie mark displace right in the middle.
On both her sides were weapons. On her right was a crescent moon shaped glaive; while on her left was an oddly shaped blade that looked like a snowflake. Both weapons blades glowed blue. Finally, on Luna’s head was a helmet that also had a blue glowing blade in front of her horn.
As soon as Luna was in front of the throne she used her magic to levitate both her weapons. The guards reached for their own, but stopped as Luna’s pierced only the ground. Then Luna bowed, her wings touching the ground as her faced looked directly at the ground.
“Sheriff, I’m worried about that new pony,” said one of the deputies as he walked up to Silver Star. The Sheriff sighed, turning away from supervising the defense of the town. So far, there were over a dozen anvils hidden in hay barrels, and every citizen was armed with apple pies. It might not be much, but it was all they had for the moment, and Silver Star was going to use everything he could get his hooves on, in order to save Appleloosa.
“Thunder Shot is helping us,” stated Silver Star simply.
“Well, maybe he is,” replied the deputy as he took a step back. “But…”
“But?” pressed the sheriff.
“Well, I was going over to him to tell him where he could get some water, when I saw him unpacking,” continued the deputy as his voice became quieter. “Some of the things he had on him were…weird. I saw a wooden hammer, a wooden stake, garlic, and rubber rope. Sheriff, I think Thunder Shot might be a bat pony hunter!”’
Silver Star could not hide the surprise and shock of this declaration. Bat pony hunters were, by far, the most extreme group that hated bat ponies. While Silver Star had never met one before, he had read stories from other law officers, who had witnessed their hoof work. The method was always the same. A bat pony would be found dead, tied to a wall with a wooden stake right through the heart.
Despite the general public’s feelings towards bat ponies, bat pony hunters tended to keep their identities a secret. What many ponies didn’t know (including Silver Star) was that back during the time when King Molten Fury and Queen Oceana ruled, the queen had put a stop to an old pegasus tradition of throwing new born bat ponies to the timber wolves below. However, not all pegasi agreed with this decision. For some reason that was now long forgotten, these pegasi could not stand the thought of bat ponies walking around like the rest of them.
Thus, the first bat pony hunters were born. At first, the group consisted of just pegasus ponies, yet as time marched on, earth and unicorn ponies joined their ranked.
During the first few years, they operated openly. They proudly committed their acts of murder to the crowds as they showed them a new way of dealing with bat ponies. Word spread and soon the queen heard about what was going on. Enraged at the deeds being done, Queen Oceana decreed that anypony who was caught being a hunter was to be sentenced to life in the dungeons. Thus, bat pony hunters began to keep their identities a secret.
While other ponies believed that Princess Celestia only kept this law in practice because her mother put it there, Silver Star once heard a story that dated back to Princess Celestia’s first years as ruler that supported her reasons for keeping it. At least, in Silver Star’s mind. According to what he was told, a bat pony hunter had gone to a small town called Trotmoore, where a bat pony had been seen several times. The pony had been captured and killed, but the hunter stayed to deal with a loose end.
Living at the edge of the town lived a single young mare whom the town thought was an oddball. Before the death of the bat pony, she had been caught trying to rescue him, claiming to be in love with him. The hunter, under the assumption that she was under some kind of spell cast by the bat pony, tied her up and did everything in his power to break the spell. His treatment was savage and painful, lasting well over three weeks. But, no matter what he did, the mare refused to admit that her feelings were false. Seeing no other solution, the hunter killed her in the same fashion as the bat pony.
Within days, word had reached Canterlot about what had happened, and warrant was placed on the bat pony hunter. It took ten years, but eventually he found himself behind bars. From that time on, the hunters became more secretive. They hid in the shadows of society as they killed bat ponies and those that tried to hide or protect them.
To Silver Star, the bat pony hunters were the lowest of the low. It wasn’t because they killed bat ponies, oh no. His belief was that bat ponies were born criminals and should be either placed behind bars or eliminated as soon as possible. But, he would never consider hurting one of the misguided ponies who thought that bat ponies could be trusted. They were just confused, under a spell, or something else under those lines. They needed help, not to be killed in the same barbaric nature as bat ponies. The best way to do that was to get them away from the bat pony, or ponies whose influence they were under, and then give them time.
It is also important to note that Silver Star believed his actions towards the buffalo were different than those of the bat pony hunters. The ponies of Appleloosa were having trouble with the buffalo before they even knew bat ponies were living here. He had even gone to try and talk reason with them, but it was no use. Not to mention that it was the buffalo who declared war on them first. So, in order to keep their apple trees, as well as the town they had spent so much time building, they needed to fight in order to survive.
“Right now, we need everypony we can get our hooves on,” said a determined Silver Star. “If Thunder really is a bat pony hunter, then we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
The deputy look like he was about to say something when the two of them heard another pony shouting their names. The both of them looked in the direction of the shouting and saw a pony with a spyglass around him neck, galloping towards them at an alarming pace. The ponies face was pale, as if he had just come face to face with the grim reaper. Whatever he was going to tell them, it wasn’t good news.
-x-
The city of Canterlot was home to many thriving, high class businesses. From boutiques, spas, bakeries, and so on, all of them catered to the high end of society. This went double for restaurants, for they only served the most expensive meals to the finest of Canterlot elite. In one such place, The Prancing Unicorn, sat Blueblood and another unicorn.
The two were sitting in the outside patio which was roped off from the rest of the street to keep unwanted ponies from wandering in. Normally, Blueblood would have been served in his usual seat, but the place was packed for lunch. At least they provided the finest silk cushions for the two to sit on as they ate.
“So, let me ask, Stareye, how are things in the Royal Guard?” asked Blueblood, taking a bite out of his salad.
Stareye let out a groan. The unicorn was as white as Blueblood, but with a silver mane that was slicked backs with eyes the color of lavender. His cutie mark was a large, red throne. Before he answered, a dirty looking foal walked up to the rope, eyeing their meal. Before either could say anything, the foal’s mother quickly pulled her child away. Sniffing the air with distain, Stareye pulled out a sack from his hip, took out a hoof full of white powder, and inhaled it.
“Dreadful,” said Stareye in a sophisticated tone. “Truly, my father must be mad to send me to sweat and mingle with those commoner brutes. I must really thank you for the lunch invite. Without it, I would have been forced to eat that commoner food they serve in the mess hall.”
Blueblood could only nod in response. Stareye’s father, Lord North Star, was what the common pony referred to as ‘one of the good nobles’. He was always trying to lower taxes in order to ease the burdens of the lower classes, as well as working with Celestia in order to help create new laws to protect them. Stareye, on the other hoof, couldn’t care less about what happened to those beneath him. Seeing his son as rotten and spoiled, North Star had him sent to the Royal Guard while also restricting his access to his bank account.
“I don’t know how you have managed so far,” stated Blueblood. “I would have died if I had to go one day without a spa treatment. But, perhaps I can offer you something to make this little nightmare worth it.”
“Oh,” said Stareye with a raised eyebrow. “What could you possibly offer?”
“A promotion to Captain of the Royal Guard,” presented Blueblood simply.
“Interesting,” said Stareye without batting an eye as he took another bite of his food. “I would at least get a decent amount of bits, as well as my own, personal quarters. But, I have to ask, what’s in it for you? Please tell me you aren’t planning on overthrowing Princess Celestia.”
“Perish the thought,” said Blueblood honestly. “I accepted that I will never be this country’s ruler long ago. She can’t die, and if I used brute force to try and remove her, then those commoners would never give me any rest. Then, there is Cadence who is next in line. It would take a miracle in order for me to properly assume the throne.
“The truth is that right now, I have big plans in the works to improve my own personal wealth and power. Having you become the next Captain of the Guard will aid in my endeavors. With everything going on, my aunt has yet to appoint a new captain. Since I am the only member of the royal line who is in Equestria right now, I have the power to do so. Hopefully, it will help me look better in Aunty Celestia’s eyes.”
“So, I am just a means to an end,” said Stareye as he set down his fork.
“Not at all,” replied Blueblood. “Did you know that during the time of the three tribes, it was unicorn nobility that held ranks within the military? Well, it’s true and that’s one of the things I want to bring back. More privileges and power for the noble class.”
“Won’t Princess Celestia just demote me and then promote somepony else, once she gets back?” asked Stareye.
“Not without a good reason she can’t,” stated Blueblood. “And, as long as you do your job, and don’t give her a reason, you’ll be fine.”
“I see,” said Stareye before he pulled out more white powder to sniff. “I guess then I’ll take you up on your offer.” Stareye knew there was more to it. He knew he’d be asked to do favors for Blueblood.
But, Stareye was tired of living like a commoner. Tired of running, doing drills, sleeping on hard mattresses. He wanted to have his bits back! So, going along with Blueblood would be fine, for now at least.
-x-
The entire court room was silent. Neither griffon nor pony moved as Princess Luna continued to bow before the emperor. The griffons had never seen a pony act like this before. They usually came in, dressed in rich gowns or suits, while giving the briefest of bows to their emperor. Instead, Princess Luna had bowed in such a manner that placed her at the complete mercy of her host. It would be very easy for one of the guards to cripple one or both wings or even slash at her throat.
As for Princess Celestia, she could not believe her sister would do something like this. She had assumed that Luna would come dressed in a similar fashion as she had back when she had first come to Canterlot. Instead, she looked like she was dressed to start a war. Where was her head at when she was getting dressed?
As for Eagle Eye, he could not stop staring at the figure bowing before him. She had to be the most beautiful creature he had seen since his wife passed away. To him, she looked like a goddess of war! Her starry night style mane was both exotic and enchanting. The way she walked in, so confident and powerful, took his breath away.
Just then, Celestia coughed which pulled Eagle Eye from his thoughts. It was then that he realized that Luna was still bowing.
“You may rise,” said Eagle Eye. Luna rose up, allowing the two to lock eyes for a moment.
As they stared at each other, Celestia moved to stand next to her sister. “Luna,” hissed the sun princess under her breath. “What do you think you’re doing? Dressing like that and coming in armed? You might start a war!”
“But, this is the traditional method of meeting with griffon royalty,” replied Luna a bit louder. “When our parents met with Emperor Valiant, they approached him as so.”
“That was a thousand years ago,” said Celestia quickly, still keeping her voice low. “Why couldn’t you have come here in that lovely dress you were wearing before?”
“I’m sorry for trying to make a good impression,” growled Luna loudly. “And it’s not like you told me that things had changed. I mean, how hard would it have been to say: ‘Luna, I know you have been away for a thousand years, so here are a few things that have changed’. How hard would that have been?”
“I could say the same to you,” stated Celestia as she felt her anger rising. “Why couldn’t you say: ‘Celestia, it’s been a thousand years since I had any interaction with the griffon empire, and I was wondering if there is anything I should know in advance’?”
“Oh, don’t you dare-” began Luna, but was silenced when she heard someone cough. Both princesses realized now that every griffon was now watching them.
Celestia felt like she was ready to die of embarrassment. After all these years of keeping up her royal composure and image, it was quickly destroyed in one argument with her sister. How could she come back from this?
“If I may say,” began Eagle Eye. “It is wonderful to seem that there are those who remember my countries old traditions. Princess Luna, you have honored us all with your entrance.”
“Thank you, Emperor,” replied Luna.
“Now then, the day is half done and there is much we need to do,” said Eagle Eye as he stood. “But, before we depart, I must make the request that I bring with me my guards for some protection. Not that I don’t trust you princess, but-”
“You would be a fool not to bring them,” interrupted Luna with a nod. “You are going into a strange land which you know nothing about. While I can assure you that they are not needed, I would do the same if our places were reversed.”
Celestia looked at the two with a raised eyebrow. She had to be missing something. Eagle Eye had never talked to her like that. Did Luna really make that good of a first impression? And, what was that look in Luna’s eyes? Was it…respect?
“I am glad you understand,” said Eagle Eye as he signaled to his soldiers. As one, they all rose and got into a flanking formation next to their ruler. “Now then, how will we be getting to your Lunar Republic? Magic?”
“Not this time,” replied Luna as she motioned the rest to follow her out the door. “I had thought about that, of course, but since I am going to be entertaining the rulers of two nations, I thought I should pull out something special. So, I went to my Research and Development Department and asked if one of my personal favorite projects could get me here and back.”
“Princess Luna,” began Celestia, “what in the world did you…” Celestia’s voice trailed off as they all exited the Talon Palace. Looking up, nearly everyone was shocked at what they saw. Several soldiers dropped their weapons and began to shake in fear. And, they weren’t the only one to notice what was in the air. Looking out were members of the Talon Palace’s staff, as well as other members of the government.
Hovering up in the air was a giant crescent moon shaped objects that looked like it could hold a thousand ponies in, with room to spare. It was hard for anyone there to guess how tall it was, perhaps twenty stories high, give-or-take a few. What was keeping it in the air was a mystery. No flames came out of it nor were there any wings. It just sat there in the air while making a slight humming sound.
“W-what is that?” asked the emperor.
“That is Crescent Hope,” replied Luna proudly. “And it will be our ride this day.”
Looking out from a window, Tundra gulped loudly. He watched as a beam of light picked up his ruler, the guards, Princess Celestia, and Princess Luna, before flying into the sky. When he could no longer see them he realized that making an enemy of the Lunar Republic was the last thing he wanted to do.
-x-
On the hills overlooking Appleloosa, Chief Thunderhooves stood ready. Behind him was a sea of brown fur, ready to destroy the offending town before them. In the air were the bat ponies who were all wearing the same face paint as their buffalo friends. Today, they would all fight as one.
“Fall back,” yelled Silver Star as the buffalo smashed through their defenses. The Sheriff of Appleloosa couldn’t believe it. He had hoped that they would fall for at least one of their traps. But, instead the buffalo plowed through the piles of hay while avoiding the ones that had anvils inside of them.
While that was going on, Silver Star looked over at their ammo of steaming hot pies, only to receive another shock. Large rocks, carried by the bat ponies, were dropping from the sky! Luckily no pony was hurt, but their catapult as well as the pies suffered heavy casualties. This wasn’t something that they had planned for. Perhaps it was a mistake to leave all of their pies out in the open like that.
In the air was Thunder Shot, flying towards each of the attacking bat ponies. How he managed to fly at those high speeds with that cloak on was a mystery to the sheriff. The pegasus stallion looked like he was trying to get in their way, trying to buy time so that those below could move the pies, by waving his front hooves wildly in the air while shooting things at them. Sadly, there were too many bat ponies armed with the large rocks and only one of him. Personally, Silver Star was expecting something better from him.
Silver Star could feel despair wash over him as he ran with the rest of the citizens of Appleloosa. There were just so many buffalo. If only they had a few unicorns, or if the soldiers from Canterlot had gotten here in time, maybe then they might have a chance. But, now it was too late.
Now they were cornered in the center of town. All around them, buffalo filled the streets, leaving nowhere to go. Looking up, Silver Star saw the bat ponies circling above them like vultures. Closing his eyes, Silver Star waited for the end to come.
Yet, after about a minute of waiting, Silver Star slowly opened his eyes to see what was taking his immanent doom so long. What he saw was that a pink wall of magical energy had appeared in between them and the buffalo. The buffalo, at first, appeared confused by this and just stood there, staring at the energy wall. It didn’t last long, because soon, they began to snort loudly as they charged at the wall. This proved to be wasted energy as the wall held firm.
Looking up, Silver Star and the rest of the ponies from Appleloosa spotted a flying chariot in the sky above their town. The kind that belonged only to members of nobility and Princess Celestia! The bat ponies, who had been circling them, had flown away from it and closer to the buffalo. Looking back down, the settler ponies saw the wall pushing back the buffalo with the ease of pushing toy blocks across the floor. Yet, for some reason, the wall in front of them didn’t move an inch.
As Silver Star and the others stood there confused, the magical wall vanished, leaving a wide open space between the ponies and the buffalo. It was in that space that the chariot landed, causing many of the ponies to gasp in shock. First of all, the chariot was being pulled by bat ponies wearing pink armor. Second, the pony in the chariot was a pink alicorn and not Princess Celestia. Finally, there was no army or anypony else to help fight against the buffalo.
Calmly, the pink alicorn walked out of the chariot. Walking next to her was a small bat pony filly. As one of the bat ponies helped her comrades remove the reins from the chariot, Silver Star began to seethe in rage. What in Equestria was an alicorn doing with bat ponies? And, why were they wearing armor?
As for the buffalo and their bat pony friends, they were also wondering what was going on. They had been on the verge of victory, before the pink wall appeared and pushed them away. Chief Thunderhooves motioned those behind him to stay where they were. He had witnessed before what unicorns could do with their magic, as well as the powerful magic that an alicorn had. If his guess was right that she was the one who pushed them back with her magic, then he would not want to charge recklessly at her.
The desert dwelling bat ponies, on the other hoof, were having mixed feelings about all of this. On one hoof, they were both shocked and amazed to see bat ponies wearing the armor of the Royal Guard. Yet, on the other hoof, they couldn’t help but to feel embarrassed for them for having to wear pink armor!
“I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of Equestria,” said the pink alicorn in a loud voice, so that all could hear her once she and her group had made their way to the middle of the street. “I have come here in the name of Princess Celestia, so that we can find a peaceful solution for all parties. I would ask that both sides send over representatives, so that we may talk.”
For the buffalo, Chief Thunderhooves looked over at Darkwing. Normally, he would have preferred Weeping Willow to be at his side for an event like this, since she was not only his friend, but also the Flight Master of her colony. However, she had stayed behind at the camp along with the other elderly and those too young to fight.
The other bat ponies looked towards Darkwing as their second in command during this fight. And, it wasn’t like he hadn’t earned that right. It had been thanks to his scouting that they were able to avoid the traps set by the ponies of Appleloosa, as well as learning where their pile of apple pies were. Looking at the younger bat pony, Chief Thunderhooves motioned with his head to follow him.
As the two desert dwellers walked towards the princess, Silver Star was losing it. He was a sheriff! Bat ponies were nothing but criminals, and here before him were criminals dressed as Royal Guards, pretending to protect Princess Cadence. What lie had they told her to get this job? What did they tell her that could cause a member of the royal family to come out here, without an army, and talk to this scum?
Silver Star didn’t know, and right now, he didn’t care. He would not allow his home, which he had just finished building along with the rest of the settler ponies, to be put in danger by their kind. Eyes narrowing, Silver Star took off at full speed.
Ruby was the first to notice the charging sheriff. It looked like he was heading towards the princess and her foal. Images appeared quickly in her alarmed head of the stallion attacking either of them. ‘Oh, that is not going to happen,’ thought Ruby fiercely and quickly moved in between the princess and the sheriff. Wishing that she had more time spent in training, Ruby dug in her hooves and braced herself for the attack.
She didn’t have to wait long, for the motion transpired very quickly. Silver Star tackled Ruby with full force, knocking her to the ground. In response to this, Darkwing’s wings stood up and he moved to a pouncing position. He wouldn’t let anypony try a sneak attack like that on Thunderhooves. Speaking of whom, the Chief glared at Cadence for a moment, wondering if this was some sort of trick. Yet, judging by the princess’s face, she was equally shocked by what was happening.
Back on the ground, Ruby was doing her best to get up. However, Silver Star had one of his hooves on her wing. The other hoof was trying to take off her armor.
“Your kind shouldn’t be wearing this,” he growled as he struggled to remove the pink armor with one hoof. Sadly for him, this proved to be very difficult. Using her front hooves, Ruby tried in vain to push him off. This only served to enrage him further, causing the sheriff to stop trying to remove the armor and raise a hoof to punch her in the face.
But, the sheriff never got the chance. Before his hoof could descend upon her face, he got bucked hard by Thunder Shot’s hind legs. The force of the kick sent the sheriff flying into the air and then rolling in the dirty street. Before he could get up fully, Cadence created a giant bird cage with her magic and placed him inside, slamming the door shut.
Meanwhile, Ruby looked up at her rescuer, panting hard. She had never been so frightened in her life. And, while she was thankful to whoever saved her, she was still somewhat frightened by this cloaked stranger, wondering why he did that.
It was then that she smelled something very familiar: garlic. This stallion reeked of the smell as if he had bathed in it. Yet, the smell brought back memories. There had only been one stallion in her life that smelled like he did.
“D-Daddy?” stammered Ruby. The stallion removed the hood and Ruby found herself staring into the golden eyes of her smiling father. She remembered that when she was younger, his light green mane was slicked back, but now looked messy and rugged.
“Ruby,” cried the voice of her mother as the bat pony feel her front hooves wrap around her neck. They were so close that she felt her mother’s tears run down her neck. “We were so worried! We had no idea where you were, or if you were ok.”
“Mom,” gasped Ruby as her air supply began to leave her. “Choking!”
“Oops,” replied Dreamy, taking a step back. Without her cloak and hood, everypony could see her long orange mane. “I’m just so happy that you are alright. We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
“I’m sorry I made you both worry,” said Ruby as she stood up. “I never meant to leave either of you. I got lost and I didn’t know how to get back home and-”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Thunder, hugging his daughter. “What matters is that we found you alive and well. And, that’s what matters most.”
Meanwhile, Cadence watched as Dreamy Words also began to hug Ruby. It gave the princess a warm feeling inside as she felt the true, unconditional love they had for each other. It was so obvious that everypony around could see it. The ones who it affected the most were the ones of the buffalo side. Many of the bat ponies had tears in their eyes, while many of the buffalo just began to bawl. Chief Thunderhooves nodded at the sight, seeing that perhaps not all ponies were like the ones from Appleloosa.
Yet, on the Appleloosa side, the reaction they got was confusion.
“I-I don’t understand.”
“She’s a bat pony. How can they be near her?”
“I don’t understand this.”
“They’re helping the bat ponies. We should run them all out!”
“Enough!” shouted Cadence, turning to face the ponies of Appleloosa. “What is the matter with you?”
“Don’t you know that bat ponies are born criminals,” shouted Silver Star from his cage. “We all know it!”
Cadence rolled her eyes. “Yes, I am aware of that rumor,” she calmly noted. “And I am also aware that many of them are thieves. But, it is not because they are born that way. No, they have been forced into that life, because of ponies like you.” As she ended that sentence, Cadence pointed her hoof at the pony crowd, earning a gasp of shock.
“You all repeat the same thing over and over again,” Cadence continued. “Not one of you has given them a chance to be anything other than what you proclaim them to be. From the time they are born, ponies like you have pointed your hooves at them and claimed them to be thieves, even when they have done nothing wrong. You made those rumors and then lie about them to further justify your actions. But, I am here to tell you that they are false.
“I may not know everything about bat ponies, but I have met with those who do, and have talked to them. I have gotten to know them well. They are just like any other pony out there, except that they are better suited for the night life. Their eyes can see during the night, just as well as the day. Their wings, while different, allow them to fly well during the night. They do not drink blood, but they love fruit.
“In the end, they are simply night pegasi!”
“How-” began a mare, but fell silent when Cadence turned her head to look at her. Slowly, the princess of love walked over to her.
“Tell me, have you ever met one before today?” asked Cadence, looking directly at the mare. The mare shook her head no. “Have any of you lost anything since coming here?” The ponies began to glance at each other while whispering. After a short while, they came to the conclusion of no.
Cadence turned and looked in the direction of the buffalo. “Tell me, have the bat ponies ever stolen anything?”
“Never,” said Thunderhooves as the others nodded in agreement. “They have been nothing but polite and respectable.”
Cadence nodded before returning her attention back towards the crowd. “The way we have been treating them ends today. No more will a mother toss her bat pony child out to the streets, and not suffer any penalty for it. They have the right to live like any other pony here. Free to pursue their dreams, fall in love, and have a family.”
“You expect us to just accept them?!” howled Silver Star. “To work besides them like nothing is wrong? It can’t be done!”
“It can,” said Cadence strongly. “For I have seen it. There is a place where bat ponies live alongside the three other tribes. A place where they are given equal rights like any other pony. In fact, their Captain of the Royal Guard is a bat pony! Like the buffalo, they know that bat ponies aren’t thieves by nature.
“Now, I am sure there is a thief or two that is a bat pony, just as I’m sure that there are earth, pegasus, and unicorn thieves out there. I am willing to work to see Equestria like that. Not just for my daughter’s sake, but for the sake of everypony in Equestria.”
Every pony’s and buffalo’s eyes widened when Cadence said that last bit. All eyes turned to look at the bat pony filly, who now seemed to be trying to hide behind her mother, yet failed. All of them thought the same thing: there was a bat pony princess in Canterlot. The bat ponies of the desert could only stare in disbelief that one of them was now royalty. Perhaps, they thought, there might be hope for them.
To the Appleloosa group, that had to mean that Princess Celestia was ok with it. If she wasn’t, there would be no way she would have allowed it to happen. Sure, they had heard her talk about treating bat ponies fairly and all that, but she had never done anything before to back up what she was saying. Realizing this, they began to talk with each other as to what to do next.
Cadence looked at the Appleloosa group and saw that they were talking to each other, which to her, was a good sign. Hopefully, they would see the errors of their ways. While they talked, the pink princess walked over to Ruby with her daughter behind her. As she near, Dreamy Words turned her head to gaze at Cadence.
“I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for our little filly,” she cried.
“It was all her doing,” said Cadence. “She was the one who came to me and asked for this chance, which I happily gave. I cannot imagine how hard it must have been for the two of you. Not knowing if your daughter was dead or alive. It must have been quite the struggle.”
“Well, I won’t lie that it was hard,” said Thunder, pulling out some garlic and bit into it. “We were afraid to go to the police, because we knew how they would treat her. So, we decided we would look for her ourselves.
“At first, we looked all over the nearby towns, but had no luck. We checked newspapers, asked homeless ponies, and just about everything we could think about. Then, after a year or so, I left my job as a storm breaker at the Cloudsdale weather factory and sold our home, so we could look for her. Going from town to town looking for any bat ponies and asking them if they had seen our little filly.”
“A storm breaker?” asked Midnight, poking her head out from behind her mother out of curiosity.
“Yeah,” said Thunder as he finished his garlic. “See, when storm clouds are made, they are usually too large for a pegasus to move. So, I use a wooden hammer and spike to break them apart into more manageable sizes. Has to be wood, since it doesn’t conduct the lightning. Lucky for us that while we were on the road, I found some freelance work.”
“Interesting,” replied Cadence. “So tell me, how did the two of you ended up out here.”
“Well,” began Thunder as he began to look a bit embarrassed. “That’s, ah, a funny story.”
“We got lost and he refused to ask for directions,” said Dreamy in a deadpanned tone. “Stallions!”
Cadence giggled as Thunder Shot turned his head away to hide his growing embarrassment. It was, however, at that moment that a member of Appleloosa group stepped forward. Cadence saw that he was a middle aged stallion with a brown mane and a beard that had a grey stripe running through it. His coat was yellow with a cutie mark that looked like an apple being peeled in a spiral. Taking a breath, the princess of love, her guards, her daughter, the buffalo chief, and the young bat pony stallion all met in the middle of the street.
“My name is Apple Peel,” introduced the earth pony stallion to the group. “Ah’m gonna speak for the ponies of Appleloosa. We talked about it an’ have come to a decision.”
“I see,” said Cadence. “And what have you decided.”
Apple Peel looked at Cadence for a moment before turning his attention to Darkwing. “We talked about it an’ you’re right, nothin’ has been stolen, except for the trees that them buffalo stole. If we hadn’t of seen them, we’d never have known they were here. But, to be honest, we’re not too keen on the idea of them living side by side with us right now. No offence.”
“None taken,” replied Darkwing. “We’re in no hurry to live beside you either.”
“Still, you’re welcome in town anytime,” continued Apple Peel. “I’m sure you can find work around here, and maybe bit-by-bit, we can bury the hatch.”
“I guess that will work for now,” replied Darkwing with a slight nod. “We get by pretty well right now, but that doesn’t mean that we have everything we need. The buffalo have shown us a lot about medicine, but there are some things that they can’t help us with. We’d be willing to work in exchange for doctor visits and such.”
Apple Peel smiled. “I think we can work something out.”
“Then that matter is settled,” said Darkwing. “However, there is another matter that we still need to attend to.”
“Yes, those apple trees need to go, so that we may continue our stampede,” declared Thunderhooves.
“But, we need those trees!” cried Apple Peel.
“Can they be moved?” asked Cadence, but Apple Peel shook his head.
“The land they’re on is the flattest land we could find with the best soil,” he replied. “If we move them, we might as well move the entire town!”
“I see,” said Cadence as she looked at Thunderhooves. “And, tell me, is it not possible for you to move your stampede path around the trees?”
Thunderhooves let out a loud snort of displeasure. “Never,” he said. “We buffalo have stampeded across that land for generations. And, even if we were to do so, the land around it is too rugged for us to stampede safely as we have been. Therefore, those trees must go!”
“Are you telling us to-”
“Can’t you just go through the trees?” asked Midnight, interrupting Apple Peel. All the adults turned their attention to the little filly, who ‘eeped’ before trying to hide behind her mother once more.
“Go through the trees?” repeated Cadence as she thought about the idea. She was a bit confused by what the filly had said, but knew that Midnight was still very young. “Do you mean make a space for the buffalo to run through the orchard?”
“What’s an orchard?” asked Midnight.
While Cadence explained what an orchard was, it allowed both Apple Peel and Chief Thunderhooves to think about the idea. By only moving a few trees, the buffalo could continue their sacred stampede and the ponies of Appleloosa wouldn’t starve. Heck, the buffalo might even help knock down a few apples as they charged through!
“This…might work,” said Thunderhooves as Cadence finished her explanation.
“Can’t say I have any problems with it,” agreed Apple Peel.
“There now,” said Cadence. “Finding a peaceful solution wasn’t that hard, was it?”
“No, princess,” said Apple Peel. “I guess we’d better get ta work moving them trees.” He then paused before looking over at Silver Star. “But, I have ta ask, what’ll happen ta the sheriff?”
Cadence sighed. “I’m afraid that I can’t overlook what I have seen,” she said sadly. “Charging and attacking a member of the Royal Guard is a very serious crime. He will be removed from his position as sheriff and taken back to Canterlot to await trial.”
“Then, who will be sheriff?” asked Apple Peel.
Cadence wondered about that too. If they elected or just hired a new one, then there was a chance that he or she might cause problems with the bat ponies. She thought about it for a moment more before she got an idea.
“Thunder Shot,” said Cadence, looking over at the stallion. “How would you like the job?”
“M-me, princess?” stammered Thunder Shot.
“Yes,” said Cadence. “I need a sheriff here who will show respect to the bat ponies, as well as the ponies of Appleloosa. Do you think you can do that?”
Thunder Shot blinked as he looked up at Cadence. He knew what he was being asked and what it could mean. His job would be to show the rest of Equestria that bat ponies weren’t the scum they had been made out to be. To be a fair and just sheriff that wouldn’t first blame the bat ponies when things went wrong, simply because they were bat ponies.
Sure, there would be ponies out there who would say he was being biased, because his daughter was one, but maybe that would change in time as long as he can found the real criminal. But, it sounded so…big. So important that a simple storm breaker like him could never do. And, what about Ruby?
“I don’t know,” admitted Thunder Shot, hanging his head. “It sounds real nice and all. But, I just found my daughter. I was hoping that we could make up for lost time, and we can’t do that when she’s living in Canterlot while I’m here.”
“I understand,” said Cadence. “That’s why she’s going to be coming here twice a month after her basic training is finished.”
“What?” asked Ruby and her parents at the same time.
“What is happening here will be a very delicate matter,” said Cadence. “I am sure that there will be ponies who won’t like the idea of bat ponies being treated fairly. Therefore, I would like it if a member of my guard visited on a regular basis to see how things are going and report back. And, I know that all of you would rather live in Canterlot together, but the cost of living there is very expensive.”
Dreamy let out a sigh. “I hear what you’re saying, princess,” she said. “We only have five bits to our name right now.”
“Then, will you accept?” asked Cadence.
Thunder Shot looked at Ruby for a moment before looking at Cadence. “I guess so,” he said. “For now, at least. I do want to see my daughter more than a couple of times a month, though.”
“Don’t worry, Daddy,” said Ruby as she gave her father a hug. “I’ll be coming by every time I get some time off.”
Meanwhile, Chief Thunderhooves and Darkwing were off on their own a respectable distance away. While Darkwing stared onward at the scene with the two princesses and company, Thunderhooves was watching Darkwing with a small smile. At first, the young bat pony did his best to ignore it, but after a while he became annoyed.
“What?” he simply asked.
“Oh, nothing,” said Thunderhooves as he looked over at Apple Peel. “I am just proud that you did what was right for your colony.”
“To be honest, I don’t like the idea of working besides them,” stated Darkwing softly. “The ponies of Equestria have rarely ever treated us with any kind of friendship. For all I know, this could all be an act while the princess is here. But…the Flight Master is getting older and her health is fading. After everything she has done for us, I could never forgive myself if I didn’t do everything I could to see that she gets some kind of help. Also…”
“Also?” echoed Thunderhooves.
Darkwing pointed to the little bat pony filly. “We finally have a bat pony princess. If there was ever a moment where we bat ponies had a chance to have a better life, it’s now with her.”
“I see,” said Thunderhooves with a nod. A moment later, Cadence walked over to the two with her guards.
“I wanted to thank you both for listening,” she began. “And I was hoping that we could continue to talk about a few other things.”
“Such as?” asked Thunderhooves.
“I would like to know which other areas of the desert are sacred to you,” explained Cadence. “That way, we can avoid situations like this in the future. Also, I would like to get to know you, your buffalo, and the bat ponies that live here.”
Thuderhooves and Darkwing exchanged a look for a moment. Thunderhooves expression was asking Darkwing if he didn’t mind. The bat stallion shrugged, signaling that he didn’t mind. With that done, the two looked at Cadence and nodded.
Eagle Eye, his guards, and Celestia stood in the middle of a long silver hallway. Both the floor and the ceiling were flat, but there was a curve to the walls. Every once in a while, one of them would see a blinking green, blue, or yellow light on the wall that would come out of nowhere. On the note of light, no one within the group seemed to know what was illuminating the hallways.
Luna, meanwhile, was watching them all with a small smile. She had wanted to make a big impression on them, and it seemed that this did the trick.
“Crescent Hope,” said Luna to the group, “is one of the Lunar Republic’s top projects. Its purpose is to navigate and transport large numbers of ponies to other worlds. Our goal in this is to gather resources from these other worlds and to set up colonies, while at the same time, exploring the endless sea of stars. However, it is still incomplete as we have yet to perfect an engine that will allow this vehicle to travel at the speed needed to get to these destinations in the course of a normal ponies life. Are there any questions?”
“What do you mean by ‘other worlds’?” asked one of the griffon guards.
“What do you mean by ‘sea of stars’?” asked another.
Luna blushed slightly as she realized her error. She was still used to dealing with ponies who understood these concepts. The idea that there were other planets besides this one, it appeared, was either unknown or just not common knowledge.
“Perhaps it would be best it I showed you,” said Luna as she turned around. “Please follow me and be sure not to touch anything.” With that, Luna began to walk forward with the rest of the group in tow.
As the group began to walk, Eagle Eye found himself in a very interesting position. From where he was, he had an excellent view of Luna’s plot. Now, he had heard of other griffons talking about pony plot before and he never seen the appeal. He had seen them before and they were, in his opinion, too plump. He just didn’t find large plots appealing and it seemed that a lot of ponies had them to varying degrees.
Princess Luna, however, was different. He had been smitten when he had seen her face, her mane, and her entrance. Now, seeing her from behind, he could see that even that was appealing. It was tight with a little bit of fat.
Either she watched her weight, or she worked out on a regular basis. Seeing that her armor had some light scratches on it meant that it had been used before. Perhaps she kept in shape by training in it every once in a while.
As they turned a corner, the emperor thought he saw Celestia looking his way. Instantly, he straightened his posture and moved a bit faster, so that he was now walking next to Princess Luna. Moving his eyes only, he looked over to his side to see that Celestia had moved to Luna’s other side and still seemed to be watching him.
“Here we are,” said Luna suddenly, stopping in her tracks. The entire group stopped with her, finding themselves in a hallway that looked just like the one they had begun at.
Celestia looked at her sister as if this were some kind of joke. ‘Luna, what are you thinking,’ thought the sun princess. ‘I was expecting you to take us to a room or something. But, you just took us to another hallway. Are you lost or something? I could understand that since all these hallways look the same and there would be no shame in saying so.’
Luna turned her head to look at her sister. As she looked into Celestia’s eyes, she smiled as if she had just read Celestia’s mind, before walking past her. The moon princess then raised her left hoof and touched a spot on the wall and then took a step back. Quickly, the wall seemed to vanish, only to be replaced with what appeared to be a window. While that was surprising, what they all saw outside the window was shocking!
Every griffon felt their beak drop as they stared out into open space. From this point of view, they could see the moon amidst a starry background. But, it wasn’t like the moon they saw from the planet, for it was much, much bigger.
“W-what is this?” asked the emperor in confusion as he slowly reached out with a claw to touch the window.
“This is an outer display console,” replied Luna. Looking at their confused expressions, Luna decided to elaborate and explain it in a way that they could understand without dumbing it down too much. “Think of it like an illusion on the wall. Outside of Crescent Hope are thousands of tiny devices that are recording images around the ship. Those images are being sent to this area of the wall and other areas like it.”
“So, this isn’t a window?” asked Celestia, tilting her head a bit.
“No,” said Luna as she fought to roll her eyes. “That would be unbelievably stupid to have a glass window on this ship. If there was glass, a single crack could spell disaster for the entire ship. Some of my little ponies thought it might be interesting to have energy fields in place of glass, but if they failed, it would result in the same thing happening. So, it was decided that this was the safest thing to do.”
While the rest of his guard looked on in confusion, Emperor Eagle Eye lowered his claw as it dawned on him the dangers of being here. Judging by what Princess Luna had just said, the area outside of the ship was a very unsafe place to be. Thus, if anything bad happened to it, then they might all die. As he thought this, he became very glad that Goldie was back home, instead of here.
Despite this, however, he couldn’t help but admire both the bravery and ingenuity of Luna’s ponies. Wherever they were on the planet right now had to be dangerous, yet the ponies of the Lunar Republic did not let it stop them. Instead, they found ways to continue to across these areas that were beyond impressive.
“Amazing,” declared Eagle Eye after a moment.
Luna grinned. “Oh, you haven’t seen anything yet,” she noted before clearing her throat. “Computer, magnify image by one hundred and fifty percent.”
“Command accepted,” said a female voice that seemed to come from the walls. Instantly, the image before them changed so that the moon now seemed to take up most of the screen. In the corners, there was a bit of blackness mixed with a few stars, but no griffon or pony was paying attention to that. Instead, they were all staring at a city on the moon’s surface underneath a large dome.
Celestia stared and marveled at the sight before her. She had never seen any of the Republic before. Even when she teleported into Luna’s castle, and later shot out of one of their cannons, she hadn’t really seen any of the buildings. Even she had to admit it was impressive.
“The star ponies,” said Eagle Eye quietly.
“What did you say?” asked Celestia as both she and Luna turned their heads to look at the emperor. Eagle Eye turned his head from the screen with a look of wonder in his eyes.
“About two hundred years ago, a griffon astronomer named Star Chart created the most powerful telescope at the time,” began the emperor, looking back towards the moon city. “As he began to map the stars, he noticed something shining on the moon. Curious, Star began to focus on the spot when he saw a city.
“At first, no griffon believed him. It seemed impossible to believe that anything could be alive on the moon. Many griffons laughed at him, saying that he had been listening to those foolish pony stories about Nightmare Moon. So, to prove them wrong, Star Chart began to map out the surface of the moon as best he could. He even began to work on an even more powerful telescope, so that he could get a better picture.
“Sadly, he died before he could finish his research. But his son, Winter Skies, carried on his legacy. Once it was done, he brought all of their findings to Empress Tiger Eye. At first, she dismissed it as a joke, but when Winter offered her his life if what he said was false, she decided to see for herself. She and her guards made their way to his telescope and saw with their own eyes that there was cities right where the maps said there were.
“At first, we believed that only griffons could have made cities like that in such a harsh environment. It wasn’t until my father’s reign, when a new and more powerful telescope was created, that we learned the truth. Ponies were living on the moon. For a while, we wondered what we should call them. Then, my father thought it only fair that we refer to these ponies in honor of Star Chart, who had first discovered their existence. Thus, they were named the star ponies.”
“This is the first time I have heard this,” admitted Celestia as she began to feel a little ashamed. She had seen Empress Tiger Eye several times and she had never once mentioned it to her. In fact, she hadn’t heard anything about any of this, other than the fact that they had built several large telescopes.
Eagle Eye shook his head. “I’d be surprised if you did,” he said. “Our two nations aren’t on the best of terms. We rarely trade goods, let alone information. Besides, even if one of your ponies did hear about it, they would assume it was a place ruled by that Nightmare Moon of yours.”
“Star ponies, hmm,” said a thoughtful Luna. “While it does have a nice ring to it, I think that calling us lunar ponies is a bit more accurate.”
“I-” began Eagle Eye, but stopped when he realized what Princess Luna just said. ‘She just said “us” right there. That would imply that she is one of them! She also told that computer, whatever that is, to increase the image of the moon by a hundred and fifty percent. But, if we were back in the Empire or Equestria, then it would have to be several times more than that to get such an image!’ It was like watching all the pieces to a puzzle just fall into place with incredible ease.
He now realized just where the Lunar Republic was.
“Hmm, I thought you knew,” said Luna with a bit of a sad smile. The poor griffon looked a bit shaken and unable to participate in this meeting.
Turning back to the wall, Luna touched it and caused the image of the moon to vanish. As the white wall of randomly blinking lights reappeared, she began to search the wall for something. After a moment or two, it seemed that she found what she was looking for and pressed it with her hoof. Almost instantly, the griffon guard saw a red earth pony with a short, light brown mane running towards them. Once he was a few yards away, he tried to stop, but instead tripped over nothing, sliding the rest of the way on his face.
As they watched him get to his hooves, one of the guards noticed his very odd cutie mark. It looked like three white ponies with one of them crossed off. Once the poor stallion was up, he gave Princess Luna a salute.
“Private Red Shirt reporting for duty, your highness,” he said.
“At ease,” instructed the Princess of the Moon, leaving Red Shirt to do as he was told and lowered his hoof. “I want you to take our griffon guests here to the crew quarters and give them a room, so that they can unwind for a bit. Once you are done with that, please tell the chief to have a meal ready for all of us in an hour or so.”
“It will be done,” said Red Shirt. He then turned to look at the griffon. “Ok, please follow me, and if you don’t know what something does, then please don’t touch it. We still haven’t put labels on everything and I’ve almost been ejected into space three times in the last hour. It’s not fun.”
As Red Shirt began to lead them down the hallway, Celestia noticed that Eagle Eye turned his head around to look at Luna once more before continuing. When she saw this, a bubble of emotion began to rise in Celestia’s stomach for a moment. An emotion she never thought she’d feel: jealousy. It wasn’t that she was interested in him in a romantic way, but she had known the emperor since he was a hatchling. Yet, in the short time that he had known Luna, Celestia had caught him staring at her sister several times, and-
“He reminds me a bit of Valiance,” said Luna, breaking Celestia’s train of thought.
“What?” asked the sun princess as she looked around. The two of them were now alone in the hallway.
“General Valiance,” said Luna, motioning Celestia to follow her. “You remember him, don’t you?”
As the two immortal princesses walked down the hallway, Celestia began to dig through her mind for the memories of that one griffon. As she thought about it, slowly the memories began to return to her.
She had first met the griffon a few years after she got her cutie mark, a period in time known as the Minotaur Wars. The minotaurs at the time had built a large nation surrounded by a maze that was enchanted, so that no pegasus or griffon could fly over it, forcing ones who wanted to enter the city to solve the maze first. At the time, they had built one of the greatest nations the world had ever seen, since Equestria was still being organized by Molten Fury and Oceania, while the Griffon Empire was recovering from a plague that had nearly wiped out a third of its population. In their pride, the minotaurs believed themselves to be the most superior beings, and thus felt justified by raiding the outskirts of the two other nations for slave labor.
The griffon emperor at the time was furious at this and declared war. Sadly, it was General Valiance who approached the emperor to inform him that war right now was an unwise move, since they didn’t have enough soldiers. If they went to war as they were, there would be a greater chance they would lose and that their empire would fall. He did, however, recommend going to Equestria, so to see if they would fight alongside each other. Seeing no other option, the emperor agreed sending both of his offspring to Equestia: his daughter, Gentle Eyes, and his son, Valiance.
Their visit was a short one. Molten Fury refused to assist them. In fact, he wasn’t going to fight at all! He was already talking to Highlord Strongfight to have his ponies returned to him, in exchange of gold or gems. At the time, both Celestia and Luna believed that their father was wrong, but didn’t speak up in fear of what their father would do to them.
General Valiance was a different matter. He declared loudly so that everypony in the room could hear him call the alicorn king a fool. By berating Molten Fury for his lack of fury that his own subjects were being taken against their will and sent into forced labor. He also pointed out that there was no guarantee that the raids would stop if he paid them. Molten Fury held firm on his decision and order the two griffons out.
As they were being escorted out, Celestia turned to look at her little sister, only to see that she had a strange look in her eyes. Luna’s eyes held firm on Valiance as if he were the only thing in the room. She began to move towards him, but Celestia stopped her before their father could notice.
After that, relations between the two nations became strained. Things didn’t get any better as the war began and went on for ten years. Once it was finally over, General Valiance found out that Molten Fury had paid the minotaurs three times during the war, which helped fund their war efforts. A few years later, Valiance went on to marry Gentle Eyes and became the new Emperor. For the rest of his reign, Valiance made sure all knew his hatred of Molten Fury and Equestria.
Personally, she didn’t know what Luna was talking about. Valiance and Eagle Eye were barely alike in any way. Eagle Eye was a calm leader, who always put his griffons first. Valiance always looked for a military solution, even when he became emperor. Not even their coloration was similar!
Celestia had to pause her thoughts for a moment as Luna stopped suddenly. The solar princess watched as Luna pressed a part of the wall again, causing a door to open in front of the two. Celestia raised an eyebrow looking inside on the room. It was small, maybe enough to fit just the two of them. Luna seemed to ignore Celestia’s confused look and walked in.
Sighing, Celestia did as well. Once they were in, Luna touched a part of the wall again, causing it to close before the room began to move. How it was moving, Celestia had no idea. All she knew was that they were going up really fast.
There was a sudden ‘ding’ sound, right before the room stopped moving and the door opened. The two alicorn walked out of the small moving room and into a larger rectangular room. Near the door, Celestia saw a there was something that kind of looked like a birdfeeder, with what appeared to be a magical illusion above it of Crescent Hope. In the room, there were several ponies who were working about at stations along the wall. At the opposite end of the room was another display of the outside, much like the one they had seen earlier.
In the middle of the room sat a blue earth pony mare with a black mane, which has a white stripe running through it. In front of him were two more ponies, who were working at stations in front of his seat. As soon as he heard the door open, the mare turned her head and then rose to salute.
“The Princess is on the bridge,” she said. All at once, all the other ponies stopped what they were doing to salute their ruler.
“At ease, Captain Starway,” replied Luna.
“C-Captain?” stammered Starway as her eyes widened. “But, I wasn’t aware that I’d be in charge of this ship permanently. I thought this was a one-time thing!”
Luna chuckled. “And you have been doing a fine job,” replied Luna. “Besides, I will need a commanding officer on Crescent Hope sooner or later. Captain Shadow Blade recommended you for this promotion and feels that you are the pony best suited.”
“T-thank you, Princess Luna,” said Starway as she saluted Luna. “I promise I won’t let you down.”
“I’m sure you won’t,” said Luna before motioning Celestia to follow her. The two alicorns walked across the room as all the ponies got back to work. They stopped in front of the large screen. Ahead of them was a seemly endless darkness with only the stars that seemed to float in it.
“Princess Luna, what did you mean by Eagle Eye being similar to Valiance,” asked Celestia.
A smirk appeared of Luna’s face. “It’s their eyes,” she said. “They both have the same passion and love for those they wish to protect. I saw it in Eagle Eye the moment we met. Perhaps he is holding some of it back, due to his experience as a ruler. And…there’s something else.”
Sunset Shimmer let out a sigh as she finished her lunch. The mess hall reminded her of the good old days, back when she was in Princess Luna’s School for Gifted Ponies. There were about twenty or so tables with ten cushions at each table to sit on. However, unlike the clean cushions she remembered, these were ragged old things with stains all over them. It took all of her will power to sit on one.
Things were not going her way. During her meal, she had kept an eye out for any chance to cause an emergency situation that would unlock the magical restraint on her horn. She had hoped that she could sneak into the kitchen and start a fire or something of that nature. The problem, however, was that their meals were very basic, cold meals like plain apples. Then, there was the fact that her two guards watched every little thing she did. If she did try anything, they would spot it before it could cause the necessary crisis that she wanted.
There was one other problem and that was the timing. In about a half hour, the shuttle that flew between the TOM and the Domes would be leaving. Meaning she had a very narrow window of opportunity to cause a distraction, and then make her way to the shuttle.
Sighing again, Sunset picked up her tray with her mouth, much to her disgust, and took it to a bin marked ‘dirty trays’. Once there, she didn’t hesitate to drop it, leaving the unicorn mare to stuck out her tongue in disgust.
Behind her, the two armored guards continued to watch her with an unwavering sight. One was a bright red unicorn mare, who had a mane similar to Sunset’s with a cutie mark that looked like a wand that was on fire. The other was a midnight blue pegasus stallion with a matching Mohawk styled mane and a cutie mark that looked like a five bolts of lightning.
The two of them had been stationed at this TOM for the better part of a year with little to do till now. Before this, most of their days had been spent playing cards and breaking up the occasional argument. Now, however, the two had been given a very important job which they would see completed until they were reassigned.
“Private Mana Burn,” came a female voice on the PA system. “Private Mana Burn, please report to the control office. There is a priority one message for you from Dome Three.”
Both guards looked at each other in shock and confusion. A priority one message was usually something that member of the Shield Corps got, not the Royal Guard. They were serious situations that required backup.
The most often case was when there was a crack in the Dome or something of that nature. The last time there had been a priority one message for members of the Royal Guard was during the Deep Tunnel Tragedy. It was also odd that they had contacted a member of the Royal Guard on a TOM, rather than get faster help from Dome Zero.
“By the stars,” declared Mana Burn softly as she looked at her partner. “Blinky, do you think something happened?”
“Most likely,” said Blink, resisting the urge not to yell at his partner for calling him ‘Blinky’. Now was not the time to scold her for using his bedroom name. “Maybe they can’t get in contact with Dome Zero or something.”
“I hope everypony is alright,” uttered Mana, placing a hoof over her heart. “I have family there.” Mana then looked at Sunset, who had been watching the two of them. Slowly, the guard mare moved closer to her partner. “Do you think you can handle this by yourself?”
“Don’t worry,” whispered Blink with a small smile. “I am a member of the Royal Guard, just like you. Handling one weaponless prisoner shouldn’t be that hard.”
Mana looked over at Sunset for a moment before returning her attention to Blink. Slowly, she nodded, knowing that he could handle things himself. For a while, at least. Hopefully, whatever the message was about, wouldn’t take her from this TOM for very long. Without saying anything, Mana trotted off.
“Alright,” barked Blink after a moment. “It’s time to get back to work. Move it!” Grunting, Sunset walked out of the mess hall as the one guard followed her.
The halls of a TOM were anything but high tech. They had been drilled out by machines before the air tight outer doors were put in place. Along the walls were wires and electric light that looked like they could fall off at any time.
It was sad, considering the technology level of the Republic, but the reasoning behind all of this was very simple. A TOM would only be mined for several years before it was no longer any good. There was little point in making this into a long term residence. Also, there were only a hoof full of ponies who could actually live here twenty four seven.
Right now, it was only the two members of the Royal Guard, Sunset Shimmer, and the TOM nurse who had rooms here.
As the two walked back to where Sunset had been working before her break, they began to pass by a white door every once in a while. These doors lead to other areas of the TOM, ranging from other mining tunnels to the shuttle station and the restrooms. However, Sunset was barely aware of them at the moment as her mind went into overdrive.
‘The number of guards has been cut in half,’ she thought to herself. ‘If I can catch him off guard, then I might have a chance to get out of here! But, is it worth the risk? If I try something now and it fails, then they’ll never let down their guard again! Buck, they might even decide it’s not worth it and put me in a prison pod. Maybe I should wait till they let down their guard a bit before I try to escape.’
Sunset then stopped walking and turned her head to the right, only to find one of the white doorways. Blink stopped a few paces behind her, wondering what the hay was going on.
“Hey, this isn’t your stop, so keep moving,” barked Blink. However, Sunset didn’t seem to hear him.
As she stared at the door, she continued to weigh her options. Right now was probably one of her best chances on breaking out of here. But, a safer route would be to wait until she had served her sentence, and then make a plan to get back at Twilight. By the time she was done, ten years would have passed, allowing her enemy and her family to lower their guard.
‘There is another option,’ said a small voice in the back of her head. ‘You could just forget about Twilight Sparkle and move on with your life.’ When that thought went through Sunset’s head, her eyes went wide.
‘Just think about how things have turned doing things the way you have. You have ruined your reputation. You have few bits to your name. You’re single not because you want to, but because you devoted so much of your time obsessing on ruining Twilight’s life. But, if you can just give up on this, then maybe things will get better.’
“Hey,” shouted Blink as he took a step forward. “I said get moving!”
Sunset, much to Blink’s dismay, shook her head. The voice in her head had been right; she had spent many years of her life trying to ruin Twilight’s. If she gave up now, though, then what would have been the point of her life? All of those years would have been wasted. And, she couldn’t afford to wait ten years.
Right now, Scootaloo was a filly and very vulnerable. There was no telling what that snot-nosed filly would be like once she had grown up. Not to mention there was a chance of her own magic growing weaker as a result of the suppression ring.
“Alright,” growled Blink, taking another step forward. “I have had just about-” That was as far as he got when Sunset made her move. With a quick glance behind her to judge the distance between the two, Sunset bucked the lone guard.
Blink’s eyes widened as he saw the attack coming. Opening his wings, he gave a hard flap to send him backwards as the attack from the prisoner hit his chest. Thankfully, his armor took much of the blow and his own actions minimized the rest. It still hurt, but it could have been much worse. Still, due to his actions, there was now a large space between the two.
Seeing that her sneak attack had little effect, Sunset took off down the hall. She ran at a full gallop, hoping that he would have been at least shaken up by her assault. Maybe if she kept running for a while, she could go through one of the doors once she had lost sight of him. Then, she could slip into the shuttle bay while he searched for her.
Her plan was short-lived as Blink flew past her at an amazing speed. Once he had past her, the stallion, while still in the air, spun around and struck her with his right forehoof. The force of the blow sent her off her hooves, causing her to landed head first into the stone wall next to them, before falling to the ground. She was about to get back up, however, part of her face was now covered in blood due to several cuts she got from the wall. That, plus her mane being all out of place, gave her the appearance of a crazed pony.
“That was a mistake,” stated Blink in a firm tone. Sunset responded with a primitive sounding growl before tackling him to the ground. What came next was a wild flurry of hoof strikes aimed at Blink’s face, as Sunset’s instincts took over now that she was cornered. Sunset managed to land a single strike before Blink caught both of her hooves with his own. The pegasus stallion then used his hind legs to kick her off of him, knocking the mare against the wall once more.
As the two got up, the worst possible thing happened. Behind Sunset was a door that had unfortunately chosen a wrong time to open up, with an earth pony mare to walk out into the same hallway they were fighting in.
“Hey,” she shouted. “Whose making all that-”
Before the mare could finish, Sunset made her move. She had scramble to her hooves quickly and ran towards the mare, startling her in the process. Blink saw this and tried to stop her, but Sunset had been much too close. The unicorn got behind the innocent pedestrian and wrapped one of her forelegs around the mare’s neck.
“Don’t more!” barked Sunset between her pants. “Do as I say or else this filly will have a hard time breathing.”
For a second, Blink thought about ignoring her. However, the purpose of the guard wasn’t just to protect the Princess and arrest criminals. Another part, the biggest part perhaps, was to protect the ponies of the Republic. With that in mind, Blink slowly nodded.
“Good,” said Sunset with a sneer, ignoring the captive mare who was starting to cry due to fear. “Now then, I want you to deactivate my ring.”
Narrowing his eyes, Blink slowly reached into his armor. After a moment or two, he pulled out a small black device. He held it up, so that Sunset could see that it wasn’t a weapon but the remote device for her magical suppression ring. As he continued to hold it, Blink looked directly into Sunset’s eyes.
“Before I do anything, I want to say something,” said Blink as he held on to the device.
“I don’t care,” growled Sunset.
“It’s not too late,” said Blink, ignoring what Sunset had just said. “Once I deactivate the ring, there will be no going back for you. You have assaulted a member of the Royal Guard and taken a hostage, both far more serious crimes than your original one. If you manage to escape here, it will only get worse. There will be no future for you. Princess Luna will turn the Republic upside down looking for you.”
“Shut up!” roared Sunset.
“But, right now, it’s not too late,” said Blink as if Sunset hadn’t said a word. “If you let her go, I will do everything in my power to write this off as a lapse in judgment. Try to let them go easy on you or something. You’re a smart pony. You should know this is a good deal.”
Sunset lowered her head, giving Blink the impression that she was thinking about it. But, he was wrong. Instead, Sunset moved her head, so that the tip of her horn was now pressed against the mare’s neck. The poor mare began to sob, but didn’t struggle for she was afraid that if she did, she might get stabbed.
“I won’t say it again!” screamed Sunset.
Nodding, Blink put the device in his mouth and pressed down. As soon as he did, a vertical line appeared on the ring. From the line, the ring began to retract until it was a half-shaped ring that fell to the ground. Grinning, Sunset’s horn began to glow green and, a moment later, so did the rest of her head. Blink’s eye’s widened as he watched a small chip-like device appear next to Sunset’s head.
‘The tracking device,’ he thought as Sunset’s magic let go of the device. Once it hit the ground, the unicorn mare smashed it with her hoof.
“Much better,” she said. “Now to get off this rock.”
Blink’s wings tightened against his body, while he gritted his teeth as he watched Sunset’s horn begin to glow once more. He assumed that she was going to use a teleportation spell to take her right to the shuttle. But, that was where it was going to end for her. Once she vanished, he would get to the communication console. There, he would be able to tell the control office to lock down the shuttle doors, and then have Mana Burn hunt her down. Mana’s signature spell, as well as her only one, had the power to drain all of the magical reserves from all unicorns within a certain radius.
However, the spell Sunset cast wasn’t teleportation. Instead, the mare began to shot multiple green energy blasts in Blink’s direction. Acting quickly, he managed to dodge the first three blasts. Sadly, his luck ran out as the last two made contact. The first hit him in the chest, while the second struck his face.
As the stallion fell to the ground, a smile appeared on Sunset’s face. On both his armor and face were large scorch marks. Right now, he was either out cold or dead. Either way, it didn’t matter to Sunset who teleported away, leaving behind her captive who began to scream for help.
Sunset reappeared on the shuttle, hearing the crew gasp in surprise at her arrival. Before anypony could do anything, the crazy mare had enveloped them all in her magic and tossed them out of the small craft. Then, using her magic, she closed the door before making her way to the bridge. As for the crew, they instantly made their way out of the shuttle bay, knowing that if the shuttle took off, then they would be sucked into the vacuum of space.
The shuttle was basically two rooms. The first was a one pony control room, or as it was also known as the bridge, while the other was a large open room that could carry a couple dozen ponies. The outside looked almost like a cylinder, except that the ‘bottom’ of the ship was flat. But, Sunset didn’t care about the storage, or what the outside looked like, as she raced to the only room that could control the ship.
By the time she got to the control, a warning buzzer began to sound. Sunset ignored it and proceeded to opening the outer door. Slowly, the doors began to open as Sunset began to warm up the engines. As she did this, two small ‘wing’ protracted from both sides of the shuttle with a small engine on each.
Then, just as the doors were about halfway open, they began to close. ‘Oh no they don’t’, screamed Sunset in her mind as she narrowed her eyes. ‘I have come too far to be stopped now!’
Once again, her horn began to glow green as a similar glow enveloped the doors. For a moment, nothing seemed to change, causing her to double her efforts. As sweat began to appear on her forehead, the doors stopped moving momentarily. Seeing that she was finally making progress, Sunset’s horn emitted more magic than ever before in her life, as she began to force the door open. Eventually, the strain the door was under from the machinery trying to close it, and the magic trying to open it, proved to be too much as it broke, allowing Sunset to fly out of the TOM.
As she maneuvered the shuttle, Sunset knew that they would be onto her soon. Luckily for her, she had a secret lab back in Dome Nine that would be the perfect place to hide for the time being. There, she could plan her next move, and then get her revenge on Twilight Sparkle!
-x-
“Why won’t you let me in?” demanded Shining Armor to the guard at the door. For the last hour or so, Shining had been trying to get into the surveillance center, so that he could ID the purple colt that was with Twilight and the others. However...
“As I said before, you are not allows in here while you are off-duty,” noted the lunar guard for the hundredth time.
Shining Armor’s friends let out a collective sigh. They had hoped to get in and out, so they could attend their tournament, but now it looked like they might just miss it. Of course they could just leave their obsessed friend, but they could not do that. Not after all the times he had been there for them. The only one who had left was Gaffer, who had to use the restroom.
“Look, I’m a Captain-” began Shining.
“Of the Shield Corps,” interrupted the guard. “I am a member of the Royal Guard, and as such, I take orders only from Captain Shadow Blade and Princess Luna. Also, why would a member of the Shield Corps need to look at security footage?”
“That’s because-” began Shining Armor, however he stopped when he noticed a pony walking towards them. It was Shadow, looking at him with a hardened expression on his face. The bat stallion looked at the guard, then at Shining, and lastly at Shining’s friends. His eyes seemed to rest on Gaffer for a moment before giving him a slight nod. He then turned his attention back to Shining.
“Captain Shining Armor, would you mind following me for a moment,” said Shadow in a calm tone. “There is something of great importance that I need to speak to you about.” Shining could hear it in his voice. This wasn’t a request; it was an order. As Shadow turned around, Shining waved to his friends, saying that he would be back in a little bit.
The two stallions walked for a bit in total silence. The only sound that could be heard was their hooves clopping on the ground. Then, once the two were alone in a different hallway, Shadow whirled around at a speed that made him look like a blur, and struck Shining Armor in the face with his forehoof. The force of the blow knocked the white stallion to the ground, blood dripping from his lips.
“Shadow!” yelled Shining Armor as he wiped the blood away. “What in the name of the stars is wrong with you?!”
“What’s wrong with me?” roared Shadow, glaring at his future brother in law. “I was going to ask you the exact same question! What do you think you’re doing, trying to use the surveillance system for your own personal usage?”
“H-how do you know about that?” shakily demanded Shining Armor as he got back up.
“Gaffer contacted me when he told you all he was going to the bathroom,” said Shadow. “And be thankful he did, or else you wouldn’t be getting so easy right now!”
“Look, I just need to-”
“You need to think, that’s what you need to be doing,” growled Shadow as he interrupted Shining Armor. “Do you know how tired some of the others are with this need you have to protect Twilight from threats that only exist in your mind? Do you know how many have gone to Princess Luna to complain about your crazy behavior?”
Shining Armor turned his head to look away, not wanting to hear the words that were being said.
“You should thank your lucky star that Princess Luna is still defending you. I don’t know if it’s because she finds some of it amusing, or if she understands you, but it won’t last forever. Sooner or later, she’s bound to get tired of this as well. She might demote you, or even fire you! And, how do you think Twilight will handle that? That you lost your job, because you couldn’t stop worrying and freaking out about her?”
“You couldn’t understand,” said Shining Armor as he gritted his teeth.
“I think I do,” replied Shadow. Shining, on the other hoof, whipped his head around to glare at the bat pony standing before him.
“No!” screamed Shining in rage. “You don’t understand! You could never understand! Twily is the only family I have left! I promised my parents that I would take care of her.
“That was the last thing I ever said to them. So, how could you possibly understand how I feel! You don’t have-” Shining Armor stopped in mid-sentence, realizing what he was about to say. Shame washed all over him, seeing the pain in Shadow’s eyes as the other stallion touched his scar with his right forehoof.
“S-Shadow, I’m sorry,” said Shining. “I didn’t mean it.”
Shadow sighed. “I know you didn’t,” said the bat pony as he put his hoof down. When he next spoke, his voice was calmer, but still held a great deal of power in it. “And, you are right, I could never understand how you feel. I’ll never get the chance to be the cool big brother that I always wanted to be. That’s been taken away from me forever. But, that doesn’t mean that I don’t have a pony I want to protect.
“I love Twilight. You know that I do. The last thing that I want is for her to be hurt. But, we can’t protect her from everything. She’s going to make mistakes, just like everypony else. All we can do for her is be there to support her and help her recover. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small one or a large one.”
“I,” began Shining, but stopped for a moment to take a breath. “I never meant for any of this to get out of control. When we were still living together with the Princess, everything was fine. I could keep an eye on her. But, then she moved out, wanting to make a life for herself. She…she just did it out of the blue. And, I guess I got, well, scared. I just stared to image her doing certain things in particular and began to freak out.”
“When did those start, if you don’t mind me asking?” asked Shadow.
“Miss Honey Pots’ Sex Ed class,” said Shining with a shudder. Shadow shuddered as well, remembering how detailed that class was.
“Anyways, can you try and calm down a bit?” asked Shadow. “Or, at the very least, talk to Twilight before you go crazy?”
“I’ll-” began Shining, but was interrupted as a guard came running up to the two.
“Sirs,” said the guard as he quickly saluted the two. “I have bad news. Sunset Shimmer has escaped and is on the loose.”
The guard began to give them the details about the escape. As he did, the two stallions exchanged a look that said that they would finish this later. For right now, they had work to do.
Sunset bagged her hoof on the controls in irritation. She had tried to open the door to the Dome Nine shuttle entrance with no results. There were no attempts to communicate with her in any fashion, leading the crazed mare to believe that they knew she was in here.
‘Of course they would know,’ thought Sunset in frustration. ‘As soon as I left, they must have sent word of my escape to all the Domes. And the shuttle crew must have informed them the license number of this shuttle, making it easier for them to know which shuttle they can let in and which one not to.’
Taking a deep breath, Sunset closed her eyes and began to think, as the shuttle remained stationary in front of the door. She knew she couldn’t stay here forever. Sooner or later, the Royal Guard would send out a fighter or something to capture her. Maybe even kill her. She had to escape while throwing them off her trail.
Her first though was to use the shuttle to plow right through the Dome. That idea lasted half a second as Sunset quickly realized that if she did that, then everypony in the Dome would be killed, and it would become unlivable until it was repaired. She might have been tempted to do it, if she knew for a fact that Twilight was there, but that was unlikely. Plus, if she was wrong, Princess Luna herself would hunt her down.
‘Well, there’s always Plan B,’ thought Sunset as another idea popped into her head.
-x-
On the other side of the Dome, several members of the Shield Corps had gathered near the shuttle bay doors. A few of them were staring at the metal doors, horns ready to cast a shield spell around Sunset, once she decided to walk through. That, however, was unlikely, since the ponies in charge of security had orders not to let her in until Captain Shadow Blade arrived. The other members of the Shield Corps were staring at the shuttle through the translucent material that the Dome was made of, in case she did something stupid like trying to ram the shuttle into them. That way, they could reinforce the Dome with several shield spells at once in order to protect it.
For what seemed like the longest time, the shuttle just sat there, stationed a few hundred yards in front of the entrance. Then, it began to back up. Seeing this, all the members of the Shield Corps began to prepare their best protection spells in case Sunset was planning on ramming the door down. What happened next squashed that idea as the shuttle began to turn slightly to the side. Its engines then activated and the shuttle subsequently began to fly next to the Dome. The ponies of the Shield Corps began to chase after it with all of their might.
They didn’t have to run for very long. While the shuttle was still within their range of sight, the members of the Shield Corps watched as the front of it dipped down towards the lunar surface and crash. The unicorns stopped, their jaws open in dismay, as the shuttles engines began to die as well.
-x-
“I just got word from some of my stallions,” said Shining Armor, while his left hoof was pressed against his left ear, which held a small communication device. “It looks like Sunset won’t be a problem anymore. The shuttle she stole crashed just outside of Dome Nine.”
Shadow raised an eyebrow when he heard this. After they had gotten word of Sunset’s escape, Shadow had quickly begun to prepare. The first thing he did was to order several of their fighters to get ready to launch, in case Sunset planned on hiding out in one of the other TOMs, or even making an escape to Equestria.
As his best pilots began to ready their fighters, Shadow placed an order to activate the tracker that was in each shuttle. Normally, these trackers were there in case there was a random shuttle malfunction and the shuttle was set adrift. These tracker systems were equipped with a separate power supply, in case of a power failure, and were next to impossible to deactivate.
Now Shadow had a new way to use this system, which told him that Sunset was heading towards Dome Nine. As soon as he saw that, he sent word to the guards working at that platform station not to allow anypony to depart. Once that was done, the bat stallion gathered together fifty members of the guard and, along with Shining Armor, got onto a platform, which was currently heading towards Dome Nine.
Not one of the fifty guards said a word as the platform headed for its destination. They had been given details about how Sunset escaped, as well as what had happened to the guard that had tried to stop her. Right now, Blink was in critical condition within the TOM’s medical bay. While help was on the way, it was still very likely that he wouldn’t make it, after taking a shot to the head.
Each and every member of the guard was burning with the desire to bring Sunset to justice. Some had suggested that they take her out as soon as they saw her, but Shadow refused to allow that to happen. It wasn’t because he didn’t understand how they felt, for it was very much the opposite. Shadow blamed himself for not putting more guards there, and for not putting more protection in place.
But, he was still a member of the Royal Guard, as was Blink. Shadow knew that Blink loved the Royal Guard and what it stood for. It wasn’t just having fun and protecting the Princess, it was about protecting all ponies within the Republic.
What Blink had done on that TOM, when Sunset had taken a hostage, was the right course of action. Now Shadow had to do the same. It was not his duty to decide her fate, but to drag her to those who would. The only way he would allow any of those under his command to take her life was if there was no other choice.
“Have they identified the body,” asked Shadow.
Shining blinked for a second and then relayed the question to the stallions under his command. “No,” he said once he had gotten an answer. “It will take them some time to get the gear needed to go out there. But, according to their description, it’s doubtful that she survived.”
“Was the Dome Nine anti-teleportation system activated,” asked Shadow, who had a feeling he already knew the answer to that.
“No,” replied Shining after a few moments. “That would have caused serious problems for every unicorn in that Dome. We would have had to put out a public message on the radio for all citizens not to teleport, and the only ones that would know would have been the ones listening. Those that didn’t know would have ended up in a containment center, which would have become overcrowded quickly.”
“Then that means that Sunset might still be alive,” said Shadow with a sigh. Shining opened his mouth to object, but Shadow held up a hoof to silence him. “Sunset is a skilled magic user, not to mention being somewhat of a genius. She could have easily teleported out of the shuttle and could be trotting around Dome Nine while under disguise. Until they have checked the wreckage, I’m going to continue to assume that she gave us the slip, so that we don’t waste any time.”
Shining let out a sigh. “I guess that makes sense,” he admitted. Then, he began to look a bit worried. “Why do you think she went to Dome Nine? Do you think that she knows Twily is there?”
“It’s highly unlikely,” noted Shadow. “I can’t think of a way that Sunset would have heard about it, since Twilight made her plans today. Right now, I’d like to think that it is just a coincidence that she headed there. But, just to be on the safe side, I’ll send Lightning and a couple other guards to watch her without being seen. We don’t want Twilight to panic or worry the Equestrian’s.” Shadow then paused. “But, do you think that it was the right thing not to tell Princess Luna about all of this.”
Shining shook his head. “She has enough on her plate right now,” said Shining. “She’s meeting with the leaders of two different countries. I don’t think it would be right to interrupt something like that for something like this. Besides, I think we can handle this ourselves.”
-x-
“That was awesome,” exclaimed Scootaloo, bouncing out of the Prancington Theater, along with the other fillies from Ponyville as well as Spike.
“It really was,” agreed Apple Bloom, who was wide eyed. “Now ah hope ah gets a chocolate making cutie mark like Cady Bucket had.”
“I just loved the music,” stated Sweetie Belle, who began to hum the first song of the musical.
“It was alright,” said Spike. “But, why couldn’t they of had some chocolate covered gemstones?”
“Because darling,” said Rarity as she appeared behind the younger members of their group. “Ponies don’t eat gems. Our teeth simply aren’t strong enough to chew on them, like yours were.”
“Right,” replied the dragon turned colt.
“Well, I hope the rest of you enjoyed it,” said Twilight, levitating Pinkie Pie out of the theater. Nearly everypony else nodded or gave her some kind of positive response, expect for the hyper pink mare struggling to get out of her magical grasp.
After leaving Land Share’s place, Twilight took them to go see one of her favorite musicals, ‘Sweet Surprise and the Chocolate Factory’. Twilight had loved the book, as well as the movie that was made back before she was born. The resent remake, on the other hoof, could have been a lot better. But, despite the… questionable changes, the remake made ponies appreciate the original so much that there were now live performances with many good actors trying to recapture the energy of the originals.
The one they had gone to see was done with some of the latest holographic technology to help with the sets. One moment the background looked like the homes in Dome One, and the next, it looks like they are really walking into a chocolate factory in real time. No waiting for stage hooves to change the backdrop or anything. Twilight would have enjoyed it more, if she hadn’t needed to keep Pinkie Pie at bay when the actors entered the room where everything was eatable. The last thing she wanted was Pinkie trying to do a dive into the holographic chocolate river and hurting herself, while annoying the other theater goers.
“Well, ah think we can all agree that was a mighty nice play,” a smiling Applejack noted.
“Ah, it was alright,” said Rainbow as she looked away.
“Well, I’m glad you all enjoyed it,” said Twilight before looking at Pinkie. “However, I think some of you enjoyed it a little too much.”
“Hey, Mom,” said Scootaloo as she jumped up to get Twilight’s attention. When Twilight looked down, Scootaloo pointed a hoof towards a long wall in the middle of the street. On the wall were a bunch of posters with large red buttons next to them. “I wanted to ask you about them when we got here. What are they?”
“Oh, that’s a preview wall,” replied Twilight. “Each poster represents a production going on right now or coming soon. When you press the button, you can watch about a minute or two of the show to see if you like it. It also has a couple of reviews from a few different critics.”
“Can we go check it out?” asked Scootaloo.
“Sure,” said Twilight as Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Spike ran off.
“So, tell me Twilight,” said Rarity, looking over at the preview wall, “is that the only place where a pony can find out what’s showing? If it is, then I can’t see how it can be efficient.”
Twilight shook her head. “Not at all,” she said. “We have dozens of ways to see what the latest movies and plays are. It’s just that in Dome Nine, they spend most of their time moving from theater to theater that they just find it easier this way.”
As the others listened to Twilight as she began to talk, Pinkie Pie noticed that a few ponies walking around the corner into her view. Each one was eating a fluffy cupcake that made the sugar loving mare’s mouth water. They looked so good and she hadn’t had anything sugary for hours! Licking her lips, Pinkie began to try and run over to where the other ponies were coming from.
“Twilight, I think you might want to let Pinkie Pie down,” Rainbow pointed out as she glanced at her pink friend. Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but was stopped as Pinkie began to bounce up and down. The lavender mare could feel her magical grasp weaken as Pinkie’s motions became faster and faster. Soon, Twilight had no choice but to let her go.
As soon as Pinkie’s hooves hit the ground, she took off at a speed that would impress any member of the Wonderbolts. She ran around the corner, taking the form of a pink blur. As she did, Pinkie rammed into another pony. It was a white unicorn mare with a black mane. As the two got up, Pinkie noticed that she had a half red, half yellow cutie mark with a ying-yang design in the middle.
“Watch where you’re going, you moron,” snapped the mare.
“Opps, sorry,” said Pinkie with a grin. The other mare opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by the sound of another mare’s voice.
“Pinkie, what the hay is wrong with you,” scolded Rainbow Dash as she turned the corner. The speedy pegasus then noticed the other pony with them, who seemed to be glaring at them. The unicorn’s horn then began to glow and then she vanished. Rainbow blinked. “Who the hay was that?”
“Don’t know,” admitted Pinkie with a shrug as the others caught up to them. “Whoever she was, she sure was grumpy. She didn’t even accept my apology when I bumped into her.”
“You mean when you ran her down,” stated a deadpanned Twilight before sighing. “Look, if you wanted a cupcake that bad, then we can use one of the baking machines.”
Pinkie’s eye became huge when she heard that. “There is a machine here that does all that baking?!” she cried.
“Yes,” said Twilight slowly. She then pointed to a large, steel grey box that was about half their size a few yards away. “But, don’t get-” Whatever Twilight was about to say fell on deaf ears as Pinkie jumped into the air, gasped loudly, and then ran straight for the machine.
-x-
There was a flash of green light and Sunset Shimmer stood in front of the Prancington Theater, while panting slightly. So far, she had used a large amount of magic in a short amount of time. Several teleportation spells, energy blasts, and her disguise spell all had done a number on her magical reserves.
However, she was wondering if her disguise was worth it, since there was a limit to what it could do. The spell had altered the majority of her appearance, but her cutie mark had remained the same. All somepony who looking for her had to do was look at it and she would be caught. That was why she had to avoid any long confrontations with other ponies. The slightest wondering eye could have spelt disaster for her.
While making several nasty remarks about the pony that had rammed into her, Sunset noticed Twilight Sparkle as she turned the corner. An evil, delightful smile spread over her face.
‘It looks like fate is on my side,’ she thought, quickly making her way towards the corner and peeked around it. There she saw Twilight talking to the pink moron with several others standing around her. ‘Figures she’s friends with the pink clown.’
Briefly, Sunset considered attacking Twilight right here and now. But, with her magic running low, she didn’t stand much of a chance against Twilight alone. Even less against a group. If she were to attack, her best bet would be to strike now, without warning, and hope that she hit Twilight with the first strike.
But, that wasn’t what she really wanted. No, death was too quick and too good for the mare that stole the life that should have been hers. She wanted to do something far worse than kill her. No, Sunset wanted to hurt Twilight, hurt her in a way that even the best medical technology would not be able to heal her. Hurt her in a way that will go on hurting her until the end of her days. If she could do that, then whatever punishment she got when she was caught would be worth it.
It was then that Sunset’s ear twitched as she heard something. It sounded somewhat…familiar. Turning her head around, Sunset saw the little pegasus filly that had ruined her at the laser tag game. Scootaloo, Twilight adopted daughter. She was just standing there in front of the preview wall with three others foals.
Seems like fate really was on her side.
-x-
Pinkie looked at the strange device, wondering how it could give her a cupcake. There seemed to be a slot where a pony could put their bits in, a red button, and a metal circle in the middle. Shrugging, Pinkie pulled out a bit and put it in the slot. However, the coin was spat out from the same slot.
“Unable to recognize,” said the box in a female voice. “Please try a different bit.”
“Okie dokie,” said Pinkie as she put in a different bit. Sadly, the same thing happened again.
“Unable to recognize,” repeated the box. “Please try a different bit.”
“But, I did,” cried Pinkie as her mane became less puffy. “All I want is a cupcake.”
“And all I want is a real bit,” replied the machine. “But, even if you did have a real bit, I would be unable to give you what you want.”
“WHAT?!” roared Pinkie.
“Pinkie, calm down,” requested Twilight as she and the others caught up to her. Twilight quickly turned her attention to the machine. She then pulled out a Lunar bit and put it into the machine.
“Thank you,” said the machine. “I am sorry to inform you that nearly all of the material needed to bake anything is nearly gone. As such, I am not allowed to serve any more baked goods until I am restocked.”
“But,” began Pinkie, her eyes starting to water and her mane was now void of any poof.
“Ah,” uttered Twilight as she watched the pink one get very, very depressed. “By any chance, do you know when you will be restocked?”
“Yes,” replied the machine, causing Pinkie to cheer up a little. “It will be in seven days.”
“Oh, please,” flatly remarked Trixie as Pinkie began to cry. “Trixie does not see what the big deal is. It’s just a cupcake.”
Pinkie’s crying stopped. “Just a cupcake?” she roared, causing all of her other friends to take a step back. “Just a cupcake?! I pinkie promised the Cake’s that I would try out some tasty treats up here in the Republic, so I could compare the two.
“But, I feel like some all-powerful pony is watching me struggle with glee. Each time I get close to fulfilling my pinkie promise, this mean spirited pony smirks as he or she or whatever makes it so that I either come in too late or there are no sugary treats at all. Then, he or she laughs at my frustration. LAUGHS!” Near the end of Pinkie’s rant, the pink mare had gotten on her hind legs and had thrust her front hooves into the air as she screamed out.
“Well…ah…you still have some time darling,” said Rarity, looking at Twilight for help.
“That’s right,” agreed Twilight as she put a hoof on the pink one’s shoulder. “There is still plenty of time before you all return to Equestria. And, I know that the Princess will be having you all over for a special lunch within the next couple of days while you are here. I’m sure there will be something that will help you fulfill your, ummm, pinkie promise.”
“Really?” asked Pinkie as she began to calm down a bit. But, just as Twilight was about to nod, a scream was heard that caused Twilight’s blood to run cold.
“Scootaloo!” shouted Twilight, turning and running towards the preview wall.
-x-
Scootaloo had just screamed out for help as she, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Spike were being levitated in mid-air by this strange pony. She had no idea what was going on. Just a little while ago, the four of them were watching a preview of a musical called ‘Battlefield Moon’ (which looked and sounded awful by the way), and then this happened. The others, on the other hoof, kept asking what the hay was going on.
“Shut up,” snapped the mare who had them, but to no avail. Scootaloo kept screaming for help, hoping that Twilight would be here soon. But, as she screamed, Scootaloo noticed something about her abductor. For some reason, she was beginning to sweat.
Sunset let out a grunt as the orange filly kept yelling. She had wanted to make this quick, grab the filly and go. However, in her rush to grab her, Sunset had also grabbed the other three. ‘Perhaps this is for the best,’ she thought to herself as her magic began to cover the mouths of the foals to keep them quiet. ‘If I can get into a fight or something, I can use them as living shields. Now to-’ Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard several pairs of hooves galloping behind her. Quickly, Sunset turned around in time to see Twilight, and the other ponies with her, charging at her.
“Who are you and what are you doing to those fillies?” demanded Twilight, stopping just in front of her. Sunset watched as Twilight’s eyes began to shift to examine Sunset’s false appearance until she reached the cutie mark. Twilight’s eyes widened in surprise as she stared back into Sunset’s eyes. “H-how did you get free?”
“Twilight, do you know this mare?” asked Rarity.
“Drop mah sister,” said Applejack as she kept her eyes focused on Sunset.
“Oh Twilight, did you really think I wouldn’t find some way to get off that rock they left me on?” snidely asked Sunset as she dropped her disguise. As she did, Twilight’s horn began to glow, causing the area around them to become a little hazy. Sunset looked around and knew exactly what Twilight had done. It was an anti-teleportation zone spell. It was a complex spell that made it impossible of any pony to teleport out of this area.
“Is this your ‘great’ plan, Twilight Sparkle?” asked Sunset in a mocking tone. “Do you really think that taking away my ability to teleport can stop me?”
“I do,” replied Twilight, who shot a slide glance at Rainbow Dash. She knew how fast the pegasus was. The moment Sunset tried to run, Rainbow would be able to catch up to her in an instant. Also, there were two other ponies with her who could use magic. One of whom was the student of Princess Celestia. Hopefully they would be able to counter any spells Sunset tried to use.
“That’s very amusing,” said Sunset, her horn beginning to glow. “But I’m afraid it won’t stop me. See, I have some very interesting plans for your daughter.” As she said this, a crazy smile appeared on her lips.
Seeing Sunset’s smile, Twilight began preparing for another spell. Sadly, Sunset’s spell launched first. From her horn came a bright light, as well as an ear piercing noise. Twilight and the others’ closed their eyes on instinct, in order to keep themselves from going blind. When the light and noise finally faded, the mares opened their eyes. It took a while for their sight to fully return, but the first thing they noticed was that Sunset was gone.
All at once, all of the Equestrians began to talk. Applejack and Rarity wanted to know what had happened to their sisters. Trixie, Pinkie, Rainbow, and Fluttershy wanted to know who that was. But, Twilight had been left speechless.
Deep down, she knew that Scootaloo was in trouble. She had been right there and she let Sunset get away from her. Twilight wanted to curl up into a ball and cry.
But, she didn’t. She knew that crying wouldn’t help the poor filly. She had to act and quickly. And, the first thing she needed to do was contact a few ponies.
The Royal Guard was on the scene within a few minutes of Twilight’s call. Lightning arrived first to comfort her friend, as well as take statements from all the other mares. By the time Shadow, Shining, and the rest of the guards arrived, Lightning was able to fully brief them.
“I want all security cameras checked,” barked Shadow as he arrived on the scene. “And I want them three minutes ago!” He was furious. He did his best to hide it, but some of it was slipping through the cracks.
He had come here prepared to hunt down an escaped pony, but foalnapping opened up a whole new set of problems. Given Sunset’s mindset, it felt like there was an invisible clock above his head that could go off at any minute. And, when it did, the foals would die.
“Twilight said that she contacted the LBI,” said Lightning. “They already began checking the cameras and we should be hearing from them soon. Since Sunset dropped her disguise, it should be easier to find her.”
“Yeah, it should,” said Shining darkly, casting a quick glance at his sister. Right now, Twilight was with Rarity and Applejack, all three mare were being comforted by their friends. “If she hurts Scootaloo, I’ll-”
“Bring her to justice,” snapped Shadow before Shining could finish his sentence.
Shining stared at the bat stallion for a moment before leaning in close. “Don’t you care?” he hissed. “Scootaloo is going to be your daughter soon. Don’t you want to-”
“What I want is to stay on this case,” interrupted Shadow again as his wings tightened to an uncomfortable level. “And I want you to stay on it as well. For both Twilight’s and Scootaloo’s sake. However, if you keep talking like that, I will have no choice but to have you removed from this.”
“You can’t do that!” exclaimed Shining as he took a step back.
“Can’t I?” asked Shadow. “The Shield Corp isn’t suited for this situation. I can have you removed from this anytime I want.”
Shadow then let out a sigh. “Look, I want you here to help contain Sunset. But, I need to know I can trust you to do the right thing. You know what the law is for vigilance justice. At your rank, you’ll be lucky to get out of a prison pod in fifty years. And, think about how Twilight will feel if her brother took another ponies life.”
Shining opened his mouth to say something, but stopped when he noticed just how tightly Shadow was pressing his membrane wings to his body. It looked so tight that Shadow had to be in some amount of pain. ‘It must hurt him,’ thought Shining. ‘He must want to break every bone in Sunset’s body, but he is using every fiber in his being to keep himself under control.’ With a sigh, Shining knew what he had to do.
“You’re right,” conceded Shining before looking around. “I’ll get it together and make sure we nail this crazy mare before she hurts anypony.”
“Good,” said Shadow with a nod. He started to walk away, but was stopped as Shining put a hoof on his shoulder.
“I’ll take care of things for a bit, so why don’t you go and see how Twily is doing,” Shining suggested as he motioned to his sister. Shadow opened his mouth to object, to say now wasn’t the time, but Shining interrupted him. “She needs you, now more than ever.”
Shadow said nothing. He looked over to see Twilight sitting next to the preview wall, surrounded by the others from Equestria. Even from this distance, he could see that the poor mare was on the verge of tears. He then quickly looked at his soldiers, all of whom were working right now. Some were checking the area for clues; others were searching the area, in case Sunset was hiding nearby, and so on. He then looked at Shining who nodded, letting him know that if something happened, he would handle it.
Slowly, Shadow walked over to Twilight, while at the same time taking off his helmet, hoping that it would help her feel more at ease. As he got closer, he noticed his fiancé quickly wipe her eyes and take a couple deep breaths. She was trying to stay in control of herself for Scootaloo’s sake. Holding back her own fears and worries until the crisis was over.
Before he reached Twilight, both Applejack and Rarity approached him. Like Twilight, they were both on the verge of tears.
“Have ya found anything?” asked Applejack. “Please tell me ya have some clue where mah sister is.”
“And Sweetie Belle,” added Rarity. “I’m terribly worried about her. If anything happened, I don’t know what I’d tell my parents.”
“Right now, we’re doing all we can,” said Shadow in an attempt to calm them down a bit. “There are only two ways out of this Dome and they are being heavily guarded. If Sunset manages to get out by shuttle, I have fighters standing by, with the skills necessary to disable her engines, and then board her craft before she knows what hit her. All of the platforms have been removed from the platform station, so if she tries to get out that way it will be a very long walk.
“So, trust us, we are working hard to find her. I got some of my best guards on this, while the LBI is checking every security camera. Also, a radio broadcast went out, telling everypony within Dome Nine about what has happened and asking to keep their eyes open. With any luck, we’ll locate Sunset as well as the others.”
“Is that all?” demanded Trixie as she walked up towards Shadow.
The Captain of the Royal Guard tilted his head. “I’m afraid I don’t understand,” he said.
“We are members of a delegation from Equestria,” stated Trixie, sitting her plot on the ground. “Trixie is also Princess Celestia’s faithful student. On our first day here, we are attacked by a student of Princess Luna, blinded by an escaped criminal, and then had several members of our party abducted. So, Trixie wants to know why more isn’t being done, as well as how you will make this up to us.”
Shadow bristled a bit. How dare she bring something like this up now of all times?! It’s not like they allowed Sunset to escape. But, judging by the tone in her voice, it sounded like she thought they did!
“I, um, think you’re being a little harsh,” defended Fluttershy as she lightly flew over to them. “I mean, it’s not like they wanted this to happen. And they seem to be doing everything they can do to fix this.”
“She’s right,” said Applejack, turning to glare at Trixie. “Besides, it’s not just us who got hurt by this. Twi over there is in the same position.”
“All Trixie is saying is that this incident could have an impact on the relations between our two nations,” noted Trixie. “So, it only seems right that, given everything that has happened thus far, that the Republic makes it up to us in some fashion.”
Shadow felt his left eye twitch as he fought a losing battle to stay in control. “Well, right now, I don’t give a damn about ‘making it up to you’,” snapped the bat stallion as Trixie’s eyes widened in shock. “Right now, I am less concerned with political plot than finding those foals. They are my top priority right now! If you have a problem with that, then take it up with Princess Luna or Princess Celestia.”
As Trixie began to say that she would, Shadow noticed something coming towards them from all directions. Looking around, there were at least a couple hundred ponies all walking towards them. As they got closer, Shadow’s guards moved to stop them before they contaminated the crime scene.
Raising an eyebrow, Shadow motioned one of his guards to come over to him. Once the guard had complied, Shadow ordered him to find out why there were here. With a nod and a salute, the guard took off. When he returned a few minutes later, there was a large smile on his face.
“You won’t believe this, sir,” declared the guard. “It seems they all heard the news about the foalnapping, dropped what they were doing, and came over here to see if they could help!”
“All of them?” asked Applejack in amazement.
“All of them,” repeated the guard with a nod and a grin. “And, I bet more are coming right now. With this many ponies helping us, searching the Dome will go by much faster.”
“Sir,” said another member of the guard as she approached the group. “We have already gotten several messages from ponies who claim they saw Sunset Shimmer.”
“Good,” said Shadow as he felt a little of the pressure leave him. This was the first bit of good news he had heard in a while. “I want you to get a map and pinpoint the areas where she has been spotted.”
“Already on it, sir,” said the guard as she saluted.
Shadow then turned to look at the other guard. “While they are doing that, I want you to organize everypony. Civilians can help us look, but I want you to make it clear to them that it will be us that handle Sunset.”
“Yes, sir,” he replied with a salute.
“And what are you going to do?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“I’m going to do what I should have done in the first place,” replied Shadow. “I’m going to inform the Princess.”
-x-
Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Spike found themselves trapped in a large box that could easily hold several more foals inside what appeared to be an old warehouse. From what she had seen of the outside, it was a large rectangular three story building, with windows only at the top floor. When they got inside, they saw row upon row of steel boxes as far as the eye could see. The one particular box they were in was sitting next to a workbench, covered with odd looking tools.
After being tossed in, the lid was shut and a loud ‘click’ noise could be heard. Once it was shut, the only light came from a small hole. Licking her lips, Scootaloo peaked out and found herself looking at Sunset as she levitated some odd looking tools. As she did, Scootaloo noticed that the magic aura surrounding the tools was flicking, and that Sunset herself looked like she was about to pass out.
“What to do, what to do,” said Sunset, picking up a different tool. “Well, of course I’m going to kill them, but the real question is how. I need something that will cause Twilight to have nightmares for the rest of her life. Nightmares that even Princess Luna won’t be able to help her get over.”
She then set down the device she had been holding and picked up another different one. This new device looked like a potato peeler. “This…now this gives me an idea.”
As Sunset ran off out of Scootaloo’s line of sight, the poor filly gulped in fear. Presently, she was trapped, and at any moment, Sunset would kill her as well as her friends. Desperate to escape, Scootaloo began to flap her wings with all her might and shot straight up. However, the lid of the box didn’t budge, and the orange filly bounced right off of it, landing on her friends. Yet, despite this, Scootaloo got right back up and tried again two more times with the same results.
“Knock it off,” shouted Sunset. Scootaloo complied, but only so she could peek out the hole again. Sunset was back near the workbench with four identical objects. They about the same size as Scootaloo and her friends, all of them resembled silver earth ponies with no manes, tails, wings, or horns. The space where their eyes should have been, looked like the black lens of a camera.
“I’m glad I kept these things,” said Sunset with a sadistic grin. She then reached behind it one of them. “I wonder if they still work.” When Sunset pulled her hoof back, a pair of green eyes appeared in the back lens as it repeated what she had just said in her voice. Satisfied, Sunset reached behind it again and turned it off.
“Yes,” said Sunset, taking a few steps back, so she could better envision everything. “This is going to be prefect. First, I record them begging and pleading for somepony to save them. Maybe I can get Twilight’s filly to call out her name. Then, I’ll peel the skins off those little brats one at a time, and then attach them to the droids. When Twilight gets here, she’ll go insane!”
The foals in the box didn’t take this news well. Sweetie Belle looked like she was about to empty her stomach, with Apple Bloom right behind her. Spike’s coat turned a shade lighter as he began to tell himself to wake up, like this was all a dream. As for Scootaloo, her entire body froze in terror. Here she was, helpless, with no chance to escape.
Scootaloo watched in horror as Sunset turned to walk towards the box holding them. But, after taking only a step or two, Sunset stumbled.
“Guess I used too much magic,” Sunset admitted to herself as she yawned. “I’d better get an energy boost before I fall asleep or something.” She then tilted her head, thinking of another thing she might need. “A camera. Yes, I’ll need one of those as well, so I can record everything for Twilight and her batty coltfriend. I’m sure they’ll love to see every little detail.” With that said, Sunset Shimmer walked away.
As she did, Scootaloo took a few steps back, accidently stepping on Spike’s tail. Due to the panicked state he was in, he felt Scootaloo’s hoof and tried to run. With his tail being held down on the ground, there was a slight tug, which caused green flames to shoot out of his horn until his tail escaped the hold of Scootaloo’s hoof. Now all eyes were on Spike.
“How the hay did ya do that?” asked Apple Bloom as she poked Spike’s horn.
“I-I don’t know,” admitted Spike.
“Try doing it again,” requested Sweetie Belle.
With a shrug, Spike closed his eyes and did his best to consecrate on shooting flames out of his horn again. But, his thoughts kept returning to Sunset and her plans for all of them. Slowly, he opened his eyes and sighed.
“It’s not working,” said Spike in defeat.
“Let’s try this then,” said Apple Bloom, before pulling on Spike’s tail. As soon as she did, the green flames began to shot out of Spike’s horn once again.
“Ok, he can make fire,” stated an unimpressed Scootaloo. “So what?”
“It gives me an idea,” said Apple Bloom with a smile. She then turned Spike, so that he was facing a wall, and then pulled on his tail. Once more, Spike began to produce the green flames.
At first, none of the fillies noticed anything different. But soon, the wall of the box began to glow bright red. Instantly, both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle realized what Apple Bloom was trying to do: melt a hole in the box.
For a few fleeting moments, their fear was replaced with hope. But, that ended when the rest of the box began to get hotter and hotter, with no visible sign that a hole was being formed. Eventually, Apple Bloom stopped, due to the heat.
“Well,” said Sweetie Belle with a sniff, “it was worth a try.”
As the other two lowered their heads in defeat, Scootaloo was staring at the wall and then at Spike. ‘Ok, that didn’t work,’ thought the orange filly as an idea popped into her head. ‘But, maybe we can still use it to escape.’
-x-
It had been going so well. That thought ran through Luna’s head more than once, as she watched her sister and Eagle Eye go back and forth.
After the griffons had been given some time to recover from the revelation that they were in space, Luna had invited them to join both her and Celestia for a light lunch. Much to their surprise, when they arrived, they found a delicious fish dinner waiting for them while the two alicorns had a vegetable soup. When asked about it, Luna said that she had order Crescent Hope to swing by the ocean on the way down and pick up some foods, courtesy of Queen Oceana.
It was after that that things began to spiral downwards. It started as a comment by one of the griffon guards about how the ponies in Equestria were never this considerate. Celestia replied that her ponies don’t like to kill living beings in order to survive, and thus were unable to provide for them their usual dish. Somehow, a few minutes later, the conversation turned into Eagle Eyes and Celestia going at each other, over the last major conflict between the two nations.
“As I have said in the past,” said Celestia as her plate was being taken away by one of Luna’s wait staff. “I looked into the claim brought to me by your father and found no evidence that Lord Big Wig had dug any tunnel into your territory.”
“Do you expect us to believe that?” snapped Eagle Eyes. “Coal from our mines went missing and we found hoofprints all over the place. My father personally went to examine the mine and found a tunnel that led right into land ruled by you ponies. Lord Big Wig was our prime suspect, since his lands are next to the border. When my father brought this to your attention, the tunnel ‘just happened’ to collapse, killing fifteen griffons.”
“Enough!” roared Luna. When she spoke next, her voice was calmer, yet still held a great amount of power. “We are not here for you two to bicker about the past. We are here about a current situation. Namely the allegation that the griffons ordered the assassination of Hard Shell, who was acting as Captain of the Equestria Royal Guard. Possibly as a prelude to war.”
“There is no honor in attacking the enemy in such a fashion,” declared Eagle Eyes. “If we were going to attack, I would have issued a declaration of war before sending an assassin, or anything of that nature. Not that I have any intention on declaring war at this point. Things within the Griffon Empire are…complicated enough without adding war preparations into the mix.”
Celestia was about to comment when the desert cart came in with some pumpkin cookies. Eagle Eyes were served first and Celestia was shocked by what she saw. His cookie was cut in half and spaced about an inch apart from each other.
Normally, this wouldn’t have meant anything to anypony else. However, this reminded Celestia of something her mother used to do when both she and Luna were foals. Whenever Oceana wanted them to tell her something, she would set the two of them down and give each of them a cookie that was cut in two.
If they told the truth, then they could have the cookie, however (depending on what she wanted to know) there was a chance one or both of them would be punished. If they lied to her, then one of the halves would be taken away before she asked again. When there was no more of the cookie left on the plate, then whatever punishment they would have had become doubled. Was Luna doing something similar?
“I believe you,” said Luna after quickly looking at his plate. “And I’m sure that Princess Celestia believes you as well.”
Celestia hesitated for a moment. “I do,” she said finally. “But, the fact still remains that a griffon killed a high ranking member of my guard. My nobles might claim that someone under your employment might have ordered the hit without your knowledge.”
Eagle Eyes snorted. “So, does that mean that every time a griffon kills a pony that your nobles will believe that there is some big conspiracy? Perhaps I should do the same. Perhaps every time a pony assaults or kills a griffon, it will be treated like a national threat.”
“Emperor, this isn’t a small matter,” scolded Luna. “I’m sure that if a griffon killed any common pony, the Equestrian government would never consider the idea that your nation was planning something. However, that isn’t the case. Somegriffon snuck past Celestia’s guards and killed a captain. I’m sure that if the roles were reversed, you would do the same.”
Eagle Eyes slowly nodded. “You are right, Princess Luna,” he said before turning his attention back to Celestia. “I would act the same, which is why I agreed to this. And, I would also like to apologize for my earlier rude comment. Right now, we should be trying to handle this situation, before this spiral out of control. Tell me, do you have any leads, Princess?”
Celestia shook her head. “I’m afraid all my side was able to find was a single feather,” she said sadly. “Not much we can go on.”
“Actually, it might be more helpful than you think,” said Eagle Eyes. “You see, recently my griffons discovered that our feathers differ from griffon to griffon. There are tiny lines on the calamus that can help us tell who that feather belongs to. That is if he or she has a criminal record, or has ever been a member of our military.” Then his expression darkened. “Or, at least we used to.”
“What do you mean?” asked Celestia.
“This has to do with the issue I mentioned earlier,” said Eagle Eyes. “Normally, the griffon who examines the feathers and such stays at my palace. Recently, the Diamond Dogs have been raiding several of my towns and abducting my citizens to be used as slaves for their mines. One of these towns was home to family members of my specialist, who flew off to see if they were alright. The night he got there, a raid was underway and he was captured. He has been missing for three weeks now.”
“That is awful,” replied Luna. “And I can imagine since this is still a new field, that there isn’t another griffon who can do his job.”
“There are,” said Eagle Eyes with a sigh. “But, they are still beginners. Not experienced enough for me to give them a challenge of this level.”
“Then, we will have to find him,” said Princess Luna.
With that, Princess Luna began to describe several pieces of technology that she had that could be used to help. But, Princess Celestia was only barely paying attention. Instead, she was thinking about a simpler solution to this problem. One that might benefit multiple ponies.
“I have an idea,” said Celestia as she interrupted Luna. “My niece and I have some new soldiers that would be perfect for this situation.” Luna’s eyes widened as she realized who Celestia was talking about. However, Eagle Eyes did not look convinced.
“I’m sure you think highly of your troops,” he said calmly. “However, my soldiers have some of the finest steel, as well as years of hard training, yet we still are having trouble with these dogs. Their caves and tunnels are almost pitch black, making it hard to see. Not to mention narrow.”
“I am aware of how skilled your soldiers are,” acknowledged Celestia. “I will admit that if it wasn’t for our vast numbers, not to mention magic, you would have defeated us in every conflict. However, my niece recently formed a guard containing bat ponies.”
As Eagle Eyes began to think about this, Celestia did her best to hide her smile. This was a brilliant plan. The bat ponies would not only be helping out Equestria, but themselves as well. Using them, she would solve a problem that the emperor had been having, and thus gaining some of his favor. Once that happened, she would make sure that Equestria knew that bat ponies had played a part in a search and rescue mission, in addition of helping to prevent all-out war.
“I don’t know,” uttered Eagle Eyes with uncertainty. “Are they skilled?”
“They are still going through basic training,” admitted Celestia. “But, I am sure they are up to the task.”
“Perhaps-” began Luna, but before she could get a few words in, she was cut off.
“Princess Luna,” came Captain Starway’s voice on the PA system. “There is an urgent message for you from Captain Shadow Blade.”
Applejack watched in amazement as ponies continued to flock towards the Prancington Theater. They came in large groups, ranging from ten to thirty every couple of minutes, wanting to help find the missing foals. The orange earth mare couldn’t help but feel touched that so many ponies wanted to help.
Already search teams had been put out. Each group that went out consisted of two guards and at least twenty civilian ponies. Shadow had made it very clear that only the guards were to take on Sunset. The others were only to help going door to door, search empty building, and other such things. However, if they got even a hint that Sunset was near, they were to contact their guards and wait for back up.
As for those who were still around, Shadow had put them to work as well. Many of them were taking calls from ponies claiming that they had seen Sunset Shimmer. These ponies would then relay the information to Shadow, who was working with a couple of the guards that remained to work on a map that would help them narrow down where Sunset could be.
Applejack and the others wished they could help. But, they didn’t know how any of the tech worked, nor did they know their way around the Dome. In short, they were useless. And that didn’t sit well with Applejack. Her little sister was missing and there wasn’t a single thing she could do. Twilight was helping them, at least until she had to go somewhere.
“Ah’ll be right back,” said Applejack to the rest of them. “Ah have to get ta the little filly’s room.”
“I’ll go with you,” said Rarity.
“Me too,” said Pinkie Pie.
Applejack shrugged as she made her way into the theater to use their restrooms, while wondering why mares always went into bathrooms in herds. Luckily, it was a short walk, as the bathrooms were in the entrance hall near the doors. As they walked in, the three easily spotted Twilight by the sinks. The poor mare was crying her eyes out as the water ran in the sink. Seeing this, Applejack forgot her needs and slowly walked over to her, so that she could put a hoof on her shoulder.
“Sugarcube, are ya alright?” asked Applejack in a soft tone. Twilight looked at Applejack before crying even harder. The purple mare then wrapped her wet hooves around Applejack’s neck. As she did this, Applejack turned her head to look at her friends, who had equally dumbfounded faces. When this started, Twilight seemed to be so strong and kept it together. But now, seeing her like this, made them realize just how much she had been keeping inside.
“It’s all my fault,” sobbed Twilight, crying into Applejack’s mane. “If I hadn’t brought Scootaloo here, then none of this would be happening.”
“Excuse me for being candid, but that’s nonsense and you know it,” gently scolded Rarity as she took a step forward.
“But, it’s true,” sobbed Twilight. “I just wanted to help Scootaloo. I wanted to help her fly and give her a good home. I should have known something bad would happen.”
“But, how could you?” asked Pinkie Pie. “I mean, it’s not like you knew that by bringing Scootaloo up here to the land of no baked goodies, that she’d become the target of some super scary mare with issues against you. That you could have known that when you brought her up here, that her friends would find out where she went and follow her, only to end up being captured by the same crazy mare. I know your super smart and all, but I don’t think you’re that smart.”
Applejack sighed. “What Pinkie here is trying ta say is that nopony here thinks it’s your fault.”
“But, it was my job to protect her,” insisted Twilight as she let go Applejack. “I’m her legal guardian. She just started calling me Mom! I was right there and I let Sunset take her away.”
“Listen, sugarcube,” instructed Applejack in a stern, yet kind, tone. “Ah want ya to listen, an’ listen good, because what I got ta say is the honest truth. The only pony that’s blaming ya is ya. Ya just wanted to help Scootaloo, an’ ah get it. What ya have done for that filly is nothing short of amazing. But, ya got ta ease up on yourself. No parent or older sibling would’ve ever thought that they’ll be in the same boat we’re in.
“As for Sunset, well, ah think ya did what ya thought was right at the time. Now, ah don’t get much of that fancy mumbo jumbo, but ya sure seem ta know a lot about it. Ya made a call ta the best of your ability and ya were wrong. But, the important thing is that ya tried. And, even when ya failed, ya didn’t give up. Ya got in contact with ponies that could help us.”
As Twilight listened to Applejack, she began to feel comforted by her honest words. Slowly, the guilt she had been directing towards herself began to fade. It wasn’t all gone, but she did feel better.
“Agreed,” said Rarity with a nod. “I certainly don’t blame you for anything that has happened. The only pony to blame for anything is that Sunset Shimmer character.”
“I guess you’re right,” relented Twilight with a slight smile. They talked for a bit while Twilight washed her face, as well as collecting herself. When the three finished their business and walked out of the washrooms, they had become a bit closer, maybe even friends.
As they exited the theater, the three of them noticed that Shadow giving orders, while putting his helmet back on. Seeing this, Twilight walked over to him.
“Is everything alright?” she asked.
Shadow nodded. “We just got a call from a mare saying that she spotted Sunset Shimmer getting an energy drink north of here. I checked it on our map and most of the Sunset sightings happen to be in that area. So, I contacted all the other members of the Guard and Shield Corps, and told them to concentrate our efforts there. I also called up the LBI and asked them to see if Sunset owns any buildings down there.”
“I’m coming with you,” said Twilight.
Shadow smiled. “Wouldn’t have it any other way,” he replied.
-x-
Sunset hummed a happy tune as she took a sip of her energy drink with her hooves, while her magic set up the camera stand. With each sip of her drink, she felt her drossiness leave her body. Which was a good thing, since she needed to be alert for what she was about to do. Skinning fillies would take all of her focus.
Speaking of fillies, so far she hadn’t heard a peep from her captives since she got back. ‘Must of have resigned to their fates,’ thought Sunset, setting down her drink on the table. She then looked over everything to see if she was ready.
The tools she would need to skin the four of them were nice and sharp. The camera was set, as were the four robots she planned to drape the skins over. She wasn’t worried about blood getting on her coat, or on the floor. When this was over, nothing would matter anymore, other than Twilight’s screams.
“Let’s get started,” said Sunset aloud before chuckling evilly. Happily, she trotted over towards the box holding her captives, while her magic undid the lock. By the time she was standing in front of the box, the lock was on the floor and her magic was now opening the box. Sunset was about to use her magic to grab two of the foals. One was going to be Scootaloo, so she could tie the helpless pegasus filly down, and force her to watch as Sunset worked on the other.
But, when Sunset looked down into the box, she was greeted by an unusual sight. Scootaloo was standing on her hindlegs, while her forelegs were holding the purple colt. Her left hoof was underneath the purple one’s belly, while her right was holding his tail. As Sunset raised an eyebrow at this, Scootaloo pulled on the tail. The next thing Sunset knew were the green flames firing right into her face.
Sunset screamed in pain, leaving Scootaloo and her friends to make their escape. While the orange pegasus used her wings to fly both her and Spike out of the box, Apple Bloom allowed herself to be used as a stepping stool, so that Sweetie Belle get on her before jumping out of the box. Once the three of them were out, Scootaloo flew back into the box to grab Apple Bloom, and then get them both out.
“This way,” shouted Sweetie Belle once the two landed. The three followed Sweetie Belle as they ran in the direction of the door. Behind them, Sunset’s screams of pain had turned into screams of rage. This urged the four to run as fast as their legs would allow.
Seeing the door before them, they slowed down so that they wouldn’t collide into it. Feeling that they were home free, they sighed in relief. Soon, they would be able to get out of here and find an adult who could help them. They would be safe from Sunset, and their families would come to get them. But, those thoughts ended as they looked up.
The door had no doorknob. The four looked around, desperate to find something like a doorknob, but all they found was a large black square next to the door. Not knowing what else to do, they pushed on the door, but it wouldn’t budge.
That was when they heard it. Coming behind them was the sound of somepony galloping in their direction. They knew it had to be Sunset, for she was the only pony in here with them. So, as a group, they turned left and began to run along the side of the wall, hoping they would be able to find some way out.
Scootaloo could hear her heart beating in her ears, beating out of fright and adrenaline. They had managed to take Sunset by surprise the last time, but she doubted that they could use the same trick twice. She was tempted to use her wings and fly ahead, but she refused to do that. If something happened to them, it would feel like she had left them behind in order to save herself. So, instead she ran with them.
Looking ahead, Scootaloo spotted something. It was a grate in the wall. She skidded to a stop and looked to see on the opposite side was an air duct. In other words, it was a way out! Not only that, it looked like it was big enough so that a filly or colt could easily walk into it, while an adult could have a hard time crawling through. Frantically, she began to buck the grate to knock it off the wall, but had little luck.
“Allow me,” offered Apple Bloom, figuring out what Scootaloo was trying to do. Scootaloo nodded and stepped away, just as Apple Bloom gave the grate a single buck, knocked it down. The other two fillies cheered happily as Apple Bloom gave a short bow.
“Alright, let’s go,” urged Spike, walking into the air duct. Sweetie Belle nodded as she followed him. Before Apple Bloom could enter, both she and Scootaloo heard Sunset getting closer.
“Get going,” ordered Scootaloo, shoving Apple Bloom into the air duct.
“But, what about ya?” asked the farming filly.
Scootaloo didn’t answer right away, but looked in the direction Sunset was coming from. She could see the crazy unicorn now. Her eyes were wild with rage. Her face, and a part of her mane, looked slightly blackened thanks to the attack from Spike. Around her was a greenish bubble that was most likely a force field spell. Seeing all this, Scootaloo gulped.
“I have to stay,” she said quickly.
“But-” began Apple Bloom, but was interrupted as Scootaloo pushed her into the air duct.
“Look, one of us has to stay here,” said Scootaloo quickly. “If we all go in there, then Sunset will just use her magic on us or something. But, I’m the one she really wants. If I stay here, then the rest of you can get away. Now GO!”
With that, Scootaloo used her wings and began to fly away. As Apple Bloom back up a bit, she watched in horror when Sunset stopped in front of the air duct. For a moment, nothing happened as the poor filly felt like her heart was about to explode from fear. Then, Sunset began to move away from the air duct, most likely chasing after Scootaloo.
As Apple Bloom turned around and began to walk through the air duct, she thought about the sacrifice her friend had made for all of them. ‘Ah’m gonna get out of here,’ she thought as she continued to walk. ‘And, when ah do, Ah’ll get help. Just hold on, Scootaloo.’
Meanwhile, back inside the warehouse, Sunset continued to chase Scootaloo around a corner. Right now, the others didn’t matter. She was the main target after all. If she got away, it wouldn’t matter what she did to the others. It wouldn’t hurt Twilight nearly as much.
As they turned a second corner, Sunset began to tire of this chase. It was time to end it and just kill the brat. So, Sunset dropped her shield spell and began to prepare a different one.
Scootaloo was flying with all her might. She knew she had to keep moving for as long as possible. Hopefully, she could keep Sunset busy until help arrived. She just had to keep flying.
However, she noticed that several of the large crates began to lift off the ground, and fly into the air. Quickly looking up, Scootaloo saw that they were hovering high in the air near the ceiling. Then, without warning, the green glow that surrounded them vanished, causing them to fall.
Scootaloo wanted to curse under her breath, but didn’t have the time. Instead, she sped up in order to avoid the falling crates. The first one missed her by several feet, but after that, they seemed to be getting closer and closer to hitting their mark each time. Soon, there were only two left and the last one just barely missed her tail. Quickly, Scootaloo wondered what she should do next, when an idea popped into her head.
Instead of continuing like she had been, Scootaloo went straight up. She saw the boxes coming right at her, and managed to avoid it. Looking down, she spotted Sunset remaining still, with her horn continuing to glow green, while pointing it at the young filly.
Fearing for what Sunset might try to do next, Scootaloo decided to move right, just as Sunset fired a beam of magical energy at her. Whether it was because Scootaloo had moved, or if Sunset had bad aim, but the magical attack miss its intended target of Scootaloo’s chest. However, the blast made a thin cut along the young filly’s side. It wasn’t very deep, but there was a thin line of blood.
Seeing that, Sunset’s horn was beginning to glow again, Scootaloo flew down into the isles of boxes. Sunset tried to stop her with a magical blast, but it missed as Scootaloo landed somewhere in the middle of the warehouse. Once of the ground, she began to run as quickly, and as quietly, as she could to find a hiding place.
“Enough of this!” came the raging voice of Sunset, followed by a crashing noise. “Do you have any idea who I am? I am one of the most powerful unicorns in the Republic! If it hadn’t been for Twilight, I would be Princess Luna’s prized student. If only she had just gone away like I wanted her to, then none of this would be happening!”
Scootaloo stopped in her tracks when she heard several more crashed. Looking up, she saw one of the steel boxes soar through the air, while being covered in a green glow. Shortly after it was out of sight, there was another crash. Scootaloo gulped, before wincing in pain. The cut on her side had not stopped bleeding as it was beginning to drip on the floor. If this kept up, then all Sunset would have to do was follow the blood trail right to her.
“This is taking too long!” yelled Sunset.
Scootaloo watched in horror as all the boxes began to be enveloped in Sunset’s magic. Then, all at once, they all lifted into the air and were flung against the wall, making a loud crashing sound that forced Scootaloo to cover her ears. When it was over, she could see Sunset panting several yards away. Her coat was now dripping with sweat from overexerting her magic.
“Nowhere to run now,” said the crazed mare, charging at the filly. Scootaloo tried to run for it, but Sunset had moved too quickly. She knocked down the filly and then stepped on her left wing, pinning it down to the floor.
“I’m going to enjoy this,” tiredly gloated Sunset as she began to put pressure on the wing. Scootaloo screamed out in pain, tears rolling down her face, as Sunset continued to put more and more of her weight onto the tiny wing. There was then a sudden snapping sound, followed by the loudest scream Scootaloo had ever done in her life.
But, Sunset wasn’t done. Instead of lifting her hoof, she began to grind it into the filly’s wing. Looking at said filly, she could see that Scootaloo was staring off into space with her mouth open in a silent scream. Whether she was in shock or something like that didn’t matter to Sunset. She was enjoying this, and wanted it to last as long as possible. However, her eyelids were beginning to get heavy, due to the effects of her energy drink running out, as well as all of her recent uses of magic.
‘Guess I’d better end this now,’ thought Sunset as she set her gaze on Scootaloo’s head.
She was about to raise her hoof, intended to bring it down hard, when she heard the sound of glass breaking and found herself in the shadow of a bat. Looking up, she saw two things heading towards her. The first was dozens of glass shards. The other was a very pissed looking bat pony flying right at her.
Before her mind could process this information, she felt a pair of hooves strike her chest, causing her to be sent flying several yards away. Her body rolled on the ground, before it was stopped by one of the steel boxes that was against the wall. Slowly, she looked up to find Shadow Blade, who was standing above Scootaloo and using his own body to protect her from the glass.
Sunset quickly scrambled to stand up, while feeling Shadow’s intense gaze never leaving her. ‘How did he find me here?’ she thought to herself. ‘Nopony should know about this place! I had it listed under my mother’s name. Even if they were going building to building, it would have taken them hours to find me.’
Meanwhile, Shadow was looking down at Scootaloo. He noted both of her injuries before silently thanking Princess Luna that she was still alive. While her injuries looked bad, he knew that their medical technology would fix her right up. Right after he dealt with Sunset, of course.
Shadow then took a step forward, snapping Sunset out of her thoughts. “Sunset Shimmer, in the name of Princess Luna, you are under arrest,” he said in a commanding tone, while walking towards her. “If you resist, I will use force to subdue you. If you try to flee, you will find this building surrounded by members of both set of guards.”
Sunset gritted her teeth. There was no way she was going to roll over without a fight. Not before she accomplished what she had set out to do.
With a loud scream of rage, Sunset ran towards Shadow, who was still calmly walking towards her. When she got close enough, she raised a forehoof to punch his face. However, Shadow reacted with a speed that made Sunset seem like she was moving in slow motion. Effortlessly, he caught her hoof with his own before using his other hoof to strike the middle of her outstretched foreleg. Sunset screamed in pain as she felt her own bones break with the greatest of ease, falling to the ground.
“My cutie mark isn’t for show,” noted Shadow, looking down at Sunset’s form. “My special talent is fighting. It is because of this that I was made Captain of the Royal Guard.”
Sunset let out a growl as her horn began to glow a lighter green than usual. Her managed to teleport to where Scootaloo was, and grabbed the filly with her good hoof before Shadow could turn around. She then pointed her horn at her prisoner.
“Looks like the tables have turned,” she said with a pained sneer as her horn lit up once more, while pointing it at Scootaloo’s neck. She noticed, however, that Shadow didn’t look worried or panicked. Instead, he seemed completely unfazed.
“So,” he said calmly, “this is what you have become. A pathetic creature who enjoys picking on those weaker than herself.”
“Shut it,” snapped Sunset as she tightened her hold around Scootaloo’s neck slightly. “Now, you’re going to tell me how you found me, or I’ll blast this stupid filly in the neck!”
Shadow grinned. “Well, it was very simple really: you messed up,” said the stallion.
“Impossible!” yelled Sunset.
“Oh, it is very possible,” said Shadow. “Your first mistake was getting an energy drink. A pony saw you and we moved into that area, since it had the most sightings of you. Your second mistake was letting those foals go. When we arrived in the area, one of my guards spotted them and they told us Scootaloo had stayed behind, in order to stall you as well as telling us you were in a warehouse. This is where your third mistake comes in, due to all the noise you were making.”
Sunset growled. “Not like it matters anymore!” she yelled as she was about to fired her magic at the filly. Before she could, the impossible happened. The magic was blocked by some force surrounding Scootaloo, and Sunset was sent flying back, by the very same force. As she laid there on the ground, Shining Armor appeared from the shadows, directly behind where Sunset had been standing.
“Nopony hurts my family as long as I’m here to protect them,” said Shining, glaring at Sunset.
Saying nothing, Shadow rushed over to check on Scootaloo. He quickly examined the extent of her injuries, before putting an ear to her chest. After hearing that her heart was still beating, Shadow let out a sigh of relief. Besides the cut on her side and her damaged wing, she looked alright.
“I’m going to call her in,” said Shining as he walked over to Shadow and Scootaloo. The bat stallion nodded. Silently, he was impressed by Shining’s magical defenses. Not only was the shield spell he used was strong enough to block all damage from the filly, but it was also invisible, so that Sunset had no idea that it had been cast, allowing her to trot right into a trap.
A half second later, there was a flash of light as Twilight teleported into the room. She took a quick look around, before her eyes widened in horror when she saw the state Scootaloo was in. She quickly rushed over to her and held the poor filly in her forelegs.
“What did she do to you?” Twilight whispered, tears beginning to roll down her eyes.
“AHA!” Both Shadow and Shining turned around to look in the direction of the noise, while Twilight’s eye’s narrowed in anger. Sunset was slowly willing herself to stand, while her horn was barely glowing light green.
“Does she really think she can do anything in the state she’s in?” asked Shadow as he noticed how Sunset’s legs were shaking. As if in answer to his question, Sunset formed a small magical dagger that looked like it couldn’t even cut whipped cream.
“She’s like one of those annoying villains from the movies,” said Shining as he rolled his eyes. “Never knowing when to give up.”
“Guess I’ll-” began Shadow but was cut off as Twilight stepped in-between the two, with her head lowered.
“Yes,” said Sunset with insane glee. “Stand right there!” With that said, Sunset shot her dagger at Twilight. As she did, Twilight raised her head to reveal her glowing white eyes. Her horn instantly began to glow and created a shockwave of magic that destroyed the dagger, before sending Sunset flying towards the wall and holding her there.
Twilight’s magic didn’t let up as Twilight cast her next spell. From her horn came purple chains that flew towards Sunset. They hit the tip of the crazed mare’s horn and looked like they were forcing their way into her. Sunset screamed in pain, feeling the chains inside of her. It was like no pain she had ever felt before. Then, it suddenly stopped, causing Sunset to sink back down to the floor.
Sunset looked up at Twilight, wondering what she did. Whatever it was, Twilight didn’t even look winded. She tried to call on whatever magic she had left, but was shocked to find nothing!
“W-what have you done to me?” demanded Sunset in a raspy voice.
“I used magic to seal away your own supply of magic,” explained Twilight. “Unlike the magic restraining rings, it’ll only last a week. But, it should be enough to make sure you can’t cause any trouble.” As she said this, Sunset found herself in a large blue bubble of magic, courtesy of Shining Armor.
-x-
Outside of the warehouse was a crowd, waiting in total silence. But, that silence was shattered when they saw Shining Armor marching out, while holding Sunset in her bubble prison. All at once, they began to cheer wildly. This did not last, however, for they all became silent again when they saw Twilight and Shadow exit the building.
On Twilight’s back was Scootaloo. Twilight had put the filly to sleep with her magic, while she did her best to tend to the wounds. Unfortunately, Twilight’s knowledge of medical magic was limited to basic first aid spells. She was able to stop the bleeding and put the broken wing in a make shift sling, but that was it. Deep down, Twilight was afraid that Scootaloo might lose that wing.
Upon seeing Scootaloo, the crowd began to roar like a wild beast. Many, like the ponies from Equestria, wanted to rush over to the filly and see if she was alright, but were stopped by the guards. Others opted to simply shout out insults to Sunset, while voicing their hopes that she received a nasty punishment for what she had done.
That was until the sound of thunder was heard throughout the Dome, silencing everypony. The crowd then seemed to part as Princess Luna stormed towards Sunset, with a look of murder in her eyes. Next to her was Princess Celestia, who was talking to her sister in an attempt to calm her down. Also with them was a griffon, as well as Doctor Healing Touch, who had brought along a large four foot silver egg with a red cross on it.
When Healing Touch saw Scootaloo, she raced ahead of the royalty to check on the filly. As soon as she was in front of her, Healing pulled out her pen device to begin scanning the injuries.
“This…this isn’t good,” said Healing with a frown. “The cut along her side we can fix with little effort. But, her wing…we might have to remove it.”
“But, she was just learning how to fly,” uttered Shadow, while Twilight paled a bit. “Isn’t there something you can do to fix it?”
Healing bit her bottom lip. “I…I can try,” she said. “I’ll put her in the emergency first aid pod, and get her to the castle as soon as possible. There, we’ll give her a heavy injection of nanomachines, as well as some of the most powerful healing spells. Just…don’t get your hopes up too high. We might have to replace the wing with a metal one.”
With that said, Healing Touch took hold of Scootaloo to place her in the silver egg, while Shadow and Twilight held each other. Right now, there was nothing more they could do, except wait and hope for the best.
“She has gone too far this time,” growled Luna as she walked towards Sunset. “I doubt that I will have to try hard for the death penalty, given what she has done. All that needs to be decided is how to do it. Ejected into the vacuum of space? Maybe place her in a prison pod, and then launch her towards the sun?”
“Princess Luna, don’t you think that killing her is a bit harsh?” asked Celestia. “I know that she has done some horrible things, but-”
Luna cut off Celestia as she turned to face her sister. “Thank you, Princess Celestia, for your input,” said Luna in a strong tone. “However, this isn’t Equestria. We handle things differently here in the Republic. I went easy on her last time, and this is the result. I could place her in a prison pod for fifty years, but I believe that she will just try this again once she has been released.”
“Perhaps exile?” suggested Celestia, refusing not to give up. Celestia had never been much of a fan for the death penalty, and did not wish to see her sister do something like that. Not when there were plenty of other choices she could make.
“Exile, turned to stone, turned to shadow,” ranted Luna as she resumed her march towards Sunset. “They are all just a way of sweeping the problem under the carpet, until they come back to bite you in the flank. Sunset Shimmer has proven to be too resourceful and determined to be allowed something like that. Besides, even if I did want that, where am I going to exile her to?”
“Equestria will take her in,” offered Celestia, causing Luna to stop in mid-step. Slowly, Luna turned to look at Celestia. “Please, Princess Luna, I believe there is still some good in her.”
Luna narrowed her eyes in rage, now marching towards Celestia. Did Celestia not understand what she just said? Sunset Shimmer was the type of pony that would let nothing stands in her way to get what she wanted. If she did banish her, then it would only be a matter of time before she made her way back to the moon somehow. Either by magic or building a ship to get back, she would find a way.
Not to mention the fact that the Republic was pissed at the unicorn. The Lunar Republic had not had dealt with a situation like this in centuries. If Luna were to simply exile her, it would cause an uproar that she would have to deal with, an uproar she could easily understood and agreed with. Sunset Shimmer had to die!
But, then an idea popped into her head. 'That might work,' thought Luna. 'While I would prefer just killing her outright, this might be a decent alternative. Once I'm done with her, Celestia can do whatever she wants with what remain.' Luna then stopped in her tracks a few inches away from Celestia's face.
“Are you certain you want her?” asked Luna. Celestia nodded. “Fine, but we are doing this my way. First of all, Sunset will not be allowed back into the Republic under any circumstance. Also, she will still receive a very severe punishment from me before I hoof her over to you.”
Before Celestia could ask what she meant, Luna raised her head high and spoke as loudly as she could. “I, Princess Luna of the Lunar Republic, sentence Sunset Shimmer to the fate of Living Death!”
Within the confines of the Department of Science and Research was a single room that lay at the end of an L-shaped hallway. Because it was the only room down that hallway, and it was out of sight, few ponies that worked there knew about this room. The ones that did found it was by accident, probably from getting lost, and believed that it was some supply closet or something of that nature.
However, these assumptions would be all wrong. The room was actually full of blacklist-level devices. Projects that were not mention on any official report and was requested by Princess Luna personally. She kept them a secret as an ace up her metaphorical sleeve, in case of an emergency. Like, for example, if one of her scientists decided to create a new weapon and planned to use it to take over the Lunar Republic, maybe more. Only two ponies have ever worked on these projects: Director Bunsen Burner and Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle.
Right now, Sunset was the first pony ever to experience the effects of one of these items. She had all four hooves restrained as her back lay against a smooth slab of metal. She had to be restrained and gagged, not just because she was a dangerous criminal, but because of the immense pain she was in. On her was something that looked like a metal bowl. When they had put it on, several needles that were inside of it had dug their way into her skin, skull, and finally her brain. The outside had several cables that connected the bowl to a computer.
Standing in front of the computer were two ponies. One was Princess Luna. After arresting Sunset, she had order her onto Crescent Hope under heavy guard, along with Twilight, Shadow, Scootaloo, and the rest of the ponies in her party. Once they arrived at the castle, Twilight took Scootaloo to get the treatment she needed. Meanwhile, Luna offered to have one of her guards show Celestia and Eagle Eyes around, while she dealt with the criminal unicorn.
Next to her, operating the computer, was a grey coated pegasus stallion with a long white beard and mane. He wore a lab coat, which covered up his cutie mark as well as his black rimmed glasses. He was Director Bunsen Burner, the inventor of the machine Sunset was currently hooked up to.
“How much longer?” asked Princess Luna.
Bunsen Burner didn’t answer right away. Instead, he used his wings to type a command into the computer, which turned off the device. He then turned to look at his princess with old, tired eyes.
“Maybe an hour or two,” he replied.
Luna raised an eyebrow. “That long?” she asked.
“This is a very complex procedure,” he said, turning back to the computer. “I have to go through a large amount of information before we can begin making the necessary changes.” He then paused for a moment. “If you have anything you want to say to her, you should do it now. You’ll never have another chance.”
For a moment, Luna hesitated. Was there anything she wanted to tell her? Right now, she was the most despised pony in the Republic. She was no Genetic Code, but she was close. Her own parents had washed their hooves of her. In her mind, there was nothing left to say.
Just as she was about to say no, she began to feel a twinge of pity for her. This would be the last time Luna would ever be able to talk to her. Maybe a message to somepony she cared about, like saying she was sorry. Even if nopony cared what she had to say, Luna thought it would be best to allow her this one last act of kindness. So, using her magic, Luna undid the gag and lifted it above her head.
“Sunset Shimmer, as you knows, you have been sentenced to Living Death,” began Luna as Sunset continued to lie there, panting. “Once we are done here, your body will be removed from the Republic, never to return. Is there anything you want to say while you still can?”
“…Yes,” said Sunset. “Please let me kill her! She ruined my life! I don’t care what happens to me afterwards, just-” Before she could finish, Luna shoved the gag back into her mouth before mentally scolding herself. It had been foolish to believe that Sunset could change, even in these last moments.
“Tell me when it is done, so that we can dispose of her quickly,” instructed Luna as she walked out the door. “I’ll be checking in on Twilight and her family.”
-x-
The waiting room of Healing Touch had never been so full. Twelve ponies sat there not talking, reading the large verity of magazines, or playing any of the foal’s games that were available. The television set was dark and silent as well. They all just sat there, waiting for some kind of news.
Twilight kept glancing at the door that led to the operating room every couple of minutes, as if she were trying to will Healing Touch to come out. She wanted, no, needed to know what was happening and if Scootaloo was going to be alright. She hated not knowing something and it was killing her right now. The only comfort she had right now was Shadow’s hoof that was resting on top of her own.
As Twilight turned to look at the door again, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw that somepony had just walked in from the entrance. It was Lightning Dust, still in her armor! And, she wasn’t alone. Behind her was a bunch of fillies and colts, including Dinky.
“Hey everypony,” she gently called out, while trying to be cheerful. “I hope you don’t mind. After what happened, I decided to let my Troopers know that Scootaloo was alright, and they wanted to see her.”
A small smile appeared on Twilight’s face. “Of course I don’t mind,” she said as she got out of her seat. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to see all of you.”
“I thought the kid would like it,” replied Lightning with a nod. “And we’ll all be here for her, no matter what happens. Right, Troopers?”
“Right!” they all cheered at once.
“I just hope she takes it well,” said Twilight as her worries reappeared. “She was just cured of her crossbreed syndrome and was finally learning how to fly. I don’t know how she’ll react to having one of her wings replaced with a cybernetic one.”
“That’s why we’re here,” announced a new voice. Walking through the door was Time Turner and Derpy. Derpy, the one who had spoken, ran over to hug Twilight. “We got here as soon as we could. I just wish there was something more we could do.”
Twilight hugged her back. “I think being here is enough for now.”
Once again, the door opened, to reveal Vinyl Scratch carrying a large boom box on her back. She looked around the door and smiled.
“Nice to see so many rockin’ faces here to support my number one favorite filly,” she said. “When she gets out, I’ll let loose the victory jams!”
At that moment, Twilight felt like crying. It wasn’t because she was sad. No, she was so happy that so many ponies came to see Scootaloo, even though they had only known her for a short amount of time. She opened her mouth to tell everypony there thanks for coming, when Healing Touch entered the room.
“So, this is the cause of the sudden noise,” she stated with a slight smile as Twilight and Shadow quickly approached her.
“How is she?” asked Twilight quickly.
“She seems to be doing alright,” said Healing, leaving Twilight to let out a sigh of relief. “We injected the nanomachines and they are busy repairing the damage to the wing. We’re also using magic to speed up the process by moving the bones into place. That way, all they have to do is connect the bones and she’ll be alright.”
The ponies from the Lunar Republic looked relieved to hear this news. However, those from Equestria just looked confused. They understood that Scootaloo was going to be alright and that was the important thing. But, how it was being done was confusing.
Rainbow opened her mouth to begin asking questions, but was interrupted when all of the lights in the office turned red and began to flash. At the same time, a female voice began to broadcasted, “Emergency! Dr. Healing Touch, please report to healing station one. Code Red.” As the voice began to repeat itself, all the color from Healing Touch’s face vanished.
“But, that’s impossible,” Healing whispered to herself. “She was fine when I left her.” The doctor took a quick breath before addressing everypony else in the room. “I need to go. Please wait here.”
“What’s going on?” demanded Twilight as her fears began to rise. However, Healing was already through the doors, which made a clicking sound as they closed. Twilight tried to follow her, but found the door locked. “Please, I can help! If you need more magic, I’ll give you all that I have! Just please!”
For what seemed like an eternity, Twilight continued to shout at the door while banging on it with her hoof. Fearful tears were running down her face as her mind began to spin out all sorts of possibilities. Was there some kind of complication? Had the nanomachines malfunctioned? Was Scootaloo…dead? The more these thoughts ran through her head, the harder she began to bang against the door while demanding answers.
Suddenly, she felt a hoof on her shoulder. She turned around and stared into the face of Shadow, tears rolling down his face as well. And he wasn’t alone. Nopony in the room was left unaffected by this news.
Fluttershy seemed to be sobbing just as hard as Twilight, while Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust had turned away, so that nopony could see their tears. Rarity and Applejack were holding their sibling tightly. Even Trixie seemed saddened by this news as she took off her hat and began to stare at the ground. Upon seeing all of this, Twilight wrapped her hooves around Shadow’s neck and continued to sob.
Meanwhile, Luna stood outside of the office listening to everypony. When she had arrived, she had heard the doctor give the good news. But, as she was about to open the door, she heard the emergency message and froze.
As she heard Twilight’s cries, she took a step backwards. She wanted so much to go in there and see her student. To tell her that everything would be alright, that they had the best doctors looking after Scootaloo. Yet, for some reason, she couldn’t. She couldn’t face her student. Instead, Luna began to walk away with her head facing the ground.
Luna walked down the halls as if she were a zombie, thinking about the events that led up to Scootaloo’s injuries. While she didn’t place all the blame on herself, most of it went to Sunset, she did felt that she held some of the blame. In fact, if she had done things differently in the past, then none of this would have happened.
When was the last time she had messed up this badly? The answer came back to her instantly: Genetic Code. Both times she should have seen the signs that something bad would happen. She knew what their personalities were, and thus, should have expected something like this. The only comfort she had right now was that nopony was dead this time. From what she had heard, Blink would live, but it was still unclear if he could continue his job as a member of the Royal Guard.
But, that brought little comfort to her. Politically, it was a nightmare. A citizen of the Lunar Republic had foalnapped three fillies who were visiting from Equestria, while she had been talking to the leaders of two nations. She was sure that this would reflect poorly in their eyes. Then, there were her own citizens, whom she was sure were furious with her. They were probably wondering why she didn’t place Sunset in a prison pod in the first place.
Personally, on the other hoof, it was even worse. Twilight, the mare she saw as a daughter, was suffering. Luna knew that she couldn’t protect her from everything. Nopony could, it was simply impossible. However, she never wanted to be part of the reason that hurt her or her loved ones. She couldn’t bear walking into the waiting room and having Twilight blame her, even thought it was unlikely.
Minutes seemed like hours as Luna continued to walk without aim. It was only when she bumped into another that broke her out of her haze. Looking up, she saw that it was Emperor Eagle Eyes looking back at her. Luna then looked around and saw that she was now in a hallway, with windows looking out towards the lunar landscape.
“Emperor, I apologize,” said Luna quickly. “I was lost in thought and-”
“Think nothing of it,” he replied, politely waving her off. “I really shouldn’t be here. While on the tour, I saw these windows and snuck off. I know it was wrong, but I really wanted to see the moon’s surface up close.”
“I see,” acknowledged Luna. “Well, no harm done, I suppose. I will find your guide and inform him of where you are.”
As Luna began to walk away, Eagle Eyes spoke up once more. “Is everything alright?” he asked. Luna paused in mid-step before she turned to face him with a frown.
“Of course everything is alright,” she said, but judging on the look on his face, the griffon didn’t believe her. After a few moments under his gaze, Luna let out a sigh of defeat. “I…I messed up. I went easy on one of my previous students, which led to today’s events. And now a mare, who is like a daughter to me, is suffering.”
“I see,” responded Eagle after a moment. He then nodded before turning his attention about out the window. “We are more alike than I originally thought.”
Luna raised an eyebrow. “What makes you say that?” she asked. After all, they barely knew each other. It was a little soon for him to be making comments like that.
Eagle Eyes chuckled. “My tour guide gave us a brief history of the Lunar Republic, starting with why it was founded,” he began. “So, I know that Celestia is your older sister. See, I am also a second born.”
Luna’s eyes widened in shock. This was something she didn’t expect to hear. But, if that was true, then what had happened to his older brother? From what she could remember of the Empire’s politics, the first born almost always became the next Emperor. Was he dead, or did something else happen to him?
“You see,” continued Eagle Eyes, “I was never meant to take the crown. My father told me that at least once a week. It would go to my brother, Hawk Eyes. He always got the special attention. It…it was hard living under his shadow.
“And, what made it worse was that he knew how special he was, and flaunted it around. The way he lived was borderline dishonorable. Coming home drunk, having wild parties whenever our parents were away, and so on.
“One day, I finally had enough of it and went to talk to my father. When I got to his door, I heard him talking to my mother. They too seemed tired of Hawk’s actions. They were tired of making excuses for him, as well as his lack of attention to his studies.
“I heard my father wish that I had been born first, so he could make me the next Emperor. My mother asked why not, and he replied that Hawk hadn’t broken any laws or dishonored the family in any way that would permit him from taking away his birthright. I heard him say that a ruler whose choices which laws he will follow and which he won’t is one who will become a tyrant.
“I never spoke to them that night. Never even told them that I overheard them. Instead, I decided that I would help my country, so they would have less to worry about. I joined the military with the goal of becoming a general, so I could advice Hawk in military matters.
“Simply put, it was hard. My brother’s reputation had caused many of the recruits to think that I was just as spoiled as he was, and that I was here as some kind of punishment. But, I ignored them and worked hard. Eventually, I was promoted. I got married to a griffon I truly loved. And, I could tell my parents were happy for me.
“Then, one day, there was an accident. My brother foolishly decided to have a race besides an unstable cliff. Something happened and there was a landslide. Me, my father, and several other soldiers raced to help those who were trapped under the rocks. My brother just went home to take a bath.
“We returned to the palace three days later. Twenty griffons were dead. My father was furious, yelling at my brother for what seemed like hours. We could both see it on his face, Hawk didn’t care. He even asked why my father was making such a big deal about a few peasants dying. Before he could say anything else, my father collapsed due to a heart attack.”
Eagle then took a breath before he continued.
“He survived, but things were never the same after that. He couldn’t do all of his normal duties. He stopped trying to give Hawk his lessons. And, Hawk didn’t mind. He continued to spend his time like he had before, sometimes even going on long vacations and sending the bill to the palace. He didn’t even return when my mother died.”
Eagle took another, deeper breath.
“You don’t have to continue if it is too painful,” proposed Luna gently.
“I am almost done,” replied Eagle Eyes. “Then, about two months after my mom died, my father called me into his room. When I got there, I found him in his bed surrounded by high ranking officials, one of them being General Blaze Beak. As I made my way over to his bed, I saw that he was looking horrible. It was then that he told me he was dying, and that I was to become the new Emperor.
“As soon as he said that, I was full of doubt. I won’t lie, I had thought about how great it would be if I became Emperor, but now that it was happening, I…didn’t know what to feel. I guess mostly scared, since I didn’t know a thing about running a country. So I told my father that I was unworthy of such an honor, that there had to be another more suited. He looked at me, smiled, and said he felt the same way when his father died. That he knew that he was leaving the empire in good claws. And then, shortly after that, he passed away.
“Hawk, who was on one of his trips when my father passed, returned during my coronation. Needless to say, he was unhappy that I was named Emperor. As soon as he walked in, he ordered the guards to arrest me, yet seemed shocked when they didn’t obey him. The same guards and soldiers, who once mocked me during my training, were now loyal to me.
“When the event was over, General Blaze Beak wanted to know what was to happen to my brother. According to the law, his actions could be seen as treasonous. I knew I should have sent him to jail, or something like that, but I didn’t. We had just lost our father and he had just lost his birthright.
“And, despite knowing what kind of griffon he was, I thought it would be better for him to get a taste of the real world. So, I banished him from the Talon Palace for one year, with only a small bag of gold to get him by. My hope was that, when he returned, he would have seen the errors of his ways.
“Then, a few months later, I found out how he spent the gold. It was during the night and my daughter had just hatched. She began to cry, and I told my wife I would handle it, since she had been up three nights in a row. I…when I got back, I saw another figure standing above her. He…she wasn’t moving. The blankets were r-red. I-”
Eagle Eyes stopped there as the tears began to flow down his cheeks. Luna moved closely and began to hold him, with tears in her eyes as well. She felt his pain almost as if it were her own. Maybe it was because that he was right, they were similar. But, they were also different.
After a few minutes, he calmed down. “My guards were on the scene and caught the assassin. After torturing him for a bit, he revealed that my brother had paid him to kill the entire royal family. I ordered his arrest and immediate death, but he had already left the country.”
Eagle Eyes then left Luna’s embrace and looked at her directly in the eyes. “I tell you this because I know what you are feeling. I still blame myself for my wife’s death. Had I imprisoned him or left him with nothing, maybe she would still be alive.
“And, every time my daughter asks where her mommy is, I am afraid to tell her the truth, for fear that she’ll blame me as well. But, this is the truth I have learned: no ruler can make the right call every time. We’ll make mistakes and they’ll cast us. The important thing is to learn from them as to not repeat them.”
For a few seconds, Luna said nothing. “Do you ever plan on telling your daughter?” she asked.
Eagle nodded. “She’ll find out, sooner or later,” he said. “And, I’d rather her hear it from me than a stranger. And, regardless of how she sees me after that, I will stay by her.”
Luna regarded him for a moment. Then, much to Eagle’s surprise, she leaned in and gently kissed him on the cheek, causing his face to turn red.
“Thank you,” said Luna as she pulled back. “I must go now, before I make another mistake, one that will truly cost me if the worst happens.” With that, Luna began to walk away. Yet, as she did, Eagle Eye’s remained where he stood, as if he had been turned to stone. Then, slowly, he brought a claw up to the place where she had kissed.
“I’m never washing this cheek again,” he said.
-x-
Meanwhile, back in the hospital wing, Twilight and the others were being brought to health station one. There, they found a bed with Scootaloo laying on it with a tired smile on her face. Seeing her, Twilight raced over and hugged her. As she did, all the other ponies noticed that Scootaloo’s wing looked almost good as new. However, they also noticed the large scar on her side.
“Hey everypony,” said Scootaloo sleepily, seeing several ponies surround her bed.
“I’m sorry for that scare earlier,” said Healing Touch from off to the side. “We had assumed that Sunset had used a standard magical blast when she shot Scootaloo. But, when it got worse, when we tried to heal it, we realized that it was caused by Razor Shard.”
“Trixie has never heard of this spell,” said Celestia’s student.
“It’s like a curse,” muttered Vinyl as she took off her glasses to reveal her red eyes. “Me and Twilight learned about it in school. Nasty spell. The spell is like a sword wound that gets worse every couple of minutes. If somepony tries to heal it with magic, then it just opens up even faster.”
“How awful,” exclaimed Fluttershy.
“Indeed,” announced a new voice. Everypony turned to see Princess Luna as she walked into the room. Before any of them could bow, she raised a hoof to stop them. “There is no need for that. Not here.”
“Thank you for coming, Princess,” said Twilight as she continued to hug Scootaloo.
“I’m sorry it took me so long,” replied Luna before she turned to look at Healing Touch. “Was Razor Shard the reason for the emergency?”
“Yes,” replied the doctor. “When we tried to heal it, she almost bled out. Right now, we are using a spell to increase her blood count and, when that is done, we will do our best to remove the scar. But,she’ll need to be kept here for the next day or two. I also would like to recommend that she receives counseling to make sure there are no long term psychological effects.”
Luna nodded at Dr. Healing before making her way to the head of the bed. She then looked down on Scootaloo and smiled. “What you did back there was very brave,” she said. “As such, I believe that it merits a reward.”
“Do I get to join the Royal Guard when I’m older?” asked Scootaloo sleepily.
Luna chuckled. “I’m afraid not,” she said. “You still have to work hard at it, just like every other pony who wants to join. Instead, I’ll have it arranged so that you can enter my school next semester.”
“But, Princess, she still has a lot of ground to cover,” noted Twilight.
“Don’t worry,” replied Luna. “I’ll work something out with Bunsen Burner, so that you can work from home until then. That should help a bit. And, if you need an extra hoof, I’d be glad to help her with her studies when you do have to go to the labs.”
“T-thank you, Princess,” stammered Twilight.
Luna smiled as her horn began to glow. “Now, I think it’s time somepony got some sleep.” Gently, Luna brought her horn down to tap Scootaloo’s head. The filly’s eyes closed, drifting off to sleep where she would have pleasant dreams.
Once that was done, Luna turned to look at the rest of them. “Now then, I had arranged for those visiting to stay at one of the finest hotels in Dome One. However, in light of current event, you will instead be staying here in the castle. I will have your suites ready by tonight. I will also have your old room ready as well, Twilight.”
Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but closed it. Staying here in the castle would allow her to be closer to Scootaloo, which was most likely Princess Luna’s intention. So, instead she nodded.
-x-
It was about an hour later when a golden flash of light appeared in Celestia room. The sun princess had a look on horror in her eyes, looking at the body suspended in her magic. Slowly, she laid the body on her bed before taking a step back. In every way, it looked like Sunset Shimmer, except for one thing: her cutie mark was missing.
But, that wasn’t the only difference with her. No, the truth was that what Luna had done to her ran much deeper. Celestia had a hard road ahead of her, more than ever now. At least, she was still alive.
Just then, a soft moan escaped the mare’s mouth as she opened her eyes. Slowly, she looked around, looking a little confused. Her head stopped when she spotted Celestia.
“Where am I?” she asked. “And, who are you?”
“I am Princess Celestia,” was the reply. “And you are in my castle in Equestria. Tell me, what do you remember?”
“Remember?” repeated the mare as she closed her eyes. For a few minutes she sat there, as she held her eyes closed tightly, as if she were searching for something. Then, when they opened, Celestia could see pure terror in her eyes.
“Nothing! I don’t remember anything. Who am I? Where did I come from?”
Celestia looked upon Sunset with pity. Living Death: a process that deleted almost all of her memories. She still retained some of her knowledge, like talking, writing, and basic math. However, the more advanced stuffs, as well as all of her time in the Lunar Republic, were gone forever.
“Your name is Sunset Shimmer,” replied Celestia. “There was an incident. I’m afraid your memories are gone forever.”
“B-but, what will happen to me?” asked Sunset as tears began to roll down her eyes. In answer to this, Celestia’s horn began to glow like the morning sun.
“Don’t worry, my little pony,” said Celestia. “I’ll help you start over.”
-x-
“By the stars,” swore a pegasus who was sitting in front of a computer. “It’s doing it again!”
“Is something wrong?” asked Senator April Showing as she walked towards the other pegasus.
“Yeah,” he replied without turning to look at his boss. “The new system that those research ponies whipped up isn’t working so well with our old equipment. It keeps glitching, and I can’t get any water to Dome Eleven because of it. It’s getting to the point where I’m pulling the hair out of my mane.”
“Have you contacted any of the IT ponies?” asked April.
“Yes,” grunted the pegasus. “And, then it works ok for a while, before it becomes screwed up again.”
April let out a sigh. “Alright then, I’ll get somepony to come and look at it.”
Senator Land Share was sitting in his private office when he heard the doorbell ring. ‘Strange,’ he thought to himself as he stood up and began to walk to the front door. ‘I’m pretty sure that I don’t have any meeting to go to tonight or any other appointments planned. So, who could it be?’
As Land Share continued to walk to his front door, he glanced at a digital wall clock and frowned. It was later than he thought. He had planned on leaving to Dome Zero after he heard about the incident with Sunset and Scootaloo, but there was important work that had to be done before he could leave.
Sadly, this was all part of his job. He couldn’t just take off whenever he felt like. At the very least, he was almost done, so it might have been possible for him to check and see how they were doing. Unfortunately, distractions often seem to sneak into the equation at inappropriate times, and this time was no different.
As Land opened the door, he was a bit surprised to see a member of the Royal Guard. Usually, they would contact him before visiting him at his home. What was also surprising was the state of the Guard. His armor was muddy and he was missing his helmet, in which showed that his mane was in disarray. The poor stallion also seemed to be panting.
“What seems to be the problem?” asked Land Share, raising an eyebrow. The Guard opened his mouth to speak, but was stopped as something small buzzed near him. The Guard jumped when he noticed it, and began to swing at it with both hooves. Sadly, the little creature was too fast for him.
As soon as Land Share saw the creature, he shook in horror. He remembered a similar creature like it when he was on the planet, except that creature was blue, while this one was bright pink. He remembered Princess Cadence’s warning about the damage it could do.
“A parasprite,” he whispered to himself.
“Sir, I came to make sure you were alright,” declared the guard, while still trying to smash the cute little creature of pure evil. “They’re everywhere!”
As soon as he said that, the parasprite began to cough while it was fluttering above their heads. Land Share took a step back, watching the insect vomited a brown parasprite-sized blob. Then, to his shock, the blob grew wings and eyes similar to its creator. Now there were two parasprites buzzing around, making cute noises while dodging the hooves of the Guard.
“By the stars,” swore Land Share in his ever-growing horror. He had heard about their appetite, but this was something new and disturbing. ‘It was just born, but it looks just like an adult,’ he thought. ‘That could mean that it has the same appetite!’
Land Share then looked past the Guard and beheld a new terror. The Dome was almost completely barren. Fields that should have been full of trees, with bright red, green, and yellow apples, now looked dead. Not an apple, or even a single leaf for that matter, remained.
“Why wasn’t I informed of this earlier?” demanded Land Share, pointing a hoof at the Guard.
“We thought we could handle it,” replied the Guard, giving up on trying to catch the two parasprites. “Around noon, there was only one spotted. The pony that first witnessed it didn’t know what it was, but it seemed harmless. That was, until it ate a whole apple tree in less than a second, and created two more of them. The pony was so shocked that it wasn’t until there were eight of them, that he ran and gotten us. By the time we arrived on the scene, there were over three hundred of them eating everything in sight.
“We tried to handle it the best we could, but we had never seen anything like this before. We thought that they might be some magical experiment gone wrong, so we called in Mana Burn while we tried to contain them in an energy field. But, when she got here and used her magic on them, nothing happened! What’s worse is that we missed a few, and while we had been watching the ones we had caught, the ones we didn’t had grown into the thousands. And, despite being captured in the energy field, they kept multiplying until they broke free!”
Land Share paled while he listened to all of this. The situation was worse than he or any pony in the Republic could ever imagine. In a few short hours, one parasprite had become thousands with a never-ending hunger, that would result in everypony in the Republic starving to death.
“W-what are the rest of the Guards doing right now?” Land Share asked.
“Trying to save what we can,” the Guard replied. “So far, we have lost sixty eight percent of the total crops. However, it’s a losing battle. They sent me to get you, so you can make an announcement for all civilians to evacuate the Dome.”
Land Share’s eyes widened when he heard that. “No,” he declared sternly.
“But, sir,” began the Guard.
“We can’t use the platform station while this is going on,” started Land Share. “Imagine if these things get to Dome Two. They would most likely drink all of our water in a few short hours. Heck, whatever dome they escape to, will lose all of their food as quickly as us! And, we can’t use the escape pods for the same reason. One of them sneaks in, and this mess will start up all over again.”
The Guard stared at him for a moment with a look of shock on his face. “I…I never thought of that,” he uttered slowly.
Land Share put a hoof on the other stallions shoulder. “It’s fine, you had other things on your mind,” he consoled, slowly putting his hoof back on the ground. “Now, I want you to get back and help the others protect the last of our crops. While you’re doing that, I’m going to order the platform station to close its gates, so that those things can’t leave.”
“But, what if a few have already?” asked the Guard.
Land Share did his best not to look worried. “I don’t think they have,” he replied. “Right here, there is plenty of food out in the open, so there is no reason to leave. Still, I’ll contact Princess Luna, so that she can be on the lookout for more of those things. I’ll also inform her that I’ll have every civilian head down into the emergency underground bunkers until we can be rescued. There are emergency rations down there that should help tide us over till then.”
“Yes sir,” said the Guard right before he took off, leaving Land Share alone, praying that everything will be okay.
-x-
At the same time, Twilight was back on the platform with a frown. ‘Why now of all times?’ she thought to herself as the memories of what had happened less than a half hour ago played in her head.
-Flashback-
“Excuse me, Miss Sparkle?” said a doctor as she entered health station one. The room was still packed with mares and fillies, but it was easy to spot the purple unicorn sitting next to the bed. Before Twilight completely turned her head to look at him, the doctor was standing beside her. “I’m sorry for the interruption, but you have an emergence call waiting for you.”
“For me?” asked Twilight in surprise.
The doctor nodded. “You can use one of the wall consoles to take the call.” And with that said, the doctor turned to leave.
Nervously, Twilight walked over to a part of the wall that had a black, hoof-sized circle on it. As she did, she began to wonder who wanted to talk to her and what kind of emergency it was. Her mind raced with all sorts of possibilities.
Was it Princess Luna warning her that Sunset Shimmer had escaped and was on the loose again? No, it couldn’t be that. If she had escaped, then the alarms would have sounded. Also, Shadow would have been contacted before Twilight.
Was it Dean Learning Curve calling to tell Twilight that Scootaloo wouldn’t be allowed to attend Princess Luna’s School for Gift Ponies, despite what the princess said? No, it couldn’t be that either. There was no way he could override the princess, since it was her school.
Gently, the purple mare placed her hoof on the black circle. After waiting a second for it to scan her hoofprint, Twilight set her hoof back on the ground as a part of the wall began to shimmer, catching the eyes of the Equestrian ponies in the room. Soon, the face of Senator April Showers appeared on the wall.
“I am sorry for disturbing you at this time,” began the senator before Twilight could open her mouth. “I know you have been through a lot recently, but Dome Two needs a helping hoof from you.”
“What do you mean?” asked the purple mare.
“It’s the new program that we recently received,” explained April Showers. “It’s not working well with our older systems, and is causing problem. And, I don’t need to tell you what that means for the rest of the Republic.”
Twilight nodded her head, knowing full well of the implementations. A problem with Dome Two’s water systems could result with ponies not getting the water they needed to spray their crops, cook their food, or get a drink. Hundreds of ponies could suffer, or even die, if something wasn’t done soon.
However, Twilight wanted somepony else to do it. Anypony else, so that she could stay here, in case Scootaloo needed her. Right now, that was her top priority.
‘But, what if another pony can’t fix the problem in time?’ asked a small voice in the back of her head. ‘What if the problem just gets worse and worse, to the point where no pony can get their water, expect in Dome Two? What if the water treatment process begins to malfunction as well? The water is also a top priority.’
“Have you tried contacting Bunsen Burner?” asked Twilight.
“We have,” replied April with a nod that caused Twilight’s heart to sink. “However, he hasn’t replied to any of our emergency communications. Believe me, if he had, then I wouldn’t be trying to ask you to do this.”
Twilight didn’t respond. Instead, she looked over at Scootaloo, before looking back at the wall. She opened her mouth to say something, but the words were stopped as a hoof gently touched her shoulder. Looking to her side, she saw Shadow smiling at her.
“Don’t worry about her,” he said.
“But-” began Twilight, but was interrupted by Shadow.
“She’s asleep right now,” continued Shadow. “Most likely, she won’t wake up until the morning. And, even if she does wake up, she won’t be alone because I’ll be here. She’s in safe hooves.”
“Well,” began Twilight slowly. “If that’s the case, then I guess I should be able to look at those problems.”
“Great,” exclaimed April with a large smile. “I’ll see you soon.” And, with that, the image of April Showers vanished.
“Well,” Twilight repeated, this time ending with a sigh. “Guess I’d better get going.” The purple mare then started towards the door, until Trixie stepped in her path.
“You mean ‘we’d’ better get going,” corrected Celestia’s student to a rather shocked Twilight. “We are here to get to know the Lunar Republic, and you are our guide. Seeing that the Great and Powerful Trixie have yet to see Dome Two yet, Trixie demands to be taken there, along with the rest of Trixie’s party.”
“Did somepony say party?” asked Pinkie with her ears perked upward.
“Now hold on, Trixie,” said Applejack as she moved towards the two unicorns. “Sounds ta me that there is some trouble that needs fixin’. Don’t think we should go an’ get out of her way. Besides, I think we’ve had enough for one day.”
Trixie glared at Applejack. “So far, Trixie has been underwhelmed by the treatment Trixie has received,” she stated with a huff. “Since arriving here, Trixie has witnessed our guide shooting Spike, to turn him into a pony against his will, followed by members of our group being foalnapped by a deranged mare. So, instead of just sitting here on our plots, Trixie demands that we continue the tour, so we can get this over with.”
This declaration was not very popular with the other ponies. Rarity and Applejack were fuming at Trixie, saying that their little sisters had gone through enough for one day. Rainbow said that she was interested in seeing how they distributed the water here, but it could wait till later. Even Fluttershy said, in her own quiet way, that she felt they should wait. Sadly, Trixie pulled rank on them, saying that since she was Princess Celestia’s student, they had to follow her lead.
-End Flashback-
Since Trixie had put her hoof down on the matter, and Twilight wanted to get going as soon as possible, they had reached a sort of compromise. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Spike would stay with Shadow while he watched over Scootaloo. The rest would be going with Twilight, who would give them a quick tour after she was done looking at the program.
Yet, as they all left the platform station, not all of them seemed fine with situation. Rarity seemed to be fuming as she glared into the back of Trixie’s head, as if she wanted to set fire to it. Applejack was talking to herself quietly, reassuring herself that Apple Bloom would be alright. Rainbow Dash looked like she wanted to take a nap, judging by her yawning every once in a while.
Fluttershy was acting the weirdest. As soon as they got onto platform, she began to search her mane for something. When Twilight noticed this, she believed that it was a nervous habit or something like that. The poor mare looked like she was going to have a panic attack.
Then, there was Pinkie Pie, who seemed slightly out of character. Her mane now hung straight down, as did her tail. Her movements were, well, normal. She was walking slowly, bringing up the rear of the group, instead of bouncing up and down, or running off somewhere. And, was it Twilight’s imagination, or was the pink mare looking a little thinner than she was a few hours ago?
As the mares from Equestria looked around, they could see that Dome Two looked bizarre. In the middle of the Dome was a huge, clear cylinder shaped tank the size of a mountain, which was a quarter of the way full of water. Lying all over the ground were tubes and wires that seemed to go in all directions. Because of this, as Trixie quickly realized, if you didn’t watch where you stepped, you were very likely to trip.
Looking around, the group also noticed over several tanks of water, with numerous ponies (mostly pegasi) working around them. Also, there were a couple of square buildings that looked like they could be storage sheds. Above them were actual cloud homes, almost like a smaller version of Cloudsdale.
“Thank Luna you’re here,” declared April Showers, flying down towards them. If she noticed the others, she didn’t show it, keeping her focus on Twilight. “The problem just got worse. We have to manually restart several machines because they were freezing up.”
“Lead me to the main frame,” said Twilight as she got her serious face on.
As the group began to move towards the giant tank, Pinkie noticed something from out of the corner of her eye. There were two unicorn stallions, wearing outfits one would might expected from Cloudsdale’s weather factory, walking away from one of the square buildings. She couldn’t hear the discussions the two was having, but that wasn’t what she was focusing on. What really drew her attention was the cupcake that the tall, chubby grey unicorn was munching on from time to time while he was talking with the shorter, thinner light brown unicorn. Without saying a word, Pinkie began to walk over to the shed, in the hope of getting one of those sugary treats.
Off in a short distance, the two unicorn was still having their little conversation, not noticing a pink figure heading toward the building they had just left from, its door was just left wide open. “An’ then, I said: ‘Yo, ya’re in da wrong place at da wrong time, bub.’ But, bein’ da gentlestallion dat I was, all I did was just spook da dumb punk away from my home,” told the short unicorn, hamming it up to the taller one.
“Wowie, you are swell, Big Joe! Wish I could be just like you.”
“Oh, gee, Little Moe, ya gonna make me blush, an’ ya know how I feel ‘bout dat. Now, come on, those drinks are callin’ me after eatin’ those cupcakes.”
“Okay, Big Joe,” the big stallion replied, but paused for a moment to look back. “Ummm, are you sure it is okay to leave that door open like that?”
“Relax, Little Moe, it ain’t like we goin’ to be gone for long. It’s just a short trip to get our drinks an’ back. ‘Side, everypony know dat area is off-limit. An’, even if they don’t, those five hulkin’ locks on da door an’ dat big sign sayin’ ‘Authorized Ponies Only’ should be enough warnin’ to keep out.”
“You are so smart, boss!” With that, they sped up to their destination, neither realizing as Pinkie went through the open door, that both the sign and the locks was hidden behind the very door that they have left open.
-x-
“Don’t let a single one get through!” shouted a Guard. Spread out around him was at least a dozen or so other Guards, each one blasting parasprites in an attempt to keep them away from the food. This was, however, a losing battle, due to the sheer number of them. Sooner or later, at least one of them would slip by unnoticed, and begin consuming the crops.
“By the stars,” exclaimed Land Share, galloping towards them. The situation now looked worse than what he had been told. So far, all that remained of Dome Three’s crops were a couple dozen trees.
“Senator,” said the Guard in charge when he saw Land Share approach them. “I heard the announcement. I take it that all of the civilians are in the shelters?”
Land Share nodded. “I just got confirmation,” he replied. “I also informed Princess Luna to what was happening here. She said she would be here shortly.”
“But, I thought that nopony was allowed to use the platform stations,” replied the Guard. Land Share opened his mouth to say something, but instead a voice in his earpiece seemed to answer the question for him.
“This is Princess Luna aboard the Crescent Hope,” proclaimed Luna. The Guards looked up, past the swarm of parasprites, to see the great Lunar ship right above the Dome. “I wish to speak Senator Land Share.”
Wordlessly, the Guard took out his earpiece and gave it to Land Share. The senator took it and placed it in his ear.
“I am glad you came quickly,” noted Land Share.
“Not quick enough, it seems,” replied Luna. The Princess of the Moon was currently sitting in the Captain’s seat of Crescent Hope. Captain Starway was off to the side as they stared at the screen in front of them, showing the damage the parasprites had caused in a single day. “I would have been here sooner, but I had to send the Emperor and his griffons back to the planet. From the looks of things, Dome Two is pretty much lost.”
“Ah, maybe not, Princess,” counter a timid voice coming from the device. Back in Dome Two, everypony looked over at a young, fresh recruit who had spoken. He was a small light green unicorn stallion, who was beginning to feel a little pressure from being stared at by so many, but he swallowed silently and continued onward. “I, um, know a spell that gets ponies to stop eating. I was just thinking that maybe it might work on them. But, I’ve never really used it before.”
“Is that why you didn’t mention this sooner?” barked one of the Guards. The light green unicorn quickly nodded.
“Well, the crops are probably a lost cause,” began Land Share. “However, I’d feel better if I knew that these things will finally stopped eating and multiplying. Then, at least, they won’t become a danger to the other Domes. What do you think, Princess?”
“I agree,” said Luna through the earpiece.
Nodding, the green unicorn raised his horn into the air. A moment later, a light blue wave of magic swept over all the parasprites in the area. The ponies watched as the enemies they had been fighting began to act confused. They just seemed to blink and hovered in the air.
Deciding to test and see if the spell worked, Land Share went over to one of the apple trees and picked a single apple from it. He then walked away from the group, before holding above his head to see if any of the parasprites would go for it. Only one flew down towards it. However, instead of eating it, the parasprite just sniffed it before flying away.
Seeing this caused the ponies to cheer. But, as they did, the swarm of parasprite began to fly off in all directions. Most of them were heading towards the barns and homes of the ponies who lived nearby.
“Err, what are they doing now?” asked one of the Guards. Nopony said a word as they watched the swarm begin to surround their homes, barns, and various other buildings. A sense of dread began to overtake everypony, causing them to race towards the closest building in order to get a closer look.
When they got there, they were horrified by what they saw. The parasprites had begun to fly away, while multiplying from what was now an empty lot. What had once been a metal home, filling with treasured memories, was now as barren as the landscape outside of the Dome.
“P-Princess,” stammered Land Share. “It didn’t work…well, at least not exactly. They aren’t eating the food anymore, but they just moved on to eating everything else. They just ate a house and everything in it in a matter of minutes.”
For a moment, there was silence. A deafening silence that caused the fear inside Land Share to expand like a balloon.
“I see,” stated Princess Luna, her voice dripping with sadness. “We will…what’s going on?”
“Princess?” asked one of the Guards in a nervous voice.
“There are a large amount of parasprites on the top of the Dome,” noted Luna. As she said this, Land Share and the Guards looked upwards. She was correct; a large multicolored blob was now at the top of the Dome. “By the stars, they’re licking it. But, why would… GET THEM OUT OF THERE, NOW!”
Sadly, as soon as she yelled out those words, the parasprites had begun to eat the top of the Dome. Their sharp teeth began to quickly nick and chip away the strong, thick material that the Dome was made of, until they made a small hole that rapidly grew into a large one. Land Share started to ask what was happening, but before he could finish, he and the Guards were lifted off the ground, up towards a growing hole created by the parasprites. It happened very fast, but they all realized the same thing: this was how they would die.
Then, a miracle happened. Just before they were flung out into the vacuum of space, the ponies found themselves surrounded by Luna’s magical aura. They then vanished and reappeared inside Crescent Hope. To be specific, they appeared on the bridge, surround by scared and horrified crew ponies who were asking if they were alright. Luna was panting as her horn began to dim.
“I made it in time,” she uttered in relief. “I feared I would be too late to save you.”
“Princess,” Captain Starway called out, pointing a hoof at the screen, while trying her hardest to hold on to her composure. “You should see this.”
Luna turned her attention back to the screen. On it, she could see thousands of colorful dots that had once been parasprites, floating in the vacuum of space. ‘A fitting end for them,’ thought Luna as her eyes narrowed. ‘Destroyed by their own need to consume everything.’ Slowly, Luna began to scan the screen trying to find what Starway had point to.
It was then a chilling thought came to mind. ‘Had she seen somepony out there?’ thought the moon princess. It was very possible that she might have missed one or two of her Guards when she did her teleportation spell. Or, there could have been a few of them in other areas of the Dome that her spell couldn’t reach. Magic, like technology, had its limitations after all.
Luna scanned the mass of parasprites harder to see if she could find a pony, but it was difficult. The parasprites were as brightly colored as her little ponies, and there were just so many of them that the body of a pony could easily be hidden within the mass.
Finding nothing in the mass, Luna began to look at the rest of the scene. She could see the top of Dome Three and, off in the distance, Dome Two. At first, nothing looked out of the ordinary, other than the giant hole in Dome Three. But then, she saw something that made her heart stop.
-x-
Twilight hummed to herself as she went over the programming codes. So far, she had found several mistakes, which were most likely the cause of the problems. As she worked, she made a mental note to find the pony that made this program, and talk to him/her about double checking their work.
As she worked, April Showers was telling the group about how they collected, cleaned, and then distributed the water. Most of them found this very interesting, including Rainbow Dash. The only one who looked disinterested was Trixie.
“Once the water is cleaned, we have a network of tubes that sends the water to every building within the Republic,” informed April Showers. “The same network also returns, ah, polluted water and various other things. When they return, they are placed the various tanks you see around you to be purified, before sending the clean water back to the main tank there. Any questions?”
Trixie rolled her eye. “I hope not,” she muttered to herself. “All this seems like a waste of time. Why don’t they just have their unicorns use magic to clean it or something?”
Rainbow, however, raised her hoof. “Yeah, I got a question,” she said. “Has anything bad ever happened to the main tank? I mean, what happens if the water isn’t completely purified?”
“That is an excellent question,” replied April Showers with delight, completely ignoring the comment that Trixie made.
"Well, I am in charge of Ponyville’s weather, and I know what happens if the water isn’t clean during a storm,” stated Rainbow, rubbing the back of her mane with pride.
“Well, there have been a few times when the water has been corrupted,” replied April. “In fact, when this Dome was first built, we had our most serious case. There was a, for lack of a better term, cult that, for some odd reason, believed that everypony was suffering, and the only way to truly end it was death. One day, they snuck into the main tank and dumped a dangerous toxin into the water. Sadly, at the time, our water purification process wasn’t as advanced as it is now, so we had to eject the contaminated water.”
“Oh my,” cried Fluttershy.
“Yes, those were some difficult times for the Republic,” said April with a sigh. “Those ponies were deluded and their actions could have resulted in the deaths of hundreds, had it not been for that failsafe. In fact, that’s the reason we still have it.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, what happened to those ponies?” asked Rarity.
“They were sentenced to life imprisonment,” said April Showers, sighing once again. “Those were the days before prison pods, so they got free food and water for the rest of their lives. Princess Luna did, however, push for the death sentence, but one member of the senate voted against it. Said they shouldn’t be killed, since no other ponies died.”
“There,” said Twilight as she moved her face away from the scene. “All done! Everything should…where is Pinkie Pie?”
When she had entered into the shed, quickly without any pony noticing her, Pinkie was curious to what she would find inside. However, much to her disappointment, she found the room to be plain and boring. The room was bare, except for a single piece of machinery, one she had never seen before. There was a small window near the top that not even a new born foal could fit through.
Staring around, her hope in finding the machine that could make cupcakes, like the one she had seen earlier that day, was slowly being dashed. She had hoped to spot it outside, but unfortunately, a quick look around come up with nothing. However, before she gave up, she saw something at the opposite side of the room that resembled a baking machine. Seeing this, Pinkie’s mane began to poof back to normal and a big smile appeared on her face. Feeling like her old self again, she ran over to the device, while drooling at the thought of finally being able to get something sweet to eat.
As she stood over the machine, she noticed there were a lot of buttons and other things that she didn’t recognize. She also noted that this machine didn’t have a coin slot like the last one. ‘Oh my gosh,’ thought Pinkie. ‘There are so many buttons.’ Must be to make so many delicious goodness.’
‘Hmmm, now where is that pesky button that makes the cupcakes?’
Pinkie began to scan the top of the device, searching for any button that looked like it would make her a cupcake. Sadly, none of the buttons were labeled, and she feared that if she started pressing them at random, she would get a lemon or something like that.
Then, her eyes fell on a large red button. This one, unlike the others, had three lines that looked like they were supporting a cloud etched into it. ‘It looks like a cupcake or a muffin,’ thought Pinkie Pie with glee as she pressed it.
“Password required,” said the machine in a dull, lifeless voice.
“Password?” asked Pinkie, before giggling. “Oh, you silly, I don’t want to play a game right now. Can you just give me a cupcake? I just want to taste one...maybe two, or three, or perhaps four with a glass of chocolate milk to wash them down.”
“Password invalid, please input password.”
“I wanna cupcake!” yelled Pinkie Pie, finally getting fed up with her situation. All she want was a cupcake, not only to enjoyed it, but to keep the promise to the Cakes.
“Password accepted,” said the machine, right before a red light began to flash. “Emergency Procedure One has begun. All water in main tank will be ejected into vacuum of space.”
“What?” questioned a very confused pink pony.
“W-what have you done?” yelled a voice behind Pinkie. The mare turned around to see April Showers, Twilight, and the rest of her friends. Both April Showers and Twilight looked pale as the two of them raced over to the machine. Pinkie simply move aside, feeling both lost and concern with what was going on.
“I don’t believe it,” cried April Showers as she began to press buttons after buttons in a fast pace. “How could she have guessed the password? I change it every other day!”
“We have to stop it!” cried Twilight, working besides the pegasus. Just then, April sat on her flank.
“It’s…it’s too late,” she barely able to uttered out loud.
Shocked and scared, Twilight ran out of the hut. As she turned around, her mouth hug in horror as the container of water was lifted into the air, so that it was now touching the top of the Dome. At once, the roof of the Dome began to open up, and the water shot out into space. Once outside of the Dome, the water didn’t freeze. Instead, it evaporated and vanished before her very eyes.
The Lunar Republic, which had been suffering from a water shortage, had now lost twenty five percent of its total water.
Celestia looked at her court with a small smile on her face. The day was nearly over. Soon she would dismiss the court before heading to one of the tallest towers in the castle to lower the sun so that her little ponies could rest. Once that was done then she could go to bed and relax from this tiring, yet oddly productive day. Still, however, there was one more item on her agenda that needed to be addressed before she could call it quits for the day.
“Before we close for the day I would like to make a small announcement,” said Celestia. “A new stained glass window will be added to these great halls. One that will depict the beginning of the alliance between Equestria and the Lunar Republic.”
The nobles, for their part, looked at each other in confusion. Some were shaking their heads yet said nothing.
“If I may speak bluntly your majesty,” began one noble, “it seems a little early to do something like that. The alliance between us and the Lunar ponies is not even a day old.”
“That is true,” agreed Celestia. “However I believe that we are already making some positive strides. Like, for instance, because of the involvement of the Republic our talks with the griffons went much smoother as well as quicker. And after being up there, even for such a short amount of time, I can see many positive benefits coming from this alliance on both sides.”
Celestia then cleared her throat in preparation for a song. She had been planning to sing this song for a while now, but had either lacked an audience or was just waiting for the right moment. And this was it, the perfect moment with a large enough crowd for her to sing her song of love and working together. Yet before she could sing the first note something crashed through the ceiling.
Once the dust settled, everypony saw that it was a device similar to the one that had once held Princess Celestia. However, unlike what had happened with the sun princess, this restraining device opened on its own allowing Trixie to fall to the ground. The blue mare was without her signature hat and cape. Instead there was a scroll tied to the end of her tail.
“I think we might need to wait a bit longer for that new window,” muttered one of the nobles.
“Trixie,” cried Celestia as she approached her student. “What in the name of Equestria happened?”
“A lot,” grumbled Trixie as she got up onto her hooves. She then looked up at her mentor and began to tell her what had happened in the last hour or so.
-Flashback-
“They should all receive the death penalty!” roared Gigawatt as his normally blue face turned bright red. Trixie flinched at those words, yet did her best not to show any emotion. “In the short time they have been here they have caused property damage to an entire Dome, destruction of crops, and dumping water into the vacuum of space!”
Shortly after the incident in Dome Two, they found themselves surrounded by members of the Royal Guard. The Guard took their saddle bags, as well as Trixie’s cape and hat, and then proceeded to escort them to Dome Zero. Along the way, the mares learned about what had happened in Dome Three which caused Fluttershy to burst into tears as she confessed that she had brought the first parasprite with her.
When they arrived at Dome Zero, they were met by Shining Armor who quickly brought them to Princess Luna’s throne room and were forced to stand in the middle while the Guards stood at attention on both sides. Before them, standing on either side of the throne were the thirteen senators as well as Twilight. Most of them were glaring at the mares as Gigawatt began to rant angrily, demanding their deaths. The only senator who didn’t seem to be glaring at them was Land Share who looked rather pale as he stared at his hooves. Twilight seemed to have a rather lost look on her face, as if she were conflicted.
Sitting there on her throne was Princess Luna, who kept her focus on the mares from her sister’s kingdom. She hadn’t said a word to anypony, yet there was something in her gaze that made Trixie more nervous than if she were being yelled at. It also seemed colder in the room and sparks seemed to appear randomly around Luna who paid it no mind. In Trixie’s mind, Luna looked a lot like a cat ready to pounce on a mouse.
“I have to agree with Senator Gigawatt on this,” said Scorpio coldly. “We were already at the limit to which the farming Domes could provide. While we can be thankful nopony died when Dome Three broke, losing it as well as its crops will most certainly spell disaster. Many will go hungry. Some will even die due to starvation!”
Trixie heard Fluttershy whimper and sob, but kept her focus on the ponies in front of her. The yellow pegasus was right now on the ground behind Trixie, crying harder as the senators spoke. Pinkie Pie was also in the back and, last time she had looked, looked utterly depressed. Rarity was between them, doing her best to comfort them. Both Rainbow Dash and Applejack were on opposite sides of Trixie but kept looking back on their friends.
“Many will also go thirsty as well,” growled April Showers before giving Pinkie Pie a nasty look. “I have already issued a warning to all the Domes, informing everypony that water can only be used for drinking until we can get our hooves on more. However, it might not be enough.”
“There you have it!” shouted Gigawatt. “We know what they have done! The yellow one admitted to bringing the first parasprite here and the pink one was caught in the act. This is-”
“Excuse Trixie,” said Trixie suddenly. “Trixie may not know how things are done around here, however it sounds to Trixie that you are planning on prosecuting us.”
“Yes, that is correct,” replied Scorpio.
“What about our diplomatic immunity?” asked Trixie.
For a moment, the senators looked at each other in confusion. “What is ‘diplomatic immunity’?” asked one of the other senators.
“Well it means that diplomats, such as ourselves, can not be susceptible to lawsuits or prosecution under the host countries laws,” replied Trixie. The senators once again looked at each other before they burst into laughter.
“That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard!” laughed April Showers.
“I have never heard of such a thing,” said Gigawatt as he recovered. “Nor do I remember hearing about it when our Princess told us about this alliance.”
“It was never brought up when Celestia and I spoke,” said Luna in a harsh, angry tone that caused everypony to flinch. “And even if it had been, it would not excuse the damages that have been caused during your time here.”
“Our stay here hasn’t been without incident,” said Trixie. “When we arrived here, your own student attack Spike. Then that Sunset Shimmer pony foalnapped three younger members of our party.”
Suddenly, the room became much colder as Luna’s eyes narrowed. “Twilight Sparkle acted like any other citizen of the Republic would have in response to a dragon sighting,” said Luna stiffly. “Had Celestia informed me that she was sending a dragon here I would have told her that dragons were not allowed or warned Twilight ahead of time to avoid any potential problems. As for the matter of Sunset Shimmer, that was an unfortunate turn of events. Yet it still pales in comparison to what has happened.”
“Well then Trixie believes that not all the blame should go to us then,” said Trixie quickly. “Why didn’t your guard detect the parasprite when we were being scanned? And why wasn’t there more security on that device thing that removed the water?”
“Don’t you dare blame us,” growled April Showers. “First, Miss Pie left her group without informing anypony before entering a clearly restricted area. Then she cracked the passcode that is constantly changed in order to prevent something like this from happening!”
“Well what about Private Doughnut?” demanded Trixie.
“I was the one who assigned him,” said Shining Armor. “He was looking for weapons or anything that we know could be dangerous. And since the parasprite was in Fluttershy’s mane, it would have been harder to detect.”
As the other senators nodded in understanding, Trixie began to worry. These ponies were hungry for blood and it didn’t look like Trixie could convince them otherwise. Thus, there was one last thing to try.
“Very well then,” said Trixie. “Trixie will admit defeat. However, Trixie would ask that only the ponies that committed these crimes be put to death.” As she said this, Fluttershy sobbed even harder while the other ponies stared at the light blue mare with their mouths open. The senators, for their part, looked at each other as if they were considering it.
“What the hay are you doing?” whispered an angry Rainbow Dash. “Selling out your friends isn’t cool.”
“First of all,” began Trixie, “none of you are Trixie’s friends. Second of all, why should the Great and Powerful Trixie die for something that Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie did?”
“Princess Luna, may I please speak?” asked Twilight Sparkle as all heads looked in her direction. Even Land Share raised his head slightly to look at her.
Luna nodded. “You may,” she said.
Slowly, Twilight began to walk in front of the Equestrian mares. When she was exactly in between them and the Lunar ponies, she turned to face her princess. She then took a deep breath before speaking.
“I know many of you are angry and have every right to be,” Twilight began. “The Lunar Republic is now faced with its most difficult challenge since it was founded. The ones responsible need to be punished. Yet right now we are acting under the assumption that they did this deliberately. Out of everypony here, I have spent the most time with them so I know that they wouldn’t knowingly do anything that would harm us.”
“I might be willing to consider that in the case with the parasprites,” said April Showers. “It was when I was planet side that I first saw a parasprite and only one pony from the Equestrian group seemed to know what it was. However, I am far less willing to believe that Miss Pie’s actions were accidental.”
“I am not so willing to believe that first part,” said Gigawatt. “I was also there with Senator Showers. The last time we saw that parasprite it was in the hooves of the Equestrians. Then, a few days later, diplomats leave Canterlot, its capital where we saw said parasprite, to come here and then we have a parasprite outbreak. Then, as the parasprites are on a rampage, our water gets launched into space. The timing is too close to be a mere coincidence. We must assume that Equestria planned this out!”
“But why?” asked Twilight.
“To kill us!” shouted Gigawatt. “It is the same as in the past. We were attacked because we enjoyed the night and favored Princess Luna over their beloved Celestia. That is why we left. And now, a thousand years later, we open our doors to have the same thing done again. It doesn’t matter to those Equestrians, we will always be monsters in their eyes. Celestia has done nothing to change that. So if that’s the way they want to be then I say fine. Let us fight fire with fire.”
Trixie’s jaw fell when she heard this. There was no way they could be talking about war! There just couldn’t. But looking around, Trixie could see that the senators appeared to be considering this.
“I…I know how you feel Senator,” said Twilight. “And I know that when the vote comes I will have no say. But, before we do something like that, perhaps we should first try to find out for sure if it was an accident or not.”
Senator Gigawatt opened his mouth to speak, however it was Princess Luna whose voice was heard first. “Twilight, why are you defending them?” she asked.
Twilight didn’t answer at first. Instead, she turned her head to look at the Equestrian group. Trixie followed her gaze and saw that she was looking specifically at Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. She looked at them for a moment before returning to look at Princess Luna.
“Because,” said Twilight before taking a deep breath. “I believe we were starting to become friends.” As Twilight said this, Trixie noticed Luna’s eyes widen a bit.
“I’m afraid that doesn’t account for much,” replied Gigawatt. “For all you know, they were just getting close to you so you would lower your guard. If there is one thing that these events have proven is that the ponies from Equestria can not be trusted!”
“Perhaps,” said Stock Market. “Yet I feel like Twilight makes an excellent point. It could have been an accident and we should give Equestria the chance to make amends.”
“Why you greedy-” began Gigawatt.
“Don’t get me wrong,” interrupted Stock Market. “I’m all for ejecting them all into the vacuum of space for what has happened. But if we did that then the problem will still be here. Then what do we do?”
“We could just take the food and water from Equestria,” said Scorpio simply. “And if anypony tried to stop us we could easily destroy them.”
“Yes, but do we really have the time for that?” asked Stock Market. “Every moment we waste, ponies will go hungry or thirsty. So I propose this: we will keep these ponies here in the Republic and inform Princess Celestia what has happened. We shall also demand that Equestria replenish what has been lost due to the actions of her ponies. If she agrees to do so, we shall release her ponies into her custody. If not, they shall remain here to be tried as terrorists.”
Gigawatt let out a growl. “That is a waste of time,” he said before looking at Princess Luna. “Please tell me you’re not considering this insanity?”
“Sadly, I am,” said Princess Luna. She then raised a hoof to silence the senators who were about ready to argue with her. “Right now, keeping our ponies from dying of hunger and thirst is of greater importance at the moment. So I will give Celestia this one chance to make things right. She will have until tomorrow at noon to replace what has been lost. If she does not, then I shall call for the death vote as well as consider war.”
Nearly all of the senators, other than Land Share and Stock Market, seemed to be very displeased by this announcement. Many faces were turning red, but nopony said a word against it.
“Do not worry,” continued Luna as she got to her hooves. “No matter how this ends, our dealings with Equestria will be at an end. Something like this will never happen again. The events of today have shown that we are better off without them. Now then, let us send them a message along with one member of their party as a sign of good will. Ready the cannon!”
-End Flashback-
“And the next thing Trixie knew, Trixie was stuffed in that thing with a note tied to Trixie’s tail,” finished Trixie.
As Celestia took the note with her magic, she could hear her nobles speaking with each other. Many seemed to be seriously agitated by the actions of the Republic, saying that they were out of line for denying the Equestria party their diplomatic immunity. A few others, on the other hoof, were remaining strangely quiet. One of those ponies was Prince Blueblood.
It was only Celestia who seemed to truly understand the significance of Luna’s actions. Yes, she had returned Trixie. But Trixie wasn’t like the rest. She wasn’t a Bearer of the Elements of Harmony! And with the threat of killing them unless her demands were met meant that Celestia had no choice but to agree.
Slowly, the sun princess opened the scroll and began to read it only to be shocked by what they were demanding. As she read, her jaw began to slowly drop. They lost that many gallons of water? They lost that much food? Celestia could hardly believe it as she passed the note to one of the nobles who had a similar reaction to her. Soon every noble had seen the demands from the Republic.
“They are demanding that much?” shouted the last noble after he finished reading. “Are they insane?”
“We can’t just give them that much without proof to their claims,” said another. “How do we know they aren’t exaggerating their claims in order to get more food and water?”
“Regardless, we have little choice,” said Celestia. “Lives are at stake here.”
“I’m afraid I have to disagree with that,” said Blueblood. “We do have a choice here. And I say they are asking for too much. We barely had an alliance with them and, as your student said, Princess Luna plans on ending relations with us once she gets what she wants. Even if she didn’t intend to end relations with us, we only have a light trading agreement with her.”
“So what are you suggesting?” asked Celestia as her eyes narrowed. “That we abandon the group we sent there?”
Blueblood smiled. “Not at all,” he replied as he turned to the nobles. “We will simply come at them with a counter offer that is more appropriate. Let’s say a tenth of what they are asking. That sounds more reasonable for two nations that have a light trading agreement.”
“Yes,” said Majesty before Celestia could say anything. “I believe that sounds more than fair.” Around her, several other nobles were nodding in agreement.
“There is no way Princess Luna will go along with this,” said Celestia. “It was our ponies that caused great harm to her nation. We should be lucky that they aren’t declaring war right this instant!”
“Very well then,” said Blueblood calmly. “Out of who’s mouth will the food come from?”
Celestia took a step back. “What do you mean?” she asked.
“Well it’s very simple,” said Blueblood. “We’ll have to get the food from somewhere. Do we just take the food from a few towns, leaving them with nothing? If we do that then our own subjects will be robbing from each other in order to stay alive. Perhaps we could explain the situation in the hopes that they could donate some of their crops. But, given how most ponies view the Republic as well as its leader, I’m not so sure many would cooperate. The only other option will be to pay for the food, but from who’s pocket will the bits come from? It most certainly will not be me.” Several of the other nobles voiced their agreement to this. “And if we take it from the royal budget, we will be losing a good chuck. The only way we will be able to keep the government running would be to increase taxes which will lead to many protects. Then there is the water situation. How many lakes will we have to drain in order to replace what they lost? Think about how this will affect Equestria!”
Blueblood paused for a moment to let his words sink in. He had spent the last several days thinking this over, to make sure there would be a good agreement against giving those filthy Republican ponies food, but he never thought he’d be so lucky as for them to also lose a large chuck of water! Looking at Celestia, he could see that his words were having the desired affect. She looked worried and torn, right were he wanted her for the final strike.
“But, I suppose there is one way,” he began as he turned his back towards Celestia. “We could…no, it might not be appropriate to suggest this.”
“What is it?” asked Majesty as she played her part.
“Yes,” said Celestia with a nod. “If you have an idea then please share it.”
Blueblood did his best to hide his grin as he turned around to face the sun princess once again. “Well, I was thinking that the ponies of Equestria would be more willing to help other fellow Equestrians. To that end, we tell Princess Luna that if she wants the food and water then she must relinquish the Lunar Republic to you.”
Celestia’s eyes widened in shock. ‘He has to be joking,’ she thought as she stared at her nephew. ‘Please, somepony tell me he’s joking!’
“Are you out of your mind?!” yelled one of the nobles. Celestia turned her head to see Lord North Star glaring at Blueblood. North Star as a bit smaller than the average unicorn with a bright yellow coat and a silver mane that matched his mustache.
“No, I am most certainly not,” said Blueblood as he turned to look at the other stallion. “If they truly want food and water, this is the best way for them to get it.”
“I agree,” said Majesty. “I mean, what are they going to do to us if we don’t?”
“They could just take it and take our response as a declaration of war,” replied North Star. He then looked up at the hole Trixie had made when the lunar ponies had shot her back to Equestria. “And I fear it would be a battle we would lose.”
“Do you have such little faith in our army?” demanded Majesty.
“It’s not that,” said North Star. “I’m worried about a potential enemy that can fire at us from the moon with great accuracy. If they wanted to I’m sure they could bombard us for years.”
“Ah, but they don’t have years,” replied Blueblood calmly. “See, eventually they will have to come down here to get what they want. They may have more advanced technology, but we have superior numbers, superior magic, and experienced soldiers! All we have to do is hold out long enough and those lunar ponies will begin to suffer from both hunger and thirst. At that point, they will have to give in to our demands. And if Princess Luna refuses, I’m sure her ponies would rebel against her. I mean, she is letting her own stubborn pride stand in the way of the well being of her subjects.”
“That’s assuming-” began North Star.
“Enough,” shouted Celestia as all heads turned to look at her. “I…I will need time to think about this. Court is dismissed for the day.” And with that, Celestia turned and walked away.
-x-
Meanwhile, in the Lunar Republic, Princess Luna was looking out the window of one of the many hallways of her castle as she tried to clear her head. With so much going on, she felt like her head was going to explode if she didn’t take a moment just to breath.
After the meeting with her senate, Luna had ordered the retrieval of all the ponies trapped in the bunkers underneath Dome Three. In order to accomplish this, Crescent Hope as well as most of the Shield Corps had been deployed. Right now the plan was to use the Shield Corps magic to create pathways leading from the bunkers to the ship. Once that was done, they would all be brought to Dome Zero where beds would be waiting for them until their Dome could be repaired. It was the least Luna could do in order to help them.
While that was going on, Princess Luna spoke to the press about the current situation. It was with a heavy heart that she had to inform her ponies that until further notice, food and water would have to be rationed out so that they could survive. Many of the reporters wanted to know identities of the ponies who had caused these damages as well as what was being done to them. As calmly as she could, Luna informed them of the Equestrian party and that they would see justice very soon.
Speaking of the Equestrian mares, they were currently in their guest quarters. While Luna hadn’t forbid them from leaving, she made sure to inform them that they would be watched very carefully. Gigawatt had contacted Director Sealed Document, head of the LBI, and requested that they double their surveillance on them. She had also made sure that security was tripled in all major areas with the orders that if the spotted any of the Equestrians, they were to be placed in prison pods on site.
Luna then let out a sigh. Those five had were proving to be nothing but trouble. If they had been any other group of ponies, she wouldn’t have listened to Stock Market and would have started the death vote. However, they were the Bearer’s and, as much as Luna hated to admit it, they needed to be kept alive for the time being. They were also very lucky that Twilight knew what they were as well and stepped in when she did. Learning that they were making some progress in becoming friends also saved their miserable flanks.
“Somepony looks lost in thought,” said a voice behind her. Luna’s eyes widened as she spun around to see Bunsen Burner smiling at her.
“Oh, its you,” said Luna as she took a deep breath.
“Yes, it’s me,” he agreed with a nod while still smiling as he walked next to the princess.
Luna, however, did not like the fact that he was smiling. “Wipe that grin off your face,” she demanded. “Today there is little reason to smile.”
“Oh, but I do have a reason,” said Bunsen Burner as he reached into his lab coat. For a moment, he searched through its contents as he pulled out several small devices until he found what he was looking for. It was small black device that could have been mistaken for a pen. He clicked one of the sides causing the device to float in the air in front of the two. While it was hovering, light began to be projected from its sides as it created holographic images of words and numbers.
Luna looked at Bunsen Burner curiously for a moment, wondering what he had to show her. However, the stallion said nothing but indicated to her that she should look at it herself. With a sigh, Luna turned and began to read. At first glance, she could tell that these were test results of some kind. But, after reading the first couple of lines her eyes widened in shock. With increased interest, she began to read more quickly as a smile appeared on her face as well.
“It works,” whispered Princess Luna when she was done. She then turned to Bunsen Burner. “Are you positive that these number are accurate?”
“If I wasn’t I wouldn’t be showing them to you now,” replied the pegasus as he retrieved his device. “As noted, we tested the affects of Operation Umbrella on the piece of Discord you brought back with you and it worked seventy seven times. Now all that is left is to isolate the frequency so that it will only affect him.”
Hearing this greatly pleased Luna. Once this ultimate weapon was perfected, the Lunar Republic would no longer have anything to fear from fiends like Discord ever again. It would also mean an end to their reliance on the Elements of Harmony making Celestia hold on her nonexistent.
“Very good,” said Princess Luna happily. “Please keep me informed.”
-x-
Later that night Applejack found herself walking through the halls of the castle alone. Personally, she would rather be in her quarters right now. Every time she passed a guard or a member of the castle staff, they would stop to give her an icy cold glare or reach for their weapons. Yet she had to get out of her room. It wasn’t because Rainbow was snoring or that Fluttershy wouldn’t stop crying or that Rarity was trying on dress after dress trying to decide which would make her more innocent. Well, these were partly the reason, but the main was that she had to speak with another pony about something important.
As she neared her destination, she could hear angry yelling just down the hall. Fearing that somepony might get attacked, she began to gallop at full force. However, one of the doors suddenly flung open as the shouting stopped. As Applejack slowed down, she saw Gigawatt walk out with an angry look on his face.
“I’ll return later to continue this conversation,” he said to the other pony in the room. “I’m sure once you’ve cooled down you’ll begin to see reason.”
“I can only hope that the same applies to you,” said Twilight as she too stepped out of the room looking rather angry.
Gigawatt snorted and turned towards Applejack. When he saw her, he began to bare his teeth as his horn glowed. Applejack watched nervously as lightning began to dance around his horn. But, before he could do anything, Twilight stepped in between the two.
“Walk away,” she said as she glared at him.
Gigawatt looked at Twilight for a moment before returning his attention back to Applejack. Seeing this, Twilight’s own horn began to glow as she prepared her own spell. For a while, no pony moved nor spoke. Then, without a word, Gigawatt ceased his spell before turning around and walking away like Twilight had told him to do.
As for Twilight, she stayed as she was until Gigawatt was out of sight. Once he was, the glow on her horn faded and she let out a sigh of relief.
“Thanks much,” said Applejack only to have Twilight spin around to look at her.
“Just what do you think you’re doing here?” demanded Twilight as she poked Applejack with her hoof. “Right now you and your friends are the most hated ponies in the Republic. Walking around in the dead of night is like asking to be killed.”
“Ah know,” Applejack. “But ah needed ta talk ta ya for a moment.”
Twilight looked at Applejack for a moment before she motioned her to get into the room. Applejack nodded and entered it quickly. The room was rather…bare. It was large, easily double the size of her own back home. But with all that space there was only a bed and a nightstand in it.
“This was my room back when I lived here,” said Twilight as she entered the room herself. “Took almost everything out of it when I moved out. Now I’m staying in it while Scootaloo is in the medical wing.”
“How’s she doing?” asked Applejack.
“Fine,” replied Twilight. “Right now Shadow is with her. I’ll be heading down after I get some sleep. Now, what did you want to talk about?”
“Ah just wanted ta say how sorry we all are,” said Applejack as she took off her hat. “Ah know that might not mean much right now but-”
“I know,” said Twilight as her face softened a bit.
“But ah prepared a speech an everything,” said Applejack as she put her hat back on.
Twilight giggled. “It’s ok. I don’t know how I know, but I just know that none of you meant for any of this to happen.” Then Twilight let out a sigh. “But, sadly, saying sorry doesn’t fix everything. Things are really…complicated right now.”
“Do ya think things will get better?” asked Applejack.
“Maybe,” said Twilight. “But not for a long time. I…I really can’t see the Republic getting over this anytime soon.”
“Gee, that’s too bad,” said Applejack. “I guess this means we won’t see each other again.”
“Well,” began Twilight hesitantly. “I’m, ah, not sure. Maybe we will.”
“Good,” said Applejack as she wrapped one of her front legs around Twilight neck in a friendly manner. “Because ah want ta see ya again to. Maybe next time we can all have a shindig down at Sweet Apple Acres.”
A short while later, Applejack left leaving Twilight alone to try and get some sleep. She needed her rest so she didn’t look so tired when she went to see Scootaloo. Yet, as she closed her eyes, there was a knock on her door. Groaning, she pulled herself out of bed and walked slowly to the door. When she opened it and her tired face was replaced with a confused one.
“Back again?” asked said.
-x-
Shadow looked up at the clock and frowned. Twilight was late. She was never late.
Looking down at the bed where Scootaloo was sleeping he sighed and shook his head. ‘Maybe she overslept,’ he thought to himself. ‘It was a long day after all.’ For a moment, Shadow considered brushing it off and letting the two mares in his life get their rest. But something in the back of his mind kept nagging at him. True Twilight was tired, but that wouldn’t stop her from being here. When he had broken a wing back in basic training she had showed up by his bed early every morning despite the long hours of her new job.
Silently, Shadow stood up so he could go check up on her. Moving quickly he left the medical room and headed straight for Twilight’s old one. He thought about using his wings to speed things along, but if he did that he might bump into a member of the staff. No sense in rushing and possibly causing an accident over nothing. After all, nothing was out of the-
“MURDER!” came a scream.
Shadow’s heart began to race as he opened his wings and flew at full speed in the direction of the scream. Fear began to grip his heart as he realized that it was in the same direction as Twilight’s room. In his head he began to chant ‘Please don’t be Twilight’ over and over again as he picked up more speed.
Finally, he spotted Land Share on the floor near Twilight's room. The poor stallion was pale and pointing a shaking hook towards Twilight’s open door. Shadow’s breath quickened as he dashed into the door to see something he never wanted to see.
Twilight was on the ground lying in a small puddle of blood. In her side was an apple peeler with a green handle and a red apple at the end.
“So, what do you think is going on?” asked Sword Sheath. Like most members of Celestia’s Royal Guard, he was a white unicorn with his blue mane sticking out of his helmet. Of course, you couldn’t see his cutie mark underneath his golden armor. Many of the civilians often wonder if this was either the byproduct of dyes or the effect of an enchantment on the armor, but none of the guards would ever say anything about it.
“No idea,” replied Quick Strike, a similar looking unicorn who was standing next to Sword. “All I know is that ‘Captain’ Stareye called several stallions into his new private quarters.” As he spoke, Quick turned his head to survey the training grounds. Like them, the rest of the Royal Guard was just standing around, while they awaited instructions as to where they would be posted for the day.
Sword let out a sigh of annoyance. “I still can’t believe they promoted him,” complained Sword, kicking the ground with ever-growing frustration. “It was bad enough that they allowed bat ponies to join the Guard, but this? He hasn’t even finished basic training! How is anypony here supposed to take Stareye seriously?”
“I don’t know,” said Quick as he looked up at the sky. “Maybe he scored high in some strategy test or something.”
“Somehow, I doubt that,” stated a voice behind them. The two turned around and then saluted Lieutenant Aerial Ace. He was an older pegasus stallion, who had fought during the last war against the griffons. According to the rumors told around the barracks, Ace had killed three dozen griffons with his bare hooves. They also noted that he was frowning, which was never a good sign.
“Good morning, sir,” they said in unison.
Aerial’s ear twitched and his frown seems to worsen. “Don’t do that,” he demanded, his voice matching his expression. The two privates blinked in confusion, slowly lowering their hooves. The lieutenant was a stickler for protocol. Anytime a member of the Guard forgot to salute, or refer to their superior as ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’, he would make them run twenty miles in their armor with additional weights as a punishment.
“Sir, is everything ok?” asked Quick.
“Not really,” replied Aerial. “And I don’t think you should be calling me ‘sir’ anymore, either. I’m a private now, same as you two.”
Both stallions stood there with their mouths open for a moment, as did any other Guard within the area. That couldn’t be right! Lieutenant Aerial Ace had been in the Royal Guard for years. He had served Princess Celestia and all the previous captains faithfully, never once complaining that he had not been promoted to Captain himself. He even invented several aerial combat formations!
Hoping this was a joke of some kind, both Sword and Quick began to check the former superior’s armor for his lieutenant’s metal. Sadly, his chest piece was bare.
Quick Strike was the first to find his voice and ask the question that was on everypony’s mind. “B-but, how did this happen?”
“Real quick,” replied Aerial with a sigh. “See, I’m not the only pony who got demoted. Tough Mountain, Sky Strike, Sentinel, Iron Hammer, and several others all got demoted. We were all called up to Stareye’s quarters, only to find the good Captain still in bed. He then used his magic to take away our medals, said we were now privates again, and told us to get out.”
“Y-you’re kidding,” stammered Sword. As Aerial shook his head, Sword fell back on his flank. All of those named were well decorated officers. Why would Stareye replace them? “Then, w-who took your jobs?”
As Aerial opened his mouth, there was a bright flash of light. When it faded, there stood a unicorn mare with a white coat, bright red mane, and teal eyes. The mare was shaking all over and panting heavily. When Aerial saw who it was, he slowly saluted her, causing the other two stallions’ eyes to widen.
“Hot Pants is a lieutenant?!” shouted Sword in utter shock. “But, why her?”
“Look over there,” directed somepony loudly. Nearly everypony in the Guard began to look around until they saw movement. Walking into the training grounds were their new commanding officers. Eyes narrowed as the first, and most obvious, thing was made clear to them. Ponies like Aerial Ace and Sky Strike (who were both pegasi), and Tough Mountain (an earth pony), had all been replaced by unicorns.
Speaking of whom, several of the demoted ponies were seen walking towards the castle gates, armor off with their saddle bags packed with personal items. All of them looked furious. Some of them could be seen muttering to themselves about something.
As they got closer, some ponies, like Sword, realized just who some of these unicorns were. There was Dinner Party, who was the nephew of a Duke. Behind him was Haut Monde, who was the son of an Earl. Then, there was High Birth whose family was one of the wealthiest in all of Canterlot.
Nearly all of them had their noses in the air, with a smile on their faces, pleased with their new positions. Yet, in the back was a mare named Crème de la Crème, whose grandfather ran the First Bank of Canterlot, who looked upset. No, scratch that, she looked downright furious.
As realization about the theme of these new promotions began to dawn on Sword, he turned his head quickly to glare at Hot Pants. It was well known that Hot Pants were Fancy Pants’ niece. As he did, he noticed that Aerial Ace was staring Hot Pants right in the eyes, his expression stone-like, as Hot Pants trembled.
“I’m really sorry, sir,” said Hot Pants in a panic. “I had no idea what Captain Stareye was going to do when he called us into his room. He just placed a metal on me and said I was now a lieutenant! When I asked why, he said that those of high stature deserve high rewards. Before I knew what was happening, he gave us his orders and told us to leave. Please, you have to believe that this isn’t the way I wanted this to happen!”
“So, you don’t want a promotion?” asked Quick.
“Well, I mean I do,” admitted Hot Pants as she turned to look at Quick. “But, the reason I joined the Royal Guard in the first place was because I wanted to earn something on my own merit. My family was really proud of me when I told them this, especially my Uncle Fancy Pants. But, now-”
“Enough of that,” chided Aerial, causing all heads to turn in his direction. Hot Pants looked shocked to see that while Aerial still had a frown, his eyes seemed to have softened slightly. “You are a lieutenant now! It is your job to lead by example, so stop complaining.”
“But, I have no idea what I’m doing!” cried Hot Pants. “And I don’t like my orders one bit. Captain Stareye wants me to tell all of the earth ponies that they are now on cleaning duty indefinitely!” She paused for a moment and blushed with a scowl on her face. “Well, he also wanted me and Crème to report to his bedroom tonight, wearing something...sexy.”
Both Sword and Quick stood there with a dumbfounded look on their faces. Cleaning duty had always changed between divisions on a weekly basis. It had never, in the history of the Guard, been delegated to a single tribe. And, then there was the bedroom order. The two of them had heard of some lowlifes in business trying things like that, but it was unheard of in the Princess’ Guard.
“Why that perverted, racist, little-” began Quick.
“Regardless of how you feel about them, you still have to carry out your orders,” said Aerial sternly. “If you don’t, then you will most likely be removed from the Guard, and be replaced with somepony else who will give the order. So, for right now, you should carry out your orders, so that you can keep your position long enough to get rid of Captain Stareye.”
Hot Pants’ ears twitched in confusion. “I can do that?” she asked.
“It’s not something that happen all that often, but yes,” informed Aerial Ace. “If it looks like a Captain is becoming corrupt, or isn’t doing his or her job, a high ranking member of the Guard can report to Princess Celestia about what is happening. If you make a strong enough case, the Captain will be remove the next day. Next best thing we can hope for is a full investigation.”
“T-that’s it?” asked Hot Pants as she fell on her plot.
“That’s it,” repeated Aerial Ace, causing Hot’s face to light up.
“Great,” Hot Pants cheerfully commented, jumping back onto her hooves. “I’ll get Crème to back me up, and then the two of us will go see her tonight!”
-x-
At the same time, Celestia was frantically racing around her room. Her mane was in complete disarray, with some strands clinging to her body, while others stood up in all directions. Her coat, normally looking pristine, looked greasy by comparison. Dark circles were beginning to appear under her eyes, indicating she needed her rest. That, sadly, was something she could not do.
All around her room were papers. Some were magically glued to the walls, while others lay on the ground in stacks. Some of them were maps, detailing various farmlands as well as lakes and rivers. While several gave status on what foods those various farms grew, where the food was distributed to, pricing, how much (if any) was left over, and so on.
There were also several parchments containing equations that Celestia herself had written. And, judging by how many large X’s had been drawn through them, she hadn’t liked the results. Off to the corner was a large pile of paper cups, which once held Celestia’s coffee.
Normally, this would have been a job for several ponies. For example, she should have had the nobles, who were in charge of each of these regions, helping her. Or, at the very least, they could have sent pony specialists who could have assisted her. Yet, that wasn’t the case. This time, she had to do the majority of the work herself.
As Celestia tried to look as a map while reading the report for the area, there was a knock on her door. Celestia ignored it, continuing to try and get her work done. There was another knock on the door, which was also ignored. Finally, the door just opened and North Star walked into the room.
“Forgive the intrusion, Princess,” he said as he bowed. “I just wanted to inform you that I have sent the dispatches as you requested.”
“Very good,” replied Celestia without turning around. “How soon tell will we get their replies?”
North Star sighed. “I’m afraid I cannot say,” he admitted. “I had them sent via magical flames, so they should have all received them by now. However, many of the ponies you are trying to contact are poor farmers, with no real access to such quick communication. I’d say, at best, it will be two weeks before we hear from them all.”
Celestia sighed herself as she hung her head. “If only I had the foresight to have placed emergency magical flames at each town.”
“Something then to fix in the future,” noted North Star gently, walking over to her.
“Indeed,” agreed the princess. “It looks like there will be many changes in the future. But, enough of that for now. Where do the nobles stand?”
North Star shook his head. “It saddens me to say that most of them are siding with Blueblood. He has convinced them that, despite the Republic’s technological superiority, our numbers and magic will win. He has also been winning their favor by telling them all of the comforts and bits they will obtain, once the Republic becomes a part of Equestria.”
“And the others?” asked Celestia.
“Don’t care,” said North Star simply, doing his best to not flinched at his princess’ disappointment. “Well, it would be more accurate to say that, while they do not desire what Blueblood is offering, they also do not wish to give up anything, nor make any enemies within the courts. I believe, however, I could persuade them to assist you if only to gain your favor.”
“No,” uttered Celestia, rubbing her forehead to ease a headache that was building. “If that is what it will take for them to do the right thing, then I do not want their help. There is a chance that we might end up going to war, and all they can think about is themselves!
“It seems I have truly allowed things to slip these past thousand years. I have been…too soft. Far too many times have I allowed my compassion and love to make my decisions. Believing that ponies will do the right thing, just because I ask them to. If I had just put my hoof down a few times in the past, we might not be facing this crisis.”
“Yet, sadly, the past is the past,” said North Star. “It can’t be changed, but we can learn from it for a better future.”
“Hopefully, Equestria will have a future,” groaned Celestia. “I’ll say this, though; Blueblood was right about the food situation. Giving the Lunar Republic that much of our crops, all at once, will be a heavy blow against us. Water is, luckily, a different matter. I plan on sending a letter to my mother, asking her to provide us with a large supply of fresh water to replace what was lost.”
“Well then, how about we go to the negotiation table, and explain this to them,” suggested North Star. “Tell them that we are sorry for their loss, but we can’t give them all that food all at once. Suggest a payment plan of sorts. A little bit of the food at a time until it has been paid in full, with a little interest. I’m sure Princess Luna wouldn’t mind.”
“That does sound like a good idea,” approved Celestia as she looked at him for the first time with a smile. “But, we’d better not tell Blueblood or the other nobles. No telling how they might react if they found out.”
“Agreed,” said North Star, who had been thinking along the same lines. “If he found out, Blueblood might try something to interfere, and will mess everything up. You know, I heard that in the Griffon Empire, any members of their court that would engage in such behavior was stripped of their wealth and then banished. Pity, we don’t do the same. I’d love to see… Princess? Are you ok?”
“The griffons,” murmured Celestia, getting a faraway look. Then, her eyes began to light up. “Of course! Why didn’t I think of this sooner? We can ask them for help!”
“Princess, please slow down and explain,” requested North Star as he watched Celestia begin to search her room for something.
“We can ask the griffons to spare some of their crops to help the Republic,” explained Celestia. “The Emperor and Princess Luna seemed to hit it off, so maybe he would be willing to help her out. Wait, I’m not thinking big enough. I could ask all of the other nations if they would be willing to spare some of their crops. Who knows, maybe if Princess Luna sees what she can gain, she might consider not ending our alliance. Now, help me find some parchment!”
-x-
“Forgive me for waking you, Princess, but it is time for breakfast.”
At the sound of the voice, Princess Cadence opened her eyes. For a moment, her body jerked in surprise at her different surroundings. She and Midnight were both lying on the ground of a cave-like room. The place was dark, the only light coming from an odd moss that gave off a light green color. There wasn’t a door like the ones in Canterlot, but instead, there was a ratty looking cloth that separated the room from the hallway. Sleeping next to her was Midnight, who was curled up into a ball.
It was then that Cadence found the source of the voice. It was a young bat pony filly, perhaps a few years older than Midnight. On her back were two bowls, which she placed on the ground in front of her.
“Once you have finished, Flight Master Weeping Willow would like to see you,” said the filly before leaving the room.
Once she was gone, Cadence began to remember how she got here. After the events in Appleloosa, Cadence and several of the key ponies from Appleloosa (like Apple Peel and Thunder Shot) had met with the buffalo to begin mapping out areas the ponies were to stay away from or, at the very least, to avoid placing anything. While that was going on, the Appleloosa doctor began to examine Weeping Willow. Sadly, there was nothing anypony could do for her. She would continue to grow weaker and weaker until, eventually, she would die.
At the same time, Ruby was using this time to spend time with her mother. After being away for so many years, they had much to talk about. Dreamy Words had so many questions for her daughter, like where she had been all these years, if she had been eating alright, and if she had found a special somepony yet.
After the meeting with the buffalo had concluded, the ponies of Appleloosa offer to put Cadence up for the night, since it was getting dark. They even offered to thrown a feast in her honor. While she was touched by their offer, Cadence politely declined before asking Weeping Willow and Darkwing if her party could spend the night at the colony.
To say the two bat ponies were shocked by this request was an understatement. They couldn’t figure out why a princess of Equestria would want to stay with them. Cadence explained that she wanted to stay for a while and continue working to find ways for bat ponies to become accepted by the rest of Equestria. It would help her greatly if she could see how they lived. She also said that she wanted Midnight to get to know more about other bat ponies.
At first, Weeping Willow had been against this. The idea of a non-bat pony knowing where they lived was…unsettling. The key to their survival had always been hiding from the Equestrians. However, Chief Thunderhooves and Darkwing both urged her to agree, which surprised the elder mare. Furthermore, Cadence also offered to use her magic to assist Willow in returning to the colony. In the end, Willow hesitantly agreed.
The trip to the colony was quick and uneventful. None of the bat ponies talked to each other, keeping a look out in all directions. Ruby whispered to Cadence that they were checking to see if anypony was following them. She continued to say that given how little coverage there was, it would make it easier to spot somepony, and thus they could head to the colony faster.
It wasn’t until they reached a canyon that they began their decent. Looking around, Cadence guessed that it was about two thousand meters deep, with a decent sized river running at the bottom. Along the walls were several holes that reminded her of the homes of quarry ells. Of course, she had never seen one in pony, but had seen pictures of them back in school.
Cadence was slightly nervous as they continued to fly closer to the holes, but trusted the bat ponies. They passed by several of these holes until they come upon a slightly smaller one which they entered. As they entered, Cadence quickly realized just how small the tunnel was. It was a tight fit for ponies like Ruby and Darkwing, so for a pony of Cadence’s size, it was almost impossible.
As she struggled to continue, Darkwing informed her that this was a bit of a security thing. The smaller hole would make other ponies think that the bat ponies would take one of the larger holes, and that its small size forced them to enter one at a time. To aid in the belief that they lived in the bigger holes, various items were left in them to make any would-be threats think that they had moved on already. And, if that failed, the small tunnel would force intruders to enter one at a time, making them easy pickings in a fight.
After several minutes of walking, or crawling in Cadence’s case, the tunnel widened up to reveal that the colony was a network of tunnels within the canyon wall that bat ponies had spent years digging out. Along the walls on these tunnels would be bat ponies, who sat on blankets with various items surrounding them. These items would range from clay pottery, stone made dolls, blankets, and other items that looked like a mix between things she had seen with the buffalo, but with a pony twist to them. As she walked by, Cadence saw a few bat ponies trading items with each other. Seeing this gave Cadence an idea she could use later.
As for the bat ponies, most kept their distance from the pink alicorn. There was no display of aggression, but it was clear by their stances that most would prefer it if she wasn’t there. Instead, they focused mostly on Ruby and Midnight, asking them various questions. The ones directed at Ruby were mostly about her time as a guard and how well she was being treated. Ruby was honest with them, telling them both the good and the bad. As for Midnight, the poor filly looked a bit overwhelmed as various bat ponies asked her questions about how she came to be with Cadence.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the members of Cadence’s party were shown where they would be sleeping. Cadence and Midnight were given one ‘room’, while Ruby and the others got the one next to them.
Now, in the present, Cadence lifted the blanket, that the bat ponies had provided her, with off of her before nudging the sleeping filly awake. It took a couple of tries, but eventually Midnight opened her eyes, and yawned.
“Mommy, I’m still tired,” she muttered sleepily. “Can I have five more minutes?”
“I’m sorry,” said Cadence gently. “But it’s time to get up and eat our breakfast.”
The small filly gave her a slow nod, too tired to talk. Cadence used her magic to lift one of the bowls and place it in front of her daughter. Midnight looked down at the contents, gave it a sniff, and then proceeded to eat. Cadence looked down at her own meal to discover a dark green mush. She gave it a sniff as well, and did her best not to gag. Whatever it was, it smelt horrible. But, she was hungry and the bat ponies had made this for her, so she ate it. However, she did so much slower than her daughter.
Once the mush had been eaten, Cadence placed Midnight on her back and the two left their room to find Ruby, as well as the other two guards waiting for her. But, they weren’t alone. Both Dusk Blitz and Thunderclap were both standing at attention, while Ruby talked to a bat pony mare. Off to the side was Darkwing, who was watching both mares.
As soon as the Appleloosan bat mare saw Cadence, she nodded her head and left in a hurry.
“What was that about?” asked Cadence as she walked up to Ruby.
Ruby turned to face Cadence with a grin on her face. “We got another recruit!” exclaimed Ruby happily.
“You mean she wanted to join my guard?” said Cadence in a surprised tone.
“Not just her,” informed Ruby, grinning from ear to ear. “There were four others before her who wanted to join.” Then, her smile fell. “But, I think you’d need to talk to them. For some reason, they believe I’m a captain.”
“Not that hard to see why,” said Thunderclap as he looked over at Dusk.
“Yeah,” concurred Dusk, nodding at Thunderclap before turning his head to face Ruby. “We have been following your lead since we left our colony. We wouldn’t be here, doing any of this, if it weren’t for you!”
“But-” began Ruby.
“What they are saying has some truth to it,” interrupted Cadence. “And perhaps, once your training is completed, we can make it official. I will need a captain for my own guard after all.”
“I-I,” stammered Ruby, who was at a loss for words at this new info.
Cadence patted Ruby on the shoulder, while giving her a reassuring smile. “Take your time and think it over. I understand that it is a big decision.” A sudden coughing sound caused the group to turn their heads towards Darkwing. Cadence giggled. “I guess we’d better be going.”
“Agree,” said Darkwing as he began to walk towards Weeping Willows home. They all walked in silence like before, but Cadence noticed that Darkwing would glance at her and Midnight every once in a while. More than once, she thought she saw a small smile appear on his face. This continued until they came to a larger looking tunnel with another ratty looking cloth covering the entrance to a room at the end. Cadence motioned her guards to remain outside, while she went in with Midnight and Darkwing.
Inside, Cadence found it to be far more decorated than the room she had been given. On the walls was several painting that looked like they depicted buffalo lore. There were several clay jars and pots littered around the room, and a decent looking table with a small cactus on it. At the other end was Weeping Willow, who was wrapped in several colorful blankets. In the middle of the room was a small fire, which was most likely lit for Cadence’s sake. Standing by the door was Darkwing.
“Before we begin,” said Weeping Willow, “I want to thank you for what you have done for the buffalo. I fear that, had you not arrived when you did, events would not have played out favorably.”
“But, it looked like they were winning,” indicated Midnight.
Willow chuckled. “True, they would have won that fight, little one,” she confirmed. “But, sooner or later, more would come. And, they would have been very angry for what had happened. After that, who knows what would have happened.”
“I am also glad things turned out the way they did,” added Cadence. “The last thing we need right now is more pointless violence and hatred. I hope that we can work together to end a prejudice that has gone on for far too long.”
Weeping Willow laughed. “Ah, the ambitions of youth. Some things are not that easily changed.”
“I know,” acknowledged Cadence. “But, what is happening here, in Appleloosa, is something that can help all bat ponies. Together, we can change how you are seen. But, only if we both work together.”
“Hoho,” laughed Weeping, ending it with a sly smile. “Now I see why Darkwing has taken such a shine to you.” Said stallion made a noise of confusion. Weeping, for her part, continued like nothing happened. “So, tell me child, what do you have planned?”
“First, I have a question for you,” said Cadence. “What have the buffalo taught you?”
“Much,” replied Weeping. “They have taught us the ways of the desert, ways to survive.”
“Does that include medicines?” asked Cadence. Weeping nodded. “Then, there is much you can offer Appleloosa in the way of trade. I am sure there are many poisonous creatures out here in the desert. Ones that they might not have antidotes for, or can get to quick enough. But you, on the other hoof, can. You also know your way around the desert, making your ponies a perfect choice to be guides or aids in a search.
“There is also the matter of your crafts. The buffalo have taught you how to make very unique baskets, blankets, and who knows what else from very little. I am sure there are ponies out there who would love to buy these things from you.”
“Even this glowing moss has such potential! I don’t know where you found it, but I’m sure it could help solve some problems. I’m even willing to bet that there are more things that you have to trade that I haven’t seen.”
“Do…do you really think those Appleloosans would trade with us?” asked Weeping.
“They have offered us jobs,” notified Darkwing before Cadence could say anything. “Or, at least, Apple Peel has. And, I am sure there are many in Appleloosa who would love to get their hooves on what we have. But, can we really trust them to trade fairly?”
“I’m sure there will be a few ponies out there that will try to take advantage of you,” said Cadence honestly. “There are those out there that would take advantage from anypony. But, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try. Right now, you have a chance to disprove what ponies have been saying about you for a thousand or more years. It will be slow at first, but I’m sure, if both sides give it an honest chance, you can both become friends like you are with the buffalo.”
For a moment, no pony spoke. Weeping Willow closed her eyes and nodded her head several times. Then, when she did open her eyes, she looked at one of the paintings on the wall.
“Thunderhooves once told me something a long time ago,” she said. “He said that breaking and destroying things is easy. But, to create something that is good, something that will last, is hard.
“These words were in my heart as we created this colony. It is good. It has lasted. And now, we most walk down another hard path. One that will be longer and harder than anything we have faced so far. But…I believe that we will make it.”
Cadence smiled as she turned to look at Darkwing. The stallion quickly turned his head to look away, but it was too late. Cadence had seen the look on his face. His eyes had sparkled with hope and there had been a smile on his face.
Just then, however, there was a knock on the door. Darkwing moved and lifted the cloth, so that another bat pony could enter. It was the same filly that had served them breakfast.
“I am sorry to interrupt,” she said. “But a bat pony from another colony has just shown up and wishes to speak with you. He claims to be from Lone Wolf’s colony.”
“Lone Wolf?” queried Ruby as she quickly entered the room.
The filly nodded. “Yes,” she said. “And he has an important message for the Flight Master.”
“Very well,” said Weeping Willow. “Send him in. But, before you go, did he happen to say his name?”
At this, the filly looked a little nervous. “Ah, he did actually. It’s Jackal.”
As soon as she mentioned this name, Ruby’s fur turned white.
Jackal walked down the tunnels of the Appleloosa colony. He was a dark grey stallion with at least two dozen long scars running across his body, his face included. The only spot on his body that was untouched was his cutie mark, which was the image of five claws ripping through his flank, as if a wild animal were trying to escape. His mane, which was purple with black stripes, was cut short so that nopony could grab it with their teeth during a fight. Something he learned at the cost of his left ear, which was missing.
As he walked, he noticed many of the local bat ponies averting their gaze away from him. Some of the younger ones cried out in fear and ran away. This reaction brought a small smile to Jackal’s face. He liked their reactions, because they needed to see what the Equestrians did to him. They needed to see, to burn it into their memories that the ponies, who loved their sun princess, could never be trusted.
His only regret being he hadn’t killed any of them. Lone Wolf wouldn’t allow it, since it would cause more ponies to actively hunt them down. Like it mattered! Either way, they would be seen as something less than a pony, so why not act like it.
As he turned a corner that he had been told led to the Flight Master of this colony, he stopped when he noticed something odd. He had to be imagining thing, because he thought he saw a bat pony wearing pink armor enter the room at the end of the hall. The room that lead to the Flight Master.
Narrowing his eyes at the door, the stallion quickened his pace. ‘Something is wrong,’ Jackal thought. ‘No bat pony wears armor like that. No bat pony wears armor period. It could be an Equestrian trick of some kind!’ Without announcing his presence, he charged into the room, ready to kill the intruder (or intruders).
Imagine his surprise to see only two ponies in the room, neither one wearing any armor.
“You must be Jackal,” said an elder looking mare wrapped in blankets that Jackal assumed was Weeping Willow. “From Lone Wolf’s colony.”
“It seems Lone Wolf doesn’t teach manners,” said the only other stallion in the room. Jackal watched him as he walked over to stand next to his Flight Master.
“I thought I saw-” began Jackal, looking around. His good ear twitched as he thought he heard a noise that sounded like a gasp, followed by a whimper. Slowly, his head turned in the direction he had heard the noise, which was by one of the walls that held paintings on it. The stallion strained his eyes, trying to find the source, yet there was nopony to be found.
Jackal was about to say something, however he stopped himself. If there had been any Equestrians in here, he would have seen them by now. Or, the other two ponies that were in the room would have said something.
‘Maybe I’m just imagining things,’ thought Jackal, turning his head to face Weeping Willow. ‘I am in the desert and I did hear once that heat can play tricks on the mind. That would explain why I thought I saw a bat pony wear pink armor of all things.’
Jackal cleared his throat. “Forgive me,” he said calmly. “My name is Jackal, and I am from the former Hayberg colony.”
“Former?” asked Weeping Willow with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes,” said Jackal with a sigh. “Three member of our colony decided to leave and chase a foolish dream of becoming members of the Royal Guard. I have no idea why Lone Wolf allowed them to go, forcing us to abandon our colony for security reasons. Me, I would have ripped their throats out.”
“So, you are here to inform us of the new location of your colony,” illuminated Darkwing, who did his best to ignore the last part. It unnerved him to hear a bat pony threaten to kill a member of his own colony, yet talk about it as if he were discussing the weather. “Isn’t that the duty of your Flight Master?”
“True,” admitted Jackal with a nod. “However, Lone Wolf is busy with a pet project of his. Personally, I think it’s a waste of time, but I’m not a Flight Master. This brings us to the second reason I’m here. Lone Wolf is requesting any additional resources you have, so he can complete his little project faster. In particular, he is hoping you could send us stones as well as tools.”
“I will consider it,” said Weeping Willow. “But I must ask, what is this pet project of his?”
“I am sorry to say that I have been asked not to say anything on that subject,” mentioned Jackal. “The only thing I am able to tell you is that when it is finished, Lone Wolf will issue the call for a Gathering, so that all Flight Masters can see it.”
With that, Jackal walked over to Weeping Willow and whispered the new location of his colony in her ear, before turning around to leave. However, he paused to the sound of the fire crackling. He turned his head to look at it with some confusion on his face. ‘She’s wrapped in blankets, plus there is a fire,’ he thought. ‘But, the fire is too low to provide any real warmth. It’s almost as if…’
Jackal looked up at Darkwing and stared at him for a moment. Darkwing stared back at him, before his gaze momentarily drifted over to the side of the room, and then back to him. Jackal let out a snort and then left the room.
For the next few minutes, nopony neither moved nor said a word. Both Weeping Willow and Darkwing stared at the entrance to the room, as if they were expecting Jackal to burst through it at any moment. After what seemed like an eternity, Darkwing moved towards the entrance and looked out.
“All clear,” he announced as he pulled his head back into the room. As soon as he said this, Princess Cadence lifted the invisibility field off of her and her party. Both Dusk and Thunderclap looked like they were trying to hide behind their princess, while looking very pale. Ruby, on the other hoof, was standing next to Cadence. She was shaking a bit, but never seemed to leave the pink alicorn’s side.
“So, that’s Jackal,” indicated Cadence, letting out a relieved sigh. “I never knew there were ponies out there like him.”
“I’ve known a few,” informed Darkwing as he walked over to a corner to get some water. “Most of us just want to get away and move on from what the Equestrians have done to us. But, there are a few that won’t let go. They let their hate consume them, until they become bent on getting even, no matter what the cost. And, it never ends well for either side.”
As Darkwing finished saying this, he had poured three cups of water. Careful not to spill a drop, he placed them on his back and brought them over to Cadence, Midnight, and Ruby, earning annoyed looks from the other two bat stallions in the room.
“I never knew about this,” stated Cadence as she sipped her drink. Then, she slowly turned to look at Weeping Willow. “Ah, if you don’t mind me asking, what’s a Gathering?”
“It’s nothing special,” answered Weeping Willow instantly, stirring the fire. “A Gathering is a meeting of all the Flight Masters. They are very rare, the last one we had happened a hundred years ago. When it happens, the Flight Masters all get together to talk about a problem that the Caller, the one who called for the Gathering, needs help with. If I recall correctly, the last one was about one pony’s colony being overpopulated, and asking if any of the others would mind taking in a few more bat ponies.”
Cadence gave a nod before she took another sip of her drink, thinking about all she had learned. Lone Wolf was up to something, something he wanted to share with all the other bat ponies. The Princess of Love thought about what she should do with this new information, and came to one conclusion.
“I would like to speak to Lone Wolf,” she pleaded.
This declaration got several responses. Ruby did a spit take of epic proportions, while her fellow guards felt their jaws hit the ground. Darkwing’s irises and pupils dwindled as he looked over at Weeping Willow, who also seemed shocked.
“W-why would you want to see him?” asked Ruby.
“Because, he is planning something,” explained Cadence. “And whatever it is, it’s big. Big enough to keep him at his new location, while having another deliver the news to the other Flight Masters. If it’s something bad, then it could damage relations farther between bat ponies and the rest of Equestria. I need to talk him out of it.”
“But, what if it’s not something bad?” asked Dusk, Thunderclap and Ruby nodding in agreement. “We know Wolf. Sure, he has no love for Equestria, but he would never do anything that would put us in danger!”
“And if you go, you will be putting yourself and your foal in danger,” added Willow. “While I trust you for all you have done to help us and the buffalo, I cannot protect you from Lone Wolf. Should anything go wrong, you will be at his mercy.”
“I know,” said Cadence as she looked over at Midnight, and gave the filly a small smile. “But, I know this is something I must do. If Lone Wolf does have good intentions, then maybe I can help him and foster some good will. Provide the materials he needs, or something, to show him and the rest of the colonies that we can be trusted. And, from what I have heard about Wolf, he wouldn’t hurt a bat pony filly.”
“Still,” began Willow.
“I’ll go with her,” said Darkwing suddenly, causing everypony in the room to glanced at him in surprise.
“You will?” asked Willow with a raised eyebrow.
Darkwing let out a sigh. “It’s just like Princess Cadence said,” explained Darkwing. “If Lone Wolf is planning on doing something dangerous, then it might come back to bite us, all of us, in the flanks. It might even hurt the buffalo, since they have stood up for us! And, if it isn’t up to something, maybe they can get something like the deal we are getting. I’ll go, so that if things do take a wrong turn, then maybe I can help smooth things over.”
For a while, nopony said anything. Weeping Willow looked down at the dying flames as she pondered the best course of action. Not just for her colony, but for all bat ponies and their allies. For a while, she mentally weighted out the pros and cons of her going to see Wolf. It would be risky, regardless of the decision.
“Very well,” responded Willow after a few minutes. “I have a feeling that, even if I said no, you would still try to see Lone Wolf. At least this way, you will have some extra protection.”
-x-
Shadow suddenly found breathing very difficult as he stared at Twilight’s body on the ground. He knew that he should go to her and make sure she was alive, but for some reason, his hooves refused to move. He stood transfixed, staring in disbelief at the seemingly lifeless body that was the love of his life.
Behind him came a sudden noise that caused Shadow to turn his head away from the ghastly sight before him. It was Land Share, who has emptying the contents of his stomach. Shadow couldn’t blame him. He felt like doing the same himself, but was keeping it down as best he could.
With the moment broken, Shadow raced over to Twilight’s side and began to check her vitals. The stallion felt a small amount of warmth reappear within him when he realized that Twilight wasn’t dead. Her pulse was weak, and she had lost a lot of blood, but she was still alive. And, that was the most important part right now. He moved a hoof up to his ear where his communicator was, when…
“What is going on here?” came the voice of Princess Luna from down the hall. Slowly, Shadow turned his head toward the doorway, hearing her steps approached closer and closer. He didn’t have time to let out a curse as he heard his beloved princess finally appearing in the doorway, while being flanked by two of her guards.
Luna’s eyes widened in horror at the sight she beheld of Twilight’s fallen body. Color drained from her coat at what she saw before her.
“Twilight,” whispered the moon princess, racing over to Twilight’s body. “No, no, NO!”
“SUMMON A MEDICAL TEAM HERE, NOW!” yelled Luna. The volume was so loud that the walls seemed to shake. Her two guards, who were standing in front of her, were flung backwards.
Shadow was the first to recover. “This is Captain Shadow Blade requesting a medical team to Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle’s room. This is not a drill! Code Red! If you need to, lock-on my communicator and track me. I repeat, this is a Code Red!”
With that done, he turned to look at the two guard ponies who were just now getting up. “You two, I want this Dome on lockdown. Nopony leaves until I say so. Also, I want the rest of the Guard to be mobilized and ready for anything.”
The two guards saluted and raced to carry out their orders.
While they did this, Luna walked over towards Twilight’s body and began to look it over. Her eyes narrowed on the apple peeler, which was dangerously close to her heart. Part of her wanted to pull it out, but knew that would be a big mistake. Doing so could cause Twilight to bleed out even faster. It had been a long time since she had felt this helpless, this useless.
Less than two minutes later, Healing Touch arrived on the scene, along with four other medical ponies. One of them was pushing an emergency pod, while the other three had saddlebags full of various medical equipment used to treat a large variety of conditions.
Healing Touch went right to work, ignoring the princess, and moved right towards Twilight’s body. She whipped out a scanning tool and waved it over the wound. Once she did this several times, she looked at the readings she got, before turning her head to glance at the other three.
“Clever mare,” whispered Healing Touch, before she turned to look at the other medical ponies. “She’s still alive, but in critical condition. Get her into the emergency medical pod and take her directly to the operating room.” Moving quickly, the four ponies moved the pod closer to Twilight. Once it was in place, one of them activated the pod, which caused it to open and lift Twilight inside of it before it closed.
Princess Luna watched as two of the medical ponies began to push the healing pod out of the room. As they did that, the remaining two were checking up on Land Share, who still looked very green. They helped the elder stallion stand and led him off towards the medical wing for treatment.
“Will she be alright?” asked Shadow. If it had been any other wound, he would have been more confident in the Republic’s healing technology. But, the apple peeler looked dangerously close to Twilight’s heart, a place where nanites were programmed not to go. Yes, they could repair Twilight’s quickly, but in order to do so, they would have to shut down her heart to do so. If this happened, it would cause severe damage to the brain, resulting in a sort of reset. In short, the Twilight he loved would be gone forever.
Healing Touch didn’t respond right away. She looked over at Shadow and then at Princess Luna. She then closed her eyes before giving them an answer.
“I can’t be certain,” she admitted. “The damage was pretty bad. According to my scans, the apple peeler pierced the side of her heart, causing internal bleeding as well as stopping the blood flow. Luckily, Twilight acted fast enough to use her magic to plug up the damaged areas, as well as another to keep her heart beating, despite the damages, before she lost consciousness.
“I’m going get her into surgery as quickly as I can, but since we can’t use nanomachines to fix the damage, it will be difficult. However, Assistant Director Sparkle is a strong mare, so I am hopeful. I will, of course, keep you both up to date on her situation. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
With that, the medical mare gave her princess a quick bow before she left, leaving only Luna and Shadow in the room. For what seemed like the longest time, neither of them spoke. Both had their heads lowered, facing the doorway. Finally, Shadow broke the silence.
“It’s all my fault if she dies,” claimed Shadow suddenly, drawing Luna’s attention towards him. “With everything that has happened since the Sunset Shimmer incident, I should have had at least one guard watching Twilight. She’s been working so hard, trying to do so much. But, instead-”
“There was no way anypony could have predicted this,” interrupted Luna gently.
“But, I’m the Captain of the Guard,” declared Shadow as he stood up. “My fiancé was almost killed while I was nearby!”
“I know how you feel,” said Luna sympathetically, standing up and moved in front of Shadow. Then, she used her hoof to lift his face, so that he could look her in the eye. “But, like me, there is only so much you can foresee. There is only so much you can do. I am sure that Twilight would not blame you for what has happened. So, please, don’t go blaming yourself when nopony else is blaming you.”
“I,” began Shadow, but stopped himself as he thought about what Luna had just said, and realized she was right. He knew that Twilight trusted him with her life. That, if he had known that Twilight’s life was in danger, he would have been there in a flash. Right now, he couldn’t let his own doubts and fears distract him. He had to be strong for Twilight, as well as Scootaloo.
Scootaloo. She didn’t know what was going on right now. He would have to tell her, and soon.
He would have to reassure her that Twilight would be fine. Because, it was going to be alright. Healing Touch was going to heal Twilight. Everything was going to be alright!
“I understand, Princess,” stated Shadow Blade after a moment.
Luna nodded. “Very good. Now, to the matter at hoof. Right now, we need to figure out who has done this terrible deed.”
“Right,” confirmed Shadow Blade with a nod. “I recognized the weapon. After Private Doughnut checked their belongings, he wrote up detailed report of what they brought up. Applejack had brought up some apple peelers that match the description of the one used on Twilight.”
Luna raised an eyebrow. “You believe Applejack is responsible?”
Shadow hesitated for a moment. “That’s what it looks like,” he finally said. “But, I’m having a hard time finding a motive. I mean, Twilight defended her and her friends. She was with them during the Sunset Shimmer incident.
“And, if she were planning something like this, it just seems too stupid to use a weapon that can so easily be traced back to her, while being trapped in a place that neither she nor her friends can escape from. Also, I have spent some time with her, and she just doesn’t seem like the type. It…looks like more like some kind of set-up than anything else.”
“I agree,” responded Luna, nodding approvingly at her Captain. She then noticed Shadow tapping his chin. “Have you thought of something?”
“Well, maybe,” supposed Shadow. “It could be possible that Applejack was order to do something like this. Maybe by Celestia?”
Luna snorted. “Impossible,” exclaimed Luna as she waved a hoof dismissingly. She knew all too well that Celestia needed Twilight far too much to help deal with Discord, to ever put her in harm’s way. Also, she would have to be the world’s biggest fool to send her all the other Element Bearers, just to order one of them to murder her student.
If Luna really, really stretched her imagination, the best she could come up with was that Celestia hoped that the Element of Magic would choice another bearer when Twilight died. But, that was pushing it, since there were so many things being left to chance. Like, for example, having no real guarantee that the next Bearer would be in Equestria, or if there was another pony that had the potential to be a Bearer.
Then, there was the fact that Luna still had the other Bearers. What was Celestia planning to do if Luna decided to kill them? Hope that the Elements would pick new Bearers as well? What if nopony was worthy enough to become one by the time Discord appeared? Luna knew her sister liked to make gambles, but even Celestia wouldn’t take those odds!
Shadow Blade, however, raised a questioning eyebrow.
“My sister would never order the death of anypony,” explained Luna. “When I wanted to kill Sombra for enslaving his own subjects, Celestia decided to turn him into a shadow and seal him in ice instead. When I found out about what Sunset Shimmer had done, I was ready to order her death on the spot. Celestia, on the other hoof, preached about mercy and beg me to find another route, despite not knowing the history of the mare in question. Even Discord, who turned Equestria into a madhouse for his own twisted amusement, was spared when I wanted to bring a sledgehammer to his stone head.
“These are just a few examples of many in which she refused to stain her hooves with blood. No, Shadow, it would take a world shattering event for my sister to even consider killing another.”
“Very well,” yielded Shadow Blade. “But, just to be on the safe side, I shall have several guards posted outside the Equestrians’ room.”
“Excellent,” replied Luna with a nod of approval. “But, make sure that they are informed that the Equestrians are to be protected as well. Given what happened in Dome Two and Three, I fear that when this gets out, there will be ponies demanding their blood.”
Luna’s face then hardened. “There is a reason we study history, so that we can try to avoid making the same mistakes. That is why the Hoofshire incident is taught to every filly and colt in the Republic. Blind hatred towards bat ponies, as well as those that loved my nights over Celestia’s days, eventually led to mob violence that caused the deaths of several families. I refuse to allow that kind of behavior to happen here in the Republic!”
Shadow then looked at the door leading to the operating room, and then let out a long sigh. “Well, I better get to work on this investigation,” he declared. Luna, however, shook her head.
“No,” she said. “I will contact the LBI and have them begin a full investigation into the matter.” Shadow opened his mouth to object, but Luna cut him off. “You are far too emotionally connected to this case, to be allowed to lead in the investigation. What is needed right now is a clear head.”
Luna’s face then softened a bit. “Besides, I think it would be better for everypony here if you remained here. Scootaloo is still recovering, and I am sure that it would mean the moon to Twilight, if she knew you were by her side during all of this.”
“I…I understand,” relented Shadow slowly. “I just wish I could do more.”
“If that is the case, then perhaps you can help me figure out who would want to harm Twilight, and then frame the Equestrians,” suggested Luna.
“That will be a long list,” remarked Shadow with a sigh. “My first guess would have been Sunset Shimmer, but we can eliminate her as a suspect, since she has been banished with Living Death. Senator April Showers is furious at the Equestrians for what happened to her Dome, and also mad at Twilight for defending them. I’m also sure that everypony from Dome Three, including Land Share, feels the same way, since they all lost their homes. They are all staying in the castle right now and anyone of them could have done this. Then, there is Senator Gigawatt. He had been the one most against our ‘relations’ with the Equestrians since this whole thing began.”
“He did want to us to use Operation Umbrella against them,” admitted Luna. “Very well; I will order the LBI to start with the three Senators, and then work their way down. I will also have them check surveillance footages to see if the criminal slipped up and allowed him- or herself to be caught on film. Once we have evidence, we shall hold trial.”
-x-
“This is a waste of time,” grumbled Gigawatt as he sat on a cushion behind a steel table. On the other side of the table sat a white earth pony mare in a black suit, wearing sun glasses. The room the two were in was completely bare of anything else. The only way in or out was the door that was behind the mare.
Gigawatt watched as she sat down several items in front of him. A blank pad of paper, a pen, and several folders which he knew contained information about him. He looked at the sloppy way she placed them on the table, and snorted. ‘Great,’ he thought in annoyance, ‘A rookie.’ Even the way she was sitting, stiff and rigid, was a dead giveaway to him that this mare had either done very few interviews in the past, or this was her first.
“Then, let’s get this over with as soon as possible,” said the white mare, whose name was Secret File. Gigawatt sighed and gestured for her to proceed. “Alight then, I’d first like you to state your name and your last three occupations.”
Gigawatt snorted once again, something he now realized he was going to be doing a lot during this interrogation. She was asking basic information that anypony could get their hooves on. Still, he answered her. “Gigawatt, currently Senator of Dome Seven. Before that, I was in charge of the LBI. And, before that, I was an agent like yourself.”
“Very good,” responded Secret Files with a nod. “That matches what we have on file. Now, I suppose you know why you’re here?”
“I am aware,” acknowledged Gigawatt. “If I didn’t, then I would be demanding my release. However, I don’t see why I am a suspect. From what I heard, the evidence points to those mares from the planet. Shouldn’t you be investigating them first?”
“Princess Luna has reason to believe that what happened to Twilight was a set-up,” replied Secret, making a quick note. “I believe the reason is that they have a weak motive.”
Gigawatt snorted. “I beg to differ,” he countered as he leaned over the table. “They’re terrorists, plain and simple. They come here, destroy our food, eject our water, and spread as much fear as they can, so we will submit to anything Celestia wants. We should have killed them when we caught them the first time, but Twilight and Stock had to open their big mouths, allowing them another chance to cause trouble!”
“That is…one theory,” said Secret, making another note. “Now, let’s get to the heart of the matter, shall we. You have been against the Republic having any dealings with Equestria since this whole thing began.”
Gigawatt rolled his eyes. “Whatever gave you that idea?”
“And, you weren’t happy when they weren’t killed on sight like you wanted,” continued Secret.
“Yes,” confirmed Gigawatt. “As were several others.”
“And, you were upset that Twilight Sparkle defended them,” continued Secret.
“…I will admit that I wasn’t happy about it,” said Gigawatt.
Secret pulled up one of the files. “A few hours before Twilight was found stabbed, it was reported that you were yelling in her room. Can you tell me more about that?”
Gigawatt shifted slightly in his seat. “It wasn’t anything important,” he commented.
“You had a fight with Twilight, and later, she got stabbed,” stated Secret. “I think that it might be important. Now, we are going to sit here until you tell me what happened. And you know better than to lie to a LBI agent. Director Sealed Document is with Senator Land Share, along with a portable truth light. Once he is done there, he will come here and use it on you. If you have been concealing information from us that is in connection to this case, then your punishment will be severe.”
‘As if I have anything to worry about a truth light,’ thought Gigawatt.
“Fine,” conceded Gigawatt. “I went to see Twilight to convince her that those Equestrians were not worth defending. That she shouldn’t be defending them after what they did to Senator Land Share. I demanded to know why she would, but she refused. That’s when it became more heated.”
“I see,” said Secret as she took a note. “Go on.”
“Nothing more to talk about,” said Gigawatt. “We just yelled back and forth for a while. I accused her of not having the Republic’s best interests at heart, and she said I was being too brutal. I tried to make her an offer, but she refused. That’s when I left.”
“What was-” began Secret, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. As she turned around, said door opened to reveal a brown stallion in a similar black suit. He walked right over to Secret and whispered in her ear. Secret then nodded before turning her attention to Gigawatt. “Looks like surveillance found something.”
-x-
Shining Armor sat in the waiting room with his head down, tears falling from his eyes. He had been like this since he had heard about what had happened to his little sister, which had been about an hour or so ago.
The news had been hard to take. He had promised his parents that he would take care of Twilight, make sure she would be safe. He had failed. Now, she was in surgery, and there wasn’t a single thing he could do to help. He could protect an entire Dome from a meteor strike, but he couldn’t do a thing to save his little sister.
The door opened catching the stallion’s eyes. The first to walk in was Shadow Blade, followed by Princess Luna. Normally, Shining would have bowed, but right now he just didn’t have the strength.
“How are you holding up?” asked Luna gently.
“I…I’m scared,” admitted Shining.
Shadow nodded grimly. “We all are,” he said. “All we can do is trust the doctors and Twilight’s stubbornness.”
A small smile appeared of Shining’s face. “Yeah,” he said slowly.
It was then the both stallions noticed that Luna’s horn was beginning to glow. Her magic then began to swirl around them, until it formed into a dome like structure. At first, it was transparent, but the more it swirled around, the more difficult it became to see through. Both of them knew what their princess had done, she had created a space where nopony else could see or overhear them, even with their most advanced technology.
“Princess, what is going on?” asked Shadow once Luna’s spell was complete. Shining stood up from his seat and moved so that he was standing next to his future brother-in-law. Both could see that, judging by the expression on her face, that Luna was having second thought about something. She then shook her head and her expression became more determined.
“There is something that I need to tell you both,” she proclaimed. “Something that I should have told you both earlier. Shadow, you suggested that Applejack had been ordered to kill Twilight under Celestia’s orders. I told you that it was impossible. However, I didn’t give you a full explanation. What I’m about to tell you, I tell you not because you are both captains, but because you are the only two I feel I can trust with this information.”
Taking a deep breath, Princess Luna began to tell them everything. At first, it was stuff they already knew, like her defeating Discord with the help of Celestia. However, soon they were hearing about the Elements of Harmony, and the role they played in Discord’s defeat. About how friendship was important in bringing them together. About how Twilight was now one of the bearers!
As Luna talked, Shining Armor’s expression continued to darken. He gritted his teeth as he did his best not to yell at his princess. He looked over at Shadow and saw that his eyes had narrowed, while his wings tightened against his body. By the time she was done, Shining could hold it in no longer.
“You used her,” roared Shining Armor, pointing an angry hoof at her while his horn lit up. “You used her like a pawn, a bucking chess piece. H-how could you do that to her?!” Shadow, meanwhile, had not said a word, but was bearing his fangs at Princess Luna while he moved into a pouncing position.
Shining kept his gaze on Princess Luna. He expected to see rage, angry at the way he was speaking to her. But, what he saw surprised him. She looked shocked at first, followed by a hurt expression.
“Do you remember when you first came to live at this castle?” asked Luna in a tone that sounded like she was barely keeping her emotions in check. “I do. The three of you had such nightmares. No matter how many times I came into your dreams, they wouldn’t go away, until I allow you to sleep in the same bed as me.
“Then, there was the Founders Landing picnic we had a few years later. Twilight had wanted to try her hoof at cooking and spent an entire day trying her best. When we all sat down to eat, you both looked at the burnt muffins and slightly liquidly daffodil sandwiches she had made for us. I thought the two of you would refuse to eat it, but one look at Twilight’s big eye expression and you both took it like stallions.
“I remember when you, Shadow Blade, wanted to ask Twilight on her first date. You had tried to get her favorite flowers, but they were far too expensive and you were too proud to ask me for the bits. Instead, you got her a book, ‘Native Flowers of Equestria’. Naturally she loved it and I still see her reading it from time to time, a smile always on her face.
“Then, there was the time you, Shining Armor, decided to join the Shield Corps. You joined around the same time Shadow Blade did, and no matter how much I tried to persuade you not to, you remained firm in your decision to keep the same tragedy that befell your parents to happen again.
“I remember all these things, as you do. So, if you really feel that I see all of you as pieces on a chess board,” Luna started as she walked over to Shining Armor. Once she was close enough, she moved his head gently with her hoof, so that his horn was right above her heart. “I ask you, if you truly believe that, then strike me down.”
Shining gulped as his magic faded. He blinked, now unsure on what to do, with his anger beginning to fade. Part of his mind was reminding himself of how much the princess loved them like her own children. But…
“I have a question,” uttered Shadow, speaking for the first time. “Did Twilight know about this?”
Luna nodded. “She did,” she answered. “I told her myself and she demanded to know why I never told her. Once I explained that I wasn’t sure if the link was permanent, and that I wanted her to live a normal life, she calmed down.”
Shining nodded his head as Shadow took a deep breath, both calming down. If Twilight knew about it and was okay with it, then there was no reason they shouldn’t be okay with it either.
“Princess, I-I sorry for the way I behaved,” apologized Shining.
Luna waved it off, “It is nothing,” she said. Then, her face grew serious. “However, we must now discuss more dire matters.”
“Agreed,” responded Shadow. “Based on what you told us, it makes it even less likely that Celestia would order Applejack to murder Twilight.”
“Unless some other pony ordered her to,” suggested Shining Armor. “Did Applejack know about the Elements?”
Luna shook her head. “My sister wanted to keep all of this a secret from them, including Twilight,” she explained. “I, however, felt it better to inform Twilight, rather than keep her in the dark.”
“I see,” stated Shining. “Then, it might be possible that some other pony ordered Applejack, or even blackmailed her into killing Twilight. It is possible that it could have been a noble, who was unhappy with the alliance, and wanted to make sure that failed. That is, if she truly was responsible for harming her.”
“But, the alliance had already failed,” Shadow pointed out. “Princess Luna herself said that even if Equestria gave us the food and water, the alliance was over.”
“I’m just saying,” began Shining Armor.
“Enough!” commanded Luna loudly, cutting off Shining Armor. “Now is not the time to argue. I told you both about the Elements, as well as Twilights connection to them, so that you could both understand my reasoning for not believing that Celestia was behind this. I want you both to keep your ears and eyes open for anything unusual. And, if things are looking at their worst, I will need both my shield and my sword by my side.”
“Yes, Princess,” gently shouted the two captains while they saluted her. Nodding, Luna lowered the dome of magic, revealing that Lightning Dust was standing outside of it. However, there was no look of amusement or joy on her face like there normally was. Instead, it was grim.
“Princess Luna,” she announced at once. “The LBI has found something.”
The halls where the Lunar Senate met were jam packed with various ponies. All thirteen senators sat in their seats with Princess Luna sitting in the middle. On one side of the room were members of the Royal Guard, lining the wall with their weapons in hoof. On the other side were members of the LBI, all of them dressed in black suits while wearing black shades. Shining Armor was there standing off to the side, ready to cast a wide range of protection spells on the Senate in case something happened. Shadow Blade was there as well, standing in front of Princess Luna with his eyes on the prisoners.
Standing in front of the Senate were the five mares from Equestria. Rarity, who was wearing one of her finest blue gowns with emeralds sewed in, stood with poise and dignity despite sporting a magic suppression ring around her horn. Both Rainbow and Fluttershy had their wings bound by a strange band that seemed to glow a pale blue color. All of them had their hooves bound to the floor by what looked like iron shackles.
Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Spike were there as well. The three of them were standing off to the side of the Equestrian mares looking untouched.
In the air was a black sphere, a recording device that was capturing every moment onto film. It orbited around the room, stopping from time to time on a random pony from the Senate or one of the prisoners.
“My little ponies,” said Luna as she addressed the room. As she spoke, the black sphere zoomed towards her and stopped a few feet to her side where it then simply hovered. “Earlier today, Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle was found by her fiancé, Captain Shadow Blade, in a near death state. An investigation was called and, standing before you, is one of the possible assailants as well as her associates. They all now stand before the judgment of the Lunar Senate. If found guilty they shall receive a punishment fitting their crime.”
“Now hold on one darn sec!” yelled Applejack causing all ponies in the room, as well as the black sphere, to look at her. “If this here is some kind of fancy trial, then don’t we get a lawyer or something?”
“The last pony who defended you is the reason you’re here facing a murder charge on top of everything else you terrorists have done!” snapped Gigawatt as he slammed his hoof against the table he and the other Senators muttered in agreement.
“Senator Gigawatt, please calm yourself,” said Luna before her icy gaze became fixed on Applejack. “The last pony who willing came forward to defend your group now lies in the hospital wing in critical condition. I doubt that there would be a lawyer in the entire Republic who would want to defend you. But do not fear. We have a method of determining the truth that has never failed us. Should we discover that the LBI has made a mistake you shall be released.”
Luna then nodded at Scorpio who stood up.
“The Senate calls for Director Sealed Document,” said the Senator from Dome One. When his name was called, one of the black suited ponies walked towards the middle of the room and stopped once he was standing right in-between the Equestrians and the Senators. He was an elder pinto earth pony with a folder for a cutie mark. He also had a black mustache which he kept perfectly trimmed. By the time he had stopped, the black sphere was now in-between Sealed and Scorpio.
“Sealed Document,” said Scorpio after he cleared his throat. “The LBI presented evidence that one of the mares from Equestria is responsible for what happened to Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle. We ask that you present this evidence.”
“Certainly,” replied the stallion. Instantly the room went dark earning a gasp from various members of the Equestria group. Then, a light appeared in the middle of the room from four square shaped images that seemed to hover in mid-air all by themselves. Each one of these squares was pointed towards a different corner on the room while showing the same thing, allowing everypony in the room to see what was going on.
After a moment, an image appeared in the boxes. It looked like a random hallway with nopony in it. Then, Applejack appeared to be walking in it just as Twilight and Gigawatt came out of the room yelling at each other.
“The castle security system recorded these events,” said Sealed as he muted the footage so that everypony could hear him. “While I and a few other agents were interviewing Senators Land Share, Gigawatt, and April Showers, I had a few ponies going over the security to see if anything was abnormal.”
“What did they find?” asked Scorpio as the footage showed Twilight and Applejack entering Twilight’s room.
“Everything was in perfect working order,” said Sealed Document with a sigh. “The computer logs showed that the teleportation redirection field was never deactivated so nopony could teleport into Twilight’s room. Thus we were forced to look at this footage with a filter that would try and spot distortions and body temperatures to see anypony was using an invisibility spell or cloaking device. We spotted none.” By this point, the footage showed Applejack leaving Twilight’s room.
“Thus, what you are about to see speaks for itself,” said Sealed Document as he began to fast forward the images. For a minute or two, nothing was shown besides an empty hallway. Then it stopped as Applejack once again began to walk down towards Twilight’s room.
Shadow pressed his ears against his head as he watched Applejack knock on the door. A moment later the door opened and Applejack walked in. Shadow scanned the image and saw that there was a time stamp at the bottom. According to this, Applejack met up with Twilight a second time a half hour before he heard Land Share scream. A few minutes later, Applejack left the room.
Shadow Blade tilted his head as the footage began to fast forward once more. Something didn’t seem right. What it was he couldn’t put his hoof on, but he felt like he had missed something. He glanced over at Applejack and saw that her eyes were wide with shock. Normally, he would assume that they thought they were smart enough to get away with the crime or something like that. However, mixed with the shocked expression was something else. Confusion?
The footage slowed down once again to show Land Share now walking towards Twilight’s room. Everypony in the room watched Land Share knocked again before opening the door. He then let out a scream and backed up against the wall.
“As you can see,” said Sealed Document as the image vanished and light returned to the room, “The only pony to enter Twilight’s room that night was the name known as Applejack. No other pony could have done so.”
“That’s a lie!” yelled Applejack. “Ah’d never hurt a friend.”
“Silence!” roared Princess Luna. “One more outburst like that and you shall be silenced until you are questioned. Is that clear?”
“But she didn’t do it!” yelled Rainbow Dash. “She couldn’t have. She was with us all night! I don’t know what we just saw but-” That’s as far as Rainbow Dash got as a red light washed over her and the other mares. Rainbow continued to talk, but no words left her mouth.
“Better,” said Luna with a nod. She then looked at Sealed Document with a slight frown. “Are you sure this footage hasn’t been tampered with?”
“It hasn’t,” said Sealed Document. “I verified it myself.”
Luna looked at him for a moment longer before nodding. “Are there any more questions for Director Sealed Document?”
“None from me,” said Scorpio. The other Senators responded similarly.
“Very well then,” said Princess Luna as she looked at Sealed Document. “You may step down.” Once he had done so, Luna addressed everypony in the room. “We will now allow the defendant Applejack to tell her side of the story underneath the truth light.”
“Just a moment Princess,” said Gigawatt as gained the attention of the entire room. “I would request that we start with the two who should have been under the truth light yesterday. I wish them to be questioned so that we will be able to see how deep Equestria’s treachery goes.”
“I agree,” said Land Share as heads turned to look at him now. “While I do hope that what happened yesterday was not intentional, I would still like to hear it from them.”
“This is unusual,” said Luna as she place a hoof on her chin. She debated over the issue for a moment or two before nodding. “Very well, we shall hear from Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie first. However, I wish to keep it brief.”
“As you wish,” said Gigawatt.
From his spot, Shadow watched as the light on Fluttershy shifted from red to neutral. As it did, Shadow thought he heard a very soft thud overhead. The stallion quickly looked around to see if anypony else had heard it as well. From the looks of it none of the other guards had reacted at all nor had any of the LBI. In fact, the only pony who did seem to hear it was Gigawatt who was glaring at the ceiling.
“Senator,” said Princess Luna. “The truth light is on. You may begin your questioning.”
This caused Gigawatt’s attention to snap towards Fluttershy. “Could you state your name for the court?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.
“F-Fluttershy,” she said.
“Good,” said Gigawatt with a slight nod. “Now, according to file submitted my Twilight Sparkle, you are in charge of the trees in Ponyville. Is that correct?”
As he said this, a few Senators turned and gave Gigawatt an odd look. Even Shadow, who kept his gaze of Fluttershy, wondered why he asked that question. Hadn’t he read the file? ‘Maybe he is worried about that noise from earlier and wants to make sure the truth light is working right,’ thought Shadow.
“Ah, no,” said Fluttershy as she shook her head. “I’m in charge of taking care of all the animals in Ponyville, not the trees. But I’d like to be a tree.”
A wave of not-quite humor rippled through the crowd, and even Gigawatt scrunched his eyebrows in confoundment at the yellow pegasus’ answer.
‘Well that was an odd response,’ thought Shadow. ‘But at least we all know that the truth light is working.’
“You are the one who brought a parasprite into the Republic, is that correct?” asked Gigawatt.
“Yes,” she said with a nod. “It had been given to be right before I arrived.”
“Interesting,” replied Gigawatt as a small smile appeared on his face. “By whom?”
“Prince Blueblood,” said Fluttershy. As soon as she said that, nearly everypony in the room began to talk at once. The Equestrian mares looked at each other in shock except for Rarity whose eyes narrowed. Silently she vowed to make the Prince pay for using one of her friends like this.
“Did you willingly release the parasprite, knowing what it would do?” yelled Gigawatt, his voice cutting through the rest of the crowd. The room then went quiet so all could hear Fluttershy’s answer.
“Yes,” she said as a shocked look appeared on her face. “I did it in the name of Celestia and for the good of Equestria.”
Angry voices filled the room while Shadow stared in disbelief at the mare. She looked horrified by what she had said and seemed to be on the verge of tears. He had seen similar looks before from other ponies who had confused under a truth light believing that they could get away with their crime. Yet while he had felt no pity for them, for some strange reason it wasn’t the case with Fluttershy. He simply couldn’t believe that she could have done such a terrible thing. Even the spectrum-maned pegasus was agape with a look of complete shock and utter confusion at her friend.
But, at the same time, a part of him was saying that it had to be true. Nopony before had been able to keep a secret or tell a lie while standing underneath a truth light. Gigawatt had even done a warm up question to make sure that the light was working. What she was saying had to be the truth no matter what he personally felt.
Meanwhile, the light on Fluttershy turned red as the tears began to run down her face. As it did, the truth light above Pinkie Pie activated. Gigawatt opened his mouth to ask his questions but was cut off by April Showers.
“I’m going to cut to the chase,” snarled the Senator as she glared at Pinkie Pie with obvious hatred. “Did you purposely dump our water into the vacuum of space?”
“Yes,” said Pinkie Pie. As soon as she said that, she began to shake her head ‘no’ while she continued to talk. “I did it in the name of Celestia and for the good of Equestria.”
Once again, all ponies in the room began to talk. Most were yelling angrily at the pink mare while a few others seemed to whisper darkly to each other. Shadow, for his part, felt his jaw drop slightly due to shock. He couldn’t believe it! He quickly glanced around to the room to see if anypony else was as shocked and confused as he felt. Most just looked angry.
Gigawatt, he noticed, had a looked of triumph on his face. ‘Not surprising,’ thought the bat pony. ‘He said we couldn’t trust Equestrians and now it looks like he’s been proven correct.’
It was then that Shadow noticed the Senator from Dome Three. Land Share seemed to look saddened before he turned his head to look away. ‘Poor guy,’ thought Shadow. ‘He was always the one to give Equestria a chance. It must feel like a buck to the gut to hear this.’
It was then that Shadow noticed something out of the corner of his eye that made him cringe. Princess Luna as raising her right front leg. The captain of the guard quickly brought up his forelegs to cover his ears just in as Luna stomped on the ground creating a noise like thunder. Everypony in the room suddenly went silent as she looked at the crowd for a moment.
“I believe we are done with Miss Pie,” she said slowly as her chilling gave fixed on Pinkie Pie. “Call up Miss Applejack so we may finish this.”
“Y-Yes,” said Gigawatt as Pinkie Pie was enveloped in red light.
A half second later Applejack found herself under the truth light. She could feel herself becoming lightheaded, but did her best to fight it and stay focused.
“Please state your name and profession,” said Gigawatt.
“Mah name is Applejack an ah’m farmer from Sweet Apple Acres,” replied Applejack automatically.
“Now, let’s get right to the point,” said Gigawatt. “Earlier in the trial you witnessed the footage submitted by the LBI. Did you visit Twilight Sparkle a second time that night?”
“Y-” began Applejack, but then she stopped. Sweat began to pour out of her body and she shut her eyes tightly. After a few moments and with a look of strain Applejack blurted out, “Y-Yes.”
“When you went to see her that second time, did you attack her?” demanded Gigawatt as he ignored Applejack’s reaction.
“Ynn…Ynnghh-YES!” screamed Applejack as she fell to the floor, tears rolling down her face as she clutched her head. “I went there with the apple peeler hidden under my hat and I stabbed her!”
“Why?” demanded Gigawatt.
“Princess Celestia ordered her death for ruining the merger back in Ponyville!” cried out Applejack so that all could hear her though her face was still twisted in agony. “I did it the name of Celestia and for the good of Equestria!”
As the chamber erupted in angry shouting and hoof-stomping, Applejack then opened her eyes and for a moment they locked onto Shadow’s. It lasted only seconds, but in that time Shadow felt a deep unease. Her eyes seemed to beg to him. Telling him that what she said wasn’t the truth. And then Applejack’s eyes rolled to the back of her head as she collapsed onto the floor convulsing.
“Turn it off!” yelled Shadow as he approached the twitching mare to check her vitals.
“Do it,” said Land Share, looking sickly green at the mare lying on the floor in her own sweat and spittle, as the light changed to red. “We…we have what we need.”
“Yes,” said Gigawatt, ignoring the fallen mare, as he turned to Princess Luna. “Princess, you have heard their testimonies while under the effect of a truth light. They have admitted to not only assault and attempted murder but acts of terrorism as well. I beg you to call for the death vote!”
Princess Luna closed her eyes. “You are correct,” she said. “We have heard them admit their guilt. And based on the evidence, I know what I must do.” Slowly, Luna opened her eyes. “All those in favor of the death penalty please raise your hoof.”
The Equestrians watched in horror as hooves began to raise. The first was Gigawatt’s which shot into the air with lightning speed. One by one their hooves raised until Land Share remained. He looked around and then he to raised his hoof. When he did, Princess Luna nodded.
“Very well,” she said. “The vote is unanimous. The five of you shall be put to death which will be set at a later date. The method of death shall depend on whether or not Twilight Sparkle lives. Should she pull through, you shall be granted a quick death via vacuum of space once Twilight is awake so that she may witness it herself. However, should she die, the five of you shall be placed in prison pods and then ejected towards the sun. It will be a long, painful, and maddening death as the prison pod keep you alive for years as you fly towards the sun.”
The mares looked horrified by this declaration. However, their fear was ignored by most of the ponies in the room. Many of they cheered and stomped their hooves in agreement with their sentence.
“Princess Luna,” called out Senator Scorpio, cutting through the celebration. “What of the others?”
“What others?” asked the princess as the room began to quiet down.
“I am talking about the fillies and the dragon,” replied Scorpio. “We know that they snuck into the Republic. We cannot rule out they were also sent here to assist their older counterparts. We also know that Celestia sent us a dragon which Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle wisely shot with a DNA nanobullet to neutralize its potentially catastrophic threat. For now it is a pony, but there is a chance that it will return to its draconic state and go on a rampage. I believe that in the interest of national security that they should share the same fate as those five.”
For a moment, nopony spoke. A few ponies around the room looked like they were considering it which shocked Shadow. He looked over at Shining to see that he had a look of disgust on his face.
Meanwhile, Applejack opened her eyes to look at her sister and her friends as she laid there on the floor. All three of them looked both shocked and confused by what was going on. ‘No,’ thought Applejack as she tried to move her body. ‘They won’t hurt mah little sis.’ Sadly, her body refused to move due to the pain and disorientation she was experiencing.
“Perhaps it might be for the best,” said one of the other senators.
“That, of course, includes the Equestrian filly Scootaloo,” continued Scorpio. “For all we know she was an advance scout of some kind.”
“That is outrageous!” yelled Shadow as he turned around fully to look at them all.
“Is it?” yelled Scorpio as he pointed a hoof at the captain. “Not only did the Equestrian slip past all of the Republic’s security, but it also managed to ingratiate herself with two of the highest security-cleared ponies within the Republic! Not only that but she has been graced with our technology which now resides with her body, nicely tucked away so that when she returns to Equestria they will be able to study it and reverse engineer it. Now you will be silent! This is a matter for the senate to decide.”
“No, I will not,” said Shadow as he stretched out his wings. “Twilight brought Scootaloo to the Republic to help her fly in the heat of the moment. She never had any idea where we were from so your theory already has a huge hole in it. And, if she was some kind of scout, then how was she supposed to contact Equestria? Heck, how was she supposed to return?”
“Well…” began Scorpio, floundering.
“I agree with Captain Shadow Blade,” interupted Luna. “Since Scootaloo came to the Republic she has done nothing to warrant something this serious. Nor have the other two fillies. As long as I am your princess, we will not execute ponies on mere suspicion. Is that clear?”
“Yes Princess,” replied Scorpio. “But all the same, something should be done. Perhaps, in order to have Scootaloo better adapt to the Republic, we should have her sentenced to the Living Death. Perhaps we could do the same to the other two fillies so that they can become members of the Republic.”
“She’s a filly!” roared Shadow as he flattened his ears. “You can’t do that to her!”
“And we won’t,” said Luna as she glared at Scorpio. “Scootaloo has, from what I have heard, been adjusting to life in the Republic just fine. She has shown great courage during the Sunset Shimmer incident. And I am sure that Twilight would be furious with us if we tampered with her daughters mind.”
“And what about the other fillies from Equestria?” asked April Showers. “We could make them members of the Republic and they would never know about their time in Equestria.”
“That is unacceptable,” said Gigawatt as he stomped his hoof. “Using the Living Death on fillies is simply wrong.” He then looked up at Princess Luna. “Princess, please consider this. Allow me to take in Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle. I am sure that my wife would be fine with it.”
Luna nodded. “If that is true then I have no problem. At a later date we shall decide if they should remain or be sent back to their families after our dealing with Equestria are over.”
“And the dragon?” asked Scorpio. “It still poses a danger to the Republic.”
Luna tapped her chin a few times before answering. “We shall send him to Director Bunsen Burner. Perhaps he can make the change permanent. If that proves to be impossible, then he can study the dragon in order to improve on our anti-dragon defenses. Once that is over he shall share the same fate as the other mares. Court is adjourned.”
-x-
About an hour later, Shadow found himself standing next to Twilight’s bed. She was lying there with her eyes closed while wearing a breathing mask. There was also an IV drip sending a green liquid into her body. In the background he could hear the steady beeping of a heart monitor.
“Hang in there Twilight,” said Shadow as he moved some strands of her mane away from her face. The doctors had told him that Twilight was almost out of the danger zone, that they were confident that she would wake up within a day or two and then she would be fine.
If only he could stay here so that he would be the first pony she saw when she woke up. Right now he was lucky to be here at all. After the trail, Princess Luna had called a closed session of the Senate to discuss how they would proceed now armed with this new information. Right before the meeting began there had been a call from the doctors saying that Twilight had just come out of surgery. While Princess Luna couldn’t leave due to the meeting, she did allow Shadow to go see her for a short amount of time.
“I have to go now Twilight,” said Shadow as he gently kissed her cheek. “I’ll come back as soon as I can.”
He lingered for another moment before he forced himself to leave his beloved’s side. It took him several minutes until he found himself in front of the doors that lead to the throne room. He opened them to find only two ponies in the room: Princess Luna and Land Share.
“There is no need to apologize Princess,” Land Share was saying. “I was a suspect at the time.”
“It was hard to see you as such,” said Luna as she lowered her head slightly. “Believe me, I would have never of-” Luna then turned her head towards Shadow’s direction. “Ah, Shadow. Excellent timing. How is Twilight?”
“It looks like she’ll make it,” replied the bat pony as he walked into the room.
Land Share let out a sigh. “That’s good to hear,” he said. “Now, if you don’t mind Princess, I’d like to pay her a visit myself.”
Luna gifted him a gentle smile. “Of course you may.”
“Thank you,” said Land Share as he made his way to the door. “Poor mare. S-She didn’t deserve what happened to her. If only it had never come to this.” And with that he left the room just as Shining Armor entered the room.
“Well, looks like we’re all here,” began Shadow who was still somewhat unsure about what he had observed during the trial. He knew there was something off, but he just couldn’t put his hoof on it. Still, he thought it best just to at least mention it and see if the others noticed something was off as well. “Princess, there is something I need to talk to you about.”
“It’s about the trial,” said Luna with a smile. “I thought you would notice something was wrong. I would have been very disappointed had you not.”
“You noticed it too?” asked Shadow.
“Yes, that odd phrase they all used,” replied Luna. “I find it very odd that they all said ‘I did it in the name of Celestia and for the good of Equestria’.”
Shadow brought a hoof to his chin as he thought back to the trial. It was true, they had all said the same thing. Funny he hadn’t noticed it until Luna had brought it up.
“But what does that mean?” asked Shining Armor.
“I believe that it is meant to make us believe that my sister ordered those mares to attack Twilight or cause trouble for the Republic,” said Luna as she slipped out of her formal regalia and into another set with micro-circuitry extensively lining the interior.
“Yet,” continued Luna as she locked the regalia pieces together, as they glowed and hummed briefly with the connected lines of energy that then faded, “the more I take a step back and look at this situation, the more it seems that somepony else planned all of this. Remember what Fluttershy said, that Blueblood gave her the parasprite? It is my belief that he was the one giving them orders and telling them that Celestia had approved it. That, or he used a spell on them. We’ll know more once Twilight wakes up.”
“Is that why you postponed their executions?” asked Shadow who was slightly awed by his Princess’ thinking.
Luna nodded. “When Twilight wakes up, she will be able to inform us of everything that happened in that room. If Applejack looked hesitant or seemed in a trance or anything out of the ordinary. If something odd was going on we can hold a retrial and then lessen their sentence.”
“So what do we do in the meantime?” asked Shining Armor.
“We are going to Equestria,” said Luna as her face hardened slightly. “The three of us, along with several others from both guards, are going to have a talk with Celestia. I discussed the situation with the Senate in a close session after the trial and, while they aren’t thrilled about it, they realize we are in desperate need of food and water. And while I’m sure they would all love to see those mares ejected into the vacuum of space, it would do us little good if we starve shorty afterwords. So, we are willing to consider letting them return to Equestria in return for the food, water, and Blueblood.”
“Consider?” echoed Shining Armor.
“It depends on what we find out from him as well,” replied Luna. “While I find it extremely unlikely, I cannot discount the off-chance possibility that Celestia may have indeed planned this.”
“And if she refuses our demands?” asked Shadow.
Luna sighed. “We will have a backup plan,” replied Luna. “Of which I have orders for the both of you.” The two captains straightened into attention.
"Shadow," Luna nodded to the bat pony, "you are to have Sealed Document report to me immediately. He is to bring all the security camera footage we have from our Embassy in Canterlot, both interior and exterior of the facility."
"Shining," continued Luna, turning to the white unicorn, "you are to inform Captain Starway report to me as well. She is also to prepare the Crescent Hope for departure to the planet before reporting to me for her own mission details."
"Finally," said the alicorn as she took a step back, "you both are to personally select your best ponies to form an Honor Guard to provide escort for our mission to Equestria. Be sure they are fully prepared for anything we may face in Canterlot."
Luna's face wore a frown, "Our relations with Equestria are at an end," she said grimly, "and if my suspicions are on track, there may not be a diplomatic solution to end things cleanly between our nations. Even from my sister..."
‘Everything is ready,’ thought Shadow Blade as he looked at the guards he had chosen to accompany the Princess. ‘Well, as ready as it can be, at least.’ Each one had been hoof-picked by him and chosen for their own particular set of skills. Now they all stood before their captain in a single file line, ready for action.
The first one had been Lightning Dust, whose speed was unmatched by any of the current guard. Even he had trouble keeping up with the speedy mare. Shadow was certain that if trouble occurred, then she would be able to take down several of the enemy before they had a chance to blink.
Once he had decided on Lightning Dust, Shadow had next chosen a bat pony mare with a blood red coat and a dark green mane that covered her left eye. Her name was Overkill. That wasn’t her original name, of course. The name she had been born with was Peaceful Night. However, once she got her cutie mark, a sword surrounded by dynamite, she decided to change her name to something more…fitting.
And “overkill” certainly described her weapons arsenal. Attached to the side of her armor was a large battle axe, with a bright blue blade that one needed to wield it with two hooves. Sheathed on her back were two thin looking metal sticks that resembled darts. These were her favorite weapons. Finally, she had two bandoliers full of grenades that crisscrossed the barrel of her armor.
The other two that Shadow had chosen were two earth pony twins. Both of them had what looked like the guns that were used in the laser tag battles attached to their armor. However, these were a bit more deadly if somepony got hit. They were also sporting extra armor on both of their forelegs.
“Looks like you have a good group,” noted a voice behind Shadow. The bat pony looked around to see Shining Armor walking towards him, with Red Shirt a few steps behind him who was also sporting a blaster on his back.
“Thank you,” replied Shadow before turning his attention towards the red earth pony. “Is Captain Starway ready on her end?”
“The Captain just left for the planet,” replied Red Shirt. “Since she feels that she has more than enough ponypower for her mission, she has asked that I accompany to Canterlot, so that members of all three guards will protecting the Princess.”
“I have no problem with that,” replied Shadow before turning to look at Shining. “So, who are you bringing?”
“Private Donut,” replied Shining Armor. “He’s down at the embassy right now, ready to go.”
“Then, let’s not keep him waiting,” said Shadow. The bat pony spun around, so he could address his soldiers. However, it was not to give any big speech or anything like that. They had already been briefed on what was to happen.
They would be teleporting to the Lunar Embassy in Canterlot, where they would then walk towards the castle. They were going there to protect their Princess. They would not engage the Equestrians unless they made the first move. In the end, there was only one thing Shadow had to say. “Honor Guard, let’s move out!”
As a group, the ponies began to march towards the teleporter that would send them to Equestria in complete silence. Any pony who saw them coming, quickly moved out of the way. Some even saluted them.
Then, just as they were about to reach their final destination, Shadow saw Land Share. The senator was just sitting in the hallway, while looking at the floor with his ears flat against his skull. At first, he didn’t react when the Lunar Guards approached, but as Shadow was about to pass him by, Land Share quickly stood up.
“Captain, may I have a word?” he said quickly.
Shadow nodded before motioning the others to continue without him. As Shadow turned to look at the senator, he noticed that he was shifting on his hooves. He also sweating a bit and his eyes didn’t quite meet Shadow’s. This was odd, because Land Share had never had a problem talking to Shadow before.
“Is everything alright?” asked Shadow.
“Hopefully,” replied Land Share with a sigh. “Shadow, before you go, I need you to promise me something.”
“Ok?” said Shadow slowly, not knowing where this is going. It was then that Land Share looked him in the eye with a dead serious expression on his face.
“I want you to promise me you’ll come back,” he beseeched.
“I…what?” stated a confused Shadow.
“You have to come back,” pleaded Land Share. “Twilight, when she wakes, she’s going to need you. She has already been through so much, and if she wakes and you’re not there…”
Slowly, a small smile appeared on Shadow’s face as he placed a hoof on Land Share’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry,” said Shadow. “We’re not going down there to start any trouble. Hopefully, Princess Celestia will work with us by hoofing over Blueblood, so we can get to the bottom of this assassination attempt. But, if something does go wrong, we will have some of the best ponies on the ground supporting each other. I’ll be back and when Twilight wakes up, the first thing she’ll see is all of our smiling faces.”
Land Share didn’t say anything. He simply gave a sad smile before he walked away.
-x-
“Listen up, those Lunar ponies have been seen approaching the castle,” said Stareye as he addressed his ranked officers, while taking another sniff of the white powder from his saddle bag. “I want all of you to make sure you inform your underlings to keep those mongrels a safe distance away from Princess Celestia. Should any of them make so much as a threatening gesture to our beloved Princess, it is the Royal Guard’s duty to remove their heads. Is that clear?”
“Yes sir,” responded most of them. One of those that didn’t respond was Hot Pants and, sadly for her, Stareye noticed this.
“Do you have a problem understanding my orders, Lieutenant?” demanded Stareye, once again snorting some of his powder.
Hot Pants did her best to hide her disgust as she answered. “No sir, I understand your orders,” she replied. “However, with all due respect, I believe we should be a bit more careful before we attack, or we might start up a war.”
Stareye’s gaze hardened, glaring at the mare. “How dare you-”
“At ease, Captain,” said the calm voice of Blueblood as he entered the room. “The new Lieutenant has a legitimate concern.”
“But she dared to question her superior,” spat Stareye. “I should have her chained and whipped for her insolence!”
“Another time, perhaps,” supposed Blueblood, then walked over to Hot Pants. He flashed her a smile that would normally melt a mare’s heart, before he spoke to her. “Now then, allow me to explain. Normally, you would be correct in holding off such aggression to something so minor.
“However, Princess Luna is a pony that cannot be trusted, given that she has shown our beloved Princess such disrespect. Why, she shot poor Princess Celestia out of a cannon and into the Archives. She then sends demands upon demands and refuses to listen to reason. I fear that she, as well as the rest of those Lunar ponies, is a bit unstable. Best not to take any chances, don’t you agree?”
“I guess,” Hot Pants relented reluctantly, though doubts still filled her thoughts. “But-”
“Splendid,” interrupted Blueblood as he took a few steps back, in order to address everypony in the room. “Soon, Princess Celestia will be meeting with Princess Luna. Should it look like our beloved Princess might be in danger, it is up to you, and those under your command, to make sure that she stays safe no matter the cost. If battle does occur, we must finish it here and now. Even if Princess Celestia orders you to stand down, we must not; not only in order to protect just her, but all that we hold dear.”
Blueblood then paused to see if his words were having any affect. From what he could see, all but the two mares seem to be nodding or showing some other form of support. That would have to do for now. “Now you all have your orders. Yes? Good. You are dismissed.”
With that, the ranked officers of the Royal Guard began to file out of the room. According to Captain Stareye, the majority of guards closest to Princess Celestia would be earth ponies, with a few unicorns here and there. The rest of the unicorns were positioned around castle, so that they could fire their magic from a safe distance. Pegasi were to remain on standby until an actual fight broke on. From there, they would serve as air support. As for the newly promoted officers, they would be safe in the castle, watching things unfold from special viewing orbs and communicating to their assigned units with their magic.
The last one to leave was Hot Pants, who kept her eye on Blueblood and Stareye. She had a look in her eye as if she had finally found the last piece of a puzzle she had been working on, and didn’t like what she saw.
“I don’t see why you had to do that,” whined Stareye after Hot Pants had left. “I had already given them my orders and all they had to do was follow them!”
“Ah, it seems you never learned to subtle art of motivation,” exclaimed Blueblood as he began to walk out a different door towards the castle entrance, with Stareye following him. “Zealous and motivated pawns are much easier to control. And once Princess Luna arrives, it will be checkmate!”
As the two continued to walk, Blueblood couldn’t help but go over his perfect plan in his head for the hundredth time that day. Right now, Luna was in check. From everything he knew about her said that she would be furious once Princess Celestia announced that they would be unable to give the Republic everything that they were demanding.
Once that anger flared, the guards would be upon her in moments, where she would then be their prisoner. Then, once they got to court, Blueblood and his allies would convince Princess Celestia that they could take over the Republic, without a drop of blood being split. After all, with no food, water, or royalty, those foolish lunar ponies would have no choice but to submit to their demands.
There was another course that the situation could take. It was unlikely, but Princess Luna might actually fall into despair when she hears the news. Then, he could step in and inform her of his idea for the Republic. Truth be told, he held little hope for that idea.
The only thing he could see ruining his plans was Princess Celestia. There was a chance that she had managed to find a way to get Luna the food and water that the Republic was demanding, without getting most of it from Equestria. If anypony could do something like that in one night, it would be his auntie. However, he felt confident that, if something like that happened, he would be in the clear until another opportunity presented itself.
As the two made their way towards the castle gate, they spotted Majesty walking down a stairway in front of them. When she saw them, she walked a little faster towards Stareye.
“Captain Stareye,” she called out as she approached them. “I was wondering if I could borrow a few of your guards.”
“Whatever for?” asked the Captain.
“My chariot driver, a pegasus stallion named Scooter, has been missing for some time now,” explained Majesty. “I haven’t seen him since he took me to Prince Blueblood’s home. At first, I thought my husband had contacted him or something of that nature, but none of my staff has seen him.”
“You want me to use my guards to look for a missing servant?” asked Stareye, rolling his eyes. “To do so would be a waste of our resources!”
“I-” began Majesty, but was cut off as Prince Blueblood raised his hoof.
“I’m afraid now isn’t the time to be looking for one missing stallion,” he said with a frown. “Perhaps he quit and left without saying anything.”
“He would never!” shouted Majesty. Her eyes then widened a bit and she took a deep breath to compose herself. “Ahem. I mean, he lives at my estate, and all of his possessions are still there, so I do not believe that is the case.”
“Still, this isn’t the work of the guard,” noted Blueblood. “Try contacting the Canterlot police. Now, if you will excuse us.” With that, the two stallions walked away from Majesty, whose head began to hang low.
-x-
“Are you sure?” Luna asked Sealed Document as they stood in front of a large computer screen within their embassy.
“I have checked all of the security cameras and, I am sorry to say, found nothing,” answered the pinto stallion with a sigh. “I have footage with Blueblood being with the Equestria delegation when embassy landed, as well as Private Doughnut giving him a cavity search for some reason, but nothing of him giving Fluttershy a parasprite.”
Luna let out a sigh. “That is…unfortunate,” she said. “I was hoping to show this to my sister as proof of his misdeeds.”
“We do still have their confessions,” Sealed pointed out. “Won’t that be enough?”
Luna thought about this for a moment. While it was true that in the Republic something like a confession under a truth light would be all the proof one needed. But, sadly, they weren’t in the Republic right now. More than likely somepony might think that they forced them to say those things, because they didn’t understand how the technology worked.
“It will have to be,” said Luna after a while. “Those confessions, as well as the footage of Applejack going to Twilight’s room, are our proof.” She then paused for a moment and shortly later gave sealed a nod. “You have done well. Double check all the footage once more, and then prepare the embassy for departure.”
With that, Princess Luna departed the security room of the embassy and made her way towards the exit. Outside, waiting for her, were her guards all standing in attention in a single straight line.
“Is everything set?” asked Princess Luna.
“Almost,” replied Shining Armor, stepping forward. “We just need every pony to do a system check before we proceed. That includes you as well, Princess.”
Luna raised an eyebrow. “Are sure this is necessary, Captain?”
“Now is the best time to do so,” he explained. “If a situation was to occur and somepony’s armor was to malfunction at the start, it could possibly endanger the whole group. Right now, we are near the embassy so, if there was a pony here whose armor wasn’t up to one hundred percent, he or she could easily get it replaced.”
“I see,” said Luna with a nod. “That’s a good call, Captain.”
Shining Armor allowed himself a small grin. “Just doing my job, Princess.”
Smiling back at him, Princess Luna touched the crescent moon of her regalia with her hoof, while saying “System check.” At once, her regalia began to give off a light blue glow, showing that it was getting to work at her request.
“All systems are currently working at one hundred percent efficiency,” declared a female computerized voice. “No malfunctions or irregularities to report. Power level is at one hundred percent.” Luna could hear similar things from the rest of her guards’ armors.
“Good,” said Princess Luna after they had all finished. “Now let us depart. The sooner we talk to Princess Celestia, the sooner we can leave.”
With a nod from her Guard, they all began to move out in formation. To her right was Shadow, with Shining Armor to her left. Directly behind her were the three earth ponies, and behind them were Lightning Dust as well as Overkill. Bringing up the rear was Doughnut.
“Princess,” said Shadow in a low voice, so nopony could overhear him. “While you were inside, I checked in with Captain Starway. She has made it to her destination and has begun her mission. However, if we need an emergency evacuation, it will take her ten minutes to get to Canterlot at top speed.”
Luna nodded. “That is good to hear,” she replied. “Let us hope that she will not need to come here.”
-x-
Several minutes later, Celestia stood at the front gate of the castle to greet her sister. She had done her best to get cleaned up and put on her best smile, so she could make a good impression, but that was difficult to do when she saw her new Captain of the Royal Guard.
In the short time, Captain Stareye had been standing next to her; Celestia had been repulsed by him several times. The most constant one was when the stallion reached into his saddle bags for his white powder. If she had the time, she would have removed him from his position and gotten another pony to take his place. But, sadly, there wasn’t enough time to do so before Luna arrived. Right now, all she could do was hope he didn’t make a scene.
Celestia also didn’t like the number of guards around them. She must have counted at least fifty earth ponies, clad in their golden armor with spears and shields at the ready. Standing next to her and the Captain were two unicorn guards with spears. Celestia feared that this kind of military show might make Luna feel…unease to say the least.
Still, she had hope that she could smooth all of this with her sister. Late last night, Celestia had sent several letters to her allies, explaining the situation. It was only a half hour ago that she had received an answer. It was from Emperor Eagle Eye, saying that he would be more than willing to donate a portion of his country’s rice to help Luna. He also stated that he would send his own notes to races like the horses, donkeys, and hippogriffs to help convince them to do the same.
“The Lunar ponies are approaching,” called out a guard from the distance.
Celestia took a deep breath in order to help her keep her nerves under control. Within moments, she could see Luna approaching her while being accompanied by several other ponies. Even from this distance, Celestia could see that Luna was not wearing a dress or the armor that she wore when they both met with the griffons. Instead, she was dressed in silver regalia instead of her normal black. As she drew closer, Celestia noticed that Luna’s expression was more serious than normal.
If Luna was worried about the amount of Canterlot guards, she did not show it. Her eyes seemed to be fixed on Celestia, cold and piercing. Not even when the Royal Guard moved in closer, seemingly to block their exit, did Luna’s focus waver.
“Tell your troops to back up a bit,” whisper Celestia to Stareye.
Stareye, however, gave her an annoyed look. “They seem fine to me,” he stated dismissively.
“I said-” began Celestia, trying her best to keep her composure, but stopped as Luna stopped walking, standing only a few feet away. Quickly, the sun princess cleared her throat. “Princess Luna, I welcome you to my humble kingdom once again. I only wish the situation was different.”
“I’m sure,” agreed Luna coldly, causing Celestia to shiver slightly. “However, I believe you don’t know how badly the situation has gotten.”
Celestia’s eyes widened in quick realization of what Luna was saying. Something had happened, something bad. In her head, Celestia prayed that whatever it was, Luna hadn’t done something drastic in her rage.
“Last night,” continued Luna, “my Prized Student and Assistant Director of the Science Division were assaulted. If it wasn’t for her own magical skills, she would be dead right now. The culprit was none other than one of the mares you sent, Applejack. Furthermore, we discovered that she as well as the other two mares that committed crimes in the Republic did so under orders of your crown.”
As Luna said that last sentence, she pointed a hoof at a stunned Celestia. However, when she did so, she found two spears being trusted at her. At once, her guards pulled out their weapons, ready to defend the moon princess. This in turn caused the rest of Celestia’s Royal Guard to ready their own weapons.
Seeing what was happening broke Celestia from her shock. “Stand down,” ordered Celestia gently. However, her guards kept their hardened gazes on the lunar ponies, not lowering their weapons in the slightest. “Stand. Down,” she repeated, but with more force. It worked this time, but slower than she would have wanted.
“Luna,” began Celestia as she looked at her sister. “You don’t believe that I would ever order something like that.”
“If I did, I would not be standing here right now,” said Luna, not even bothering to correct her sister for forgetting her title. “However, the situation has forced my hoof. Applejack and her friends have been tried for their crimes in our courts earlier today and were found guilty. As such, they have received the death penalty.”
“B-but, you can’t,” stammered Celestia in horror. How could Luna do something like that? Had she forgotten that those ponies were to be the bearers of the Elements of Harmony? She couldn’t kill them!
“Unacceptable!” shouted Blueblood. Celestia turned her head to look behind to see that Blueblood and several of the other nobles were standing at the castle entrance, along with more guards. Among their ranks was Lord North Star, who was staring at Blueblood with a look that said ‘shut up, you idiot’. There was also Fancy Pants, who was looking at the prince with a disapproving frown.
Sadly, they were alone with this, while all of the other nobles seemed to be nodding their heads in agreement as Blueblood continued to speak. “How dare you try our ponies in your courts without even consulting us?! This is an outrage. After we decided to give you a tenth of your ridiculous demands, this is how you act?”
Luna’s eyes narrowed at Celestia as dark clouds began to appear above the castle. “A tenth? That was all that we were going to get? Do you not understand that thousands of my little ponies will die due to dehydration and starvation, unless our supplies are refilled?! I refuse to let that happen and I will do whatever it takes to prevent that!”
The air around Luna suddenly began to chill. While it wasn’t cold enough for ice to form, it was beginning to get to the point where ponies could see their breath.
“Please Luna,” began Celestia as she took a step back, while her guards held up their weapons, ready to use them at a moment’s notice. “You have to listen to me. I was able to-”
“No, you will listen,” stated Luna loudly. “If you want there to even be a chance of getting those five back alive, you will submit to our demands. We will get all the food and water that was lost, as well as Prince Blueblood, who I believe is the true mastermind behind all of this. If you refuse, then we will take them by force. And believe me, you do not want that.”
“Outrageous!” shouted Blueblood once more before he turned to look at Celestia. “Auntie, I must implore you not to submit to these threats! They have taken your citizens, hold them against their will, and are now spinning lies in order to milk us of our resources. You must be strong and not give in, or else you might as well just hoof them the keys to the castle!”
Celestia, for a moment, stood as still as a statue before she turned her head to look at Blueblood. Her nephew looked shocked and even a little worried, as if he feared that she believed Luna rather than him. For a brief moment, Celestia wondered if it was true. That Blueblood had overstepped his authority and issued the death of Twilight.
‘No,’ she thought as she shook her head. ‘While he can be lazy and a bit of an opportunist, I can’t believe that he would ever order the death of anypony. Besides, what reason would he have to do so, especially since there is nothing to gain from her death? Luna must have made a mistake.’ With that she turned to look at her sister.
“So, what’s it going to be?” demanded Luna.
“I refuse,” Celestia declared, causing Luna’s jaw to drop slightly. Perhaps it was because she was tired from her all-nighter. Perhaps it was because she was tired of the situation. Perhaps it was simply because Luna was making these kinds of demands to her. But, whatever it was, Celestia was tired of it all. And she wasn’t going to be pushed around like this.
“You stand there, accusing my subjects as well as my nephew of serious crimes,” continued Celestia as she felt her voice becoming stronger. “Yet, all I have is your word. I will not hoof over a member of my court to your harsh system, simply because you ‘think’ he was involved. Nor will I allow you to endanger my ponies by taking their food. Now, I must insist that you release those mares you have in your custody into my care, and then we can sort this out.”
“I am not here to negotiate with you,” growled Luna. “I do not have the time to ‘sort this out’. Every second I waste brings my ponies that much closer to death. I cannot afford to draw things out the way you like to. Nor can I wait around, while you find some other pony to solve your problems!”
“And you cannot go around making these split second decisions that affect everypony,” yelled Celestia as she felt her blood begin to boil. Around her body, the air began to shimmer as if it were being heated.
“At least I make my own decisions and act upon them, rather than passing on the burdens and responsibility of my job onto others,” snapped Luna as dark clouds began to appear above the castle, caused by the hot and cold energies emitted from the two alicorns. Celestia, meanwhile, reacted like she had been struck once more.
“How dare you?” shouted Blueblood. “Princess Celestia has done more for Equestria than any other pony that has ever lived! Certainty more than you.”
“Blueblood, would you kindly shut up!” said Fancy Pants in a low voice. “You are only making things worse!”
“The only thing I am doing is defending my aunt and princess from this slander,” stated Blueblood with a bit of smug in his voice.
“Defending her or simply protecting your own flank,” growled North Star.
“How dare you…?!” roared Blueblood, turning to look at the two bickering alicorns.
“You have no right to say that after you just up and left,” said Celestia with a glare, ignoring the unicorn’s argument.
“Oh, I’m so sorry you never got the chance to say your pretty little speech about love, friendship, and so forth that would have fallen on deaf ears for the past millennium,” replied Luna in a mocking tone.
“There you go again, jumping to conclusions and not thinking of the consequences,” stated Celestia as she pointed a hoof at Luna. “You know how important those mares are! Yet, here you are, ready to kill without a second thought of how it will affect everypony else, just like back then. Just like Hoofshire, you want to strike out when you have no proof, and-”
“I HAVE PROOF!” roared Luna with lightning flashed in the background. As Luna took a step forward to point at Celestia, one of the Solar Guards thrust his spear forwards. The eyes of all ponies present widened as blood dripped down Luna’s cheek. Slowly, Luna moved her hoof to touch the blood, and brought it in front of her face.
She then narrowed her eyes and tightened her lips into an angry frown, as she brought down her bloody hoof to sharply tap center of her regalia. It then began to expand, along with her shoes and crown, before changing its form. Celestia and her guards watched in shock as it took the form of the armor she had worn when they met the griffons. Luna’s horn then glowed as she lifted her crescent shaped glaive, and her multi-bladed sword that looked like a snowflake, from the magnetic locks on her now armored flack. Both weapons let out a light blue glow, while creating a sharp humming noise.
Shadow silently cursed under his breath before looking in the direction of the other Lunar Guards and giving them a slight nod. “Armor up,” he ordered sharply.
As one, they tapped the Lunar emblem on their armor as Luna did, causing them to exit sleep mode while making a whirring noise. As light blue lines of energy began to appear on their armor, they all took out their melee weapons from their holding places.
Intimidated by this display, the Solar Guard began to back away. However, before they could take more than two steps, Blueblood spoke up.
“Ah very impressive…very, very impressive,” said the unicorn noble in a voice that was dripping in sarcasm. “I am sure that on that barren wasteland that you refer to as ‘home’, that act might scare a foal on Nightmare Night. However, you are now in Equestria! Here, epically in the daytime, your act wouldn’t scare anypony, let alone members of the Royal Guard.”
Blueblood looked around to see if his words had any effect. To his delight, he could see that the members of the Canterlot Royal Guard had regained their composure and were slowly advancing towards Luna.
“It is well past time we ended this farce,” continued Blueblood.
“First,” he began, “on the castle grounds, the number of Royal Guars outnumber you at least one hundred to one with more on the way.
“Second,” continued Blueblood. “As it stands, Equestria has the resources that your barren rock claims to desperately need or will otherwise parish. So, if anything, you should be grateful for whatever charity we nobly bestow upon you.
“Third, you come here to extort Equestria through hostages. But, the truth is that those five mares are simple commoners with no real political, economic, or ever strategic worth. When you get done to it, all of your bravado simply reeks of desperation and shows how empty your threat of execution truly is. Where-as we now stand to have the head-of-state of your wasteland, a pony who has actual worth.
“It is well past time that you accept that your little Republic is lost and that you should submit to Princess Celestia and Equestria. Cooperate and perhaps some of you might live to become vassals. If you would, Captain Stareye.”
Stareye took a step forward with a smug expression. “Royal Guard! Escort Princess Celestia to her quarters where it will be safe. Then, take these Lunar ponies into custody.” At once, Celestia’s Royal Guard leveled their spears as they slowly advanced on Luna’s group, while a few others formed ranks around Celestia.
“Belay that order! Do not-” began Celestia, but her words were cut short as a pair of spears was suddenly pointed at her. Ones held by her own golden armored soldiers.
One of the two gulped nervously before he spoke. “Please, princess,” he said softly. “For your safety and the good of Equestria, we must follow orders.”
Celestia stood there speechless, her mouth hanging open slightly. She turned her head and saw that Blueblood, as well as many of the other nobles, was nodding their head in disdainful agreement. She then looked at the ponies who were supposed to be her guards, only to find that they could not look her in the eyes. Finally, she turned to look at Luna, whose eyes were filled with contempt towards her. At that moment, Celestia felt tears threatening to escape.
It was then that Celestia noticed that ‘her’ guards were almost upon Luna’s. “No!” shouted Celestia once again. “As your princess, I order you all to stand down this instant!”
“You heard her,” said one of the earth ponies close to Luna. “Stand down, Nightmare Moon!”
A gasp escaped the Lunar’s mouths, and Shadow’s jaw dropped. As he looked over at his Princess, he saw her eyes were glowing white, while she gritted her teeth. Powerful magic began to pulse in her horn the likes none of the Lunar ponies had ever seen before. Even the nobles began to feel a bit uncomfortable standing this close to the angry moon goddess.
Celestia reached out to her sister and shouted, “Lu-”
Celestia watched in frozen horror her guard flew back in a straight line, propelled by the beam emitted from Luna's armored forehoof. The earth pony hit the wall behind him with enough force that Celestia winced as she heard a loud cracking sound caused by both armor and bones being broken before he fell to the ground where he laid there motionless.
“Royal Guard, attack!” commanded Stareye before he teleported away.
“No!” shouted Celestia as she turned to look at her guards. “Stand down! Please! Everypony calm down!”
However, her words were ignored at the two unicorn guards suddenly charged at Luna, their spears pointed at her heart. Shadow read their attack and jumped into the air as he flew towards them. Once he was in range he struck their horns with both of his wings causing their magic to falter for a moment. Yet in that moment he had done a backflip, taken one of the spears in his hooves, and swung it at one of the guards head. The force of the attack flung the one guard into the other while breaking the spear in the process.
Shadow quickly turned his head to his comrades. "Lunar Guard, engage!" he ordered loudly. The battle-suited ponies under his command leapt into action.
While this was going on, the other guards were racing towards Luna at great speed. Luna’s guard intercepted most of them, but at least two dozen managed to make it to the dark-blue alicorn and began to dogpile on top of her. A moment later Luna’s scream of fury could be heard as magical light began to escape through the cracks between the guards. A half second later the guards were blown off of her as if they weighed nothing as Luna fired her magic in an explosively expanding-dome.
However, Luna’s magical shockwave struck part of the castle, cause large chucks of rock to come loose and fall down. Celestia saw this and realized it would fall upon Blueblood, North Star, Fancy Pants, and the other nobles. Reacting quickly, Celestia teleported in front of the group and quickly created a powerful force field around them which caused the rubble to bounce harmlessly off it and onto the ground around them. When it was over, most of the nobles ran into the castle except for North Star.
“T-Thank you,” he stammered.
“Get into the castle,” was all Celestia said as she kept an eye on her sister. North Star nodded and quickly ran into the castle while looking over his shoulder.
As North Star ran, Celestia saw Luna charge at her. Focusing the magic in her horn, she was quickly surrounded by a brilliant golden light that blinded everypony around her. When the light faded, Celestia was clad in golden armor similar to that of her guards along with a helmet that had a long blade on it that ran alongside her horn. In her magical gasp were four items. One of them was a long golden sword that had a phoenix shaped grip. On both of her sides were two circular blade called a chakrams. They were small and, like the sword, looked like they were made of the same golden material that the sword was made of. The final item was a wooden shield that was shaped like her cutie mark. As Luna raised her glaive to strike, Celestia brought her shield up to block. Yet, much to the sun princess’ surprise, Luna’s weapon cut right through her defense.
Backing up, Celestia used her magic which caused both of chakrams to glow brightly. She then threw both weapons at Luna. Luna dodged the attack allowing the weapons to whiz on past her. At first Luna didn’t think too much of this but then felt something light strike her back. She then saw the two throwing weapons flying away from her and then turning in midair to attack her. Once more they struck her, this time on her chest before they flew away again. ‘You have got to be kidding me,’ thought Luna as she rolled her eyes and readied her sword. Once Celestia’s weapons were close enough she swung her own weapon and cut both of the chakrams at once ending the minor annoyance once and for all.
Seeing this, Celestia pumped a large amount of her magic into her weapon causing the blade to be set aflame. The blade swung at Luna, barely scratching her armor. ‘That attack should have at least cut through her armor,’ thought Celestia. ‘Fighting like this will take too much time and the longer we take the more likely Discord will be freed due to all the chaos. I’ll have to finish this quickly without killing Luna.’ Narrowing her eyes Celestia took to the sky. Once she was well above the castle she pointed the weapon upright in the air to create a large ball of fire.
“Luna, please don’t make me do this,” called out Celestia. “You could never take me in a fight and your magic isn’t as powerful as my own. Call off your guards and I will do the same. Trust me.”
“I did," growled Luna. “And look where it took us!” Before Celestia could launch her attack, Luna took to the air. Seeing this, Celestia pointed her sword at Luna causing the fireball to be hurled at her. Luna, in response, stopped and crossed her forelegs. At first, nothing seemed to happen other than her armor giving off a light glow. But when the inferno sphere was about to hit her it exploded as if it suddenly hit an invisible wall. Still, Luna was flung backwards from the attack and hit the ground so hard there was a small crater.
Quickly, Luna got to her feet and noticed that her armor was sparking. She herself felt like she had been hit by a dozen platforms, but counted herself lucky that her armors shield protected her from most of the blast.
“Warning,” said her armor’s computer in a female voice. “Armor’s shield unit has taken severe damage and is now offline. Armor’s durability is now at eighty six percent.”
‘That’s what I get for thinking I could take on a spell of that power,’ thought Luna as her horn began to glow. ‘I’d better make sure she can’t do that again.’ With that thought, chains made of pure magic shot out of Luna’s horn and went flying towards Celestia’s. Celestia realized what Luna was trying to do and began to prepare a counter spell. When the chains were a mere centimeter from her horn, Celestia was surrounded by an intense ball of flames that burned away everything that got close. Even parts of her castle that were nearby seemed to melt due to the heat of her defense.
When the flames died out, Celestia was left panting. ‘It’s been awhile since I had to use this much effort,’ thought Celestia as she did her best to catch her breath. ‘And this armor feels a little tight. I really need to get back into shape.’ It was then that Celestia noticed that Luna was flying towards her. Readying her weapon, Celestia prepared to defend herself.
-x-
While that was going on, Lightning Dust had taken out her two crescent moon glaives and was flying around like a blur at all of the incoming pegasi guards that were beginning to fill the sky. As she passed them by, they would suddenly fall to the ground with bloody slash marks in their armor.
Things were not that much different on the ground. Red Shirt and the two other lunar earth ponies began to fire upon the Equestrian earth ponies with their blasters. Celestia’s guards did their best to reach them, but were cut down before they could touch them. Luckily for them there were a few unicorns among them that were able to create a magic barrier stop enough to protect themselves.
“Slay them all!” shouted a voice from above. It was Blueblood, his head sticking out a window. “Slay Nightmare Moon and her evil minions! Do not allow her to destroy our peaceful land!”
“Donut, seal the entrance!” shouted Shining Armor as he watched the two princesses’ fighting. He could hear Shadow contacting the Lunar Embassy in the background, tell it to take off before he flew into the air.
“You got it,” said the pink stallion as he pulled out an orange sphere and threw it at the entrance. Once it got in the doorway it began to hover before emitting a light orange light towards the frame of the doorway. The Celestia Guards saw this, but kept galloping forward only to be stopped by the light. It was like running into a magical force field.
“Good job Private,” said Shining Armor. “Now, get the rest of those holes.”
“No need to worry sir,” said Donut as he threw another one at a window. “When it comes to filling up holes, I’m an expert!”
“Now is not the time for jokes!” shouted Shining as he placed a hoof onto his helmet and began to speak into his communicator. “This is Captain Shining Armor calling Crescent Hope! Captain Armor to Crescent Hope! Do you copy?”
For a few moments, Shining Armor heard nothing but static. Fear began to grip his heart as thought that the battle of the two alicorns were disrupting the signal. Then...
“This is Captain Starway,” said a voice from his communicator's receiver. However, there was still a lot of static in the background. “We're getting a lot of interference, what seems to be the problem?”
"We are under attack by the Equestrians!" said Shining Armor, practically shouting into his helmet microphone, "I am calling for emergency evacuation!"
Starway swore over the transceiver. “Shining, Princess Luna herself ordered me not to leave until my mission here was complete.”
"And I'm countermanding that order!" barked Shining, losing patience, "We are under heavy attack! Do you copy?!? The Princess is under attack! Emergency evac! Now!"
"Ac-Acknowled-, -aptain Arm-," came the static-filled reply, "ETA t- Canter-FFZZZ..." And then the line went dead.
Shining Armor tried to reconnect, but noticed several squads of the pegasi had thrown their spears. Acting quickly, he created a powerful shell above them causing the attack to bounce harmlessly off of it before vanishing.
“I’ll get them,” said Overkill with a grin as she took to the air. As she did, she reached for one of her grenades and threw it in front of her. As far as the incoming pegasi knew, it was just a harmless silver orb until it exploded creating a brilliant white light. When it cleared they noticed that the three closest to it had completely vanished while several of those who were closer were falling to the ground.
“Monster!” screamed one of the pegasi as he flew towards the bat mare. Overkill grinned as she readied her axe. Once her target was close enough she swung. The pegasus saw this and held up his spear to block it, but instead the axe cut through his weapon as well as himself with the ease of a knife cutting through warm butter.
Out of the corner of her eye, Overkill saw Lightning Dust and smirked. ‘Ok,’ she thought. ‘Might as well see who can take down the most of these Equestrians.’ With that Overkill let out a whistle causing the two metal darts on her back detached and began to hover next to her. With another whistle they shot out towards the pegasi like spears, piercing dozens of the enemy before they circled around and reattached themselves to Overkill’s back so that they could recharge. She then smiled and motioned for her enemies to come closer.
-x-
In the air, Lightning Dust dashed from side to side while holding her two crescent moon shaped glaives in her hooves. Ahead of her she could see at least a hundred or so pegasi in the sky. Some were chumped into bunches while the majority were scatter around without any reason. Lightning Dust smiled and decided to strike down the easy pickings first.
She quickly scanned the area ahead of her to decide her course. While she did this, she caught sight of the fight going on between Princess Luna and Celestia. She could see her princess fire a beam of energy into the clouds above. At first nothing happened, but then hail the size of Lightning’s hoof began to fall from the sky within the small area. At first Celestia fired several fire balls at them in order to protect herself. The ones she didn’t get, however, struck down several of the guards below and damage the surrounding area. Seeing this, Celestia pointed her horn downwards and created a magical barrier of golden light that caused the hail to bounce off harmlessly. The same could not be said about her since in order to do this Celestia had to remain still for a bit allowing several balls of ice to hit her. As a result, Celestia gain a few more dents in her armor and a few bruises in her unprotected areas.
“Luna, please stop this!” she heard Celestia call out. “We can work this out but you need to calm down and trust me.”
“Will you stop saying that?” roared Luna as she flew at Celestia with both weapons raised. She swung them at Celestia who managed to dodge at the last second. “Why should I trust you? Why should I believe in you after everything that has happened?”
“Then you leave me no choice,” said Celestia loudly as her horn began to glow brightly. “If you will not stop willingly then I will have to stop you. I am sorry sister.”
Seeing the next flash of magic, Lighting Dust decided that while she loved a challenge she knew that she would be more in the way if she went to go help Princess Luna. So with that in mind she began to scan that battlefield in the opposite direction of the two battling princess’. Once she had made up her mind she began to move at her fullest speed, becoming nothing but a blur that even the most experienced pegasi would have a hard time seeing. She moved from enemy to enemy, cutting through their armor with the greatest of ease. Most of Celestia’s Guard never even felt the blade, all they knew was that they were falling to ground as blood gushed from their chests.
‘This is too easy,’ thought Lightning Dust after she had taken down her thirtieth enemy in less than fifteen seconds. ‘Lets try one of the larger groups.’
With that, Lightning Dust shot towards one of the large clusters and drove straight on inside. As soon as she did, she found herself surround on all sides by enemy pegasi. More than once she slammed into one of them, causing herself to lose her momentum for a split second. During those moments, the enemy would realize her position and attempt to strike her with their spears or swords. But luckily for Lightning, she would be able to speed up enough to avoid getting hit. After several close call she found an opening and zoomed out. But not before leaving a grenade behind to take care of all the ones she had missed.
As the scene behind her exploded, Lightning Dust looked around to see where she could strike next. Part of her wanted to wipe out another large group since it proved to be more of a challenge. Yet just as she was about decide where she was going to strike next...
“Private Lightning Dust!” shouted Shadow as he flew into her general area. “Get your sorry flank over here NOW!”
Lightning Dust raised an eyebrow at this. She had never heard him talk to her like this before. However she did as she was told and headed off into his direction. When she reached him Lightning stopped and gave him a quick salute.
“What the buck do you think you are doing?” he demanded. “Do you have any idea how dangerous that stunt was that you just pulled?”
“Well,” began Lightning but interrupted.
“It was nothing short of insane,” he said. “I know you like a challenge, but there is a time and a place to do it. And here, on the battlefield, is not the place. We don’t have any back up and we can’t go wasting our forces. If I had known you would show this kind of poor judgment then I wouldn’t have brought you along.” He then pointed towards a group of incoming pegasi that were scattered about like the first bunch she had taken out. “Now I want you to clear the skies safely. No more taking unnecessary risks. Understand?”
Lightning nodded, a gesture that Shadow returned. With nothing else left to say she flew off.
-x-
Aerial Ace let out a curse as he flew through the air. The magical communication that was supposed to connect him with the new ‘lieutenants’ was not working leaving most of those in the air to make their own decisions. This was resulted in spontaneous attacks on their enemies without any sort of plan or backup. Only a few of the more seasoned soldiers were scoping the battlefield and trying to make a plan with anypony who would listen.
Suddenly a flash of blue light shot dangerously close to his right. Looking in the direction where it had come from, Aerial Ace saw blasts of energy coming out of Luna’s hoof guards aimed in Princess Celestia’s direction. He was about fly towards her but stopped when he saw his princess create a barrier that was larger than it should have been. He watched as the barrier not only stopped the attacks that would have hit her, but also the ones that might have hit those flying close by.
‘If I go to her I’ll just be in the way,’ he thought sadly as Princess Celestia fired an attack of her own at Luna.
Before he could think of what he should do, he noticed a blur out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head and saw that the speedster of the Lunar forces was flying towards the bat stallion who was now up in the air. He watched as the mare stopped in front of him. He could tell that the two were talking, but about what he had no idea. Then he watched as the bat pony pointed in one direction, clearly issuing an order. The mare nodded before flying off in said direction leaving the bat pony alone.
‘If I were a betting pony I would bet that he is some kind of ranked officer,’ thought Aerial Ace. ‘Removing him from the battlefield would benefit us greatly.’
With that thought in mind, Aerial Ace flew around until he was behind the unsuspecting bat pony before charging in with his spear. But, once he was close enough, the stallion turned and broke the spear with a quick jab of his foreleg. Aerial Ace, however, did not stop his attack only redirecting his broken weapon towards his enemy’s wing. The bat stallion seemed to instantly read his move and tucked in his wings causing him to fall. Aerial Ace watched as the other stallion began to free fall for a bit before he righted himself and flew back up.
‘For a bat pony he has good instincts,’ thought Aerial Ace as he pulled out his sword. ‘He read my attacks as if he were an old war pro.’
‘He’s got skill,’ thought Shadow as he stared back at Aerial Ace while their last encounter played back in his head. ‘He was able to move into my blind spot without me noticing until the last second. Then, when I interrupted the attack, he simply redirected it without hesitation. I’ll have to get rid of him.’ As he thought this, Shadow’s front right hoof guard began to glow for a moment before a light blue saber sword came out looking like it was made of light.
And with that, the two charged at each other.
-x-
The room that the Lieutenants had been given was very comfortable. Each one had been given a red silk pillow to sit on while they watched their own squads through crystal balls that showed them what they wished to see. At one corner of the room was a table filled with snacks and drinks should they become hungry.
Yes it was very, very nice. A pity they were in too much of a panic to enjoy any of it.
As soon as the two princess’s began their fight, the new lieutenants began to issue out orders while noticing that the images in the orbs had begun to blur more and more with each passing second. Also the reports coming in from their troops were getting harder and harder to hear. Very soon into the battle they found themselves completely cut off. When that happened, everypony in the room began silent for a moment as the realization of what was happening began to dawn on them.
Then...
“We’re doomed!” cried one of them.
“What are we supposed to do?” shouted another as the room flew into a panic. “I-I have no bucking idea what I’m doing!”
Similar shouts were heard. Some of them were doing their best to look like they knew what they were doing by focusing their magic on the orbs, but all they were doing was making the orbs hover for a moment. A few of them began offering to pay the others to fix the situation, but that didn’t last very long. Stareye had never given them any instructions on what to do should something like this happen nor was it in their basic training. They were completely at a loss.
Well, most of them anyways, As soon as the shouting started Hot Pants got off of her cushion and ran out of the room as fast as she could. She had been placed in charge of some of the earth ponies outside. Right now they needed assistance or they would be picked off by the Lunar soldiers.
Hot’s ears picked up the sound of hooved behind her. Turning her head she saw Crème de la Crème running behind her.
“Crème, what are you-” began Hot Pants.
“We need to do something,” interrupted Crème with a serious expression. “And you seem to be the only other pony in that room that feels the same. So, what are you planning to do?”
“I,” began Hot Pants as she turned a corner, “don’t really have a plan. Right now all I know is that I have to get outside. And, due to the magical interference caused by the princess’s fight, teleporting outside isn’t a good idea.” She paused for a moment. “Which squad were you given?”
“A large pegasus one,” replied Crème. “Last I checked they were on the opposite side of the castle waiting for my orders.”
Hot Pants mind was reeling with everything going on. She stopped when the two approached a staircase leading to both the upper levels of the castle as well as a direct path to the main floor. There was also a large window that overlooked the battlefield. Gulping, Hot Pants walked towards it to take in everything.
The first thing she saw was the battle between Celestia and Luna. Her princess was firing a beam of golden energy at the other alicorn who was doing her best to counter it with a similar blue beam. At first it looked like they were even, but then Celestia’s attack began to push closer to Luna with what looked like very little effort. From what the mare could tell, it looked like Princess Celestia was adjusting the amount of magic in her attack as was needed. Hot Pants then watched as Luna then pointed both of her forehooves at Celestia right before a couple of short energy blasts were fired from them, hitting Celestia who canceled her spell.
She watched as Luna pressed her advantage and began to cast another spell. Around the lunar princess’ body appeared a dozen black spikes, each about two feet long. With a flap of her wings Luna sent them flying towards Celestia. Said princess created a magical barrier of golden light around her, canceling out her attackers spell.
A small flash caught Hot Pants’ eye. Looking in the direction it came from she saw several pegasi flying towards Princess Luna with spears in hoof. Celestia must of seen them as well for Hot Pants saw her raise her hoof and shout at them. It was, however, too late as they then threw their spears at Princess Luna. Hot Pants watched as Luna turned, most likely due to Princess Celestia’s actions, and fired an icy blue beam from her horn. All of those that got struck found their bodies to be incased in ice and then fell to the ground below where they shattered into thousands of pieces.
Pulling herself away from the princess’s battle and looking around, Hot Pants then saw Aerial Ace fighting with a bat pony stallion. The two aerial fighters were charging at each other at impressive speeds. The bat pony, however, was a bit faster as he reached Aerial Ace first and swung a glowing saber at him. Hot Pants’ eyes widen as Aerial not only narrowly dodged the attack by going above him at the last possible second but also managing to buck him while flying above. Sadly this impressive counter attack seemed to have little effect. It was then that the bat pony did a barrel roll while swinging his blade at the former lieutenant only to barely graze his armor. The two then got some distance from each other and then seemed to be circling each other like two timber wolves who were preparing to fight over a piece of meat.
She also noticed that there were two other lunar ponies in the sky. One was moving so fast that she was a blur while the other was cutting through the pegasi with a large axe while laughing. While Hot Pants knew that Aerial Ace could take care of the bat pony, she knew that the current pegasi in the air would need some help in order to take care of those two.
As she pulled her head in, Hot Pants took a deep breath before turning to look at Crème. “Head up to one of the castle towards and use your magic to signal some of the pegasi,” she said quickly. “We need to take control of the air before we lose too many of our ponies. Have some of them assist the earth ponies in the front of the castle. I’ll head downstairs and bring out the unicorns.”
Crème nodded her head and smiled. “Sounds like a plan,” she said. With that said she galloped up the stairway towards her destination while Hot Pants stole one more look out the window before she too raced downstairs.
-x-
“How many guards do they have?” cried Red Shirt as another wave of earth ponies began to approach.
Shining Armor nodded as he surveyed the area. Simply put, they were surrounded. Behind them was the castle entrance while on their other three sides were large groups of earth ponies hiding behind large metal shields or barriers created by the few unicorns that were among their numbers. From time to time Celestia’s guards would throw whatever spears they had at the three earth ponies.
Luckily for the Lunar Guards, Shining Armor and Donut were keeping them at bay with their magical defenses. However this could not last forever. Sooner or later Red Shirt and the two other earth ponies blasters would run out of energy leaving them to hid behind barriers with no means of escape.
‘We have to do something,’ thought Shining Armor as he looked upwards again. ‘Our armor’s power cells won’t last forever. I can protect us all with a powerful barrier until help arrives or Princess Luna finishes her battle. But...” Shining’s thoughts trailed off as his mind produced a single frightening question: What if Princess Luna loses? At once the white stallions mind began to show him images of Princess Celestia standing on top of Princess Luna’s body with a look of triumph before she easily shattered his barrier.
Shining Armor shook his head to rid himself of those images. ‘Focus Shining,’ he thought. ‘Regardless of the outcome of their fight, we need to secure an escape route in case Captain Starway can’t make it in time.’
“Private Donut,” ordered Shining Armor suddenly. “We are going on the offensive with Plan Zeta. You will set up the reflectors while I jump into the fray.”
Donut’s ears flattened when he heard this. “Sir, with all due respect, wouldn’t it be better if you set up the reflectors?”
“This isn’t up for debate,” snapped Shining. “I gave you an order and I expect you to follow it.”
“Yes sir,” said Donut as he saluted. His horn then began to glow pink as dozens of octagon shaped disks began to appear in the air in seemingly random places. Each one was about a foot tall, tilted at various angles, and very thin. When this was done, Donut yelled out “plan zeta” and the three earth ponies nodded. Each one picked the disk closest to them and began to fire a constant stream of energy that bounced from disk to disk, catching the enemy off guard. Acting quickly, Donut used his magic to readjust the dicks and moving them so that the energy blasts were able to move around the enemies defenses and strike them from behind. Then, the pink stallion made it so the energy made a sweeping motion taking out a large chuck of the enemy before the disks shattered.
“Warning,” came the computers voice from the three earth pony’s suits. “Energy levels have severely dropped. Power level is now at forty percent.”
“Alright then let’s move!” shouted Red Shirt. The others nodded and began to race away from the castle.
While this was going on, Shining Armor surrounded himself with his own barrier while at the same time creating four large sphere above him. Each one was light blue and looked like they could hold up to a dozen ponies each. Once this was done the captain of the Shield Corps set out.
Once he reach the first group of earth ponies, Shining Armor’s barrier was barraged with swords and spears. Yet he paid no mind to this as his shield took extremely little damage. Instead he moved the floating orbs into the crowd. Celestia’s guards slipped into the membrane of the orbs with ease, however once they were in they found they could not exit.
As soon as each of the four spheres were full, Shining Armor threw them at the castle. Right before they impacted, the orbs burst like a soap bubble causing the guards to take the full force of the impact and were knocked out. As Shining Armor began to craft three more he looked up towards Princess Luna.
‘I will not leave your side Princess,’ thought Shining Armor. ‘I don’t know if I can protect you from Celestia should the worse happen, but I won’t go down without a fight.’ With that, Shining Armor began his attack again.
-x-
Shadow Blade stared at the tiny cut in his opponent’s armor. ‘It should have been a killing blow both times,’ he thought to himself. When he had launched his first charge he had aimed his strike at the chest and swung at full speed. Yet this older pegasus must have read his attack and reacted not only to dodge but also to counter him at the same time. He was just lucky for his armor or else he would have broken his back.
‘Must be muscle memory,’ thought Shadow. ‘It’s the only way he could have reacted as quickly as he did. This stallion must have years of experience. He could have even seen real combat in the past. It would be unwise to underestimate him just because I have a younger body and better technology.’
Over with Aerial Ace, the pegasus was using his free hoof to feel the area that had been cut. As far as he could tell without taking his eyes off his enemy, he wasn’t bleeding. That was the good news. The bad news was that along the edges of the cut he could feel that, for a moment, the armor had begun to melt.
‘I’ll have to be careful,’ thought Aerial as he tightened his hold on his sword. ‘His armor makes him almost immune to my attacks and his weapon cut through my armor like it were cardboard. He is young, but he isn’t reckless like so many fools I have seen in the past. This will be an uphill battle for the both of us.’
Aerial began to think of his best course of action. He could try and prolong the fight until backup arrived, but he no idea when that would be and this bat pony could clearly outlast him. He could try to finish him off himself, however the armor that the other wore made that impossible as well. Not to mention that if he got too close he could counter with that weapon.
‘Wait,’ thought Aerial as an idea popped into his head causing his eyes to widen slightly. ‘His armor doesn’t cover everything! The upper part of his legs, his wings, his neck, and face are all exposed! If I can get a clean enough cut through one of them I can most likely end this fight and move on to the others.’
Meanwhile, over with Shadow, he kept a careful eye on the older pegasus taking note as his eyes widened. ‘He must have thought of something,’ he thought while doing his best to keep him face blank. He could not afford to give anything away. The slightest slip up could give him away and, maybe, cost him his life.
Then, without warning, the pegasus shot into the air. Not wanting his enemy to get too high above him Shadow followed in hot pursuit. Slowly, Shadow inched closer and closer as he tried his best to figure what his enemy was trying to do. After climbing several hundred yards into the air the pegasus seemed to hit the brakes suddenly while at the same time flapping his wings so that he would be behind Shadow as he passed.
Shadow, realizing his enemy’s intention, spun around and did his best to get some distance between them. However the pegasus trust forward at an impressive speed, his weapon aimed at one of the exposed areas on Shadow’s body. There was a flash as the pegasus swung his sword and continued to fly past him.
Panting slightly, Aerial noticed that his sword had some blood on it. Carefully, Aerial Ace turned around and saw there was once a slight cut on the bat ponies left foreleg and a thin trail of blood moving down his legs. Acting quickly, Aerial Ace shot forward in order to press the attack. However, this time the bat pony defected the attack using his right hoof guard while at the same time sending his left into Aerial’s gut. Aerial double over in pain but managed to both stay in the air and keep hold of his sword.
“Buck,” moaned Aerial aloud. ‘Ok, he’s pretty strong and… he didn’t use his right hoof guard? Why? He could have deflected with his left and then used his right to impale me on that blade. Did he not think about it or-’ Aerial then head a ‘Bweee’ sound coming from the bat pony’s left hoof guard. Acting quickly, Aerial beat his wings to back away from his enemy and shot downwards just as a light blue beam of light shot out of the forehoof.
‘What kind of magic is that?’ screamed Aerial mentally as he rounded on his opponent. ‘No matter. He was that back, waiting for the right time to use it effectively. Now that I know about it, I know to watch out for his left. This will make all the difference in Equestria.’
-x-
“Amazing,” whispered Blueblood as he looked out a window in one of the upper towers of the castle. Before him he had an excellent view of the entire battle. He watched as the speedy one slashed through their forces and the bat mare’s weapons impaled her opponents. He watched in awe as the bat stallion fought with one of their more seasoned fighters, both of them giving it their all. He had even seen how a few earth ponies had used their devices to an amazing effect, wiping out a portion of the guard in one blow.
And it was better than he ever dreamed.
Yes, Equestria was losing many of their ponies. But in the end it would all be worth it. Those lunar ponies would fail sooner or later and, when they did he would be there to claim their lives and gear for the good of Equestria. Imagine that kind of weaponry given to each of Equestria’s soldiers. None of the other races would stand a chance against them. Ponies could take their rightful place as the rulers of the world with unicorns as the highest class!
A sudden flash then caught his eye. Looking in the direction of its source, Blueblood saw Celestia block another of Luna’s magical assaults with a barrier shield. Even from this distance, he could see that the lunar princess was looking annoyed. He watched as she said something right before a dozen or some objects shot out of the armor. These objects were small, about the size of a marble, but left a trail of smoke as they flew towards Celestia.
Celestia saw them and acted quickly. Her horn lit up once more as she created a whip of pure golden light. With two lashes, the magical while struck all of the objects which caused them to erupt in earth shaking explosions. It was so bright that Blueblood was forced to look away for a moment. When he looked out the window again, he saw that Luna had closed in on Celestia who was dodging a blow from her glaive.
It was then that Celestia’s horn began to burn with golden flames. The sun princess suddenly charged at the other alicorn as her mane, wings, her entire body, seemed to transform into the flames. The unicorn prince watched as Celestia slammed into Luna, knocking her to the ground once more. Never had Blueblood seen such a display of beauty or power in all his life.
“Soon,” whispered Blueblood as he stared at Luna. “Soon you will fall.” And with that, Blueblood turned and walked towards a stairway that would lead him outside.
-x-
“What in Celestia’s name is going on out there?” demanded Trixie as her room shook once again. Carefully, the mare walked over to the window to check on the events going on. She had done this several times already and each time it had been the same. Nothing but ponies fighting for whatever reason.
Right now she had a good view of Celestia as she flew close to the tower where her bedroom was. Luna was following closely, firing a barrage of black needles. For her part, Celestia created a shield that was large enough to protect not only herself but the castle as well. For some reason, however, the shield wasn’t strong enough to block all of the projectiles and one hit the castle, causing the room to shake.
As it did, Trixie heard the cry of a small filly. Trixie turned around and saw a light amber colored cutie markless filly with a crimson mane that had yellow streaks in it curled up in the corner, shaking in fear. It surprised her that this had once been the insane mare Sunset Shimmer.
Sunset Shimmer had been dropped off at her room by Princess Celestia herself. Trixie knew who it was the moment she laid her eyes on her, not turning her gaze as the filly tried to hide behind the solar princess. When Trixie looked her mentor in the eye to ask why she had brought a criminal into her room (as well as to ask why said criminal was now a filly) but stopped when she saw how tired her princess looked.
Oddly, Celestia seemed to guess what Trixie wished to ask. As Sunset began to explore Trixie’s room, Celestia began to explain what Luna had done to the once insane mare in a hushed tone so that only Trixie could hear. She then explained that she had turned Sunset into a filly so she could better adapt into this new world.
When she was done explaining all of this, Trixie asked what she planned to do about Sunset.
“Right now,” Celestia had said, “I’m not sure. Perhaps I’ll make her my next pupil. But that is a decision for another day. Right now, I need you to watch her and keep her hidden.”
“From Princess Luna?” asked Trixie.
Celestia had nodded. “Yes, I cannot imagine how my sister will react when she finds out what I have done to Sunset. I think it best not to let her know at this point. However, she is not the only one I am worried about. I fear that the nobles, if they ever found out about where she is from, might try to help her regain her lost memories or use her in some way to meet their own ends. For the sake of Equestria, this must be avoided at all costs. So I am entrusting you with this important task. I know you will make me proud.”
Now, in the present, Trixie let out a sigh as she used her magic to pull out a bottle of brandy. ‘So this is all Trixie is good for,’ thought Trixie darkly as she drank from the bottle. ‘Celestia’s faithful student and instead of being there when she needs Trixie the most, here Trixie is babysitting her next student. Trixie bets she can’t wait to be rid of Trixie.’
As another explosion rumbled outside, tears began to flow down Trixie’s face.
-x-
Hot Pants was panting by the time she reached the ground floor. Her fatigue, however, did not stop her from continuing at this pace until she reached the main entrance of the castle. There, standing there were at least a hundred unicorns. Most of them were guards except for two: Fancy Pants and North Star. The guards were talking in angry voices up until one of them noticed she was approaching. He signaled to the others and they all became quiet as they saluted her.
“What is going on here?” she demanded.
“We were just trying to decide how to get past this barrier,” said one of the unicorn guards as he motioned to the door. His hoof then pointed to the orange sphere in the middle of the doorway. “But every time we touch the thing we get zapped.”
Hot Pants took a deep breath. “Ok then, what else have you tried?” she asked.
“We tried to teleport, but we can’t,” said somepony in the crowd.
“We tried ramming it down, but it just destroyed the fancy table we used for a battering ram,” said another.
“I threw a rock,” said a third. As soon as he said this, all eyes were on him with a deadpanned expression. “It was a big rock,” he said, more than a little defensively.
Once again, an argument broke out with the soldiers leaving Hot Pants alone with her thoughts. ‘Ok we need to get outside,’ she thought as she did her best to break down the situation. Yet, as she began to process this the castle began to shake as bits of dust and small rocks fell from the ceiling. Most likely a result of the two Princess’ battle outside. ‘Those…things are what is keeping us from going outside. Maybe if I think of this like magic. Really advanced magic that I don’t fully understand, but never the less magic. Ok, so this is like a magical barrier. A barrier spell will fail when the power runs out or if another force is stronger than the will behind the magic being used. Perhaps...’
“I got it,” said Hot Pants suddenly causing all eyes to look at her. “Here’s what we are going to do. I want energy beam spells focused at one point on the barrier. We are either going to drain that thing of all of its power or we are going to shatter the barrier.”
“But what if that doesn’t work,” said one of the guards.
“Better than doing nothing,” said Hot Pants as she charged up her horn. “Now, with me everypony!” Once she finished speaking she fired her spell near the orb.
“Yes ma’am,” said a hundred ponies before they to fire a similar spell close to hers.
At first it looked like nothing was happening. Then, around the spot where they were targeting, cracks began to appear. At first they were small, but as the seconds passed they grew larger and larger until they covered the entire doorway. Finally the barrier crashed with a deafening sound as the orange orb fell harmlessly to the ground.
“Finally,” shouted one of the guards. “Now let’s go kill us some lunar scum!” At this, there was a cheer of agreement.
“Not so fast young stallion,” said Fancy Pants, speaking up for the first time. “While I am not your superior, doesn’t military protocol dictate that in a situation such this that your first objective should be to secure the removal of all non-military personal? Like say the castle staff?”
The stallion snorted. “They’ll be fine,” he replied. “Besides, the sooner we kill them the sooner we’ll all be safe.”
“Why you little-” began Fancy Pants.
“Enough!” shouted Hot Pants as she wiped some sweat from her brow. As she did the castle shook once more, pressing the young mare for time. “We have enough enemies outside the castle. We don’t need to be making more inside. Now I know you all want to get out there and help your friends. So, those who want to help evacuate civilians can stay behind while those who want to help fight may leave. Is this understood?”
“Yes ma’am,” they all said in unison as they saluted her once more. Then, all at once, they turned and raced outside leaving behind only Fancy Pants, North Star, and Hot Pants.
Hot Pants let out a sigh. “Well, looks like I’m on my own,” she said aloud to herself.
“Not at all my dear,” said Fancy Pants. “We’ll help clear out all of this fine castles employees. Isn’t that right Lord North Star?”
“Of course,” replied the pony noble. “It is what Princess Celestia would have want.”
“Thank you,” said Hot Pants with a small smile. She then cleared her throat to give them both orders. “Ok, we’re going to split up and round up as many of the castle staff as well as any nobles you both find. If they refuse to come then suggest that they head down to the catacombs. They’ll be safe there and making sure everypony is safe is what we need to be focusing on right now.”
-x-
Overkill was now panting as she swung her axe to kill another one of the seemingly endless pegasi that assaulted her. But it seemed for each one she killed, thirty more would come to take its place.
But that wasn’t the worse of it. They were getting smarter, becoming more coordinated. They has recognized the threat posed by her grenades and kept a watch out for them. Once they spotted one in the air they would scatter as best they could. Now Overkill had one left and she knew better than to waste it like the last few.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a series of flares. Turning her head slightly, she saw a unicorn standing of top of a tower with her horn glowing brightly. She also took note that she wasn’t the only one watching her. She could see many of the pegasi looking at the unicorn. ‘She must be using her magic to send them a code,’ thought Overkill as she tightened the grip on her weapon.
Then it happened. Hundreds of spears from all directions were launched at her. Overkill flew upwards while swinging her giant axe and using her remote spears. Smash. Smash. Smash. Over and over again she knocked away as many of the projectiles as she could. Those she didn’t bounced harmlessly off of her armor.
‘I can do this,’ thought Overkill. ‘I can-’ her thoughts ended as pain gripped her from behind as she began to fall. Looking over her shoulder, Overkill saw that one of the spears had made a hole in her webbing.
Then they came. Stallions armed with spears moved in quickly while her head was turned. The first impaled her right foreleg causing Overkill to scream out in pain while dropping her axe. Using all of her strength she knocked him away only to leave herself open. Her left foreleg, both of her hind legs, and her stomach were all impaled by spears held by Celestia’s pegasi. She could now feel her life slip away from her as they began to slowly, very slowly lower her to the ground.
“Burn in Tartarus you freak,” whispered one of them.
Overkill looked at him for a moment as felt around her belt. It took her a moment before her hoof landed on her last grenade. She activated it and then smiled leaving her enemy with a confused expression on his face.
“Sounds like fun,” she said before coughing up some blood. “Care to join me?” Before the pegasi could respond they were all consumed in a brilliant white light. And then they were no more.
-x-
“Let’s hurry!” shouted Red Shirt as he and the others raced down the streets of Canterlot. All around them there were ponies in all sorts of filly get up that shouted angrily at them as they pushed through the crowd. The few that were too stubborn to get out of the way were knocked onto their fancy plot.
“Are you sure the embassy is this way?” asked Donut as he looked around. “We don’t have any LPS to guide us.”
“I’m sure,” replied Red Shirt as they turned down an ally way. “We’re just taking a short cut.”
“Oh goodie,” said Donut obliviously as the other two stallions rolled their eyes. As they ran through the alleyway, the lunar guards noticed trash cans full have half eaten and wasted food. Most of them narrowed their eyes in anger as they sped up to make their way to their final destination.
After three more detours they finally found themselves heading in the right direction. Standing several hundred yards from them was their embassy with its shield raised. However, just outside of it were several uniformed unicorn officers shouting at the barrier, ordering it to come down. As the Lunar guards ran towards them, they were spotted and fired upon without any warning or the like.
“If that’s how they want to play,” said one of the earth ponies in a gruff voice. He then fired his blaster as did the other two. Within seconds, the officers fell to the ground below.
“Nice shoot-” began Donut before his voice was drowned out by a loud zap sound. By the time the others turned their heads to look at him Donut had already fallen to the ground, his eyes wide in surprise and confusion.
Looking up now, the Lunar Guards saw about fifty unicorns galloping towards them with the heads lowered, horns glowing as they were pointed at them. Red Shirt pointed his laser at them, but the ground in front of him exploded before he could let out a single shot. He was thrown up into the air along with the stone road and then everything went black.
The first of his senses to return was sound. It was muffled, but he could hear ponies talking in the distance. Something about securing the area. Slowly, Red Shirt opened his eyes. Vision was only coming from one and what he saw horrified him. They were surrounded by Celestia’s guards. Donut’s body was a few feet away from him while the other two lay much further away while a couple of the guards poked at their body with their hooves. He also noted that three of their number were also on the ground, most likely dead.
‘We were so close,’ thought Red Shirt sadly.
“What should we do with the bodies?” asked one of Celestia’s guard. Red Shirt froze as he listened in on the conversation.
“We’ll get a cart and bring them back to the castle,” said another. “But beyond that, it’s out of our hooves. Most likely the higher ups will want to study their armor and see what they can learn.”
‘Not a chance in the void,’ thought Red Shirt savagely. He tried to point his laser at them, but for some reason it didn’t move. Thinking that it must have been damaged in the blast, Red noticed something on Donut’s belt. A regular grenade!
Keeping his eyes on the weapon, Red Shirt forced his body to crawl over to that of his comrade. Each push seemed to drain more and more of his limited strength. He was beginning to feel numb and cold, but he pressed on regardless. Nothing short of death was going to stop him. Finally he reached his destination. Then, as he slowly reached out a hoof an energy blast struck his foreleg causing him to yell out in pain.
“Stay away from the pink pony,” he heard somepony yell. Red Shirt was now having problems seeing and he couldn’t tell where the voice came from. There was no chance in the void that he could find the grenade, let along activate it.
But there was something that he could do.
“Computer,” he said in faint voice. “Activate Operation: Super Nova. Begin count at ten seconds. Password is moon pie.”
“Command accepted,” replied the armor’s computer.
“I said get away from the pink pony,” barked the same pony once again.
“He’s not pink,” whispered Red Shirt as closed his now useless eyes. “He’s lightish red.”
And with that his armor exploded.
-x-
Up in the air, Shadow and Aerial were still at it. Both guards were fighting with everything they had, neither giving the other an inch. Both of their moves were well polished, making their battle seem more like a dance.
However, both of them knew that sooner or later this would have to end. They were spending too much time on a single opponent when there were others that needed to be taken care of. This went double for Shadow seeing that he didn’t know the status of his fellow guard ponies. For all he knew at this point was he was the last to protect Princess Luna.
As for Aerial Ace, the older stallion was beginning to pant. His stamina was running out and if this fight continued any longer then he would most likely be slain. Meaning he would have to try a risky maneuver that he would normally never use. But he knew that if he didn’t take the risk than he would lose.
Taking a deep breath, Ace scanned his surroundings. For the most part the ground below them was empty. He did, however, notice that south of them the two alicorn princess’ were fighting with everything they had. The Lunar princess was firing magical bolts at Princess Celestia who managed to either avoid they or created a magical barrier to block them. To the east he saw Hot Pants was standing at the castle entrance as a stream of the staff was exiting the building. He hid a smile, proud that she was doing her job of protecting these ponies.
Seeing that the conditions were right, Aerial Ace shot up into the air and then made a U turn towards the ground below. The bat pony followed him while keeping his distance. At first it looked like ace was going to crash into the ground below, but pulled up at the last minute as did the bat pony. Now they were shooting across the castle ground, inches from the ground. Using his sword, Aerial Ace struck the ground real quick bringing up a large amount of dust and debris into the air. At the speed they were going, the bat pony flew into it before he had a chance to close his eyes.
This was the chance Aerial Ace had been waiting for! He turned around and saw that the bat pony was quickly rubbing his eyes. He had only a moment or two to strike. But that was all he would need to cut off both wings.
Then time seemed to slow down as he saw a blast of magic enter his field of vision. Most likely it came from the enemy princess, but that didn’t matter at the moment. What mattered was that it struck the castle right above the entrance where Hot Pants was standing. He saw that the mare had noticed it as well and, rather than use her magic to save her own life, pushed all of the civilians out of the way right before a large chunk of rock landed on her.
Without hesitating, Aerial Ace dropped his sword and turned towards the ruined castle entrance just as the bat pony finished getting the dust out of his eyes. Eyes that followed the demoted pegasus with interest.
When Aerial Ace reached his destination, he saw that half of Hot Pants body was covered in rubble. He gave her a quick once over and saw that there was no blood on her body nor did she appear to be in any pain. If fact, she looked like she was in a panic.
“Lieutenant, are you ok?” he asked while trying to move some of the rubble off of her. This proved to be difficult given how tired he was and that some of the stones looked like they would require his mouth to move.
“I-I’m fine sir,” she said between several deep breaths. “I c-can still f-feel m-my legs. I t-think I’m j-just pinned d-down.”
“That’s good,” said Aerial Ace as felt some smaller rubble fall on his head. He looked up and his jaw almost dropped. A huge section of the wall looked like it was about to fall down upon them. From this position he couldn’t tell what was keeping it up, but whatever it was couldn’t hold it up forever. He looked over at Hot Pants and noticed that she was unaware of the threat above her. Knowing time was against him he moved towards the large stone block that appeared to be pinning Hot Pants down and did his best to try and lift it. This, sadly, proved to be impossible for a single pony alone. It was far too heavy.
“S-Sir I’m fine,” said Hot Pants. “Please j-just forget about m-me for now and h-help the others.” Seeing Aerial Ace ignore her caused her to take a deep breath. “Sir, I am ordering y-you to take command of-”
“Not happening,” grunted Ace as he continued his struggle. “Looks like after this is over I’m looking at a demotion.”
“But you were already demoted!” shouted Hot Pants.
Before Aerial Ace could respond they both heard a loud ‘crack!’ above them. The color drained from both of their faces as they looked up and saw the stone begin to fall. Hot Pants yelled for Ace to run, but the stallion rushed over to her and placed his body above hers with the intent to use it to shield her from the rubble. Aerial Ace then closed his eyes tightly and braced himself for the worst. It was then that a sudden ‘Bweee’ sound filled the air and a moment later the older stallion felt smaller rocks and dust fall on him. Opening his eyes, he saw the bat pony pointing his left forehoof at where the fragmented wall had been.
Aerial Ace watched in surprise as the bat pony’s sword vanished while he landed on the ground a few feet in front of them. However Ace refused to move and leave Hot Pants. He kept a careful eye on the other stallion as he walked towards them. Yet, the bat pony’s ultimate destination wasn’t them, but the other side of the stone Aerial Ace had been trying to lift. The bat pony tried to lift the stone off of her and, when that failed, he looked at Ace with an expression that said, ‘Are you going to help me or what?’. Nodding, Ace moved from his spot and back over to where he had been trying to lift before. At the same time the two managed to lift the rubble off of Hot Pants enough to allow her squeeze out.
Once out, Hot Pants stood up and looked at the bat pony with a hint of confusion. “Thank you,” she said. “But why did you help?”
The bat pony said nothing. Instead he looked over to Aerial Ace, gave him a quick nod, and then flew back into the air back to where the two had been fighting. As for Aerial Ace, he smirked before he too flew off in the direction of his sword. He grabbed it before heading towards the bat stallion.
“I don’t get it,” said a confused Hot Pants, shaking her head.
“All of you this way!” came the voice of Blueblood. Hot Pants turned her head and saw the prince leading about thirty unicorns towards the two stallions. “Now fire!”
Fearful that they might hit Aerial Ace, Hot Pants shouted at them to wait. But it was too late as thirty magical blasts were fired wildly into the air. Some were think, broad beams of energy that were hard to dodge while others were thin, narrow beam that were cutting beams. Biting her lower lip, Hot Pants watched as the two did their best to avoid the attack. To her horror she saw Aerial Ace’s right wing take one of the blasts destroying it instantly. Narrowing her eyes, she ran as fast as she could towards the falling guard while the other unicorns just kept firing. She ran with all of her might, but he was falling too fast and was too far away. Not really thinking Hot Pants tried her best to teleport but the spell didn’t work.
“Come on,” said Hot Pants to herself as she tried a different spell. Just as her horn began to glow Aerial Ace fell to the ground. Tears in her eyes she ran over to him with double the speed. When she got there she could hear his shallow breathing while she check to see what was broken. After a few seconds she discovered several broken ribs and both of his hind legs were broken as well.
She looked up towards the sky and saw the bat pony keeping his attention on them while he dodged the attacks. She couldn’t see it but, for reasons she couldn’t explain, she could tell that he was furious. Not at her but somepony else.
But even he couldn’t dodge every attack. One of the narrow beams struck one of the exposed area’s on his front left leg. A moment later he was struck again, only this time it was one of his hind legs. As if realizing that staying in this area was no longer wise, Hot Pants watched as the bat pony flew off heading in the direction of the two princesses.
“After him!” shouted Blueblood.
“Wait,” called out Hot Pants. “He needs medical attention.” But no pony listened to her. All of the unicorns ran off towards the bat pony leaving Hot Pants alone, calling for help for the fallen soldier.
-x-
‘Where is everypony?’ thought Lightning Dust as she took down six more pegasi. Over the course of several minutes, she had noticed a lack of other Lunar ponies. She looked around but could not find Overkill in the sky anymore. She had, however, spotted Shadow fighting with that pegasus. She also didn’t see Donut, Red Shirt, or any of the other ground bound ponies except for Shining Armor who was fighting bellow her.
‘This can’t be it,’ she thought. ‘We can’t be the only three left. Maybe they stormed the castle or something.’
Still, Lightning Dust couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. With great speed she began to zip across the sky while looking for signs of her missing comrades while at the same time taking down as many of Celestia’s guards as she could. Yet this was proving to be harder than when she first started. She had already picked off most of the loners during the first two minutes of the battle. Now there were mostly clumps of pegasi in the sky, trying desperately to catch her.
This proved to be difficult. Some of the groups didn’t know who to follow or bickered about who was in charge. Sometimes a few would get separated from the main mass and Lightning would easily pick them off. It was almost like some idiot had planned all of this at the last minute and forgot to take any precautions.
Lightning Dust zoomed around in her search until she spotted something. It was a glimmer on the ground several hundred yards ahead of her. ‘That’s where Overkill had been fighting,’ thought Lightning Dust as she shot in that direction.
It took her a half a second for her to reach her destination, but when she did she stopped cold in her tracks. Lying there in the ground was Overkill’s axe. ‘N-No way,’ thought Lightning as she felt all warmth leave her body. ‘There’s no way Overkill would ever leave that axe behind unless she was was…’
As the truth began to sink into Lightning Dust, Celestia’s pegasi were now converging on the morning pegasus from every direction. Hundreds of them blocking every escape route she could take with their weapons ready to take her life. Then just as they were closing in they were startled by a loud scream.
“MONSTERS!” roared Lightning Dust as she turned to look at the incoming army with narrowed eyes that showed no sign of fear. At once she zoomed towards the closest pegasi and cut off his head before he even know what happened. She then began to circle around the group, picking off dozens with every rotation.
That, however, was not enough to stop what Celestia’s guard had planned. While Lightning Dust was taking many of them down, they were still able to surround her within seconds. Yet Lightning Dust did not slow down. She slammed into guard after guard, the impact causing her enemies to fall out of the sky. Some she would fly in front of and then vanish as if by magic, but not before slitting their throats.
She soon became away that some of her exposed area’s now had cuts and were bleeding, yet she paid them no mind. It would take a lot more than that to stop her. She didn’t care about escaping or regrouping with the others. Right now all she could think about was killing every single one of these Celestia’s loving monsters before her body became too exhausted to move.
She then became aware of a slight whack on her back. Whatever it was, it only lasted a moment and, with the speed she was going at, wouldn’t happen again. To make sure of that, she increased her speed even more within this tightly knitted space as she killed several more ponies that were now nothing more than blobs of neon colors to her. Her wings began to scream at her to slow down and a voice in the back of her mind warned her that this was unsafe. Lightning dust could no longer tell if she was making a killing blow or not, instead just slashing whatever she came close to.
And then she began to fall.
As she did, she felt a numbness on her back where her wings were. When she turned her head, she saw to her horror that both of them had been cut of leaving little stumps where they had once been. She also noticed a pegasus pony whom she had sliced in half at the torso, holding a bloody sword. That image was quickly replaced as the other pegasi began to fly towards her with their weapons at the ready to end her life.
Lightning closed her eyes as she waited for the attack. But it never came. Instead she felt herself land on something that wasn’t the ground. Slowly she opened her eyes and saw that she was in one of Shining Armor’s defensive bubbles, slowly being lowered near said unicorn. Outside Celestia’s guard tried their best to pierce it, yet had no luck. Seeing this, Lightning stuck out her tongue at them.
Once the bubble made contact with Shining’s main shield, it passed through it without any difficulty before laying her on the ground. Looking up she saw the angry face of Shining Armor.
“That was the stupidest, most reckless thing I have ever seen in my life,” said Shining Armor as a vein appeared on his head. “You are just lucky you were close by or else you would have been killed!”
As Shining Armor opened his mouth to continue talking, he was cut off by the noise outside. Several ponies where knocked out while screaming in pain right before Shadow came into view, creating a path for himself by slashing away at the enemy ponies. Once he made it to Shining Armor’s shield, the barrier allowed him through but not the spears and swords that traveled behind him.
As soon as he was inside, he looked down at Lightning Dust with some pity while Shining Armor created a shield over her wounds in order to stop the bleeding. Lightning, for her part, noticed that two of her captain’s legs had a slow moving river of blood running down them. For a while, no pony spoke.
“I,” began Shadow as he looked at Shining, “haven’t seen anypony else. The three of us are all that remain.”
“Don’t count our troops out just yet,” said Shining. “I sent Private Donut and the others back the embassy. Hopefully they made it back home. If they did then we can expect an emergency teleport soon. As for Overkill, maybe she moved the fight out into the city or something.”
Shadow opened his mouth, but Lightning spoke up before him.
“Overkill is dead,” she said while looking at the ground. “I didn’t see it happen, but I saw her axe. There is no way she would ever leave it behind.”
Upon hearing this news Shadow closed his eyes while lowering his head.
“But that doesn’t mean that the rest of them are dead,” said Shining as worry began to enter his voice.
“But we should proceed as if they have,” said Shadow as he opened his eyes while giving Shining Armor a look of determination. He then began to take off his chest armor and, once he had done so, opened up a panel on its inside.
“What are you doing?” asked Shining while Lightning looked up at her superior.
“Private Lightning Dust,” said Shadow as he ignored Shining Armor’s question. “Hoof over your suit’s power cells.” Lightning’s eyes widened when she heard this. For a moment she didn’t move. Then, with a shaky hoof began to take off her armor as well.
“What the buck are you planning?!” demanded Shining Armor.
“In the event of an emergency, such as this, all member of the Royal Guard are taught how to make a bomb out of their armor,” said Shadow without looking up from his work. “It’s simple really. All I have to do is disengage the safety systems one by one and then trigger an overload. When I’m done, the blast will most likely destroy the castle and nearly everypony here with the exception of Princess Luna and that sister of hers.”
“But my shield,” said Shining Armor in disbelief as Lightning gave Shadow three small rods that gave off a light blue glow. “At this rate it will be three days before they even create a crack. That’s more than enough time for help to arrive!”
“That’s true,” said Shadow as he continued his work, adding Lightning’s power cells into his armor. “But how long will it last if Princess Celestia adds her own power to the attack.”
Shining Armor’s eyes went wide. “B-But that would mean that Princess Luna would have to-”
“Lose?” finished Shadow as he looked up from his work. “I know it’s not a happy thought but we need to be prepared in case something like that happens. If we are to go down, I am going to make sure they think twice before attacking the Republic.”
-x-
Meanwhile, Princess Luna was thrown against the ground once more due to one of Celestia’s attacks. And, like the other times, she managed to get back on her hooves quickly before glaring at her sister.
‘This is taking too long,’ thought the princess of the moon as she took a breath. She then glanced around to see if she could spot any of her Honor Guard and, to her dismay, all she could spot was Shining’s shield. ‘I cannot let this drag on anymore or more of my little ponies will suffer.”
“Computer,” said Luna under her breath. “What is our status?”
“Armor strength is at fifty-six percent,” replied her armor’s computer. “This suits energy levels are at forty-one percent. Twelve missiles remain.”
"Computer," said Luna, "prepare to fire all remaining missiles, alpha-strike pattern. Disengage safeties on glaive and chakram, and set for overload. Also disengage safeties on chest and forehoof blasters, and route all remaining power towards them."
"Warning!" replied the computer sharply, with red lights coming up on Luna's peripheral-view Heads-Up Display, "High probability of critical damage to chest armor and all systems. Passcode required to continue."
"Passcode is: Oceana, Celestia..." answered Luna, hesitating for a moment, then with resolution, "...Family."
"Passcode accepted," confirmed the night alicorn's battle computer, "Executing operation."
Luna felt her chest plate and forehooves' armor grow hot as she flapped her wings and rose into the air once more, bringing herself level to Celestia. Panels on Luna's flanks opened to reveal her micro-missile racks. Hovering at her sides, the cores of the lunar alicorn's weapons began to glow brighter than before.
As she did this, Celestia shook her head. “Please little sister, let this end,” begged Celestia. “Hasn’t there been enough damage done to both sides?”
“Oh this will end alright,” stated Luna as her horn began to glow. “And it will end with your defeat!”
With that, A dozen smoke trails spiraled out from the lunar alicorn, some heading dead-on at Celestia, while others curved or curled around to the solar alicorn's sides, top and bottom.
The solar princess let out a sigh as she created a magical sphere around her. The explosive impacts jarred her barrier, but it held.
‘I am so sorry little sister,’ thought Celestia sadly. ‘But I must end this before all of the chaos of this battle awakes Discord. I only hope that she will forgive me for-’
THUK! THUK! Celestia blinked in surprise as the smoke cleared, to find Luna's weapons had partly penetrated and embedded themselves in her barrier. Frowning, Celestia opened her mouth once again try to reason against Luna's futile efforts when noticed that Luna's weapons were emitting a loud shrill noise.
Twin explosions lit the air as Luna's weapons detonated, shattering Celestia's barrier, the white alicorn shielded her face with her forelegs from the blast-wave as she felt shrapnel from the exploded weapons dig into her exposed areas.
But when she brought her forelegs down, Celestia thought for a moment that she was staring into her sun, and it was coming right at her.
A blue-white beam as wide as Celestia streamed forth from Luna as chest and forehoof blasters combined into a single spiraled beam, held together and enhanced by Luna's magic as she poured all her own personal energies into the blast as well. The beam engulfed Celestia's form in a torrent of technological and magical energies.
Battle ceased and froze as the flaring beam lit up the city skies like a beacon, and Celestia's deafening scream could be heard throughout Canterlot. Equestrians all around the area looked up with open mouths to see their princess’ falling to the ground with her eyes closed, her armor destroyed by the attack, her white fur charred in many places.
Thankfully she was caught by a dark-blue magic aura before she fell more than ten yards. Luna who was now panting hard, with her horn's aura flickering, and looked like she was having trouble staying in the air. She looked down at Shining Armor’s barrier and flew towards it with Celestia in tow. Celestia’s guards, who were either still in shock at what they had just see or were afraid that they might harm Celestia, did nothing which allowed Luna to enter the barrier with no difficulty.
As soon as her hooves where on the ground, Luna dropped Celestia like a sack of rocks. Grimacing in pain and exertion, the lunar alicorn reached up a smoking forehoof to rip off her also-smoking, glowing-hot chestplate and cast it upon the ground. Luna kicked off her forelegs' armor as well to join the chestplace, where all three items began to curl and warp inward from their heat and fused circuitry.
She then looked at the three ponies that were in the force field and hoped that they were not the only ones to survive.
Luna stood there panting for a moment before her gaze returned to her sister and her eyes softened a bit. The anger she had during the fight was now fading and the cloud of rage that had fogged her thoughts was now lifting as she stared at the bloody and charred heap that was her sister.
And with this new clarity she began to see things differently. ‘Oh sister, how could you not see what was right in front of you?’ she thought. ‘You always wanted to give everypony the benefit of the doubt, to put your faith in them. But you forgot that there are those who will take advantage of you like Blueblood has done. The guard seems to follow his orders, not yours, and I fear what he will do when he finds you in this state.’
“Princess,” said Shining Armor, pulling Princess Luna from her thoughts. When they made eye contact he noticed that she was panting and her eyes looked a little droopy, as if she were doing her best to stay awake. “It is good to see that you are alright but we need you to teleport us out of here and soon.”
Luna sadly shook her head. “I am afraid that most of my magic has been spent during my fight with Celestia. I have barely the power to do the simplest of spells at the moment.”
“Then we’ll give you time to rest,” said Shining Armor before glancing at Shadow. “So we won’t need that bomb.”
Luna looked over at Shadow who was still working on his armor. Surrounding him were several small devices which she recognized as the safety systems of an armor unit. Judging by how many there were Luna realized that he was halfway done. She also noticed that he was looking a bit paler and his movements were becoming a bit more sluggish.
“Hey,” said Lightning. “Look what’s going on.”
Luna turned her head and saw that the earth ponies were now backing away. Even the pegasi in the air were backing away and landing on the ground. Then Blueblood and an army of unicorns began to move in with the arrogant noble wearing a large grin that got on Luna’s nerves.
“I would say well fought but that would be a lie,” said Blueblood in a sneering tone as the unicorns began to surround the barrier. “In the end this was the only outcome. Your bloodlust has come to an end at the hooves of the Canterlot Royal Guard. Now, in the name of the Princess whom you defeated through trickery, lower your barrier and surrender. Please, do not waste any more time on foolish resistance.”
Luna narrowed her eyes. “You are not in complete control,” she said while motioning to Shining Armor “You have yet to breach this barrier and-”
“That ‘barrier’ will not protect you for long,” interrupted Blueblood. “And do not think you can use my dear Auntie as a hostage. I know her well enough to know that in a situation like this she would insist that I think about Equestria before anything else. And that is what I shall do, for Princess Celestia. But I shall give you this one warning so please pay attention with this tiny brains of yours. If any ‘more’ harm comes to her then any chance that your guards survive this day will be lost.”
“Prin...ess...there? Do... hear...?”
These bits of words mixed in with static were heard on the com system of all of the Lunar ponies. At once all of their eyes widened while Shadow raised his head from his work. Their hearts began to beat faster than ever before.
“Yes, we hear you!” shouted Shining with a smile.
“Good,” said Blueblood. “It seems there is one among you with some degree of sense. Not surprising seeing that he is a unicorn.”
“...out...oving in...to...strength. I repeat, we are moving closer in order to boost the signal,” came Starway’s voice on the comm system.
At that moment, a shadow appeared over all of Canterlot. Looking up, everypony saw something that caused their jaws to drop. The ponies from Equestria didn’t know what it was, but those from The Lunar Republic knew it as Crescent Hope which was directly above them in high orbit, blocking the sun. Many of Equestria’s soldiers looked like they were about to panic. Heck, even Blueblood seemed speechless.
“We can definitely hear you know,” said Shadow as he looked up. “Can you lock on to us?”
“Yes,” replied Starway, relief in her voice. “Unfortunately due to the magical interference we will be unable to do individual teleportation. We will have to do a mass teleport and grab every object within the barrier or we will have to get lower and lift.”
“Do the mass teleport,” said Princess Luna. “Using the lift means opening the outer doors and giving our enemy a chance to entrance Crescent Hope. Teleport us now!”
Luna then turned her attention to Blueblood and narrowed her tired eyes.
“Before we leave know this,” she said. “We did not ask for this, but you wanted a war. And now you shall have it.” Blueblood opened his mouth but before a single curse came out Luna, Celestia, and the other guards vanished before his eyes.
In the skies above Equestria, Princess Cadence, her guards, and Darkwing flew at top speed towards the small town of Ponyville. It was in one of its nearby forests, the Everfree Forest, where the new bat colony was located. Hoping to make a good impression with its leader, as well as to save time, the Princess of Love had decided not to bring her chariot with them.
During the long flight, Cadence began to feel something that only powerful unicorns or alicorns could feel. It was powerful magic unlike anything she had ever felt before. For a brief second, she thought that it was a group of unicorns, casting a very powerful and complex spell. However, a feeling of dread seemed to come with this feeling. She could feel both anger and sorrow in the air, which only got worse as time went on.
Then, about ten minutes later, the feeling began to fade. And Cadence didn’t know if she should be happy, or afraid.
“Mommy, is something wrong?” asked Midnight, who was lying on Cadence’s back.
“I’m fine,” she lied as she gave her daughter a reassuring smile.
“But you were making a strange noise inside,” indicated Midnight, getting into a sitting position.
“I was what?” asked Cadence, unsure as to what her daughter was referring to.
“Your heartbeat,” explained Ruby as she flew a bit closer to Cadence. The bat pony then pointed to her ear. “We could all hear your heartbeat raise. If it’s about meeting Lone Wolf, we can still turn around.”
“We shall do no such thing,” declared Cadence firmly. “I just felt some powerful magic. That’s all.”
“Oh,” responded Ruby, who looked to the two who had come from the same colony as she did. Both of them shrugged, not knowing what to say or do.
“Whatever it was, best to put it out of your mind,” suggested Darkwing as he flew to Cadence’s opposite side. “Because we’ll reach the Everfree Colony in a few hours. I suggest you use this time to come up with a game plan. Trust me, Lone Wolf won’t be happy knowing that I’m leading you there.”
“I understand,” said Cadence with a nod. ‘I need to focus,’ she thought. ‘I just hope that whatever that was, it didn’t hurt anypony.’
-x-
Luna found herself in the teleportation room of the Crescent Hope. The room was large, holding several square shaped pads on it, with each having six circles on each. Each of these circles were teleportation devices. When the ship was being built, Blue Star had pointed out that having more teleporters would give the ship a large advantage, in case something went wrong on the surface, or if you needed to get a large amount of ponies out of the ship in a hurry.
The door then opened as Captain Starway entered, along with ten of the ships medical crew. Starway did her best to hide her shock as she laid eyes on the survivors. Princess Luna, however, saw it as plain as day. She too felt the same way. As for the medical crew, upon seeing them, they all rushed over to their Princess first with healing pods floating behind them.
“I am fine,” stated Luna as she gestured to the others. “Attend to them first. They need it more than I.”
Nodding, the medical team went to work. Princess Luna watched as most of them rushed over towards Shining Armor and Lightning Dust. Out of all of them, Shining Armor looked untouched and, besides panting a bit due to using so much magic, looked fine. Lightning Dust was another matter.
“This looks bad,” proclaimed a member of the medical team when she saw Lightning’s missing wings. She and another pulled out their scanning equipment and began to examine the mare. “Rapid and shallow breathing, weak pulse, rapid heartbeat, and clammy skin. I think she’s going into shock. Get her in a healing pod, pronto!”
As Lightning Dust was gently placed into the egg-shaped pod, Luna shifted her attention towards Shadow Blade. He was breathing hard as he tried to swat away the medical team from scanning him, or tending to his many cuts, which were dipping with blood.
“I’m fine,” he snarled, almost swaying while he did so.
“But sir, you’ve lost a lot of blood,” noted a member of the medical team. “It’s pooling on the floor!”
“It’ll stop…when-” began Shadow, but stopped when he suddenly fell forward, colliding face first with the floor. Taking this opportunity, the medical team also placed him in a healing pod.
Luna then turned her attention to her sister, whose body lay directly behind her, covered in blood. Unlike her two soldiers, Luna noticed that none of the medical team seemed to want to examine her, or offer any medical aid, to the solar princess. Eventually, one did reluctantly begin to look at her. And since the healing pods weren’t big enough to fit Celestia, she was roughly lifted into the air by Shining Armor, and taken to the medical room.
“I-I can’t believe that this is all that remains of your honor guard,” uttered Starway, walking over to Luna, her head hanging low. “If only I could have gotten the ship to move a little faster.”
“There was nothing you could have done,” said Luna softly. “You are bound to the limits of the ship. Regardless, we are grateful that you managed to get to Canterlot as fast as you did. Because of this, some lives were saved.”
“We can at least be thankful for that,” agreed Starway with some reluctance as the two exited the transporter room. Luna led the way towards the bridge, with Crescent Hope’s captain by her side.
“I hope your mission was successful, at least,” said Luna, hoping to hear some good news.
“We managed to find a nice isolated spot in the far north, where nopony would bother us,” informed Starway as the two turned a corner. “The nearest pony settlement is at least a two day journey by hoof. Once the equipment was unloaded, we began to harvest the ice and bring it aboard the ship. However, when I got the distress call, I ordered that all crew members to be teleported onboard, and the equipment was left behind in an effort to get to Canterlot sooner.”
“An understandable move, given the situation,” replied Luna. “How much ice did we get?”
“Not enough,” said Starway with a sigh. “Right now, several compartments of the ship have been loaded with ice. It is estimated that once it has been melted and sent through the purification systems, the Republic’s water supply will be out of the danger zone. Just barely, though. We will still need to return and collect much more ice, so we can get back all that was lost.”
As soon as she finished saying this, Luna and Starway entered the bridge. As they entered, everypony there stopped what they were doing and saluted the two. Luna gave them a nod, causing them to return to what they were doing. While they did this, Luna walked towards the large screen, which showed the moon getting larger at an impressive pace.
“Have you contacted the Republic of anything?” asked Luna.
Starway nodded as she took her seat in the captain’s chair. “As soon as we began heading towards Canterlot, I contacted Dome Zero to inform them that something had happened, and you were under attack. They tried to teleport you out from there, but due to the high magical interference, they were unable to do so. I was then informed that the Senate was gathering, in case the worst came to pass.”
“No,” stated Luna, her eyes narrowing slightly. “The worst has yet to come.”
-x-
Meanwhile, back in Canterlot, Hot Pants was bent down besides one of the fallen pegasi. Using her magic, she gently picked him up and began to examine his wounds. This didn’t take long as she quickly noticed that his neck was nearly been cut off. Taking a deep breath, she maneuvered the body over to one of the many wagons that had been brought in, and set the body in it, along with all of the others that had died.
‘There’s just so many,’ thought Hot Pants, looking across the courtyard, her ears flattening as she did. All around her were ponies working hard as they sorted their dead comrades from those who were either badly injured or clinging to life.
This had started as soon as the Lunar ponies had left. Once they were gone, Prince Blueblood stormed into the castle without issuing a single order. With nopony else to turn to, all eyes were on the single high ranking officer there: Hot Pants. When they came to her, her first order was to get Aerial Ace to the hospital wing, and then to begin searching for more wounded officers. To her surprise, all of the guards saluted her, said ‘yes, ma’am’, and then went straight to work. Personally, she hadn’t expected this.
Soon after that, Crème showed up to inform that the city of Canterlot was in full panic mode. Ponies were either in the streets screaming that Nightmare Moon had blocked out the sun, while others were taking advantage of the situation by looting many of the homes. After explaining all of this, Crème said that she was going to take her remaining pegasi out into the city, so they could try and keep things under control. Hot Pants nodded and wished her the best of luck.
So far, things were going by smoothly. Fourteen wagons had been gathered to better move the dead, until they could be properly placed to rest. Nopony was arguing, complaining, or stalling in any way with their work.
“My leg!” came a loud scream that cut through the area like a knife, followed by loud sobbing. Hot Pants turned and ran to the source. There she found Lord North Star, who had bandaged an amputated foreleg of another guard, while Fancy Pants lifted the poor stallion up with his magic.
“No need to worry, old chap,” said Fancy Pants in a reassuring tone as he carried the stallion towards the castle. “We’ll have you fixed up. Right as rain in a few months, I’m sure.”
Once the two were out of sight, Hot Pants began to look at North Star. His coat was covered in blood stains, and his mane looked like a wreck. If it wasn’t for her knowledge of who this pony was, then she would never have guessed that he was a noble.
“Thank you for all your help,” she said at last. North Star just waved it off.
“Think nothing of it,” he replied with a sigh. “It’s the least we can do, after they risked their lives to defend this place. It is a pity that something like this had to happen in the first place. Hopefully, it will open the eyes of certain ponies, so we can avoid any further bloodshed.”
“You don’t think that,” began Hot Pants, but stopped when she noticed something. Two members of the Guard were bringing in another wagon. However, instead of placing it alongside the others, they were instead bringing it towards the castle. Narrowing her eyes, Hot Pants raced towards them, with North Star right behind her.
“What are you two doing?” demanded Hot Pants as she neared them. Once she was directly in front of them, she pointed towards the other wagons. “That wagon is needed over there!”
The two guards looked at each other. While they remained silent, they were giving the other a look that said ‘you tell her’. Finally, one of them sighed in defeat, and a moment later, the two turned their attention back towards the lieutenant, who was now beginning to lose her patience.
“Sorry, ma’am,” said the one who had sighed. “But we have orders to bring this into the castle.”
“And why are you bringing two dead Lunar soldiers into the castle?” demanded North Star. Hot Pants’ eyes widened as she looked over at North Star, who now stood at the back of the wagon, so he could clearly see what it was carrying. Ignoring the two soldiers, Hot Pants’ galloped to the back and gasped at what she say. Sure enough, there were two corpses of Lunar earth ponies still in their armor.
After seeing this, Hot Pants’ turned her attention back to the two guards. “Who gave the order?” she demanded.
“I did,” said the sneering voice of Stareye. “Is there a problem with that?” Hot Pants turned around to look at her superior. He was standing a few feet away, surrounding by his newly appointed lieutenants. He was looking at her with distain, his eyes focusing on her messy mane, the drain blood and dirt on her coat, and her equally dirty armor.
By contrast, Stareye looked as if nothing had happened. His armor was as clean was ever, and even seemed to be polished. The stallion’s mane looked like somepony had recently worked on it, and his coat seemed to shine.
His lieutenants, on the other hoof, seemed a little different. Their heads were no longer held as high as before, and a few seemed to glancing around nervously, as if they expected to be attacked or something. All around them, the Guard began to slow down in their work, so they could better hear what was going down.
“With all due respect, sir,” began Hot Pants, “we need every resource available in order to properly take care of both our wounded and dead. And, while I understand that we need to take the enemies corpses out of the general populace, bringing them into the castle seems foolish, given what we have seen of-”
“Silence!” roared Stareye. “It was by order of Prince Blueblood, now the ruler of Equestria, that these two vermin be brought to the castle.
“Furthermore, you may cease your current activities. I never approved of any of this, and I deem it a waste of time. Just round up all the dead and put them in the caverns underneath the castle, or something. As for the wounded, they are to be discharged from service.”
Everypony’s eyes widened when they heard that. Some even took a step away from the current Captain of the Guard. North Star was the first to recover, glaring at his son with disgust clear in his eyes.
“That is no way to treat your fellow soldiers,” he said, while Fancy Pants made his way onto the scene. “Especially the ones who gave their life fighting for their homeland. They deserve to be returned to their families, so they can say their goodbyes.”
“And you can’t just toss out the injured ones!” said Hot Pants. “Many of them will be able to return to duty in a couple of months. A year at most. Many of they are highly trained soldiers, with years of experience. Also, Princess Celestia would never allow this to happen! She would never-”
“But, she isn’t here anymore,” said Blueblood, his words cutting through the air like a knife. “We were going to keep her safe in her room, but she refused. Now she has been captured by those Lunar lowlifes.”
“As it stands, I am in charge of our military until Prince Blueblood relieves me of my duties. And I say that it would be a waste of our time to identify each rotting corpse, track down their families, and return them. As for our injured, well, we can always get more bodies to replace them. Perhaps we should start a draft. Say anypony with a cutie mark and up. Old enough to know your special talent, old enough to fight.”
As Stareye said this, the lieutenants were now beginning to look even more nervous. Some were taking very visible steps away from him.
“You’re insane,” growled Fancy Pants. “I promise you that will never happen.”
“Then, take it up with the Prince,” said Stareye lazily. “Oh, and by the way. There will be a meeting in the throne room in about ten minutes. All of the nobles and ranking members of the Guard are supposed to be there. Please use this time to clean yourselves up, so that you pass as presentable.”
As Stareye walked away, Hot Pants nearly fell back on her plot with her mouth opened. ‘What am I going to do?’ she thought. ‘Many of the ponies in the medical wing need serious help. We can’t just throw them out and act like they aren’t our problem anymore. It isn’t right! But-’ Just then, she felt a hoof on her shoulder. Looking to her side, she saw North Star giving her a reassuring smile.
“There, there,” he said gently. “I’ll take care of everything.”
“But how?” asked Hot Pants.
“I know some ponies who would be willing to help take our fallen heroes’ bodies back to their respected homes,” mentioned North Star. “I’ll also pay the medical bills for those who were badly injured.”
“You won’t be alone,” inserted Fancy Pants. “I’ll help.”
Hearing this brought a smile to Hot Pants’ face. “Thank you,” she said as she hugged both of the nobles.
“It’s no problem at all,” responded North, pulling out of the hug. “But, now we all need to get going. We have less than ten minutes to figure out how we are going to deal with Blueblood, so things don’t get any worse.”
As the three began to walk towards the castle, a certain statue on the other side of the estate began to grow a few more cracks. Inside, Discord was feeling all of the delicious chaos as it fueled his release. Soon, he would be free of his stone prison. All he needed was another powerful burst of chaos or two, and then he would be-.
At that moment, a white substance landed inside Discord’s nose. With no way to wipe it clean, the Lord of Chaos vowed that when he was freed, he would get that bird.
-x-
Back on the moon, Land Share watched as Crescent Hope landed in its docking bay next to Dome Zero. Unlike other transport vessels, a special door had been created that resembled the lunar surface, which opened up to an underground hanger. Along the walls were many mechanical arms wielding plasma torches and other such tools used to repair the ship.
Once the ship landed, a doorway opened. When it did, Land Share expected Princess Luna to be the first to exit, along with Shining Armor and Shadow Blade. Instead, however, he saw several members of the medical team rushing out of Crescent Hope, with two healing pods right behind them. And from their windows, Land Share saw the two that were in there, a feeling of dread began to grow in the pit of his stomach, believing that they were dead. Luckily, he quickly realized that it wasn’t the case. However, seeing them like that was still a hard pill to swallow.
‘N-no way,’ thought the senator as he fell on his plot. ‘There’s just no way either of those two could have been put in such critical condition.’
It was then he noticed Shining Armor exiting the space craft. Behind him, traveling in a shield bubble created by his magic, was Princess Celestia. Her body was covered with bandages that were soaked with blood and would need to be changed soon. The captain of the Shield Corps looked at the senator for a brief second, before looking away and quickening his step.
Then, Princess Luna exited Crescent Hope, looking a little worse for wear. Gone were both her armor and regalia, leaving her completely naked while she walked towards Land Share. As she did, ponies began to unload containers filled with ice, leaving Land Share to a shocking and sad conclusion.
“Are the others d-dead?” he asked softly.
Luna slowly nodded her head. “I will explain more when I meet with the entire senate,” she said as she continued to walk, Land Share following her.
“Please, Princess, is Shadow alright?” begged Land Share.
“His life isn’t in any danger,” replied Luna, her voice very soft. “The medical team informed me as we landed that he simply lost a great deal of blood. The healing pod is currently working to patch up his wounds and stabilize his condition until he can get an infusion.”
“Thank the stars,” exclaimed Land Share with pure relief in his voice. “I didn’t know how I would be able to face his family to give them the news if it had been more serious.”
Upon hearing this, Luna nearly stopped in her tracks as the weight of his words hit her heart. Images of Twilight waking up, simply to find that the stallion she loved was dead, caused her insides to twist. Tears nearly formed in her eyes as she envisioned Scootaloo crying besides her adopted mother.
“H-how are they?” asked Luna.
Land Share let out a sigh. “Twilight is still unconscious,” he noted sadly. “No change in her condition, so I suppose that’s a good thing. If only her heart hadn’t been damaged, then she’d be up by now.
“Scootaloo is a different story,” he continued. “Went to check up on her after I spoke to Shadow earlier. She had apparently woken up shortly before I arrived, and one of the nurses had let it slip about Twilight. The fool should have kept his mouth shut until Shadow returned. When I entered the room, she was doing her best to try and leave her bed to see Twilight, but the doctors wouldn’t let her.
“After what happened with Sunset Shimmer, they were concerned that seeing Twilight in that kind of condition would be too much for her, both emotionally and mentally. They were about to sedate her, but I stepped in to try and calm her down. It took a while, but I managed to reassure her that Twilight was going to be ok, and that what they both needed right now was rest.”
“I see,” said Luna, thankful for Land Share’s assistance in this matter. She knew that Twilight would also be grateful that somepony was looking out for her daughter, while both she and Shadow were indisposed. “So, what happened next?”
“I asked her if she needed anything, and all she asked for were some of her textbooks,” answered Land Share. “I quickly got them for her, and once she got them, she dived right into them. Before I left, I told the doctors to watch over her, and let me know if anything happened.”
“Very good,” said Luna, noticing that she was near the Senate Room.
Less than five minutes later, Luna and Land Share entered the room where the other senators were waiting. Looking at the ponies gathered, Luna could see relief on each of their faces. As the two took their seats, Luna noticed that, standing off to the side, was Bunsen Burner. Normally, a meeting like this wouldn’t concern a pony like him.
‘Perhaps,’ thought Luna, ‘they called him in for information, in case they needed to launch a rescue mission.’ Upon seeing her, Bunsen began to stand, in order to leave, but Luna looked at him and shook her head. Right now, she wished for him to remain, in case they still needed any scientific help.
“Princess, we were beginning to worry,” commented April Showers. “Thank the stars you came back safely.”
“I too am thankful, not only for me, but also for the few others that were able to return as well,” said Luna heavily. Her words had an immediate impact of all those present, each one had a look of both confusion and worry.
Seeing no point in delaying that matter, Luna began to tell them of the events that transpired. While she did so, nopony made a sound. They listened with great intensity, their anger growing as they heard of Blueblood’s arrogance and the battle that took place. Luna continued to tell them of her battle against Celestia, and how she had managed to defeat her, as well as her realization that Blueblood had taken over, fooling Celestia utterly.
The only thing that Luna could not tell them at this time were the battles that her honor guards had fought. All she could do was inform them of the injuries that both Shadow and Lightning sustained. It was Luna’s belief that those who did not make it had fought until the very end, refusing to allow themselves to be captured by the enemy.
When she finished, the feel of the room was different than when she first entered. Anger now rippled in the air, and there was a fury on each face of the Senate that could scare even a dragon.
“This news…is most unnerving,” said Scorpio after a moment of silence.
“That is an understatement,” growled Gigawatt before slamming his hoof against the table with enough force to crack it. “Princess Luna, I fear I must demand a call for the war vote. Things have gone too far not to.”
“I agree,” said a stone faced Luna. “Equestria has made its point very clearly. The ponies there do not wish to have peace with us. So, I shall call for the war vote.
“But, before I do, there is something that I must tell you. We are a nation that has never experienced the pain of war before. It is not glorious nor fun. It is not a place where a pony can find his or her destiny. It is something that often brings out the worst in ponies, and those that return might not ever really return.”
“Princess, are you trying to talk us out of war?” asked Stock Market, who appeared to be lightly shaken by Luna’s words.
Princess Luna shook her head. “No,” she answered. “I want this war just as much as any other pony in this room. But, I am the only one who has ever experienced real war before. It would be wrong of me to declare war like this without giving everypony here all the facts.
“Now, all those in favor of war please raise your hoof.”
As soon as these words left Luna’s mouth, the hooves of both Gigawatt and Scorpio shot into the air. Everypony else however, seemed to have their anger tempered by her words. Then, much to her surprise, Land Share slowly raised his hoof. After he did that, one by one, all of the remaining senators raised their hoof.
“The motion is carried,” said Luna. “We go to war.”
Luna looked around the Senate Room, her face looking as cold and impassive as stone. Declaring war had been easy. Now, came the hard part: deciding how they were going to fight Equestria. Each member of the Senate seemed to have a different idea on how to go about this.
“I’m telling you that orbital bombardment is the way to go!” shouted Scorpio as he slammed his hoof against the surface of the table. “We can target all of their major cities and level them within an hour. The best part is that we will have zero casualties.”
“That may be true, but we risk hurting the civilian population, which would result in more anti-Republic feelings,” argued Stock Market. “It would be easier for us to make it an eternal night. Eventually, they will see their plant life begin to die out and will surrender. This way will prevent deaths on both sides and it will cost us fewer resources.”
“Are you insane?!” roared April Showers. “The ponies of Equestria are too stubborn for something like that. If we use the eternal night plan, then we will end up destroying much of the plant life we need in order to replace what we lost. From where I’m sitting, it will be a heavy cost to both sides.”
“You don’t know that,” insisted Stock Market. “Sure, they’ll go a week or two with no daylight. However, I feel that once the other nations find out what is going on, they will put added pressure on Equestria to surrender.”
“Or these other nations will get pissed at us!” argued April Showers. “They would most likely be upset that we dragged them into our fight and turn against us. Maybe even assist Equestria in trying to eliminate us.”
“Judging from what I read the last time I was in Equestria, that seems unlikely,” said Gigawatt. “Most of the other nations on the planet, especially the griffons, are not on the best of terms with Equestria. They might take our side if we explain the situation to them before the Equestrians have a chance to twist the situation around.”
“I,” began Land Share slowly and gulped. “I know what I am about to suggest might seem unusual for me, but I believe we need something more forceful to show them we mean business. I say we activate Operation: Umbrella. And then, we take it a step further and monitor them. If we spot any act that remotely looks like they are trying to best us, then we can blast them. That way, we can prevent anything like the tragedy that befell my Dome from ever happening again.”
After Land Share finished speaking, everypony in the room became silent for a moment. Several crossed their forelegs as they considered the idea. Luna, on the other hoof, raised a questioning eyebrow at this. She had never heard him speak like this before. Usually he was the voice of reason and compassion.
But, she could understand where he was coming from. They were lucky that no ponies died due to the destruction of his Dome. Luna then spotted that Bunsen Burner’s eyes had widened, meaning he was equally as shocked.
“That…might be a good idea,” said April Showers as a few others nodded. “If we did something like that, then Equestria would never be a threat to us.”
“But, what about the others on the planet?” demanded Bunsen Bruner, causing all eyes to focus on him. “The effects of Operation: Umbrella will not just be limited to Equestria, but all other races. If we go along with this plan, then we will be making enemies with the entire planet! Many could die! Many will want revenge!”
“Yes, but-” began April Showers, but stopped when Luna held up a hoof for silence.
“I agree with Director Bunsen Burner,” she said calmly. “Operation: Umbrella should not be used as a tool for war. He is also correct that, if we do this, we will be making enemies with every single race on the planet. Races that have done nothing to us. I also agree with Senator April Showers. Eternal night would eventually lead to the planet becoming colder, causing all plant life to die and leading to the death of all animal life.”
“Only if Equestria remains stubborn,” muttered Gigawatt. “But, I do see your point. It would also be near impossible of us to watch every living sentient creature on the planet for possible threats against us. So, are we just going to bomb them, then?”
Luna closed her eyes for a moment while she thought about this. When she opened them again, there was a look of firm determination.
“We could attack Equestria from orbit easily,” she said. “However, I fear that they will not learn their lesson. They will say that it was unfair. They will deluded themselves that if they had been given the chance to fight, then they would have won, or something like that. And then, sooner or later, they will get it into their heads to attack us once again.
“So, I propose we crush that belief. I propose that we send a small number of ponies armed with the latest technology to crush their army. We shall then march upon their capital and take it! I will be there to personally grab that bastard Blueblood and drag his royal plot back to the Republic, so he can pay for all of his crimes! We will make sure their defeat is so through that they will never even consider attacking us at any point in the future!”
For a moment, nopony spoke. They all stared at Princess Luna as they took in her words. For a while, Luna thought that they would reject her idea wanting to attack from a safe distance. But then, one by one, they began to smile.
“I like the sound of that,” proclaimed Scorpio, rubbing his hooves together. “In fact, I think it’s the only way those savages will ever understand just how outclassed they are.”
“I fully agree,” said Gigawatt. “I can see it now. Their vast army being put in its place by our superior technology. Them begging and pleading for mercy as our weapons tear down the wall of Canterlot Castle. The look on their faces when they realize how powerless they are against us will be priceless. Almost makes me wish I could be there in pony.”
“Princess, I do have one question,” said Land Share as he gained everypony’s attention. “You said that you were going to personally bring Blueblood here. Does that mean that…”
“Yes,” said Luna with a nod. “I will be leading our army as we take Canterlot.”
“And, then what?” asked Land Share, his eyes widening slightly. “Will we take control of Equestria?”
Luna didn’t answer right away, instead placing a hoof on her chin. He had posed a question that she hadn’t really thought about. In hindsight, she should have asked herself this very question. Did she even want Equestria and the ponies that lived there? Luna thought about this, her eyes staring at the table while the Senate kept their gazes locked on her. Finally, after several minutes of mental debate, Luna knew her answer.
“No,” said Luna. “While taking over Equestria would provide us with many more resources, I have my hooves full running one nation. It would also make us appear as conquerors to the other nations on the planet, which would create even more problems.”
“Well, we can’t just let things remain as they are,” noted Scorpio as the others nodded in agreement.
“I agree,” said Luna. “Things will never change as long as those fools are in change. Luckily, there is one pony in Equestria that I know and trust to make the necessary changes. Therefore, we shall ensure that Princess Cadence takes the throne.”
“Princess Cadence?” questioned one of the other senators in confusion. “Can we really trust her?”
Luna nodded. “In the short time that I have known her, she has proven herself to be a caring soul, who wishes the best for her ponies. When she saw for herself the harm being done to bat ponies, she took it upon herself to change that, going against what Equestrian society believes is acceptable. She even came to me, asking for my assistance in this. That alone tells me what kind of mare she is.
“I am, however, worried. I am sure that if she were present in Canterlot, then she would have tried to intervene when mine and Celestia’s words became hostile. She would have tried to calm us both down. With her absence, Blueblood has most likely taken the throne for himself.
“So, our goal in this is simple. We shall remove that waste of space, Blueblood, from power and ensure Princess Cadence takes her proper place on the throne. Once that is done, we shall assist her as need be, so that she will not appear to be a puppet ruler.”
“They may look at it that way, regardless,” mention Land Share.
“Maybe at first,” said Luna with a nod. “However, I hope that, in time, the ponies of Equestria will see that she is in charge and not us, while making things better for all of them. Bat ponies included.”
“This seems like a good plan,” approved Land Share. “However, I believe we should have Operation: Umbrella set up and placed on standby. With the amount of chaos created today, there is a chance that during the battle he will either be freed during the battle or soon after.”
“Agreed,” said Luna. “I don’t want to think about what could happen to our forces should Discord awaken during the battle. If that happens, every second will count in minimizing damages. We should also prepare to lend aid to the various nations that will be affected by this plan.”
She then looked at Bunsen Burner. “Have you come any closer to making it, so it will only affect him?”
“Sadly, no,” was the reply. “The wide spectrum that we are currently using works on him just fine, but isolating his frequency is proving to be more difficult than we originally believed. If you plan on using Operation: Umbrella, then I would strongly suggest that a warning be sent to all the other nations, as well as some type of aid, given the affects.”
“I’m afraid we might be unable to do that,” noted Land Share, surprising Luna.
“And why not?” she asked with a raised eyebrow.
“We are barely hanging on, ourselves,” he replied simply. “Any aid that could have been spared has to go to the ponies living here. I know it sounds harsh, but we need to look after our own, before we worry about strangers.”
“Warning the other nations is also a bad idea,” added Stock Market with a sigh. “Imagine if somehow Discord found out what we are planning. He might try to break free of his prison before we can activate it, or try to teleport off the planet right into the heart of the Republic, before Operation: Umbrella takes full affect. Therefore, we need to keep this a secret from not only Equestria, but the rest of the beings on the planet.”
“But, we can’t just harm countless innocents in the process,” argued Luna before giving Land Share a pleading look.
Land Share let out a sigh. “I’ll see what, if anything, we can spare. Maybe some blankets and medicine.”
“Very good,” said Luna as she stood up. “Now, if you will all excuse me, I need to send Equestria a message.”
-x-
‘I can’t believe this is happening,’ thought Blueblood, slowly sitting on the throne of Equestria. ‘Never in my wildest dream did I think this was possible. The most I could ever hope for, was gaining more personal power or wealth. But, now…now I control the most powerful nation on the planet. Think of all I can do!’
Before he could do so, the doors to the throne room opened, and ponies began to spill into the room. He watched them carefully as they trotted in with their various groups. Standing in front of him, to the right, was Majesty as she led the nobles that he knew would support him. On his left were Fancy Pants and North Star. Behind them were a group of ponies, who didn’t seem to be pleased. However, Blueblood found it odd that those two seemed to be very calm at the moment.
Coming in from the side was Stareye and all of his lieutenants. Stareye positioned himself, so that he stood next to the throne, while the others stood alongside the glass wall. From what Blueblood could see, most of them looked clean and presentable, except for the only two mares of the group. ‘A shame,’ he thought since he knew them both to be particularly good looking mares.
Finally, Trixie entered the room. Blueblood, as well as every other pony in the castle, knew about her drinking habit, and judging by the way she was swaying, she had taken a few drinks before coming. However, even from where he sat, he could see that her eyes were focused. That was good, at least.
Seeing that they were all here, Blueblood let out a small cough to get everypony’s attention.
“I thank you all for meeting here so quickly,” he said calmly. “I know these are troubling times, but-”
“Prince Blueblood,” interrupted a stallion named Powdered Wig. “Canterlot is in chaos. There is rioting in the streets, as well as a general panic. Some ponies are saying that Nightmare Moon has come to destroy us! All this because of you!”
“Watch your tongue,” roared Stareye.
Blueblood, however, held up a hoof to silence Stareye. “Now, now, Captain Stareye,” he said with composure. “That is no way to speak to a noble who is under a great deal of stress.” The prince then looked at Powdered Wig. “Tell me, how is this my fault?”
“You egged both princesses on!” was the reply. “Because of you, we lost a great deal of soldiers, as well as suffering damage to the castle grounds. Worst of all, Princess Celestia was taken. If you had kept your mouth shut, then this wouldn’t of happened!”
“You said we had nothing to fear from them,” expressed a mare named Elegance. “That our superior numbers would win out in the end. I was there watching as our guards fell like flies. And, what did we gain? Nothing! Tell me, how many did we lose while fighting six?”
At that moment, all of the nobles’ eyes were on Stareye. Stareye, however, stared back with a blank expression for a moment, until he realized that they wanted an answer. When he opened his mouth to speak, all that came out were “umm’s”, and a few other similar noises, making it clear to everypony that he had no idea.
From her position, Hot Pants watched this with growing irritation. One would have thought that she would have welcomed seeing Stareye in a position like this. However, he was their captain, and thus his actions reflected not only himself, but that of the entire Royal Guard. Thus, the more incompetent he looked, the more incompetent they all looked. Not being able to take it anymore, Hot Pants spoke up.
“Three hundred and fourteen,” answered Hot Pants, causing the attention of everypony in the room to focus on her for the moment. She then added, “And still counting.” While the other nobles began to talk to each other, Hot Pants could feel Stareye’s glare on her. Blueblood, on the other hoof, simply raised an eyebrow, but did nothing else.
“S-so many in such a short amount of t-time with so few,” stammered one noble in the back. “A-and that t-thing in the a-air. It b-blocked the s-s-sun! How are we supposed to fight t-them? We s-should have-”
“Done what?” interrupted Majesty. “Gave in to their demands? Give them Prince Blueblood because they ‘claim’ he ordered an assassination? After they took several delegates hostage? If we just give in on every demand that another nation made, we might as well just surrender the kingdom all together!”
“I think you are all forgetting some important details,” said Blueblood at last, getting everypony’s attention. The room suddenly became so silent that a pony could hear a mouse scamper across the floor.
“I will not deny that we lost many ponies in the fight against the Lunars,” began Blueblood. “Nor will I deny the damage that has been to our capital. Yet, for all their technology, for all the ponies they slew, we almost had them. Think about that! If that thing in the sky hadn’t appeared at the last moment, we would have been able to place Princess Luna in the royal dungeon where she belongs!
“You speak of what we lost, but not of what we have gained! Today, we learned that we can never truly trust those Lunar ponies. While most of them wore both their armor and weapons for all to see, only their Princess kept hers hidden from view. Think of it. She could have walked right into the castle, asked for a private meeting with Princess Celestia, and then stuck while her guard was down.
“Of course, most of us already knew this. But, there was another victory that very few knew about. While most of the Royal Guard was doing their duty to calm Canterlot down and pick up the fallen, Captain Stareye was under special orders from myself to collect a very important prize. It was lucky that he had recently promoted several good lieutenants that were able to tend to matters at the castle, while he did so.
“You see, we managed to obtain two suits of armor from the enemy, and he personally saw to it that they were retrieved. After that, I order him to collect all high ranking officers here, and there was no time for him to receive a proper report on what was happening here. I am sure you can all understand the importance of this mission.
“At this very moment, some of our best magical experts are examining these suits, so that we can copy the technology, and I am positive that by the end of the week, we will be able to mass produce them. Can you not see what this means for us? Armed with their own technology, we will be able to ensure victory for Equestria.
“As for that thing that blocked the sun, well, I don’t think there is much to fear from it. I mean, if it did have any weapons, then I am sure they would have used them. The most that thing can do is transport what little troops they have left.”
Blueblood paused in the middle of his speak, looking at the crowd as they began to whisper to each other. He could hear that some were being swayed to his side at the promise of weapons like those from the Republic. Sadly, there were some that needed a bit more convincing.
“There is one more thing that must be addressed,” continued Blueblood as he flattened his ears. “As Lord Powdered Wing said, Princess Celestia was taken. This is, by far, the most important fact of them all. But, instead of us coming together in order to find a way of getting her back, many of you were simply pointing an accusing hoof at me. I am sure that Princess Celestia would be saddened to see this.
“But, take heart! We will get her back! The nation of Equestria must now work together like never before, in order to get back its most beloved ruler. The current circumstances have placed me in charge of this, the greatest nation of them all. I know that, in my heart, we can succeed.
“So, I ask that you bear with me as I make a few small changes that I fear many will dislike. However, I believe that these changes to our laws, while not ideal, are for the best. First-”
“Excuse me, Princes Blueblood,” interrupted Lord North Star, speaking for the first time. “I do not believe that now is the time to be making such changes.”
“And why not, Lord North Star?” asked Majesty. “Do you not recognize that Prince Blueblood is our ruler now? Or, do you wish to challenge his right to the throne?”
To everypony’s surprise, including Blueblood’s, North Star shook his head.
“I would never dream of doing so,” replied North Star. “As Prince Blueblood said, the circumstances demand that he takes the throne. The current situation also demands that we not waste time fighting over who should sit there. That is not what our beloved Princess Celestia would want.”
This declaration took everypony further by surprise. Many knew that he disliked the prince and figured that he would try to undermine him. Blueblood did his best not to look especially shocked when he heard this.
“That is good to hear,” replied the prince slowly. “But, I must ask why I mustn’t make any changes to our laws and policies.”
“Because it might cause confusion if Princess Cadence undoes those changes once she returns,” stated North Star calmly with a small smile on his face.
Upon hearing this, North Star’s eyes widened. ‘Damn you,’ thought the prince.
“Princess Cadence is not here,” noted Stareye, taking a step towards his father. “It was Prince Blueblood who took control of the government as is his right! That is his birthright!”
“That is true,” acknowledged North Star with a nod. “Prince Blueblood himself said that the circumstances have placed him on the throne. And those circumstances say that if both Princess Celestia and Princess Cadence are out of Canterlot, then he has the power to preside over Equestria. That is his birthright as third in line to the throne.
“And while Princess Celestia has been taken hostage, Princess Cadence is simply away on business. Thus, the circumstances say that when she returns, she will become our ruler until she is dead, or Princess Celestia returns. Or, will her birthright be taken away on a whim?”
As soon as those words left his mouth, fearful eyes turned to look at Blueblood. Even those that sided with him were wondering what he would do. Blueblood gulped softy as he considered his options quickly.
“I would never dream of doing anything of the sort,” declared Blueblood. “Naturally, I shall relinquish the throne once my dear cousin returns. But, until then, somepony-”
“IT’S OVER!” came a loud scream from outside, drowning out Blueblood’s voice. “THE END IS HERE! NIGHTMARE MOON IS ATTACKING THE SUN!”
Curious, everypony rushed to the windows to see what was going on. They all took one look, before they backed away from the windows with their jaws hanging. Never before in their lives had they ever seen anything like this. It was so unnatural that all of the color in their coats began to drain away slightly. Some even broke out in a cold sweat.
Above them, for the first time in history, there was a solar eclipse.
“What i-is going on?” asked a mare who supported Blueblood.
Before ant possible answer could be given, a blinding flash of light appeared in the center of the room. Every noble needed to cover their eyes, while Hot Pants and Crème lowered their horns in order to fight. As for Stareye, he bravely hid behind the throne while he did his best not to wet himself.
Once the light faded, everypony beheld a very…odd sight. It was Derpy in her black armor, while calmly eating a muffin with her eyes closed. It wasn’t until the nobles began to talk to each other in hushed tones that she opened her eyes and looked around. As if realizing where she was, Derpy crammed the rest of her muffin into her mouth, crewed it, and then loudly swallowed. She then turned to face Blueblood.
“Greeting,” she said, causing the room to become silent. “I am Derpy Hooves, Royal Messenger to Princess Luna. I am here on behalf of both my Princess and the Lunar Republic to deliver an important message and to get your response.”
With that, Derpy lifted her left foreleg up to her chest. Once she had done this, an image appeared above it.
“I, Princess Luna of the Lunar Republic, hereby declare war on the nation known as Equestria,” read Derpy calmly. “Tomorrow at ten o’clock in the morning, I shall send three hundred soldiers to attack Canterlot. If you wish to avoid this, I will accept your unconditional surrender at this time.”
Derpy then lowered her hoof a bit and looked at Blueblood once again. As for Blueblood, he was staring back at the mare with a small smile on his face. He then ran a hoof through his mane before he answered.
“Three hundred?” he asked. “Is that the best the ‘great’ Lunar Republic can offer? If your princess isn’t going to take this seriously, then I see no reason to take her ‘threat’ seriously. Run back to the moon and tell her that her army shall face the full might of Equestria!”
To his, as well as the entire room’s surprise, Derpy smirked as she lowered her hoof, causing the image to vanish.
“Princess Luna hoped you’d say something like that,” declared Derpy, pulling out a scroll and tossed it towards Blueblood. “However, she thought you’d might have a moment of intelligence and surrender, so she wrote down the conditions of your surrender. Since you are choosing to fight then, instead I’ll hoof over the location of where we’ll be landing and leave.”
With that, Derpy pressed the center of her chest plate and then, in a brilliant flash of light, vanished.
Once she was gone, Blueblood used his magic to pick up the scroll and slowly opened it. While the rest of the room began to talk amongst themselves, the prince studied the scrolls contents. ‘Interesting,’ he thought. ‘If I am looking at this right, they are going to start their assault two miles west of the base of the mountain. How arrogant to give us this kind of information, and believe that they can still win.’
“This shall not stand!” declared Stareye who came moved out from behind the throne, and now stood next to Blueblood. “They will see the error in giving us this kind of information. I shall contact all of our forces from all across Equestria, and have them gather here. By morning, we should have over five hundred thousand or more.”
This caused most of the room to let out a sigh of relief. It was hard to imagine three hundred win against such odds.
However, one mare thought differently. ‘Call all of our forces?’ thought Hot Pants. ‘Is he insane? If we remove ponies from the borders, then our enemies will be able to march right on in with no resistance. Not to mention that to get here that quickly will tire them out. They’ll be almost useless in battle. I have to say something.’
“Sir, I must-”
“You will be silent!” roared Stareye, his face turning red while he did so. “This is my decision and you will not question it. Do so again, and I shall see you put to death for insubordination. Is that clear?”
“Crystal,” she replied through gritted teeth.
“Prince Blueblood,” said Fancy Pants as he stepped forward. “Given the situation, perhaps we should try and get Princess Cadence to return to Canterlot a bit quicker.” This was met with a murmur of agreement.
“Yes, we should,” said Blueblood slowly as he looked at Trixie. “And I know just the mare to help us out. Miss Trixie Lulamoon, you know how to make an enchanted compass correct?”
Trixie flinched when her name was called. An enchanted compass was a compass whose needle would point towards a certain object or pony, instead of north. Making one, however, was a bit tricky and only a few ponies knew how to make them. During her first year as Celestia’s student, Trixie had been asked to make several as part of a test. It had been one of the few times she had ever truly succeed.
“Yes, Trixie can,” replied Trixie. “However it will take Trixie at least two hours to make one.”
“Very good,” said Blueblood. “Then let us take a short break for the next couple of hours. But, would you mind staying for a bit Trixie? There is something I wish to talk to you about.”
As ponies began to file out of the room, Trixie kept her eyes on Blueblood with her ears flat against her skull. She had known the prince for years. The two had gone to school together, and it was clear that if there was anypony who was less qualified to enter Celestia’s school, it was him. They never spoke much, mainly because he thought he was so above her, that it would be a waste of time to acknowledge that she existed. It was also bad enough that he would interrupt her private lesson with the princess on whatever whim he had.
Still, Trixie knew she mustn’t underestimate him. She had seen Blueblood work his golden tongue to worm his way through school and surrounded himself with ponies who had the skills he needed. Smarter ponies to help him with his homework, or ponies who could help him get dirt on another. He was the walking definition of manipulative.
Once all the nobles were out of the room, Blueblood used his magic to summon a bottle of wine, as well as two glasses. He then poured some of the liquid into the glasses before levitating one to Trixie, who took it with her magic.
“I believe you are wondering what I wish to take to you about,” began Blueblood.
“You want something,” interrupted Trixie as she downed her glass right there. “So spit it out already. Trixie doesn’t have all day.”
At this Blueblood chuckled. “Ah, that is what I always like about you Trixie,” he said while taking a small sip of his wine. “Direct and to the point. Very well. I was going to ask you to go on a date with me.”
This request caused Trixie’s jaw to drop. ‘He wants WHAT?’ she screamed in her mind, trying to regain her composer by taking a deep breath.
“Forgive Trixie, but Trixie is a bit taken aback by this,” she articulated after a while. “After all, you haven’t given Trixie the time of day before. So…why now?”
“Appearances,” replied Blueblood before he took another sip of wine, while Trixie’s eyes narrowed. “You see, with all the chaos that will be happening, it will give the commoners a great deal of reassurance to know that we are all working together in order to help get Princess Celestia back. They also love celebrity couples! Can you not see it? Princess Celestia’s personal pupil, working side-by-side, with her nephew in these dark times will be a huge uplift. They will follow our ‘romance’, while forgetting their troubles at the same time.
“Then, there will be our own gains. I’m sure that my dear auntie taught you a few other spells that she only teaches to her own personal students. That kind of information is very important to me. As for you, you get what you have always wanted: respect. I know all about the rumors and gossips that goes on about you. I am sure they will all go away, once our relationship takes off.”
‘Or it’ll get worse,’ thought Trixie darkly. She could almost hear the voices of her fellow classmates whispering to each other that she was only dating Blueblood in order to move up in the world. Various insulting words echoed in the back of her mind.
“I will think about it,” stated Trixie as she set her glass on the floor. “Now, if you don’t mind, I need to make that compass.”
“Very well,” said Blueblood. “I’ll look forward to your answer. I hope you pick the right one.”
-x-
“They can’t seriously think that’s a good idea!” yelled Sword Sheath, his voice being heard all over the Royal Guard Barracks.
Hot Pants rubbed her temples as she did her best to fight an oncoming headache. After the meeting, she had wanted herself and Crème to inform as many members of the Guard as possible about the situation. Sadly, due to the eclipse (which had thankfully ended), it had caused Crème and those still under her command to once again try and maintain order. This left the job of informing everypony to Hot Pants, who now stood in front of a large group.
“Leaving our borders defenseless like that?” whispered Quick Strike, falling on his hindquarters. “Once the changelings find out, they’ll invade in mass. And, who knows who else might take advantage of the situation.”
“Believe me, I tried to voice my concerns, but Stareye ordered me to be silent,” replied Hot Pants. “I think he believed that I would make him look like a fool again.”
“I can believe that,” replied Quick with a snort. “Do you know what he was doing, while we were all out there, fighting for our lives? Hiding under Princess Celestia’s grand dining table.”
“We have to do something,” yelled Sword, causing many to voice their agreement.
“And do what?” demanded Hot Pants. “Try and take over?”
Sword opened his mouth to speak, however stopped when he saw somepony walk towards him. It was Bitsworth, one of the new unicorn lieutenants and he wasn’t alone. Behind him were several other lieutenants, each one looking around as if they were afraid they would be attacked at any moment.
“What do you want?” demanded a random member of the Guard.
“Well, first of all, I am here to suggest that if you are going to talk about things like a coup, you should find a better setting,” said Bitsworth with a frown. “If you continue like this, somepony might turn you in.”
His words caused a ripple of confusion for all those gathered there. The way he talked made it sound like…
“So, you’re not going to tell Stareye?” asked Hot Pants.
Bitsworth snorted. “That buffoon will get us all killed,” he declared angrily. “After the last battle, a few of us began to realize that while we are the elites of society, we are sadly not prepared for military command. And, after what Stareye said earlier on the castle grounds, it turned a few more of us.”
“That’s great!” said Quick as he looked around at everypony gathered. “If we can get the enough ponies together, then we can-”
“Don’t be foolish,” interrupted Hot Pants. “We don’t know how many ponies here will help us. And when the rest of our forces arrive and see us in charge, then they might get the wrong idea. This could result in a civil war, which is the last thing we need, seeing that the Lunar Republic will be attacking tomorrow!”
Bitsworth nodded. “I completely agree,” he said. “So, what do you think we should do?”
“Well, ah,” began Hot Pants as she felt the pressure of being put on the spot again. “I think the best thing to do is stick together. Try and convince as many ponies as we can that Stareye and Prince Blueblood don’t have Equestria’s best interests at heart. Then, when Princess Cadence returns, we will back her up.”
“But, she supports bat ponies,” stated Sword with a frown.
“Better than supporting Stareye,” commented Quick.
“Good point,” said Sword.
“I will try and convince the rest of my fellows to join in this venture,” expressed Bitsworth. “Until then, we should all try to keep a low profile on what we are doing. The last thing any of us wants is to have some fool turn us in, thinking it will help advance them.”
Hot Pants nodded and hoped that Princess Cadence would return soon.
-x-
Majesty walked down the empty corridors of the castle as she made her way towards Blueblood’s suite. She had originally wanted to talk to Blueblood right away, but seeing that he wanted to talk to Trixie about something caused her to hesitate. Her logic was that if she pushed too hard or interrupted something important, the good prince would be less likely to listen to her, or give her what she wanted. So, she waited about twenty or so minutes before she began to look for Blueblood.
‘Ok,’ thought Majesty, walking down the halls. ‘I believe that now will be a better time to request that the Royal Guard helps find Scooter. After all, I am one of his major supporters, and it should be no problem to spare a Guard or two looking for one stallion. Oh, I do hope that Scooter is alright, and hasn’t gotten himself into any trouble.’
As she got nearer to Blueblood suite, she began to hear muffled voices. Hearing this caused her to pause and think about what she could do. If she knocked and interrupted something important, Blueblood might get angry with her. But, she didn’t want to just walk away.
Then, an idea popped into her head. She could sit there and listen! Once the conversation was over, she could knock and say it was good timing. Plus, she did love some juicy gossip. With that decided, Majesty causally placed an ear against the door.
“How dare she!” came the voice from Stareye on the other side of the door. “Once again that mare is attempting to make a fool out of me!”
“You didn’t help matters by hiding behind my throne,” commented Blueblood as the sound of silverware being placed on a dish was heard. “Now, don’t worry about Hot Pants. We can deal with her at a later time, if need be.”
“Oh, like how you dealt with the Cadence situation,” verbalized Stareye in a mocking tone. “If it were up to me, I would have stripped her of her title on the spot. Then, I would have done something about my father, like banish him or something worse.”
“And that would have caused me a great deal of trouble,” replied Blueblood.
“I doubt that,” dulled Stareye. “You are the prince. Without Princess Celestia, or your bat pony loving cousin, your word is law. Using it then would have allowed you to keep the throne permanently.”
“It is amazing that, in all your years dealing with your fellow nobles, you have picked up next to zero insight,” commented Blueblood, gaining a huff from Stareye. “It seems I will have to spell it out for you. After your father’s little speech, I had no chance of removing Cadence. If I did, then the nobles who are against me would have revolted on the spot, resulting in a civil war.
“If that were to happen, then the Republic could swoop in and defeat us. I also fear that doing this would also cause me to lose some of my allies. They would fear that I might remove them from power if they would ever displayed any form of disagreement with me.
“It was also far too late for me to make up a lie to remove her. Think about it. If I were to claim Princess Cadence had done something illegal after what North Star said, no pony in their right mind would go along willingly. It would be transparent that I was just trying to get rid of her. And, any proof that I claimed to have, would have been examined. After they are done with all that, it would be my flank in a jail cell.
“As for your father, well, it is better that I leave him alone. The common trash looks up to him and respects him. He is their champion, as well as the pony who works the closest to Princess Celestia. If I got rid of him in any fashion, then it might cause an uproar regardless of what I fabricate.
“So, instead, I will allow him to remain where he is. He can challenge my decisions all he likes. However, sooner or later, he will come over to my side, and when he does, the commoners will fall in line even faster.
“And, even if I were to somehow take away Princess Cadence’s right to the throne, there is still Princess Celestia to deal with.”
“Not forever,” said Blueblood with a light sigh. “I am not foolish enough to believe that. She is an immortal, after all. If Princess Luna had meant her true ill, then she would have used my auntie like a shield, or something like that. No, I’m sure she is in a cell up there on the moon. And, once we win this war, she will return.
“Thus, I have a small window of opportunity to change Equestria into what it should be. Once she returns and sees how much better it is, then she will be forced to leave it as such. Hopefully, this little war will take a year or two. By then, the Lunar’s food and water supply will run low, forcing them to surrender.”
Majesty could not hide the amazement from her face as she heard this. To be able to think of all that so quickly, showed her that Prince Blueblood truly had a powerful tactical intellect that she never knew about.
“I see,” said Stareye. “Then, what do you plan on doing to Cadence?”
“I will have to arrange her assassination,” replied Blueblood.
At that, Majesty did her best to hold in a gasp of shock. What was going on here? She had originally joined up with Blueblood, in order to gain more power and wealth. However, he never mentioned anything before about assassination! Not to mention a member of the Royal Family.
Nopony in their right mind would ever consider such an action. If he got caught, then everypony that had sided with him since the beginning of this endeavor, would most likely be cast as accomplices. She might spend the rest of her life in jail, if she were lucky.
It was then that dark thoughts began to enter her mind. Did Blueblood really order the assassination of that Twilight mare? If he had, then what else was he capable of?
“Won’t killing her raise some suspension?” asked Stareye.
“Not when it’s done right,” came a new voice in the room. Majesty then heard Stareye scream like a little filly, followed by several crashes.
“Ripper, so good of you to join us,” stated Blueblood calmly.
“H-how did you get in here?” demanded Stareye.
“The window,” was the answer. “So, who will be taking the blame this time? The griffons again?”
“No,” replied Blueblood. “If a griffon killed a member of the Royal Family, then many questions will be asked. It will raise suspicion, or the nobles might urge me to go to war with the Griffon Empire before we are ready to. Instead, I believe the bat ponies would be perfect. It would be easy for anypony to believe that they turned on her at some point. Bat ponies can never truly be trusted, after all.”
“I see,” said Ripper. “That should be easy enough. However, before I do so, I demand payment for my last kill.”
“That’s odd,” expressed Blueblood in a confused tone. “I could have swore I paid you in full after you killed the previous captain.”
“Oh, you did,” commented Ripper. “The one I am talking about was a pegasus that I found listening in to your conversation back of your manor. I killed him, and then dumped the body into the river.”
Upon hearing this, Majesty’s eyes widened as pupils became as tiny as a pinhead. She could hear her heart pounding.
“Ah, that must be the pony that Lady Majesty was whining about,” mentioned Blueblood absentmindedly. “What was his name again? Slimer? Shooter?”
“Who cares what he was called!” exclaimed Stareye as he stomped his hoof. “You never ordered his death. This stupid griffon did it all on his own, so why-”
Majesty then heard a noise that sounded like something being slammed into the ground, followed by a choking noise. She could also hear the sound of a liquid being poured into a glass.
“I would be more mindful of when to use that tongue if I were you,” hissed Ripper. “I killed him because he was listening in on your master’s private conversation. If I hadn’t, then he might have run straight to Princess Celestia. I think a small fee is expected in a situation like that.”
“Ripper, release him,” gently ordered Blueblood, which took a few seconds before the griffon finally did as he was told. “Good. Now don’t worry, you’ll get your money. I don’t want to lose one of the best assassins in the business just yet. So, let’s sit down, have a drink, and talk about an acceptable payment system. We are all reasonable creatures, so I am sure we can come up with something.”
At that point, Majesty began to walk away, with the words of Ripper echoing in her head.
Shadow walked down the hallways of the castle with a stony look on his face. Each step felt a tad draining on him and his coat was still off color, but compared to how he was a short hour ago he felt like a whole new pony. This was all thanks to the castle doctors who had given him a blood transfusion and placed him inside a healing pod for half an hour which had healed most of his cuts. In fact, the only mark on his body was the scar on his forehead, something that he had refused to ever be healed.
As he walked, ponies would stop what they were doing to stare at him. Some would wave at him while others would salute him. There were those who whispered to each other as he passed, as if they were afraid that if they spoke too loudly he would get offended. The most likely reason being that word of what had happened planetside had spread to the entire castle staff. And since he was one of the survivors, they were approaching him with a new sense of awe and honor.
It was likely that rumors would spread throughout all the Domes before Princess Luna made a formal announcement to the press. Once that happened, it would be like the Deep Tunnel Tragedy all over again. But Shadow didn’t take any notice to this.
No, instead his mind was elsewhere.
-Flashback-
“What do you mean I’m not going?” demanded Shadow as he pointed a hoof at Princess Luna.
The Princess was currently sitting on her throne, looking over various documents. Shadow knew what they were. Many of them were about their troops and the specific training each one had as well as their special talents. There were also inventory sheets on their weapons and vehicles.
“I said you are to remain here during tomorrow,” repeated Luna, not bothering to look at him. “Your medical report says that you lost a great deal of blood and will need some time to rest. Therefore I have no choice but to have you remain here.”
“But I feel fine,” said Shadow as he held out a foreleg, as if he were hoping Princess Luna would look up and see that he was fine. He waited a moment before realizing that she wasn’t going to look up before lowering his leg and continuing. “Look, I know what you’re trying to do. You want to lead the troops when we attack Canterlot. I get that because of that you don’t want us clashing on who is in control. I understand. I am willing to let you call all the shots.”
“The decision has been made,” said Luna. “I am going planetside and thus your presence isn’t needed. Besides, I would prefer it if you remained here just in case something happens like the Sunset Shimmer incident.”
“Then have Shining Armor remain,” argued Shadow, his voice carrying a hint of anger and frustration.
“Shining Armor will have his own mission,” said Luna as she looked to a different document. “When the time comes I will inform you of what it is so you can be kept in the loop.”
“So you’re telling me that I am to remain here while all the other Captains and you go off?” yelled Shadow. “That my minor wounds have made me useless to the Republic?”
“Passing out due to blood loss is not a ‘minor wound’,” said Luna, irritation ringing in her voice. “And you are by no stretch of the imagination useless.”
“Then what is it?” demanded Shadow. “Don’t you trust me? The captain of your Guard? Is it because of what happened this morning? You know I am willing to make the sacrifices-”
“And that’s the problem!” shouted Luna as she slammed her hoof onto the ground, dropping the papers from her magic. Her eyes fixated on him, glowing slightly as they did.
At this, Shadow took a step backwards as a puzzled expression appeared on his face. Never before had he seen her act like this to him.
“You think that your life is something that can be tossed away,” continued Luna. “That as long as it is for the Republic, it’s ok. Well it’s not! And do you know why? Because of two mares, both of whom are in the medical wing right now. How do you think they would feel when they find out you died?”
Shadow stood there, as still as a statue as Luna’s words rung through him. Seeing this, Luna’s eyes, which had been fierce a moment ago, softened as did the tone of her voice.
“I know you would do anything for the Republic,” she said. “And I am sure that you believed that using your armor to create a bomb was the right thing to do at the time. But you didn’t let Shining Armor do anything for your wounds and, as far as I know, you haven’t visited Twilight or Scootaloo since you got back. Right now they need you more than the Republic does.”
Luna then began to levitate the documents once more. “My decision remains unchanged. You may leave.”
-End Flashback-
Shadow’s head hung low. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to see Twilight or Scootaloo. In fact there was no place he truly wanted to be. But with everything that was going on he had a duty to protect everypony here, including them. And if he didn’t do everything in his power to make sure the Republic wasn’t safe resulting in either or both of them getting hurt then he would never be able to forgive himself.
Yet he could see what Princess Luna was trying to tell him. If he had detonated his armor then he would have destroyed a good portion of enemy troops. But Twilight, the mare he loved, would have woken to find her fiancé and best friend dead. And Scootaloo would have found out that the first stallion she ever called dad was dead.
It was then that Shadow heard a noise that caused his ears to perk. Looking around he found that he was in the medical wing. But the noise he had heard sounded like the ending to one of the Pony Ranger shows. Try as he might, he couldn’t remember which one. A moment later he heard another noise.
“That…was…so…COOL!” came the voice of a filly. At first he thought it was Scootaloo, but shook his head after a moment. No, the voice was familiar, but it didn’t belong to his daughter.
When he got there, Shadow saw Dinky Hooves was sitting on the hospital bed next to Scootaloo with both of them staring at the wall which was playing the end credits to one of the Pony Ranger shows. A quick glance showed him that it was ‘Pony Rangers SPD’. Looking back at the two fillies, he noticed that Dinky had several wrappers around her. Scootaloo, he noted, had an open book on her bed which the filly was now glancing at. Next to her bed was a nightstand which held several more books as well as a tray of food and a remote.
“Hey Dad,” said Scootaloo as soon as she noticed him. He watched as she picked up the remote and pushed a button which caused the images on the wall to vanish, making it look like a normal wall once again.
Shadow let out a forced smile. He had heard that Land Share had been there for Scootaloo when she woke up. That he had done his best to comfort the filly. And while Shadow was thankful for all of this, it should have been him to do this. He should have been there for Scootaloo when she woke up, not Land Share. The feeling of shame that came with this was something that pained Shadow more than his wounds. While Shadow couldn’t change what was done in the past, however, he was here now. And that was what mattered at the moment.
“Well I’d better get going,” said Dinky as jumped off the bed before walking over to the wall. She pushed on what appeared to be a blank space on it causing a small hole with a three centimeter radius to open up. As soon as the hole appeared, a cylindrical crystal shot out of it which Dinky grabbed with her magic.
“Let me know if you want to watch anymore,” said the unicorn filly as she walked out the door to Scootaloo. “I own the entire series.” And with that she was gone, leaving Shadow and Scootaloo alone.
“Looks like somepony was showing you how to use the TV,” chuckled Shadow as he went to sit next to the bed.
“I haven’t been watching it that long,” said Scootaloo. “When I woke up I started to study until the nurse came in with my food. Then Dinky came in saying she wanted to keep me company and that she wanted to show me something really, really cool. I said I had to study, but she and the nurse just said that I need to rest. Honest.”
Shadow let out a small laugh. “It’s ok,” he told her. “Taking a break from studying every once in a while is a good thing. Studying is a lot like training your body. You need to give it a rest from time to time so you don’t strain it. The only pony I know who could study all day without a break is your mother.”
“Really?” asked Scootaloo.
“Yeah,” said Shadow with a nod.
Scootaloo seemed to relax a bit after he said this. “Good,” she said. “I don’t want to disappoint mom when I go to see her.”
“I see,” said Shadow uncomfortably. “Have you tried?” Of course he already knew the answer. Still, he wanted to hear it from Scootaloo.
The filly nodded. “As soon as I got up I tried to go and see her but the doctors won’t let me,” she said with a sigh. “The nurse said that she needs her rest and stuff, but she would tell me when she wakes up. Then I can see her.”
Scootaloo then looked down while turning her head away from Shadow. “I-I just can’t believe that she…”
Seeing Scootaloo act like this caused Shadow to become worried. ‘I should have seen something like this coming,’ thought Shadow. ‘Scootaloo was an orphan when we found her and never knew what it was like to have a real family until we brought her here. Finding out about what happened to Twilight must have hurt more than anything Sunset did to her.’
Once again Shadow glanced over at the textbooks before looking at the one on the bed and then finally at Scootaloo. Everything suddenly clicked. The studying and watching T.V., it had all been a distraction. Something to take her mind off of Twilight until she could see her. And now that those distractions were gone it was like an airlock beginning to open up, sucking out the strength of the filly.
At least Shadow was here now.
“It’s ok,” said Shadow as he placed a hoof on Scootaloo’s shoulder causing the filly to look at him, tears beginning to form in her eyes. “Twilight is going to be ok. The doctors say that she is out of the danger zone. I’m sure she’ll wake up soon once the medicine kicks in.”
“B-But what if something goes wrong?” asked Scootaloo. “Like what happened to me?”
“Then we do the only things we can do,” replied Shadow as he gave her a reassuring smile. “We trust in the doctors to do their job, we trust in Twilight’s will to live, and we don’t let fear make our decisions for us.”
Scootaloo looked confused as she wiped away a large tear in her eye. “I-I don’t get it,” she replied.
Shadow tapped his chin with his hoof as he tried to think of the best way to explain the situation. Then he had a lightbulb moment. “Well, you know that show you were watching a little while ago?” he asked, receiving a nod almost immediately. “Well, in that season of the Pony Rangers, you aren’t following the best of the best. Instead it’s the backup team. The reason for this is that the Alpha Squad turned traitor and joined with the bad guys.”
Scootaloo’s jaw dropped when she heard this. She had been interested in the show, wanting to finish it later, and was slightly upset that he had spoiled that plot point. But there was something else that angered her more.
“B-But they’re the good guys!” yelled Scootaloo, waving her small hooves in the air. “Why would they do something like that?”
“They said they wanted to join the winning team,” said Shadow slowly as he closed his eyes for a moment. “Many fans have had discussion about this plot point and each has their own theories. Mine is that they were running away. When the villain was first shown, we saw him blowing up a planet. We later find out that he has conquered many other worlds, destroying them with his endless armies. Now he’s going after the moon. Imagine how the Alpha Squad must feel. They are the best of the best. All of the hopes of the moon rest on their shoulders. But many of the best of the best have tried and failed to defeat this guy. And so I believe that they were so afraid of failing that they switched sides.
“You see Scootaloo, when ponies let their fear make their decisions they do…stupid things,” continued Shadow as he thought of his actions on the planet. “Oh sure, fear can at times bring out the best in a pony or can help save their life. It can help keep you sharp on the battlefield or warn you away from a dangerous situation. But it can also destroy trust and bonds. It can make a pony do things that he or she wouldn’t normally do. And sometimes, the things that are done can never be undone. That also includes when you choose not to face your fears. Holding it in like that isn’t being brave. It just leads to hurting others. And…I’m no exception to that.”
“But-” began Scootaloo. However, Shadow gently placed a hoof on her mouth to silence her.
“I should have been here for both you and Twilight,” he said. “I should have gone to see both of you before I left for the planet. I wasn’t here when you woke you so I could be the one to tell you what was going on and to reassure you. But instead I kept focusing on my work, on my duty as a soldier of the Republic rather than being a good fiancé and a father. And for that, I’m sorry.”
“I-It’s ok dad,” said Scootaloo as she leaned over and hugged Shadow. “I knew that you had to be doing something super important or else you would have been here. But you’re here now and that’s all that matters.”
For a moment, neither pony spoke. They just stayed where they were, holding each other. It was simple, but the effects were greater than any technological wonder that the Republic had. Yet, sadly, it had to end.
“So,” said Scootaloo slowly as she tried to start up a more happy conversation. “You said left for the planet. Does that mean you were in Equestria?”
“Yeah,” replied Shadow as he scratched the back of his head.
“Did you do something really cool or awesome?” asked Scootaloo, her eyes wide with excitement as if she were hoping he went to go fight monsters in some glorified story. Shadow, however, didn’t answer at first as he was conflicted on what to tell her. He had considered outright lying to her, that nothing really happened or anything interesting. But he knew that sooner or later she would find out the truth.
And this time she would hear it from him.
After taking a deep breath, Shadow filled Scootaloo in on everything that had been going on since she was put to sleep. Of course he never went into gruesome detail, just an overall summary of the events. He told her about the trial and that Princess Luna believed that Blueblood was the mastermind behind Twilight’s attack. He told her about how they went to Equestria and a fight broke out and that some didn’t survive. He watched as the excitement in Scootaloo’s eyes faded and a look of shock appeared on her face as he finished his story.
“T-That’s impossible,” stammered Scootaloo.
“I know it’s a lot to take in,” replied Shadow. “But it’s true. Trust me, I was there. Hopefully tomorrow’s battle puts an end to all of this.”
“You’re not going, are you?” asked Scootaloo, worry dripping with every word.
Shadow gave her a reassuring chuckle as he patted her on the head. “No, I’m not,” he said causing Scootaloo to relax. “Princess Luna wants me to remain here while she leads the army.”
“Thank Celes- er, I mean thank Luna,” said Scootaloo as she let out a yawn.
“I think somepony needs to get some more rest,” said Shadow. “And don’t worry, I’m not planning on leaving the castle so if you wake up you can call me.”
“Ok,” said Scootaloo as she got under the covers. Once she did, Shadow turned to leave. However, Scootaloo spoke up once again. “Hey dad?”
“Yes?” said Shadow as he turned to look at her.
“Do,” began Scootaloo before stopping and taking a deep breath. “Do you really think that Applejack did that to mom?”
Shadow opened his mouth to say yes, but for some reason stopped himself. Instead he found himself feeling…conflicted.
“Well,” said Shadow at last. “That’s what the evidence points at.”
“It doesn’t make sense though,” said Scootaloo. “I’ve met Applejack a few times before and she just never seemed like the type who would do something like that. She just seems too…nice to just attack Twilight for no reason. Isn’t there a chance the evidence is wrong?”
A feeling of uneasiness grew in the pit of Shadow’s stomach. He wanted to say that it was impossible. That the evidence had all been verified by the LBI and three mares confessed under truth lights. Under these circumstances there should be little doubt that they were guilty. And yet, for some reason, Shadow’s thoughts went back to the trial. Something about the footage and the sound he heard seemed-
Shadow quickly shook his head, trying to clear his head of these thoughts. ‘That’s just crazy,’ he thought in his head. ‘If there was any problem the LBI would have spotted it. Sealed Document, the head of the LBI himself checked out the footage.’
In the end, Shadow just reassured Scootaloo once again that the evidence was really strong as well as saying that Twilight would confirm it once she woke up. With that, he left for Twilight’s room so he could spend some time with her.
Luckily her room was just a few doors down from Scootaloo’s so it didn’t take him long. However, as soon as he got in, he noticed something different. He walked over to the bed, but kept his eyes on the IV bag. He was so intent on staring at it that he missed hearing a nurse enter the room.
“Oh, Captain Shadow,” she said with a small smile. “Didn’t know you were in here. Well don’t mind me. I’ll just check Assistant Director Sparkle’s stat’s and then I’ll be-”
“Is she getting worse?” interrupted Shadow, who continued to stare at the IV bag.
“Ah, let me check,” she replied as she walked to the end of Twilight’s bed. She then swiped her hoof over it causing a holographic image to appear in front of her. “Well, according to this, her life isn’t in any danger. However, Doctor Healing Touch noted that she should be doing better.”
“Is that why she changed the medicine?” asked Shadow as he pointed to the IV bag. When he had last visited the liquid in it had been green. Now, however, it was bright pink.
“No, she hasn’t-” began the nurse, but stopped as she looked up at the IV bag. Her eyes widened slightly as she looked at the bag, then at the holo-screen, and then at the bag. “T-That’s not MI-392!”
“That’s what it says on the bag,” said Shadow in a worried tone. The nurse rushed over to him and pushed Shadow out of the way as she examined the bag. Sure enough, the label on the bag read MI-392.
“T-This isn’t p-possible,” she stammered. “I gave her MI-392 early this morning myself! Somepony had to changed bags and the label on the new one so that the machine read it as the appropriate medicine. Otherwise we would have been informed by the computer if a mistake had been made.”
“So what’s inside Twilight!” demanded Shadow, his eyes narrowing.
“I have no idea,” replied the nurse. “There are at least two dozen medicines that this stuff could be. But this would explain why she isn’t doing better.”
“Ok,” replied Shadow as he rubbed his forehead. “Tell me, who has access to the medicine.”
“Off the top of my head I can tell you that most of the hospital staff,” replied the nurse. “But nopony here would do anything to endanger a patient’s life. I-I’ll go and get her the right medicine and check the records on who else was in the medical storage room. Maybe that will give us some answers.”
Shadow gave a slow nod while his mind began to think about other events that had happened recently. “Right,” he said slowly. “But, while you’re at it, could you find out what’s inside that bag miss…”
“Soothing Voice,” she said. “And I can try.”
“That’s all I can ask,” said Shadow as he headed out the door. “I’ll be back later today after I…check up on somethings.”
-x-
Majesty walked down the streets of Canterlot. Normally, she would never consider taking such a long walk. Instead, she would have hired a taxi or have Scooter pull her around. The idea of walking like a commoner was just repulsive to somepony of her standings.
And yet, right now, she didn’t care.
As ponies ran around her panicking in the streets, Majesty walked in a zombie like trance. Her face showed almost no emotion. She paid no mind to her aching hooves nor did she show any interest to the ponies screaming about the horror while members of the Royal Guard did their best to calm everypony down. At one point she got knocked to the ground by some random pony but even that got no response from the mare as she got back up and continued her way.
Throughout all of this, only one thing ran through Majesty’s mind. ‘He’s dead. Scooter is dead…...’ Over and over those thoughts went through the mare’s mind as she walked on autopilot into her house. She paid her servants no mind as they greeted her and asked what was happening. She just kept walking up the stairs, her employee’s just shrugging.
She suddenly blinked and found herself in Scooter’s room. It was small, holding a single pony bed and dresser. There was also a closet that was half open and a window that had a good view of the castle. The air in here still had Scooter’s scent.
Seeing all of this with the knowledge of what had happened to Scooter was too much for the mare. It didn’t start with a sniff or a teardrop, but instead a full on wail as she charged towards the bed. A rapid river of tears began to flow down her face as she clutched the sheets with her hooves, holding them close to her heart which felt like it was about to break.
She cried out for Scooter, not caring who heard her. Her husband could have walked in right that moment and she wouldn’t have cared. Nor would he for that matter. Their marriage was only one of convenience after all. Scooter was the only stallion who she could say she cared about. The only stallion who was honest with her, never sucking up or lying to her for his own personal agendas. Their relationship might have started out as a fling, but it had become something so much more over the years.
And knowing that it was over made Majesty cry all the harder. There were so many things left unsaid. So many things that, looking back, she wished she had done. But instead Majesty had chosen to ignore her heart in favor for wealth and a title that she now realized meant nothing. If she could, she would give it all away just to be with Scooter. Sadly she knew that it was impossible. She would have to live with her choices, stuck in a loveless marriage.
She laid there crying for what seemed like an eternity, the sheets becoming soaked in her tears. It was then that a cloud that had been covering the sun began to move in the wind, causing a ray of light to move from her face towards the closet. Majesty looked up in mid sob and stopped when she saw where it had stopped before fading. It was the crib that Scooter had bought for their daughter.
Tears still running down her cheeks, Majesty slowly got up and walked over to it. “After all these years he kept it,” she said while gently placing a hoof on the crib.
New shame washed over her, threatening to cause her to bawl all over again with renewed force. She remembered how, when she was pregnant, he had offered to take care of their child all by himself in order to save her from scandal. At first she had agreed, but then the paranoia set in. she had grown up in the world of nobility where anypony would use any form of dirt they could get their hooves on as blackmail material. She feared that Scooter might do the same and so, after her child had been born, she left her at an orphanage and lied to him saying that she had died.
It was then that an idea flashed in her brain, causing her eyes to widen. Hope bloomed in her chest. There was still one piece of Scooter left! In a flash she raced out of the room in search of a servant.
“My lady, whatever is the-” began one of the nameless maids as Majesty approached in a hurry.
“Send a message by magical fire to the local sky taxi service,” said Majesty, interrupting her. “I want their fastest chariot here to take me to Ponyville in five minutes!”
-x-
Princess Luna was currently in the throne room with Shining Armor, going over his mission to search and rescue Princess Cadence as well as her daughter. She didn’t know if the pink alicorn was actually in danger, however it was more of an educated guess. As she had feared, Blueblood had been the one sitting on the throne when Derpy went to Equestria to deliver there declaration of war. This meant that either Blueblood had found a way to dethrone her or had done something more…drastic. However, based on the fact that Cadence hadn’t been standing besides Celestia when Luna confronted her there was a chance that Cadence was simply away at the moment.
To that end, Luna wanted Shining Armor to take a shuttle and a small group of soldiers to find and locate the alicorn of love and bring her to the Republic where she would be safe until this mess was all over. To aid him, several scientists from the Department of Research and Technology were modifying the shuttles scanners to detect alicorns as well as alicorn magic.
While going on a search and rescue mission was not a part of the Shield Corps duties, Shining Armor was an excellent choice for a mission like this. When she had talked to the Senate about this part of the plan, Land Share had nominated Shining Armor saying that his shields would be able to protect them should they encounter any difficulties. And, as an added incentive, Princess Cadence already knew him well and that they shared a bond meaning she would be more likely to go with him willingly. To this Princess Luna agreed.
There was only one major problem: the range of the scanners. The Republic’s shuttles scanners had a limited range. Because of this they could not remain in high orbit, but instead fly relatively close the ground while scanning. This would also mean they would be flying around blindly, hoping to pick up Cadence.
As they two worked out a flight path that would hopefully narrow down their search, a member of the Guard entered the throne room with a stony expression.
“Forgive the interruption, Princess,” said the Guard. “I was sent to inform you that the prisoner that you brought back from Equestria just woke up.”
Stareye smiled into the full length mirror before him. Around him were several mares who were busy combing his mane, cleaning his ears, polishing his horn, and other such things that a pony of lesser standings would have to do him/herself. Each one of them worked quickly to make sure he looked perfect for he expected nothing less. Epically with the party tonight in his honor.
‘Tonight the ponies of Canterlot will toast to High Commander Stareye,’ thought the noble with glee.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door.
“Enter,” said Stareye, not bothering to motion to his servants to stop in their actions. The door opened and two figures walked in causing Stareye to turn up his nose altering one of his servants to spritz him wish perfume. Stareye could see who they were thanks to the reflection in the mirror. One was Captain Spitfire of the Wonder bolts, dressed in her formal military attire fitting her rank.
The other was a bald donkey named Hard Ass, Captain of the Canterlot Reserve Forces, wearing the traditional armor of the Guard. The Reserve Forces were an odd group. A collection of various non-pony races that, under normal circumstances, would not be allowed to join up with Equestria’s main military agencies. Instead they were given a backup position as well as a base at the foot of the mountain.
“Captain Spitfire reporting,” said the pegasus as she saluted.
“Captain Hard Ass reporting for duty,” said the donkey, saluting just a bit slower. “We were told upon arriving that you wished to see all current Captains.”
“I do,” said Stareye, still not bothering to look at them. “Since I don’t have much time I will make this quick. You are both here so that can inform you both personally that you have been stripped of your ranks and your units will be placed under the command of my lieutenants.”
As the two’s jaws dropped, Stareye used his magic to remove all of their metals from their uniforms without so much as looking at them. They then watched as he flung their metals into a nearby trash can, causing the pair to glare at him.
“You can’t do that!” raged Spitfire. “The Wonderbolts are-” Before she could say anything else, Stareye’s magic began to press her lips together. She tried her best to continue to speak, but nopony in the room could make out what she was going to say.
“Being dismantled,” said Stareye uncaringly. “Now if this bothers either of you, you could speak to Prince Blueblood or leave. Now away with the two of you. I have a party to prepare for.” And with that, Stareye’s horn began to glow as the two former Captains were lifted into the air and then thrown out of the room. As them landed on the floor, the door loudly slammed shut.
As the two of them slowly got back up, still trying to process what was happening, three unicorns approached them. The one in front, a mare with a kind face, gave them a small smile before saluting them.
“Captains,” she said in a low voice. “I am Lieutenant Hot Pants. And I think we need to talk.”
-x-
‘It hurts,’ thought Celestia with a small groan, her eyes slowly opening as she did. The room she was in was dark so she tried to use her magic to get some light…only to find herself unable to do so. Her eyes widened as she tried again and again with no luck. Fearing the worse, she raised a hoof to her forehead to check and see if her horn was still there. And despite the pain she felt as she did this, she let out a sigh of relief to find it still intact. This feeling, however, lasted only a moment as she realized where she had to be: in the holding cell of the Lunar Republic!
So for several minutes she laid there, in the dark, waiting for somepony to approach her. Then, without any warning, light filled the room blinding the sun princess for a moment. Once her eyes adjusted to the light, Celestia saw that she was indeed in the same holding cell she had been held in when she had teleported to the Republic. Yet this time the room wasn’t as bare. There were several shelves of books occupying one corner as well as a vanity mirror. Looking down, she realized that she was one a real bed with admittedly the softest sheets she had ever been on.
It was then that she noticed the condition her body was in. Most of it was covered in blood stained bandages which seemed odd considering the advantaged medical technology she knew the Republic had.
For several minutes, Celestia sat there wondering what was going to happen to her. Before she had lost consciousness, Luna had been in a state of rage that she had never seen her in. Part of her feared that Luna might still be angry at her, but the state of the room suggested that she had calmed down a bit to make Celestia a bit more comfortable.
‘What is Luna’s game here?’ wondered Celestia. ‘Did she bring me up here as a prisoner or to heal me?’ Right now both options seemed possible.
Before Celestia could ponder any longer, a door opened to reveal Luna and a strange disk shaped device hovering next to her. As she walked in, Celestia noted that Luna at first seemed relieved. But as soon as she saw the bandages on her, a frown appeared on the moon princess’s face.
“Sister, how do you feel?” asked Luna once she was standing in front of Celestia.
“Not so good,” replied Celestia, her voice sounding a little hoarse. This reply seemed to deepen Luna’s frown.
Luna said nothing as she picked up something from the floating disk with her teeth. It was a long, pen like device identical to the one Celestia had seen the day before the Summer Sun Festival. Slowly Luna brought it down towards Celestia’s neck and pressed against it. The effect was almost immediate as the pain began to fade until she barely felt any.
“Thank you,” said Celestia.
“Don’t worry about it,” said Luna as a ghost of a smile appeared on her face before it faded again. “I told my doctors to take care of you. Sadly, from the looks of it, they barely followed that order. Because of this, I will have to adjust my plans. Don’t worry, I will make sure they are punished for this.”
“Plans?” asked Celestia. “Luna, w-what’s going on? What happened after our fight? Why am I here?”
Luna let out a sigh. “I…am sorry sister,” said Luna as she looked away. “Right now our countries are at war.”
“WHAT!?” yelled Celestia as she tried to get up and failed. “Sister, you have to let me go! I’ll talk to my subjects and stop this.”
Luna looked at her and gave a short, humorless laugh. “Sister, your own soldiers didn’t listen to you when you told them to stand down. It’s time to face facts: you have lost control of your government to Blueblood. If I sent you down now, in your current condition it would be easy for him to lock you up. Or worse.”
“T-This can’t be,” stammered Celestia.
“I’m afraid it is,” said Luna as she shook her head. But then she seemed to brighten slightly. “But don’t worry. After the battle tomorrow, things will be different. I will make sure that buffoon gets what is coming to him and then ensure that Cadence gets her rightful place on the throne.”
“Cadence?” said a shocked Celestia. “But what about-”
“Oh don’t worry,” interrupted Luna happily. “While Cadence is helping Equestria see the errors of its ways, you and me are going to be spending some quality time together. See, I know that Cadence won’t live forever and I can’t keep you here forever. But if I just sent you back as you are now then the same problems would most likely repeat themselves. So instead I will be doing what I should have done long ago and teach you! Oh won’t this be fun? You’ll get to learn how we in the Republic do things so you can take that back with you when you return. I can even help you with your inaction problem. And we can spend time together like we used to!”
Celestia jaw dropped when she heard this. ‘Has Luna lost her mind?’ thought Celestia. ‘How can she think that any of this is a good idea? If I am here, who will reinforce the entrapment spell on Discord? He could be freed at any moment! I need to make her understand.’
“Sister, please don’t do this,” begged Celestia. “If war occurs now then Discord might be freed early. And without the Elements then-”
“We don’t need to worry about Discord or the Elements,” replied Luna looking very proud at that moment. “My little ponies have been working long and hard over the centuries to find a way to end his threat once and for all. And, recently, we had a major breakthrough!”
With that, Luna went into a detailed explanation of Operation: Umbrella. Throughout her lecture, Luna’s face was full of pride. Celestia, on the other hoof, looked more and more horrified as she listened. She couldn’t believe that Luna would ever consider this a good idea.
“Sister, please tell me you’re joking,” begged Celestia once Luna had finished causing the other princess to frown.
“I most certainly am not,” replied Luna. “We have run-”
“Ponies will die!” yelled Celestia interrupting Luna. “I can’t believe this! How could you overlook the major flaw in your plan? How it will effect everypony in Equestria even if it was only active for a moment? The Elements-”
“Won’t work,” interrupted Luna, her eyes narrowing in frustration. “Not now after everything has happened! Discord is coming sooner than expected and we need to have a plan ready now!”
“Not this one,” said Celestia. “I forbid it!”
Luna’s eyes widened in shock at this. “You forbid…me?” asked Luna before her eyes narrowed and began to grit her teeth. “What right do you have to do that? After everything that has happened you still insist that you know everything? That your way is the only way?!”
“Luna,” said Celestia, however stopped when her sister spun around and headed towards the door with the disk following her.
“I was going to allow you some freedom to move around the castle once you had healed,” snarled Luna. “But now I’ve changed my mind. You can stay in here and think about the mess you made. Next time you see me I’ll have Discord’s head on a platter!”
With that, Luna left the room leaving Celestia as she called out to her sister.
-x-
Shadow let out a sigh as he looked underneath Twilight’s bed for what felt like the hundredth time. The area had been roped off so that nothing would have disturbed the area. Not that there was much to disturb. Besides the messy bed and the dried blood on the floor the room was clue. Shadow had already looked at every possible spot in a desperate attempt to find some clue that the LBI might have missed. Something that might prove that Applejack was innocent. Something that would suggest that somepony else was behind everything that had been going on. But so far he had nothing.
“Hey boss,” said a voice from behind him. Shadow spun around and saw Lightning Dust standing behind him with a half-smile on her face. Her coat seemed a little off color, which wasn’t much of a surprise seeing that she had just lost both her wings. With this thought, Shadow’s eyes moved towards the new addition to her body, the latest cyber-wings that the Republic had to offer folded against her body like normal wings. They were made of a shiny chrome like metal that looked almost like a normal pegasus wing, except for the tips of the wings which were razor sharp.
“Like them?” asked Lightning as soon as she noticed what Shadow’s eyes were focused on. “Neat uh. Top of the line. I can get them color customized later if I want. They also said that I could one day fly as fast as I could with my…old wings. Um, I could even fly faster.”
“Are you ok?” asked Shadow with concern.
“Doctors wanted me to stay in bed,” said Lightning as she looked around. “But that seemed boring. So right now I’m off active duty until I go through all kinds of therapy. Not even allowed to fly. Not like I want to right now.”
“If you want to talk-” began Shadow, but Lightning whipped her head around at him and glared.
“NO!” she screamed. For a moment, she just stared at him before blinking and then shook her head before looking down. “I mean no thanks. I…just don’t feel like talking about…what happened on the planet. At least not now.”
“Well, if you even need to get something off your chest you know you can always talk to me,” replied Shadow.
“Thanks,” said Lightning, a small smile appearing on her face. “Soooooo, what’s going on?”
“I’m…not sure,” said Shadow as he turned to focus on the room. “During the trail I thought I noticed a few things were off. And now today I saw that Twilight’s medicine had been changed. I think something is going on. That we made a mistake.”
“I think it’s just a coincidence,” said Lightning as she walked over to the bed. “I mean, accidents happen. They are rare, especially with medicine. But something like that could have happened. You’re probably just tired with everything that’s going on. Try relaxing.” With that, the mare jumped onto the bed and began to bounce up and down on the bed.
“Stop that!” snapped Shadow as he glared at the mare. “You are disrupting a crime scene.”
“Shadow the case is closed,” said Lightning as she continued to jump up and down. “Think about it. They all testified underneath the Truth Light. The LBI has video proof that Applejack came to Twilight’s room twice that day. The weapon that was used came from her as well. Do you really think that you are going to find the piece of evidence that the entire LBI missed?”
“Not if you keep making a mess,” said Shadow. Suddenly his eyes widened as a realization struck him. He began to look around the room with extra attention towards the floor. Lightning watched this, her bouncing becoming slower with each passing minute.
Then…
“I don’t believe it!” exclaimed Shadow. “Lightning, you’re a genius!”
“It’s about time you noticed,” said Lightning as she jumped off the bed. “But, just so we’re clear, why am I a genius?”
“Take a look at this room,” said Shadow, not answering the question as he gestured around the room. “What do you see?”
“Ah,” said Lightning Dust as she looked around the room. “Nothing really. Just a blood stain that somepony should really clean up soon.”
“Exactly!” said Shadow.
“I don’t get it,” said Lightning as she shook her head.
“Nothing else is out of place,” said Shadow excitedly. “There are no marks on the walls that could have been caused by Twilight fighting back. No hoof marks on the floor which would usually indicate a scuffle. And don’t you think it’s odd that the LBI didn’t find any mane samples or any other form of DNA from Applejack considering they believe that she hid the weapon underneath her hat?”
Lightning Dust lifted her hoof to her chin and thought about it. “Well maybe Applejack covered her tracks?”
Shadow shook his head. “If that was true then she would have also taken the apple peeler,” he said before walking over to the wall. “No, this is really starting to look like a set up.”
“But what about all the evidence that the LBI found?” demanded Lightning as she stomped a hoof on the ground. “You can’t just dismiss it!”
Shadow didn’t reply right away. Instead he touched a part of the wall and a computer screen came to life. The desktop image on it was of him and Twilight back when they were still in school. Twilight was smiling brightly, showing off her braces with Shadow’s leathery wing wrapped around her. Around both of their eyes were dark circles indicating that they hadn’t had much sleep for a few days. Seeing this made the stallion smile as he remembered when it was taken and how happy they both were that exams were over.
“Computer,” said Shadow after staring at the image for another moment. “I request access to security footage from-”
“I’m sorry,” interrupted the computer. “The information you are requesting is for authorized ponies and are password protected. If you wish to continue, please say your password.”
Shadow’s eyes widened when he heard this. He quickly looked behind him at Lighting who had her head cocked to the side, with a look that said that she wanted to know what was going on. Slowly, Shadow’s head dropped as it turned back towards the screen.
“Nummy muffin,” he said as his cheeks darkened.
“Password and voice print accepted,” replied the computer while Lightning began to giggle uncontrollably.
“‘Nummy muffin’,” she managed to say. “You could have picked any password and that’s what you went with? I’d expect that from Derpy!”
“I-It’s what Twilight calls me sometimes when it’s just the two of us,” stammered Shadow. “And I thought that no one would ever think that that’s my password.”
“Hehe,” laughed Lightning as tears began to appear around her eyes. “I am so telling everypony about this!”
‘When this is over I am changing my password,’ thought Shadow as he tuned out Lightning while requesting the various files he needed. Once the footage was on the screen, Shadow began to watch it once more focusing on the bits with Applejack. From when she first visited Twilight when Gigawatt was there all the way till the mare returned to her room. With each passing scene, Shadow’s sense of unease grew. Something was wrong with these images. Every instinct in his body told him so.
And then, as he started on the second viewing, he realized what was wrong. ‘She looks completely normal,’ thought Shadow as his eyes widened. ‘When Applejack went to Twilight’s room the second time she didn’t check the hallway for any other pony or anything that a pony would normally do if she was planning on attacking another in cold blood. And when she left she looks exactly the same! Her mane isn’t a mess, she isn’t breathing hard, or showing any other sign that she was just in a fight! Buck, she’s not even galloping away from the crime scene!’
As he continued to watch, a frown appeared on his face. There had to be something more, something else that he had missed. Something that would prove that something was going on that he could bring to Princess Luna because right the evidence he had wasn’t definitive. It was something, but other ponies would react the same way that Lightning had earlier and say he was seeing things.
‘But there’s nothing else here,’ thought Shadow angrily as the footage looped back again. ‘I have been studying every move Applejack makes and it’s the same…’ It was then that Shadow noticed something. An extremely brief flicker that one wouldn’t normally notice that appeared right before seeing Applejack coming down to Twilight’s room. Puzzled by this, Shadow decided to rewind the footage and watch it again, thinking that it might have been his eyes playing tricks on him. And, after he watched the same scene again, he saw the same flicker in the same spot.
Now Shadow was curious. The watched the security footage with every more intensity several times in a row, ignoring the yawns and the complaints from the pegasus mare behind him. Straining his eyes Shadow looked for anything like what he had seen before. Eventually he noticed another flicker right before the bit where Applejack returned to her room. But, what could this mean? Flickers like that usually meant...
“Computer pause,” commanded Shadow. Immediately the image of Applejack walking down a hallway to her room after the attack froze. “Bring up a separate window and begin playing the same footage as the first.”
The computer complied with his request. Now, next to each other where two films. Shadow let the newer window play until it reached the point with Applejack heading towards Twilight’s room the second time. He the paused it and the order the first to be rewound by a few seconds. ‘No, not there yet,’ thought Shadow as he ordered the second to be rewound a bit as well.
“Boss, what’re you doing?” asked Lightning, her ears flat against her skull.
“Proving that Applejack never went to Twilight’s room a second time,” said Shadow. “Play both.” With that, both windows began to play. And, much to Lightning’s shock, Applejack moved exactly the same in both window’s. Even the way her tale moved side to side with each step was perfectly timed to the millisecond.
“T-This is impossible,” stammered Lightning as she fell on her plot, her mouth hanging open as she watched. “Document himself checked the footage! He would have noticed something like this! No, this can’t be happening.”
“But it is,” said Shadow, his tone having an edge to it as he saved everything into a personal file of his. “Somepony must have copied Applejack from another piece of security footage and pasted onto this one.”
“Then what about the Truth Light?!” demanded Lightning as she stood up. “Applejack herself confessed!”
“That’s what we need to take a look at next,” said Shadow as he began to move towards the door, gritting his teeth as he did.
-x-
“Out of the way!” yelled Stareye as he walked down the castle grounds. As we did so, many of the guards who were being forced to camp and train outside did their best to move out of the way. “I have an appointment with a masseuse if twenty minutes. If I’m late it’ll be your heads!”
“You heard him lads. MOVE IT!” yelled a small brown unicorn stallion named Boot Licker as he walked besides the High Commander. He felt lucky to be promoted to the High Commander’s personal assistant and hoped it would lead to a more lucrative position in the future.
“Honestly, you would think these uncivilized buffoons would be able to follow a simple order like that,” whined Stareye as he paused so that a pony could move himself and his supplies out of his way.
“Right you are your greatness,” said Boot Licker with a nod of his head.
“And when will-” began Stareye, but stopped as an arrow zoomed past his head. Stareye screamed in horror, almost wetting himself much to the amusement of all those present. Hearing this caused Stareye to shift from fear to anger. “Who shot that arrow?!”
“Sorry sir, I’m doing my best,” came a voice off to the side. Stareye turned around to look and saw a cross eyed donkey hold a bow in his teeth.
“Who made that donkey an archer?” demanded Stareye.
“I did sir,” said another donkey, also cross eyed. “He’s my cousin.”
“Who is he?” demanded Stareye as he looked at Boot Licker.
“He’s an Ass, sir,” replied Boot Licker.
“I know what he is,” sneered Stareye. “But what’s his name?”
“That is his name,” said Boot Licker. “Ass, Major Smart Ass.”
“And his cousin?” asked Stareye.
“He’s an Ass to sir,” replied Boot Licker. “Archer First Class Private Dumb Ass.”
“How many Ass’s are in this army anyways?” demanded Stareye. At that moment, a hundred or so hooves raised into the air all around the High Commander. “Perfect I’m surround by Ass.”
-x-
“We’ll be in Ponyville in just a minute.” Majesty’s only response to her chariot driver was a short nod as she continued to stare down at the ground below them. It had been like this since she had gotten on the flying chariot. The driver had several times tried to start a conversation, however she ignored him. She barely paid any attention to his name. The only words she had spoken to him thus far was where they were going and to be as quick as possible.
It wasn’t her intention to be rude or that he was a pony that was beneath her notice. It was just that she had a lot on her mind. She knew what she was going to do would more than likely destroy her marriage and make her a social outcast within Canterlot nobility. The only way she could possibly save her marriage would be to say that she adopted Scootaloo on a whim or something like that. And the only way she could save face with the other nobles would be to keep Scootaloo locked up.
And she wasn’t doing either of those things.
After she got back Scootaloo, Majesty was going to come clean. She would tell Bit Pincher all about her affairs and if he wanted to leave her then he could take his bits with him. She would then sell off her mansion and whatever she had left after the divorce so that the two of them could start a new life together. Then she could raise the filly the way Scooter would have wanted.
But she knew it wouldn’t be easy. The biggest obstacle would be Scootaloo. Majesty had thought about not telling her the full truth. To hide the fact that she was the filly’s mother so that it would be easier for her. That thought lasted only for a second. No, she was going to do the right thing even if her daughter hated her for leaving her in an orphanage while Majesty went back to her mansion. It was no more than she deserved.
Slowly the chariot came closer to the ground until it touched the dirt road and stopped in front of a two story building that Majesty had once visited years ago: Ponyville Orphanage. Outside several colts and fillies who had been playing games, but the sight of the chariot drew their attention causing them to walk over to it.
“Wait here,” Majesty order the driver as she jumped out of the chariot. As she landed on her hooves, she looked around at the small town. Last time she had been here she had considered the town beneath her notice like any member of Canterlot high society. Now, however, she saw that it seemed…charmingly rustic. While it lacked the tall, grand buildings that Canterlot had, this place had something else. A feeling of community that she could tell just by seeing ponies walking down the street and talking to each other. It almost seemed warm and inviting.
‘Maybe we’ll move here,’ thought Majesty as she walked towards the orphanage. ‘I think Scootaloo would like that. This way she won’t have to leave her friends. I bet I could even get a job here! If memory serves me correctly there is an open librarian job. I’m sure I could do that!’
Just before Majesty reached the door, a mare opened it. A mare that Majesty met several years ago named Miss Foster.
“Hello,” said Miss Foster as she looked at Majesty. “Can I help you?”
“Yes,” replied Majesty with a nod. “I would like to adopt a filly.”
Miss Foster’s eyes went wide with delight. “Wonderful,” she exclaimed. “Come in, come in.” Nodding, Majesty complied and walked into the building and found herself in a slightly run down hallway. The wallpaper looked like it was slightly turning yellow and several spots had crayon drawing that were half washed away. Other than that the place looked well kept.
“Now then, what kind of filly were you looking for?” asked Miss Foster. “There are several wonderful fillies under my care that I am sure-”
“Actually, I already know who I would like,” instructed Majesty. “I left her here several years ago and…I want her back.”
“Oh,” said Miss Foster blinking slightly. “Well, I can do that. After all, the rights of the mother take priority. And if she’s been adopted then I can help you walk through the court process in order to get her back. What’s her name?”
“Scootaloo.” As soon as Majesty said that, Miss Foster’s mouth opened and her pupils became the size of pin needles.
“S-Scootaloo?” repeated Miss Foster.
“That’s what I said,” said Majesty, a bit or worry appearing in her voice.
“I’m sorry but I don’t think I can help you,” said Miss Foster. “See, she’s been adopted and taken out of Equestria.”
“Oh,” said Majesty. “That’s fine then. Just tell me where she went and I will go there.”
“It won’t be that simple,” said Miss Foster as she shook her head. “See, she’s in the Lunar Republic.”
The world seemed to freeze when Majesty heard this. ‘Th-The Republic?’ thought Majesty in a panic. ‘But that’s where Blueblood sent the parasprite! And the damage that was done because of it…By the sun! I could have helped kill my own daughter!’
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you,” said Miss Foster as she read Majesty’s expression. “I know it sounds bad with all the stories that are told about it, but you have nothing to worry about it. Princess Cadence herself went to check up on the dear and the couple that adopted her. I believe their names are Twilight Sparkle and Shadow Blade. At first I found it hard to believe that ponies from that place could be so nice but they do seem to care for her. They even helped fix her wings! But don’t worry. If you really want her back, I can send a letter to the Princess and maybe she can we can make an appeal.”
Majesty weakly nodded before turning to leave. Once more she felt her body going into zombie mode as she got into her chariot and ordered the driver to take her back to Canterlot.
‘This can’t be happening,’ she thought. ‘Twilight Sparkle. That’s the mare that was nearly killed, most likely on Blueblood’s orders. What if Scootaloo got hurt in the process as well? And next he’s going after Princess Cadence!’ Majesty’s eyes suddenly began to focus right before they narrowed. ‘And that’s not all he’s planning. He’ll do whatever it takes to take the Republic. Well now things won’t go according to plan Blueblood! I will see to it that all of your scheme’s fail right before your eyes. And then, in order to protect Scootaloo and revenge for Scooter, I will kill you!’
Shadow slowly walked around the spot underneath the Truth Light like a shark circling its prey. The room was empty of any other pony for the moment, leaving him with his thoughts. ‘So far I have proof that the evidence incriminating the Equestrians for the attack on Twilight presented in the trial has been tampered with,’ he thought to himself. ‘Now I just need to confirm my last suspicion with the Truth Light.’
Shadow paused as his ears pressed against his forehead. So far his findings pointed to one of two possibilities. The first was that somepony out there was framing Applejack and the others and that the LBI had missed these clues in their veal. Shadow had to admit that this was, at least, a possibility. With everything that was going on there was barely a soul within the Republic that didn’t feel some resentment towards the other pony nation. But, if that was true, then that would mean that the LBI had failed to notice anything was wrong with the crime scene and the chance that the security footage had been tampered with. Not only that, for somepony to do all of this would need a great deal of security clearance to be able alter the footage.
Then there was the other possibility: the LBI was in on it. That thought sent a chill down Shadow’s spine. The LBI was one of the most loyal groups of ponies towards the Republic and to Princess Luna. Their organization existed to find those criminals who would deal serious damage towards both and alert the Guard should they find something. Just getting in took years of dedicated training and a screening process that some called overkill. So why would they be in on something like this? Why would they throw away their lives for something like this?
Shadow’s ears perked as the sound of hoofsteps approached the room. He turned around in time to see the door open and two ponies walk in the room. One was Lightning Dust and the other was a stallion by the name of Easy Target. He was short, slightly heavy set neon green unicorn with a red mane that had white stripes in it. Shadow knew that this stallion was still a rookie that had barely been able to get into the Guard. He was the first to be taken down in training and his test scores were just above passable. Still, on the plus side, he was a hard worker who put in twice the amount of effort that other rookies did.
“We’re here,” said Lightning Dust as the two entered the room. As they did, Lightning turned to look at Target. “You sure you want to help? We can’t force you.”
“It’s fine,” he replied. “I’ll do anything I can to help. Just tell me what you want me to do.”
“It’s simple,” said Shadow. “We’re just running a test on the Truth Light, that’s all.”
Target opened his mouth, but quickly closed it as a thoughtful look appeared on his face. “Ok,” he said slowly. “But, if you don’t mind me asking sir, why didn’t you just use Lightning Dust instead of wasting time finding another pony?”
“It’s best to have at least three ponies doing this,” replied Shadow as he gestured Target to stand under the Truth Light. “Encase there are…issues that might rise up.”
“I see,” said Target as he stepped under the Truth Light. Then his eyes widened. “Wait, what kind of issues?”
Shadow didn’t answer, instead activating the Truth Light. Once it was activated, a soft thud was heard overhead. And this time, Shadow wasn’t the only member of the Guard who heard it.
“What was that?” asked Lightning as she looked up.
“I don’t know,” replied Shadow, his eyes narrowing as he did. “But I heard the same thing during the trial.” Shadow paused for a moment, looking slightly worried as he did. In the end he shook his head and regained his serious expression.
“Ok, let’s get this over with,” he said as he looked at Easy Target. “State your name and rank.”
“I am Private Easy Target of the Royal Guard,” replied the stallion.
“Ok, that one was easy,” said Shadow as he thought of something else he could ask. “What did you dress as last Dreamers Eve?”
“I went as the original Blue Pony Ranger,” replied Target, looking slightly embarrassed.
“Oh I got a question,” said Lightning as pushed her boss to the side. “How many times have you stared at my plot?”
“Never,” said Target in a deadpanned voice.
Lightning Dust blinked before letting out an irritated sigh. “Ok, this thing has to be broken,” she said. “I mean, who wouldn’t want to stare at this tight plot all day and night.”
“Not me,” replied Target as Shadow rolled his eyes.
“Fine then,” said Lightning as she puffed up her cheeks. “Then tell me, whose plot do you stare at?”
Now Target looked very uncomfortable. “Captain Shadow Blade’s,” he said. This caused Lightning’s jaw to drop as Shadow looked away.
“Well,” said Lightning after a while. “I…wasn’t expecting that.”
“Anyways,” said Shadow as he took a step forward. “I think it’s working so far. Now for the next question. Easy Target, did you release a parasprite into the Republic?”
Lightning rolled her eyes. ‘Seriously?’ she thought. ‘What is he expecting? That Target will confess to a crime that he couldn’t possibly commit?’
“Yes,” said Target who suddenly looked very surprised as did Lightning and Shadow. “I did it in the name of Celestia for the good of Equestria.”
Shadow’s eyes narrow. “Did you attack Twilight Sparkle?” he asked through gritted teeth. “If so, how and why?”
“Yes!” cried out Easy Target whose face had an expression of pure horror. “I went in there with an apple peeler hidden under my hat and stabbed her. Princess Celestia order her death for ruining the merger back in Ponyville. I did it in the name of Celestia and for the good of Equestria.”
Lightning felt her hind legs give out on her causing her plot to hit the floor. She looked nearly as shocked and confused as Target. What was happening right now…it just wasn’t possible. The Truth Light could only make a pony tell the truth hence the name. But now she was hearing a pony saying the exact same thing that both Fluttershy and Applejack said underneath the Truth Light.
‘The only way this could be happening would be if-’ thought Lightning but shook her head and headed the thought before it could finish. Any research into altering the Truth Light was an A-Rank Felony. All fillies and colts in the Republic were taught the various penalties one could receive for committing all types of crimes, their lesson wisely ending with A-Rank Felonies. Those who committed those crimes received a punishment so severe that the entire class had to be sent home because half of them threw up and had had a green tint to their fur for three days. Even now Lightning shivered at the thought of anypony being stupid enough to commit such a crime.
Shaking slightly, Lightning looked over towards Shadow before falling on back. The bat stallion was gritting his teeth so hard that blood was dripping from his jaw, his eyes dangerously narrow. She watched as he spread he spread his wings, flying towards a corner of the room. When he got there a keypad opened up on the wall and he practically slammed in a number sequence. Once that was finished, a hole opened up on the ceiling above to him large enough for a heavy set pony to enter followed by a ladder made of light. Shadow didn’t bother with the ladder, instead flying upwards to stick his head in.
“THAT BUCKING BASTARD!” screamed Shadow as he fell to the ground and began to punch the floor with both hooves. “WHY WOULD HE BE DOING THIS? WE TRUSTED HIM!”
Now Lightning was beginning to freak out. She looked up at the hole and gulped before moving towards the ladder. Once there she slowly began to climb up, her heartbeat forcing Shadow’s screams into the background. When she got to the hole she poked her head in.
Looking around, Lightning herself looking down a long narrow hallway that looked like a mare of her size would have to crawl to get around. All along the walls were wires, tubes, and glowing crystals of red, white, green, and purple. On the floor, she noticed was very dusty. So dusty in fact that she could easily see a path through the layer of dust signaling that somepony had been in here recently. Her eyes followed the trail which ended at the opposite end of the hallway where she saw something that she knew didn’t belong there.
It was a black cube about four inches tall that seemed to emit an eerie red glow from the three red crystals she could see coming out of its side. From the cube came wires that had pierced the sides of the hallway as the device lay there on the floor.
“Lightning get down here and don’t touch that…thing,” came Shadow’s voice, startling the mare. Slowly the mare climbed down the ladder and found Easy Target was no longer under the effects of the Truth Light. The stallion was shaking slightly, but other than that he was fine. Shadow; on the other hoof, still looked furious.
“Private Easy Target,” said Shadow as Lightning’s hooves touched the floor. “I want you to stay here and guard this room. If anypony other than me, Lightning Dust, or Princess Luna enters this room I want to be notified immediately. Is that clear?”
“Yes sir,” said Target as he saluted.
“Good,” said Shadow as he shifted his focus towards Lightning. “Lightning Dust, you’re coming with me.”
Lightning Dust nodded as Shadow turned and dashed out of the room. For a short while the two galloped down the halls of the castle, Lightning doing her best to keep up with Shadow. However the bat stallion soon saw ponies up ahead and slowed his pace slightly so that he was next to Lightning with very little space between them.
“What I am going to tell you is top secret,” whispered Shadow so softly that Lightning could barely hear.
“D-Does it have anything to do with why Easy Target was acting that way and why you got so mad?” whispered Lightning.
Shadow nodded. “This goes back to when the Truth Light was first invented,” he whispered. “Do you remember what the history books said?”
This time Lightning Dust nodded. Before the Truth Light was invented, there was a bit more crime than there was today. While most ponies didn’t want to take the chance of being caught and placed in a prison pod or suffer any of the other harsh penalties, there were a few who thought they could lie their way out. Create a false alibi, get a friend to cover for them, or even pretend that whatever they did was an accident. Some even had some really smooth talking lawyers to assist them.
This all changed when the Truth Light was invented by a mare named Star Light. Within a week of its creation, it gained a ninety five percent approval rating from the entire Republic. The only ones who seemed against were the lawyers and those who questioned the morality of the device.
Seeing her nod, Shadow continued. “Then don’t you think it’s a bit strange that we don’t use it for every crime and that we still have to collect evidence?” he asked. “And why there are only two Truth Light’s in the entire Republic? The main one and a small portable one?”
“I ah,” began Lightning as they turned a corner. “To be honest, I never really thought about it.”
“That’s because of an event that happened four years after the creation of the Truth Light,” he answered. “After it was created, so many ponies thought it was such a wonderful invention. Some even suggested that it be put in every house, every building. But there were a few that disagreed with this and set off to prove there was a way to manipulate the Truth Light.
“Now, Star Light had found out during the tests that ponies under mind control would admit to crimes they had committed, sometimes without even knowing that they were under a spell. Another thing they found out that ponies with implanted memories would also confess. But this information didn’t bother the Senate since those kinds of spell required a high degree of magical control that only the highest class of unicorns could do them. They believed that if we kept tabs on those ponies we should be fine.
“Then, four years after the Truth Light was created, a scientist named White Lie created the Liars Cube. The Cube…it forces a pony to lie about certain things. From what I understand, a pony has to input certain information into the Cube relating to the questions asked and the response. Then, once it is connected to the Truth Light, it sends signals to the brain that force the pony under it to say the programmed response.”
“I…I don’t believe it,” said Lightning her eyes widening. “Why wasn’t anypony told about this?”
“Because the Truth Light cut the crime rate by eighty percent,” answered Shadow. “If news got out that there was a way to fool it, the Senate feared that many more ponies would try to use the Liars Cube to either frame another pony or confess their own innocence. It almost came to the point where Princess Luna was seriously considering permanently retiring the Truth Light to avoid all of this.
“But that never happened thanks to one Senator. He said that, as long as they took the proper precautions, the Truth Light could still be used. The number of Truth Lights were limited and kept within the castle and their use was to be under certain circumstances. The existence of the Liars Cube was kept from the public and any experimenting to create anything like it was deemed an A-Rank Felony.
“As for the existing Liars Cube, it was given to the head of the LBI. He was the only one in the organization to know it exists and was then given a special job: to keep an eye on anypony who had the knowledge to create one like it. It was supposed to be kept in a safe in his office, far away from the castle and Princess Luna herself does random inspections to make sure it stays there. Also, the access to the Truth Light’s mechanics is kept under tight lock and key. Only Princess Luna, myself, the head of the Science and Research Division, and the Senators have the combination to get into it.”
“So you’re saying that somepony attacked Twilight and then used that…thing to force the Equestria’s to admit to it?” said Lightning, her head lowering as she did.
“Yeah,” said Shadow gravely. “I’m almost dead certain Sealed Document himself has a hoof in this. If he wasn’t, he would have reported it missing.” As soon as Shadow finished his sentence, he noticed that Lightning was slowing down. She slowed from a gallop to a trot and then finally stopped, staring at the ground as she did. As Shadow slowed down and turned around, he noticed a tear falling to the ground.
“T-They died for nothing,” said Lightning as she lifted her head. Tears were running down her face while she bit her lower lip. “I-I trained with all of them. T-They w-were my…my FRIENDS!” With that the dam broke and Lightning fell into a full and uncontrollable sob.
Shadow didn’t need to ask who she was talking about. And he felt the same way. Both he and Lightning Dust had trained side by side and worked with ponies like Overkill, Red Shirt, and Doughnut. Those in Royal Guard and the Shield Corps formed close bonds with one and other. They shared the good and the bad timed with each other. They were more than a part of the Republic’s military: they were a family. And now somepony had manipulated a situation that had, so far, resulted in several deaths.
And, while she might not have said anything, Shadow knew that there was a small part of her (but in no way less important) that was torn up about what she had lost: her wings. Lightning Dust was a flyer. It was what she loved to do more than anything. It was her special talent. And having it taken away like that must have been a horrible blow, one that she tried to keep bottled up inside while telling herself that at least they had been lost while doing the right thing. That the Republic had been in the right. But now that was gone.
“Lightning,” said Shadow softly as he placed a hoof on her shoulder. As soon as she felt it, Lightning slowly looked up and gazed into Shadow’s own sorrowful expression. “I’m so sorry. I should have seen this. I suspected that something was wrong during the trial. But when I went to talk to Princess Luna, she pointed out something that I hadn’t noticed and suspected that Blueblood was the real mastermind behind all of this. That he could have used Celestia’s name or put those mares into a trance to get them to do such horrible crimes. It…It made sense at the time. If I, by the stars, how I wish right now I had spoken up about the others things I had noticed. Maybe…they would still be here right now. If you want to blame anypony then you should blame me.”
Lightning blinked as she heard this, slowly getting up as she did. For a moment, her eyes narrowed and she opened her mouth to yell and scream at him. That he was right, it was his fault. That he knew about that damned cube and never told anypony. That the blood of their comrades was on his hooves. Yet, as she looked at him in the eyes, she couldn’t find her voice. Instead, she lifted a hoof and smacked him as hard as she could. Shadow didn’t make a sound as his face turned with the blow, instinctively weakening the damage that could have been caused by the punch. Lightning then took a breath before striking him again on the other side of his face.
Again and again, Lightning continued to strike Shadow as the tears fell down her face. Right now she hated that look he had. One that mirrored what he had said. That he did truly believe that he was mainly at fault. And, little by little, the blows became softer and lower until she was lightly pounding his chest. And soon after that she fell back to the floor.
For a short while she just laid there, no longer crying. Instead she felt more confused. ‘I…I should be feeling better. At least just a little bit. Shadow…I punched him so much. He’s to blame…right?’ Suddenly Lightning’s eyes widened. No, she realized. He wasn’t to blame. Not entirely at least. He was only pony, capable of making mistakes and missing things. Princess Luna also knew about the Cube but even she didn’t think it was being used.
No, there was only one pony to blame.
“Sir,” said Lightning as she got up and looked Shadow in the eyes, a fire burning in hers. “I’m sorry for my actions right now and will submit to punishment. But, if it were possible, I would like to assist in locating and capturing the bucking bastard that caused all this mess so that I can see him pay for all the lives he’s ruined.”
Shadow raised an eyebrow. “Punishment? For what?” he asked.
“Ah, for striking you sir,” replied Lightning Dust.
“Funny, I don’t seem to remember that,” he replied with a half-smile which Lightning returned before his face once more became serious. “Now come on. We need to get moving. I want to check on something in the medical wing before heading to see Princess Luna.” Nodding, Lightning Dust followed her captain as they walked down the hallways once more.
Truthfully, Shadow didn’t want to arrest or punish Lightning. Enough ponies had suffered from recent events and given what Lightning Dust had been through he just didn’t have the heart to throw her into a prison pod. And he knew that had he refused Lightning Dust she would have tried to go after Sealed Document on her own which would have complicated things to say the least. No, in the end it was better that he kept her close that he could make sure she wouldn’t do anything foolish.
As they walked, Shadow’s mind was trying to make sense of this all. He knew that Sealed Document was involved in a massive cover up, that much was clear. However there was still much that Shadow didn’t know.
‘How did he get the Liar’s Cube up there?’ thought Shadow as a frown appeared on his face. ‘The Senators Room has no cameras in it and if any are brought in nopony is allowed to punch in the combination. He can’t hack it because any tampering alerts Princess Luna herself as will inputting the wrong combination three times. And the security system protecting it is completely separate from all the ones that the LBI monitors. And if he tried to force it out of one of the senators then all they would have to do is inform me or Princess Luna.
‘Then there’s that attack on Twilight. Why do that? Judging by what the mares said during the trial, it’s safe to say that he wants a conflict with Equestria. But there had to be a better way. He could have sabotaged something and left evidence pointing at the Equestrians. Or did he believe that Twilight would defend them again? But that would have been a moot point given what they said underneath the Truth Light and Twilight wouldn’t know about the Liar’s Cube. Did he fear that Twilight would say something that would have gotten Princess Luna to check for the Cube? Still, in the end, when Twilight wakes up she’ll be able to tell everypony who really attacked her. And why change the medicine-’
“Boss,” said Lightning, interrupting Shadow from his thoughts. The stallion blinked, realizing that they were close to the medical wing now. He then turned to look at Lightning Dust who also looked like she had been deep in thought. “I was wondering, why would they leave the Liar’s Cube with the Truth Light? Doesn’t that seem a little sloppy for the LBI?”
Shadow gave a small shrug. “I can think of a few theories off the top of my head,” he replied. “One being that they were simply unable to get it due to everypony having their hooves full with the trail and the conflict with Equestria. Or they could have left it there in case we got Blueblood or even managed to put Celestia under it.” Shadow let out a sigh. “As I said, these are just theories right now.”
Lightning nodded as the two entered the medical wing. All around were doctors and nurses moving around, making sure everything was ready for the upcoming battle. Medicine bags were being moved down the halls in droves as well as carts carrying various robotic limbs. In the middle of all of this was Healing Touch, doing her best to keep things organized.
“I want every surgery ward prepped for the worst,” she yelled. “If anypony is teleported here, I want us ready to perform any medical procedure they might need. I don’t care if they stubbed their hoof or lost it, we need to be ready! And where is Nurse Voice? Has anypony seen her?”
Hearing this caused Shadow to stop which resulted in a doctor crashing into his rear. A cold sweat appeared over his body and he thought that his heart skipped a beat. ‘C-Could she be talking about Soothing Voice?’ thought Shadow as he looked at the screaming doctor. Without saying a word, Shadow maneuvered through the hallway to reach Healing Touch who noticed him coming.
“I’m sorry Captain,” said Healing Touch before he could say anything. “But I don’t have any time to talk. I have my hooves full and one of my nurses appears to be-”
“Is it Soothing Voice?” asked Shadow Blade, interrupting the doctor. Healing touch blinked in confusion before slowly nodding.
“Did she do something wrong?” whispered Healing Touch as she looked around. The last thing she needed right now was nurse who was involved in something illegal.
“Let’s talk somewhere more private,” was all Shadow said as he gestured with one of his wings towards Twilight’s room. Healing Touch nodded again and the three of them made their way to the purple unicorn’s room. As soon as he entered, Shadow saw that the same pink medicine was being feed into Twilight’s system.
“Oh no,” he whispered as he went to a wall computer.
“What is it?” demanded Healing Touch as she looked around, also spotting the pink IV bag. “What is that? What the hay is going on?”
“Captain Shadow Blade believes that there is a conspiracy going on involving Twilight, the Equestrians, and the LBI,” said Lightning before she moved towards her friend.
“I spoke with Soothing Voice earlier today,” said Shadow as he began to access his private files. “We found out somepony had changed her medicine and…and…” Shadow’s voice trailed off as he took a step back. The file he had saved containing the footage of Applejack was gone.
As Lightning began to fill the doctor in on what they had found out, Shadow tried to access the security system once again only to discover that he had been locked out completely. Even saying his password didn’t work. Growing more scared by the moment, Shadow tried to contact Easy Target only to receive static.
“This…This is outrageous,” said Healing Touch after Lightning had finished. “The LBI they…they would never do anything like this. But…if what you say is true then…”
“It is,” said Shadow as he turned to look at the mares. “And it seems that now they are covering it up. We need to watch our backs.”
The two mares nodded and, after Healing Touch had stopped the flow of whatever was in the IV bag, the three of them left the room. Once out, however, Shadow noticed a stallion wearing the black suit of the LBI exiting Scootaloo’s room. In a panic, Shadow raced down the hallway towards the room and ignoring the LBI pony in the process. Once inside he looked at the bed and saw that Scootaloo was thankfully there, alive and well. However, next to her bed on the nightstand was a single flower, a pair of black sunglasses, and a note that read “Best Wishes from Sealed Document, Head of the LBI”.
-x-
As soon as the chariot touched ground in the courtyard of Canterlot Castle, Majesty jumped up and walked away without a word to the driver. Said driver gave a snort, upset that he had rushed her here and didn’t get a word of thanks or even a tip. He didn’t yell or press the issue since he was still going to get paid and that he was used to this kind of attitude from the Canterlot elite. He simply opened up his slightly sore wings before taking off.
Majesty walked calmly through the doors of the castle, careful not to show she was mad or anything. She didn’t want anything to look out of the ordinary. That way she could stay close to Blueblood. She would be able to learn his every move and find a way to make sure that things went wrong. Leak a secret here, mess up a plan there, and when he went to cry about it she would be there to pat him on the back until the right moment presented itself.
‘Now to find that dirty scumbag,’ thought Majesty as she began to walk up a flight of stairs. Once she reached the top of the stairway, she looked around only to find it almost completely deserted. The only ponies that she saw were servants doing their best to keep the place clean.
After a few minutes of wandering around the castle in search of the Prince, Majesty was starting to get a little impatient. She was about to talk to one of the servants when she heard a loud voice that sounded like it was coming from around a nearby corner.
“But I don’t want to stay in the room,” came a voice that sounded like a filly.
“Trixie said to go back,” came the voice of Trixie sounding more annoyed than usual. “Trixie has an important delivery to make for Prince Blueblood and is already behind as it is because Trixie had to deal with you. Just go back and wait for Trixie to return!”
“But it’s boring,” whined the filly as the two turned the corner allowing Majesty to get a glimpse of the two ponies. Trixie she had seen several times, but she had never seen the filly before. She had a yellow coat and a mane that reminded her of a flame. Both of them looked a little stressed and had their saddle bags on. The filly’s looked oversized, as if it were a hand me down from a much larger pony.
For a moment, Majesty wondered just who that filly was. She was sure she had never seen her around the castle before and she didn’t seem like she was hired help since Celestia refused to hire any filly who didn’t have their cutie mark. Most likely she was a student at Celestia’s school or maybe a hopeful for the upcoming semester. Or she could even be Trixie’s little sister for all she knew.
Before Majesty could ponder more about this, she suddenly remembered the last time she had seen Trixie. It had been when Blueblood had asked her to make a magical compass! At first she wasn’t sure what Blueblood had in mind when he had made that public request. But now she did. And based on what she had heard, Trixie had finished it and was going to take it to Blueblood!
‘Sweet Celestia,’ thought Majesty as she felt her blood run cold. ‘He’s probably going to give that to his assassin so that he can kill her. And if she dies, there won’t be any way for me to get to the Republic and we’ll be stuck with Blueblood!’ Her eyes narrowed. ‘I won’t let that happen!’
“All I want to do is check out a few books at the library,” continued the filly as they got closer to Majesty. “You could just drop me off there before you take that compass to Prince What’s-His-Name and come back for me when you’re done. I promise to behave.”
Trixie raised her nose into the air like many of the other ‘elite’ ponies of Canterlot. “Trixie said no,” she said.
“Come on!” shouted the filly as she stomped her hoof against the ground. “It’s not like I’m asking for much. I helped you with that stupid project of yours. The least you could do is-”
“Be quiet!” scrawled Trixie causing the filly to take a step back. It quickly became clear, based on threatening look in the elder unicorns eyes, that she had most likely struck a nerve.
“Miss Trixie,” said Majesty as she approached the two. Upon hearing her name, Trixie’s head spun around ready to yell at anypony who dared to speak to her. Luckily for her she noticed who was approaching her before she could say anything.
“Good day Lady Majesty,” said Trixie as she gave the unicorn noble a quick bow. “I am sorry if we interrupted you.” As she said this, Trixie shot a glare at the filly.
“No, you didn’t,” replied Majesty. “I wanted to talk to you because I heard that you are on your way to see Prince Blueblood. Is it about the compass?”
Trixie grinned in triumph as her horn glowed. “Indeed I am,” she replied as her saddle bag opened. A clanking sound that one hears when two bottles hit each other was heard by all three ponies’ right before a bronze, circular object exited the bag and was then held in front of Majesty. It was large, about the size of an adult mare’s hoof. On first glance it didn’t appear any different than a normal compass. However, if one looked a bit closer they could see several stands of Cadence’s mane wrapped around the needle.
“It…works?” asked Majesty.
“Of course,” said Trixie as she put it back in her bag. “Trixie tested it earlier. The needle is set so that it will always point in the direction of Princess Cadence. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must see Prince Blueblood.”
“You can’t!” snapped Majesty. Up until this point her voice had been calm and in control. However the sudden shift startled the other two mares so much that they jumped into the air.
“What do you mean Trixie can’t?” demanded Trixie.
Majesty looked around real quick before speaking in a low whisper that even those next to her could barely hear. “Prince Blueblood is plotting something,” she said.
“No, you don’t say” said Trixie, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she rolled her eyes. She then gave the noble a deadpanned look. “Trixie has known Prince Blueblood for a long time. He is always up to something. What it is this time, Trixie does not care because Trixie is smart enough not to get involved with him. Now if you’ll excuse me.”
With that, Trixie made a move to brush past Majesty. But this was something she would not allow. Without thinking, Majesty grabbed Trixie with her magic and pressed her against the wall. Trixie’s eye’s bulged in shock for a moment before she began to struggle out of Majesty’s magical grasp. As for the filly, she did her best to make herself look small for she knew she couldn't fight or run away. She also didn’t want to draw attention to herself by screaming or crying.
“If you give that to him you’ll be killing Princess Cadence,” hissed Majesty as she brought her face inches in front of Trixie’s. This caused Trixie to stop in her struggle, shocked by what Majesty had just said. Her jaw dropped slightly as she looked right into the other mare’s eyes.
“Y-You’re joking,” stammered Trixie. Even before Majesty sadly shook her head, Trixie knew she wasn’t. It was the look in her eyes. In them was a look of sad certainty.
“I overheard him talking to Stareye,” said Majesty as she slowly lowered Trixie to the ground. “I’ve been working with him for a while now. Ever since he found out the technological riches of the Republic, he’s been manipulating things so that he can gain more power and wealth. He brought in several of us to join him so that we could pressure Princess Celestia into doing what he wanted. I knew he ordered the death of Hard Shell and gave the parasprite to that one pony but now…Now I realize that we’ve gone too far! He gained the throne by accident and he plans on keeping it. Once you hoof over that compass he’ll have his assassin kill Princess Cadence so that he can continue this war until he’s either made Equestria into his own ideal nation or until we’re all dead!”
By the end of her confession, Majesty was panting slightly while Trixie and the filly kept their gazes on her as they took everything in. Then, slowly, Trixie stood up.
“Trixie,” she said, “doesn’t want to believe you. She can see Blueblood doing terrible things, but this…this is a little much. And you say that you’re a part of it? Why telling Trixie this when it will only get you in trouble?”
“Because something that I now care about is on the line,” said Majesty. She then took a deep breath. “Look, I know that when this is over I’m going to be tried for treason. When Princess Celestia comes back, I’ll confess to everything and pray that all she takes from me is my home and wealth as long as I can see her again. Because right now she’s all that matters. That and making sure that Blueblood gets what’s coming to him.”
Trixie looked Majesty over once before sighing. “Very well,” she said. “What do you want Trixie to do?”
“You have to get to Princess Cadence,” said Majesty. “Tell her what is going on and tell her to get back to Canterlot as fast as she can. Warn her about the assassin and that he plans on framing her new guard. Now you have to go now! Before he sends somepony to find you.”
Trixie nodded and was about to leave when she suddenly looked down at the filly who was still remaining silent. “What about-”
“Just take her with you,” said Majesty quickly. “Don’t leave behind anypony here that he can use against you.”
Trixie again nodded before her horn began to glow. As she turned around she picked up the filly, lifted her onto her back, and galloped away leaving Majesty alone.
-x-
Shadow galloped down the hallway as fast as he could. His breathing was becoming ragged and his pupils were the size of pin heads. Several times when he went to turn a corner he skidded into the wall due to his speed. But none of that mattered to him. He had to see Princess Luna now more than ever. The problem was that he had no idea where she was. So far he had checked the throne room as well as her private quarters with no luck. And right now every second counted!
To say that what he had seen in Scootaloo’s room had shaken him would be untrue. It had rattled him to his very core. Not only had the LBI managed to change Twilight’s medicine again but they had also shown that they could easily get to Scootaloo just to make a point. Luckily they hadn’t done anything to her, but just to be on the safe side Healing Touch was checking on her with Lightning Dust keeping watch. Not only that, but she had called both Vinyl and Derpy to help. Hopefully Twilight and Scootaloo would be safe.
As Shadow tried (and failed) to turn another corner, he spotted Senator Land Share entering the hallway. Even though there was a great distance between the two, Shadow could see that he was greatly stressed.
‘Maybe he’ll know where the Princess is,’ thought Shadow with a rush of excitement. This was tempered, however, as he spotted another figure walking towards Land Share. At first he feared that it might be a member of the LBI, but as the other stallion moved closer Shadow saw that it was Gigawatt.
“Senator Land Share,” said Gigawatt. “How is your little assignment going? Will we be able to give any relief aid when we use Operation: Umbrella?”
There was something off in Gigawatt’s voice. It seemed almost mocking or sarcastic. Then there was his body motion, constantly looking around.
Land Share shook his head. “No,” he said. “I have checked and double checked and we simply stretched too thin to give any of the ponies living planet side any form of help when we use Umbrella. I’ll have to tell Princess Luna the bad news.”
At this, Gigawatt’s ears flattened against his head. “Strange,” he said. “Normally, you would be doing everything in your power to make sure something like this would happen. But-”
“There is simply nothing that can be done in such a short amount of time,” said Land Share. “Believe me, I would give them everything that they would need in order to recover from the effects of Umbrella. However there are not enough tents, blankets, or medicines to go around. It is my opinion that if we gave out what we do have we would just end up creating more tension as ponies fought over them.”
“I see,” replied Gigawatt. “Well then, I’ll let you be on your way. I have to speak to Sealed Document about a very important matter.”
With that, Gigawatt walked away as Shadow approached Land Share. As he did, Shadow felt the senator’s gaze on him for just a moment. This made Shadow feel every uncomfortable. However he did his best to hide his discomfort as he continued on his way.
“Shadow,” said Land Share, seeming to brighten up as saw the bat stallion. “I hope you are recovering well. How’s Twilight doing?”
“She’s...,” began Shadow, but gulped causing Land Share to tilt his head slightly. “Something is going on with her right now and I need to speak to Princess Luna. Have you seen her?”
Land Share shook his head. “Can’t say that I have,” he replied. Then he placed a hoof on Shadow’s shoulder. “Why do you need to see her? Is something wrong?”
Shadow looked at the older stallion in the eye for a moment before looking away as he debated telling Land Share the truth. He knew that Land Share would be a powerful ally when confronting Princess Luna about what had been happening. However, there was the chance that Land Share might not believe him or that the LBI might make their move once they found out he knew. In the end, however, Shadow knew that he had to tell him. That Land Share deserved to know given that Twilight was like family to him.
And so, in a low and calm voice, Shadow began to tell Land Share everything. He started from the beginning with the discovery that somepony had changed Twilight’s medicine to the discovery that the footage had been altered and then finally finding the Lair’s Cube. He then told him how all the evidence had disappeared and that ponies were going missing. As he said this, Land Share’s expression become one of disbelief.
“I…Shadow, I don’t know what to say,” said Land Share once Shadow had finished. “What you are saying. Do you realize the implications?”
“I do,” said Shadow with a nod. “Believe me, I didn’t want to believe any of this any more than you. But I saw the Cube with my own eyes as did Lightning. But what I can’t figure out is how Document got the combination and why he attacked Twilight.”
“Maybe,” began Land Share but stopped to take a deep breath. “Maybe he didn’t attack her. Maybe somepony else did.”
“What are you saying?” asked Shadow.
“I’m saying that, as far as I know, Sealed Document has no reason to attack Twilight,” said Land Share. “However, there are several very angry senators who were not happy when Twilight stood up for the Equestrians after what happened with Dome Two and Three. And they…they would have the combination to the Truth Light.”
Shadow’s eyes widened. “Are you saying that one of the senators is working with the LBI?” asked Shadow, his heart now racing a mile a minute. He didn’t want to believe it but it made sense.
“Trust me,” said Land Share. “I’ve known Sealed Document for years and he would never do anything like this unless somepony convinced him it was the right thing to do.”
“But who could it be?” asked Shadow.
Land Share closed his eyes for a moment and when he opened them he had an angry look. “Gigawatt,” he said. “He’s been wanting to attack Equestria since we first went to Equestria. He was mighty happy when the merger was called off, but became furious when we began talking about an alliance. He’s been the most vocal about attacking them and he had that argument with Twilight earlier that day. Not to mention he was also the former Head of the LBI. If there were anypony I would suspect, it’s him.”
“True,” said Shadow as he scratched his chin. “I don’t want to believe it, but he is our best suspect. But we shouldn’t rule out April Showers since Pinkie Pie did launch the water out of her Dome. I know she took that real bad. And Scorpio has been rather hostile towards them.”
“It could be any of them,” said Land Share sadly. “Or it could be all of them.”
“We have to tell Princess Luna right away,” said Shadow.
“Hold on there,” said Land Share as he held up his hoof. “You plan on telling Princess Luna there is a major conspiracy involving one of the most trusted ponies within the LBI and one or more of her senators without any proof? I know she trusts you and all, but she’ll need some proof beyond your word. What are you planning on doing then? Offer to testify under the Truth Light? One you are claiming is being tampered with?”
“Then what do you suggest we do?” demanded Shadow. “I can’t sit around and do nothing!”
“We need to find some evidence that will point to the LBI’s involvement as well as protect the evidence that we still have before the LBI decides to take the risk and get rid of it,” answered Land Share. “And we need to act fast, before the war starts and many innocent ponies lose their lives.”
“Ok,” answered Shadow. “But what other evidence is there?”
-x-
Deep beneath the castle, five mares sat in a massive cell as they awaited their execution. Some were taking it worse than others. Fluttershy had been unable to stop crying since the trial had ended. Rainbow Dash struggled in vain to try and break the bars of their cell but with no luck. Applejack and Rarity talked in hush whispers, trying to convince everypony that everything would be ok. That once Twilight woke up she would be able to tell them that this had been a huge misunderstanding and they would be set free.
As for Pinkie Pie, her mane had completely deflated as she stared at what lie outside of their cell on the opposite wall. There, in a single file line, were six prison pods. Each one containing a criminal of the Lunar Republic that watched them as they were their only form of entertainment while being immobile.
Then, the sound of hoof steps caused the mares to become silent and still. Soon, three ponies in full Lunar armor, helmets on and weapons at the ready, stood before them.
Prince Blueblood walked down the halls of the castle, a neutral look on his face as he made his way to its lowest levels. It was there that the top magical minds in Canterlot toiled with their experiments. Personally, Blueblood despised having to go to them to check up on their progress. He was a prince and his subjects should come to him to report their findings, not the other way around. Yet he knew that every second counted while trying to understand Lunar technology. He also knew that if anypony saw one of these unicorns then their curiosity might get the better of them. That was something that Blueblood didn’t want at this moment.
Once the prince had reached his destination, he opened the door with his magic and walked inside. Once there, he took in his surroundings for a moment. There were several chalk boards around the room with various magical circles on them. Along the walls were beakers full of odd chemicals that seemed to coat the room in an odd odor as well as several shelves holding thick books on magic. Tied to the ceiling by string were many oddly shaped objects that confused the prince.
On the opposite side of the room were several ponies gathered around a long, wooden workbench. And on said workbench was the Lunar tech. One of the armors looked like it had been opened up so that a few of the unicorns could examine the inside. The other unicorns were levitating several objects like teeth and diamonds around the second armor while taking notes.
As Blueblood approached then, the lead unicorn turned around with a frown on his face. When he saw it was Blueblood his eyes widened and he hurried over to greet him in the middle of the room. Blueblood knew that this was Spell Matrix, a light blue unicorn stallion with a red and black mane, who kept things running smoothly down here. He had seen this stallion talk to Celestia several times in the past about various magical improvements that, at the time, he cared little for.
“My prince,” said Matrix as he bowed low to the ground. “It is an honor to see you this day. How may I help you?”
Blueblood displayed his trademark smile, pleased by this display. “I would like a progress report, if you wouldn’t mind.”
“Of course sir,” replied Matrix as he righted himself up. “We have had to work slowly since we don’t want to damage the armors that you obtained, but we just finished opening one up and are running several scanning spells on it. The other we have been doing scratch tests to see how hard it is. So far nothing we have has scratched it, not even dragon’s teeth and those are powerful enough to cut through diamonds. Whatever this metal is, I doubt it exists naturally. That creates a huge problem if you wish to recreate it.”
“Naturally,” said Blueblood with a sigh. “I will admit that I am…disappointed with that. However I am sure you can find a decent substitute if you can’t recreate it yourself. I have the utmost confidence in your abilities after all. Now, with this in mind, will it affect the deadline that I set?”
“The end the of the week?” asked Matrix to which Blueblood nodded. “Well, to be perfectly honest, we will need more time. As I said we have to work slowly while examining the armors and if we rush we risk losing both of them before we can come to any firm conclusions on how they work. Something I know would most likely upset somepony like yourself.”
“Well spoken,” said Blueblood with a light chuckle. “So, how much more time will you need? Two weeks? A month?”
“Longer, I’m afraid,” replied Matrix who suddenly looked nervous. “As it stands right now, I’d say anywhere between the next fifty to a hundred years. Give or take a decade.”
Blueblood’s jaw dropped, nearly touching the ground as he did so. Several of the finely combed hairs in his mane came undone as he shook his head back and forth. ‘This can’t be right,’ he thought to himself, trying to calm the rising panic in his chest.
“I-I must of misheard you,” said Blueblood as he used his magic to wipe away the cold sweat on his brow. “I could have sworn you said fifty to a hundred years.”
“I’m afraid you heard correct,” said Matrix calmly.
“IMPOSSIBLE!” roared Blueblood, losing his cool as he stomped on the ground in rage while more stands from his mane became undone. This surprised the other unicorn, causing him to take a step back while his associates turned to watch as Blueblood pointed a hoof at them. “You are all some of the greatest magical minds in Equestria! Surely minds who understand the ways of magic can figure out something so mundane.”
For a moment, Matrix stood there while Blueblood began to pant. Despite his anger, Blueblood could still read the other pony very well. From the way he shifted and the look in his eyes, the prince could tell that Matrix was thinking about how to phrase his next few sentences so as not to anger him further.
“I am honored that you think so highly of our skills,” said Matrix after a while, his words were slow and peaceful in order to invoke a calming presence. “However, while magic and science are somewhat linked, I’m afraid that this simply goes beyond what any of us have ever seen before. I’m going to be completely honest here: we don’t have any idea what we are looking at. We have no idea what powers these armors nor how any of the parts inside work or what they even do. I dare say that we don’t even know how to turn one of these things on. The science on display here so just so much more advanced than anything anypony has ever seen before that we will need decades just to figure these things out and understand what we are dealing with. And even then, we still might never be able to make armors like these because we don’t know how they made everything so small in order to fit it in. Now, if we had a scientist from the Republic or even one of the ponies who owned one of these armors to explain what does what then maybe, maybe, we could speed this up. But as it stands, my good prince, we are doing the best we can do right now.”
“There has to be some way of speeding things up!” yelled Blueblood. “What about a duplication spell or one of the time based spells in the Star Swirl the Bearded wing? Or bits! Yes, I’ll give you all the bits you need to make sure the work gets done faster!”
Spell Matrix raised a hoof to stop him. “I’m afraid none of those are a real option,” he said. “In order for a duplication spell to work properly, the more difficult the object you wish to duplicate the more magic will be needed as well as very high level of magical proficiency. There is also the matter of knowing exactly what you want to copy and how every part of it works. For those reasons we haven’t even tried to make a copy of one of these armors to increase their number for study. As for time spells, they are also very tricky to use and consume an insane amount of magic. If we could find a spell that would allow us to slow down time in a fixed area, it would most likely take all of us working together to keep it running with no time for rest. And even if it were possible to keep it running we would need a constant supply of food coming to us as well as various other ‘personal items’. As for the money…well let’s just say that you could throw all the bits you have at this project and it won’t get done any faster.”
Blueblood stood there, listening to all of this. One part of his mind took all of this in and understood what they were saying. That there were limits to what they could do and there would be no quick fix. However, there was another part of his mind that was not so understanding. This part reminded him of the mess they were now in due to all the promises he had made. If the other nobles found out about this then his reign would be short lived.
And that was something he could not have right now.
“I see,” snarled Blueblood as he lost his composure. “Well then, perhaps a little motivation might help. Either have your work done by the end of the week or else I’ll have your families become ‘guests’ of the castle.”
“But my prince,” began Matrix. However, Blueblood was no longer listening. He stormed his way out of the room, cursing as he did. He knew this was very undignified, but right now he was in such a rage that he did not care. He walked up several flights of stairs, stomping his hooves like a spoiled colt throwing a temper tantrum.
He then spotted a single guard standing idly in the hallway, causing his mood to darken further. ‘Where the buck are all the guards?!’ thought Blueblood savagely as he moved towards the other pony. ‘Stareye, you have one bucking job! I am getting tired of your constant failures. I need some good news and soon or else I might do something that I’ll regret!”
“You there!” yelled Blueblood at the guard. Said guard jumped a little, startled by his prince’s tone before saluting him. “I want you to inform as many guards as possible to bring me Trixie at once!”
“Yes sir,” said the guard as he ran off to do as he was requested. As he did, he passed by Majesty as she walked towards Blueblood with a look of concern on her face.
“Prince Blueblood, what seems to be the matter?” she asked.
Blueblood looked like he was about to yell at her, but stopped himself. Right now, Majesty was his top supporter. Taking out his anger on somepony like her might feel good right now, but he might lose her trust as well as support which could spell doom for him. So instead he took a deep breath as he slicked back his mane with his magic.
“There has been a…problem with our plans,” he said as he did his best to remain calm.
“Oh dear,” said Majesty as she moved to his side. “Why don’t you tell me all about it and perhaps I can help make it all better.”
-x-
Elsewhere, Stareye laid in a large tub full of hot water and bubbles. His eyes were closed, still savoring the massage he had just received. Next to the tub was a tray of the freshest, ripest fruits as well as a bottle of champagne. A feeling of complete relaxation and bliss filled him. ‘I deserve this,’ he thought. ‘And the best part is that the military is picking up the bill.’
“Excuse me, High Commander sir,” said Boot Licker, causing Stareye to groan as he opened an eye.
“This had better be important,” said Stareye as he used to magic to pick up a strawberry and bring it to his mouth.
“I am so sorry to interrupt your bath, truly I am sir,” said Boot Licker quickly. “But Bitsworth is here and claims that he needs to speak to you.”
Stareye let out an exasperated sigh before he ate his fruit. “Very well,” he moaned. “Let’s just get this over with. I have enough stress as it is.”
“Of course you do High Commander,” said Boot as he quickly walked over to the door and opened it. As soon as he did, Bitsworth entered the room while holding a large stack of papers.
“High Commander, I have reports from almost every unit in the Guard saying that they are heading for the capital as we speak,” he said as his eyes scanned through the papers. “The only one that has yet to be accounted for belongs to a Major Blazing Glory. Apparently, from what we have gathered, Princess Celestia sent his unit somewhere before we sent the Equestrian delegation on some top secret mission. I’m afraid we won’t be able to get in contact with them until they are finished.”
Stareye let out a whining noise. “Do I really need to hear all of this?” he asked.
Bitsworth did his best not to roll his eyes. “I am sorry sir,” he said calmly. “But I would hate it if something like this were to come up in court and you would be unable to answer like before.”
For a moment, Stareye remained silent while feeling a slight surge of rage. The humiliation he had received thanks to Hot Pants still stung. That mare had made him look like a fool and then tried to publicly challenge his decisions. If it were up to him he would have her whipped and thrown in a cell for the rest of her life. It was only because of Blueblood, something about her being Fancy Pants niece and that doing that to her wouldn’t help bring him to their side, that he was unable to.
“Very well,” said Stareye as he waved a hoof. “Continue.”
“Yes High Commander,” said Bitsworth as his focus returned to the papers. “Recently, we received word that Prince Blueblood wishes that the mare Trixie be brought to him. I need your permission to use several of the guards in the Canterlot grounds to find her.”
“Fine,” sighed Stareye, not really caring all that much. “Is there anything else tedious that you need to tell me?”
“Just several other minor details for the battle tomorrow,” replied Bitsworth in a deadpanned tone to which Stareye responded with a groan. “We need your permission to get-”
“You have it,” said Stareye impatiently. “Do whatever you have to do so that we are ready and don’t bother me anymore. Gah! I feel like I need another massage from all of this stress!”
Bitsworth did his best to hide a smile as he bowed. “I am sorry sir,” he said. “And I will endeavor to ensure that you are not interrupted for the rest of the night.” With that, Bitsworth turned and left the room without another word.
‘I told Hot Pants he would do something like this,’ thought Bitsworth as he exited the building, heading towards the castle. ‘Now we can carry out our plans and that fool will be none the wiser.’
-x-
“Do you see anypony?” hissed Trixie.
“No,” whispered Sunset. The older mare let out a relieved sigh as she walked in front of Sunset and turned the corner towards the castle gardens.
Shortly after Majesty had told her about what Blueblood was planning, Trixie had made a beeline for the back exit of the castle not even bothering to go back to her room for more helpful items instead of the several bottle of alcohol, magical compass, and the dozen bits in her saddle bags. However she had to move slowly, using the filly as her scout to make sure there were no guards. Trixie knew she had to be careful. She didn’t know how far reaching Bluebloods influence was nor did she want to risk being seen.
Slowly the two made it to the doorway leading out of the castle and into the garden. As they walked out, they beheld a true wonder that caused the filly to gap. Various swept walkway allowed easy access to flower beds contains blooming plants of every flower known to pony. Large trees provided shade during the hot days with cute benches for sitting. And beyond that was a large hedge maze that seemed to go on forever. And, at the end of that maze, was a way out of the castle that avoided nearly all of the guards. After that it would be a short five minute trot down a trail that circled back into the city.
Trixie nudged Sunset with some slight force to get her attention before motioning her to follow her into the maze. Luckily for Trixie she knew it by heart, having walked in it many times with the Princess during their lessons. At the time she had believed it to have been nothing but a waste of energy, pointlessly wandering around the maze when they could have been more comfortable inside the castle. Now, however, she was grateful.
‘I wonder if she thought a day like this might happen,’ thought Trixie as the two neared the end of the maze. The light blue unicorn the paused and held up a hoof to stop Sunset in her tracks.
“Check and see if there are any guards,” whispered Trixie as she pointed at an opening that led to the end of the maze. Sunset muttered something to herself about pushy, older unicorns but still did as she was told. Staying low to the ground, the smaller of the two peeked around the edge before quickly pulling her head back.
“There’s a guard there,” she whispered to Trixie.
“Just one?” asked Trixie.
Sunset quickly checked again and nodded. “Looks like he’s reading something,” she added.
Trixie nodded and began to think of what she should do next. One option was that she could try teleporting the two of them past the guard. However, that ran the risk of him seeing the flash and going to investigate. And if she was caught doing that then he might get suspicious. Another possibility was that she could try walking past him and hoping he’d let them pass. However she didn’t like that option any much better than the first. Nor did she think she could take a guard down in a fight. At least not a fair one.
Then, Trixie’s eyes widened as she got an idea. She quickly reached into her saddlebag and pulled out a bottle of brandy. She opened it, took a large gulp, but didn’t drink it. Instead she began to swish it back and forth in her mouth like it was mouthwash before spitting it back into the bottle.
“What are you doing?” asked Sunset as Trixie used her magic to start pulled several leaves and twigs from the hedge next to her. Trixie ‘shhhed’ her as she began to put what she had gathered in various spots in her mane and tale. Once that was done, she began to walk over to the opening while swaying back and forth while wearing a stupid looking grin on her face.
Eyes widening in horror, Sunset raced to the opening, stuck her head out a bit, and watched as Trixie stumbled towards the guard. And it didn’t take long for the guard to hear her coming.
“Miss Trixie,” he said in surprise. “What are you doing here? And what happened to you?”
“Hehe,” Trixie giggled while waving around the bottle brandy with her magic. “Trixie was just out and *hic* about, having a good time. Now *hic* where is Trixie?” Trixie was now close enough to the guard to get up on her hind legs and throw herself onto him, wrapping her hooves around his neck in the process. Trixie let out a loud laugh as she did this, breathing heavily on the guard who scrunched up his nose in disgust.
“Great, she’s drunk again,” muttered the guard as he rolled his eyes. “Ma’am, you need to come with me. Prince Blueblood would like to see you. I’m sure he’s waiting for you back at the castle.”
Trixie giggled. “No,” she cooed. “I don’t wanna. I’d *hic* rather stay here with you.”
At this the guard blushed. “I-I can’t,” he stammered. “You’re drunk. I can’t take advantage of you when you’re in this state! Besides, I’m on duty and I have my orders.”
Trixie threw back her head and laughed. “You’re so *hic* silly,” she said as she brought her face closer to his. “Come on and have *hic* a drink with Trixie. Nopony has to know. It’ll *hic* be our little *hic* secret.”
“Ma’am I-” began the guard but was interrupted as Trixie slashed him in the face with the brandy, laughing all the way. Angered by this the guard threw her off him. “Damn drunk!” he swore as he tried to wipe the liquor from his face. However, his helmet proved to make that difficult so he took it off. Once that happened, Trixie’s eyes narrowed as he got up, turned around, and bucked him in the head. The poor guard fell to the ground with a thud.
“Well that wasn’t too difficult for the Great and Powerful Trixie,” said Trixie as she began to remove items from her mane and tail. As she did this, she noticed Sunset looking at her with an expression that had never been directed at her before.
“That was amazing!” cried the small filly as she raced towards Trixie with a grin on her face. “You totally fooled that guy! And then it was wham!” As she said this, Sunset made a bucking motion.
“I-It was nothing,” stammered Trixie as a blush appeared on her face.
“Where’d ya learn how to do all that?” asked Sunset as she looked up at Trixie.
“Well, to be honest, Princess Celestia taught Trixie,” said Trixie. “She gave Trixie a book about deception and misdirection saying it would be-” A sudden groan interrupted Trixie, her head turning to look at the guard she had just knocked out. “Perhaps Trixie shall explain in detail later.”
With that the two took off in a light trot. As they went down the trail, Trixie felt a rush of excitement. She knew it wasn’t from taking down that guard (well maybe a little), but instead from the performance she gave and the delight she saw Sunset give her after words. Never before had anypony looked at her like that or thought she was amazing. Usually she got snide remarks from ponies asking if that was the best a student of Celestia’s could do. It had been so long since she had heard genuine praise from anypony other that Princess Celestia.
Eventually the trail led the two into a dirty alleyway that nopony in Canterlot would ever be caught putting a single hoof in. All around the pair they saw chunks of half-eaten food that had been thrown away, parts of furniture, and needles. The worst of it was the smell, like somepony had died in here which wouldn’t have surprised Trixie in the slightest. Seeing all of this caused the two to exit the alley quickly and walk onto one of the business streets of Canterlot.
Normally a street like this one would have many of the Canterlot elite strolling down it while carrying their expensive purchases with their noses in the air. However, despite the lateness of the day, the streets were almost empty and devoid of life. Trixie could see that the shops were still open, but nopony seemed to be in them making it feel very lonely. The most likely reason for this was that many of the ponies who lived in this city no longer felt safe after the Lunar Republic took Princess Celestia. This also proved to be a problem for Trixie. While the streets being this empty would make their departure from Canterlot go faster, it also made it more likely that they would be spotted since there was no crowd for them to blend into.
As the two began to walk down the street, Trixie realized that she now had to decide how they were going to get out of Canterlot. As far as she knew, there were only five ways for a unicorn like herself to get out. Around the city there were three roads and near each of there were carriages that a pony could hire to take them to nearby cities and towns. There was also a flying chariot service, however that was extremely expensive. And then, finally, there was a hot air balloon service in the middle of Canterlot. Thinking about her options, Trixie knew that their best option was to get a carriage since the hot air balloon would move too slowly and they would be easily spotted.
Next, Trixie had to decide which road they would be using. To help her decide, she pulled out the magical compass and looked to see which direction the needle was pointing. She then began to walk in that direction, realizing that it was taking them to the eastern part of Canterlot. Here the shops began to get less pricey, there were apartment buildings instead of fancy mansions, and they saw more ‘normal’ unicorns walking down the streets. Not many, but there was a few. Most likely they were returning home from a long day’s work. And, luckily for them, Trixie knew this area since it had the least expensive alcohol in Canterlot!
“Ok,” said Trixie as they neared a cross section. “All we have to do is turn right here and at the end of the road is a carriage station that will take us out of Canterlot.”
“Looks like we’re home free,” said Sunset happily as they turned a corner. And saw that, down the street were three guards walking in their direction, their eyes locking onto them.
“You just had to say it didn’t you,” sighed Trixie as she turned around…and spotted two more guards heading towards them.
“Freeze!” yelled one of them. “In the name of Prince Blueblood you will come with use! If you don’t we will be forced to use magic and bring you in!” As the guard said this, they began spread out a bit to form a perimeter around them.
As they did this, Trixie looked down the street they needed to go. There was a furniture store, then an ink store, an accountant, a book store, a jewelry store, and then finally a store that nopony should ever bring a filly to. Trixie then began to take several deep breaths as she went over the spells she knew, quickly thinking of the best combinations she could use. A smirk then graced her face as she got up on her hind legs, her forelegs reaching for the sky.
“You think you can catch the Great and Powerful Trixie?!” she yelled with all the flare she could muster while her horn glowed from underneath her hat. “Behold as the Great and Powerful Trixie dazzles you with the greatest magic shown to her by the Princess herself!” She then began to talk in a lower voice so only Sunset could hear. “Whatever you do, stick close to me.”
“This is your last warning,” said one of the guards, not intimidated in the slightest. “Use any kind of magic and we’ll-” He never got to finish his sentence as Trixie took off her hat as smoke filled the street and overcoming the guards before they could react. Luckily for them, one of the guards knew a wind spell and quickly blew away the spoke. But when it cleared Trixie and Sunset weren’t where they had been. They looked around and saw the two running down the street behind the three guards.
Silently the guards headed after them in full gallop. As they did, they passed the bookstore where two familiar ponies had their faces hidden behind thick books.
“Looks like they took my bait,” whispered Trixie as she glanced up from the book she was holding with her magic. “They should realize that it’s an illusion soon.”
“Then shouldn’t we have gone the other way?” asked Sunset nervously.
Trixie opened her mouth, but before she could say anything they heard a guard yell “It was an illusion! They must have gone the other way!” The two then watched as all five guards ran past the book store in a fast gallop.
“It’s all about misdirection,” said Trixie as she softly closed the book and walked over to the counter to pay for the two. While she had no interest in ‘The Life and Times of Clover the Clever’, Trixie knew that this book store had a strict you read it you buy it policy. Reaching into her saddlebag, Trixie pulled out the bits for her book as well as the tome Sunset had picked up entitled ‘Advanced Magic for the Young Mind’ and hoped she had enough for the carriage ride.
The two then exited the building and made their way to their final destination. While Trixie knew the guards would be focusing their efforts everywhere else, she didn’t want to linger here for too long. Once they got to the carriage station, Trixie had to do a lot of haggling offering up all of her remaining bits and most of her alcohol. And after all that, the farthest that they could go was Ponyville in one of the cheapest rides they had.
Trixie knew that their ride would be poor quality, however despite that when she saw the condition of their carriage she could not hide her embarrassment. The thing had several holes in its sides and the roof had been patched up with several clothes. The wheels were all different sizes making it look lopsided. When they got in the two of them found their seats looked stained and in desperate need of repair. In short, it was the kind of ride that would make any normal pony say that they would rather walk. However, Trixie knew that despite the poor equality, it would get them to their destination quickly.
As soon as they closed the door, they began to move as four stallions began to gallop down the mountain side. As they did, Sunset pulled out her book and began to read it with great interest. As for Trixie, she pulled out her last bottle of whisky.
She was about to open it when she saw her reflection on the bottle and paused. For the first in what seemed like forever, she questioned herself on if she should be drinking like this. She didn’t feel at all depressed like she normally was. In fact, her heart was still racing from excitement thanks to her accomplishments. She knew she should be proud of herself for fooling the guards twice and doing what Princess Celestia asked her to do.
At the thought of the Princess, Trixie’s ears flattened. ‘Trixie gets it,’ she thought as she stared at the bottle. ‘She always believed in Trixie. Teaching Trixie things that she knew Trixie could do well. Showing Trixie things even when Trixie was too stupid to understand. She took Trixie in and look how Trixie has repaid her, by acting like a drunk. Trixie almost messed up the last task she entrusted Trixie with. Well no more!’ And with that, Trixie threw out the bottle without a second look.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” said Sunset.
“Yes Trixie should,” said the blue unicorn confidently. “Trixie is going sober from now on!”
“What I mean is that the seal on the bottle was still intact,” said Sunset. “You could have gotten a refund on the bottle.” For a moment, Trixie stared at the filly with her mouth hanging open and then face hoofed.
-x-
The Equestrians stood there, staring wide eyed at the Lunar soldiers. The three of them stood there apparently staring back. At least, that’s what Applejack and company believed due to the armor they were wearing. It looked similar to the normal armor they had seen other Lunar Guards wearing, but there were clear differences. First of all it looked thicker by at least two to three inches and seemed to be ‘boxier’ compared to the smooth, slim fitting armor they had seen other Guards wearing. The armor also covered their entire bodies, making it impossible for anypony to tell what tribe they belonged to nor their gender. The part of their helmets that should have shown their faces only showed a black void. Behind the three, the ponies in the prison pods watched with great interest as if this was the most exciting thing they had seen in a long time.
Finally, Rainbow could take no more of this staring contest. “Hey!” she barked while slamming a hoof against the bars of their cell. “If you guys are here to do something then do it! If not then get out of here!”
“R-Rainbow, maybe you s-shouldn’t antagonize them,” stammered Fluttershy.
“We need no witnesses,” said the Lunar pony in the middle, shocking almost everypony there. It was the voice. It didn’t sound male or female. An artificial a noise that could never of come from anypony’s mouth. Hearing that voice and not being able to see their faces sent a chill down everypony’s spine, including Rainbow Dash.
“Understood,” said the one on the right in the same false voice. The Guard turned around and moved to the wall. The ponies in the cell held their breaths, watching as the pony pressed her hoof against the wall before a hissing noise was heard. The heart rates of the Equestrians went through the roof as their eyes searched the room for the source of the noise, not realizing that it was coming from the prison pods as the eyes of their captives slowly closed.
“It’s done,” said the Guard after the hissing noise ended. “They’re in VR therapy for the next hour or so.”
“Good,” said the leader as his head turned to focus on Applejack. Said mare felt a twinge of unease, feeling as though the unseen eyes of the pony bore into her core. This didn’t go unnoticed by her friends who moved in front of her with Rainbow Dash in the front of the pack.
Rainbow leaned forward a bit, her wings extended looking like she was getting ready to pounce. Her eyes narrowed a bit signaling to all before her that she was ready for a fight should they enter the cell. The rainbow maned mare knew her speed would be her greatest advantage and hoped they didn’t know about it.
Oddly, the leader seemed to keep his gaze on Applejack, despite all the ponies trying to block his view. The Guard then took a step forward closer to the cell.
“Did you attack Twilight Sparkle?” asked the leader.
Applejack blinked. “No, ah didn’t,” she responded.
“That’s all I wanted to hear,” said the leader while his/her hooves reach up to the helmet. The five watched as the helmet was removed revealing Shadow Blade. Behind him the other two did the same revealing them to be Lightning Dust and Derpy.
“What the…” began Rainbow as her voice trailed off as Shadow pressed a button on his oversized armor causing the door to their cell to open.
“Kind of a boring reveal,” said Pinkie as they began to file out. “I totally saw that coming.”
“Darling, I don’t mean to be rude but what is going on?” asked Rarity.
“We’re busting you guys out of here,” said Lightning as she put her helmet back on. “Now come with us if you want to live.”
“But why-” began Applejack.
“We don’t have time to explain,” said Derpy quickly. “We have to go NOW!”
Wordlessly, the Equestrians followed the three as they headed out of the cell room. Each time they came to a door, one of the three would halt the group and check to see if anypony was down one of the long, seemingly unending hallways before they would then race down them until they had to turn. A few times Rainbow tried to move ahead of them only to have her tail grabbed by Shadow and yanked back. Anytime one of them made a noise the three Guards ‘shhhed’ them.
Eventually, they came to an odd looking hallway. Unlike the others, this one wasn’t as well lit and was covered with dust. It was as if no pony had been down here in a long, long time and had forgotten all about it. The three Lunar ponies also became more relaxed in this area as if they knew they were safe here.
“Here we are,” said Shadow as he stopped in front of an actual door. His hooves moved towards the keypad and pressed in the combination causing the door to slowly open revealing a stairway. He then motioned the girls to head down with him taking up the rear. Not really seeing much of a choice, the mares did as he requested.
Once again, they seemed to walk for hours. As they did, they all noticed that the walls on either side of them were not made of same metal as the hallway but of grey rock instead. They also noted that the lighting in here was even worse, having to squint just to see a few feet in front of them.
“This feels…spooky,” said Fluttershy, shivering slightly.
“Where in tarnation are ya takin’ us?” asked Applejack.
“You’ll see in a moment,” said Lightning. “And once we get there I can take off this damned Gen 3 armor. Seriously, I have no idea how ponies used to wear this oversized piece of junk.”
Soon they came to the bottom of the stairs and beheld an impressive sight. It was a cavern underneath the moon’s surface. Looking around, they could see at least two hundred ponies being able to fit comfortably in here. And with the ceiling being so high up and flat, pegasi and bat ponies could fly around with ease.
Seeing this, Rainbow stretched out her wings and took off, grateful for the chance to fly again after being cooped up. It was just a once around the cave but it gave her a bird's eye view of the place and allowed her to spot something that she hadn’t noticed on the ground. Yes, the place was big, but the spot where she had been standing on was a peninsular outcrop, big enough to support maybe a hundred ponies. The rest of the space was like a deep pit that seemed to have no bottom. Looking down into it sent a shiver down the spine of the Rainbow pegasus and caused her to fly a bit closer to where she could see ground.
As she did this, she also noticed that they weren’t the only ponies down here. Rainbow squinted for a moment as she tried to make out the other two down here as she flew closer. Her eyes then widened as she realized who one of them was.
The effect was immediate. Pinkie Pie’s mane, which had been flat, returned to its normal bouncy state. Fluttershy stopped her crying and looked in the direction Rainbow was heading. Both Applejack and Rarity felt their excitement rise as they lead the charge towards the pony who had defended them in the past while calling out her name happily.
Once they caught up to Rainbow, they saw that Twilight was asleep on an old looking cot. A blanket covered most of her body. Around the cot were several bags of emergency food rations, first aid kits, and lanterns. And standing next to the cot, checking to make sure Twilight was alright, was Land Share who didn’t bother to look up as the others came closer.
“I-Is she alright?” asked Fluttershy.
“And why is she here instead of in a hospital?” asked Rarity.
“It’s complicated,” said Shadow from behind them. They turned around to see that he was no longer in the heavy armor. Behind him, the other two mares were struggling to take off the heavy looking pieces of metal. “You see-”
At that moment, Pinkie Pie jumped in front of her friends. “You thought that Twilight was attacked by Applejack, but after an emotional conversation with Scootaloo you began thinking that something was wrong. You then saw that Twilight wasn’t getting better quick enough because she was getting a different type of medicine. So you decided to check on the evidence finding out that some mean pony had altered it and then that same mean pony took it all away leaving you with nothing.”
Shadow stood there, his mouth hanging slightly. “That’s…right,” he said slowly. “Pinkie, how did you know all of that?”
“Lucky guess,” she said with a big smile as she bounced up and down.
“That’s some guess,” the bat pony replied.
At that moment, Land Share cleared his throat. “Well, I’d better get going. I still have another job to do after all.” As he said this, Shadow couldn’t help but notice how tired and drained the senator sounded nor how slowly he seemed to move. He was almost dragging his hooves against the rocky floor.
“Senator,” said Shadow before Land Share had gotten halfway to the stairs. Said stallion turned his head to look at Shadow. “Thank you of all your help. I know it would mean a lot to Twilight.”
A small smile appeared on Land Share’s face. “I know,” he said as he looked forwards again. “Just make sure she’s safe.” And with that he headed towards the stairs and began to ascend them.
“Ok, I can’t wait any longer,” shouted Rainbow, who looked very annoyed. “I want to know right now what’s going on! I mean, why’d you break us out and bring Twilight here?”
“Because she isn’t safe in the hospital,” said Shadow calmly as he looked at the girls as the huddled together. “As Pinkie Pie…guessed, Twilight was getting the wrong medicine on purpose. When we found out we changed it only for the nurse who did so to disappear and the medicine to be changed back to the incorrect one. I can only assume that whoever is doing all this is trying to get rid of all the witnesses in one blow. Twilight is the only pony to see her attacker and prove that none of you laid a hoof on her while also exposing the biggest conspiracy in the Republic’s history. Should she die, then the five of you will die and any proof that could be pointed back to the culprit would go right out the airlock. That’s why we broke you all out as well as Twilight. To keep you all safe until she wakes up and can clear this whole mess up.”
“But don’t you think that you should have, I don’t know, TOLD YOUR PRINCESS WHAT’S GOING ON!” yelled Rarity, her angry voice echoing through the cavern.
“Like we hadn’t thought of that,” said Lightning as she walked over to the group. Everypony’s eyes focused on her and Rainbow noticed, much to her shock and horror, that Lightning’s old wings were gone and replaced with metal ones. Seeing this caused the rainbow maned mare to pale slightly as her wings hugged her body tightly.
“I can just image how that conversation would go,” continued Lightning Dust as her voice began to drip with sarcasm. “Hey Princess Luna. We believe that one or more senators have teamed up with the LBI to frame the Equestrians for the attack on Twilight Sparkle and are poisoning her. We had proof but it’s gone now, but you can trust us.” When she finished, Lightning gave the mares a deadpanned expression. “Yeah, can you see how well that would go?”
“But can ya just get Princess Luna ta see Twilight?” asked Applejack as she stepped forward. “Then ya could show her that she’s not gettin’ the right medicine.”
“I thought about that after talking to Land Share,” said Shadow. “However, it appears that we are a little too late to do that.”
“W-What do you mean?” asked Fluttershy as she gulped nervously.
Shadow gave them an uncomfortable look. “Well, it appears that Princess Luna has already left the Republic. Right now she’s on Crescent Hope heading for Equestria.”
-x-
At that moment, Crescent Hope was in-between the planet and moon. They had been moving for a few hours due to the fact of their extra cargo. It wasn’t the extra three hundred on board the ship or any of the extra weapons they brought along for the battle. It wasn’t all of the extra shuttle crafts that were in the landing bay. No, it was because they were transporting something more important than either of those. Floating around Crescent Hope were hundreds of raindrop shaped crystals, each one of them about the size of a two story building.
On the bridge, Captain Starway sat in her chair as her eyes focused on the screen ahead of her. On it was a display of these crystals, floating in space as they slowly carried them towards the planet to begin Operation: Umbrella. She watched them, keeping an eye out to make sure that they didn’t crash into each other. If even one got damaged then it would be game over.
‘If only we could have fit them all into the ship,’ thought Starway as she quickly rubbed an eye. ‘Then maybe we wouldn’t have to divert so much power from the engines to the tractor beam.’
“Captain,” said a member of her crew, causing Starway to glance in the pony’s direction. “Captain Shining Armor is requesting permission for his shuttle to depart so he can begin his mission. Shall I give him the go ahead?”
Starway let out a sigh. “Might as well,” said Starway. “Nothing else to do right now. While you’re at it, contact the other shuttles and give them clearance as well.”
“Yes Captain!”
A few moments later two dozen shuttle crafts exited Crescent Hope and headed towards the planet. At first they seemed to stick together, flying through space life a pack of wolves. But as they moved closer towards the planet, they began to splinter off in different directions. Heading for different cities in Equestria. The plan had been Princess Luna’s, brought up just before they left. While Crescent Hope set up Operation: Umbrella, the shuttles would go to various cities and towns in Equestria, stealing various foods from farms and warehouses during the cover of night. Then, after dropped their forces off, Crescent Hope would return to the Republic to unload all the food they had gather.
Just then, Starway head the door open behind her. She turned around and, when she saw who it was, she scrambled out of her chair.
“Princess on the bridge,” she said as she bowed.
“There is no need for that,” said Princess Luna before the others could stop what they were doing to pay her respect. “There are far more important matters that must be dealt with.” She then looked at Starway. “Is everything going according to plan?”
“Yes Princess,” said Starway as she righted herself. She then turned to a member of her crew. “Pull up the hologram.”
A second later, a hologram of the planet appeared in the middle of the bridge. Next to it was the Crescent Hope and all of the objects it was pulling. Soon, all across the planet in a grid formation, were red raindrops that were blinking constantly.
“As you can see we have already mapped out where to place the crystals,” said Starway as Luna looked at the images, a smile appearing on her face. “Working around the clock, we should be done before morning. Assuming that there will be a morning.”
“Of course there will,” scoffed Luna. “I will not punish the rest of the planet because of Equestria. Soon I will begin to lower the sun and raise the moon. However…I will admit that I have never done this. I fear that it might tax me greatly. After I am done I will need to rest in my room for several hours.”
“I will make sure not to wake you unless it is an emergency of the highest level,” said Starway.
“Very good,” said Luna with a nod.
-x-
“Oh, this is bad,” said Fluttershy as she did her best to hide her face with her mane.
“B-But you have all this fancy technology stuff,” said Rainbow as she threw her hooves in the air. “I mean, we all saw that thingy that lets you talk to ponies from far away.”
“We do but-” began Shadow.
“Then why don’t you just call up Princess Luna and explain what’s going on?” interrupted Rainbow.
“I-” began Shadow once more.
“A simple call and it over,” ranted Rainbow as she began to pace in the air, not noticing the irritation on Shadow’s face. “Just tell her that something is wrong and she needs to see it in pony. Then take her to see Twilight and boom! Everything is exposed and that way you’re not risking Twilight’s life like a-”
“I DON’T KNOW WHO TO TRUST!” roared Shadow, causing everypony there to take a step back. “You think I don’t know what technology we have? You think that I didn’t consider calling her as soon as I found out she left? Well I did! But here’s the thing, a call like that could be intercepted or blocked. And once that happened the pony who is behind all of this might try something more drastic!”
Shadow let out a sigh, calming down slightly. “Right now, I don’t know who to trust other than the ponies in this room. And until I can get something, anything that could prove that something is up before Twilight wakes up it’ll be my word against the evidence that was provided. And I don’t think anypony will believe me without it, especially after breaking all of you out of jail. So right now, I am trusting the five of you to watch Twilight while I try and get to LBI headquarters and get the evidence that we need. Once I get my hooves on it, I’ll get on a shuttle and head straight to Princess Luna myself.”
“You think they’ll have it there?” asked Rarity.
For a moment, Shadow said nothing. “I’ll do whatever it takes to find it,” he said with a slightly more dangerous tone as his eyes narrowed.
“But what about Scootaloo?” asked Rainbow. “Won’t they go after her?”
At that, Shadow seemed to relax a bit as a smile appeared on his face. “Don’t worry about her,” he said confidently. “Senator Land Share promised me he’ll be keeping an eye on her.”
“Ah, ya sure we can trust him?” asked Applejack, looking a little worried. “Ah don’t want ta bring this up, but that parasprite that Fluttershy brought with her damaged his home pretty bad. For all ya know he might be helpin’ them.”
Shadow opened his mouth, but Lightning’s snickering stopped him. Everypony turned to look at the pegasus and her friend standing next to her. Lightning looked like she was doing her best to keep her laughter at bay while Derpy was smiling calmly.
“I don’t think we have to worry about him,” said Derpy in a reassuring voice. “I’ve known him almost as long as I’ve known Twilight so I know for a fact that he loves her like a daughter.”
“Besides he’s helping us,” said Lightning as she calmed down and then gestured to their surroundings. “He’s the one who helped take down security for a while so we could break you guys out and he smuggled Twilight out as well. All this stuff down here? It’s his emergency supplies. He’s even the one who showed us this place. It’s an old, outdated emergency cave in case a meteor hit the Dome. One of several around Dome Zero that hasn’t been used in eight hundred years. Stars, Shadow grew up in the castle and even he didn’t know about this place until Land Share showed it to him. So I seriously doubt that he’s a bad guy.”
“Lightning’s right,” said Shadow. “Senator Land Share is doing a lot for us. Besides, if he was against us, he could have set a trap while I was break you all out or something like that. Now, I’d better get going. The next part of the plan is about to begin.”
-x-
“SHE’S WHAT?!” screamed Gigawatt, his voice echoing down the halls of the medical wing causing many ponies to stick their heads out of the various rooms to see what was going on. Seeing this, Gigawatt narrowed his eyes before whispering to the LBI pony in front of him. “How can she be gone? Twilight was in critical condition!”
“W-We don’t know?” gulped the LBI pony. “Believe me, we are as confused as you are. We…” His voice trailed off as he put a hoof into his ear, listening in on his communication device. As the moments passed, he paled considerably as a look of utter horror befell him.
“S-Senator,” he said after a while. “It seems that the Equestrians have g-gone m-m-missing.”
For a moment, Gigawatt’s face betrayed no emotion. He just stared at the LBI agent as his words echoed in his head. Then, as fast as lightning, anger filled him. His face contorted in rage as his horn began to glow and lift the agent into the air by his suit.
“HOW COULD YOU LOSE THEM?!” yelled Gigawatt. “DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THIS MEANS?”
“Senator Gigawatt, control yourself,” said a voice from behind him. Gigawatt turned around, lowering the LBI agent as he did, and saw Land Share slowly walking towards him.
Gigawatt glared at the other senator. “What are you doing here?” he demanded.
“I just came down to check on Twilight and Scootaloo,” replied Land Share, his eyes half closed. “Now, what has you all riled up?”
“Riled up?” repeated Gigawatt. “I’ll tell you what has me all ‘riled up’. Those filthy Equestrians are no longer in their cell and Twilight is missing from her room. I’m willing to bet my seat that she’s been fillynapped by those savages!”
Land Share’s eyes widened slightly. “What are you going to do?”
Gigawatt snorted. “What I have to,” he said with a growl. “I must inform Princess Luna of the situation and sound the alarm. I’ll have this entire Dome searched from top to bottom a thousand times if I have to. And then, once they are found, I’ll throw them out the nearest airlock myself.”
“D-Do you really think that’s wise?” asked Land Share.
At this, Gigawatt narrowed his eyes at Land Share. ‘That’s odd,’ he thought. ‘I would assume that he would want to do everything possible to find Twilight. Shouldn’t he at least be more worried?’
“It’s what I have to do,” said Gigawatt after a while in an even tone. “That is, if we want to make sure Twilight is safe.”
“That’s what I want as well,” said Land Share quickly. He then lowered his voice so that only Gigawatt could hear. “It’s just that I’m afraid that if we sound the alarms then the Equestrians might panic and get desperate. And in the state Twilight is in, it’ll be impossible for her to defend herself. Don’t you think it might be better to let them think we haven’t noticed that they are missing while searching for them?”
Gigawatt blinked before scratching his chin. “You do have a point,” he said.
“And we’d better not tell Princess Luna,” continued Land Share in a low tone. Gigawatt opened his mouth to object, but Land Share continued to talk. “If she came back now, she’ll go on the war path looking for them. She’ll search this Dome until there is nothing left personally and then, if she finds nothing, she’ll go to the next and then the next. She’s stressed enough as it is with the war and coming back here to look for them might divide her attention too much. Or she might put everything else on hold until Twilight is found.”
Gigawatt’s eyes widened. ‘He…has a good point. If we tell the Princess that Twilight is gone then she might put the war on hold until she is found. And that’s the last thing we need right now!’
“I guess we could keep this quiet,” said Gigawatt, trying his best to say it as naturally as he could. He then looked over at the LBI agent he had assaulted. “I want you to get every agent in this Dome involved, but no further. Every room is to be triple checked and I want the anti-teleportation field on at all times. When you find them, report to one of us. Is that understood?”
“Yes Senator,” said the LBI pony as he saluted. Then, as soon as he lowered his hoof, he ran straight out of the room.
“Well it looks like I’ll have to check on Scootaloo in a little bit,” said Land Share with a sad sigh. “I’ll talk with the ponies in charge of our security systems to see how they could have gotten out without being detected immediately.”
As Land Share walked away, Gigawatt began to think. How did the Equestrians break out of their cell without tripping the alarm? And how did they get from their cell all the way to the medical wing without being spotted? The rainbow maned one alone stood out like a sore hoof. Surely somepony should have seen something. And with everypony running down the halls of the castle, getting ready for the war, that should have increased their chances of being spotted. So how did they do it?
A very unpleasant answer came to Gigawatt: somepony within the Republic was helping them.
Gigawatt was about to call out to Land Share to share his thoughts when he noticed something on the ground. Right where Land Share had been standing was a small patch of grey dirt. His eyes darted towards the retreating senator and could see that the bottom of Land Share’s hooves were also grey.
And while Gigawatt began to think about what this could mean, he failed to notice the orange filly who had stuck her head out to see what was going on right behind him.
-x-
It was getting late as Lord North Star began to dress himself for his son’s party. Personally, he would rather spend the evening alone than attend. Not only did Stareye not deserve this promotion, but it felt wrong on so many levels to hold a party like this in the castle while Princess Celestia was being held hostage. The only positive for something like this was that it gave the illusion to the public that everything was running smoothly within the government and thus put their minds at ease. For that reason alone, North Star would attend this little charade.
‘I guess it’ll also help me keep an eye on Blueblood,’ thought North Star as he put on his suit. ‘From what I’ve heard, he’s sending messages to the Griffon Empire and the United Donkey Nation. I wonder what he wants with them.’
Just then there was a knock on the door.
“You may enter,” said North Star. The door then opened to reveal one of his butlers holding a scroll with his magic.
“Sir, a letter just arrived for you,” said the butler as the scroll floated towards his master who took it with his own magic.
“Thank you,” said North Star as he began to read the scroll. After reading the first few lines, however, he nearly dropped it. Whoever this was from was telling him that Blueblood would be unable to duplicate the Republic’s armors within their lifetime. Not only that, he was threatening the families of Spell Matrix as well as the other unicorns who were working on them if they didn’t do the impossible. At the end of the scroll, it told him that the compass was being delayed because Trixie had escaped from Canterlot.
Gulping, North Star lowered the parchment as he took in everything. He hadn’t heard anything about Trixie since earlier this afternoon. Why did the scroll say that she escaped? Did she find something out or was she being held against her will? And who wrote this? There was no name on it that he saw.
‘Something more must be going on in the castle,’ thought North Star as he set down the scroll. ‘And I am going to find out what!’
-x-
At the same time, Cadence and her party had finally landed at the edge of the Everfree Forest. They were all tired from their long flight, their coating damp with sweat. And now that they we on the ground they would finally give their tired wings a well-deserved break. The only one who didn’t look exhausted was Midnight who was sleeping peacefully on her mother’s back.
“My Lady,” said Darkwing. “Our destination is somewhere within this forest. Would you like to wait till morning?”
Cadence shook her head. “No,” she said. “I wish to speak to Lone Wolf as soon as possible. But perhaps we could take a small break. Maybe even head over to that apple farm we spotted coming in and purchase something to eat.” At the promise of fresh apples, her guard began to drool and lip their lips in anticipation.
“If you wanted something to eat you should have done that sooner,” said a cold voice from the tree line. All the ponies there turned and saw Jackal as he emerged from behind a tree, a crud but dangerous wooden spear tucked beneath his wing. And he wasn’t the only one. Four more bat ponies with similar weapons also emerged from the forest looking ready from blood. Quickly they surrounded the tired alicorn and her guards.
“I don’t give my enemies a last meal,” continued Jackal as he pointed his spear at Cadence’s throat.
Night had fallen on Sweet Apple Acres as Big Mac made his way to the farm house. Normally he would have been there by now and happily eating dinner with the rest of his family. However, before he returned home he wanted not only to thank the Guards that had been sent by Celestia to help on the farm while AJ was in the Republic but to also make sure they had sleeping arrangements. Luckily Celestia had the foresight to book them a hotel room for the next week or else they would have had to spend their time here sleeping in the barn. As for his family, his two younger sisters were away right now leaving just him, Granny Smith, and Zecora to look after things.
Thinking of the zebra caused a small smile to appear on Big Mac’s face. Zecora was quite the mare. Despite being told she should be taking it easy, Zecora insisted on doing her part on the farm while she was here. All day she helped out Granny Smith with the indoor chores and other light work thanks to her injuries. Several times she had brought out food and drink to all the stallions who were working hard under the hot sun to keep their collective energy up.
Not only was Zecora a hard worker, but Big Mac also found her to be highly attractive. There was just something so unique about her appearance that he couldn’t put his hoof on. Maybe it was her stripes or her Mohawk that caused him to stare at her for a good couple of seconds longer than other mares. Maybe it was her alluring, rhyming voice that he couldn’t get enough of.
Regardless, there was just something about Zecora that caused Mac’s heart to flutter slightly. Part of him wished that she could stay forever, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen. She’d stay until her wounds had healed up or until she found a new place to stay. Maybe, if she stayed close to Ponyville, they’d see each other from time to time. It would definitely be better than her leaving Ponyville or Equestria all together. Not that he’d blame her if she did after what had happened to her.
Finally at the front door, Big Mac let out a sigh as he opened it. As he walked into the kitchen, he was surprised to see that Granny wasn’t there at all. The only pony there was Zecora who was stirring a large pot on the stove. Sniffing the air, Mac found himself drooling at the tasty aroma.
“Ah Big Mac, I was just about to look for you,” said Zecora as she turned to greet him with a warm smile. “Sit down so that you may enjoy this tasty stew.”
Big Mac nodded and, as he sat down, Zecora set down a bowl of the concoction she had been working on. Breathing it in, Mac found that somehow it smelt better when it was up close. Yet, he did not dig in right away. Instead he looked around the empty table.
“Where’s Granny?” he asked as he turned his head to look at Zecora. His eyes widened slightly and his mouth hung open slightly as he found himself looking almost directly at her plot while Zecora made herself a bowl. As Zecora finished pouring some of the stew into her bowl, she turned and gave him a look. It wasn’t a sultry look that he got from some of the mares in town when they were trying to entice him. Which, to be completely honest, he was glad for. If she had, he would have been afraid that she was falling for him like a mare who falls for her doctors just because he saved her life. Instead, it a simple small smile with an added look of warmth in her eyes.
“Some time ago Granny Smith told me that her hip had blown,” said Zecora as she sat her bowl down next to Mac’s. “So she said she’d retire early tonight and leave us alone. I think, perhaps, that something is amiss for she laughed as she said this.”
Big Mac gave a slight laugh. “Ah think ah know what she’s plannin’,” he said while looking down at his dinner companion. “She’s been tryin’ ta hook me up for years now.” As he finished his sentence, Mac picked up the bowl with his forehooves and took a sip from it. The moment the first drop touched his tongue he there was an explosion of flavor that almost caused him to drop the bowl.
Zecora, however, cocked her head to the side as she looked at Big Mac. “So she intends to set us up on a date?” she asked as she tapped her chin with a hoof. “Shouldn’t she trust in you to find your own mate?” Her eyes then widened slightly before looking down at her bowl. “Forgive me for I spoke with too much haste. What I said was in poor taste.”
“Don’t worry about it none,” said Big Mac. “I’ve thought the same thing. Tried ta do my own datin’, but never could find the right mare. An old granny, well she wants ta see her great grand foals before she passes.”
“Well then, I must say I am touched,” said Zecora as she placed a hoof on Mac’s back while traces of a blush appeared on her face. “It seems that Granny Smith cares for you so much. And to think that she would consider me, a mare from a foreign land, would she think me the honor to be by your side and stand. Still there is much about you still alludes me. So let us talk and perhaps we shall see if this is meant to be.”
Big Mac looked down at her and smiled.
“Eeyup.”
-x-
Meanwhile, Hot Pants made her way down the corridors of the Canterlot Hospital while carrying a stack of documents next to her with her magic. Normally, she would not be allowed to see a patient this late at night. Yet thanks to her uncle, and her rank in the Royal Guard, an exception was made. It wasn’t how she wanted to do something like this, but Hot Pants felt it was necessary this one time.
As she walked, Hot Pants noticed several doors were open revealing those who were seriously injured at the battle of the Castle. North Star and Fancy Pants had kept their word, giving these brave soldiers the best care they could give them. Yet still, Hot Pants’ ears could still pick up their whimpering and moaning in pain as she walked. If it was because the pain numbing spells were wearing off or they were simply having nightmares, she didn’t know. And as much as she wanted to check up on them she only had time to visit one pony.
Soon, Hot Pants came to a closed door with a tag on it which read ‘Aerial Ace’. Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Hot Pants knocked on the door three times before opening it. Once the door was open, her eyes widened to see several newspapers had been thrown about the room. Turning her head slightly, she saw that Aerial Ace was in a sitting position (despite being covered in bandages from the neck down) with his forehooves crossed and staring at the papers as if they were about to suddenly turn into dangerous vipers or something.
As she entered the room, Aerial shot her a quick glance before his features softened slightly. “Good evening Lieutenant,” he said pleasantly.
“G-Good evening sir,” she replied as she entered the room, glancing at the papers once more as she did. Something that did not go unnoticed.
“An emergency issue of Canterlot Daily arrived about an hour ago,” he explain while gesturing Hot Hants to come closer to the bed. “Already letting ponies know about what happened at the castle, Prince Blueblood taking control until Princess Cadence gets back, Stareye’s new promotion, and about the battle tomorrow to name a few. The Prince was also kind enough to give a complete interview, spouting all sorts of nonsense to get ponies riled. Things like ‘We must endure any hardship if it means getting back our beloved Princess Celestia from those monsters’. Makes me sick!”
“Yeah, I sort of heard about that,” said Hot Pants, who was now standing next to Aerial Ace’s bed.
“So, what brings you here Lieutenant?” asked Aerial Ace, wishing to change the topic of the conversation. As he did, he noticed Hot Pants cringe slightly when he addressed her by her title.
“Well sir,” she began. “I wanted to talk to you about the battle tomorrow. See, Stareye…he’s umm, not really doing a lot of planning for the battle. From what we have gathered, it’s going to be a lot like what happened earlier today.”
Aerial Ace snorted. “Damn fool,” he said. “Given what I saw and experienced first hoofed, they weren’t looking for a fight. That was more of an honor guard and look what they were able to do. If they are coming down here again with bigger numbers I’m willing to bet they will also be bringing more of that science stuff to give them the edge they need.”
Hot Pants nodded. “That’s what I was thinking as well,” she said as she placed the documents on the bed next to Aerial Ace. “So I’ve been talking to many of the newly demoted officers, as well as checking up on some of your old battle strategies, to come up with a plan that goes beyond running at the enemy with greater numbers. I’ve managed to call a meeting today with all of the current lieutenants as well as the demoted officers to explain what I’ve come up with. I’d, er, r-really like it if you could go over what I’ve got first.”
Aerial Ace said nothing at first. He just looked into Hot Pant’s hope filled eyes before turning his attention down to the documents on his bed. Slowly he reached over to the papers and touched them with his hoof, but nothing more.
“You said you talked to the other officers,” he said without looking up. “Don’t they know what you’re planning?”
“N-Not really,” said Hot Pants. “I just sort of asked if some things were possible or if we could get certain equipment.” She paused for a moment. “I also talked to a few of the unicorns who are studying the armor to hopefully get some ideas. After that I went through a dozen or so idea’s before I settled on these plans. I-I just want to make sure they’re good enough sir.”
“You really need to stop calling me that,” said Aerial after a short pause. He then pushed the papers away from him. “And I’m not going to look over these.”
“But sir-” began Hot Pants, but was cut off as Aerial Ace raised a hoof to silence her.
“Look, I know you don’t feel like you earned this promotion,” he began with a stern look on his face. “Buck, when I first found out I thought the same thing. You were too young with no actually on the field experience. The only reason you are at where you are right now is because of your bloodline.”
As Aerial Ace said this, Hot Pants felt her ears flatten against her skull as she looked down. Nothing he was saying wasn’t anything she didn’t already know. She never liked it, especially since she respected Aerial Ace so much. He was a war hero who had deserved a higher rank than what he had even before his demotion and had been a wonderful commanding officer. He had never treated her any different than any of the other soldiers under his command. But hearing him say all of this now, it was like rubbing salt in an open wound.
She then felt a hoof lightly touch her lower jaw and lift her head up so she was now looking at Aerial Ace once more. While he still had a stern expression, his eyes had softened.
“But then I found out that this wasn’t what you wanted,” Aerial Ace continued. “That you wanted to earn your rank unlike most of the rest of those stuck up ‘elites’. You were willing to go to Princess Celestia and let her know what was going on. Not many in your horse shoes would do something like that.
“And when battle came, you rose to the challenge. While others panicked, you kept your head and did everything in your power to not only make sure your brothers and sisters in arms got the reinforcements they needed but also worked to make sure the civilians were evacuated from the danger zone. And then, after the battle, you organized everypony to keep ponies in the city calm while you gave the dead their respect. If anypony has earned their promotion, it is you.
“I know you are still unsure of yourself. That you’re afraid you’ll make a mistake that might get ponies killed. But you need to have confidence in yourself. When you go onto that battlefield tomorrow, ponies will be looking not at Stareye but you. When they see being confident then they will feel confident as well. So I am not going to look at this. Instead, I am going to trust in what you have thought up and I want you to trust in it as well.”
“Sir…” whispered Hot Pants with tears forming in her eyes.
Aerial Ace gave Hot Pants a smile before moving into a laying position. Seeing that she would need a moment or two to compose herself, Aerial Ace stared up at the ceiling as he thought of what she was going to face the next day. Ponies armed with weapons that seemed to defy logic were coming down to the moon and she would be expected to defend the ponies of Equestria with what they had. Even with all the ponies coming in from every corner of Equestria, it still felt like an uphill battle.
‘But I believe in her,’ thought Aerial Ace to himself. ‘I just hope that bat pony doesn’t show up.’
Aerial Ace frowned as he thought of that pony and not for the first time this day. Several times since he had woken up he had thought on how the battle went. In all the battles he had fought, no single opponent had given him this much trouble. The way he fought, always seeming to keep another trick tucked away, spoke greatly about his skills. He battled calmly, even while there was chaos all around the two. Aerial Ace felt certain that he would have proven difficult to defeat even without the armor.
‘Perhaps it’s a good thing he wasn’t born in Equestria,’ thought Aerial Ace sadly. ‘Skill and potential like his would have been wasted.’
“Sir, I…I think I can handle this,” said Hot Pants trying her best to look strong. “I’ll let you rest for now. But I promise that once the battle is over I’ll head back here and tell you all about it first hoof.”
Aerial Ace allowed himself a small smile. “I’ll hold you to that ma’am.”
-x-
Cadence held her breath as she looked down at the weapon pressed lightly against her neck. While it crudely made (more like a sharp, pointy stick than anything else) all it would take was a single thrust and her life would be over. If that happened, the life of Midnight Blossom and those of her guards would be in danger as well. So for now she remained as still as she could as she did her best to think of something she could say in order to defuse the situation.
“Isn’t this funny,” said Jackal as he lightly pressed his spear against Cadence’s neck. “I thought something was off when I left the Appleloosa colony. Like there were other ponies in the room with Weeping Willow and Darkwing. And it looks like I was right. But I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would be catching one of the lazy, deplorable princesses of Equestria and some filthy traitors to the bat pony race!”
Jackal then pressed the spear a little harder against Cadence’s neck to the point where blood began to drip out. Yet the princess kept her cool, not flinching or giving away any sign that what he said or did affected her. Years of experience with the nobles of Canterlot told her that showing any kind of weakness right now would give her opponent all he needed to destroy her as well as her efforts. And with so many lives on the line right now she could not afford that. Especially the young life sleeping on her back right now.
“Jackal,” said Cadence in a slow and controlled tone. “I am here to speak with your Flight Master Lone Wolf. I wish to discuss-” Before Cadence could say anything else the spear was pulled away from her neck and swung around, smacking her on the left side of her face. Her guards and Darkwing made a move to go to her but were stopped by the other spears pointed at them.
“Go ahead,” said Jackal as he retracted his weapon, a wicked grin on his smug face. “Make a move. I dare you. And then we’ll see who is standing in the end.” He watched Cadence, hoping that she would give him any excuse to kill her on the spot. A glow from her horn, flaring her wings, anything at all. But instead she lifted a hoof to her mouth to wipe away the blood as she stared at him intently.
“I am not your enemy,” she said slowly and evenly. “I just want to help.”
Jackal let out a growl as he tightened his hold on his spear. A sickening feeling began to grow in the pit of his stomach as he looked at her. How dare this…this princess say such a blatant lie to them?!
And as he stared at her with hate in his eyes, Cadence stared back with pity in hers. She had expected to meet a bat pony like this sooner or later. One so filled with so much hate and rage that he or she would lash out at members of the three tribes as well as the princesses. One that would get a sick sensation of pleasure as they did so. A bat pony who had most likely never been shown any kindness or compassion from any pony except from other bat ponies. Yes, she did pity Jackal because he was the way he was because of what Equestria had done to him.
“It’s true,” said Darkwing gaining everypony’s attention. “The Princess of Love is here to help you like she is helping the Appleloosa colony! I know you are doubtful but-”
Jackal moved like a blur over to Darkwing, striking him with the blunt end of the spear several times. The first blow hitting Darkwing’s jaw, interrupting him. The next few blows landed on the stallion's legs causing him to fall to the ground and, before he hit the ground, once more on the back. When it was over, Darkwing was laid on the ground bleeding and whimpering.
“You stay silent, traitor.” hissed Jackal as he jabbed the pointed end of the spear towards one of Darkwing’s eyes. “You…you are the one who brought her here. How do we know your colony didn’t sell the rest of us out to save your own desert loving hides?! I should kill all of you right here and now.”
“But you won’t.” said Ruby, causing Jackal’s head to snap in her direction. That bat pony’s lips curled into an ugly sneer.
“And why won’t I?” he asked.
“Because Lone Wolf has order everypony from our colony not to kill anypony.” said Ruby as she did her best to stay strong and look unafraid. However everypony there could see her legs shaking under Jackal’s gaze. “Something you should know since Wolf has had to tell you several times. In fact, didn’t he at one point tell you in front of the entire colony that if he ever found out that you actually killed a pony he would lock you up?”
Jackal’s nostrils flared and his eyes became the size of pins by the end of that sentence. He then began to breathe hard while kicking at the ground with his back legs. All of the bat ponies who he had brought with him now began to back away while Thunderclap and Dusk seemed to shrink a bit. Ruby could not stop herself from gulping as she took a single step back.
That’s when he snapped. Jackal lunged at Ruby, knocking her to the ground. He was now foaming at the mouth while he tried to snap at the bat mare’s neck. Luckily Ruby did not lie there like a dead fish. Instead she swung her head back and forth trying her best to keep it out of reach from her attacker while trying her best to kick him off. Looking around and seeing that nopony was going to help her, Cadence charged forwards and bucked Jackal off of Ruby. The bat stallion was flung into the air, but managed to right himself so that he landed on his hooves several yards away, panting angrily as he did.
As for the ponies that Jackal had brought with him, they stared in awe of what they had just seen. Some dropped their makeshift spears as their jaws hung open. It was if they were having trouble processing what they had just seen. But which one was more shocking? That Jackal, the most savage of them, had been knocked back or was it that the one who had knocked down Jackal was a princess? Or maybe, just maybe, the truly shocking thing was who the princess had been protecting.
“My thanks Princess,” said Ruby as she slowly got back onto her hooves with Cadence’s assistance.
“Nopony will EVER lock me up again!” raged Jackal as the rest of his ponies surrounded Cadence’s group. “It will NEVER happen again! DO YOU HEAR ME?! I will not go back to that life.” He then walked up to Ruby and snapped at the air in front of her, causing her to flinch. He then turned to address the rest.
“We’ll take them to Lone Wolf like they want,” he snarled. “Then, once they are done wasting their breath, we will make sure they will never breathe again!” He turned to look at Ruby and Cadence once more. “The walk there will give me plenty of time to decide how to kill them.”
As the now expanded group entered the Everfree forest Cadence looked back towards the still soundly sleeping filly on her back, slightly surprised that her little Midnight had managed to not wake though Jackal's hostility.
-x-
Canterlot Castle was a structure that always seemed to shine. Be it from the presence of Celestia or just from the building itself which was a marvel of magic and hard labor, the castle always seemed to give off a wondrous glow to those who lived in Canterlot. And yet tonight, it seemed somehow less bright.
Only a trained eye could see this, however, due to what was going on at the castle this very moment. Music flowed out from every window and the smell of fancy food could be smelt by those nearby. The building was well lit so the Canterlot elites would not need to squint to see in the darkness or use their own magic as they mingled in the crowd as they sipped the finest drinks bits could buy.
Looking at the castle like this brought some degree of calm to those outside. Seeing the snobby elites who cared only for themselves partying at a time like this, told the commoners living in the capital that everything was alright. After all, if they were in any trouble with Princess Celestia being gone and with an attack on the city in the morning, the nobles would have been the first ones trying to leave. So there had to be some kind of plan or something that made them feel safe enough to stay. And that was enough for the common ponies who looked up at the castle with some degree of envy.
However, there was one noble who wasn’t enjoying this night. Sure there were a few others, but they at least appeared to be enjoying themselves to some degree. But Blueblood was another story.
Normally on a night like this he would have been dressed in his finest, sipping on the finest drinks while making sure he looked as handsome as he could. Yet that was not the case this night. Instead his normally well-groomed mane was looked unkempt with dozens of loose strands all over. His suit looked like he had just worn it while participating in the Running of the Leaves, covered in wrinkles and sweat. Instead of laughing and enjoying this party, he was reassuring each complaining, annoying noble that everything was under control.
‘How does auntie make this look so easy?’ he thought as another noble approached him to complain about one thing or another.
Things had been going downhill for Blueblood all day. After he had talked to Spell Matrix, he had been informed that Trixie had somehow escaped and left the city. So many questions raced through the prince’s mind when he heard this. The first was why. Why would Trixie do something like that? Had somepony tipped her off to his plans or was she working with the enemy? Or did she think she could get something if she was the one who brought Cadence back? Regardless, he needed to kill Cadence before Trixie found her which lead to his next problem: finding a unicorn who could make the compass. After several hours of searching the various magical schools, going from student to student to see if anypony could do what he was asking until he met Moondancer. Once she said she could have it done for him by morning was the first piece of good news he had.
Once that had been taken care of, Blueblood returned to his room so that he could write a letter to the Griffons asking if he could use their advanced telescope. It irritated the prince to no end, writing all of this flattery to get what he wanted, especially when he originally planned on simply taking it. Yes, back when he was considering how this war would go he knew he would eventually have to make a counter attack on the Republic. The only way to do that would be to have a group of talented unicorns cast a teleportation spell allowing a small group of two or three a one way ticket to the moon. The only hiccup at the time was that the unicorns needed to know where to send the target and none of Equestria’s telescopes were powerful enough to get a clear enough view of the Lunar cities. The only ones who did were the Griffons. Blueblood had planned on demanding that the Griffons hoof over their telescopes to help Equestria in their war efforts or else be considered an enemy siding with the demonic Lunar Republic. However, when he had thought about this part of the plan he had assumed that he would have Lunar armor technology to give them an edge for an easy victory and expanding his reach. Without it he would more likely waste what resources he had and divide Equestrian’s armies for an unknown period of time. Thus it was not worth it yet.
So Blueblood had to ask as nicely as he could to get what he wanted. He wrote about the situation, lying that they were targeted for no reason and that by helping them they would be saving innocent lives. He made promises to share whatever tech they managed to capture as well as asking them for their assistance should things look bleak. Once that was finished he sent the letter via magical fire.
Blueblood didn’t have to wait long for his reply. It seemed that the Griffon Embassy had found out what had happened including the accusation that he had been the one who ordered Twilight Sparkle’s death. Emperor Eagle Eyes said that he would not assist them nor did he wish to make an enemy out of the Republic. He also said that he looked forward to seeing how long a dishonorable piece of scum like Blueblood could stay ruler of Equestria now that he had the Republic was had their sights aimed at him. Furious, Blueblood threw the letter away and proceeded to get ready for the party.
And now, here at the party, the nobles were coming to him to confirm the rumors they had been hearing. Somehow, somepony had found out things and was now spreading them around like Nightmare Night candy. About Trixie and the compass getting away from him. About him being unable to copy the armor technology. One by one, nobles that had agreed with him before were questioning him and it was taking everything he could to convince them to stay with him. It just never ended.
Then there were the complaints about Stareye. As much as it pained him to admit it, they had a right to complain about him. Ever since the new High Commander showed up, he had been going through glass after glass of wine all while snorting his white powder. Several times he had smacked a serving mare on the flank, laughing as he did so before ordering her to report to his quarters at the end of the night for some fun and if she didn’t she would be thrown in jail along with the rest of her family. And when anypony asked him about what he had planned for the next day or why several trebuchets he would make it quite clear that he didn’t know what they were talking about. Heck, he made it clear that he hadn’t even had a meeting with him underling to plan out what was to happen in the morning.
Throughout all of this Majesty was the only one helping him. She and she alone stood by his side, backing him up and whispering words of encouragement to keep him going. In fact, at this very moment, she was talking to a newspaper reporter trying to get him to ignore the state Stareye was in and print something more positive. If it wasn’t for her, Blueblood was sure the crowd would have eaten him alive.
“Prince Blueblood!” yelled a mare’s voice. The Prince looked away from the noble he had been talking to and turned to look at another noble storming towards him with several scrolls floating next to her thanks to her magical grip.
“Lady Fine Dining,” said Blueblood, exhaustion clear in his voice. “I am in the middle of-” He got no further before he was slapped so hard that he stumbled backwards. The music stopped for a moment as everypony turned to look at what was happening. Blueblood took several deep breaths before he gestured that everything was alright. Slowly the music began to play once more and the crowd continued to talk amongst themselves while keeping an eye on the prince.
“Please don’t make a scene,” whispered Prince Blueblood. “I would hate to have the Guards drag you to the dungeons.”
Fine Dining rolled her eyes. “The Guards are as useful as you,” she whispered back, her words dripping with venom. “I have been receiving scroll after scroll sent to me via magical fire from the southern area of Equestria where I have several projects going on. Or rather I had! Because that blundering idiot you placed in charge of our military took every troop and brought them here everywhere else has been left DEFENSELESS! The south is being swarmed by changelings! I have lost hundreds of thousands of bits because of this! And that’s not all. To make matters worse, while this was going on, several long silver chariots came down from the stars. They broke into several food warehouses and within minutes took everything before shooting back into the night! You-You did this you moron!”
“Lady Dining, please calm yourself,” whispered Blueblood as he nervously looked around to see if anypony had heard them. “I know you’re upset. But there is no way anypony could have seen-”
“A competent military leader would have!” raged Dining as she threw the scroll in Blueblood’s face. “But that fool left nopony to protect any Equestrian city! They are all wide open. And this is just the one area we know about. How many other cities are being ravaged and couldn’t contact anypony? What is the point of protecting the capital if everything else burns around us?
“And what about the Republic?! They are easily stealing our food! What if this was their plan? To get all of our troops in one location and then attack various other parts of Equestria? And we, or should I say Stareye, fell for it! Did he consider any of these possibilities when he issued the order to protect Canterlot?”
“I assure you that everything,” began Blueblood, but stopped when he heard a mare scream. The two looked over in the direction of Stareye to see that he had smacked another mare’s flank. To make matters worse, the mare who was keeping her slightly reddened flank away from Stareye was Fleur De Lis. Blueblood paled as he tried to go over there and smooth things out but her husband, Fancy Pants, got there first with murder in his eyes.
“How dare you assault my wife?!” roared Fancy Pants, pointing a shaking hoof at Stareye who just grinned in response. Around them, all the nobles had ceased their own conversations to watch the events unfold. While it had irritated them to see Stareye treating the serving staff in a manner befitting a drunken commoner, it was wholly an entire different manner when he did so to a fellow noble.
“You can’t do anything to me,” said the moronic military commander as he finished off his drink and then smashed it against the ground. “Nopony here can do anything to me! I’m-”
“Please forgive him,” said Blueblood as he put his hoof on Stareye’s mouth to silence him. “He’s just had a little too much pre victory drink. You understand.”
“On the eve before war?” thundered Fine Dining, no longer bothering to keep her voice down.
“This behavior is most inappropriate,” growled Fancy Pants. “I would have thought that the son of a noble would know better! Prince Blueblood, once your temporary leadership is over know that I will be having words with Princess Cadence about this.”
“I’d like to see that happen.” said Stareye as he knocked Blueblood’s hoof away. Fancy Pants’ eyes narrowed at Stareye. He said nothing instead turning to his wife and gesturing to leave, not wanting to waste his breath with the fiend. As they stormed out so did several other groups of nobles including, much to Blueblood’s horror, several that had once sided with him. Now it seemed that they were reconsidering their position.
“Prince Blueblood.” said Fine Dining. “I will admit that there were times, many times in fact, that I disagreed with the decisions that Princess Celestia made. I felt like she was being too naïve or too generous for her own good. However, I knew that she always put Equestria first and did everything in her power to keep it safe. In the short time you have been in charge you have put the safety of Equestria into question. If things do not improve very soon then I will make it my personal mission to see that you are removed from the throne even if Princess Cadence hasn’t returned.”
The noble mare turned to leave as Blueblood spoke up. “If you do that then the right of succession will be but into question. Ponies will spend more time fighting over who is in charge then trying to solve the Lunar problem! They could conquer Equestria!”
Fine Dining stopped in her tracks as she listened to what Blueblood had to say. Yet she did not turn around right away. She kept her head forward, staring at the exit for what felt like a small eternity for the prince. She then let out a sigh before turning her head to look at him.
“From how things are going right now, being conquered by the enemy might be preferable than your rule,” she said before looking away and continuing to walk towards the door. “I hope the battle tomorrow turns in our favor for your sake.”
Blueblood stared at the retreating figure until she was gone from sight. Then he looked around and saw that other members of the Canterlot elite were also beginning to leave. Many of those were ponies that sided against him. But sprinkled here and there were ponies who had once sided with the prince, casting him dirty looks as they walked away. It looked like a third of his supporters still remained, but whether it was because they still wished to support him or just wanted to stay to enjoy the rest of the party remained to be see.
This did not bode well for the prince. He needed as many supporters as he could get. The more nobles that sided with him would make ruling Equestria and making the changes he wished to make easier. Without them, this job would become far more difficult if not impossible. Perhaps there were more ponies talking about dethroning him even though it was his first day on the job! How could things have gotten this bad?
Snorting laughter behind Blueblood gave him his answer. His eye twitched as he turned around seeing that Stareye was laughing at Boot Licker who was soaked with wine. How this happened, Blueblood neither wondered or cared. His eyes simply narrowed at Stareye.
“Stareye, would you please follow me,” said Blueblood. “There is something I must speak to you about in private. On the balcony.”
“Must I?” whined Stareye, sounding like a petulant filly. “The wind might make my mane as dreadful as yours.”
Blueblood gritted his teeth. “Yes,” he hissed.
Sighing, Stareye followed Prince Blueblood towards the opposite end of the hall where the party was being held. With a wave of his horn, Blueblood opened a set of doors leading out to one of the balconies overlooking Canterlot. But he did not look at the beautiful sight below him instead turning around to close the doors once Stareye had walked through them.
“Now what is so impo-GAK” Stareye got no further, Blueblood’s magic wrapping around his neck before it slammed him into the wall. Stareye seemed to instantly sober up as he brought his hooves up to his neck to try and remove the magical ring that Blueblood had created but it was no use. He simply wasn’t strong enough to physically remove it. And, to make matters worse, the ring began to lift up into the air so that Stareye was now dangling in the air.
“YOU HAD ONE JOB!” roared Blueblood as all traces of the once confident prince vanished. In its place was a stallion whose right eye twitched and veins could be seen on his neck.
“GAK! P-Please,” gasped Stareye.
“All you had to do was appear like you knew what you were doing and follow my orders,” said Blueblood, ignoring Stareye as he began to pace. “It shouldn’t have been too difficult. But somehow you managed to screw that up. You couldn’t even answer basic, simply questions in there! How many troops have arrived? Why are you using certain equipment? Are more troops coming? All basic questions that you, the newly appointed head of ALL of Equestria military forces should be able to answer. But you DIDN’T! You didn’t even think to say that the information they wanted was classified!
“And your behavior! I had ponies coming to me all night because of the way you acted. Did it not occur to you that since I’m the one you gave you your title that everything you do reflects on me? And every time I defend you-”
“A-GAK-Air!” gasped Stareye as his face began to turn blue. “N-neee-dd a-ai-r..”
“It makes me look worse,” continued Blueblood, not paying any attention to Stareye’s condition. “And I need those ponies to be on my side and agree with me if I am ever to make Equestria into what I want! We could have an empire, a Solar Empire, waiting for my dear Auntie when she is finally rescued. But now it looking like that will never happen. That world will just be another empty promise to them unless I can deliver something to them and soon.”
Blueblood now looked at Stareye. The noble’s body was starting to go limp and his eyes looked like they would roll to the back of his head at any moment. Blueblood snorted in annoyance as he undid the magical ring and letting Stareye fall to the ground. After he landed, Stareye began gasping for air as his coat slowly returned to normal.
“Stareye.” said Blueblood slowly, causing the other pony to look up in fear. “You need to win the battle or else we will both be finished!”
“O-Oh I will,” said Stareye nervously as he got onto his hooves. “I did win the last battle for us. That’s why you chose me to be High Commander.”
Blueblood snorted. “Are you really so delusional that you believe that?” he said with a contempt sneer. “No, the reason you I made you Captain and then High Commander are one in the same: you are a noble and an idiot!”
Blueblood’s words caused Stareye to take a step back. “W-What do you mean by that?”
“I want to bring back the old ways,” said Blueblood. “To the days when only our bloodlines granted us places of power over all and not just within the castle. No longer would we have to compete with those filthy commoners to gain those positions. We are, after all, born leaders so why would we need to prove ourselves. And you seemed like a perfect fit at the time. In the Royal Guard, desperate to move up, and too stupid to realize how much I was using you. You’d done whatever I said without asking too many annoying questions nor would you go running to tell my Auntie if I was planning something behind her back. It never occurred to you that if you had told her half the things I’d done you’d have gained her favor as well as a sizeable reward. That’s why I chose you. But now that same stupidity is causing everything to be ruined!”
“Oh...” said Stareye as he tried to make himself look bigger than he really was. “Well if that’s the case then I’ll just inform everypony about what you’ve been doing! That’s right, I’ll tell my father and Fancy Pants about the parasprite, murder of Hard Shell, and everything else you’ve been doing. I’ll tell them you forced me to…” Stareye’s words trailed off when he noticed Blueblood’s reaction. It was angry or fear like he expected.
Instead he was laughing.
“It’s amusing that you would think to do that,” said Blueblood, a ghost of a smile still on his face. “Even more amusing that you would be dumb enough to tell me and expect it to work. After all, who would ever believe you? And why would I allow you to live after admitting to be that you were going to betray me?”
“W-What?” stammered Stareye.
“As you said, I ordered Hard Shell’s murder,” said Blueblood coolly. “What makes you think I wouldn’t do the same to you? And I wouldn’t even need my assassin to kill the likes of you. Why waste the bits when I could easily push you off this balcony right now and claim to everypony that you fell down in a drunken stupor?”
Stareye began to breathe hard as he looked around for any chance of escape yet finding none. ‘This is it,’ thought Stareye. ‘He’s going to kill me.’
“Oh, don’t worry Stareye,” said Blueblood as he read the fear written all over his fellow noble’s face. “I’m not going to kill you. At least as long as you don’t do anything stupid like betraying me. No, killing you would create too much of a headache for me. If I did that I’d have to spend all night finding a replacement for you, hoping my fellow nobles don’t fight my decision, hope they don’t demand a full investigation on your passing, and hope that they don’t considering surrendering.
“Besides, I really don’t think there is any need to replace you. Right now there are hundreds of thousands of ponies down at the base of this mountain ready to fight a measly three hundred in an open field. This should be a simple task that even a cutie markless filly could handle. You are also to make sure that you collect as much of their technology as possible as well as capturing as few of their soldiers so we can figure out how to duplicate their weapons. But if somehow you do manage to screw this up then I will give every last bit I have to ensure that your death is as slow and painful as possible.”
With that said, Blueblood walked off the balcony leaving behind a shaking Stareye with the sound of stone cracking being heard in the distance.
-x-
At the same time, forty or so ponies were gathered in the mess hall of the Canterlot Reserve Base at the foot of Canterlot Mountain. The tables had been moved out of the room and cushions had been set up for everypony that had been summon by Hot Pants. Over half of them were former ranking officers in the Equestria military while the other half were the newly promoted officers as well as members of the Guard who had been there during the first battle with the Lunar ponies. However, due to the nature of how most of the ponies had been demoted there was a great amount of ill will in the room. Many of the former officers were looking at their replacements with nothing short of contempt.
Looking into the room from a side door was Hot Pants, wishing that somepony else could do this. Besides her were various things for the presentation she had planned. Documents, charts, magic crystals to display various pieces of information. All of it ready to go. But seeing all of these ponies caused her doubts to return in full force reminding her that she was too young as well as too inexperienced to be doing something like this. Who was she to tell these experienced soldiers the plans for the morning while knowing they would hate her with the same fury as the other promoted officers? Surely somepony else could do this. Maybe she could give her ideas to Hard Ass or Spitfire or…or somepony!
Just then Hot Pants felt a hoof touch her shoulder. She turned and saw it was Crème de la Crème giving her a reassuring smile.
“Looks like a tough crowd,” she said as she removed her hoof from Hot Pants’ shoulder. “But I’ll know you’ll do fine.”
“I wish I could say the same thing,” muttered Hot Pants as she peaked out once again.
“Hey, you’ll do great,” said Crème. “And don’t worry. I’ll be right there with you. Now let’s do this.” With that said, Crème gave Hot Pants a shove out the door.
Now out in the open, Hot Pants felt everypony’s eyes on her watching her like a pack of timber wolves staring down potential prey. Nervously she gulped before giving everypony in the room a smile that showed off all of her teeth as she looked back and forth. Then, with the fluidity of a mannequin, she walked into the middle of the front of the mess hall. She could feel the sweat forming all over her face yet did her best to stay calm.
Or at least as calm as she could.
“Um welcome e-everypony,” she stammered. “I, uh, hope the trip here was…nice. Ha-ha. Well I guess you’re all um wondering while I called you all here. And there’s a good reason. Really. I think I have a plan for the war and um-”
“I’m out of here,” said a pegasus stallion who was sitting in the back row, rolling his eyes as he got up. His coat was a light shade of purple with a black, Mohawk styled mane that also had a purple stripe. Hot Pants recognized him as former Captain Raging Storm who commanded a military base near the eastern border of Equestria.
“Wait,” said Hot Pants as she raised a foreleg. “You haven’t heard what I have to say!”
“I’ve heard enough,” said Storm, stopping and turning his head to the side to look at her. “And it’s obvious to everypony here that you have no clue what you’re doing. I spent twenty years serving Equestria, actually working hard to get to where I was and what do I get in return? Demoted just so a bunch of high class snobs can take our jobs and pretend like they earned them! I have already been humiliated enough and I don’t want to be forced to watch this farce any longer.”
“Hold your tongue commoner,” said Bitsworth as he stood up. “You will speak with respect to your betters.”
“Like Tar-” began Storm but stopped when he saw Hot Pants gallop over to Bitsworth and slap him causing everypony in the room to stare in shock.
“Apologize,” demanded Hot Pants as she stared angrily at Bitsworth.
“Why should I be the one apologizing?” demanded Bitsworth as he rubbed his check. “He’s the fool who is causing trouble and questioning you.”
“He has every right to question me,” said Hot Pants causing Storm to raise an eyebrow. “Raging Storm…no, that not right. Everypony in this room who was wrongfully demoted has a right to be angry with me and to question me. Like he said, we didn’t earn our ranks. I can understand why he is upset with this situation.”
Hot Pants then turned to look at Raging Storm whose body was still facing the door. “If you want to leave, I understand and I won’t stop you. But, please reconsider before you walk out that door. I have information that I hope will help save lives and hopefully help us win. And if you have anything you want to throw out there you can speak up at any time. I promise whatever you have to say will be taken into consideration.”
Raging Storm raised his eyebrow as he turned around to face Hot Pants as Bitsworth muttered an apology. However, Storm wasn’t paying attention to that. Instead, he was studying Hot Pants. Her expression, her posture, her breathing. He looked for any signs of deception to see if she was trying to manipulate him or the others in the room.
“Let’s hear what she has to say,” said Hard Ass, his voice catching the attention of everypony in the room. “At the very least we should learn more about our enemy.”
“And I’m curious to see what she has planned,” said Spitfire as she crossed her hooves. There was a small murmur of agreement across the room. Raging Storm regarded Hot Pants for a moment longer before he nodded and then took his seat.
“O-Ok,” said Hot Pants as she walked to the front of the room. Once there she took a deep breath before her horn began to glow and projected an image above her. It was a 3D image of the Lunar armor spinning around so that they could see it from every angle. Looking around the room, she could see that they all had their focus on the image, studying with the same intensity that had once been directed at her.
“I thought it would be best to start off with our enemy’s armor and weapons,” began Hot Pants. “Since this is what we will most likely be seeing in the morning. The armor, according to the best minds in Canterlot, is impregnable to our weapons and magic. Not even a dragon’s tooth will scratch it. Therefore we will have to aim at the exposed areas. The face, neck, any area of the legs that doesn’t have armor, and wing if they are pegasi or bat ponies. However, I’m sure they know about these weaknesses and will be keeping on their guard.”
“Then there’s their weapons we’ll have to deal with. On the backs of their ground units are small cannons that shoot out something like a magical discharge that can be used by both unicorns and earth ponies. Another thing I noticed personally was that one of their fliers could also fire energy blasts from his front hoof gauntlets as well as creating magical energy blades.”
Hot Pants closed her eyes and focus on a new image. Now floating above her were images of the Lunar ponies melee weapons.
“In close range combat they will most likely fight you with one of these,” continued Hot Pants. “These weapons are far superior to anything the griffons have every forged. They will cut through you and your armor is if you were nothing at all. So when dealing with these your only option will be to dodge.”
“Sounds easy enough,” said somepony in the back.
“Don’t get cocky,” snapped Spitfire as she turned her head to look at the pony. “A lot of good ponies died today because of this stuff.” She then turned to look at Hot Pants. “Have all the dead been accounted for?”
Slowly, Hot Pants nodded. “T-They have,” she said, with a gulp. “We are sending the dead we could find back to their families. The final count was four hundred and twenty seven.” As soon as she finished her sentence, a murmur went through room.
“I…I don’t believe it,” said a random pony in the room. “How could so few kill so many in such a short amount of time? I-It just doesn’t seem possible.”
“It is possible,” said Crème, all eye now on her. “I was there. I watched as our pegasi were picked off by just two of their aerial fighters. I saw ponies drop like flies when their wings were cut off, throats slashed, pierced by their weapons, or exploded into nothing. Trust me when I say that they can do it.”
“Then what hope do we have?” said another pony in the room.
“Some,” said Hot Pants. “Last time we fought, we had no idea what they were capable of. Now we do. And based on this new information I have come up with a couple of ideas on how to deal with them. I also have several crystals containing the memories of those who fought them and lived so that we can learn about them.”
“Still, all we have to go on is what they brought with them last time,” said Raging Storm in a neutral tone. “It would be safe to assume that they might have a few more tricks up their sleeves.”
“I know,” said Hot Pants with a nod. “However, all I can do is present with solutions for the information that we do have.”
Raging Storm gave a short nod.
“Ok, first off, we’ll be using the trebuchets provided by the Equestrian Reserves,” said Hot Pants. “According to Captain Hard Ass, we have sixteen of them and we’ll be deploying all of them.”
“What good will they do?” asked Bitsworth. “Didn’t you say that their armor impervious to our attacks? And won’t their weapons be able to shoot down whatever we throw at them?”
“That’s correct,” said Hot Pants. “They will be able to stop our weapons, but not the force of the impact. But during the battle this morning, three Lunar Troops were killed on their way to their embassy. They were killed when a unicorn used a spell to cause the ground beneath them to explode. The force of the impact killed two of them instantly while the third was seriously injured by the blast and the debris. Right there is a weak point we can exploit from a distance.”
Hard Ass smiled slightly. “You’re going to use the force of the impact to kill them,” he said. “Or, at the very least, have them break whatever formation they are in in order to avoid being hit. Am I correct?”
“Yes,” said Hot Pants. “But there was one thing you missed. It is true that they can fire energy blasts in order to attack from a distance. And I have seen that they can take down large rocks. However, I have also seen that their technology has its limits. Once whatever is powering them is all used up they become useless. So if we keep throwing big rocks at them, there is a chance we can get them to use up a large chunk of their power supply and take away their long range advantage.
“Also assisting us is something provided to us by Captain Spitfire of the Wonderbolts: ice arrows.”
“The kind used in ice archery during the Equestria Games?” said a confused Crème as she looked at her friend. “What good will they do?”
“Hopefully they will give us another advantage,” said Hot Pants. “They freeze anything they hit and incase them in ice. My plan is to have all of our best archers in the clouds, firing them at the enemy in order to stop them cold. If it doesn’t affect their armor then we aim at the ground to slip them up. I also have a few other ideas that I’d like to go over with all of you.”
Taking a breath, Hot Pants went over her other ideas for the ice arrows. As she spoke, everypony and donkey in the room listened intently. Some began to take notes while a few other put out their own ideas which they discussed as a group. Once that was done, Hot Pants began to pull out the crystals to show them the combat footage. Once that was done she was going to go over some troop formation ideas she had as well as a communication system using flares.
All in all, it was going to be a long night.
-x-
Cadence and her group felt like they had been walking for hours. The Everfree Forest was unlike anything the Princess of Love had ever been in before. The dark, unkempt trees seemed menacing at times and the strange noises she heard from the animals that dwelt here sent shivers down her spine that she desperately tried to keep from the others. The only thing in the forest that she had seen so far that didn’t seem menacing was a sea serpent that lived in a river that they crossed.
Cadence desperately wanted to talk to Ruby or Darkwing about what their next move was or, well, anything really to get her mind off the growing sense of dread as they walked deeper and deeper into the forest. However all of the other bat ponies seemed to have their eyes focused on them making it impossible for them to have a private conversation. That and the fear that if Jackal caught them doing anything he didn’t like he would most likely fly into another angry rage. So, for now, they walked in utter silence.
Eventually the group entered a clearing and Cadence finally saw their destination. Her eyes widened at the sight of the ruined castle. While it amazed her to find that there was a castle this far into this forest it was even more shocking to see what the bat ponies were doing to it. They were fixing it up! There were five or six of them hauling large stones to patch up parts of the wall and several areas of the roof looked like they had been recently patched up with branches and leaves. Whatever they could find or use they were using it to make this place their home. Glancing around, Cadence could see that many of the bat ponies holding her against her will looked at this site with pride in their eyes. The bat ponies under her command stared at it in utter shock, their mouths hanging open.
Only one seemed unimpressed by this sight.
“Alright, let’s move!” barked Jackal savagely.
At Jackel’s order, the group began to move again. But before they had taken more than five steps something happened. Ahead of them was a chasm or a really deep ditch. And from there three slimy green heads arose, each with yellow serpent like eyes that looked down at them hungrily.
Cadence’s eyes filled with fear as she recognized what she was seeing. It was a hydra! But, what was it doing here inside of a swamp or bog? Was there one nearby and it had smelt them? Or had the bat ponies brought it here to act like a guard dog, unaware of the danger it presented?
It was late at night, the sort of time where most ponies should be in bed. But in Luna’s castle that wasn’t the case. Most of the medical staff were up and about making sure everything was set in case there was an emergency teleport. Members of the science division were working overtime, making sure that if Operation: Umbrella was needed it would affect their technology as well as trying to figure out the long term effects on normal ponies. The Lunar Guard that remained was checking their gear in case they were needed for backup. Black suited agents of the LBI were hard at work, secretly looking for Twilight and the escaped criminals. And lastly, a lone filly walked down the halls, ignored by all as she made her way towards the medical wing.
This wasn’t the first time Dinky had had to stay the night at the castle. Sometimes both her parents had to work late so the princess had set aside a room for them so Dinky wouldn’t have to spend the night at her home all by herself. Tonight was such a night, but there was something more. Yes, both her parents had to work but the LBI weren’t letting anypony leave the castle. Even Dinky, who just wanted to go back to her Dome and pick up a few things was told by the suited ponies that she had to remain here until further notice.
Now, unable to sleep, Dinky was on her way to Scootaloo’s hospital room in the hope that the two of them could have some fun and have a sleep over. But when she got to Scootaloo’s room, she was greeted by a very concerning sight.
Scootaloo had taken out all the wires and tubes that connected her to the medical equipment with said equipment turned off so they would not alert the staff. She was standing on her hind legs with her forelegs pressed against the wall as she tried to reach an air duct above her bed. Due to her position, Dinky saw that Scootaloo’s wounds had healed up nicely with almost no sign that she was ever injured. Or at least that’s what it looked like to the naked eye for if she had completely healed then Scootaloo would have flown up to the air duct. That or she wasn’t that confident in her flying ability to get up there without making a noise.
After watching Scootaloo struggle for a moment or two, Dinky took a step forward and spoke up.
“What are you doing?” she asked causing Scootaloo to fall backwards onto the bed. Grumbling, the pegasus filly got up and glared in Dinky’s direction. But once she saw who it was Scootaloo’s eyes softened.
“Hey Dinky,” she said as she scratched the back of her head in embarrassment. “Sorry about that. You kinda took me by surprise.”
Dinky gave her friend a nod and a small smile which she got back. “So, what’s going on?” she asked again.
“Oh,” said Scootaloo as her eyes widened in realization. She then turned to face the wall and placed her hooves against, returning to the position she was in when Dinky first entered the room. “Right. I’m trying to bust out of here and look for my mom.”
“What?” said a very confused Dinky. “But isn’t she just down the hallway?”
“No, she’s been ponynapped,” said Scootaloo as she struggled to reach her target.
Dinky stared at Scootaloo with her jaw hanging open. She stood like that for a solid minute before she shook her head wildly in order to snap herself out of that.
“A-Are you serious?” stammered the young unicorn filly. “Come on Scootaloo, y-you must have been dreaming. There’s no way that Twilight was p-ponynapped.”
“It’s true,” said Scootaloo, not even bothering to look at Dinky. “I heard Land Share and Gigawatt talking in the hallway. They said that Rainbow Dash and the others broke out and then ponynapped mom. And for some stupid reason they want to keep it a secret from Princess Luna. So they’re trying to find them before she gets back.”
Dinky stared at Scootaloo as the filly continued to try and reach the air vent, always seeming to be just a little too short of reaching her goal. The little unicorn had a hard time believing what she had just been told. In some ways, it made some sense. Or it at least explained why she couldn’t leave the castle or why there were so many LBI ponies milling about. But even Dinky had to wonder why none of the Lunar Guard was looking for her? Surely Shadow would pull every available pony in Dome Zero to look for Twilight as well as help assist in the capture of the escapee ponies. And if they were trying to do this quickly, wouldn’t having more ponies help? Or were they acting like dumb colt, believing that they shouldn’t tell too many ponies so that there would less chance of the parent (aka Luna) finding out. Or maybe they were just being dumb adults period.
Still, Dinky wasn’t too worried. After all, this was the LBI. Finding ponies was their job and everypony in the Republic knew that they did their job well. They had access to all sorts of tracking equipment and security systems.
“Scootaloo, I think you shouldn’t be doing this.” said Dinky, causing her friend to stop and glare at her. “Your mom’s going to be fine. The LBI will find those Equestrians and your mom before you know it. So I think you should just relax.”
“I CAN’T!” yelled Scootaloo. “You don’t understand what Twilight means to me.”
“Well I know she’s your mom.” began Dinky but stopped when she saw Scootaloo’s eyes begin to water.
“She and Shadow, they were the first two ponies who ever took care of me.” said Scootaloo as she wiped away some of her tears. “You don’t know what it’s like to be an orphan. Ponies pity you and that’s about it. The only ones who take care of you are the ones that are paid to do it so you don’t know if they love you or care about you or anything like that. And the older you get the less likely you are to be adopted because they all want foals! But Twilight…she and Shadow, ever since the moment we meet they were nice to me. They treated me like I belonged with them, noticing a problem that I didn’t even know I had and promising to fix it. They never asked for anything in return. Then they adopted me. It’s because of them that I have someplace to belong, someplace to call home. And if something were to happen to either of them I could never forgive myself. So I’m NOT going to just sit here in this bed while whoever took my mom does whatever! And don’t tell me Rainbow Dash did it because I know her. Not as well as Twilight, but I know she wouldn’t do this!”
With that said, Scootaloo turned back to face the wall to return to trying to escape through the air duct. Well, trying to reach it first. As she got on her hind legs she heard a sigh behind her before becoming enveloped in a magical aura and lifted into the air. Not very high, but just enough for Scootaloo to reach her target. As she worked on getting it open Scootaloo felt her body bob slightly causing her eyes to widen at the possibility that the magic holding her up could fade at any given moment. Working quickly she managed to open up the vent and get one hoof in before the magic faded allowing gravity to take hold.
Clinging by a single hoof, Scootaloo used her body weight to swing to the side so that her other hoof could get to the air vent. Once that was done the small filly used both her hooves to push herself upwards allowing her to crawl into the air vent which was thankfully pretty big with enough space for her to turn around. Looking out into her hospital room, Scootaloo saw the source of the magic that had helped her get up standing on the bed with a hoof reaching up towards her. Grinning Scootaloo reached down and managed to pull Dinky into the air vent.
“We are so going to get in trouble,” said Dinky with a slight smile.
-x-
Everypony looked up at the massive hydra with a clear look of shock and surprise. Nopony had ever heard a hydra speak before. Sure there were plenty of other monsters that could talk like sea serpents, chimeras, and dragons but creatures like hydras couldn’t. Especially not with a southern accent!
Yet there was one pony in the group that showed no surprise. In fact that pony, Jackal, looked more annoyed than anything else as he looked at the multi-headed monstrosity towering above them.
“Damn it Poisoned!” he barked while waving a hoof. “Where the buck did you get that ugly thing?”
The creature let out a noise, clearly offended by the remark. The middle head backed up a bit, narrowing its eyes at the bat pony while the other two head just turned to look at the one in the center. It shot forwards a bit but then a hard smack sounded and the head stopped dead in its tracks while its face seemed to scrunch up in pain.
“Hey now big fella, you know better than ta do somethin’ like that,” came the country accent once again. It was then that Cadence saw something on top of the middle head. Or rather some bat pony mare who took to the sky. She looked like a mare who had just recently entered adulthood with a dark brown coat and oddly a lighter brown mane that was braided into pigtails. Around her neck was an old red neckerchief and she had a few bandages around her torso. Cadence noted that she was also sporting an odd cutie mark; two snakes that were positioned to resemble a heart while their fangs pierced into an apple that separated the two.
As the mare flapped her bat wings to lower her to the ground, the middle head lunged at her. The mare, without turning around, bore a deadpanned expression on her face and let out a sigh. She folded her forelegs as the head came at her with great speed, its mouth open revealing its long monstrous fangs. Yet just as it was about to devour Poisoned she kicked one of her rear legs forwards allowing her to do a backflip before sending that same leg into the head of the monster. The other two heads winced as a large bump appeared on the middle one’s head. The middle head let out a whining noise before it snorted in rage, opening it mouth to bare its fangs once more. Only for it to get punched in the snout by the bat pony.
“No,” said Poisoned. “Bad Mr. Snuggles. Very bad. Ya’ll should know better than ta try an’ eat my kin by now.” All three of the hydra’s heads backed up a bit as tears began to form in all six eyes. “Ahh, there now sugar cube. Ah can’t stay mad at ya’ll for far too long.”
Cadence watched this display in utter disbelief. What she was seeing was something she couldn’t wrap her head around. It wasn’t because somepony had somehow managed to tame a hydra since she had heard of ponies taming monsters. Well, smaller monsters but there was probably a pony or two in history that could have tamed larger ones. Nor was it because of this pony’s dialect. No, something else baffled her to no end.
“She named it Mr. Snuggles?” whispered Cadence as Poisoned landed on the ground, a large fanged smile on the bat pony’s face as she did so.
Jackal still bore a frown. “What the hay is that thing doing here Poisoned?” he demanded, pointing a spear at the monster earning him a trio of hisses. “Shouldn’t you be helping with Lone Wolf’s stupid project?”
“Ah sure as sugar am.” said Poisoned proudly, lifting her head high as she did. “Lone Wolf wanted me ta put mah special talent ta good use. So all day ah’ve been collectin’ monsters left an’ right ta help us out. These here cutie is mah blue ribbon beast. Gonna be actin’ as security so no varmints get the drop on us like a fox in a hen house. Why ah even…got…” It was then that Poisoned lowered her head and finally took notice of the other ponies. Her gaze seemed to be locked onto Ruby, her jaw dropping slightly.
It was impossible for Ruby not to notice this. Looking very embarrassed, she waved to the other mare slightly and muttered a barely auditable “Hey Poisoned,” as she did so. Before Ruby could put her hoof down Poisoned dashed towards her and wrapped her hooves around the bat mare, putting her in what could have been a bone crushing hug if not for the armor.
“Oh mah stars!” cried out Poisoned happily. “Ruby, ya all came back safe an sound from Canterlot! Oh, I bet the so called fancy grub they serve up there must be the worse! Bet it had ya’ll running back to us as soon as ya saw it. An look at ya’ll, all gussied up in that…pink…armor.” It was at this point that Poisoned had noticed what Ruby and the other two bat ponies that had left with her were wearing. The gears turning in her brain, Poisoned Apple turned her head to finally take notice of the only non-bat pony in the group. Baring her fangs, the monster tamer released Ruby and jumped back. When she landed her fur stood on end like a cat’s as she let out a loud hiss.
“Listen,” said Ruby. “I know this looks-”
“TRAITOR!” roared Poison, that single word echoing all over the Everfree Forest. “Ya brought a princess here?! Did being a lap dog fer them high an mighty ponies make ya forget about us? Ah…we thought we knew ya’ll better.”
“Poisoned,” whispered Ruby as she reached out a hoof. However a hiss from the other mare caused her to flinch before lowering it to the ground.
“An ya,” said Poisoned as she spun around to glare at Jackal. “Why the sam pony hill did ya have ta bring them here for?”
“They wanted to see Lone Wolf,” said Jackal with a smile. “So they’ll see him before we kill them.”
Poisoned stared at Jackal, her mouth hanging open as all of her previous rage seemed to vanish. She just…stared at him. Out of the corner of her eye, Cadence noticed that all of the bat ponies around her looked nervous. Some were gulping as they looked around as if to find an escape route while others took a step back. The only pony other than the pink princess who appeared unworried was Jackal, still smiling at the mare.
Then it happened. Poisoned Apple began screaming at the top of her lungs, pacing back and forth as she did so. Now Cadence may have spent most of her life as royalty but that didn’t mean she had never heard a pony use foul language before. Most of the time it was from guards or members of the castle staff that used profane words when they thought nopony like Cadence was around. But the words and gestures coming from this bat pony put them all to shame. The pink princess felt like vomiting at some of them while others left her confused by their meaning. Even the hydra looked ill by some of Poisoned colorful words!
Eventually Poisoned had to pause in order to catch her breath, allowing Jackal to finally say something. “Are you done making a scene over nothing?” he asked, as if Poisoned had just been yelling at him for spilling milk while acting as if he had doomed all of Equestria.
“Y-Ya damned fool,” growled Poisoned. “Ah can not believe anypony would do somethin’ so foolish. Can’t ya see the danger ya put us in by doin’ this?”
Jackal smiled wider. “The only pony whose in danger is her and these traitors,” he replied.
Poisoned Apple facehoofed. “Ah…Ah give up,” she said. “Ya are just so think ya make a leather hide seem like wet paper.” She then sighed. “Ah’ll let ya tell Lone Wolf about these here ‘guests’.”
“That was my intention,” stated Jackal. “You can take them to one of the cells in that heap of a castle. Hopefully there are some still intact.”
Poisoned snorted. “Seems ta be the only thing in there that don’t need no fixin’,” she said. “Built ta last.”
With that said, Jackal spread his wings before taking to the night sky. He didn’t look back down at the group nor did he say anything else. He simply flew to the castle.
Poisoned let out a sigh before ordering everypony to follow her. Unlike Jackal, she didn’t spread her wings to fly. Instead she had them walk towards the castle. Perhaps she was afraid that Cadence and her guards would be able to survey the area or try to make a run for it. Or perhaps the mare just wanted them to walk. For whatever reason, Cadence did not question it. No, instead she was thankful because it would mean more time to get to know this odd bat pony.
“So,” began Cadence as they walked. “Your name is Poisoned Apple, right?”
“Well looky here, the princess was payin’ attention ta us gutter ponies,” said Poisoned in a mocking tone as she rolled her eyes.
“I’m sorry,” said Cadence gently. “It’s just that I met another pony who belongs to the Apple family. I was wondering if you’re a member.” As she said this, Cadence noticed a change in Poisoned. At the mention of the Apple family, the mare’s ears perked a bit and her movement slowed a tiny bit.
“Ah…was,” she said sadly as her head lowered.
“Perhaps you still are,” said Cadence. “From what I’ve heard, the Apple’s place a great deal of importance on family. I find it hard to believe that they would turn their back to one of their own.”
“That’s sorta it,” said the mare. “Ah wasn’t born an Apple. Gran and Gramps found me as a little foal no more than a few weeks old, half frozen in a river near their farm. Ah…wouldn’t be here today if they hadn’t taken me in an raised like their own. It wa-” Poisoned suddenly shook head back and forth wildly. “Wait a second here now. Why the buck should ah be tellin’ ya’ll anything?!”
“I’m sorry,” said Cadence. “I just want to get to know you. To understand you and the rest of the bat ponies. So I can help you.”
“HA! Like you high an mighty ponies ever cared about us!” barked Poisoned Apple as they entered the castle. The walls looked ancient, perhaps several hundred years had passed since anypony had worked on them. Yet Cadence had no fear that they would collapse on them. She and those with her continued to follow the mare down a flight of stairs the led underneath the remains of the castle.
“It’s true,” said Cadence gently. “And if this Gran and Gramps hurt you in some way-”
“DON’T YA DARE TALK ABOUT THEM!” screamed Poisoned as she spun on the princess, her eyes watering. “THEY WERE THE ONLY PONIES WHO EVER GAVE A LICK ABOUT ME BEFORE AH CAME HERE! YA GOT NO RIGHT!”
Cadence looked at the mare who now had tears running down her eyes. Then, very slowly and carefully, said “I’m sorry.”
“Ya better be,” growled Poisoned. “Gran and Gramps…they always wanted the best fer me. Never listened ta what the others said about me. Even fought ta keep me in preschool. Teachers said they didn’t want mah kind mixin’ with the other foals. They lost an ended up home schoolin’ me as best they could. An every time somepony from town lost something, they would come ta blame me. Said ah had ta have stolen it. But Gran and Gramps even believed a word. Would chase them off their farm with whatever they could get their hooves on.
“But even why ah was a filly, ah knew ah was hurtin’ them something fierce because ah wasn’t a real Apple. Once ah heard them talkin’ late one night about how they couldn’t go ta a family reunion. Afraid how the other Apple’s might react ta me. Wanted ta keep me safe. Ah guess back then ah wanted ta prove ah was a real Apple an started helpin’ more around the farm. Little ol’ filly me trying ta get a farmin’ cutie mark with a big ol’ apple.
“Ah remember how ah got it. One day we began findin’ dead pigs in the pig pen. Scared Gran and Gramps something fierce. Told me ta stay close ta the farm just ta be safe. A few days later ah was tryin’ to apple buck some trees when a manticore came on by with a pig in its mouth. He dropped it an came after me. As he flew at me he growled an…ah could understand it. It was the weirdest thing of mah life. Ah never could understand the other animals, but for some reason ah could understand this monster. Ah bucked him as hard as ah could on the nose an told him no, that he was bein’ a bad monster…an it worked! He could understand me! That’s when this here cutie mark appeared, with an apple an everything. Ah ran back to tell Gran an Gramps the good news, that ah was a real apple. Ah remember them holdin’ me real tight, thankin’ the stars ah was alive while tellin’ me that even without the mark ah was an apple ta the core.”
As Poisoned paused to wipe away some new tears in her eyes, the group came to the lowest level of the castle: the dungeon. There were several barred cages along the walls, each a different size. Some looked like they could hold a dozen or so ponies each while a few other looked like they could barely fit one. Next to the stairway was a hook holding a key ring which Poisoned grabbed with her teeth.
“About a week or two later, that’s when it all came crashing’ down like a mountain of barrels at the rodeo,” continued Poisoned as she lead her captives to the largest cell. “Ah remember that night because Gramps was using some flash cards ta help with mah learnin’. Gran was settin’ the table when we heard the shoutin’. It was the townsponies. They…they said that all the bits in town hall had gone missin an that ah must of taken it. Gran and Gramps tried ta get them ta see reason, but they wouldn’t hear it. Gramps managed ta close the door. T-Then stuff came flying through the windows an then f-f-f-fire started ta spread. T-The door, they couldn’t open it. We ran upstairs an Gran opened a window an told me ta get. A-Ah d-didn’t want t-ta b-b-but they promised t-they’d be r-r-right behind. A-Ah waited in the orchard l-l-like they told me for a w-week. B-But-”
Poisoned couldn’t continue. Instead she slammed the door to the cell, locking Cadence as well as her friends inside. Without checking to make sure they were securely locked in, Poisoned took several deep breaths to calm her nerves.
“There was nothin’ left of my home,” said Poisoned quietly after she had composed herself. “Nothin’ but ash. Mah Gran an Gramp they were the seed that helped that town grow. They were the first ta settle there, helped it grow through the years. An what did they get in return? Nothin’ but hate because they wanted ta raise me like their own. Them rattlers never got punished neither. Celestia just keeps her flat flank sittin’ on that throne of hers up on high thinkin’ she’s some kinda god or the like. Never doin’ nothin’ an getting’ praised fer it. It ain’t right!”
“Poisoned,” whispered Ruby as she moved to the front of the cage. Once she was in front of Poisoned, she reached a hoof out to her but the country mare smacked the hoof away from her.
“Ah don’t need no pity from the likes of ya, TRAITOR!” screamed Poisoned. At the sound of her voice, Ruby’s ears flattened before taking a few step back. Her own eyes seemed to water a bit as she did.
None of this went unnoticed by Cadence. She saw the hurt look in Ruby’s eyes as well as she way she held the hoof that Poisoned had smacked. She also noticed the way Poisoned was glaring at Ruby now. Cadence could tell there was some history between them and that Ruby’s decision to become a member of the guard had shaken it. However, finding out that bit of history would come later.
“I’m sorry for the way you have suffered,” said Cadence gently as she took a step forwards. “And I know that these words won’t do anything to fix the pain you feel or get back everything you have lost. But know that I, from the depths of my heart, am truly sorry for what has happened to you. If I had known what was going on with the bat ponies I would have done something sooner.”
The only response Cadence got was Poisoned Apple snorting loudly and with enough force that it was visible. The bat mare then turned around and headed towards the stairway. But not before telling two of the other bat ponies who had helped bring Princess Cadence to the castle to remain here and keep watch. Then, without another word, Poisoned stormed up the stairs with the remaining bat ponies.
Ruby hung her head as she watched Poisoned leave. “Well, that could have gone better,” she said softly. Cadence slightly nodded in agreement as she looked around their cell. There was an old, almost decayed bucket in one corner that she hoped was empty. If it wasn’t, well, she didn’t want to think of what could be in there at this moment. On the other corner was a bed of straw that looked like it could fit a single pony. Cadence walked over to it and, with her magic, lifted Midnight off her back before setting her in the middle of the bed. This was done so gently that the little filly barely stirred from her slumber.
“So…what do we do know?” asked Darkwing as Cadence kissed the head of her filly.
“We do what we came here to do,” said Cadence. She moved to the front of the cage again, causing the two guards to visibly stiffen. Their eyes remained focused on Cadence’s horn so that they would be ready to attack the moment she tries to blast them with magic or the like. But instead Cadence smiled at them. “Could you please tell me your stories?” she asked them gently.
-x-
Lone Wolf stood in front of a small, round table he had found in the castle ruins. He had no idea who it once belonged to, what it used to be used for, or anything of that nature. For all he knew it could have been part of a filly’s play set (which it could have been seeing it still had some pink paint on it as well as flowers engraved into it). Behind him was the mural of the alicorn they believed to be Nightmare Moon as well as the two bat pony guards flanking her on both sides. The mural of Celestia had been covered up by piling junk in front of it.
Lone Wolf had chosen this spot to be a meeting place for the moment. Every once in awhile he would find himself staring at Nightmare Moon as well as the two bat ponies allowing his mind to wander a bit. Was this really the monster they called Nightmare Moon? Who were the two bat ponies who stood beside her with such pride in their eyes? What happened to them? What was their history? And above all: could they have the same thing?
Well, Lone Wolf was doing his best to answer ‘yes’ to that last question. Ever since they had found the mural, a fire had been lit inside of him. For the first time in so long he felt passion for what was to come as well as hope. He had ordered Jackal to fly to colony to colony in order to get supplies while the remaining bat ponies stayed to do their best and fix this castle up with what they had. All of them were working hard so that they could have the same thing as the ponies in Appleloosa, a more permanent home. A home for all the colonies, for all bat ponies! Here, in this forest teeming with monsters and dangers that kept the ponies that loved Celestia out, they could make a true home for themselves and finally be safe. And the princess on the wall, Lone Wolf could see all of his fellow bat ponies gathering around this spot and look upon her as hope filled their hearts like it had filled his.
Eventually, his hope was to see a town built around the castle. One of the younger bat ponies in his colony had spoken of building tree houses with wooden plank bridges connecting them. They could make their own market place, where bat ponies could trade the goods they made or the food they gathered. They could turn this old castle into a community center with a school and everything. It could even be used as an emergency shelter and the like. And it would stand here, bringing them hope for the future.
But that day was not today. No, today there was still much work that had to be done. On the desk in front of him were papers. Poorly made blueprints of the castle and lists of repairs that would have to be done. The first thing they needed to prioritize was living spaces and making sure they were safe. They also needed to make sure that the roof would stop leaking so they could begin to store various items for the future projects that this place would need. They would also need protection, but luckily Poisoned Apple was on that. Her special talent would be vital for their future.
Wolf’s ear twitched a bit as he heard hoofsteps coming towards him. Looking up from his work he saw Jackal approach him with a smile on his face.
“I take it you have good news?” asked Lone Wolf. “Have any of the other colonies offered supplies.”
“No,” said Jackal. “Not yet. Most are curious as to want we are doing right now.”
“They will find out once we make more headway,” said Lone Wolf as he waved a hoof at Jackal. “If they see this place before we make any real progress they might say that it’s a fool's dream or a waste of time.”
“Which it is,” commented Jackal unhelpfully.
Lone Wolf let out a sigh. “I am not having this argument with you Jackal,” he said sternly. “As Flight Master, it is my duty to look after the colony and to do what is best for it. And right now I believe that this will help us.”
“And I will be right at your side as reality crashes down on you,” said Jackal, still smiling.
“Well then, what’s got you in such a good mood?” asked Wolf as he raised an eyebrow. “Meet a nice filly on your travels?”
Jackal chuckled. “Oh, I met a filly alright,” he said darkly as his smile became wider. “Princess Cadence in fact. It seems like that a member of the Appleloosa colony brought her right to this pile of rubble along with Ruby and those other two traitors. I have them in the dungeon right now.”
When Lone Wolf heard Princess Cadence’s name, his whole body visibly paled. Yet as Jackal continued to speak, color returned. Particularly the color red. By the time Jackal had finished speaking, Wolf looked like he had been boiled alive and his body was visibly shaking with rage.
“H-How could you?!” demanded Lone Wolf as he flared his wings. “You young fool. Do you have any idea what you’ve done? How much danger you put us all in?”
Jackal waved him off. “Oh, you worry too much old stallion,” he said dismissively. “We just need to kill her and we’re good. All we need to decide is-”
“ARE YOU BUCKING INSANE?!!!!!!” roared Lone Wolf as he jumped in front of the younger stallion. “Not only did you bring her here to our doorstep, but you think we can just kill her and be done with it? Fool! Celestia might not give a bit about us, but I’m sure that she’ll tear Equestria apart looking for her niece. And sooner or later she’ll find out what we did to her and then every bat pony in Equestria will pay for your blood lust!”
“It’ll be worth it just to make her feel a fraction of our pain,” Jackal shot back, his wings flaring as well. “Besides, it’s not like it would have mattered. Darkwing of the Appleloosa colony brought her here. She would have found us eventually. All I did was speed things along.”
“You could have sent somepony ahead of you,” stated Wolf. “You could have kept low or stalled for time so we could have left, making it look like we were never here or something. Anything but bringing her directly here! What if she has back up like a squad or something made up of unicorns that are waiting just outside the forest? They’ll come in with horns blazing, ready to save their beloved princess no matter how many bat ponies they ‘have’ to kill. We have foals here!”
“That line of thinking makes you weak and unworthy to continue being Flight Master,” stated Jackal with a hiss as he moved to the side in an effort to move behind Wolf. However, Wolf saw this and the two began to circle each other as Jackal continued to speak. “You still think we should hide, living in fear that we might feel the wrath of the almighty Equestria. We’ve been doing that for hundreds of years and nothing has changed. Instead I say we should be out there with our fangs dripping with their blood. If they come here I will kill as many as I can before they take me down.”
“You narrow minded fool,” said Wolf, a low growl in his voice as he spoke. “Have you ever considered that because we hide the way we do that we are able to continue to live. We hide, we stay out of sight and we are ignored. We are safe. And the safety of this colony is my duty as Flight Master! I refuse to put their lives in danger to fight a battle we can’t win.”
“It’s not about winning,” snarled Jackal. “It’s about getting what’s been long over do. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. A future for a future. They took our futures Lone Wolf. They cast us out of their society because we are different. They think us uncivil so that’s what I’ll give them! And since you don’t have what it takes then I’ll lead this colony after I-”
“After ya what?” came the voice of Poisoned Apple as she and several other bat ponies entered the room. “Ya think no pony will stand up ta ya after ya kill Lone Wolf? If that’s what ya think then ya got more screws loose than my Gramps’ shed.” Behind her a few of the other bat ponies slightly nodded their heads while the rest stared at Jackal.
Jackal snorted in frustration before he glared back at them. ‘Fools,’ he thought. ‘Can’t they see that murdering every last Equestrian is the only path for us? We have a golden opportunity hoofed over to us and they’re too scared to take it!’
“Jackal,” said Lone Wolf, getting the other stallions attention. “Know this, you will never lead this colony. Even if you try to take it by force you will be by yourself. Now get out of my sight and get some sleep.”
The scared bat pony let out a growl. He looked at Lone Wolf before turning to look at Poisoned with an angry gleam in his eyes. For a moment, everypony in the room thought he would attack one of them at any second. But Jackal just let out another growl as he walked out of the room. It was only then that everypony except for Lone Wolf let out a sigh of relief.
As for Lone Wolf, however, relief would not be coming his way anytime soon. As long as Cadence was here, the colony as well as his plans for the castle were in danger. But what to do with her? None of his options looked good, even as a short term solution.
There was also the matter of how Cadence had found out the location of the colony. According to Jackal, she had brought with her one of the Appleloosa bat ponies. Most likely she had meet with Weeping Willow, a Flight Master who should have known better than to give away their location. Even under the threat of death or torture, a Flight Master knows never to reveal the location of the other colonies. So…did Cadence use some kind of magic? That was a possibility. From what he had heard, Cadence was the alicorn of love. Perhaps she had used her magic to make the bat ponies fall in love with her! That would make sense. In fact, it would explain why Ruby and the other two didn’t try to stop her from seeking them out.
“Poisoned Apple,” he said, looking at her with his one good eye. “What do you make of the princess?”
Poisoned raised an eyebrow at this. “What in tarnation is this about?” she asked. “Ah hope ya ain’t thinkin’ about lettin’ her go or trustin’ her.”
“Of course not,” said Lone Wolf as he turned to look at the mural, hoping it would calm him down a bit and give him the strength needed to what needed to be done. “I just need to know if you’re still yourself.”
“Ah…what?” said Poisoned in utter confusion.
“Just answer me,” said Wolf as he turned to look at her. “What do you make of her?”
“Ah think she’s as naïve as a little filly,” said Poisoned. “Comes in here, sayin she wants ta get ta know us so she can help us. Thinkin’ that well just warm up ta her if she pretends like she cares.”
Lone Wolf let out a sigh of relief, happy to see that Cadence’s spell had not been cast on Poisoned. “Good,” he said. “Now then, we’re going to have to play our hooves carefully. I want you to get out there and tame as many monsters as you can as soon as you can. Sooner or later, ponies are going to come looking for Cadence so we’ll need to defend ourselves. But before you do that, I want you to get me that Appleloosa bat pony and Ruby. Also, make sure the ponies watching them are changed every half an hour and make sure their minds are right. If they start praising Cadence or anything like that, lock them up.”
-x-
Meanwhile, Jackal entered the room he had chosen for himself before slamming the door behind him. Said room was located at one of the highest locations still left in what he felt was a crumbling heap. In several spot on the floor were holes that a baby bear could fall through as well as holes in what passed as a ceiling here. It was a room much like most of the rest in the castle. The only reason he had picked this room over the others was because of the windows. Whatever this room had been used for in the past, the four large windows allowed him to see everything. This way if something ever came for them he could attack it right away or flee, depending on the situation.
There was no furniture in the room either, just a pile of leaves that he had gathered to sleep on instead of the hard floor. He knew that some of the others had found things scattered here and there. Bookcases, chairs, a lot of suits of armor, and even a few beds. But Jackal refused to take any of them. He didn’t want anything useless décor in his living space. Nothing that might get in the way if he needed to make a hasty escape or could be used against him should a fight break out in his room. The only thing he would accept as decorations would be the skulls of Celestia and the rest of her ponies lining the wall of his room.
Snarling to himself, Jackal walked over to the pile of leaves where he then laid down. Slowly he closed his eyes with the intent of getting some rest, but part of his brain was still running on rage. He couldn’t believe that everypony here was being so stupid! Letting those traitors live was bad enough, but an Equestrian? And a princess no less? It was downright madness!
‘Wolf, have you forgotten what they are like,’ thought Jackal as he yawned out loud. ‘Those monsters should all be killed, one by one in the slowest most painful way imaginable. If we don’t we’ll all get…locked up.’ And with that, Jackal began to fall asleep.
However, what awaited Jackal in the dream world was not some abstract version of reality with hidden meanings nor was it some random fantasy. It was a nightmare and the worst kind that the bat pony could have conceived.
The first thing Jackal became aware of was that he was smaller. No, that wasn’t completely accurate. He was younger, about three or four and with his cutie mark. The scars on his thin, almost skeletal body were mostly gone while the ones that were there still stung from their freshness. Reaching up to his head he found, to his horror, that both his ears were intact.
Trembling, he looked around to see where he was hoping to whatever god or goddess above him that he wasn’t in that place again. That place forever burned into his memories. But sadly, it was as he had feared. He was in a cage, with thick bars that not even the strongest earth pony had a chance at bucking down. The inside of the cage was bare save two dog dishes that had been bare for far too long. Outside of the cage was a dimly lit room. Light was kept from shining inside due to the super think curtains, but the now young colt could see everything clearly. At one corner of the room was a pyramid of soft looking stuffed animal that had a layer of dust on them. Cobwebs decorated the ceiling as well as the toy blocks that lay scattered across the floor. There was also a crib that, to the colt’s knowledge, had never been used. Above it was a dusty banner that had words on it that the colt was unable to make out.
Seeing this place of pure nightmare caused Jackal to press his super thin body against the edge of the cage as he stared at the door directly in front of the cage. The colt pressed his eyes together, whispering in his head to wake up for he dared not say it out loud. Over and over he mentally chanted ‘Wake up. Please wake up’ as hard as he could.
Then his blood seemed to freeze as his stomach made a noise. It was more of a whine than anything, his body begging for food in order to stay alive. And it was all the noise needed to bring ‘him’ here.
As soon as the noise was made, hoofsteps could be heard storming towards him. The door then violently swung open revealing a large pegasus stallion. Who he was or what he looked like, Jackal could no longer remember. His entire body was dark, like it was being covered by an inky shadow that blocked all of his features except for the golden colored armor that he wore as well as the smell of hard cider.
“How dare you make a noise you little rat?” barked the stallion as he pulled out a cider bottle from behind his back and took a quick sip of it. “Don’t tell me you forgot the rules around here? Never make a sound. Can’t you remember that? Well? By Celestia why do I keep you around? You’re the bucking reason she left!” Jackal’s stomach choose that moment to make another noise, angering the stallion further. “Looks like I have to teach you some more!”
With that, the stallion smashed the bottle against the wall turning it into a weapon. Jackal watched in utter fear as the cage door opened and the stallion reached inside. The bat colt squirmed and did his best to avoid the large hoof but it latched onto his weak leg. Slowly he was dragged before the larger pony who held the jagged bottle in one hoof, poised to strike. Jackal screamed in horror as it came down…
And then he woke up, panting in fright while sweat covered his coat. His scars ached due to the memories of his youth. Quickly he looked around to make sure that he was in his room, only sighing in relief when he saw the crumbling walls of the castle and the windows that were wide open. For a second, a smile of relief appeared on his face. He was safe.
But then the smile vanished as his face hardened. ‘No,’ he thought. ‘None of us are safe. That…princess is still here. Still alive. But not for long.’
-x-
Hot Pants watched as all of the former ranked officers filed out the door, a small smile on her face. For the last several hours, she had been talking now stop as she outlined all of her plans and gave them all of the information she could give. Anything that she thought could help them better prepare for the battle in the morning, it was there with as much detail as she could muster.
She only wished that there could have been a bit more feedback. While she talked, they old officers just sat there and listened. Every once in a long while somepony would ask a question or make a small suggestion, but for the most part the accepted her ideas. It was something that made Hot Pants’ stomach feel uneasy. That they should have corrected her more or put out more idea’s. After all, they were experienced military minds while she had only been promoted due to her social standing.
Using her magic, Hot Pants grabbed all the charts and magic crystals she had brought. Effortlessly they moved through the air and into her saddle bag which closed once the last item was safely inside. While she did this Hot Pants remained focused on the things she had brought with her, making a mental checklist to ensure nothing got left behind. Because of this she failed to notice that the one remaining pony in the room was now in front of her. And when she looked up and saw Raging Storm in front of her Hot Pants gasped in shock.
“A-Ah sorry about that sir,” she stammered while placing a hoof over her heart. “You scared me a bit.”
Raging Storm didn’t say anything right away. Instead, he seemed to be examining her from head to tail in a way that made the young mare feel a little uneasy to say the least. That feeling only grow when Storm began to move, circling her like a carnivore circles its prey. By the time he was back in front of her Hot Pants could feel sweat appearing all over her body while adrenaline began to flow through her veins.
“You don’t deserve to be a Lieutenant,” he said after a bit.
Hot Pants felt her ears flatten against her head, unsure as how to feel about this. On one hoof she was glad that he wasn’t trying anything funny with her. On the other hoof, he wasn’t saying anything she hadn’t thought about herself already and didn’t feel like listening to it.
“You lack leadership,” he continued, his expression unreadable. “When you opened this meeting you were a mess, stuttering like a fool and showing everypony in the room how nervous you were. As for your presentation, it needed more focus as well as better organization. At one point you repeated something you had said earlier.”
“Oh,” said Hot Pants. “Well I-”
“But other than that the material was good,” interrupted Raging Storm as a smile crossed his face.
Hot Pants blinked. “What?” she asked in a dumbfounded tone.
“While there were some flaws in your presentation, the points made were well thought out,” he said. “The information you gave was useful as well the tips and strategies for how to deal with the enemy. Very impressive seeing how you were pressed for time and your level of inexperience.”
“I, uh, thank you sir,” said Hot Pants, unsure as to what was going on.
“But like I said, you don’t deserve to be a Lieutenant,” said Raging Storm. “Or, at least, not yet. What you lack right now is confidence and experience. Something that will need to be changed soon. So, once the princesses have returned and I get my post back, I will be putting in a request for you to be transferred under my commander and under my direct tutelage. I’m sure that within a year or so you will have all the experience needed to become a true Lieutenant. After that who knows. Perhaps in a few years you could become a Captain or even a part of Princess Celestia’s war council.”
Hot Pants stood there, wide eyed with her mouth hanging open. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. One of the top Captains, besides the Captain of the Royal Guard, wanted train her. And at the eastern borders! She had heard that they actually fight pirates! What pony had never dreamed of fighting pirates?
“I don’t know what to say,” said Hot Pants after she took a loud gulp. Her face felt like it was burning up. “I-It’s an honor, r-really.”
Raging Storm nodded. “I assume that I might have to fight Lieutenant Aerial Ace to get you,” he said, a small amount of humor in his voice. “Knowing him, he won’t let go of such a promising pony like yourself. But I believe you’re worth any amount of trouble. I look forward to that day.” And with that, Raging Storm turned and walked out of the room leaving behind a thunderstruck Hot Pants. Once he was out of the room, the mare let out a squeal so loud that it could be heard all across Equestria.
-x-
Ruby looked around nervously as she stood next to Darkwing as the reality of just how much her life had changed. A few days ago she was living in a cave, stealing grain just to survive. Now she was standing in the Castle of the Royal Sisters, wearing the pink armor that Princess Cadence had given her, standing next to a member of the Appleloosa colony who now supported the pink princess, had recently been reunited with her long lost parents, and in front of her was Lone Wolf with a look of disappointment clearly written all over his face. Yeah, her life had become very complicated.
And no matter how she looked at it, this was going to be her hardest trial yet. She would have thought it would have been leaving the colony. Telling Lone Wolf, the stallion who found her then gave her a home like he had so many other bat ponies in the colony and had taught her how to survive in the wilds, that she was leaving to work for Princess Cadence had been a nerve racking experience. But she knew at the time it was the right call. She still believed that with all her heart especially seeing all the good they had done. She felt proud to be wearing her armor.
So why was this moment so much harder? Making her feel so…uneasy? Last time he had barely looked at her or the others when they told him they were leaving. And yet for some reason she would give anything for him to be giving her that same treatment right now. Anything had to be better than that look in his eye.
“I should have seen this coming,” he said after a long while, shaking his head as he did so. “I never should have let you leave for Canterlot.”
“Wolf, I-” began Ruby, but the elder pony held up a hoof to silence her.
“The freedom to leave the colony is the right of any pony,” he said in a solemn tone. “It…it was hard when you said you wanted to serve Cadence. I knew they would do something horrible to you, that they would try to break you. Get you to reveal where we were in order to gain some small bit of release from the pain. Getting you to confess to any crime they saw fit to accuse you with the promise that the pain would end. But I had some hope that you would escape before that. And now, looking at you, I see they have done something far worse.”
“Ahhhhhhh,” said Ruby as she tried her best to wrap her head around what Lone Wolf was saying. Some of it she got and understood. Nearly every bat pony knew what would happen to them if they got caught. There would be beatings, accusations, and so much more. She had known that it there was a high chance of that happening when she left for Canterlot. But that’s not what happened!
“Lone Wolf, I’m fine,” she said as she pointed a hoof to her armor. “Look at me, I’m in perfect health! They’re treating me just fine.”
Lone Wolf however shook his head again. “It must be worse than I thought,” he said as he put a hoof on her shoulder. “You honestly believe what you’re saying right now. How much does that mare have hold of your mind?”
“Ok, explain,” said Ruby as she brushed Wolf’s hoof off of her. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. Next to her, Darkwing flared his wings a bit as if he understood something that Ruby didn’t and didn’t like it one bit.
“You have both been brainwashed,” said Lone Wolf. “Your minds and emotions twisted into thinking that you love Cadence and that she cares for you.”
“That’s a lie!” shouted both Ruby and Darkwing at the same time.
“You poor fools,” said Wolf. “You can’t even see how much she has her claws in your hearts. That witch has managed to convince you that you should betray your own ponies if it would please her. Why else would either of you think that bringing her here would be a good thing? You are both pawns to her, not to be taken seriously. Ruby, why do you think she would put you in that forsaken armor? So that everypony would see you as a joke!”
Ruby rolled her eyes at this. She was so sick of everypony bringing up the color of her armor! But that was minor compared to the other things he was saying. She lifted up a hoof and pointed it at Lone Wolf, ready to tell him off but Darkwing spoke up first.
“Lone Wolf, I can assure you that our minds have not been altered,” he said simply. “We brought Princess Cadence here with the best of intentions.”
“Yeah, I’m sure you think that,” replied Wolf.
“It’s true,” said Darkwing as he spread his wings out to their full length. “Our colony faced a dire situation. Our allies, the buffalo, were being hurt by ponies and those same ponies wanted us out of the desert that they claimed for themselves. And so we fought. Together, bat pony and buffalo were able to defeat the ponies of Appleloosa to the point where we could have driven them out. Then Princess Cadence arrive, blocking us from the final push. But it wasn’t so that she could aid in the fight but to get both sides to find a more peaceful solution. She…she spoke out in our defense and even protected Ruby here when her sheriff assaulted her. The princess even listened to a bat pony’s ideas on how to solve the main problem between the ponies and the buffalo, giving her the credit!”
“She even began laying the groundwork so that the bat ponies can trade their stuff with the Appleloosa ponies,” added Ruby, her voice hard as stone.
“I know it sounds hard to believe,” continued Darkwing. “But it’s true. She even came to our colony and ate besides us. She didn’t complain about the food or wanting a better bed or anything like that. She was nothing but humble and understanding. If I hadn’t seen this with my own eyes then I wouldn’t believe it myself!”
For a moment, Lone Wolf just looked at the younger stallion. His expression had shifted during Darkwing’s confession going from disappointed to a more neutral look. Like he was trying to mask something.
“I’m sure that’s what you think,” said Wolf with a rumble in his voice. “But has it occurred to you that she’s using you? Taking advantage of the situation, making it look like she’s on your side while infecting you with her magic so that she can get all of us at once? She got you to bring her here and-”
“Only after she heard that you were up to something,” said Darkwing in defense, puffing out his chest as he did so.
Lone Wolf narrowed his eyes. “So that’s what it takes to get their attention?” he asked. “Every time we get beaten, locked in a cell for something we didn’t do, or any of the other horrible things Celestia’s ‘precious’ little ponies do to us; it escapes their notice. But doing this? For one of us to build the foundation of an actual home for the bat ponies? A place where we can live like they do, with plenty of food instead of starving in a desert or having to steal just to get by?! In a forest that THEY DON’T WANT TO EVEN ENTER?”
“It was the fact that you were keeping it a secret,” began Darkwing, but stopped when he saw the look in Lone Wolf’s eyes. The coldness of them sent so many chills down his spine that not even the midday heat of the desert could have kept him from shivering.
“You two can’t see it,” raged Lone Wolf. “You’re both under that witch’s spell. I understand that more now than ever. That monster has turned you against your own kind. THAT PINK BITCH HAS-”
What happened next was like a blur. When it was over Lone Wolf found himself on the ground with his left cheek feeling bruised and there was the taste of blood in his mouth. Standing above him with tears in her eyes was Ruby, slowly lowering her hoof as she looked down at him.
“Don’t you ever say that about my princess!” cried out Ruby, tears running down her muzzle as she did. “I’ve seen how much she cares and if you spent anytime with her you’d know that she’s not like that. She’s stood up for us several times now, defended us in the castle and in the desert! And don’t you dare say that my mind is being altered because I know it isn’t because I hate the color of this armor. My princess hates it too but it was only color armor we could get on such short notice! SO DEAL WITH IT!”
Lone Wolf blinked at this, not sure how to respond. Darkwing gently placed a hoof on her shoulder causing her to whip her head in his direction with such speed that it could have snapped off. The look in her eyes softened a bit as he shook his head. Then Darkwing looked at Lone Wolf.
“I can see why you would think something like that,” said Darkwing. “I am no expert in magic, but it could be possible for the princess of love to alter our emotions. However, if that were the case, she would not have to put on grand displays to show that she cared for us. She would not have needed to solve the conflict between Appleloosa and the buffalo in order to get the bat ponies of my colony to show her where we hid. Also, if we were under her sway, we would have told her about our other hiding places and the other exits to our colony.”
Ruby opened her mouth so that she could say something else. Something that she was sure to help Lone Wolf see that her emotions hadn’t been altered. But a sudden screaming that filled the air beat her to it.
-x-
Princess Cadence let out a sigh as the bat pony guard finished his story. This had been the fifth one she had talked to since she had been put in this cell, each one telling her about their past with the ponies of Equestria. Ruby had been telling the truth when she had told her that hers was one of the nicer past’s. Most of the bat ponies here seemed to paint pictures of cruelty in some kind of fashion. They talked about starving, trying to find work without any luck, or just being ignored. To tell the truth, just listening to them had been emotionally draining for the mare. So much so that she turned around, walked past her remaining guards, and laid down next to Midnight until she either woke up or the next bat pony guard came in.
As she looked down at little Midnight, Cadence leaned down and kissed her forehead. It was thanks to this little one that she now knew about what was really going on in Equestria. And just how sheltered she had truly been. She had heard the rumors about them while she was growing up, but dismissed them as that thanks to what her Aunt had taught her. It wasn’t until she had seen what the guards were doing to this little one that opened her eyes to see that there was more to it than just what she had heard. There was hate. Blind, ugly hatred towards the bat ponies that allowed them to be seen as something less. To be treated like sub-ponies.
‘Perhaps we were both kept in the dark to just how bad the situation was,’ thought Cadence sadly. ‘I’m sure if Aunt Celestia had known just how bad things were getting she would have done more. I can only guess that somepony, or someponies, thought that what was happening to these poor ponies was not worth the time or attention of a princess.’ Cadence did not want to dwell on those thoughts any further. She feared that, if she did, her thoughts would turn against those living in Canterlot. Including her own Aunt.
Now Cadence had to think about the future and how she would change it. Something that was looking much harder now. The bat ponies who had lived in the desert had been very different. There they had lived a majority of their lives away from others, interacting only with the buffalo and perhaps some other bat ponies. But these ponies, as well as the rest of the bat ponies living in Equestria, had not known that. Instead they lived each day in fear that they would be found and hurt. They lived their lives in hiding while struggling to survive. With that, how could Cadence ever hope to fix things?
Cadence’s ears twitched as she heard the sound of wings flapping. The others in the room heard it as well for they had all turned their heads to look at the stairway. The ponies that were watching over Cadence’s cell moved forwards a bit with their makeshift spears at the ready. However they there got the chance to use them as Jackal flew towards them, tackling them both to the ground. With savage fury he raised both his upper body and forelegs before bringing them down on his fellow bat ponies creating a horrible cracking noise. Three pairs of eyes stared in horror at the two fallen bat ponies while Jackal took one of the spears and placed it under his wing.
“Y-You killed them,” stammered a shocked Thunderclap as Jackal went over to take the keys.
“No,” whispered Dusk. “Listen, you can still hear their heartbeats. He might have just cracked their skulls or something. But their alive…for now.”
“But that pink sow won’t be for very much longer,” said Jackal as he put the key in the lock, glaring at the two remaining bat ponies as he did.
Jackal opened the door to the cell, only to have Thunderclap and Dusk charge at him. Seeing this, Jackal thrust the spear forwards only to have it break on the pink armor. Dusk got on his hind legs, waving his forelegs around wildly while flapping his wings. Jackal tried to move around him only to have Thunderclap to get in the way, hissing and biting the air in front of the stallion.
Cadence watched as the two caused Jackal to back up, stepping out of the cage as she did so. The two continued to do this with Jackal appearing as if he couldn’t get past his armored opponents. It was only when Cadence saw that they were pushing Jackal towards one of the far ends of the dungeon that she realize their plan. To corner Jackal and to allow her to escape. Nervously she looked at the three of them, then at the door, and then finally at Midnight who was beginning to stir from her slumber.
When she looked at the three bat ponies again, she saw that Jackal’s flank was pressed against the wall. Thunderclap had backed up a bit and looked as if he was preparing for a charge. Cadence knew this was it. So, acting quickly, she moved over to Midnight and picked her up with her hooves.
“What’s going on mommy?” asked a very sleepy Midnight.
“Nothing,” said Cadence super quickly as she played her daughter on her back and then hurriedly made her way out of the cell. “Don’t worry everything will be-” That was as far as she got before letting out a blood curtailing scream. While she had been grabbing Midnight, Dusk had gotten on his hind legs again only to have Jackal tackle him to the ground. Thunderclap had charged, but his opponent let it hit him. But once Thunderclap made impact Jackal used that moment to sink his fangs into the exposed part of his neck. Dusk tried to get up, but Jackal quickly stomped on his wing and then turned around to buck him so hard Dusk’s body flew into the wall.
Now the only bat pony standing was Jackal as he leered at Cadence, blood dripping from his fangs as he did. He took a step forwards and Cadence backed up. Her mind raced with her options.
“Jackal,” said Cadence as she took another step back. “You don’t have to do this.”
Instead of answering, Jackal opened his wings and flew towards the princess. Before she could react, his right hoof connected with her face causing her to fall to the floor. Midnight screamed and Cadence used her magic to teleport her back into the cage where she would be safe while Jackal pinned her down.
“Oh, but I want to do this,” Jackal said. “And you’re smart for a princess. You should have used your magic to stop me.”
Cadence looked him dead in the eyes, doing her best not to show any fear as he opened his jaw to bite her neck. However, before he could do so, the two heard a scream of rage right before Jackal was tackled off of Cadence. Blinking in confusion, Cadence noticed Darkwing next to her doing his best to help her up.
As the alicorn of love got onto her hooves, she saw that Lone Wolf was checking on the fallen ponies while Ruby was on top of Jackal punching him repeatedly with her hooves. Over and over again with a look of pure rage in her eyes Ruby looked like an unstoppable force.
“YOU! DO! NOT! TOUCH! MY! PRINCESS!” screamed Ruby in between blows. She then slowed down so that she pull one foreleg back to deal a final blow, sadly giving Jackal all the time he needed to grab Ruby’s head and deliver a head-butt that stunned her. Now he was the one in control, pressing his hoof against her neck and pressing down with a savage look on his face.
“Don’t worry, the bitch will join you soon,” said Jackal.
“ENOUGH!” roared Cadence as her eyes glowed white. “YOU WILL NOT HURT ANYMORE PONIES THIS NIGHT!” With that said, Jackal found himself being lifted above Ruby’s body. His limbs flaying about, the savage pony tried to get out of the magical grasp. However the only thing that happened was him being flung into one of the smaller, one pony cells. As his body hit the ground the door slammed shut.
“You think,” began Jackal but stopped in mid snarl as he realized where he was. His pupils shrank as he looked around the closed cell. His breathing quickened greatly as he began to press himself against the back of the cage.
Then true fear overtook him as a figure approached the cell. At first he thought it was Cadence. But as she neared, her pink coat vanished turning into an inky black as her horn vanished. Her size also increased as well becoming a giant that towered over him just like it did when he was a colt. And as the figure that would forever haunt him lifted its hoof Jackal let out a scream.
Cadence on the other hoof backed away as soon as Jackal began screaming like mad. After she had thrown him inside the cage she had quickly checked on all of the bat ponies who protected her. Ruby was alright as so was Dusk. Thunderclap, on the other hoof, was still bleeding badly. It looked serious, but not life threatening since Jackal had missed the major arteries. Once she had used her magic to cover the wound she had moved over to the cell. All she wanted to do was to speak with Jackal but the moment she got close he looked like he seen a ghost!
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” screamed Jackal. “I’LL BE GOOD! I’LL BE GOOD! JUST PLEASE SOMEPONY HELP ME!”
Cadence blinked at this odd behavior. It was far different from just a moment ago when he was trying to kill her. Seeing this rapid change made her wonder what had happened to him, what he had seen and had done to him to make him the way he was. Yet that was something that would have to wait because at this moment Jackal had begun sweating blood and his heart was beating so fast she could see it against his chest. It was almost like he was being scared to death! Seeing no other options, Cadence used her magic once more. Slowly, Jackal’s screaming began to lessen as his eyelids grew heavy. Soon they closed completely before he fell into a calm, dreamless sleep where the nightmares of his past could not reach him.
Once Jackal was asleep, Cadence turned and headed back to her cell. As she did, Cadence picked up Thunderclap gently with her magic and laid him on the straw. Once they were all inside the pink alicorn closed the door behind her with Lone Wolf watching all of this from the stairway.
“You could have broken out anytime you wanted,” he said as he stepped into the room. It was more of a statement than an accusation. “We could never have hoped to keep you locked up. So why didn’t you escape or use that magic when you had the chance?”
Cadence turned and gave the older stallion a small smile. “Because,” she said as she moved in front of the door, “I had no desire to leave. I wanted to stay here and earn your trust. If I used magic and left whenever I pleased I doubt you would have taken me seriously. So I decided that I would only use my magic if the situation called for it.”
“Maybe next time you should use it a little sooner,” groaned Thunderclap as he tried to stand but was held down Ruby.
“Agreed,” said Dusk. “Next time you see us getting our flank kicked feel free to step in.”
As Cadence looked utterly embarrassed, Lone Wolf was doing his best to comprehend what he was hearing and seeing. Cadence hadn’t scolded her guards for their failure nor did she seem angry when talked to her like they were…equals. And the way Cadence refused to use her magic up until the last moment. Could it be that she was serious about this? That she truly wanted to talk to him and perhaps…
Lone Wolf shook his head. There was no way he was going to fall for this. It had to be a trick of some kind. An elaborate plot of hers to lower his guard so that he would trust her.
“I’m not falling for it,” said Lone Wolf said as he pointed an angry hoof at her. “I don’t know what your game is, but it’s not going to work.”
“All I want is to talk,” replied Cadence gently as Midnight moved to stand behind her mother. “And I am will to remain here for as long as possible. But, uh, if you had any bandages for Thunderclap we would really appreciate them.”
“Yes please,” moaned Thunderclap. “Or, you know, something to take the pain away.”
“I,” began Lone Wolf but stopped in surprise when he saw Midnight peeking out from behind Cadence. “What is a filly doing in there? Never mind, hoof her to me this instant!”
“She is my daughter,” stated Cadence in a firm tone.
“Come here little one,” said Lone Wolf as he lowered himself to the ground while ignoring Cadence. “Come with me and I’ll take you away from the big mean princess so-”
“No!” shouted Midnight as she continued to try and hide behind Cadence. “I’m staying with mommy!”
Lone Wolf stared at the filly, taken aback by what she had said for a moment. “I know that’s what you think,” said Lone Wolf slowly. “But it’s a lie. She’s a bad pony who doesn’t love you or any other bat pony.”
“Yes she does!” said Midnight as she jumped out and into the open. She then pointed an angry hoof at Lone Wolf. “Mommy saved me from mean ponies. She helped me get better. She feeds me and loves me and let me play with Mr. Shiny! She’s the nicest pony in the whole world! The only bad pony around here right now is you!” Despite the tears now appearing in her eyes, Midnight stuck out her tongue as she finished.
“It’s true,” said Ruby while Cadence took her daughter in her hooves. “She is Princess Midnight Blossom, adopted daughter of Princess Cadence.”
“And this little filly is the one who thought of the idea to help the buffalo in Appleloosa,” added Darkwing. “She is the future hope for all of our kind.”
Lone Wolf was only half listening to them, the majority of his focus was on the two princess. The look on their faces was something he had seen on so many other faces, both in and out of the colony. It was love. Pure, unconditional love for one another. It was so simple, so peaceful yet it caused Wolf to look away for he was not able to fully accept it. As he looked into the faces of Darkwing and Ruby, he saw something in their eyes as the two looked at the pair of princesses.
‘Pride,’ thought Lone Wolf in amazement. ‘They have pride just like those bat ponies do on that wall. That’s what I want for my ponies, for all bat ponies. I want to help bring them pride like that princess did all those years ago. But…should I please my trust in this princess?’ Lone Wolf closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Princess, I am willing to talk,” he said.
And elsewhere, the eyes of a purple unicorn mare began to stir.
“Um girls?” said a quiet, shy voice that belonged to Fluttershy. No pony stirred from their slumber however, each mare sleeping in a different spot across the rocky floor.
Ever since the Lunar ponies had left, the five of them had decided it was best to sleep in shifts. One pony would stay awake watching Twilight for about an hour while the other four got some rest. If anything happened with Twilight then whoever was awake would wake the others.
Now, in front of the shy pegasus, were her sleeping friends. Pinkie Pie lay on her back with her legs spread in all directions while Rainbow Dash used her puffy tail like a pillow. Applejack was also on her back using her hat to cover her face as she silently snoozed. Rarity, still in her dress, had curled up into a ball.
Several more times the timid mare tried to call out to them. When that didn’t work, she walked over to them to try something else. With her hoof she tried to nudge them, hoping that would wake them up. This, however, didn’t seem to work any better. Her friends either swatted away her hoof or acted like they didn’t feel a thing. So while letting out a sigh, Fluttershy decided she had to do something more drastic. Something that was mean and cruel for her to do, but it looked like it was the only way.
“Girls, cider season just started.” she said as loud as she could. Sadly, that made it barely above her normal speaking voice. “Better get up or you’ll miss out.”
As soon as she said the word cider Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack all opened their eyes. Both Pinkie and Rainbow jumped into the air, screaming and hollering as loudly as they could which forced Rarity to awaken as well.
“What’s all this now?” demanded Rarity as she got onto her hooves.
“What in tarnation is goin’ on?” demanded Applejack as she sleepily did the same. “Did somepony forget ta tell me that cider season was here?”
“It’s here! It’s here!” shouted a bouncing pink ball of energy that was all over the place. “I’m going to get all the cider!”
“Not if I get it…” began Rainbow, but trailed off as she looked around the cavern. It quickly dawned on her where she was and that Fluttershy of all ponies had tricked her. She turned her head to look at the yellow pegasus with a deadpanned expression. “Not cool Fluttershy, not cool at all.”
“Oh, sorry.” said Fluttershy as she tried to make herself look small by lowering herself to the ground. “I, uh, just thought you all might like to know that Twilight looks like she might wake up soon.”
“Really?” said Rarity as she moved over to her shy friend and placed a hoof on the mare’s shoulder. “Darling, that is wonderful news! As soon as she wakes up she can tell us who attacked her and then we can get out of this dirty cave.”
“And then we can have CIDER!” shouted Pinkie as she continued to bounce up and down.
“Pinkie ah.” began Applejack, but stopped herself and let out a sigh. She looked at her friend with a small smile. “Sure thing there Pinkie. There’ll be plenty of cider for everypony once we get back home all safe an’ sound.”
The delighted pink mare was grinning like a mad pony, showing off all of her teeth as she hopped over to where Twilight was while the other walked. They circled themselves around her cot seeing that indeed it looked like Twilight was beginning to awaken. Her body, which had remained completely still up to this point was making small movements here and there. Her eyes were twitching as her lips smacked against each other. As five head leaned forwards they saw the moment when Twilight began to slowly open her eyes.
They opened slowly, but not even Rainbow Dash let out a complaint. They were all happy to see her awake and well. They watched with smiles on their faces as Twilight looked back, her sleepy eyes moving from one face to the next until she had looked at all of them. Once she had looked at all of them a smile began to creep across her face. Her mouth open and it looked like she was about to say something but stopped suddenly as her gaze became focused on something past them. The five mares, seeing this, turned their head to look at what held their friends focus but found nothing. All that was there was the grey, rocky ceiling of the cave. When they looked back at Twilight they all could see a tremble that ran through the mare’s body as her face contorted into an expression of horror with tears forming in her eyes.
Before anypony could say anything, Twilight broke out into a loud scream. Her body began to flail about while her horn lit up brighter than anything they had ever seen before. While they had been startled for a moment, they quickly moved to hold her down as best they could with Rainbow and Applejack holding down her hind legs, Pinkie and Rarity held down the forelegs, and Fluttershy taking hold of her barrel. Whatever spell Twilight tried to cast fizzled out creating more panic for the purple unicorn.
“Twilight, ya need ta calm down!” shouted Applejack. “Yar stiches will break!” Twilight either didn’t hear, understand, or care as she continued to try to break free of the five ponies. Soon, the blanket covering her started to turn red right above where she had been stabbed proving that Applejack had been right.
“Fluttershy, use your stare on her!” shouted Rainbow Dash as she did her best to hold down one of Twilight’s legs. And was failing.
“B-But I.” began Fluttershy.
“Just do it!” yelled Rarity as she eyed the growing blood stain.
Fluttershy gulped before letting go of Twilight. She flew above the chaos as quickly as she could before lowering herself so that her face was inches above Twilight’s. Fluttershy took a deep breath as she prepared to do something she had never done to another pony before. Usually she only used her stare on animals as a last resort and even then she felt guilty about it. But seeing the danger her friend was in forced the mare to give in. Waiting only a second or two longer Fluttershy used her famous stare.
At first nothing seemed to happen as Twilight continued to flail about wildly, her horn beginning to glow once more. Fluttershy leaned forwards a bit, focusing more of her attention on her in order to increase the power of the stare. This seemed to work as Twilight stared back at Fluttershy, her limbs going limp. However she hadn’t lost the look of fear she had or the tremble of her lower lip.
Seeing that the stare was working, the four other ponies released their hold on Twilight. As soon as Applejack let go she went right for the bags that Shadow Blade and Land Share had left them. Inside these bags were all sorts of things that the mares could use like food, water, and many other things. But the most import thing that Applejack was looking for was medicine that Shadow Blade himself had secured and checked to make sure it wouldn’t hurt the mare he loved.
Eventually she found what she was looking for: a six inch long stick which Applejack held onto with her teeth. Remembering what Shadow had told her when he had given them the medicine, she walked over to Twilight and pressed the device against her neck. The thing made a hissing noise for a moment, but other than that nothing seemed to happen. Twilight still seemed to be freaking out.
Watching from above, Fluttershy fly down to land next to where Twilight lay. As soon as she could no longer see Fluttershy Twilight seemed to begin shaking again. But before she could start another full on freak out, Fluttershy began to gently stroke her mane while singing a song lightly. Her voice, calm and full of compassion, slowly drew Twilight’s attention towards her.
Applejack also found the melody enthralling, but the sound of something ripping behind her caused the cowpony’s ears to twitch. Looking behind her, Applejack saw something she would never of believed had she not seen it with her own eyes. Rarity had taken off her fancy dress and was now ripping it into long shreds! So far there were several of the torn off pieces on the floor with the gems that had been sown on them removed.
“Rarity, are you sure you want to do that?” asked Pinkie as she picked up one of the pieces. “I mean, didn’t you say that you say that was one of the best dresses you ever made?”
“Oh, I don’t mind darling.” said Rarity as she used her magic to pick up all of the torn fabric including the one that Pinkie had. “Twilight needs them right now more than I do.”
“That’s mighty generous of you Sugarcube.” said Applejack as Rarity moved over to Twilight.
Rarity waved off the comment with her hoof while her magic lifted the blood stained blanket off of Twilight. “Think nothing of it darlings.” she said while applying the fabric to Twilight in the hope she could stop the bleeding. “Besides, to tell you the truth, I was getting tired of that old thing. And at least this way Twilight will look slightly more fashionable as she heals.”
“Ah, didn’t you make that one like last week?” deadpanned Rainbow. Rarity ignored the comment, instead focusing on Twilight. Using her magic, she did her best to wrap the cloth around Twilight’s chest. However, she was afraid that if it was too tight it might hurt her and if it was too loose then she might not heal properly. If only she had paid more attention to that first aid class back at that unicorn summer camp her parents had made her go to. But how could she focus on anything other than how dreadful and tacky the uniforms were?
Luckily for her, Fluttershy was there to help. Without breaking from her song, she helped guide Rarity with her hooves and soon Twilight was all bandaged up as best as they could manage given the circumstances.
Eventually, Fluttershy stopped her singing. “There, there.” she said as she stroked Twilight’s mane.
“Gigawatt.” croaked Twilight catching everypony’s attention. However, it looked like her freak out had sapped her strength or she had been in such a state of fear that adrenaline had given her all of that strength. But regardless, right now it looked like it was taking everything she had to talk. “Shadow…Must warn…Princess…Land Share…”
“Don’t worry none Sugarcube.” said Applejack. “Everything’ll be alright.”
-x-
Shadow hated the Gen 3 armor. It was slow, bulky, and hard to move around in. It weighed soo much that he doubted he could fly in the void blasted thing even if he could get his wings out. Which he couldn’t! They were trapped in there along with the rest of him! And the helmet! Oh, that was what he hated most of all. Bad enough somepony though it would be a good idea to have a voice filter on it (which given the fact that it would only help somepony if they were doing a breakout in it like he had made it seem like an even worse idea) but somepony thought that the helmet should have apps. Really? Did he really need to know how many steps he had taken since putting the thing on? Did somepony in the Guard want to brag about that back in the day? No wonder the Gen 3 model only lasted three weeks.
However, despite how much he hated it, the Gen 3 model did have one saving grace. And that was allowing a pony to walk outside of Domes for several hours. Something that Shadow was extra grateful for as he walked over to Dome One. The long way.
Sadly, this was the only way he knew that would allow him to reach the LBI headquarters without anypony seeing him. Also the Gen 3 model didn’t have anything that would allow him flight or move faster than a basic walk (who designs armor that doesn’t let you move fast?) meaning that this was eating up more of his time. Time he couldn’t afford to waste. Every minute that went by was another minute closer to the start of the war. And the only app that was NOT included in this piece of junk was a void blasted CLOCK! What was with all of these design flaws?! It had to be on purpose.
As Shadow considered playing eye spy with himself in order to pass the time, and throwing the idea out the airlock seeing how pointless it was on the surface of the moon, he began to pick up some static on his head set as well as voice he could barely make out. As his equipment began to compensate automatically, Shadow could feel his heart begin to race.
‘That sounded like Applejack.’ thought Shadow as the voice on the other end began to clear up a bit. ‘I knew it was a good idea to give her that communicator!’
“Shadow, do ya hear me?” said Applejack. “How the sam pony hill do ponies-”
“I read you Applejack.” said Shadow quickly as he continued his trek. “Is everything ok? How’s Twilight?”
“Oh thank Celestia.” said Applejack. “Ah thought this here piece of junk ya gave me wasn’t working properly. Anyway, we’re all ok here and Twilight just got up. So ah guess things are lookin’ mighty fine.”
“Thank the stars.” breathed Shadow as he felt a weight being lifted off of him. While he would have preferred to have been there for her, Shadow was glad to hear she was awake. That was a good start.
“But there was a bit of a problem.” continued Applejack. “When she woke up, Twilight sorta went a little crazy. Started freakin’ out like chickens when they spot a fox entering the hen house.”
“She…oh stars above.” said Shadow as what he had been told sank in. “Please tell me it wasn’t too bad this time.”
“Why?” asked Applejack in a way that Shadow could hear her eyes narrowing at him. “Has this sorta thing happen before?”
“A few.” said Shadow as he tried to pick up the pace. The faster he got to the offices of the LBI the faster he could get back to Twilight. “It all started back when we were foals. There was…an accident. There was a plan years back spearheaded by Twilight’s father to create a series of underground tunnel connecting each of the Domes. A place where ponies could walk about and shop. On the day of the accident, both of our families were there. I remember that the adults were talking about something while me and Twilight were just playing around with Shining Armor only half paying attention to us while he played a video game. Then, without warning, there was a rumble. Things started happening really fast. I remember my dad picking me up with his teeth and tossing me. T-That’s how I got my scar, when I-I landed near Shining Armor. When I got up, we…there was only rocks around us while Shining Armor’s shield protected me and Twilight’s family.”
“Sugarcube.” whispered Applejack. “You mean…”
“They didn’t make it.” said Shadow slowly. “And sadly, Shining Armor’s shields weren’t as powerful back then and…and he couldn’t protect all of us. Or at least not for very long. Twilight, she got knocked out somehow so she couldn’t help and neither of Twilight’s parents were all that great with combining magic. I remember Twilight’s parents telling him to shrink the shield to protect just us. Shining tried to argue, but they said that they wanted us to live and made him promise to look out for Twilight. Then…Shining…he did what he had to do. Twilight, when she woke up, didn’t take it all very well. She exploded with magic and saved us, bringing us to the surface were Princess Luna was there.
“Once word spread that we were the only three to survive, ponies in the Republic treated like celebrities. And as we got older our fame seemed to grow with each accomplishment. But we never saw ourselves like that. We each bore different scars, some on the outside while others… Twilight, she could never be in a cave or anything similar to it after that day. Unless somepony like me, Shining, Land Share, or Princess Luna is there to calm her down she’ll go out of control. I’m glad you mares were able to do that.”
After that there was silence between the two. Shadow waited for Applejack to say something cruel to him. To yell at him for putting Twilight down there knowing what had happened to her as well as knowing what would happen to her if she woke up. And part of him wanted her to do that. The logical part of his brain told him that he had done the best he could in such a short amount of time and that the cave had been the best hiding place for her. Yet he knew he had hurt Twilight and for that he deserved anything Applejack dished out to him.
“Ya want ta talk ta her?” was all Applejack said.
Shadow blinked in surprise. “Y-Yeah.” he mustered. For a moment there was silence as Applejack was most likely moving closer to Twilight. Then…
“Shadow.” came Twilight’s voice weakly.
“Hey there.” said Shadow softly and warmly. “How’re you doing?”
“G-Gigawatt.” said Twilight. “Must…Gigawatt…Stop…”
“It’s ok Twilight.” said Shadow. “We’ll stop him, don’t worry.” While he said this, Shadow could pick up the sounds of the communication device being moved again. And in the background, he could still hear Twilight talking in broken sentences.
“Been like this ever since her freak out.” said AJ in a solemn tone.
“H-Has she said anything else?” asked Shadow. “Anything about what happened?”
“Sorry Sugarcube.” said Applejack in a way that told Shadow she was shaking her head while saying this. “All she keeps sayin’ are words an’ names. Same names over an’ over again in fact. Ah reckon she says your name an’ Gigawatt’s the most.”
“Well, at least she’s alright for the moment.” said Shadow. “Hopefully she’ll be able to tell us more as she gets…better…oh buck me.”
“What? Shadow, ya ok? Shadow?!” cried Applejack. However, Shadow didn’t reply right away. Instead, his gaze was focused on something in the distance that told him they were running dangerously short on time.
The sun was beginning to rise.
-x-
Back in the Everfree Forest, Princess Cadence was walking around the ruins of the castle. For a castle that was over a thousand years old, Cadence was impressed it was still standing despite the condition it was in. Even more impressive was all the items that had been left here by her aunt. Some of these things included suits of armor and a library containing enough books that could put the one in Canterlot to shame.
But what impressed her most of all was the work being done to repair it. Before, Cadence had only been given a glimpse of what Lone Wolf’s colony had been up to. Now she could see the extent of the repairs they had made, both successful and unsuccessful. Something that didn’t surprise her. After all, most of these ponies didn’t have a formal education or had taken up an apprenticeship making what they were doing right now more trial and error. Also, from what the princess could see, the materials they were using weren’t the best for this kind of job. They had no cement, ropes, nails, or any real tools. Instead they were using uneven rocks, vines, and branches to fix up what they could. It was impressive to see how much progress and determination they had, but they still had a long way to go.
Besides Cadence was Lone Wolf who had been showing her around while they talked. Well, mostly he did all the talking while Cadence asked questions. The main focus of this was to find out what Lone Wolf had planned, both short and long term. Even if Cadence already knew or had guessed, she still wanted to hear it all from Wolf’s mouth. So far the plan was to create a place where all of the colonies could live together in peace without fear of Equestria. Lone Wolf explained about all the natural defenses the forest gave them as well as a plenty of monsters that Poisoned Apple could tame for them and use them to scare away any foolish ponies who might enter. They had already gotten a general idea where all the nearby towns were that shared a border with the forest so they knew where to focus the monsters.
Along with Lone Wolf was Poisoned Apple, who walked besides him at all times. Skittering across the mare’s back and mane were at least a dozen or so star spiders, their many eyes focused on the pink princess who was doing her best not to shudder at the sight of them. Most likely Poisoned brought them along to help protect Lone Wolf should Cadence try anything.
Cadence had her own protection. Walking on her other side were Darkwing, Ruby, and even little Midnight. Despite the beating she had received, Ruby wanted to be there to protect Cadence as well as help with the proceedings as best she could. Darkwing served as an ambassador for the Appleloosa colony. And Midnight, well, Cadence wanted her daughter to be near her at all times.
“So there you have it.” said Lone Wolf as the entered the audience hall that had once belonged to the two royal sisters. “As you can see, we don’t want any trouble from the rest of Equestria. All we really want, all we have ever really wanted, is to live in peace and now we finally have the chance! A chance to do more than just survive.”
“That is true.” said Cadence with a nod. “But I worry how long this will last. Even though nopony wants this forest right now, there may come a time when that may change. Also, have you given any thought of how you will continue to find more bat ponies who are in need of a home?”
“What kind of foalhardy question is that?” demanded Poisoned as she stomped her hoof on the ground causing the star spiders on her to jump slightly before returning to crawling across her body. “We’ll just keep on doin’ what we’ve been doin’!”
“It’s not that simple,” said Darkwing. “If the bat ponies all come here, there will be a limit to how far they can fly without being spotted. In the desert, we don’t have to worry so much about being spotted but there is still a limit to how far out we can go. Usually we find bat ponies around the edges of the desert while the buffalo pick up and take care of any bat ponies they come across until they can meet up at the colony.”
Cadence nodded. “Because the colonies are spread out throughout Equestria, it has been easier for bat ponies to find members of their tribe and bring them to safety. However…”
“It…would be much harder to do so.” finished Lone Wolf in slow realization. “I hadn’t thought about that.”
“And like the princess said, what will happen if you’re found out.” said Ruby. “Either somepony spots you flying into the Everfree Forest or hikers somehow get past the monsters and find the castle or a lumber company will show up or something else. The point is, sooner or later this place will be found out. And you know how ponies will react once they find you.”
“Most likely they’ll be accusin’ us of stealing this place an’ everything that ever went missin’ around these here parts,” growled Poisoned. “Great, just bucking great. There really isn’t no place we can settle down.”
“I wouldn’t say that,” said Cadence gently. “What if all this was given to you? Officially?”
Lone Wolf and Poisoned Apple looked at each other in confusion, not understanding what the princess was getting at. Seeing this, Cadence decided to continue while Midnight began to walk around the room as she spotted what could be something fun to play with.
“I have been thinking about this for a while now.” began Cadence. “I know that the issues that bat ponies have been facing won’t be fixed overnight. While there are areas, like Appleloosa, are trying to change I fear that other areas of Equestria will be slower. Then there are the bat ponies, many of whom are not willing to trust non-bat ponies giving their history. And I fear that there might be others like Jackal. I have gone over every option in my head over and over again, trying to figure out what I can do so that you bat ponies don’t suffer needlessly while I do what should have been done long before now. What I came up with was this: I can draw up a legal document with the royal Equestrian seal on it that will give the Everfree Forest and everything in it to the bat ponies, creating a temporary micro-nation.”
“A micro-whatis?” said Poisoned as she tilted her head. Even the star spiders scratched their heads, not understanding what Cadence was saying.
“Basically, a smaller country within a larger one.” explained Cadence. “Or, another way of looking at it, a sanctuary. A place where bat ponies can live independently from the rest of Equestria.”
Lone Wolf snorted. “Sounds like a fancy way of saying we’ll be caged up.” he said.
“No,” said Cadence as she shook her head. “Bat ponies are going to get the freedom to live as they so choose. If they want to try cooperation with other ponies then they can head to Appleloosa where they are giving the idea a shot. However, if bat ponies wish for isolation, then they may head here. In the Everfree Forest, bat ponies will be able to govern themselves and live without fear of other ponies. Steps will be taken to ensure your safety like having a few of my own personal guards patrolling the edge of the forest as well as having a magical fire placed within this castle so you may call on me for help should something happen. I will also work to ensure that any bat pony born in Equestria will be sent here if his or hers parents do not wish to keep their foal. And if at any time you wish to leave this place you may do so.
“However, I have to insist that this will not be a permanent thing. My overall goal is to see all of the ponies in Equestria living side by side. There will be times when I will ask you to try trading with the rest of Equestria and allowing non bat ponies to live here alongside you. If you do not feel up to it or feel that it is too soon I will understand. And then, when you are ready, when you give the ok, this land will return to Equestria.”
Lone Wolf tapped his chin with his hoof. It sounded promising. If Cadence gave them this land then no pony could say that they stole anything in it. There wouldn’t have to hide making it easier for them to expand and create a true home for themselves, a true identity. Also he could wait and see how things were going with this deal before he contacted the other colonies. If Cadence held up her end of the bargain then he could slowly invite the other colonies to live here. If this was a trap then at least the others would be safe. However…
“I have a question.” said Lone Wolf. “What would happen if, let’s say, a few ponies from Equestria came here and started causing trouble?”
Cadence looked him in the eyes. “You are free to do whatever it is you feel you must do.” she answered. “While I would prefer it if you were to detain them until both parties can agree what to do with them the fact is that this is your land.”
“That…sounds reasonable.” answered Lone Wolf, surprising Cadence a bit. Something that didn’t go unnoticed by the elder pony. “Cadence, I have been around long enough to know how revenge works. If we killed or beat or used excessive violence against anypony who came here for whatever reason, there would be those who would want revenge regardless of the reason. And that will only lead to more and more trouble, something that neither of us wants. Perhaps, after you make this document, we can talk about how this will work a bit more.”
Smiling, Cadence opened her out to reply. However, somepony else spoke first.
“Mommy! Mommy! Look at these!” Cadence looked to the other side of the room where Midnight’s voice had come from. The little filly was standing on top of a small pile of circular stone, five of them in total. Each one had a small shape indented into them, but other than that nothing else about them was worth noting. However to Midnight they were the most fascinating things in the world. Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she jumped off of the small pile.
“What are those?” asked Cadence as she approached her daughter.
“I don’t know.” answered the filly as all of the adults approached her, she reached a small hoof out to touch the nearest one. “But they’re pretty.”
“Pretty useless if ya ask me.” muttered Poisoned Apple in a way that only the adults could hear her.
“Would you like them?” asked Lone Wolf. Instantly Midnight began to nod her head vigorously.
“Are you sure you want to give them up?” asked Cadence.
Lone Wolf nodded. “I’m sure.” he said. “We found the things here, but all they do is take up space. Must have been used as some sort of fancy art thing a thousand years ago or so. But to us they’re useless. And if they had any real value they would have been taken when your aunt left this place. Just think of them as a gift. A peace offering. Or-” Before Wolf could say anything else, Midnight had jumped into the air and wrapped her tiny hooves around his neck in order to give him a hug.
“You’re the best Mr. Wolf!” she said.
Cadence watched with a smile on her face as Lone Wolf patted the filly on the head, smiling as he did so. As the little filly hugged him, the light of the dawn began to flow through the cracks in the wall giving the scene an almost heavenly feeling. However the heartwarming scene couldn’t last. All too soon a bunch of branches fell from the ceiling and crashed onto the floor near them. Looking up, everypony as a single bat pony wave nervously through a hole with one hoof while holding a crude makeshift hammer in her mouth.
“Of all the times.” growled Poisoned as she took to the air. The other pony looked like she wanted to be anywhere else at the moment as Poisoned flew up to her. Once she reached the hole, Poisoned began to swear up a storm at the other pony causing Cadence to use a spell that encased Midnight in a soundproof bubble.
As the swearing continued, Cadence looked down at what had fallen and sighed. She knew that while this isolation would keep them safe, it would mean that they would be without supplies that they would need to build their new home. Then, as she looked back up, Cadence saw the cutie mark on Poisoned Apple’s flank causing an idea to pop into her head. An idea that might solve this problem as well getting the bat ponies to trust others. And maybe one extra problem.
“Lone Wolf.” said Cadence, getting the groups attention. “Perhaps we should also get you a liaison.”
“What the hay is a ‘liaison’?” asked Wolf.
“A pony who can act as your link to the outside world besides me.” explained Cadence. Lone Wolf narrowed an eye at this causing Cadence to explain herself quickly. “If you want supplies in order to get this place going quicker, you will need some help. I happen to know of a single family that lives near here who might be more than willing to help you out.”
“I don’t know.” said Wolf, uncertainty hanging in every word.
“Think about it.” said Cadence. “A pony who will go to the store for you to pick up the nails, lumber, stones, and anything else you need without raising suspicion for who it’s for or avoiding getting over charged for very little. Or what if there is a medical emergency? I won’t be able to get here quick enough to deal with that sort of situation, but a liaison will at least be able to provide over the counter medicine and the like.”
Lone Wolf mulling this over. Personally, he wanted to avoid other ponies right now. And how would he know if he could trust this family? For all he knew these ponies might take advantage of them or betray them. However, as he looked at the debris that had just fallen, he knew Cadence had a point. There was so much they needed and the only way they could get the right stuff was to steal it, something Lone Wolf was against.
“Very well.” said Lone Wolf with a sigh. “But I want to meet with this ‘liaison’ of yours first.”
Cadence smiled. “Well then, we better not keep him waiting.”
-x-
Gigawatt frowned as he sat in front of a large computer scene. Scenes from the camera flashed before him as he searched for the missing Equestrians. So far he had watched as the maids polished various items around the castle, guards preparing for war, and other staff members going about their duties. However there wasn’t a single pony that looked like the five escaped criminals or the unicorn they had taken.
This troubled Gigawatt greatly. He had gone through the castle’s surveillance footage several times now and there was nothing. But that was impossible! Cameras were placed everywhere so they should have been spotted by now if they were still in the castle. Escaping the castle was also impossible. Even if they could somehow slip past all the cameras there were plenty of guards outside who knew full well what Twilight and the others looked like making it impossible for them to just walk out the front door. And if they had managed to do that, Gigawatt had already pulled up platform information which showed that nopony had used it since an hour or so before the breakout was discovered.
Gigawatt brought both hooves up to his forehead to massage his temples. They couldn’t have teleported out of the castle thanks to the anti-teleportation field. As long as the field was in place no pony could teleport with the castle. And any pony trying to teleport into the castle would be redirected to one of the anti-magic holding cells.
As Gigawatt lowered his hooves he realized that there were only two possibilities that remained. Or at least as far as he could see at the moment. The first was that they were somehow deceiving the cameras and the other was that they were in an area within the castle that didn’t have any at all. Both options, however, required one thing: knowledge of where all the cameras were located. And the only way they could know that was if they had help
‘Of course they are getting help,’ thought Gigawatt angrily. ‘Not only did all the cameras in their cell turn off but all of the prisoners in their pods were put into VR therapy. Somepony is helping them as well as hiding them somewhere in the castle. But who, where, and why?’
Gigawatt closed his eyes as he began to think. As he did, his thoughts drifted towards Land Share. The stallion had been acting weird. Despite what he said he should have been more worried and frantic about Twilight. Given the amount of time between him finding out and making the suggestion not to contact Princess Luna, Gigawatt felt that there wasn’t enough time to compose himself. Then there was the fact that Land Share wasn’t pestering him endlessly for updates or anything similar. Simply put, he was far too calm.
Then there was the dirt that the Senator had left behind. It seemed odd that dirt would have been on his hoof given the fact that his Dome was no more. Nor was it the same kind of dirt that a pony would find in a farming Dome. No, it was more like the grey dirt out in the training fields, in the courtyard, or outside the Dome. Could he have just returned from talking to Captain Shadow right before they met? He couldn’t have been outside the Dome. The only other place Gigawatt could think of would be…
Gigawatt’s eyes shot open at the sudden revelation. A small smile appeared on his face as he lifted his head to look up at the computer scene.
“Computer,” said Gigawatt in a smug tone. “Pull up all activity for Senator Land Share. I want to see where he had been for the last several hours. Make a priority check for anytime he vanishes from the cameras with information on where it happened.”
“Command accepted,” replied the computer as the data appeared on the screen. Gigawatt looked at the screen, a small smile appearing on his face as he did so.
Captain Starway looked out at the screen before her which showed the planet. It still amazed her to no end how…breathtaking the planet looked up close. From here she could better make out some of the details the surface had like the mountains which were tipped with snow or how the more forested areas had a different shade of green to them than the valleys. Starway felt like she could get lost in this beauty. And when Princess Luna rose the sun, its majesty brought tears to her eyes. Now more than ever it felt wrong that ponies like Equestrians were allowed all of this wonder.
As she continued to look out at the wondrous sight before her bridge crew were issuing various status reports. The first crew member to report said that all of the satellite crystals they had brought with them for Operation: Umbrella were in there proper placed forming a grid like pattern around the planet. The next informed her that their holding bays were at 85% occupancy, full of food and other provisions that they had taken from Equestria. As more ponies continued to talk, Starway could help but think that they were ready.
At least, for the most part. The only delay currently known came from Shining Armor and his shuttle. They had been moving from city to city all night in search of Princess Cadance with no positive results thus far.
‘At least this means she’s not in the capital.’ thought Starway to herself since Canterlot was the first place Shining Armor had scanned. ‘Now we don’t have to worry about pulling our punches.’
The sound of a door opening and closing behind her caused Starway to turn around. Seeing that it was Princess Luna dressed in her armor once again Starway started to bow but stopped halfway. To put it simply: Princess Luna looked drained. The parts of her coat that she could see seemed to have a sheen of sweat and seemed to be breathing as if she had just run a marathon around the moon without pause. To make matters worse, Starway could clearly see that her princess’ eyes were drooped from all the way across the room.
“P-Princess on bridge.” stammered Starway as she watched Luna move towards her. Each step the princess took seemed slow and a bit wobbly.
“At ease.” said Luna while trying to appear strong. However, once the ponies saw her they knew she was putting on a show for them.
“Princess, are you alright?” asked Starway as she moved over to Luna’s side as quickly as she could.
“I…will be fine.” admitted Luna while choosing her words carefully. “Raising and setting both the sun and moon was considerably draining. It will be several hours before I’m back to full strength.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t go planet side.” urged Starway. “In your current condition-”
“The sentiment is appreciated.” said Luna as she held up a hoof to silence the captain. “However, you are forgetting a few things. While I may not have my magic, my armor will more than make up for that inconvenience. Not only will it help me in battle, but two new functions have been added like an emergency teleportation system that will return me to Dome Zero should either it detect my life is in danger or I issue the command verbally. The other is our ace in the crater: the activation system for Operation: Umbrella. Only I have that so should I deem the war is not going in our favor then I shall activate it. What’s more, there will be three hundred of our fully armed soldiers coming with me.”
For a moment, the two ponies stared the other in the eye before Stareye blinked and looked away. Slowly she sighed in utter defeat.
“Shall I teleport you and the others into position then?” asked Stareye.
Princess Luna shook her head. “No Captain. Bring Crescent Hope close to the surface so that we may make a show of it.”
Starway’s mouth was agape at this. Out of the corner of her eyes she could see that all the other ponies in the room were expressing their shock in a lesser manner. Why would the princess ask them to do something like that? It wasn’t like they lacked the power or that it would tax their systems. The only thing it would do would waste their time.
“Princess, please help me to understand.” said Starway. “Why do this?”
A grim smile appeared on Luna’s tired face. “It is called ‘Shock and Awe’, Captain. We are going to make sure their army knows what they are up against. Remind them just how much more advanced our technology is compared to them. When they see Crescent Hope flying above them, dropping our troops off onto the ground, then the seeds of fear will be planted. And then they will lose hope.”
-x-
Poisoned Apple looked at the sign above her with all four of her legs trembling. Everything else around her was so serene. There was the early morning sun which created a light mist across the open fields behind them. Before her were dozens, if not hundreds, apple trees that were just waiting to be bucked while the sweet scent of their blossoms filled her nose. All of these things brought back happy yet painful memories of her life when she lived with her grandparents, almost bringing tears to her eyes. This wasn’t the first time she had seen this place, the last time being up in the sky when she and the rest of her colony were making their way into the Everfree Forest. At the time there had been a slight pain in her heart and a fearful idea as to who these fields belonged to. But now, her fears were confirmed by the sign that said Sweet Apple Acres in big friendly letters.
“There’s no need to be afraid. I’ve met with them before.”
Poisoned Apple turned to look at Cadance who had been the one speaking to her. On her back was Midnight who was looking around in abject wonder of everything around her. To her right was Ruby, while flanking her left was Lone Wolf. Behind Cadance was the remainder of her guards as well as Darkwing. Each of the adults, including Poisoned Apple, carried one of the circular stones that had been given to Midnight as they followed Cadance to their destination.
The stones had caused a bit of a problem for them. Under normal circumstances they all could have flown out of the forest and been here in less than an hour. However due to the weight of the stones, and Cadance’s fatigue from staying up for so long wouldn’t allow her to levitate them, forced them to make the trek on hoof. At the time, Poisoned had complained about the amount time they were wasting saying that they could have just left the dumb rocks back at the old castle and just come back for them. Now, however, she was wishing that the trip had taken even longer.
“Ah’m not yellow.” said Poisoned. “Ah’m just…surprised. Not seen hide nor hair of any of mah kin before now. Don’t got no idea how they’ll react ta me.”
“Well, we’re all here for you.” Cadance said while stifling a yawn. The pink princess of love had been awake ever since she had left Appleloosa. From flying from the desert to Ponyville, talking to the bat ponies, her encounter with Jackal, and now the long walk here had naturally left her exhausted. It was only thanks to the endurance from both her earth pony and pegasus parts that kept her going. “I’m sure they’ll not only be willing to help your colony but welcome you with open hooves.”
“If that were true then Gran and Gramps wouldn’t of hide me.” muttered Poisoned under her breath as the party made their way to the farm house.
Luckily for them, the house and barn weren’t too much farther away. Soon they were nearing the barn when Cadance noticed something that caused her to pause. The barn door was open. Not all the way, but just enough so that a pony could get in. Eyeing this detail Cadance looked at the door, then the house, and then back at the barn.
‘Somepony could be in there.’ thought Cadance. ‘Or somepony left it open from last night. Regardless, it wouldn’t hurt to check. And, if somepony is in there like Applejack, then I’m sure the bat ponies would prefer to talk to her out in the open than an enclosed area.’ This wasn’t a particularly pleasant thought for Cadance. She would have liked to go into the cozy, down to earth environment that she was sure that the Apple family would have inside their home. However, she had to take into account the pasts of the bat ponies following her. Being in an unfamiliar place like this might make them…nervous to say the least.
So with that in mind, Cadance adjusted her course so that it would take them to the barn. The rest of the bat ponies followed her without question. On her back, she felt Midnight moving around. When she turned her head to see what was going on a smile appeared on her face. A large butterfly was moving around Midnight whom was reaching out a hoof in the hope that it would perch on it.
As they got closer to the barn everypony became aware of several things. First was there were faint noises coming from the barn, as if a pony (possibly two) were struggling with something. There was even a slight odor in the air that caused several of the ponies to stop and sniff. Whatever it was, it wasn’t manure.
Cadance slowly moved towards the door, but Ruby moved in front of her in order to stop her princess. She pointed Cadance with her hoof and then at the ground, indicating that she wanted the princess to remain where she was. Ruby then pointed to herself before pointed at the door. Cadance caught on quickly that Ruby was telling her that she would check things out in case there was trouble. With some hesitation Cadance nodded.
Ruby crouched low to the ground. Or at least as low as she could in her armor. She knew from personal experience that this was the best way to peek into a room without being seen. Slowly she crawled over to the open door to peek in. What she saw caused her face to glow bright red before jumping into the air. As soon as she landed again, Ruby shut the door quickly, then stood upright and putting her back to the door, Ruby spread her forelegs and wings wide across, covering as much of the door as she could, the bat pony mare leaned hard against it.
“Ruby, what’s going on?” asked Cadance with a raised eyebrow.
“N-Nothing that we s-should interrupt,” stammered Ruby while shaking her head back and forth, waving Cadance and the others to stay back while blocking the door. “B-Besides, I think they’ll b-be d-d-done soon.”
-x-
“One more push.” cried Scootaloo right before she slammed her shoulder into the air vent cover. Said cover went flying off, landing on the floor to create a loud clanking sound. Moments later, eight small hooves landed besides it.
Scootaloo found it odd that it was so easy to get around the castle through the air duct system. From everything she had learned about the Lunar Republic, they were super secure in almost every way possible. There was scanning devices at the doorways leading into the more secure areas of the castle. Technology that could redirect teleportation spells. Guards with stuff that the young filly would freely admit that she had no idea what they did but at least looked super important. Yet there was nothing in the air ducts. Not even a trip wire. Her best guess for why that was would have to be that they were too small for anypony that might be considered a threat. Only ponies her size could get in there and there was still some minor difficulty to move around. Perhaps the Lunar ponies thought it would be a waste to put security in there since so few could get in there.
Hopefully nopony had invented a particle that could alter the size of their molecules or something to that effect. An army of Ant-Mares? That would be chaos.
Regardless, the young filly was thankful for the lack of security. It had made searching for Twilight much easier. Each time the duo passed by a lit air duct cover they would slow down so that they would not be heard and gaze into the room. So far every room they had seen had at least one pony in it. The first series of rooms mostly had nurses making sure everything was taken care of in the rooms or going over inventory. After a while, the two began to see various scientists. Some seemed to be engrossed in their research while others had the ponies arguing over various topic. One even had two ponies bickering on what to call their latest weapon: the Sunshine Smile Gun or the Orbital Friendship Cannon. While this was amusing to say the least, Twilight hadn’t been in any of these rooms nor did the two fillies hear anypony talking about her.
Finally the two found a dark room with seemingly nopony in it. Scootaloo had whispered to Dinky that they should check it out in the hopes that Twilight was tied up in there or something. Dinky thought it might be risky since they could see anypony in there meaning the pony or ponies who took Twilight might be in there and they could be captured as well. Plus she doubted that the door could be opened from the inside so if Twilight was in there then they couldn’t get her out. Nor could they find her again since they didn’t know which room they were in. However, despite all of this Scootaloo remained determined to find her mother at any cost.
“DNA Cementation process at 99%,” came a female computerized voice from every direction. Slightly scared, both Dinky and Scootaloo began to look around the room where the only sources of light came from the various devices attached to the walls. What they saw was shocking.
The room was a mess. All across the floor was glass along with various liquids meaning that it could have been test tubes. Scootaloo, after her eyes adjusted to the low light, also noted that there were several skid marks on the floor. Raising her head, she saw that some of the computers and other sciency stuff was not looking good. Some of the machines looked like they were on their sides. Others looked slightly dented while others looked smashed with sparks randomly flying out of them. There was even a table that looked like it had been flipped over before being forced against the wall.
Scootaloo gulped loudly. “I…I think something bad happened here.” Scootaloo’s voice barely came out as a whisper while she took a step or two back.
“I think you’re right,” whispered Dinky whose entire body was shaking. “We should get out of here!”
Scootaloo nodded in complete agreement. But as the two of them turned to go, the computer spoke up once more. “DNA Cementation process is now complete.” When the sentence had finished, a circular hole in the back of the room opened up creating a hissing noise in the process. Quick like lightning a cylindrical tube made of something that could have been glass or plastic shot out of the hole, stopping when it hit the ceiling. The two fillies watched in awe as a light began to glow from inside the cylinder to reveal that inside of it was a semi-transparent liquid which was keeping a still ponied Spike suspended in the middle. The once-dragon, now unicorn colt, was curled up into a ball with his eyes closed yet twitching slightly. The cylinder then made another hissing noise before the liquid began to disappear from the tank slowly. As it drained, Spike seemed to continue to float where he was and when the liquid had completely vanished a hole appeared in the middle of the tube. The two fillies then watched as Spike was gently levitated out of the container to be placed on the floor in front of it.
As the cylinder retracted back into the ground, Scootaloo began to move towards Spike. She walked slowly so as not to step on any of the glass but there was still some urgency in her movements. As she got closer she could see that he was still breathing, allowing her to breathe a sigh of relief. The young pegasus then reached out a hoof to nudge him slightly which resulted in him waving her off with his hoof.
“Let me sleep, Moondancer,” he muttered in his sleep. “It’s a holiday. We can sleep in.”
Scootaloo let out a small relieved laugh as did Dinky who was moving closer to the sleeping colt. Once more Scootaloo nudged him but a bit harder this time. It seemed to do the trick as Spike slowly opened his eyes. There was confusion on his face as he looked at the two fillies before him, which only seemed to get worse. He stood on all fours and began to look around the room with his mouth hanging open.
“W-What happened here?” he asked.
“We don’t know.” said Dinky.
“What do you remember?” asked Scootaloo.
Spike sat down slowly as he brought a hoof to his chin. “Well, I remember Bunsen Burner bringing me here. Said there was a process that could make me a pony forever and after that he was going to do something to my brain to help me adjust to life up here. And, well, that’s it. The place was fine before he put me in that tube thingy.”
“So you don’t remember anything at all?” asked Scootaloo. Spike simply shook his head leaving Scootaloo to grow more concerned. If what Spike was saying true then that meant something happened to Bunsen Burner. That he was taken away just like Twilight had been only. Looking around the room made it clear that either the ponynappers were complete klutzes or that Bunsen had put up a fight. And Scootaloo had a feeling that it was the second option.
As Scootaloo thought about this, she could hear Dinky telling her and Spike that they should get back into the air duct system. Scootaloo nodded, yet as her body moved her mind was doing its best to process all of these only to have more questions pop up. Why would somepony ponynap Bunsen Burner? Especially when the Lunar Republic was going to war. Or was it because they were going to war. Maybe whoever it was choose this moment because every other pony’s attention was focused on their own preparations. Scootaloo thought it might have been somepony from Equestria but that thought was quickly dashed when she remembered all of the security this place had. It seemed impossible for them to get here.
So the question still remained, who? And more importantly, why?
-x-
Several ponies huddled around the window of farm house that sat on Sweet Apple Acres. They all tried to stay low so as to only peek through in the hopes that they wouldn’t be spotted. They watched as Poisoned Apple sat at one end of the table with Big Mac and Granny Smith sitting at the other end. The zebra Zecora was off to the side a bit while still remaining close to Big Mac. None of these ponies seemed to notice that they were being watched or, if they did know, didn’t seem to care. They were far too engrossed in their own conversation to notice anything other than the other ponies in the room.
“I should be in there.” muttered Lone Wolf as he pulled himself away from the window. “That mare is my responsibility. I should have been allowed to speak in her defense!”
“Defense of what?” asked Cadance calmly, who was standing away from the window. She was the only pony who was not watching the events unfold. “Poisoned hasn’t been accused of anything. They just wanted to talk to their long lost cousin.” Lone Wolf, in response, grumbled something under his breath that Cadance couldn’t make out before returning to peek into the house.
Cadance let out a soft sigh. Things hadn’t been turning out exactly like how she hoped they would. Shortly after Ruby had slammed the barn door shut, a very sweaty Big Mac and Zecora had raced out. Judging by their heady scent, sweat-matted fur, and nervousness in both their expressions Cadance had a good idea what she had interrupted. Although, to be fair, most ponies would look nervous if a princess surrounded by bat ponies suddenly showed up. Still, the red draft stallion tried to his best to act like everything was alright and Cadance never brought it up. Cadance did find it interesting that this stallion would give his heart to a zebra. Not that she had anything against it but it was one of those things that you just never really saw in Equestria. She didn’t need to use any magic to detect his feelings for her, they were written all over his face. And hers said that she felt the same way as well.
Trying to move on, Cadance introduced herself causing the lovers to bow on the spot. As soon as they rose, Cadance introduced the rest making sure to use their titles. Ruby looked as if she was going to faint with pride when Cadance introduced her as “Captain Ruby Moon”, but instead managed to stand at attention and salute. Big McIntosh and Zecora greeted each of them friendly enough, usually giving the pony introduced a polite nod. That changed when it was Poisoned Apple’s turn. Big Mac’s face became unreadable then and then asked to speak with Poisoned inside the house. When Lone Wolf and Cadance asked if they should join them, McIntosh Apple politely but firmly refused them, saying that this was Apple family business.
And so, for what felt like the longest time, all of the other bat ponies and Cadance waited outside. From what she could gather, Big Mac’s expression hadn’t changed one bit. The only thing he did was nod alongside his grandmother who looked like she was tearing up. As for Poisoned, she had kept her muzzle down staring at the kitchen table the entire time.
“I don’t like this.” hissed Lone Wolf. “These ponies you brought us to, they’re no different than any other pony in Equestria. They’re probably telling her she needs to drop that ‘Apple’ part of her name!”
“I don’t believe they would do that.” replied Cadance, shaking her head.
“I should go in there right now and get her out.” growled Wolf as he extended his wings. “Then I’ll…” Lone Wolf trailed off as the scene before them unfolded. It started with Granny Smith producing a hanky from out of nowhere to dry her eyes while Poisoned lifted her head looking slightly confused about something. The old green mare was saying something that caused Big Mac to nod his head before walking over to Poisoned and hugging her. Almost all of the ponies outside smiled widely when this happened except for Lone Wolf seeming to be shocked.
“T-They really are accepting her.” he stammered while taking an awkward step back.
Soon Big Mac let go of Poisoned so that Granny Smith could embrace her niece while running a withered old hoof through the younger ones mane. As this happened, Big Mac walked towards the door and exited the room so that he was now outside followed by Zecora. It seemed perhaps they did know the bat ponies were watching for the two of them made a beeline straight to the window where Cadance’s group was. Once there he stopped in front of Lone Wolf.
For a while, the two just seemed to stare at each other while the rest of the ponies just watched in complete silence. Finally, Big Mac smiled as he extended a hoof to Lone Wolf.
“Thank ya for helpin’ my kin,” he said. For a while, Wolf just stared at the hoof as if unsure what to do. He looked up at Mac’s face to see a small, friendly smile on his face before returning his gaze onto the extended hoof. Then, slowly, Wolf extended his own until the two bumped.
“I-I was just helping out my kind.” said Lone Wolf as he lowered his hoof.
“Still mighty obliged.” said Mac whose hoof also lowered. “Granny been torn up something fierce ever since we heard that Great Aunt Sweet and Great Uncle Sour passed away in a fire. Tried ta get the details, but nopony there would talk. All we heard was that the mayor was caught stealin’ fund from the town. But…now we all know the truth now. Guess this explains why we hadn’t heard from them in so long.”
“And…you’re ok with her being a bat pony?” asked Wolf slowly, watching as Big Mac blinked at the question. They all saw that the stallion began to look down at the ground in shame for a moment before speaking.
“If ya’ll had come a few days ago, ah might have had a problem. My little sis would have too.” Mac then looked over at Zecora and smiled before raising his head to look at Lone Wolf. “But ah’ve learned a few new things lately. Been meetin’ all sorts of pony folk who are different an that ain’t bad at all. Even met a bat pony here a few days ago who had a nice unicorn who seemed smitten by him.”
Wolf blinked at this. “Well, I- ah- never would...” he stopped there looking a bit confused and unsure how to proceed. The Flight Master turned to look at Cadance for help however the pink princess was just watching all of this with a smile on her face.
“Now then, what can ah do ya for?” asked Big Mac in a friendly tone. Lone Wolf looked at the other stallion for a moment before returning to look at Cadance who merely nodded her head as if to say ‘you can handle this’.
Wolf looked back at Big Mac and took a deep breath. “Me and my colony have recently lost our old home. Thankfully we managed to find a better place for us within the Everfree Forest. We have plans on creating a true home with some help from Princess Cadance.”
“If you wish to dwell in the Everfree you must do so wisely.” said Zecora with a slight frown on her face. “That forest holds many dangers that you should not take lightly.”
“We are well aware of the dangers,” said Wolf. “In fact, it is my hope that those dangers will hopefully keep away those ponies who might think to invade the lands which Princess Cadance has given us. Still, there is much work that needs to be done and my ponies lack the necessary tools. Princess Cadance brought us here because she believes you might be a liaison for us. Perhaps you could help us get things like proper wood and tools.”
Big Mac brought a hoof up to his chin. “Ah think ah could help ya’ll with that. But can go doing that for free now.”
Lone Wolf narrowed his eyes. “And what would be a passable payment system?”
“A little work.” said Big Mac after lowering his hoof. “Help around the fields an ah’ll get ya whatever ya need brand new from the hardware store. Even throw in a couple barrels of apples since ah bet ya could use them. And knowing Granny, she’ll be makin’ some of her famous apple pies for ya fresh each day. Heck, ya’ll lend a hoof durin’ cider season an ah’ll help ya with some of the construction. Ah’ve been told ah’m mighty good with a hammer.”
Lone Wolf couldn’t hide the surprise from his face. As soon as Big Mac had said he couldn’t just do it for free the bat stallion knew that his ponies would have to work. However he thought it would have been more like slave labor, working long hours for a rusty nail or rotting slab of wood a day with no meals. But this…this sounded fair. No, it sounded better than that.
“But,” continued Big Mac, “There is one other thing.”
“And that is?” asked Lone Wolf, who realized this all sounded too good to be true.
“Poisoned Apple.” said Big Mac. “Ah’d like ta ask her ta move here an be with family. Know it’ll mean a lot ta Granny an ah know Apple Bloom will love her ta death. Not gonna force her or anything, be her choice an all since she’s a full grown mare. But ah just want ta know if that would be a problem with ya.”
Lone Wolf once more found a look of complete surprise on his face, something that he realized might be happening a lot in the near future. This was one of those things that had never happened before. Sure, a bat pony could leave the colony whenever he or she wished it like how Ruby and the others left to join Cadance’s Guard. But this? Everything about this from the request and the polite way it was being asked was unheard of to all of bat pony kind! Part of him wanted to still say no since they needed Poisoned Apple to help them with the monsters, yet that part was being overshadowed by this instance.
“I-If she w-wants to come here than I won’t stop her.” Lone Wolf managed to say.
“And there’ll be no hard feelings if she decides ta stay with ya,” affirmed Big Mac. “Now, lets get inside so we can go over the detail over breakfast.” The bat ponies cheered as they all made their way into the house. Cadance would have followed them in, but stopped in her tracks as Big Mac smacked himself upside the head. “Oh shoot, ah plum forgot. Princess Cadance, Princess Celestia sent some of her Guard down ta help with the farm work. Since ya’re here an all, if ya want ya can tell’em they can head back home. Look’s like we got more than enough hooves ta help an ah bet they got better things to do.”
Cadance chuckled. “I’m sure they’re enjoying this more than standing around staring at nothing all day. Nothing interesting ever happens to them in Canterlot,” she said before turning to look at her daughter. “Midnight, would you like to go inside while mommy goes to speak to the Guards?”
“Na-uh,” said Midnight as she shook her head. “I wanna stay with you, mommy.”
“Ok, but then you are walking,” acceded Cadance. Cadance turned to look at Big Mac as the bat filly fluttered down off her back and stretched her legs. “Tell the others I’ll be in soon.”
“Sure ya don’t want ta bring one of them along?” asked Mac. “Them Guards are in the fields right now. Might go faster with two of ya.”
“We’ll be fine,” assured Cadance. “It’ll give us some mother daughter bonding time.” Mac nodded as she and Midnight turned to walk into the fields.
-x-
Over in Canterlot, or to be more precise around the mountain that held the pony capital, there was a mighty sea of ponies. All of them were clad in the golden armor of the Royal Guard hailing from all corners of Equestria. To the untrained eye, they all seemed to blend together with no way to tell them apart. But those who had once served in the Guard could see the amount of organization that had gone into all of this.
Hot Pants herself looked out at the troops from the command center. Unlike last time they were much closer to the battle field, situated in a command tent that lay on an outcropping that was found at the halfway point between the city and the valley below them. This allowed her and the other officers to see everything that happened to better direct the troops while still being out of harm’s way. It was an open tent, meaning that there were no walls to block their view. They would not be receiving any special treatment this time. No fancy foods nor comforts of any kind. All of those present, with the only one currently missing was Stareye, were focused on the task before them.
To Hot Pants, everything seemed to be ready. All of the former ranking officers had already spoken to their units, informing everypony in them of the various flare colors and their meaning. Along the base of the mountain were the trebuchets while large piles of boulders next to team as well as teams of ponies who were either strong enough or talented in magic to lift them and then set them in the siege machines. In the air above them were two dozen thunder clouds, each one hiding their pegasi archers. When signaled they would rain down ice arrows upon their foes. And to the side, waiting in the wings, was the Wonderbolts who were ready to show everypony that they were the best fliers.
The city above looked as if it were in the middle of a festival. Many of the ponies who had remained were laying out blankets and picnic baskets along top of the wall that surrounded the city as well as on certain spots along the edge of the mountain. Among them were family members of the Guard who had made large signs to support their loved ones fighting today while a few ponies, like the Flim Flam Brothers, were selling various items like Equestrian flags and various other knickknacks to help others show their support as well.
In the castle, a similar thing was going on. Many of the nobles were seated on the various balconies that also overlooked the future battlefield. Instead of sitting on blankets, they sat on the finest silk pillows while the servants laid platters of fruits and expensive drinks next to them. There were even a few musicians playing calming melodies on their instruments. Each noble also had opera glasses floating in their magic grasps so that they could better see the events that were to transpire.
Sitting alone on the balcony adjacent to the throne room was Blueblood looking a little worse for wear. He didn’t look as bad as he did last night, but the bags under his eyes as well as his slightly unkempt mane spoke volumes. He had been forced out of bed earlier than he would have liked due to an alarming number of problems and complaints of all sizes. Reports were coming in from all corners of Equestria via magical fire or pegasi messengers informing him of the Republic’s raids. There were also more reports of the Changeling army advancing slowly as well as a few reports of dragons being spotted closer to their borders. Then there were the nobles who came to him just to whine about their own troubles in the hopes that he could fix them. Blueblood was beginning to tire of this power, wishing he could return to the old days back when his aunt ran this and he could do whatever he please. But he had made his bed and was stuck with the choices he had made.
The only good thing that had happened so far was that Ripper was on his way to kill Cadance. The griffon assassin had taken the magical compass and headed off in the direction of that dirt town called Ponyville a few hours ago. With any luck Cadance would be out of the picture by the time this battle was over.
“Prince Blueblood.” came a mare’s voice which shook Blueblood out of his train of thought. He turned to see Majesty walking towards his with a frown on her face. “My dear prince, I just heard the most awful thing. It is truly dreadful.”
Before Blueblood could say anything, Majesty looked around as if she were afraid somepony might be watching and then leaned in to whisper into his ear. The arrogant prince when through several expression starting at annoyance to surprise and then anger. When Majesty pulled her head back the prince was trembling in pure, utter rage. He quickly stood up and slammed a hoof to the ground while clenching his teeth so hard they could break.
“That moron!” growled Blueblood as a red tint began to cloud his vision. “Has Stareye lost what little sense he has? This violates several laws established in the New Neighshore Treaty! Everypony in Canterlot will see this! Does he not understand how it will look?”
“I know, I know.” said Majesty in a calming voice. “He truly is making a mess of things for your cause. Hopefully hearing about this now will help you in some way.”
Blueblood looked at Majesty, his vision clearing slightly. She was correct that this knowledge would help him plan his next move. It was too late to undo the damage, he couldn’t remove Stareye or undo his blunder in the short amount of time before the war started. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t minimize the damage or find way for it to benefit him in some way. The prince closed his eyes so he could think more clearly.
“Stareye has indeed gone too far, that much is certain.” breathed Blueblood. “If ponies weren’t already clamoring for his dismissal they certainly will now. As soon as the other nobles see this I’ll inform them that he shall be arrested on the spot and that I had no idea what he was thinking.”
“Which is certainly true my good prince.” said Majesty with a nod. “But perhaps ordering his execution would be best. He is, after all, breaking some major laws so I’m sure that there won’t be too many ponies upset by that decision. There is also the danger that he might true to plea bargain. He could true to sell you out in order to get a reduced sentence.”
Blueblood chuckled. “Oh, I’ve already had a little talk with him on that subject. The moment the thought of betraying me enters his mind my assassin will kill him and make it look like the fool took his own life. Or perhaps making it look like a failed breakout attempt. Regardless, I would rather not look like a savage by publicly ordering his death before a trial. It might cause…unrest among certain ponies.”
“I see,” said Majesty with a smile. “Please forgive my foolishness.”
Blueblood waved her off. “It wasn’t foolishness in the slightest my lady. You were simply looking out for my best interests and presented me with one possible course of action. Besides, I’m sure there are many among us who would love to see that buffoon killed on the spot. It is rather tempting.”
“It is, isn’t it.” agreed Majesty. “Still, there is the matter of who will command your troops once Stareye is taken out of the picture. And with the damage he has done with your endorsement of him things will be far more difficult to move Equestria in the proper direction. But I do have a good suggestion: Hot Pants.”
The prince tapped his chin with his hoof several times as he considered this. Hot Pants had already proven she was on top of things during and after the last battle with the Republic. Sure she wasn’t an experienced military officer, but neither was Stareye. But at least she was keeping track of their losses and could appear competent in court! Hot Pants was the niece of Fancy Pants so not only would he get to keep a pony of noble blood in charge but also he might even earn some points with Fancy Pants!
The problem, however, was that she would prove difficult to manipulate. She was smart and he could tell that the mare knew he was up to something. Meaning she would be on her guard constantly. And if he tried to convince her to extend the war for as long as possible she would turn on him in a heartbeat, probably arresting him on the spot. But that was a moot point given the situation. With the Republic and the Changeling invasion both happening at the same time, he needed victories instead of stall tactics.
“That is a very good idea Lady Majesty.” said Blueblood with a nod. “Yes, I think Hot Pants could serve our purposes very well.”
“I am pleased I could assist you.” replied Majesty as she gave him a short bow. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must find a seat.” She turned and began to walk away only to be stopped after taking three steps by Blueblood calling out her name. Majesty turned to see that the prince had a small smile on his face as his eyes shifted from her to the pillow next to his.
“Lady Majesty,” he began. “Soon some of the other nobles will be arriving to join me. I was wondering if you would do me the honor of sitting by my side.”
“My prince,” gasped Majesty as she placed a hoof over her heart. “Truly, there must be others who should get such a great honor.”
“None more deserving than you,” said Blueblood as he walked over to her and placed a hoof on her shoulder. “Since this endeavor began you have supported me. Your loyalty to me has been unmatched thus you deserve to be by my side from now until we see the final victory.”
An odd smile crossed Majesty’s face. “There is no place I’d rather be.”
-x-
“Please reconsider!” As Blueblood and Majesty sat down on their balcony seats, that cry was heard by everypony in the command tent. Turning in the direction it came from Hot Pants as well as the other lieutenants saw Boot Licker walking a few paces behind Stareye.
Both ponies looked horrible. Stareye in particular looked as if he had gotten no sleep at all. Gone was the air of importance that he always held onto. His armor looked like he hadn’t asked his servants to polish it this morning nor did he have his usual saddle bags. While walking he was constantly checking behind him as if he were afraid that somepony other than Boot Licker was following him. As for Boot Licker he looked as if he were in a panicked state. Sweat was quickly covering his coat while veins could be seen on both his neck and forehead.
“I shall not!” screamed Stareye. “I am in charge here!”
“Please sir,” begged Boot Licker before glancing out into what would soon be the battlefield. “It’s not too late. You can call send them back and nopony will have to know! What you’re doing goes against-” The stallion got no farther as Stareye’s magic lifted him off the ground before throwing him across the tent.
“I MAKE THE RULES!” bellowed Stareye in rage. “IT IS UP TO ME TO DECIDE WHAT IS BEST FOR VICTORY! NOT SOME FOUR HUNDRED SCRAP OF PAPER! QUESTION ME AGAIN AND YOU WILL BE WHIPPED TO DEATH!”
Boot Licker remained silent as he struggled to get up. Luckily, several of the other ponies in the tent rushed to his side to help him onto his hooves. There was pity in their eyes for they all knew it couldn’t have been easy for Boot Licker. He was a brown nose by nature, yet even the most dedicated toady would have had a hard time being around Stareye for as long as he had. And the amount of courage it must have taken him to disagree with him, to question whatever horrible thing Stareye had planned was to be admired.
While helping Boot Licker stand, Hot Pants and the other began to hear various gasps, screaming, and shouting. A feeling inside all of their guts told them what it was even before they turned to look out into the field in front of the mountain. Descending from the sky was the thing that had blocked the sun shortly after Celestia had been taken from them. And seeing it for a second time did not make it any easier. Hot Pants felt her body take a few steps back without her telling it to. She wasn’t alone in this for everypony in the tent expressed their own fear in their own way. Below them, their fellow Guards were also backing away from it. Some however just stood there with their jaws open, too afraid to take a single step.
For a second the ship seemed to hover there, completely unmoving. Then, one by one, Lunar ponies began to fall from the ship only for some magical force to slow their drop before they touched the ground. Once they were on the surface they began to line up in groups of five. Using her magic, Hot Pants summoned a telescope and looked through it to get a better look at her enemies. From the looks of it they were all wearing the same silver armor as before.
“Wait,” whispered Hot Pants as she looked down at her foes. She could tell they were short. Quickly she counted there were forty rows meaning there were only two hundred Lunar Guards standing at attention.
“Something is wrong...” said Hot Pants a little louder this time, causing everypony in the command tent to look in her direction. “They’re a hundred short.”
“Are you sure?” asked Crème as she walked over to her friend. Bitsworth also walked forwards and began to count them himself.
Hot Pants nodded. “I just counted them. Something must be up. We were told there would be three hundred coming to attack us. So, where are the missing hundred?”
“It’s obvious!” sneered Stareye as he shoved the two mares away and took Hot Pants’ telescope. “The reason they’re short is because their army doesn’t have three hundred. It’s as simple as that. Now enough of this foolishness!”
It was then that more objects began leaving the giant sky ship. Hot Pants and the others noticed several large things shooting out of it so fast that they were nothing more than blurs to the young unicorn’s eyes.
But what happened next caused a feeling of dread to appear in the pit of Hot Pants’ stomach. Several more silver coated objects were now descending towards the ground. But these were not troops. Fifty of them looked more like boats without their sails. Once they got close enough to the ground they floated six feet, give or take, off the ground. Now that she could get a better look at them, Hot Pants could help but notice just how sharp the bow of the ‘ship’ looked. Taking her best guess, she estimated that each of them was only nine or so feet tall. On deck there were four ponies, two on each side, all standing behind mounted cannons that she was sure would fire the same energy blasts as the ones on their armor. In the middle of the ‘ship’, was a single armored pony working some kind of control station.
The only one that was different was the middle one. The stern of the ‘ship’ was elevated a several additional feet. Sitting in the middle of this rise was Princess Luna herself wearing the same kind of armor she did when she defeated Princess Celestia. As soon as her ‘ship’ landed several blue tinted squares appeared around her, taking up most of her interest.
What came down next was much faster and smaller. There were thirty of them in total, each carrying a single stallion or mare. Each of these ponies looked like they were laying in the middle of these stretched out, silver ovals that buzzed around at high speeds. Hot Pants noticed more than once that at the end of these things was a hole and underneath all of them was another energy weapon.
The last ten objects to land were the widest. Like the others that came before it, each one of these hovering crafts looked like they were made of silver. Their shape, however, was different. All ten looked like a crescent moon with the arch pointing away from the Equestrians. In the middle of each of them was something of a wide lump that had a blackish oval that looked big enough to hold a single pony. And above that were the weapons. Nine of them had two cannons that looked about four feet long. The last one, which was in the middle, had only one with the length of the canon that seemed to be longer than the rest of it with something that looking like a sharp, pointed crystal at its end.
Once these three landed, the sky mammoth began to move upwards into the sky. When Hot Pants first saw this she let out a sigh of relief, glad that it was joining in the fight. That relief was sadly short lived for as it passed over Canterlot Hot Pants saw that there were smaller air crafts that had taken its place. There were about ten of them in total. From this distance, seven of them looked like rectangles with the edges rounded off with bat wings attached to their sides. The remaining three looked bigger, bulkier, and less streamlined.
“HEAR ME PONIES OF CANTERLOT!” came Luna’s voice, loud enough for those at the very top of the castle to hear it. “SOON THE HOUR OF WAR SHALL BE UPON YOU. I SHALL GRANT YOU ONE LAST CHANCE TO SURRENDER. DO YOU ACCEPT?”
For a moment, there was no reply. In that time, Hot Pants’ wondered if Blueblood was considering surrendering and ending this foolishness. Clearly these…things that the Lunar troops had brought with them would cancel out Equestria’s number advantage. That hope died when she heard Blueblood’s reply.
“THE GREAT NATION OF EQUESTRIA WILL NEVER BOW TO SCUM SUCH AS YOU! TODAY WE SHALL TAKE THE FIRST STEP TO RETRIEVING OUR BELOVED PRINCESS CELESTIA WHICH YOU HAVE STOLEN FROM US! NIGHTMARE MOON, YOUR DAYS ARE AT AN END! HIGH COMMANDER STAREYE, PREPARE FOR BATTLE!”
With a disgusting smile on his face that made all of the other ponies around him uneasy, Stareye’s horn began to glow for a brief moment. As it did, Boot Licker began to shake his head no over and over again with tears running down his eyes. Yet, when it ended, nothing seemed to happen. Hot Pants was surprised for she was half expecting something horrific to happen like a demon summoning.
But what happened could actually be considered worse.
Bitsworth was the first to spot it, shouting at the others to look. Looking down into the front of the battlefield were more ponies. About a third of those ponies were clearly local officers, still in their blue uniforms and armed only with batons. It looked like Stareye had gathered together every law enforcement agent in Canterlot. And with everypony else in the city watching the battle that was to come, crime could run rampant in the streets with ease.
Seeing who the other two thirds were, however, caused everypony’s blood to run cold. They were training recruits! All of them were wearing leather armor that was designed to protect them from training weapons which was what they were carrying. Nothing but wooden swords and padded spears. Useless in actual combat! The crowd above them began to shout in anger while Blueblood wasted no time in informing the other nobles sitting around him that he was greatly angered by this and that Stareye would receive a most fitting punishment.
“Th-This is madness!” said Crème as she took several steps back.
“Prince Blueblood demands that we do everything in our power to ensure victory.” said Stareye viciously while ponies turned to glare at him. “I merely saw that we had an untapped resource.”
Crème looked like she was about to say something, however Hot Pants spoke up first as she moved towards their commanding officer. “Very well. But I must insist that we move them to the back so that they can provide support. That will allow us to free up more skill-” That was as far as she got before Stareye smacked her across the muzzle.
“You DARE tell ME what to do?!” he growled. “Stupid mare, learn your place. I give the commands! I am IN CHARGE! And I will do whatever it takes to ensure victory!” He then pointed a hoof at the recruits. “Those worthless maggots out there have one simple job, to be a shield for our forces! While those Lunar scum waste their time killing them, our soldiers will be able to get in close and slaughter most of them.”
As Stareye began to pant angrily, all of the other officers rushed over to help their fallen comrade. He opened his mouth to shout at them, but stopped himself. While he was a higher ranking officer, superior to all of them in every way, he faltered under their angry gazes. He looked around to see that everypony there had the same expression, a mixture of hate and disgust. It was then that he began to feel the same dread and terror that he did when Blueblood attacked him.
-x-
Princess Luna looked out at the battlefield in disgust. Originally, she had been slightly impressed. According to the display hovering in front of her there were plenty of pegasi in the clouds that could have proved a problem if they had remain undetected. A good strategy that would have allowed them a surprise attack. Also, looking at the field Luna could see that the enemy troops were well placed in order to take advantage of their greater numbers as well as having siege weaponry in the back. But whatever praise she had dwindled when she saw who was being pushed into the front line. Just by looking at them Luna could see that they were recruits.
She had seen this behavior in the past going as far back when she was just a filly. Many times sadly. The idea was to use them as a shield, or ‘meat for the grinder’ as some put it, in order to protect or distract the enemy from the real soldiers. This was an act that appalled her even back then. And it was one of the few things that she and Celestia were in full agreement on.
Thankfully the crowd watching the upcoming battle from the Canterlot wall seemed to be in full agreement as Luna could hear their disapproval from all the way down here.
Suddenly one of the scenes began to flash red then blue. Waving a hoof over it, the image of a mare in her armor appeared on the floating screen. Even through the visor was down, hiding the mare’s face, Luna knew who this mare was. Night Glider, one of the best fighters pilots in the Republic and taking the lead in the aerial battle.
“Princess Luna this is Cupcake Leader,” said the squad leader of their air forces. “Do you read me? Over.”
“Yes Cupcake Leader I read you,” answered the princess. “What is your status?”
“We are in position and holding tight ma’am,” replied Night Glider. “According to our scans there is a massive group of pegasi waiting to enter the engagement zone as well as some hiding in those clouds. Would you like us to start thinning their numbers out now?”
“Remain where you are for the moment,” replied Luna. “The point of all of this is to ingrain into them how hopeless it is to fight against us. It would be far more effective if they saw it. Wait until I give the command.”
“Roger that, Princess,” said Cupcake Leader. With a nod, the image of Cupcake Leader vanished from sight. Once that was done, Luna waved her hoof over the screen once more while concentrating on the pony she wanted to speak to. Instantly a dark purple earth pony mare in armor appeared with a candy sucker in her mouth.
“Lots-O-Hugs, are you ready?” asked Princess Luna.
“Ready and willing to blast them Equestrians to the void ma’am!” came the overly cheerful voice as she moved the sucker from one side of her mouth to the next. “I am locked on to one of those toys in the back.”
“They’re called trebuchets, Lots-O-Hugs,” said Luna.
“Well, whatever they are, they won’t be here for much longer!” laughed Hugs. “I’m locked on and ready to fire! Just say the word and they’ll be less than moon dust.”
-x-
“Ok, this changes everything.” said Bitsworth as he looked out at the Lunar troops, biting his lower lip nervously.
“I agree,” said Crème with a nod. “They didn’t have one of those last time. Probably here to help them even the odds.” She then turned to Hot Pants. “How do you think we should handle this?”
As Hot Pants brought a hoof up to her chin, Stareye began to seethe in rage. Until this moment he had been sitting in a corner due to fear of the others. But that fear had vanished. How dare they?! Had they all forgotten that HE was in charge and not some lowly mare? Well he’d show them! He knew the right way to handle a situation like this. And once they saw him taking change and winning this battle quickly, then they would fall in line while begging his forgiveness!
“ALL TROOPS.” shouted Stareye while using magic to amplify his voice. “CHARGE!”
All of the other ponies started to shout at him, but it was too late. The recruits and the local officers all began to move towards the Lunars. However, most of the other units refused to budge simply because it was Stareye who gave the command. There were a few units that charged forwards as well intent on providing backup for those ahead of them.
But as they ran forwards, the crystal on the cannon began to glow bright yellow.
Lots-O-Hugs looked at the screen before her. The display showed her the path her attack would take, overlapping everything that got in its way. If there was anything that would halt the attack or slow it down Lots-O-Hugs would have been informed. Seeing nothing, Lots-O-Hugs smiled knowing that every Equestrian in the path of her blast would be killed.
As her weapon charged, a signal came from Princess Luna. It demanded that all Lunar Guard synch up. Doing her best not to roll her eyes, Hugs tapped the side of her helmet as well as a button on her tank. In less than a millisecond both high tech wonders connected not only with each other but also every other weapon they had brought with them. The A.I systems began to communicate with each other, offering up information to every troop. Once the battle began in earnest, they would be suggesting the most effective targets that nopony else was targeting as well as warning their owners when an attack was coming their way. All this and more done in an effort to keep as many Lunar ponies from dying.
Hugs couldn’t help but groan as the system began to work for her, her display now showing several other attack targets that would result in a higher kill ratio. Thankfully, Hugs was the pony who ultimately decided the target. She wouldn’t have liked it if that were the case. No she wanted to blast them right down the middle so that more ponies could see just how bucked they really were.
Now the display was telling her that the cannons energy level was currently at ninety eight percent. Soon it would be ready to fire.
-x-
Hot Pants watched the scene below unfold before her eyes as fear crept into her entire being. She saw the glow from the weapon getting brighter and brighter until it became painful to look at. But she dared not turn her attention away from it. In fact, if she dared to turn her attention away from it Hot Pants would have seen that everypony else except for Stareye shared her worry. The High Commander, on the other hoof, was shouting his lung off about how his greatness would see them to victory or something to that effect. Hot Pants was actively tuning that moron out.
Before the Equestrian forces made it a third of the way towards the Lunar army something happened. Much like how Lunar weapons or unicorns shot magical beam energy, the brightly lit crystal fired a circular beam of golden light the size of a fancy carriage. Hot Pants didn’t have time to drop her jaw as it shot through the recruits before plowing into the troops behind them without slowing down or stopping. In fact, it only stopped after hitting the wall of the mountain with enough force that it shook. Then there was the noise it created. Unlike the cannons on the backs of the regular Lunar Guard this weapon didn’t make the ‘Bweee’ noise. Instead it was closer to thunder while standing a few feet away from where the lightning just struck that was so deafening that the mare was forced to cover her ears.
The blast last only a second and a half to reveal the horror it had brought. Everything that had been in the path of the beam was gone. Erased from existence as if it had never been there. Looking around, Hot Pants saw that there were those ponies who were partially hit by the attack and had to cover her mouth to keep from gagging. She watched as one pony who was missing his entire right side fall to the ground with a surprised look on his face showing that he had died instantly. One or two were missing their back ends, crying out for help as they tried to drag themselves out of the danger zone. Overhead, Hot Pants could hear the panicked screams of Canterlot’s citizens as they ran back into the city for safety. As for their High Commander, he had fallen back on him plot with both his hooves touching his neck for some reason.
And then the crystal on that…that Annihilator began to glow once more.
-x-
“By Celestia….” gasped North Star as he looked down at the carnage below them. Currently he, Fancy Pants, Majesty, and Blueblood were all seated together on the same balcony. Most likely in an effort to try and win the pair on their side or something like that. But Lord North Star couldn’t think about that right now as his coat turned green.
He wasn’t the only one to react like this. Fancy Pants looked whiter than usual with a tremble of fear running down his body. Majesty was covering her mouth with both hooves while tears threatened to leak out of her eye sockets. And Blueblood, well, he looked out at the scene before them with his mouth hanging open.
Still staring at the scene below them, he noted that the Equestrian army was beginning to fracture a bit. Many of those in the front who had survived, mostly the recruits, were running away in all directions while trying to take off their armor as they galloped. North Star didn’t blame them and was thankful the ponies from the Republic were not attacking them. Those that remained were backing up against the mountain, clearly in a state of panic.
“For the love of all that is good we need to stop this.” said North Star shaking. “Prince Blueblood, you saw what they are capable of. Clearly they came prepared. Nothing we have can stand up to that kind of fire power.”
“All…All we are doing is sending good ponies to their deaths.” added Fancy Pants. “Blueblood, even you have to agree that we have no chance of winning against something like that!”
Blueblood opened his mouth several time but nothing came out. All he could do was to stare out at what was below him in pure terror. Not for those below, but of his own fate. He had been positive that the armor they had used during their last encounter was the best they had. But now he was beginning to realize that that had been just the tip of the iceberg. And not they were coming for him. Unless Stareye did have a plan underway that might end this threat then one of two things was going to happen. Either the Lunars were going to kill everything in their path to get to him or the nobles would turn on him in order to save themselves. Then he would be taken to the moon where Celestia knows what awaited him.
The light from that floating cannon thing caught his attention once more. Quickly he turned his attention to Stareye to find that moron doing nothing to salvage the situation. He was just sitting there with his mouth closed for once.
There was, however, somepony who was up to the task. Hot Pants let out several magical flares from her horn which Blueblood was sure had some meaning. He just hoped she wasn’t surrendering to the enemy. Luckily for him she wasn’t. Instead, a dozen unicorns teleported in front of troops and began to cast a powerful barrier spell just as the cannon fired.
Blueblood and the others watched as the unicorns completed their spell just in time for the blast to hit it. The force of the impact sent many ponies in the area flying backwards except for those directly behind the barrier. However, as Blueblood looked through his opera glasses to get a better look, he could see that the unicorns were struggling greatly to maintain it. The twelve dug the hooves into the ground but were still being pushed back. Large cracks were beginning to appear on the barrier. Sweat began to pour down their faces while veins appeared on their foreheads and necks. For a moment it looked like it would hold, but just at the last possible second the canon stopped its assault.
“You see there.” said Blueblood with a smile, pointing to Hot Pants. “No need to worry since your niece is on the job. I suspect she’ll become the next High Commander at this rate. And now that we can block their attacks we should be fine.”
“I seriously doubt that.” replied Fancy Pants as he looked at the twelve unicorns who had created the shield. All of them were on their backs, panting hard. They were in no shape to do this again.
And they had done was delay the inevitable.
-x-
‘This is bad,’ thought a panicked Hot Pants. ‘I thought that our best shield casters working together would have lasted longer than one attack. We need to-”
Hot Pants stopped her train of thought as the Lunar troops began to move out in mass. Like a pack of timberwolves the floating crafts moved swiftly towards them at lightning speeds. The ‘ships’ seemed to be surprising fast as they barreled down towards the base of the mountain while the smaller, single pony crafts buzzed around them like hornets. Their infantry also began to move, changing their formation into two horizontal rows as they marched. That left the Annihilator and the two similar looking crafts who remained where they were.
Not seeing any other choice, Hot Pants let out several multicolored flares from her horn. The Equestrian land forces charged with swords and spears in hoof or magical gasp. Meanwhile their pegasi air support took to the air making the sky sparkle thanks to their golden armor. And taking the lead were their best fliers, the Wonderbolts! Her flares also signaled for the trebuchets and her ice archers to begin their own assaults. Almost immediately large boulders were being loaded up into the siege machines while the pegasi archers aimed at their targets.
The pegasi were the first to be hit. As soon as they entered the battle zone the Lunar pony’s air force moved towards them at speeds that took the Wonderbolts by surprise. The bat winged crafts began to fire energy blasts much more rapidly than the troops in the armor. In fact, they were firing so quickly that only the Wonderbolts were able to dodge the attacks leaving the rest of their comrades to take the hit. As for the bulkier crafts, the three fired something solid at them that moved much slower. Sure they were still fast, but even the pegasi in their heavy armor were able to dodge them with ease. But before this fact could get to their heads, the objects exploded in mid-air killing dozens of aerial Equestrians in the process.
Far too soon the sky began to rain dead bodies.
The ground forces weren’t handling things much better. The ‘ships’ plowed through the Equestrians with no mercy. Anypony who was in the way was run over while their weapons fired randomly. Unlike their armors, these weapons created much larger impacts so when a pony was hit all those around the target went flying into the air. Many brave ponies tried to stop these ships with their weapons and magic, but all attempts fail as neither could so much as scratch them. Some ponies tried to climb up or teleport onto them, the ships were moving too quickly for anypony to get a decent hold while those who teleported were blasted on the spot.
The smaller hovercraft seemed to be even more deadly. They flew high and fast, blasting away at everypony they could. Added with their smaller size made them harder targets to hit. Yet this was not their true terror. Once they had gotten in deep within the Equestrian forces front lines, black orbs were fired from the holes in the front of their crafts. Hot Pants had managed to watch one being fired, noting that the air around it seemed to be distorted somewhat. Then, much to her ever growing horror, the orb began to hover in the air and pull ponies towards it. They were lifted right off the ground screaming in terror right before being pressed against the black ball. More ponies quickly followed until it became a sphere of ponies pack tightly together at twenty feet in height.
The trebuchets were not having much luck either. Several of them managed to fire, their targets being the Annihilator and those like it. One bolder manage to hit one on the far right, causing it to slam on the ground. Hot Pants and the others couldn’t help but grin in relief at this. One of them was down. One less to worry about. But that happiness soon died as the boulder rolled off to the side and the machine began to float once more. From what they could see there wasn’t even a dent on it. Then the Annihilator fire another earth shaking blast, its final target being one of the trebuchets. Any Lunar troops in that path quickly moved out of the way at the last second as if given some kind of warning that Hot Pants could neither see nor hear. As for the two canon machines, they also began firing into Equestria’s forces. Unlike the Annihilator these ones fired twin orbs of yellow light that created massive explosions upon impact.
Last was the Lunar infantry, which was still marching towards the mountain. Several units of the Royal Guard charged towards them with the hopes that they could at least take them down. The Lunars responded to this by mowing them down with energy blasts before they could even make it half way.
It was then that the ice archers made their move. The pegasi in the clouds took aim on the infantry and soon it began to rain the icy arrows. Most of their shots hit the ground around them, covering the surface with a layer of slippery ice that the Lunars walked effortlessly across. It was only when their shots hit their armor, creating a block of ice around their weapons or freezing their hooves to the ground did they stop. They looked at each other’s frozen armor with unreadable expressions thanks to their helmets. After a second or two of this, those who had unfrozen weapons used them to blast the ice right off of their comrades.
As the ice archers prepared for another volley of ice arrows while adding in lightning, several Lunar aircrafts descended upon them. Seeing the attack, the archers turned their targets to the crafts in an attempt to take them down. Sadly the blasts from the enemy came faster. A torrent of energy beams was fired into the various clouds, passing over them several times before flying away.
Only one pegasus survived this assault. At least for the moment that is. He, like all the others, had been hit. Luckily for him they had only gotten the side of his barrel and his right hind leg. Pain shot through his with every step causing tears to appear in his eyes no matter how hard he tried to fight it. There was no way for him to keep fighting all by himself in this condition. He doubted that he could even be able to fly down without being hit. Peeking through the bottom of the cloud the pegasus saw that the Lunar pony infantry was right below him while killing more Equestrian Guards.
Silently, the pegasus moved up the cloud as fast as he could. The entire time the pony had gritted teeth but eventually made it to the top where his quiver was. Once he got a hoof on it there was no hesitation as he dumped the ammo into the cloud. Instantly the cloud began to expand and freeze at the same time, consuming the pegasus at the same time. Larger and larger it grew while beginning to fall to the ground below. But it never did reach the ground as one blast from the twin cannoned hovercraft blew it up causing hundreds of small ice crystals to fall harmlessly to the ground as the infantry continued its march.
-x-
‘We’re not going to make it at this rate.’ thought Spitfire as she watched more feathered ponies fall to the ground all around her. Not too long ago the sky had been packed with some of the most highly skilled flying soldiers Equestria could provide. But all too soon there were probably no more than two hundred out of the thousands they once had. Spitfire knew they had to turn the tide and soon. She was sure once there weren’t any more fliers those crafts would target whatever remained of their land forces and wipe them all out in twenty seconds or so.
But what could they do? The bat winged machines moved too fast for them. It was taking all their skill and concentration just not to be hit. The only maneuver they had been able to try so far was a fake out designed to get them to hit their allies. Sadly, the Lunar ponies didn’t fall for that.
Spitfire refused, she REFUSED, to give up! She was a Wonderbolt, a title that carried with it the reputation of being the best fliers in all of Equestria. But it wasn’t just her pride on the line. She had to make this count. She had to make sure that all those who had been senselessly slaughtered didn’t die for nothing. Perhaps they could take out the bulkier fliers since they were slower.
“EVERYPONY!” shouted Spitfire as she glared at the nearest bulky flying machine. “DRAGON CLAW FORMATION!”
“Alright!” cheered Soarin as he and the other Wonderbolts began to line up in a V formation with Spitfire at the tip. Once they were all in position, all of those behind her started to move up and down in a circle while also staying in formation. Soon, they looked like a flying javelin made out of wind as they soared towards their enemy. No pony alive had ever withstood the Dragon Claw for anything that got in its path would be torn to shreds by the powerful winds. Or, in the case of some larger foes, knocked out of the sky with tremendous force. All around who saw this let out a cheer for they knew in their hearts this would work like it always had.
Their target moved towards them at the same speed. It didn’t try to dodge, but instead fired at them. Both objects flew to both sides of the Wonderbolts formation before they exploded. Everypony there watched in horror as the Wonderbolts were blown away and falling to the ground. Many of them with smoke coming off their badly burnt bodies.
There was one, however, who managed to stay in the air. It was Soarin. While dazed with ringing ears and missing his goggles, he had managed to escape with only minor injuries most likely due to his placement in the back. Seeing his comrade’s fall like this spurred the pegasus on. With teeth gritted and his right foreleg outstretched, he charged at the enemy aiming to strike at the window and punch his way through. He flew faster than he ever had before, picking up more and more speed with each flap of his wings. His hoof soon made contact with the glass with all his force behind it and…
Soarin scream in pain as all the bones in his foreleg broke. His body rolled off the glass, but managed to grab onto the wing with his one good hoof and hind legs. Pain was searing through his body, his right foreleg was forced back due to the powerful winds. But he dared not. He knew that if he were to let go he’d become nothing more than another target.
As Soarin struggled to remain on the wing, he suddenly recalled a colt he knew from his younger days. Every day at recess the colt would take a magnifying glass and hold it up to the sun so he could burn ants he had collected from the ground below them. Soarin remembered how the colt would giggle sadistically as he watched the ants desperately try and escape their fate with no success. Soarin now had a good idea what it must have been like to be those ants. To be at the whim of something so powerful that they could barely comprehend.
Not knowing what else to do, Soarin looked around and noticed an arch on the wing he was standing on. Carefully he moved over knowing that if he slipped off it would be the end for him. Once he was there Soarin peeked in, but quickly pulled himself back. The air current there was much stronger, as if something was pulling the air in. Also, while he didn’t good look at it, Soarin saw some kind on mechanical device in there. Soarin began to think that if he through something large enough in there it could cause some damage to this thing he was standing on and force it out of the battle zone. Maybe even crash it. However he had nothing on his pony that might be able to do the job. But there had to be something he could do. He just couldn’t let his friend’s deaths…
A great pain burst from his chest that made the pain from his foreleg feel like minor irritation. His friends. Spitfire, Fleetfoot, Rapid Fire, Fire Streak, Misty Fly. Ponies who he had known and worked with for years, all dead in the blink of an eye leaving him alone. Narrowing his eyes he turned his head to look at the pony flying this thing finding that said pony wasn’t looking at him. Either he/she didn’t know he was there or simply didn’t care since there was nothing he could do. Well there was something he could do. He wasn’t going to be one of those powerless ants! He wasn’t going to let his friends die in vain! He was going to finish what they started and take this thing done if it was the last thing he ever did!
With a great deal of determination and effort, Soarin moved his good hoof to grab hold of the arch. It was a struggle to fight against the strong air current, but he didn’t care. Step by step he moved his body to lean against the arch until he teetered over the edge. He only hoped that when he made it to the other side, he could see his friends once more and be able to tell them the good news. And, well, maybe there would be some good pie there as well.
And with that, Soarin leaned over to the side and into the arch where his death awaited him.
-x-
Raging Storm maneuvered around his the few remaining Guards as he tried to get closer to the mountain. Closer to where one of their own had fallen. Less than a minute ago he had spotted the Wonderbolts try and fail to stop one of those flying terrors which resulted in them being blown out of the sky. By chance one of them had fallen nearby in what could have been an attempt at a soft landing. Meaning there was a chance that one of them was alive. Perhaps somepony he could save.
Far too many were either lying on the ground or obliterated by energy blasts.
Looking over his shoulder just in time, he managed to avoid being hit by an energy blast from one of the smaller crafts. He had seen enough action in his life to know to always be aware of your surroundings. It’s when you fail to do this that your life ends. That was how he had stayed alive for this long, constantly scanning the battlefield and managing to dodge at the last moment. But there were too many close calls and his stamina was almost gone. He felt as tired as his first day after training, but he pushed himself forwards.
Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something that brought him a twinge of happiness. One of the bulky looking flying machines started to leave a trail of smoke that was coming out of its wings and was sinking towards the ground. Was that the one the Wonderbolts had attacked? Had they, in some way, managed to take it down? While this would not win them the day, it did make him feel a bit better that they had managed to take one of these things down. It gave him hope knowing that the Lunar Republic was not invincible.
After galloping a bit longer, Raging found the pony he had been looking for. It was Spitfire, lying on her side with no living pony around to help her. She was breathing, but in bad shape. Most of her uniform was gone to reveal that almost half her fur was covered in burns. Her wings looked just as charred making it a true miracle that she had managed to land with them in this kind of condition. But, just by looking at them, he knew she would never be able to fly again. If she survived. At least for now she was somewhat conscious, speaking softly to herself in order to stay awake. Raging could hear her going over a list of things she hadn’t done yet like kissing Fleetfoot and dining on Restaurant Row.
“Hold on, I’ll get you out of here.” whispered Raging as he moved closer. Once he was close enough, he gently placed her on his back. However, thanks to her weight and position, flying was out of the question.
As he scanned the area for the best way to escape and seek medical attention, he spotted the bulky craft. He could see flames coming out from its bottom causing Raging Storm to think that it was more heavily damaged than he originally thought. Yet he quickly realized something that made his blood run cold: those flames were being used to slow its descent! He then took a step back when he saw that chicken like legs came out from the bottom and allowed it to land safely on the ground. It also gained two cylinder like devices along its bottom as well.
Several dozen foolish ponies charged at it, thinking they could take it down as it walked across the field. They threw spears at it and swung their swords at its legs but to no avail. Raging Storm watched in horror as is walked on top of them, stepping on them like they were bugs. Then it began to shoot energy blasts at those still alive and fighting.
Raging storm felt tears roll down his face as his body trembled. It…it just wasn’t fair. After everything they had done, after all they did to prepare for this. It was all for nothing. They couldn’t even take out a single one of them. Nothing they did seem to matter. Other ponies seemed to feel the same way. Less than half of those who still remained had their hooves up in the air and their weapons tossed to the ground. Some were even taking off all their armor in a hurry just to make it clear that they had given up. Above him many of the pegasi were flying down to the ground also with their hooves in the air. The Lunar infantry approached those who did this and began to round them up to a section away from the mountain. Whether it was to show them mercy or just to shoot later, Raging didn’t know.
“Hey,” came a whisper behind him. Raging turned his head to look at Spitfire whose eyes were closed. “Did…we get…it?” Raging Storm didn’t answer at first. He looked at the walker who was killing whoever had yet to surrender. The he looked back at his fellow former Captain. He gulped before forcing himself to smile, something he knew she couldn’t see.
“Y-Yeah,” he stammered, unable to keep the shakiness from his voice. “You and the Wonderbolts did it. You w-were the only ones able to take o-one of them d-down.” Spitfire didn’t say anything in response. Raging saw that she was still limp on his back, face staring down at the ground with her eyes closed. Taking a deep breath the stallion flung his head down with enough force that his helmet came off while at the same time raising a hoof into the air.
-x-
Blueblood and the other nobles could not take their eyes off of the scene below them. There was so little left to fight with. All of their siege weapons: gone. The Wonderbolts: gone. Their army: slowly surrendering. The ponies from the Republic had done all of this in such a short amount of time it was almost inconceivable. If the prince hadn’t seen it with his own two eyes he would never of believed it possible, the mad ravings of a crazy! And with so little now to stand in there way they would be coming for him!
“My prince.” whispered Majesty in his ear. “We must leave now before the others turn on you.”
Blueblood’s eyes widened at this. She was right. There was no way any of the other nobles would defend him or protect him in any way. There was no way he could keep any of his promises of wealth or power. Equestria had now lost its entire army because of his decisions. Sooner or later they would turn on him and hoof him over to the enemy who would drag him to the wasteland they call home to die.
Slowly he nodded before walking backwards. To him relief neither Fancy Pants or North Star noticed, both their gazes fixed on what was going on below. Once he had passed the threshold separating the balcony from the throne room he used his magic to slam the door shut and lock it.
“Blueblood, open this door at once!” shouted Fancy Pants as both he and North Star began to bang on the door.
The prince then heard another door slam causing him to jump. He turned in the direction he had heard it to find that it had been Majesty closing and locking the main doors leading into the throne room. Before Blueblood could say anything he began to hear the sounds of many hooves banging on the doors as well as the shouting voices of the various nobles. Many were demanding that he open the doors or to turn himself in.
Blueblood began to walk backwards, feeling like a trapped beast. It would be only a matter of time before they dirtied their own horns to blast the doors down or teleport in. Eventually he backed into Celestia’s throne causing him to jump ten feet into the air while yelping in fright.
“Prince Blueblood,” said Majesty catching his attention. He turned to look at the other side of the room where she was standing, her magic pulling back a drake which had been concealing an old wooden door. Majesty’s magic then opened the door to reveal a small, dimly lit corridor. The prince knew what this was right away: the servant’s secret passageway! It was a direct line from the throne room to the kitchen for, according to Celestia, having late night snacks delivered to her without anypony knowing.
Blueblood knew what Majesty wanted them to do. To use this door to escape and gain some distance. An idea that, under normal circumstances, Blueblood would have dismissed out of hoof. The very idea of walking through an area for the help was enough to send shivers of disgust down his spine. However, this was a desperate time and he knew that. His life was now on the line so he couldn’t afford to be too picky.
Without uttering a word the prince raced towards the door at a gallop. As he entered the corridor he gave Majesty a nod of thanks. Majesty returned this with a sinister smile that he didn’t noticed, galloping in front of her at full speed in order to escape the nobles, the Lunars, and this pathway. As Majesty hurried into the corridor as well, she calmly closed the door behind her while also stopping the magic which held the drape up.
-x-
“This…this has gone on long enough,” said Hot Pants, her face looking slightly green at the moment as she looked onto the field of death. Only a small hoof full of ponies were still trying to fight and were dying quickly. If they didn’t end this soon there might not be anything left. “Let’s signal the enemy and tell them we surrender.”
All around her were nods of agreement. It was well past time they began to save what they could. However, as she began to form a large white flag composed of her magic a shot was fired. Everypony gasped in shock of the attack and took a step back. The same amount of shock, however, was not present when they saw the smoking horn of Stareye with a twitch in his eye.
“We are not giving up!” he barked. “I give the orders, not you! I’m the pony in charge here, not you! We shall continue to fight!” Every word he spoke was punctuated by him stomping his hooves like who foal who wasn’t getting the toy he wanted.
“With what?” snapped Hot Pants in a tone that made Stareye flinch. She was so tired of Stareye. Tired of his laziness. Tired of his incompetence. Tired of his self-important attitude. There would be no more games, no more pretending to listen to him while trying to make things work. Now was the time for honesty. “Our troops? Gone. Our trebuchets? Gone. The Wonderbolts? Gone! The recruits? ALL GONE BECAUSE OF YOU!”
Stareye took a step backwards while bringing a hoof up to his throat. He knew he should be yelling back at her. He knew he should be threatening to place her in a cell for talking to him in such a manner. But…his trembling body refused to allow his to do any of this.
“They have to be tired by now...” whispered Stareye, a hoof still on his throat as he spoke. “Th-They just killed about five hundred thousand ponies. We…we can still win this. We just need more…more ponies that’s all.”
“Are…are you that demented?” asked Crème with complete sincerity. “Look at them! They haven’t lost a single pony! Buck, I don’t think they’ve even broken a sweat! The only thing we did by sending out five hundred thousand against them was giving them more ponies to kill.”
“I didn’t send enough,” muttered Stareye, who hadn’t heard a word Crème had said. Instead he stood there, sweating slightly while his eye darted back and forth. Slowly a mad smile crossed his face. “Yes, that’s it. I didn’t send enough. I can still fix this. I can do it! Then nopony will ever doubt me again! I just need to get them all down here.”
Hot Pants rolled her eyes as she turned around. She wasn’t even going to bother saying that there weren’t anymore Guards he could call upon to fight for him. Instead her horn began to glow creating a large white flag which she intended to wave above them in the hopes that the Lunar ponies understood what it meant. But before she could lift it higher into the air she felt somepony slam into her hard, knocking her to the ground followed by the sound of a unicorn’s energy blast. And a moment later another body fell to the ground.
Looking over to where she had once stood, she saw Bitsworth lying on the ground with a hole in his chest. Instantly she and every other pony other than Stareye rushed to his side. Hot Pants was the first to reach him. without thinking of anything else she got in close and placed an ear against his chest while ignoring the blood that was flowing onto her coat. Her eye widened and began to water before pulling her head back followed by shaking it.
“I WILL NOT BE IGNORED!” roared Stareye, his head still lowered and his horn smoking. “YOU WILL STAY HERE AND STALL WHILE I GET MORE PEONS TO FIGHT FOR ME!” And with that, the raving lunatic vanished.
Before he had even left, Hot Pants had been staring at him with a fire building up inside of her. With every word he spoke it seemed to grow and when he vanished it was the size of Canterlot mountain. Eyes narrowed in utter determination, Hot Pants rose and snorted loudly as the saddened gazes of the other ponies watched her.
“No more,” she hissed. She then turned to Crème. “Signal the surrender. I’m going to stop Stareye with my own two hooves. And once that is done I’m dragging Blueblood out myself. He started this whole mess and I’m TIRED of innocent ponies paying for it with their lives.”
And without saying another word she too vanished into thin air.
-x-
“So tell me again why you think they’re changelings?” asked Cadence in a deadpanned voice. In front of her were several white coated stallions that would normally be wearing golden armor. Most likely they had taken it off so they could work better bucking the apples. Next to them, tied upside down to a tree, was Trixie and a flame haired filly. Below the two were several of their personal items including Trixie’s hat, their saddle bags, a disposable coffee cup, and a compass.
A short while ago Cadence walked through the apple orchard with a smile on her face. As she and her daughter searched for the Guards assigned her, they had taken in the natural beauty of the countryside. Midnight had simply bouncing around with more energy than ever before, curious to everything she saw. A few times she stopped to point at something she didn’t know and would ask her mother what it was. Cadence was all too delighted to assist her learning.
But as she continued to walk and Midnight hopped after a grasshopper, Cadence couldn’t help but think about Midnight’s future. She wanted her to have the best possible one she could provide, but that might be tricky. Canterlot was well known for its magical school, but the pink princess didn’t know much about their other ones. That would be something worth looking into. Or perhaps she should just homeschool her. It would be safer, but then she would miss out on a lot of experiences like making friends her own age.
What broke her out of these thoughts was the screams of filly, a sound that made her blood run cold. She looked down at her daughter, knowing that her top priority was to keep her safe. But she was also a princess with a duty to protect her subjects no matter what. Even if she was so tired she doubted she could even make her horn glow. More screams hastened Cadence’s decision. She told Midnight to stay close as the two raced towards the sounds.
When Cadence finally found the pair as they were being gagged, she was both relieved and shocked to find that those who had tied the two up were member of the Royal Guard. Naturally she wanted them down but the Guards refused, claiming they were a pair of changelings.
“Well, you see princess,” began Major Blazing Glory, the pony in charge. “A short time ago these two were stumbling around the area. Naturally we offered to help them, especially when the one pretending to be Trixie claimed that she was here on urgent matters from Canterlot. I will admit that she does a frighteningly good impression of her. So good, if fact, we were taken in! We asked if what was going on, prepared to drop everything to help her but she refused to tell us. Then we noticed something that warned us that something wasn’t right!”
“And that was?” asked Cadence with an eyebrow raised.
“She wasn’t drunk at all!” exclaimed Blazing as he pointed a hoof at Trixie who scowled at him. “I’ve met the real Trixie several times and she always at least had the scent of booze on her. This one, on the other hoof, smells more like coffee!”
“Well that’s…an interesting deduction.” said Cadence slowly. She was also suspicious of Trixie, but for different reasons. Last she had heard was that Trixie was heading to the Lunar Republic with the mares from Ponyville and Spike. Meaning that the real Trixie should be on the moon right now. Still there was a chance that Trixie had to return on some urgent business for her aunt. The only way to tell would be to talk to her. “But I’d think it would be better to see what she has to say.” Horn glowing, Cadence removed the gag from Trixie.
“Of all the nerve!” roared Trixie. “Is it not possible that the Great and Powerful Trixie is trying to go sober?” This got her a choir of no’s from the Guard causing the unicorn’s eye to twitch. “Get the Great and Powerful Trixie off this tree this instant or else the Great and Powerful Trixie will shove her Great and Powerful hoof right up you-”
“Trixie, there are fillies present,” interrupted Cadence while indicating both Midnight and Sunset.
“I’M TIED TO A BUCKING TREE!” roared Trixie savagely.
“And I am going to let you down,” replied Cadence calmly, her magic already around the ropes. “Now, once I get you down, I want you to tell me why you are here. Then we will see if you are a changeling or not.”
Little did any of them realize that while Trixie was being untied, a pair of eyes were watching them from up in one of the nearby trees. ‘This is going to be tricky,’ thought Ripper as he licked his beak. ‘The princess looks tired, but she’s surrounded. If there were two or three then it wouldn’t be a problem, but right now there’s too many. And none of them are bat ponies meaning I’d have to go looking for them so that they can take the fall for her death like Blueblood wanted.’
Ripper knew his job was getting harder and harder. Not only were these current factors unfavorable, he also had Trixie to deal with. It wasn’t because he preserved her magical skills as a threat for he had heard about her magical ‘talent’ several times. What concerned him was that Blueblood had informed him that she had raced here with the magical compass, eluding the guards as she did. Perhaps it was because she just wanted to get Cadence to Canterlot for the credit of doing so or that she possibly knew more than she should. Whichever reason it was would determine how much harder the job got.
A job he intended to complete no matter what the cost.
-x-
Chaos had erupted in Canterlot. It was no surprise that the lack of any law enforcement plus the approaching Lunar forces would cause mayhem. Everywhere one could look, ponies were breaking into the fancy stores to see if there was anything they could take with them before fleeing the city. Most of the upper crust members of Canterlot society took bits, jewels, and anything else they thought might be worth something. By contrast, those ponies who were of lower social standing instead looked for food, medicine, camping equipment, and anything else that would allow them to survive whatever was to come.
It was also non-surprising to see ponies running in herds. Nearly all of these herds composed of family members, choosing to watch out for only their own. But there were others, like Moondancer and her friends, who stuck together while looking for others that needed a helping hoof with their herd growing larger and larger. Finally came the upper crest who were trying to get others to carry their possessions for them. It surprised them greatly that even after promises of a great rewards too few came to their aid. Even their own personal servants had abandoned them.
This was the scene that Stareye entered when he appeared in Canterlot. The High Commander looked around with his jaw clenched, his heart racing, and sweat dripping off his muzzle. The first thing he noted that he was in the lowest district of the city. A place that he had never set one hoof in before if he could help it. Near him was a cheap outdoor café that had its tables and chairs overturned. Beyond it were several small chain stores including a grocery market, a pawn shop, a low grade jewelry shop, and so on. Like the café, everything seemed in disarray.
Soon a small herd of four ponies consisting of a blank flanked unicorn colt who had a wooden Guard toy in his mouth, what he assumed was the colt’s older sister, and their parents came galloping out of the grocery store. The parents and their daughter had saddle bags full of various foods that would last them several days. The four spotted the High Commander at the same time he spotted them and raced towards Stareye as fast as they could.
“Please you have to help us,” said the mother as the group stopped in front of him. “We need to know what to do.”
“Which way is safe?” asked the father as he stepped in front of Stareye. “Have they surrounded the mountain? Are the remaining Guards helping to evacu-” The stallion got no farther before Stareye smacked him across the muzzle with his hoof, knocking him to the ground. The mares gasped in shock and the little colt dropped his toy as he began to cry.
“SHUT UP!” roared Stareye as veins appeared across his face. His screaming voice caught many ponies attention causing them to stop in their traps. “Nopony is going anywhere. You are all being drafted to protect this city.”
“B-But the foals,” stammered the mother. “We have to get them to safety!”
“No! Everypony is fighting,” snapped Stareye as he grabbed the colt with his magic. The colt whimpered and tried to get away but Stareye shook him back and forth. “You will all fight! This is a decree of the High Commander of the Equestrian Guard and your better! I don’t care if you all die as long as you take those Lunar scum with you! Now do as I command or else.”
“This…This isn’t right,” said the father as he got up. “You can’t-”
“I can,” said Stareye as he used his magic on one of the nearby tables. With a loud crack, the legs of the table broke off unevenly. He then forced them onto the family putting one of them in the mouth of the crying colt before dropping him to the ground. To Stareye’s great irritation, the colt spat it out and began to cry once more. “SHUT UP! Mare, tell your brat to stop crying! He has a job of killing those monsters.”
“The only monster around here is you,” snarled a voice behind Stareye. The High Commander spun around to see Hot Pants marching towards him with an angry scowl on her face. While his back was turned the family moved into the seating area of the café and hid behind an overturned table.
“What are you doing here?!” yelled Stareye, spit shouting from his mouth as he did. “Didn’t I order you to stall the enemy while I got more troops? Was it really so hard to follow such a simple order?”
“We surrendered.” said Hot Pants flatly as she continued to march towards him.
“You…You...,” stammered Stareye. “I told you…wait a moment. That gives me a glorious idea. Yes, I can use your insubordination to my advantage. We’ll ambush them in the city while their guard is down. Yes. Brilliant! I’ll send the foals in first with-” Stareye got no further as Hot Pants, now in front of him, spun around and bucked him as hard as she could in the chest. The force of the impact sent him flying backwards eventually landing on the ground and skidding to a halt.
As he lay there, Stareye noticed two things. The first was that his armor now had a large crack in it, ruining its perfection. The other, and to him most important, was that his mane was dirtied. He could feel the dust and dirt and several other things in there that made him shudder. He was sure that if he were to look in a mirror he could have the same appearance as a commoner.
He turned his furious gaze at Hot Pants which quickly fell when he saw her changing at him with the fury of a bull. In a flash, Stareye teleported away right before Hot Pants could hit him again. When he reappeared he was behind her, horn charging instantly to counterattack. As Hot Pants looked around to find him she saw his attack being fired at her. Not wanting to waste her magic she easily side stepped the attack. But a moment later her eyes perked and eyes widened when she heard a crash behind her. Quickly turning to get a quick peek she saw that a cart full of cabbages had been destroyed and its own wailing about the damages to his wares.
‘I can’t dodge his attacks or else they might hurt innocent bystanders.’ realized Hot Pants as she turned to look at Stareye who was preparing to fire another magical blast. She didn’t bother to say this to him. It was the same reason she didn’t tell him that he was a disgrace to the uniform or give a speech about what it means to be a Guard. It would have been wasted on a fool who didn’t listen or care.
Stareye fired his next attack. Hot Pants threw up her head as her horn glowed brightly creating a dome around her which completely blocked the attack. Stareye grit his teeth in rage as he began to use his magic to grab everything that wasn’t attached to the ground. Dozens of items, mainly saddle bags and chairs were thrown at Hot Pants’ barrier which blocked it all with apparent ease. With each item that bounced harmlessly off, Stareye’s throwing became wilder and more erratic. He began to grind his teeth while veins appeared in his eyes.
While this was happening, Hot Pants considered what to do next since she couldn’t stay in here forever. She thought about using a magical beam attack, but quickly dismissed the idea. She was a member of the Royal Guard sworn not only to protect the Princess but also to protect the ponies of Equestria. There was a chance that she might hit an innocent pony by mistake and that was a gamble she refused to take. Her other option was to get in close so that she could beat him down with her own bare hooves. It would not only ensure that no other ponies got hurt but it would be satisfying to do.
Stareye, meanwhile, continued to fling whatever he could at his disrespectful subordinate to no avail. Cursing loudly as his coat became drenched in sweat he dropped everything all at once and began to charge his horn up for a more powerful beam attack. He paid no attention to the ponies still in the area nor the oddly shaped, fast moving shadows that appeared and just as quickly disappeared. All that mattered was using this spell to kill the mare who had challenged him from day one! The moment that his horn began to glow, however, the barrier dropped as Hot Pants vanished from in. Blinking in confusion, Stareye missed the moment when she appeared above him with her right foreleg pulled back. He did not, however, miss the moment when her hoof connected with his face as she came back to earth. The High Commander was knocked back to the ground and rolled until he hit the wall of the café.
Once he was stopped, Stareye felt he had a few teeth that were loose and the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth. He quickly spat it out as he glared at the mare who had dared do this to him. Hot Pants, he realized quickly, seemed like she was about to attack him once more. And although he despised admitting it to himself, there was no way he could beat her.
‘At least not fairly.’ thought Stareye as an evil smile graced his bruised features and his horn lit up once again.
Hot Pants saw that he was charging his horn for another attack. Thinking that she was the target, she charged at him with the intent to kick his sorry flank before he got the chance. She had only galloped a few steps when he fired, but his horn wasn’t aimed at her but somewhere to her right. She looked over to where the shot would go and time seemed to slow down. It was the family she had seen Stareye harassing earlier. They were still there, huddled behind the table facing Stareye with their eyes closed as they prepared for the worst. Without a second thought Hot Pants jumped into the line of fire as time began to speed up once more and take the hit.
“Ha-ha!” cheered Stareye triumphantly as Hot Pants feel to the ground, a small hole in the middle of her barrel where he had hit her. Slowly he walked over to her with his grin still intact.
“You stupid mare.” he said as he spat on her face and was somewhat surprised when she flinched. “See this is why I am your superior. I am willing to make any sacrifice in order to win. Ever if I have to send everypony in Equestria to their deaths it won’t matter as long as I win! Now get out of my sight!” Stareye’s horn began to glow brightly and he pointed at the defeated mare. But just before he fired two barriers, one blue and the other orange, appeared between the two. Then, before Stareye could even register what he was seeing, he received a powerful flying kick to his side courtesy of Crème. Upon impact his armor shattered and the arrogant commander was sent to the ground where he began to roll for several yards before stopping. As he looked up he saw not just Crème but all of the lieutenants standing there, looking at him with angry expressions.
“What are you doing here?” whispered Hot Pants as she tried to get up. However Boot Licker kept her down.
“Please rest ma’am, please.” he said gently as he began to tend to her injuries, his magic stopping the blood flow. As this was happening the family on ponies Stareye had assaulted remembered they could move and ran away as fast as they could.
“Sorry, but you never said to stay where we were.” said Crème as her horn, as well as the other lieutenants’ horns began to light up. “And did you really think we’d let you have all the fun of kicking his bucking ass?”
“He killed Bitsworth.” said another lieutenant as his eyes narrowed in rage. This was followed by a chorus of ‘That’s right” and reminders of his cowardice during the massacre at the castle.
“How dare you?!” snarled Stareye. “Do you have any idea who I am, who my father is? I will see you all in shackles before the night falls! Now get on yo-” Stareye got no farther as he was suddenly showered in magical energy blasts of all colors, piercing every part of him at once. Before his body hit the ground he resembled Swiss cheese more than a pony.
“It’s over.” breathed Crème as she and the other turned to walk towards their true commanding officer. After taking a few steps, however, a large shadow fell upon them. Looking up, everypony gasped when they saw dozens of the Lunar machines flying into the city. Many of the smaller, one pony crafts were buzzing around the city in packs of three to five. Other crafts like the ‘ships’ or the fighters had begun to hover above the city in strategic locations. The one that had created the shadow was one of their ‘ships’ as it hovered just above the building in. Soon a single pony jumped out of it, extending her wings in order to make a soft landing a comfortable distance away from them.
It was Princess Luna.
“I saw the whole thing,” said the princess while the lieutenants quickly moved into a protective formation around Hot Pants. If this worried Luna in any way she didn’t show it. “He was a coward for using such a dirty tactic, truly unfit to be a Guard in any civilized society. My only regret was not getting here sooner.”
Several of the lieutenants lowered their heads with their eyes narrowed. “Stand,” began Hot Pants but stopped to cough out blood. “Stand down everypony.” As the lieutenants raised their heads Hot Pants did her best to stand. This, sadly, proved to be difficult resulting having to wrap a hoof around Boot Licker’s neck and use him as support. Breathing heavily, she said “We surrender.”
“I am well aware that you have. I saw the white flag being waved by her,” said Luna simply as she gestured to Crème. “Why else you I have brought my army into your city. Of course, it’s not like it you could have stopped us at this point.”
Luna’s eye narrowed as Hot Pants coughed up more blood, also taking note of how her coat seemed to be growing pale and her labored breathing. “You are in desperate need of medical assistance. Without it, you will not survive. I’m sure you know this.”
“Yeah,” whispered Hot Pants, surprising everypony there as she coughed up more blood.
Luna nodded before placing a hoof to the side of her helmet. “This is Princess Luna contacting the medical wing of Dome Zero. I am about to use an emergency teleportation beacon to send over a seriously injured Equestrian soldier. I demand that she is treated with the utmost respect while she is there. She is not to be placed in a cell after treatment is completed. She is to be treated like one of our own. I will be most displeased if my order are not carried out to the letter.”
As Luna said all of this, the Equestrian Royal Guard heard everything she was saying and thus stared at her in utter amazement. “Why are you doing this?” asked one of them when Luna brought down her hoof, voicing what they were all thinking.
“Despite what you have been told your whole lives and what you have just seen, we are not monsters,” said Luna as levitated something out of her armor. It was a small, circular device that was no bigger than a bottle cap with a blinking blue light in the middle. Gracefully it flew over to Hot Pants and attached itself to her chest. “Many of your survivors are being sent to Crescent Hope to be checked out. However, there are those who will need more serious medical help that Crescent Hope can’t provide.”
As she said this, Luna observed that the ponies in front of her did not look relieved or happy. Instead their gazes shifted from Hot Pants, to her, and then to each other. Their stances were rigid, as if they were still ready to brawl. Their distrust did not surprise the night princess. She had said it herself, a short while ago her ponies were killing them. They probably thought that she was going to do something awful to their friend.
Luna let out a sigh. “I could teleport some of you to the moon as well.” she offered.
“No,” whispered Hot Pants. “I’ll go alone. The rest of you need to stay here.”
“But ma’am.” cried Boot Licker as he looked at her. Her head was beginning to droop a bit and her color was going faster. She looked so very weak at this moment.
“Y-You are all needed here,” whispered Hot Pants. “The ponies here a-are most likely to be afraid right n-now. The civilians a-are our top p-priority. You should all stay here and make sure those w-who want to leave c-can.” She gulped. “R-Right now, I d-don’t matter. I-If they are planning on doing s-something h-horrible to me then I d-don’t want you there. Please…”
“Yes ma’am,” said Crème after a moment, saluting as she did so. Slowly all the other nodded and saluted her with the exception of Boot Licker.
‘She’s got her priorities straight,’ thought Luna while suppressing a smile. ‘I’m almost tempted to offer her a spot in my guard. But I’m sure Princess Cadence will need a mare like her more once I place her on the throne.’ With that thought, Luna pressed a button on her chest plate sending Hot Pants to the moon.
As the mare vanished from sight, Luna opened her wing to head up back to her transport. Just as she became airborne, however, she sensed something that caused her eyes to widen. Something she had not felt in a thousand year. And, in spite of the length of time, she could never forgot the feel of chaotic magic in the air. Eyes narrowing Luna sped off towards the castle at full speed, hoping she’d be able to arrive in time to stop Discord from freeing himself.
-x-
Blueblood raced into the royal garden as if timberwolves were nipping at his flank with Majesty by his side. Try as he might he could not keep himself from panting loudly. He was, after all, a unicorn noble and not some earth pony filth who had to walk everywhere. The most he ever had to do was walk up stairways and when he grew too tired he could simply order his servants to carry him the rest of the way.
As soon as the two had entered the kitchen, it had been non-stop activity. Majesty did everything she could to ensure that they made it out of the castle unseen. While the castle had been emptied of all of its guards and most of its servants, one could never be too careful. She peeked around every corner and made distraction with her magic whenever the situation called. Truly, she was his one and only loyal supporter in all of this.
“I…need a…moment,” panted Blueblood as they passed by a hideous, cracked statue of some creature that he was sure his aunt had tried to tell him about. But, alas, he had not bothered to pay her any attention to some dusty told tale.
“Alright my prince,” said Majesty who was looking less winded than he was. “I’ll keep watch while you catch your breath.” With that she walked around the hedge bend while Blueblood sank onto his flank, never noticing the glint in her eyes or the fact that her smile widened a bit.
“Oh thank Celestia...” breathed Blueblood as he raised his hoof to wipe the sweat from his brow. But once it had reached eye level he stopped himself to stare at it. His suit was filthy! Not just from sweat, but he saw there was dust and cobwebs that had to have come from galloping down the servant’s corridor! He also spotted mud and grass stains on it as well. Grass stains! The horror! This was a four thousand bit suit and it was ruined!
His eye began twitching like mad as he slammed his hoof back onto the ground. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this!” he bellowed to the sky above. “Everything was perfect, simply perfect. I had everything planned out with the parasprite and taking control of the Royal Guard! I had the chance to make Equestria a better place for unicorns, placing us at the top and securing it forever! We should have won this battle and the nobility should be singing my praise, those who doubted me begging for forgiveness. So how could things have gone so wrong?”
Faces began to appear in his mind. First Spell Matrix and his lot came floating into the forefront. They had been given the simple task of copying the Lunar armor technology yet failed miserably. If only they had not bellyached about it being more ‘advanced’ then perhaps they could have started mass producing it. Maybe even arming their own forces with those weapons on the backs of the Lunar Guard! They would have won this thing for sure then. Then came North Star and Fancy Pants, both of them being irritations at his side. Questioning him and swaying ponies away from his side. Trixie who ran away with the magical compass. Lady Fine Dining for causing that scene at the party which turned more ponies away from him. Stareye THAT BUCKIG IDIOT!
“IT’S THEIR FAULT!” screamed Blueblood, pouring all his anger and frustration into that yell while the statue behind cracked some more. “It’s their fault everything fell apart. If it wasn’t for all of their whining and utter incompetence then I wouldn’t be in this situation. I would be preparing for a victory brunch or getting pampered like I’m supposed to.”
Just then, Blueblood heard the sound of hoofsteps coming towards him. Turning his head he saw that it was Majesty walking towards him. He opened his mouth to ask her if the cost was closed, but stopped himself before he even uttered a single word. Something was wrong with her. Her eyes looked fiercely at him, full of an utter hatred that caused his brain to stop working for a moment. He also saw that in her magical gasp was a large stick, more of a tree branch really, hovering next to her.
“Now it’s just you and me,” she whispered. “Nopony will get in the way. THIS IS FOR SCOOTER!” With a wild scream she swung her weapon at him. Blueblood, his brain just now realizing the danger he was in, ducked down just in time.
“Majesty, what are you-” be began, but stopped as pain erupted through his body when Majesty struck his head.
“You killed him,” said Majesty in a quiet tone, neither one paying any attention to the cracking noise in the background. “You killed my Scooter. And because of you Scootaloo might be hurt or dead. I don’t know! But I’ll make sure you can never hurt anypony ever again!” Again, Majesty swung the branch down as hard as she could. However, Blueblood managed to regain enough sense to roll to the side so as to avoid her attack.
Growling in rage, Majesty charged at Blueblood so she could bash his brains in with her branch raised above her head. Gulping, Blueblood created a magic barrier in the shape of a kite shield in order to protect himself. However, whether it was because his magic was weak from exhaustion or his own lack of magical skill and/or power, Majesty’s attack went through the shield as if it were made of paper. Still it at least slowed down the attack enough so that Blueblood could get out of the way.
Feeling more sweat appear on his brow as he dodged another attack, Blueblood began to lite his horn to counterattack. After ducking to avoid being hit once again a beam of magical energy fired from his horn. Majesty, in turn, blocked his attack with her branch. Normally an attack like this would have either destroyed the branch or created a hole through it and still hit its target, depending on the level of discipline and focus of the caster. In Blueblood’s case, however, all it did was destroy the end leaving behind jagged wood that Majesty could use to stab him with. And to make that point perfectly clear, Majesty lowered her weapon and thrust forwards. Eyes widening, Blueblood threw himself to the ground as hard as he could in an effort to get out of the way to save himself from a fatal blow but got scratched on the cheek.
Before he could lift a hoof to stand, Blueblood saw Majesty’s hooves right in front of him. Looking up, he saw her narrow gaze locked on him and the branch poised to strike. Quickly he began to think of how to get out of this with little success. His magic had so far proved useless and there was no chance of anypony coming to his rescue. Maybe he could say something, but the question was what could he say. Promises of power and wealth would have been laughable given his current state. Thinking faster than he ever had before, he searched his memory for anything that might cause her to stop. Then, an idea came to him.
“Do you really think Scooter and Scootaloo would forgive you for murder?” he asked quickly. It was the only thing he had really. Those two names she had spoken about earlier, they must have some importance to her.
Upon hearing Blueblood’s question, Majesty’s eyes suddenly widened slightly and her makeshift weapon lowered a bit. Seeing her pause, Blueblood quickly reached out with his magic to try and take hold of the branch while standing up at the same time. Seeing Blueblood’s magical aura mix with hers, Majesty gasped in shock before redoubling her efforts to be in sole possession of her murder weapon. Then Blueblood raised a hoof and punched her square in the muzzle with all his might, knocking the mare to the ground while also losing her magical focus. With the branch now under his full control, Blueblood walked over to where his former ally. When Majesty looked up wide eyed and saw Blueblood looking down at her in utter hate.
“Traitor.” he hissed as he raised the branch and then swung it down hard. Majesty screamed in pain as the branch hit the side of her face before it rose again only to strike her once more. Over and over again, Blueblood struck Majesty as he put all his rage into each swing. Each time he hit her he remembered all the ponies who had caused him problems since the dealings with the Republic began. He never did notice that the cracking noise behind him was getting louder and happening more rapidly with each passing second. All he could hear was the sound of his own breathing and the wails of pain in front of him.
Minutes passed, but to Blueblood it could have been hours, before Majesty stopped crying out. Now she just laid there looking like a wreck. Her once elegant pink coat now marred with ugly bruises and blood. Looking down at the part of her face he could see, her cheek looked puffy and her eye had swollen shut. Sneering at her Blueblood tossed away the branch just as the loudest crack he had ever heard sounded throughout the garden.
Maniacal giggling soon filled the air as Blueblood looked around in a panic, thinking that somepony had found him. Yet all he could see was Majesty and she was in no condition to be giggling like that. But who could it-
Suddenly a full orchestra began to play a dark, yet exciting tone that caused the prince to jump into the air. When he landed, he spun around to look at the statue to see the cracks on it were beginning to glow white. As if it were waiting for him to turn around and look, the statue exploded revealing a creature of the same mixed matched parts that roared loudly as it threw its arms into the air.
The music then cut off abruptly, sounding like a scratch on a record player as the creature began to float in the air while wearing a pink robe and rubber ducky slippers. In one of his claws was a coffee mug that read “Best God of Chaos” in letters of various fonts.
“Oh how I do love a good cup of chaos in the morning,” said the being as he sipped an ever changing liquid from his mug. “Ahhh, that hits the spot after being trapped in stone for a thousand years.”
“Wh-who are you?” asked Blueblood as he took a step back.
Discord looked down at him with a curious expression on his face which slowly turned into a smile. He raised a clawed hand and snapped it so that his attire changed instantly. He then reach behind his back to pull out a full head rubber mask of Celestia and put it on his head.
“My dear nephew,” said the creature in a perfect imitation of Celestia’s voice. “Didn’t I once tell you about the most powerful, handsome, and not at all stick in the mud like myself being to ever walk Equestria? He is Discord!” Right when Discord said his name the mask began to expand until it popped like a balloon leaving only his own smirking face. Blueblood stared at him while his eyes widened in realization.
Just then Discord’s expression shifted as a surprised and then embarrassed look crossed his face. He then began to dance around while both his hands and tail covered the spot between his legs. Looking around, he teleported in from of one of the hedges and pulled on it. The front of the hedge swung to the side like a door revealing what looked like an old outhouse. Blueblood could even see that written on the walls in crayon were things like “For a lame time call Celestia” and “Luna will never get her own throne on the show”. Quickly Discord ran in, slamming the ‘door’ behind him with all his might.
As Blueblood stood there, with the sound of a humpback whale splashing in the water coming from inside the hedge, the wheels in his head began to turn. From what he had just seen, this Discord fellow seemed to have the ability to play with reality. That or he was a really good illusionist. If he could smooth talk him into an alliance, then he could fix everything in one swoop!
The hedge swung open to allow Discord, who was wearing a gas mask, to exit. Gas began to leak out of the hedge causing the plant life around it to change in random ways. Some of the plants grew massively large thrones while other gained teeth instead of petals. Other plants grew four times their original size and one began to scoot away like a caterpillar. Then, before anything else could happen, Discord closed the door.
“Well now, I’d better get to work,” said Discord as he looked at his wrist which now had a calendar glued to it. “Oh there is so little to do and so much time. Strike that. Reverse it. Oh how I love the classics!”
“Excuse me,” said Blueblood, getting the Lord of Chaos’ attention. “If I may have a word I would-”
“A word? Certainly!” said Discord as he snapped his fingers. Just then the word ‘heavy’ fell on Blueblood’s head creating a rather large bump and causing Discord to snicker.
“A, yes,” hissed Blueblood as he tried his best to keep from shouting at this powerful being. “Er, what I meant to say is I want to talk to you. I am Prince Blueblood.”
“Oh, I know who you are,” said Discord as he walked over to the prince. “Believe me, I heard everything that went on around my statue.” He then leaned in close and whispered into Blueblood’s ear. When he was done, the white coated stallion looked very green while holding his mouth with both hooves.
“Look,” said Blueblood quickly as he took a deep breath and walked backwards a bit. “I would like to make a deal with you. You are a being of great power. I believe that together, with my brains and connections, there would be nothing that could stop us. We could take over the world”
“OF COURSE!” shouted Discord as the M. Bison attire appear on him for a brief moment.
“You agree? That wonderful,” said Blueblood with a smile.
Discord chuckled. “Oh no,” he said while shaking his head with a grin on his face.
“But you just said-”
“I couldn’t help but use that meme,” said Discord with a shrug. “But, in all seriousness, why would I ever need you? Before Celestia and Luna imprisoned me in stone Equestria was my happy fun time zone. A world of pure chaotic imagination. I had it raining chocolate milk, snowing dandruff, volcanoes spewing out bad Adam Sandler movies on VHS.”
“Who is Adam Sandler?” asked Blueblood.
“Never mind that,” said Blueblood. “The point is that the two royal pains were the only ones who could use the Elements of Harmony to stop me. And thanks in no small part in your selfish efforts I was freed before they could reestablish their connection or find new barriers!” Behind Discord a choir of himself suddenly appeared and began to sing “Hallelujah!”
“W-What,” stammered Blueblood as a great unease crept over him. “I-I don’t u-understand.”
“Oh Blueblood,” said Discord as he lifted the prince up and placed him over his knee, a pipe appearing in his mouth with sprinkled doughnut rings coming out of its end. “Did it ever occur to you that Celestia had a reason for doing the things she did? Oh, she tried to protect you all with her compassion with the hopes that it would rub off on you all. That you would all follow her example and become better, nicer ponies. But thanks to ponies like you Blueblood,” he bopped the prince on the nose, “You completely undermined her efforts. For various selfish reasons you keep her from learning about much of the problems in this happy little country. All the delicious disharmony ponies like you spread allowed me to be freed earlier than expected. And thanks to you I can now run around free to do whatever I want with nopony around to stop me!”
Discord then vanished, causing Blueblood to fall on the ground and land on his plot. When the chaotic spirit reappeared next to the prince, he was wearing an “I’m with stupid” t-shirt with the arrow (which was blinking on and off) pointed right at Blueblood.
“Now then,” began Discord as he literally snaked an arm around a very scared Blueblood. “I was just going to let you go and be on my merry way as thanks for all your wonderful help. But, alas, it was not meant to be. I mean, really, trying to trick the master of tricks? I’m afraid I can let that one slide. But don’t worry, I won’t kill you like so many commenters have been asking for.”
“W-Wait, commenters?” stammered Blueblood.
“Now I think I have just the idea to make you as important as you really are,” said Discord with a smirk as he snapped his fingers. There was a flash of light and when it had faded, Blueblood was frozen in stone while sitting on a toilet with his mouth comically hanging open. “Hmm, it’s missing something. Oh, I got it!” Discord once more snapped his fingers to magically add a crown with the words “Hay Burger Princess” on it. Seeing this, Discord jumped into the air while clapping and laughing at his own wit.
As he landed onto the ground, Discord heard a moan. Curious he walked over to Majesty whose head had moved slightly so that it was facing the statue. Rubbing his chin, Discord pondered what to do with her. He could use his magic to heal her and then see what she did next or toy with her a bit. Various ideas began to pop into his head like play doctor with her to turning her into a plate.
Before he could make up his mind something fast and shiny caught his attention. Turning his head and pulling out an old pirate scope from nowhere he saw that there were five of these science fiction looking things moving in a pack of the city. In fact there were many others like them all over the city. Lowering the scope, Discords expression changed from curious to gleeful.
“Oh what a wonderful day!” cried Discord as he snapped his fingers and a book entitles “Sci-Fi References” appeared before him suspended in midair. “First I am freed and now I get to use this for the first time ever. This is simply marvelous. I am going to have so much fun!” With that said, Discord began to flip through the pages while a pair of reading glasses appeared on his face upside down. Eventually he found something that amused him and snapped the book away. He was about to snap his fingers when he heard the sound of somepony flying towards him fast. When he turned his head the only thing he saw was Luna’s metal hoof impacting his face, sending him into the air and into the sky above Canterlot.
As the god of chaos flew away, Majesty slowly began to stir. Slowly she pushed one foreleg in front of her in the direction of Blueblood’s statue. Once it was planted into the ground she dragged her body forwards. She then placed her other foreleg in front of her, hissing from the pain as she did so, and repeated the process. Over and over again, she used her forelegs to move her inch by inch towards the statue. Never once did her gaze linger from her target, even when her vision began to grow dark and hazy. All she cared about was getting to that statue.
As she moved forwards, the noble began to see something on the edge of her vision. It was Scooter. He was standing there, smiling at her. But she could tell from the look in his eyes that it wasn’t a happy one, nor was it forced. It was sad. She then saw him opening his mouth to say things, yet no words came out. Tears began to appear in her eyes for right now for she felt cheated not being able to hear his voice one last time. But she was also happy. She didn’t know if this was an illusion caused by the blows Blueblood had inflicted upon her or if this was a ghost come to take her to the other side. Either way she didn’t care. It was still good to see him one last time like this.
‘If I die,’ thought Majesty as she continued to crawl. ‘And if there is anything like reincarnation, I’d like a do over with them. Maybe then I’ll make the right choice and we’ll all be a family.’
Eventually she reached her target. Now Majesty placed one of her hooves on the statue and began to pull herself. With her strength sapped like this, it was like climbing a mountain. Yet she was soon able to get into a standing position with both her forelegs pressed against the cold stone. Then, with every last ounce of her strength, she pushed the statue forwards causing it to tip over. As she fell, her vision went dark. But before she landed on the ground, she heard the sound of stone shattering which brought a smile to her face.
‘For…you…Scooter,’ thought Majesty. ‘I’m…sorry…Scootaloo…but…mommy…won’t…see…you…’
And those were the last thoughts that ran through Majesty’s head.
The LBI headquarters was not a sinister looking building. It was a simple, four story building with polished one way glass windows. Just like every other building around it for five blocks. Only two things set this one apart. The first, and most obvious, was a sign that said “Welcome to the Lunar Bureau of Investigations” right above the door in big friendly letters. The other was a steel statue of Princess Luna standing on the surface of the moon on only her hind legs while raising the Lunar Republic’s flag with her forelegs. Nothing seemed off about it in the slightest. Nothing at all.
‘But I guess that’s the point.’ thought Shadow Blade as he stared at the building. Currently he was standing on top of the building directly across from it. He had ditched his heavy armor which would have both made him stand out like a sore hoof as well as slowing him down greatly now that he was back in normal gravity.
His eyes surveyed the area with a frown, looking for any LBI agents patrolling the area. Every few seconds his head would shift to look at the door on the roof that led back into the building. Every time he looked at it he felt like it was mocking him or waiting for him to lower his guard so that it would open to reveal a surprise. His ears twitched as he listened carefully for the sounds of wings flapping or a teleportation spell.
Shadow’s wings hugged his sides tightly. None of this felt right. He hadn’t seen anypony patrolling the ground or even guarding the door. And he had been here long enough to know that they would have spotted him. Something should have happened. So where was everypony?
‘It could be a trap,’ thought Shadow as his eye narrowed at the building. ‘Perhaps they want me to try and break in so they can surround and corner me without being seen. Not a bad plan all things considered.’
Shadow took a deep breath and began to think. He had been in the building many times with Princess Luna so he knew the layout fairly well. The first floor held public offices mainly for things like school trips or if somepony wanted to file a complaint. Going up, the security tightened greatly. The next two floors held most of their monitoring systems and the floor above them both data storage as well as the office of the Sealed Document. Trying to move up to the top floor would be very difficult by trying to walk through the front entrance. If he was right about it being a trap then there would be multiple locations where he could be cornered. Trying to use stealth would be impossible since they would have plenty of motion detectors and cameras. Not to mention that in order to get to the next floor a pony would have to walk across the floor in order to get to the next stair well. He could try the door on their roof, but he was sure it would be locked and if he tried to buck it down alarms would sound.
Shadow’s ears flattened. He knew he was running out of time. The battle in Equestria had already begun. He would have to act soon.
-x-
“Luna!” cried Discord in a cheerful tone as the two rocked through the sky. “So good to see you again. I must say I like the look, but who are you cosplaying as? Iron Mare or Singularity? Oh, the Iron Singularity!”
Luna said nothing as she opened her wings, causing her to stop in midair. She then pointed her hoof at Discord as it went “Bweee”. Discord suddenly stopped in midair as well while giving Luna a knowing smile and placing his claws on his hips. Seeing this, the Night Princess gritted her teeth as she fired on her opponent. Before it could hit him, however, Discord grabbed the beam of energy and took a bite out of it.
“Tasty, though it could use more salt.” said Discord as he took another bite. As he did, he noticed Luna’s expression. She didn’t seem shocked at all. More annoyed, judging by how she was narrowing her eyes. “What’s this? No!’ ‘That’s impossible!’ or ‘That should have worked?’ Those are all things the ‘hero’ is supposed to say.” When Discord finished saying this, he tossed the energy beam over his shoulder and manipulated it to speed towards the ground. Within seconds it fell onto of a restaurant in Restaurant Row that had a three hooves rating. Nothing of value was lost.
“Do you take me for a fool Discord?” asked Luna. “I remember the last time me and my sister fought you. I know all too well what you are capable of.” Oh, Luna knew full well the extent of his powers. She remembered how he toyed with reality, driving the ponies of Equestria mad for his own amusement and what it had taken to defeat him. She knew that even with both her technology and her magic, she only stood the slimmest of chances. The only thing Luna knew she had that would work was Operation: Umbrella. However, using that now without warning the other races like the griffons would cause a disaster. And she wasn’t ready to do that right now. Right now it could only be her last resort.
Discord rubbed his goatee. “I see,” he said calmly before sighing. “Well I suppose that it can’t be helped. But having only one alicorn instead of the two makes things less interesting. So tell me, ‘Princess’, how do you expect to defeat me by yourself when you and your big sister couldn’t defeat me a thousand years ago? Multi-modal reflection sorting?”
Discord grinned while Luna growled, the crescent moon on her armor beginning to glow. This only made Discord chuckle harder. To him it seemed like a foolish thing to do to a being like him who had just a few minutes ago grabbed attack similar to that. No matter how powerful the blast the end result would be the same. The only problem it presented was him trying to decide how to dodge it. There was no way he’d try the same trick again so perhaps this time he would slit himself in two or create a hole in him at the last moment. Oh, better yet he could use Magical Cylinder and send the attack right back at her! Oh the look on her face as he put on that multi-colored, spiky haired wing and used a foal’s card game to turn her own attack against her would be priceless.
What Discord failed to notice, however, was that while her armor continued to glow brighter and brighter so too did her horn. Just when it looked like it couldn’t get any brighter Luna vanished, leaving a slightly confused looking god of chaos staring out into the open sky. This didn’t last long as Luna appeared above him and fired her chest blaster at full power. Before Discord could even think above looking up he was hit by the blast and sent down to the city below them, crashing into a house belonging to one of the nobles. Several loud crashes could be heard as Discord went through the roof, down five stories, into the basement, and eventually creating a sixteen foot deep crater.
Luna wasn’t done. Not in the slightest. As she pulled back her right gauntlet in a pose that looked like she was going to punch somepony she also pulled her wings back so she could drive towards the ground as quickly as possible. As she did this her gauntlet began to glow, surging with power that was begging to be released. When she made it to the roof however, Discord had jumped out of the hole. He snapped his fingers and was suddenly dressed in a bright blue suit with a helmet that had white wings on both sides. On his right arm there was a red and white shield that he lifted up and blocked Luna’s attack, the force of the impact being dispersed in a shockwave so powerful that it destroyed the house.
When the dust cleared, both beings were standing several yards apart amidst the jagged rumble. Discord, who was still in costume, was grinning insanely while Luna’s face bore a frown.
“We’re doing a scene from my favorite superhero movie!” cried Discord in delight. “So much better than ‘Batmare vs Supermare: Yawn of Boredom’. I mean, why did them realizing that their mothers having the same names get them to stop fighting? Or why did that moron think that cloning-” Before Discord could continue to ramble on like angry fanboy, Luna sprang into action. Using her magic she lifted many of the heavy rocky pieces around them and launched them at Discord. Seeing this, Discord threw his shield into the rumble and watched as it bounce off everything to hit Luna’s horn. The sudden impact caused the princess’ magic to cease and what she had been lifting to fall to the ground.
As the rocks fell back to the ground, Captain Discord’s shield returned to him. Before it could reach him, Luna lifted her hoof at the shield and shot it. The blast changed the shield direction and causing it to soar away from the chaos spirit. This failed to phase the god of chaos as he simply prepared to snap his claw. However, before he could do this, Luna jumped into the air and unleashed a barrage of mini-explosives before punching him with her right forehoof with all her might. The force of the blow sent Discord flying out of the ruins and into the garden of a noble a block away.
As Discord skidded to a halt, he witnessed something that caused him to lose his calm front. Luna’s horn was glowing brighter than anything he had ever witness before, whiting out everything behind her. Lightning seemed to dance around it, striking the ground while small chucks of rock began to float all around her. Her armor too had begun to glow having turned off all the safety restraints. Luna stood on her hind legs, both her foreleg gauntlets and her chest piece were pointed at him and glowing a whitish blue color.
Then she unleashed it all upon him.
Seeing the attack coming towards him, Discord summoned the shield back and braced himself for impact. Said impact came fast and hard as both science and magic assaulted him. The force of the blast was so great that it instantly destroyed the shield. Discord cried out in vain as he was swallowed up by the light.
Once the attack had faded, Luna slumped down with her wings falling limp at her sides and her breathing coming out in gasps. Small sparks were coming out of her armor, but was thankfully still functioning.
“Warning,” said the female voice of her computer system. “Power levels are currently at nine percent. Shields: offline. Weapons: offline. Teleporter: critical condition. Levitation field: critical condition. Communications: online.”
“Well that something to be thankful for.” said Luna hoarsely. Her ears then twitched as she heard hoofsteps racing towards her and a moment later several of her Guard was helping her up.
“Princess, are you alright?” asked one of her Guards, his voice heavy with worry.
At first, Luna didn’t say anything. She just looked at the area Discord had been. All of the plant life that had been there was now dead, nothing more than black warped vine looking things. The ground looked like it had been stripped of all its dirt leaving behind charred rock. The only thing that remained were the pieces of shield shining in the sunlight. The only things that moved were the shadows of her fighters in the sky above them.
“Princess,” said another member of her Guard with an excited tone. Turning to look at her, Luna saw that she had a hoof pressed against her helmet. “Discord’s gone! You defeated him.”
“Perhaps,” murmured Luna with uncertainty. “Scan the area for any chaotic magic.”
“I already have Princess.” said the mare Guard in a tone that suggested that she was going to start jumping up and down with joy.
“Well…I suppose that is the end of Discord.” said Luna, a smile appearing on her face. However, once she had finished saying this Discord appeared in a flash in front of them carrying a trumpet along with several clone of himself dressed up like a mariachi band.
“Au contraire, mon Princess. He’s back!” exclaimed Discord happily as his clones began to play their various instruments. A second smaller light flash shone in front of Luna, and she found herself biting into a cigar., prompting Luna to split it out immediately. The Lunar Guard, upon seeing this, didn’t hesitate in firing at the Discords. Yet before their weapon could hit them they were blocked by a green barrier. “Sorry, but we’ve adapted.”
“Get back!” cried a member of the Guard. At once, several ponies lifted their princess up and began to run away with her from the laughing monster. Once they were far enough away, the various fighters in the air began to fire their energy weapons on Discord without mercy. And even though they were larger and more powerful blasts, Discord just stood there with a smirk once more plastered to his face. Then with a snap of a claw he became dressed in a black bathing robe with the hood up and Darth Vader slippers on his feet.
“Now witness the full power of the Chaotic side!” he exclaimed while reaching into his pocket. A moment later he pull out a blowing bubbles bottle, opened it, pulled out the stick, and began to blow bubbles. These bubbles floated into the air towards the Lunar fighters and exploded on impact. Luckily for the pilots they managed to eject in the nick of time before the remains of what had once been their crafts fell down onto the fancy houses below.
“Oh, this is so much fun.” exclaimed Discord happily as the dark robes vanished. “But, I’m afraid, all amusing things must come to an end before you jump the sharknado. Although I might do that later.”
Once again, Discord snapped his fingers and Luna fell to the ground. As she opened her eyes, she noticed that her Guard was missing. No, not missing. Looking at the ground around her she saw that they had all been turned into action figures. As tears appeared in her eyes she reach out a hoof to take one but was stopped when Discord appeared next to her and picked up the one she had been reaching for. The princess of the moon narrowed her eyes and glared at the creature who had dared to do this to her subjects. If it bothered him at all he didn’t show it as he began to make ‘pew, pew’ noises with his mouth while playing with the helpless guard.
“I really must say you did much better than I thought you would have princess.” said Discord as he pressed a button, causing the Guard’s armor to light up and make random noises. “Never thought you would have broken my favorite snack dish without big sister Celestia around to hold your hoof. I guess that’s what happens when you spend all your time training instead of stuffing your face with cake and attending boring parties.”
“Turn…them…back,” hissed Luna venomously as she tried to stand. Discord ignored her, floating several feet into the air as he began to examine his new ‘toy’.
“But I must say, I have never seen anything like this before,” said the floating oddity. “Now I know that you and Celestia had your little falling out, but for the life of me I have no idea where on this world you set up camp. If all this high tech gizmos are to be believed, your ‘Lunar Republic’ will be oodles of fun.”
Fear now struck Luna’s heart like a knife causing her entire body to tremble at the thought of Discord appearing on the moon. With his careless, selfish behavior he would end up killing thousands of her subjects, her precious ponies, in minutes. Everything they had worked so hard for in the last thousand years would be gone in days!
“What’s this?” asked Discord as he turned the ‘toy’ upside down to get a better look at its underbelly. “’Made on the moon’. Guess you took the whole ‘Princess of the Moon’ bit too serious. I can’t to get up there and bring some much need chaos!”
Discord then unceremoniously dropped the ‘toy’ and prepared to snap his fingers. Luna’s eyes grew wide for a brief moment before she closed them tightly. She then yelled out with all her might “COMPUTER ACTIVATE OPERATION UMBRELLA! PASSCODE: DESPERATE MEASURES!” This sudden outburst was enough to startle Discord making him pause and look at Princess Luna in bewilderment.
And in that time, Luna’s command went into action. The signal from her armor was sent to the crystals stationed in orbit above the planet. One of the crystals began to glow red right before it shot out four thin, red beams that struck other nearby crystals. Those crystals began to glow red before they in turn repeated what the first one did. Over and over this repeated until all of the crystals were glowing red in a grid formation.
And when it had finished, Discord fell to the ground.
The spirit of chaos blinked in confusion. Why did he fall down? He hadn’t wanted to and he certainly didn’t cancel the magic that allowed him to float. Not sure what was going on Discord willed himself to levitate off the ground once more only to find that he couldn’t. He closed his eyes and put all of his focus into this simple task, but nothing happened. Now beginning to panic, Discord leapt to his feet and felt an odd sense on his right knee. Looking down he saw, to his amazement and confusion, that he had scraped his knee and was now bleeding. For the first time in his life he, the lord of all chaos was bleeding! In a panic Discord began to snap his fingers rapidly. He didn’t care what he was doing or to what, all he wanted was something to happen. But nothing did. Everything remained the same.
“W-What have you done…?” whispered Discord as Luna got onto her hooves. He turned to look at her and, to his amazement, all of her ponies had returned to normal.
“The Lunar Republic never treated you as a myth like they have here in Equestria,” began Luna as she stepped towards Discord. “We knew that, one day, you would be free again and thus worked towards a means of defeating you for good. But no matter what we thought of, the problem was always the same: your reality warping magic. As long as that remained a factor, the chances of defeating you were slim to none. But then one of my scientists, Dr. Umbrella, had an idea. The Lunar Republic has become rather skilled in magic suppression technology, you see. Her idea was to take this technology and create a field over the entire planet so that no magic could be used.”
Discord blinked. “You mean all magic is negated?”
Luna nodded as she touched the crescent moon on her chest. The symbol began to glow for a moment as two strands of white energy flowed out of it and took hold of her glaive and chakram. “Yes, Discord. All magic is being suppressed. All spells that have been cast have been undone. All around the world magic has ceased until I deactivate Operation: Umbrella. Something that will only happen after your death.”
For a moment, the two stared at each other in silence. Then…Discord began to laugh? Blinking in confusion, Luna took a step back as Discord got up and placed his claws on his stomach as he laughed his flank off. Luna was taken aback by this reaction. She had expected him to throw a hissy fit like a spoiled foal or perhaps to beg for forgiveness. Yet instead she watched as he, still laughing, moved over to the destroyed plant life and began to pick them. Soon all those present saw that Discord was trying to make a crown out of what he was gathering.
“Discord, have you finally lost what little sense you had?” demanded Luna.
“Oh no, no.” laughed Discord as he walked over to Luna with the dead crown in his claws. “I just never thought I’d see the day when I was outdone in my own field. Truly, you are the new goddess of chaos.” With that said, he placed the crown upon Luna’s head.
“Explain. Yourself.” barked Luna.
Discord continued to laugh. “Oh my dear, can’t you figure it out?” he asked. “You’ve taken all of the magic from the entire world! I’m sure a pony as smart as you should realize the implications of such a chaotic act!”
-x-
It was true. Magic in all its shapes and forms had vanished from Equestria as well as the rest of the world. Unicorns across the land found themselves unable to cast any spells. Earth ponies found themselves weaker, their stamina a fraction of what their earthen magic granted them. Neither of the two tribes knew what was going on…and it frightened them. Both of them, especially the unicorns, felt helpless.
And pegasi…they suffered the worst. Those who were flying in the sky suddenly discovered that they could no longer remain airborne with their tiny wings. As for their ability to walk on the clouds, that vanished too. This was discovered when all of the ponies, as well as their possessions, began to fall from the great cloud cities like Cloudsdale and Los Pegasus. From the elderly to infant, they all plummeted to the ground below while flapping their useless wings trying to save either themselves or their families.
Very few survived this.
This applied to other lands as well like the Griffon Empire. While having larger wings, the griffons there found that flight had left them as they too fell to the ground below them. Some managed to make a soft landing, gliding as best they could. However for those around the Talon Palace found themselves crashing against the mountain all before the eyes of their Emperor who watched this horror from his daughter’s bedroom window, shielding her eyes as best he could.
In the lands far north of Canterlot, a city of sparkling crystal suddenly reappeared after being lost for a thousand years. The crystal ponies who dwelt there looked around in awe and wonder. However, the magic within their crystal dwellings was gone and without it some began to crumble. The first was the castle whose four arching pillars could not handle the weight. Loud cracks could be heard throughout the Empire before it fell to ruin before their eyes, shattering into thousands of shards that rained down upon them. Those that survived from being crushed, lacerated, or impaled by shattered crystal shards flying everywhere, saw that the winter landscape began to creep closer towards what had once been their homes.
In the same Frozen North, a lone figure trudged through the thick snows and freezing winds. This figure was a dark-grey unicorn stallion with a black mane. What made him different than other unicorns was that his horn was not straight with a spiral but instead it was curved and red. He wore heavy armor and had a red cloak around him. Neither of which could help him as he wandered through the howling blizzard alone with no magic to guide or warm him.
“S-s-so…c-c-cold,” the unicorn who was once king whispered through chattering teeth, his final words being drowned out by the howling winds as he pitched forward into the deep snow; seeing nothing but white, and shortly thereafter, nothing ever again.
Even those in the ocean were affected by this. Oceana, who at the time had been trying to settle a land dispute, suddenly found herself unable to breathe like she normally could. Her subjects, seeing her distress, rushed to her side. Not knowing what was happening they saw her to the surface as fast as they could barely breaking the surface in time. The queen of the ocean, once she caught her breath, tried to flap her wings so she could go out and search for the cause of what just happened yet found she could not fly. She was stranded in the middle of the ocean, hoping that none of the giant sea life spotted her in this weakened state and decided to have a snack.
In another part of the world, Molten Fury was preparing to enter a volcano that would soon erupt near a pony settlement. Yet as he neared the magma he suddenly began to feel very, very hot. Sweat was beginning to appear all over his body. Then, when he was almost next to it, parts of his body suddenly caught on fire. Scared at what was happening while also being in a great deal of pain the alicorn of the earth tried to fly away only for his feathers to catch on fire as well. With each passing moment, the fires spread over his body until he fell to the ground. His last thoughts being of his former wife and his eldest daughter.
-x-
“I can see it now.” said Discord as he twirled around on one hoof, his smile never leaving his face. “All those ponies, scared about what happened to all the magic in the world and not having a clue. Not knowing if it will ever come back. With such a simple act you, my dear princess, have caused more chaos and disharmony than I ever could have with all of my power! I can’t believe I never even considered something like this!”
With that, Discord threw back his head to laugh once more. A moment later he was silenced as Luna’s glaive flew through the air to slice through his neck, severing his head from his body. Even after falling to the ground, the expression on his face was still the very picture of mad amusement.
Luna stood over the the lifeless serpentine body of Discord for long moments. Finally, she turned and trotted away, long rivulets of tears streaming down her eyes.
“I truly am a Nightmare,” whispered Luna as the tears fell from her muzzle.
-x-
Sealed Document was sitting in his chair in front of his desk. On said desk were a few items. A picture of his husband, several data crystals, the Liar’s Cube and a glass of water. Yet despite being in his office he was simply sitting there. There were no screens displaying anything. He wasn’t reading any reports. Heck, the lights were even on. He just sat there in the dark doing nothing.
That all changed when he reached to take the glass with his hoof. Once he had it, Sealed brought it up to his eye level and just stare at it. If one were to come in right now they would think that he had never seen a glass of water a day before in his life. Or, perhaps, he was looking at it as if it were to be his last.
As he prepared to bring the glass to his lips, a shadow of a bat appeared in his office a split-second before the glass window behind him shattered into a thousand pieces. Yet Sealed didn’t seem at all concerned by this until several of the glass shards fell into the glass causing his eyes to widen slightly. Before Sealed could open his mouth he found himself being picked up from behind and being flown across the room only to stop once his face hit the wall hard. A millisecond later he found his right foreleg bent and pressed against his back.
“Shadow Blade,” grunted Sealed with a neutral expression that Shadow could not see. “You came just as he predicted. Still you could have just gone through the front door and not ruin a perfectly good glass of water.”
“Shut up,” snarled Shadow. “Where is all the evidence you stole? Tell me or else I’ll-”
“The files I obtained as well as the Liar’s Cube are on my desk,” said Sealed calmly, shocking Shadow into silence. “I have not altered either of them in the slightest, but feel free to check them if you wish. Also, the ponies the LBI captured are currently being held in the basement of this facility. I believe that’s all you’ll need in order to make a case against us.”
Now the hairs on the back of Shadow’s neck were beginning to stand and the speed of his breathing quickened. This was too easy. His eyes darted towards the door wondering why it hadn’t burst open yet. Buck, there wasn’t even a voice over the com system asking if everything was alright!
“Your agents, where are they?” demanded Shadow as he tightened his hold on Sealed’s foreleg.
The smallest of smiles graced Sealed’s face for a moment. “Oh they’re up and about.” Shadow slammed his free hoof against the wall next to Sealed’s head.
“This isn’t a game!” he snapped. As he said this, he noticed that Sealed hadn’t even flinched when he did that. It was almost as if he didn’t care about anything anymore, that he just accepted his fate.
“Shadow, do you read me?” came a voice over the com system in his ear.
“Healing Touch this is a bad time.” said Shadow as he stared at Sealed.
“I’m sorry it took so long,” said Healing in a rushed voice. “I just spent all night trying to figure out what was in Twilight’s body. I checked every known poison known to the Republic and there were no matches. So I took a hunch and was right. It was MI-191!”
“Doc, I don’t understand.” said Shadow.
“MI-191 is a drug that hasn’t been used in decades,” explained Healing Touch. “Basically, it does the same job as MI-392, the drug that ‘should’ have been given to Twilight. The difference between is that the older drug takes longer to heal the patient’s heart while also keeping said patient in a dreamless sleep! Captain, whoever gave this to Twilight wasn’t trying to kill her, just stall her recovery while keeping her quiet!”
Shadow couldn’t help it when his eyes went wide due to this revelation. ‘This…makes no sense,’ he thought. ‘If the pony who had attacked Twilight was trying to kill her and then frame the Equestrians, why change to the drug to something that will only take longer for her to heal especially when Princess Luna herself stated that they were going to wait for their execution until Twilight wakes up?’ His eye then narrowed. ‘I need answers.’
“Alright Sealed,” said Shadow as he put a bit of additional pressure on Sealed’s foreleg. “I have questions and you have answers. I want to know where your agents are, what they’re doing, and why you’re so bucking calm right now!”
Sealed let out a soft chuckle. “Oh Shadow,” he said with some amusement. “You were clever enough to figure out something was going on, something we hadn’t counted on. It’s a shame you can’t figure this one out. It’s really simple when you think about it. I’m calm right now because I have completed all of my objectives. While my partner in this is finishing up things on his end, I was to draw you far away Dome Zero so that you can’t interfere.”
-x-
Gigawatt marched through the hallways of Dome Zero, his eyes containing a focus look. The computer had just finished giving him all the information he needed. Now he had a good idea where the Equestrians might be: in one of the old emergency caves.
It was, in his opinion, an ideal place to hide them since so few ponies knew about them. Heck, he never even thought to check them before now. But that had been because there would have been no way for them to know about them. Now things were different. He knew that Land Share had a hoof in their disappearance and he was one of the few ponies that knew about those caves.
‘I’ll be there soon,’ thought Gigawatt coldly. ‘And once I do I will put an end to this affair with my own horn.’
-x-
“Princess!” cried Blazing Glory. Cadence, true to her word, had been listening to Trixie since she had untied the mare from the tree. Trixie had started with what had happened in the Republic, but the pink princess felt like she was leaving a few details out. It also looked odd when she would glance at the filly, who had been introduced as Sunset Shimmer, whenever she glossed over certain details. But the important thing that she heard was that ponies from Equestria had been responsible for the Republic’s loss of food and water.
As Trixie continued her tale, she began to speak quicker. She told them about the battle at the castle leading to Celestia’s defeat and capture. About how Blueblood had secured himself power since Cadence wasn’t there. About the job Trixie had been tasked with followed by the warning Lady Majesty gave her. Out of the corner of her eye, Cadence saw that the Guard was staring at the blue mare with frowns on their faces. Whether it was because they didn’t believe her or they were disgusted by the events happening in Canterlot, Cadence would have to wait and see.
As for Cadence, well, this was difficult to take in. Part of her didn’t want to believe any of it to a point where she would prefer it if the mare telling her all of this was really a changeling. That this was some sort of trick and that everything back in Canterlot was fine. That her Aunt Celestia was there having tea with Princess Luna while the two of them tried once more to find some common ground to build the foundation of the future of their respective nations. And yet she could see it all happening the way Trixie was saying it. She knew Blueblood all too well and if he thought there was something in it for him, he would take advantage of the situation.
‘But perhaps he bit off more than he could chew.’ thought Cadence. Then, as Trixie began to talk about how they alluded the Guard, Cadence felt her strength leave her suddenly. It was like having a rug pulled out from underneath her hooves causing her to fall to the ground.
“Mommy!” yelled Midnight as she rushed over to her fallen mother and wrapped her tiny forelegs around her neck. “Are you ok? Please be ok!”
“I’m- ...I’m fine,” said Cadence slowly. “I just feel as though my strength suddenly left me. How-” Cadence’s sentence was cut off by several gasps and a cry of surprise. Lifting her head a bit, Cadence saw something that was completely unexpected. The little filly that Trixie had brought with her had suddenly turned into a full grown mare! As Trixie’s mouth hung open at what had just happened all of the Guards looked at Sunset with distrust in their eyes. As for Sunset, there was a genuine look of fear and confusion in her eyes.
“I knew it!” yelled Blazing Glory as the Guards surrounded Cadence. “They have to be changelings! How else could she have turned into a full grown mare? What’s the matter? Couldn’t hold a filly form for too long so you decided to age up and hope we ponies were too dumb to notice?”
“Sunset is not a changeling!” said Trixie as she stepped in front of her friend.
“Silence changeling!” barked Blazing as he pointed a hoof at Trixie. “I didn’t buy that half-baked story for a moment! Bet you thought we’d panic if you said something along the lines of ‘Princess Celestia was defeated’ and we’d be too stupid to question it. Well I’ve heard and seen enough.” He glared at the two mares while pointing his horn at them…and nothing happened. Not a glow or spark came from it. His head whipped up, his eyes filled with shock and horror. “My magic! I can’t use my magic!”
Another unicorn in their company tried to use his as well only to get the same results. Then another tried. After that one failed, a pegasus Guard volunteered to fly into town and get a doctor in case they had contacted something. However, no matter how hard the pegasus flapped his wings he could not even manage to hover above the ground.
“What’s going on?” asked one of the Guards as another pegasus failed to take off.
Before anypony could point blame, a figure rushed from the tree line. All anypony could see was a brown and rust colored blur that made its way towards the princess and those protecting her. As it got closer to the barrier of ponies Cadence noticed a flash of steel right before the figure stopped in front of one of the pegasus Guards, allowing the pink princess to take a good look at who was attacking them. It was a male griffon! His body was that of an ocelot: reddish brown fur with black spots and rosette shaped marks. His wings and head were also brown while lacking any other markings other than the rust colored tips at the end of his wings. The griffon wore nothing besides a belt that held an empty sheath and several throwing daggers. He was standing on his hind legs and in his talons was his swords which had pierced the pegasus Guard. Then, faster than Cadence could blink, the assailant jumped back allowing the poor pony to fall to the ground.
‘This is most fortunate,’ thought Ripper as he landed on ground, his face displaying no emotions whatsoever. ‘I had though my sudden inability to fly would make this task impossible. However, since all of our magic is gone and I am the only one with a weapon this should be most easy.’
As Ripper stood there, Cadence was having her own realization. ‘This must be the assassin that Trixie was warning us about. But if that’s the case then…CANTERLOT! I need to get there before it’s too late!’
But Cadence knew first things first. And in this case the first thing was dealing with the killer griffon before them. As the Guard’s got into fighting stances by spreading their legs apart in order to better brace themselves, Cadence opened her mouth in the hope that she might be able to talk him down by getting him to see reason.
Ripper, however, never gave her the chance. He grabbed three of his throwing daggers and launched them at her Guards. One hit a poor stallion in the neck, killing him quickly. Another one hit a stallion in the leg while the final one hit the last Guard in barrel. Cadence watched helplessly as all three fell to the ground.
The other Guards, however, didn’t turn their heads to look at their wounded comrades. They knew better than to take their eyes off their opponent. Instead they lowered their heads with the few pegasi in their group extending their wings before charging forwards. It was not a blind charge, however. Several of the ponies moved as that they could surround the griffon thus giving them a better chance to lay a hoof on him.
This was a good idea in theory. Ripper saw this and shifted his blade so that he held it with one claw while the other remained open. He then began to move, lunging at an incoming pegasus with his sword aimed at his wing while his claw slashed at the face of the pony next to him. Ripper then spun around while reaching towards his belt and then throwing the rest of his daggers at the ponies who tried to attack him from behind. A few ponies managed to dodge the attack but others had difficulty in doing so. The pegasi, for example, instinctively flapped their wings in order to fly away while the unicorn tried to teleport or create a barrier. Because of this, those ponies soon had daggers impaled in their bodies.
Cadence watched as the lone griffon slashed away at a few more ponies with ease while she did her best to shield her daughter. She knew that if she had her magic, her flight, or even her strength she could do something to help. But in this slightly sleep deprived state she was utterly useless to do anything. Out of the corner of her eye she looked over at Trixie and Sunset. Trixie was looking through the belonging she had brought with her in a vain effort to find something that might help while Sunset had her eyes closed in tight concentration. Cadence knew that they were in the same boat as her, useless without their magic.
Looking back at the fight, she saw that Blazing Glory was the last pony standing up to the griffon. All of the others had fallen. Some had horrible slash or claw marks on their bodies, the pain from them making it impossible to stand. Others had more severe wounds or simple had daggers in their bodies meaning they were most likely dead.
The griffon swung his sword at Blazing who jumped back in order to dodge it. The unicorn, upon landing, crouched low to the ground before springing forwards managing to head-butt him opponent. As he landed, the griffon’s claw flew to his head to grasp it never dropping his sword. Blazing didn’t let up. He spun around so quickly that it shocked Princess Cadence and then proceeded to ram into the griffon with all his might. As the wing was knocked out of his enemy’s lungs, Blazing continued his charge until he slammed the griffon into a tree. It was only then did he back up so that he could charge into the assassin once more.
As the unicorn back up once again, Ripper saw through half open eyes that his head was lowered as if to use his horn as a stabbing weapon. Once the unicorn charged forwards Ripped ducked to the left, spun around, and swung his sword in a downwards arc. The blow didn’t hit his neck, but it did slice off his horn causing the unicorn to let out a howl of pain while dropping to the ground and clutching his head with his forehooves. Looking down, Ripper saw that the stallion’s face was being drenched in tears while his face was contorted in pain. Still Ripper noted that the stallion was managing to keep one eye open, fixed on him.
With no expression, Ripper took his sword with both claws and raised it above his head. While he was an assassin and not an honorable warrior, he felt a twinge of respect for this stallion. Just enough to give him a quick death and spare him the dishonor of having to watch the death of the princess he had failed to protect.
Seeing what was about to happen, Cadence began frantically looking around for anything that could be used as a weapon. Something like a branch or a large rock. However, due to the care that the Apple family put into their orchard, neither of those could be found. However, there were apples. That was something, right? Quickly realizing that this was going to be the best she could find, Cadence picked up the apple clumsily in her hooves and threw it at the griffon. Sadly her throwing power nor her aim was as good as it was with her magic. Instead of hitting him in the head or in the middle of his back, the apple lightly hit him in the leg and bounced off harmlessly. Said griffon turned around to see that had hit him before looking at Cadence with a look that screamed ‘Please tell me you weren’t serious’.
As Ripper turned his attention back to Blazing, two of the other Guards managed to get back to their hooves. One was the stallion who got a dagger in the leg while the other had been slashed by the griffon’s claws across the face. Both of them were panting hard as they lunged at Ripper in the hope of tackling him to the ground. Ripper, however, saw them coming. Once they were in range he swung his sword, slashing them both in the chest before getting out of the way.
With those distractions taken care of, Ripper returned his attention to Blazing and once more lifted his sword to deliver the killing blow. Said stallion had stopped screaming in pain, letting out little whimpers now while still crying. Ripper knew he was still in a great deal of pain and the reason he had yet to pass out was likely due to sheer willpower. As the sword descended downwards, something moved in its path and blocked it causing the griffon’s eyes to widen. His sword was had made impact with a bat pony mare wearing pink armor. Her ears flattened against her skull before letting out a hiss and baring her fangs at him.
Just then, Ripper realized that more ponies were entering the area. He quickly looked around for a mere second. By the princess two more bat ponies in pink armor had appeared in a flanking formation. Off to the side there was another bat pony mare with pigtails and a neckerchief standing beside a zebra mare of all things.
“What?” said Cadence as she realized her Guard was here. “How?”
“When we felt ourselves lose our magic we realized something was wrong,” said Thunderclap as he took a step in front of the princess. “So, naturally, we thought it best to find you.”
“And while we can’t fly, that doesn’t mean our hearing was affected,” continued Dusk as he too stepped in front of Cadence. “We heard the fighting and rushed over.”
“We’re just glad neither of you are hurt,” added Thunderclap as he spared a glance at both Cadence and Midnight.
“Fools,” said Ripped as he took several steps back from Ruby, never dropping his guard as he did so. “My employer requested that you bat ponies die as well. The only thing you have done is spare me the trouble of hunting you down like the animals you are.”
Ruby said nothing as she let out another hiss as she moved forwards a bit so that she was no longer standing above the fallen pony. Slowly, she began to circle him the way a shark circles its prey. Never did she take her eyes off of him, watching him as he made sure he was always facing her. They did this for literally minutes, waiting to see who would make the first move and allowing the tension to build.
Finally, Ruby sank onto her hind legs quick before lunging at Ripper while hissing as loudly as she could. Ripper responding by angling his sword so that he could thrust it forward into her exposed skull. Yet he never got the chance. He had been so focused on the mare that he failed to notice two more stallions attacking from behind and sinking their fangs into his unprotected flesh. Losing his composure, Ripper twisted his body around so that he could use his claw to strike the one on his left. When he did this, however, he suddenly found the mare he had ignored biting into his arm with all her might. Screaming in both pain and rage, Ripper used the hilt of his sword to hit her so hard she released him before doing the same to the last remaining bat pony biting him.
Ripper could feel the blood matting his coat as he took several steps back to stare at the three ponies who had done this to him. Besides the mare there was an older looking bat pony with an eye covered with bandages alongside another stallion who looked younger sporting a dark blue coat and green mane. Ripper let out a mental curse at his sloppiness. He had been so focused on the mare as well as the other two armored bat ponies that he failed, FAILED, to take into account the possibility that there might be others despite being told by Blueblood himself that there were only three bat pony Guards protecting the princess. It was because of this carelessness and NOT their skills he had been injured to this point. Now here he was, being forced to put most of his weight on his hind legs due to the wound on his foreleg so the good one could hold the sword.
Meanwhile, the three bat ponies were speaking to each other under their breath.
“That was a nice plan you had there.” whispered Lone Wolf to Darkwing.
“Just a little something those from my colony picked up from the buffalo,” answered Darkwing. “Normally we’re supposed to head-butt the enemy, but using fangs works too.”
“Yeah well I can’t be used as a distraction again,” whispered Ruby who noticed out of the corner of her eye Blazing crawling on the ground and trying to grab something on the ground with his mouth. “My armor took most of that first blow but I could still feel the blade. I think he might have cut into it a bit.”
“Are you bleeding?” asked Darkwing in a tone heavy with concern.
“I don’t think so,” answered Ruby. “Maybe he nicked my coat, but that’s all. Anymore and he’d probably gotten to my spinal cord.”
“Well he is using griffon steel,” said Lone Wolf as he took a step forwards. “From what I remember, that stuff is far better than anything that can be found here in Equestria. Better let me handle it from here on.”
“Wait a moment,” said Darkwing as he stepped forward, blocking the other stallions path. “Let’s not get cocky. We should push our advantage.”
“I agree,” said Ruby as she too stepped forwards. “We just managed to deal his serious wounds just now by working together. We can’t start thinking this is a duel or something like that. That plot hole is trying to kill my fellow Guardponies, probably in order to kill my princess. We need to take him out and fast.”
Lone Wolf looked at Ruby and then Darkwing with his one good eye before sighing in defeat. “Alright, you win,” he said with a halfhearted smile while shooting the griffon a quick glance. “Doesn’t look like he’ll last much longer.”
“Ah’ll help ya’ll as well,” said Poisoned Apple as she approached the three of them. “This here rattler is tryin’ something on my kin’s land. Greased pigs will fly before ah let that happen.”
“Alright then,” said Lone Wolf. “Follow my lead.”
With a nod between the four of them they moved towards the attacker like a pack of wolves with Lone Wolf in the front of the pack. Ripper held out his sword, ready for the attack. But just before they got in his sword’s range of attack they turned and began to circle him at a light trots pace. As Ripper began tried his best to keep up his guard he would hear a hiss which promised another fanged strike once more.
Something that would not happen again.
Ripper had already taken note of the difference between these ponies and the Royal Guard. The Royal Guard, while well tried, was used to fighting a certain way the benefited their tribe. Sure they were trained in hoof to hoof combat, but with them still in shock over suddenly losing access to their magical advantages had put them off their game. These ponies, from what he had seen, were different. They had no formal training but instead fought more like wild animals. Given the lives he had heard they lived, they were most likely used to dealing with difficult situations and adapting to them quickly in order to survive. Most likely how they were able to fight so well despite suddenly losing their ability to fly.
Realizing that it would be best to make the first move, Ripper quickly swung his sword to the side so the it implanted itself into the ground. Seeing this the cyclops bat pony who had been running towards it didn’t stop but instead changed his direction, leaping towards Ripper’s exposed arm. Ripper, however, let go of his weapon so that he could quickly back claw the bat pony in the muzzle. As the eldest in the group fell to the ground, Ripper kicked in back of him in order to hit the pony in the pink armor. The stallion in front of him turned as soon as he heard the mare fall to the ground and flew towards the griffon with rage clear in his eyes. Instantly Ripper curled his claw into a fist and punched the foolish stallion in the muzzle.
Yet as the stallion fell, Ripper felt fangs biting into his bad foreleg. Looking at it quickly he saw that the bat mare with the pigtails was biting into him with all of her might. Suppressing a scream of both pain and rage, Ripper was about to punch the mare off when he noticed that the armored mare was moving towards his sword. Quickly realizing which was the bigger threat, Ripper reached over and grabbed the handle of his sword just before the mare could get her primitive hooves on it. Ripper then slashed the blade downwards upon her, leaving a larger cut mark in her armor as she fell to the ground.
As she fell, the pig tailed mare put more force into her bite forcing a small cry of pain to escape his beak. But he did not let that deter him as he lifted the blade quickly and aimed for the downed mare’s unprotected neck with the intent to kill her before she could get back up. But before he could end her once and for all, another pain shot through his body from his side nearly causing him to drop the sword. Looking over he was amazed by what he saw. It was the unicorn whose horn he had cut off. Said horn was being held in the stallion’s teeth as he used it to stab into his side.
“Don’t you dare lay a claw on that mare,” growled the unicorn through his clenched teeth.
Seething in rage, Ripper did his best to slash that the unicorn. However, due to the pain and the position the unicorn was in he was unable to make a killing blow. All he was able to do was leave a scar on his face that went through his left eye, blinding him there for life.
As the unicorn let go, the pig tailed mare bit down even harder! No longer able to contain his anger and frustration, Ripper began to hit her in the muzzle with the hilt of his sword.
“Let. Go. Of. ME. YOU. DAMNED. FREAK!” Every word he yelled was punctuated with another blow from his hilt yet still the mare refused to let go. If fact, with each blow she seemed to bite down even harder as if she were trying to bite his foreleg off. Finally have enough of this, Ripper flipper his blade around. “I’ll cut your head clean off then!”
“Nnope!” came an angry declaration from behind him followed swiftly by the force of a powerful hoof coming down on his head. Ripper’s head was sent to the ground with enough force that he felt his beak crack and then everything went black.
Seeing the griffon was out cold, possibly even dead, Poisoned Apple unclenched her jaw to remove her fangs from his foreleg. As she got into a sitting position and began to get the taste of blood out of her mouth she began to look around at everypony. Thunderclap, Dusk, Cadence, and Midnight were already checking on everypony to make sure they were ok starting with the fallen Guard members with the assistance of Zecora. Ruby was checking up on both Darkwing and Lone Wolf who, in turn, were making she sure was in good health as well. The two unicorns who had been besides Cadence were still off to the side looking afraid as if they thought that moving might attract another killer. And finally there was the big red stallion who had saved her, staring at her.
“Ya alright cuz?” he asked softly.
“Thanks ta you, McIntosh,” replied Poisoned with a small grin which he returned.
“Wasn’t gonna let the fella hurt my kin,” he said. “Apples stick together. And ya can just call me-”
“Don’t you bucking touch me!” came a loud yell that interrupted the family conversation. The two Apples turned and looked in the direction they heard the yell. It had come from the stallion who had been clawed in the muzzle, a pegasus with the standard white coat and blue mane of the Guard, who was currently giving a death glare to Thunderclap. The bat pony stallion had been extending a hoof to help him up but had retracted it.
“Hey, I’m just trying to help you-” began Thunderclap but was interrupted by the pegasus.
“You can help me by drowning yourself,” snapped the pegasus as he began to get up on his own. “Bad enough we failed to take down one bucking assassin, but to be helped by scum like you is an insult! After this I can never show my face in Canterlot ever again!”
Now standing up, the stallion spat in Thunderclap’s face. For a moment, Thunderclap just stood there with his eye wide before they suddenly narrowed while his fangs bared. A low growl came from his throat as his leathery wing extended.
“Enough!” said Blazing who had been laying on the ground. Slowly he got up and stumbled towards the pair with his good eye fixed on Thunderclap. “You, please step away from that stallion.” Thunderclap glared at the de-horned unicorn before glancing at the stallion who had spat on him. For a moment he did nothing before letting out a growl and then took a few steps back.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” said the scared pegasus with a smirk. “Get moving you dumb, stupid anim-” Before he could finish the insult, Blazing smacked him upside the head and then proceed to stumble in front of him.
“Apologize maggot,” said Blazing as he glared angrily at the other pony. Upon hearing that, Lone Wolf’s jaw dropped slightly, not able to believe what he was both seeing and hearing.
“WHAT?” yelled the pegasus. He then took a deep breath. “Sir, I think your injuries are affecting your judgement. Those…things are bat ponies.”
“My judgement is not the one in question right now private,” stated Blazing Glory as he narrowed his good eye. “You still have two good eyes so use them to look around! Many here are injured or even dead. And this is how you choose to act? By insulting the ponies who came to our rescue? Your fellow ponies in the Royal Guard?”
“Those things should never have been allowed in!” snarled the pegasus.
“Get the buck off my property!” shouted Big Mac suddenly, stomping his hoof on the ground as he did so.
“What? Why?” demanded the pegasus.
Big Mac let out a loud snort. “Nopony talks that way about mah kin,” he said. “An all these here bat ponies an’ their friends be honorary Apples as far as ah’m concerned. An’ around here family means everything!”
The pegasus, however, just sneered at Big Mac. “I always thought there was a funny taste to your apples,” he said. “Now I know why, being picked from a bunch of bat pony loving freaks! When I get back home everypony there will knew to stay away from your manure.”
“Private!” yelled Blazing, snapping attention back to him. “You are out of line.”
“No, all of this,” he said while gesturing to Cadence and the bat ponies around her, “is out of line. First our Captain of the Guard is punished for doing the sensible thing of beating up that bucking foal who dared to sneak into the kitchen. Then the Guard is forced to take in those freaks of nature. The Royal Guard looks like a joke now because of them.” The pegasus then turned his head to look at his fellow Guards. He had hoped they would be nodding or about to voice their support. What he got instead were looks of disdain or simply heads turning to look away from those that were still conscious.
“The only joke is that you’re the only one to believe that dung,” growled Blazing. “After what I just went through with them at my side, it is clear that they belong with us. They are a part of the Royal Guard and I am honored to call them comrade. And since you can’t understand that, then there is no place for you here. Go drag your sorry flank back to Canterlot and clear out your bunk!” He then looked over at Princess Cadence to see if she objected at all only to find her nodding in agreement to this decision.
“HA!” laughed the stallion as he turned around and began to walk away. “I was going to leave anyways since you all think filth like them is good enough to join!”
As he did, Lone Wolf and Ruby approached Blazing as he lowered himself back onto the ground with as much control as he could. When the pair got there, Lone Wolf opened his mouth to say something but quickly closed it before looking everywhere. He looked at his hooves, at Ruby, at Poisoned Apple and even up in the sky! When he did finally looked at Blazing again he found the injured unicorn staring back at him. Then, finally, Wolf let out a long sigh.
“W-What you said just now,” began Lone Wolf before gulping.
“I stand by what I said,” said Blazing in a pained tone before looking over at Ruby. “Thank you for saving my life Private…”
“Oh, right,” said Ruby as she realized that she had yet to introduce herself. “Ruby Moon, Captain of Princess Cadence’s Royal Guard. And this here is Flight Master Lone Wolf, head of the Everfree Colony.”
“Well then, please excuse my poor conduct ma’am,” said Blazing as he saluted her. “I should be standing when addressing my superiors.”
“I think that given the situation it can be overlooked,” replied Ruby with a small smile.
Back over with Cadence, she had her head lowered in concentration. With the recent danger over she was able now give the information that Trixie had given them her full attention. Part of her wanted to rush over to Canterlot as fast as she could and stop this whole mess before things got out of hoof. But there were many, many problems with that idea. First, and most importantly, there was no way she could get to Canterlot quickly. She could neither fly nor teleport herself to the capital meaning she would either have to walk nor rent a carriage to get there. By the time that happened whatever battle between Equestria and the Lunar Republic would have either started and/or ended by then. Or what if Blueblood had somehow gained more control and had turned the nobles as well as the Royal Guard against her. Based on how that pegasus had reacted she could be sure that there were others that felt the same way and would not side with her since she was willing to give bat ponies a real chance.
The other part of her simply didn’t know what to do. It knew that going to Canterlot was a bad idea, but so was doing nothing. If she stayed here sooner or later another one of Blueblood’s assassins would find her and put more ponies in danger. And she couldn’t live with herself if she just stayed here and did nothing while ponies were dying back in her home! She would have loved to try and contract Princess Luna, but without her magic there was no chance of that happening!
As her thoughts went to her lack of magic, she began to wonder about that as well. How many ponies were being affected by this? Was it just Sweet Apple Acres? The whole of Ponyville? All of Equestria? What or who caused it? Had anypony been hurt by this?
A sudden touch of a small hoof on her foreleg broke her from her thoughts. She looked down at Midnight’s worried face. After seeing it, Cadence placed a hoof on her chest as she took a deep breath and then extended it forwards as she exhaled. Once that was done she gave her daughter a reassuring smile right before patting her on the head.
‘Now is the worst possible time for me to panic,’ she thought. ‘Everypony will be scared and will look to me for answers. For their sake I need to remain calm and appear in control. First things first.’
“Captain Moon,” called out Cadence sharply, causing everypony to jump slightly. Seconds later, Ruby was standing at attention in front of Cadence.
“Yes, my Lady?” she asked.
“We need to get these ponies medical treatment,” said Cadence as she gestured to the fallen with her wing. “And we need to do so quickly. I fear we are far away from the Ponyville Hospital.”
“Perhaps ah can help,” said Big Mac. “Ya can use mah family’s barn. Closer than the hospital.”
“I too would like to help if could,” said Zecora. “I am a potion maker who lives deep in the wood. There I mixed potions to mend anything that would cause ail. But with my hut destroyed and ingredients gone anything I make will fail.”
“Perhaps not,” said Cadence before turning to address Trixie and Sunset. “You two, I want you both to accompany Zecora into town and get whatever it is she needs. Inform them that I am picking up the bill and, if they have any doubts, to seek me out at Sweet Apple Acres. But if they are to do that then they MUST bring whatever it is that Zecora needs. Time is not our ally in this matter and should not be wasted.”
“Yes, Princess,” said Trixie while Sunset nodded. As the two got up, Cadence looked over to where Ruby had been standing to find that she was already on the move. She and all the other able bodied ponies were now at work to pick up the injured or dead to bring them back to Sweet Apple Acres. And soon she too went to help.
-x-
The city of Canterlot was unlike any other city on the planet. Not just for its stunning architecture or because of its political importance, but its location. Located in high altitude on a mountain using enchanted wooden beams to keep the platform that the city rested on in place. Not only were the beams enchanted in order to keep them from decaying as time went on but also to help support the ever growing weight of the city.
But now, with those spells gone, the city was beginning to creak due to the weight. Already several of the oldest beams had broken, causing the city to tilt slightly. Not only that but holes were started to appear in the streets and, in some cases, entire buildings were falling through. This naturally caused a panic amongst the ponies who had remained in the city. The Guard, both Equestrian and Lunars, were working together to try and make sure all of the civilians got out safely. To better assist, the Lunar Guard began to use several of their vehicles to help transport the sick, elderly, and the young quickly since they were top priority. The Equestrian Guard was helping to lead the rest along a path that took them to the opposite side of the mountain where falling buildings wouldn’t be a problem.
However, the nobility still remained a problem. While there were those, like North Star and Fancy Pants, who were helping to evacuate the population of the city, there were also those who had their own concerns. Some of the nobles were in a state of denial, choosing to return to their estates while acting like nothing was wrong. Others argued in the castle about who was in charge. Then there were the nobles who were trying to save as much of their own possessions as possible. While most of the common ponies were taking things they would need like camping equipment or food, there were nobles who wanted to save their wealth and art while demanding that either the Guard or their servants help them carry it down. Both Guards refused this with the Lunar Guard going to the extreme of blasting the noble’s possessions apart with their weapon.
As for Princess Luna…
“Operation Umbrella: Disengage!” she cried out as tears continued to flow from her eyes. “Passcode: Peaceful Evenings!”
“Unable to comply,” said the computer, causing another stab into Luna’s heart.
Very shortly after Discord’s final words, Luna had order Operation: Umbrella to deactivate. It should have been something extremely simple, but it wasn’t working. Over and over Luna tried to turn it off yet each time the answer was the same. The Princess knew that the longer this went on more ponies, as well as the other races on the planet, would suffer.
Another whine from the city’s support caused Luna to shout out once more the deactivation command and passcode, getting the same response as before.
What made this all the worse was that Luna couldn’t understand why it wasn’t working. After she had tried the first time Luna had order the computer in her armor to run a systems check on Operation: Umbrella to see if there were any errors. According to her systems, there were none meaning that this SHOULD be working. But it wasn’t for some reason.
A sudden scream from somewhere nearby followed by cracking/crumbling noise stole Luna’s attention for a moment. Her mind played out a scenario where a mare had fallen through the failing streets of the city. And without any magic she would end up falling to her-
‘No!’ thought Luna as she struggled to her mind focus. ‘I caused all of this. This is my fault. But things aren’t going to get any better if I can’t stay focused and figure out a way to end this before more innocent ponies get hurt.’
“Princess Luna, we have a problem,” came the voice of Cupcake Leader through her com system.
“We have a lot of problems Cupcake Leader,” said Luna in a voice dripping with despair.
“Princess, something is wrong with out fighter,” said Cupcake Leader. “We have lost control of them. Currently we are rising up into the atmosphere and soon we will break away from the planet completely! I am trying to-”
Silence. No static or any other noise. Just silence.
“Cupcake Leader!” shouted Luna as she pressed a hoof against her helmet. Her breathing quickened as she looked upwards, searching for her air support. “Please respond! Please, give me any sign that you can hear me! Anything at all! CUPCAKE LEADER!”
“Princess this is Captain Star-” Again, the transmission just cut. In a panic, Luna opened her com to contact all of her troops. She did not waste any time demanding to know who could hear her and what their status was. And all she got was silence. Dead, crippling silence that caused her to drop onto her flank while another section of the city fell.
“What’s going on?” whispered Luna. “What has happened to my ponies?”
“Attention,” said her computer system. “A request from Dome Zero to teleport Princess Luna has been granted. Please prepare yourself for emergency teleportation.”
“What? NO!” shouted Luna. “Belay that order. We need to remain and help these-” Before Luna could say another word she vanished from Canterlot just before the remaining beams gave way and the city tumbled down the mountainside slope to the ground below.
-x-
“Warn…Princess…Gigawatt...” said Twilight, gulping hard between each word. Fluttershy, who was sitting next to her, gently patted her side before looking over her shoulder at where the other girls were. They were sitting in a circle talking about recent events like Shadow’s last transmission to them as well as possible thing that they could try. Fluttershy had, for a time, been a part of that conversation until it became her turn to watch over Twilight switching with Pinkie Pie. Even since she had come over here, Twilight’s vocabulary hadn’t improved much. It seemed like it was still taking an effort for her to speak, yet she kept repeating similar words and names over and over again.
“Don’t worry,” said Fluttershy as gently as possible. “As soon as we can we’ll tell Princess Luna all about Gigawatt.” Before the pegasus could retract her hoof, she found it frozen in place by Twilight magic. She then let out a gasp as Twilight turned her head to look at her, her eyes fixed on Fluttershy’s.
“Gigawatt,” said Twilight in a stressed tone before coughing.
“Twilight, please, you need your rest,” said Fluttershy as Twilight’s magic vanished.
“Gigawatt,” repeated Twilight. “Land Share.”
“Land Share will be back soon,” said Fluttershy in the hopes that it would calm her injured friend down. It was then that she noticed Rarity and the others approached Twilight cot. As they did, Fluttershy patted Twilight’s cot before moving towards the rest of the group so that they could talk without being overheard by Twilight. Not because Fluttershy wanted to keep secrets from her but because she was afraid she would upset her friend.
“How is the poor dear?” asked Rarity is a low whisper once Fluttershy was close enough. “Has she been able to say anything else about what happened?”
“No,” replied Fluttershy as she lowered her head. “I know she’s trying to tell us something important, but I can’t figure out what.”
“Gigawatt,” came Twilight’s voice.
“Well, whatever she’s trying to tell us we need to act now!” said Rainbow in her normal speaking voice, earning a ‘shh’ from the others. Looking slightly abashed, she lowered her voice a bit when she next spoke. “Look, Shadow said that the war is starting soon. For all we know it’s going on right now and we haven’t heard anything. We need to act before innocent ponies get hurt! I say we get out of this cave, find Gigawatt, and beat the information we need out of him for Shadow!”
“Gigawatt,” came Twilight’s voice again.
“See,” said Rainbow as she pointed over in the direction of Twilight’s cot, not even bothering to look over at it. “Even Twilight agrees with me.”
“Twi there isn’t exactly in the best of conditions,” said Applejack plainly. “Look, Shadow set all this here up for us to protect Twi. He trusted us ya’ll. If we mess up he’ll be in more trouble than a chicken locked in the same room as a fox.”
“Oh, I hate to say this but I agree with Rainbow Dash.” said Rarity.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” asked Rainbow quickly giving her friend an angry expression.
“Gigawatt,” said Twilight.
“I mean no offense darling,” said Rarity quickly, ignoring Twilight completely. “It’s just that, normally, I’d say that your ideas border on the, er, rash side. That aside, I do agree that we shouldn’t remain here doing nothing. Right now Gigawatt has Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom doing Celestia knows what to them! Not to mention our families back in Ponyville. There is simply too much at stake for us to simply still here.”
“Um, excuse me,” said the timid pegasus. “But how will we even find him? He could be anywhere.”
“Step away from Twilight Sparkle,” said a cold voice behind them. The mares all turned around, their jaws dropping when the saw Gigawatt standing at the entrance to the cavern with his eyes fixed on Twilight.
Rainbow was the first to act. At almost Pinkie Pie like speed she suddenly appeared in front of Twilight’s cot so that she was in-between the helpless unicorn and Gigawatt. Rainbow let out a snort, kicking the ground with her right hoof as she lowered her head. Soon Applejack was besides her with gritted teeth followed by Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity.
Gigawatt seemed unfazed by this as he began to walk forwards. “So, Land Share is involved in all of this. I can tell by the supplies around Twilight that they belong to him. And since he never reported them stolen during this time I can safely assume that he gave them to you. Once I get to Twilight, he and I will be exchanging some very heated words.” It was then that his eyes narrowed at the mares. “I said step away from Twilight Sparkle this instant.”
“Over my dead body,” declared Rainbow. Hearing this caused Gigawatt’s lips to curl into a smile. It was an unnervingly happy smile that would have put Pinkie Pie’s to shame. Four of the five mares took a step back save for Rainbow who remained rooted where she was.
“Oh,” he said joyfully as his horn began to produce sparks. “If you insist.”
The sparks that danced around the stallions horn grew brighter before a bolt of lightning was sent zooming towards Rainbow Dash. Her eyes widened slightly before she was hit. Instantly she fell to the ground, screaming in utter pain as her body convulsed. All those around her could smell burning flesh and knew that if it weren’t for the fact that she was a pegasus she would have been dead by now.
Then, finally, it ended.
Rainbow laid there panting while her mane seemed to be standing straight and pointy. Occasionally her legs would jerk as sparks randomly appeared. In any other situation, Pinkie would have made a joke or tried to touch it. But the pink mare knew that this wasn’t the time as she and her friends glared at the smirking stallion.
“Oh, it...is...on!” growled Rarity as her horn began to glow, her magic focused on the gems in her dress. As Gigawatt prepared for another attack, the gems flew out tearing apart what remained of Rarity’s dress and flew towards the attacker. While that was going on, Applejack charged forwards with her head lowered in order to ram straight into Gigawatt at full speed.
This didn’t faze the senator one bit. Instead of pointing his horn at any of the things coming towards him, Gigawatt instead pointed his horn upwards as a blue ball of electricity formed. The ball floated several yards above him before it stopped and hovered there. From it sprang dozens of threads that arced towards the ground forming something that resembled a bird cage. The gems were the first that should have reached him, however once they came close enough to the cage the electricity jumped out towards them and held them in place. A similar thing happened to Applejack who was moving too fast to stop in time. The farmer pony let out a howl of pain as she stood there unable to move as the current flowed into her
‘He uses elemental magic,’ thought Rarity as her eyes widened. While growing up, the fashion loving unicorn had taken private magic lessons in Ponyville to help her understand her magic as well as its limitations. Specifically that her magic was closely tied into her special talent. During one of her lessons they had talked about elemental magic uses who, basically, converted their magic into one of the elements and could use them in creative ways. Gigawatt it seemed was such a pony and could use electricity!
“Applejack,” called out Fluttershy as the spell faded and Applejack fell to the ground. Her call caught the attention of Gigawatt whose glare with filled with more hate than the pony had ever seen. So much hate, in fact, that she felt cold under his gaze and began to tremble.
More electricity crackled around Gigawatt’s horn as he charged his next spell. This time he was putting four times as much magic into this spell than he did when attacked Rainbow Dash. Enough to fry even a pegasus like her. The bolts of lightning that danced around his horn grew thicker and thicker until his horn began to crack from its power. It was only then that he unleashed its fury, directing it towards Fluttershy. It moved towards her a tad more sluggish that it had against Rainbow, but as it moved towards its target the rock underneath it upturned due to the sheer power in the bolt.
Then something unexpected happened. Pinkie Pie jumped in front of Fluttershy, standing in between her and death. Fluttershy called out to her friend, but the pink mare kept her gaze locked onto the lightning bolt as she reach into her mane. Quickly she pulled out…a rubber chicken. She then held it in front of her like a shield. The lightning hit the fake chicken and stopped. When everything was said and done everypony was staring at Pinkie with their jaws hanging open. Including Gigawatt!
“But? How?” demanded Gigawatt. “I just…I don’t…THAT SHOULDN’T HAVE WORKED!”
“Pinkie Pie, why did you bring a rubber chicken with you to the moon?” asked Rarity as she too was having a hard time comprehending what just occurred.
“Silly Rarity, I always carry a supply of rubber chickens in case of a smile emergency,” said Pinkie as she reached into her mane only to have a dozen or so fall out. “My sister Maud got them for me. Isn’t she the greatest?”
“I’ll say,” said Rainbow Dash as she got up slowly. With slight effort she was able to make it to the pile Pinkie Pie had created and picked up one of the rubber chickens in her mouth. “Remind me to thank her after we kick this guy’s flank!”
“Ah, me too?” said Rarity weakly as she also picked up a chicken with her magic limply.
A sudden snort caught their attention and all of their focus returned to Gigawatt. The stallion had lowered his head, his horn pointed at Pinkie Pie as he kicked the ground behind him. Lightning was being emitted from his horn and flowing backwards so that it covered his entire body. Soon he charged at them, moving at such a speed that he was a blur to the naked eye.
Pinkie Pie was the first to react, turning around to grab Fluttershy and getting the two of them out of the way. Rainbow, once Gigawatt was close enough, swung her joke toy at him as hard as she could. This resulted in hitting him in his side but doing no visible damage. Rarity, likewise, daintily struck Gigawatt as well with even less results if that were possible.
As Gigawatt turned for another round, he saw Applejack racing towards him with a determined look in her green eyes. Narrowing his own eyes and gritting his teeth, changed his target to the farming mare while more lightning covered his body. As the two charged at each other, Rainbow Dash flew up towards the cavern’s ceiling with her rubber chicken still clenched in her jaw while Pinkie Pie got in a bit closer.
Soon Gigawatt and Applejack had closed much of the distance between the two. Once she was close enough, Applejack spun around in order to deliver a power buck to Gigawatt’s head in the hope that it would knock him out. The stallion read the attack and managed to turn his body so that his head was out of harm’s way. However, this left his side exposed and an easy target for Applejack’s legs. And even though she got a powerful jolt once she made contact with his body she still sent Gigawatt flying a couple dozen yards and crashing to the ground.
When Gigawatt climbed back onto his hooves, he sensed somepony was behind him. Turning around he saw that it was Pinkie Pie. Then she did something that caused his brain to freeze, desperately trying to process what he had just seen. She reached behind her and pulled out a cannon almost the same size as her! How the buck did she do that? What hadn’t their scans detected it? As he was thinking of these questions and more, Pinkie Pie fired her cannon sending a blast of air and confetti at Gigawatt sending him flying back in the direction of Applejack.
While this was going on, Rainbow Dash was in the air preparing to put her rubber chicken to good use. She had pulled herself back far enough so that she could just make out what was going on while waiting for the right moment to strike. And when Pinkie Pie blew him away with her cannon, she knew this was the moment. Without any hesitation she shot towards the stallion as fast as her wings could take her. Then, as Gigawatt was standing up, she passed by him while making sure to hit him in the chest with the chicken.
While this sent him flying once more, he sadly impacted Applejack and the two rolled off over the nearby ledge. Luckily for AJ, she had enough wits in her to grab hold of the ledge before falling all the way down. Gigawatt was not so lucky, falling down part of the way before managing to get his hoof on some rock strong enough to hold himself while Applejack pulled herself up.
Gigawatt grunted in pain as he hung on for dear life. His body hurt from what it had recently endured, but did his best to ignore it and try to push himself up. Yet as he did this the rock he was holding onto gave way forcing him to slide down an inch or two before he caught himself again. Now his heart rate was beating very, very quickly as sweat began to cover his muzzle. He dared not look down at the seemly bottomless pit he knew was belong him. Instead he looked upwards to see Applejack staring down at him.
‘Is this the part where you laugh Equestrian?’ thought Gigawatt. ‘Where you gloat or mock me for my foolishness? Whatever you’re planning just do it already. I can ignore you easily just by thinking of…my wife. Stars above, I hope she’ll be alright. And my colts…I won’t get to see them grow up.’ It was then that Applejack made her move. She laid down on the rocky ground before reaching out a hoof towards him.
“Take mah hoof.” she said causing Gigawatt’s eyes to widen.
“Is this some kind of sick joke?!” demanded Gigawatt as the rock he was holding onto crumbled a bit. “Don’t take me for a fool. I know once I let go you’ll just pull your hoof back so I’ll fall to my death faster! It’s what your kind wants! To see all of us dead!” Now the rock had given way once more. Gigawatt was about to fall to his death when suddenly Applejack’s hoof shot down and grabbed his foreleg. Her friends called out to her as they all went to grab hold of the farm pony so she didn’t fall over the edge.
“Please, give me ya other hoof,” begged Applejack. “Ah can’t hold ya forever!” But still, Gigawatt didn’t move his other hoof. He simply looked at her and then at the dark void below him as if he were considering his options. “Look, ah know ya don’t like us much after everything that’s happened up till this point. Ya have no reason ta trust us. But ah what ya ta know this here is the honest truth: ah don’t want ta see ya or any pony die. Ah promise if ya give me ya’r hoof you’ll be alright. Please.”
For a moment, Gigawatt looked at Applejack as if she were crazy. Like the very idea of her wanting to save him after he had tried to kill all of them was insane. Then he took a deep breath before he did something he never thought he’d do in his life: trust them. With a mighty effort he swung his free hoof to take hold of Applejack’s. Then, at Applejack’s command, the mares pulled with all their might to help get Applejack and Gigawatt to safety.
The rescue did not go smoothly as one would have liked to have hoped. Several times Gigawatt thought, due to their bouncing him around, that they were trying to kill him. However, even when that happened as well as them sliding down a bit, Applejack refused to let go of his hoof. Instead she did everything in her power to tighten her hold until they were finally back on solid ground.
‘She could have let me die,’ thought Gigawatt as he breathed heavily, trying to calm his nerves. ‘Yet, she and the others worked to save me after everything I did. But…why? They’re from Equestria, the land that wants to either kill us or take everything we have worked so hard for. And she’s the one who…’
Gigawatt’s thoughts paused as he looked at the freckled earth pony mare. Currently she was laying on her side, panting hard as well with sweat on her face. Behind her, the other mares seemed better off and were beginning to stand. Yet Gigawatt paid them little mind as Applejack’s eyes found his own. For a second the two stared at each other ending with Gigawatt breaking the hold to gulp.
“Y-” began Gigawatt slowly, catching his breath. “You really didn’t try to kill Twilight, did you…?”
Applejack threw up her hooves into the air and gave an exasperated groan. “That’s what ah’ve been tryin’ ta tell everypony!” she exclaimed, rolling onto her belly and starting to stand.
“Wait, you think that Applejack attacked Twilight?” asked Fluttershy softly as she got onto her hooves. At first her friends didn’t get what she was saying. But then it began to dawn on them, their eyes widening when it did.
“Of course, I did,” said Gigawatt as he stood up slowly alongside Applejack. “You admitted it in court. But, if-”
“Gigawatt, thank the stars.” came a whisper like voice off to the side. All heads turned to look at the source.
It was Twilight. She had managed to turn her body so that she was laying on her side with her face looking directly at Gigawatt with a smile on her face and a small tear in her eyes. With what appeared to be a great effort on her part, Twilight began to move the blanket covering her body off of her. It took several tries and by the time she had managed to pull it off of her the others had surrounded her cot.
“Twilight, you need your rest.” said Rarity as she put the covers back on top of her friend with her magic.
“Tried to tell them,” whispered Twilight, her eyes beginning to droop a bit as she continued to look at Gigawatt. “So hard to talk right now. Please…they thought you attacked me. They didn’t know. They are…innocent.”
Gigawatt slowly nodded. “I know that...now,” he said before spotting the supplies.
‘I think my scuffle with those Equestrians caused an adrenaline rush,’ he thought as he moved to look through the bags. ‘Its giving her strength she needs to talk, but she’s losing it quickly. Maybe there’s something here that can help. Then we can find out who is behind all of this!’
Truth be told, Gigawatt had a suspicion that something was wrong since the trail. A tiny voice that had been whispering to him ever since they activated the Truth Light during the trial and he heard that noise. He had listened to that voice at first, which brought up the possibility of tampering which caused him to ask Fluttershy if she tended the trees in Ponyville to see if the Light was working. After it appeared like things were in working order with her answer, he dismissed the voice even when he saw the state Applejack had been in when it was used against her.
Now he was wishing he had done a bit more. Perhaps then they wouldn’t be in this situation.
After a minute or two of looking through the supplies, Gigawatt found an injection that would do the trick. Picking it up with his teeth, Gigawatt brought it to Twilight’s neck and pressed it against her coat until he heard a familiar hissing sound before pulling away. Twilight made a slight gasping noise that put the other mares on the edge, Rarity’s horn lighting up with Rainbow Dash extending her wings. Luckily they calmed down when they saw Twilight’s eyes brighten and then she raised a hoof to wave them off.
“Much…better,” sighed Twilight. Her voice sounded a bit stronger now.
“That should give you a little pick me up,” said Gigawatt before his eyes narrowed. “Twilight, we need to know what happened. Who tried to kill you? And why?”
Twilight opened her mouth to speak, with everypony’s attention on her.
-x-
“Luna, please wake up,” came Celestia’s voice through the fog of dark sleep that had enveloped the princess of the night. Slowly, Luna’s eyes opened to see Celestia’s face looking down at her. The look in her eyes was that of worry that changed slightly to relief as Luna rejoined the waking world.
Luna stared at Celestia, confused as to why she was here before her eyes began to look around. What she saw caused her to jump onto all fours so fast that Celestia also jumped. They were in a cell. Three bared wall connected to the metallic wall behind them. In front of them was an empty space that a pony could walk nine or ten steps before reaching the sliding door. Luna was only vaguely aware that Celestia was talking to her, trying to ask her questions but Luna ignored her for the moment. Instead she looked down at her body and saw that her armor was missing as well as regalia. Her heart began to beat faster than ever as her hoof shot to her horn and, much to her horror, there was an anti-magic ring placed onto it.
Not that it need the ring. She knew this cell very well since she had been the one to have it commissioned. It was made to hold one pony: herself.
“Oh no,” whispered Luna. “Oh no.”
“Luna, you must talk to me,” said Celestia. “Something has gone wrong in the Republic. What-”
But before Celestia could say anything else, the door slide open with a loud hiss. And standing in the doorway was a single figure whose appearance caused Luna’s eyes to grow wide from shock.
“I’m so very sorry, your Highness,” said the doorway figure, morosely.
Princess Luna’s mouth felt dry as it hung open while staring at the senator walking towards her cell. She could hear her heart beating loudly in her ear, completely in sync with his slow steps. Her breath was caught in her lungs and refused to be released. Small tears began to form, stinging her eyes far less than any stinging in her heart.
She had been betrayed. Betrayed by a member of her Senate. Betrayed by a pony whose family she had watched over with love for the past thousand years, as close to her heart as Twilight Sparkle’s.
And yet something seemed very off with Land Share. Luna always feared the day would come when some evil pony would try to take over. In a successful imaginary scenario, that pony would be gloating at his or her victory over the lunar goddess while mocking laughter filled the air. Overly pleased that they had taken her down and taken over her kingdom at the very least. Yet Land Share seemed to be…unhappy. There was no better way to describe this. His eyes were downcast and there was a frown on his face. His slow pace told the princess that he was tired or that he was slightly hesitant.
Once Land Share was in front of the cage, he did something else that baffled both princesses: he bowed before them. Well, he bowed in the direction of Princess Luna at least.
“Princess Luna,” he said in a shockingly calm voice, devoid of any emotion as he stood up. “Please forgive me. I had hoped to make this cell a bit more comfortable for you during your brief stay.”
“L-Land Share,” breathed Luna as the old senator rose. “Please tell me that this isn’t happening. That this is some sort of sick joke. Because, y-you couldn’t…you wouldn’t…after everything I have done for you and your…” Luna’s words trailed off, her voice choking slightly as more tears appeared in her eyes.
Land Share let out a short sigh as he looked into his princess’s eyes. “I am truly sorry my princess,” said Land Share calmly. “But I am afraid that this is no joke. You are indeed my prisoner for the time being. I, along with some of the LBI, have taken over Dome Zero. I know this is a poor way to repay the kindness you have always shown my family these past thousand years, but know that everything I have done has been for the good of the Lunar Republic.”
“What do you mean by that?” demanded Celestia as she eyed the aged stallion in contempt. “Just what are you planning on doing?”
Land Share looked at Celestia calmly, making her back away slightly. It wasn’t because he had a sneer, an insane smile, or any of the other emotions she was used to seeing from villains who had believed they had won and had come to gloat. What spooked her was the lack of emotion. His face seemed to be completely empty of everything.
“We are going to be dropping a T.O.M. on Equestria,” said Land Share casually, getting a gasp of horror from Luna and a look of confusion from Celestia. “One of the larger ones is currently being redirected from the dark side of the moon. In less than an hour it will strike Canterlot Mountain, with enough force to destroy all life in Equestria in a single blow. Any poor souls who survive this will not last much longer for the dust thrown into the atmosphere will block the sun’s light and deprive the world of warmth. And with all pegasi dead from the T.O.M strike or unable to fly thanks to Operation: Umbrella, it will be impossible to stop an endless winter from consuming the world and ending all life there.”
“That…That is monstrous!” yelled Celestia, now realizing the horror of what was going on. She slammed a hoof on the bars of the cage in her anger. “Why are you doing this?!”
“Land Share,” said Luna softly. “Please tell me you are not seeking revenge for what has been done to your family. I thought you were better than that.”
“Luna, what are you talking about?” demanded Celestia as she stared at the aged stallion.
Luna was breathing heavily as she kept her eyes on Land Share, yet still did her best to answer Celestia. “D-Do you remember that colt I brought to the castle before I-I left?” she asked. “The one who survived the fire in Hoofshire?”
A frown appeared on Celestia’s face as she thought back to that day. It wasn’t hard considering how often the Hoofshire tragedy was being brought up recently. Indeed, she did remember that when she met her sister that fateful day there had been a sleeping colt. But what did that have to- Celestia’s eyes suddenly snapped open as she turned to look at her sister who nodded sadly.
“He’s…He’s a descendant of that colt?” asked Celestia. “The one you saved?”
“Yes,” replied Land Share with a nod. “I am the last of Stone Plow’s line. According to the story passed down through my family, Stone woke up halfway through Princess Luna’s explanation of what had happened in Hoofshire to you Princess Celestia. Imagine how he felt when the sun princess flat out refused to consider the possibility of foul play. That his parent’s deaths were simply accidents and that she were going to wait a few months before addressing this. Stone Plow took this anger with him to the moon and never let go of it until his dying day, passing this hatred to his foals.”
“So you are going to destroy all life on the planet for something that happened a thousand years ago?!” yelled Celestia in anger.
“No, of course not, that would be ridiculous,” replied Land Share with a shake of his head, surprising Celestia into silence. “That hatred was strong with my early ancestors, this is true. However as time went on that hatred began to fade away. It certainly wasn’t there when my grandfather told me of my family’s past nor did my father ever express any hatred towards Equestria when I was growing up. What happened back then was tragic, but that was so far in the past that it didn’t matter anymore.
“I guess that’s why I supported Princess Luna when the merger was first brought up. While some like Gigawatt believed Equestria hadn’t changed, I was willing to believe the opposite. That in all that time, perhaps the ponies of Equestria had learned to be more tolerant. At the very least I was hoping that they would have open minds and would be willing to learn. That, and I believed in Princess Luna. She had never steered us wrong before, always put us first. So I gave her my full support and went planetside.”
“Imagine my disappointment when I saw Celestia’s nobles. Arrogant, selfish, and treating us like sub-pony scum. It was hard to sit there, but I did it because I trusted my princess and that there had to be better ponies out there. Yet the more I saw, like that book Gigawatt showed me of their bloody history and the state of that bat filly, the more I began to question this. But what helped me through all of this was you Princess Luna. When you saw the state of that filly and the way they treated all bat ponies, you were ready to walk away because you knew a merger with a nation like this would not be in our best interests. You quickly came back to the table when they offered us much better conditions, but that ended just as quickly when we found out how we had been presented for the past thousand years. Then, once we were back on the moon, the change from merger to alliance was brought up and I thought this might be a better deal for us. I supported this. I truly believed this could work.”
“But we all know how that turned out. The Equestrian delegates were on the moon for barely a full day and the Republic lost most of its water and I lost my Dome. I nearly died being blown out into the vacuum of space. As my life flashed before my eyes, I realized that Gigawatt had been correct. Equestria hadn’t changed at all. Its ponies wanted us dead no matter the cost, and I was going to be one of the first they had taken in a very long time. If you, Princess Luna, hadn’t teleported me back…I’d be dead.”
Land Share paused for a moment as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “When those six mares were brought before you, I had thought that this was the end for them. I wanted it to be the end. Yet, you did not kill them nor place them in a prison pod. Twi-Twilight even defended them! I was in shock. I had to know why.”
“You tried to kill Twilight?” asked Luna in shock.
“NO!” screamed Land Share, shocking both princesses. Up until now, his speech had been calm and void of any emotion. But now he looked flustered and his eyes were watering. “I would never willing hurt her. I-I used to read her bedtime stories when she was just a little filly. I watched her grow up. B-But that day I…I just w-wanted to talk to her. I-I just h-had to know why s-she didn’t want to c-condemn the ponies who nearly killed me! There had to be another reason other than ‘starting to become friends’, there just had to be! But she wouldn’t tell me! I-I was so hurt and angry! I saw the apple peeler in her room and everything j-just went red! Stars above, the next thing I k-knew I was standing over her b-b-b-body and there was b-b-blood everywhere and…and…I screamed.”
Land Share let out a soft sob, looking like he was trying his best to hold back a tidal wave of guilt and pain. Luna cried silently as she watched him rein in his emotions, trying to wipe away his tears with his right foreleg. When he finished, he looked at them with the emotionless expression he had before.
“Of course, my Princess soon began an investigation,” he continued in a much calmer tone, as if his outburst had never happened. “Soon I found myself in front of the LBI. I confessed everything instantly. At first Sealed looked at me like I was crazy, but as I talked he began to understand. A little anyway. He was willing to help me get away with the crime since it looked like T-Twilight wasn’t going to make it. He altered the footage as well as used the Liar’s Cube to alter what they said. We knew that Gigawatt would want to take advantage of the situation so we programmed it to respond to several questions we calculated that he would probably ask. It was during the trial that we learned of Blueblood’s involvement and Sealed became more convinced that I was right. Sadly, things did not go according to plan. We had hoped that you, Princess Luna, would condemn them for execution right away and be done with it. But that’s not what happened. The implanted phrase we used on the Equestrians for the trial was too open-ended and made it seem like there was a possibility that Celestia wasn’t the mastermind. T-Twilight, thank the stars, looked like she was going to make it and you were going down to Equestria to get Blueblood. As soon as you left, Sealed arranged it so T-Twilight’s medicine was changed so that she would remain unconscious until those five were dead and all dealings with Equestria were finished.
“But then, what happened was even worse. Princess Luna was assaulted by the Equestrian guards. Ambushed. When I saw the few survivors I knew this was it. We were going to war. But no, we were not going to conquer and rule them. Instead, we were going to put another pony on the throne until Celestia was reeducated while getting the supplies we needed. This…was just not acceptable.”
Land Share looked down at his hooves and gave a long sigh. “Princess Luna, it was during the war council meeting of the Senate, I realized that no matter what happened, you would never hate Celestia like the rest of us. I understand why, she is your sister after all. You would always give her another chance…you want to give her another chance. After everything she has done: withholding information, lying to you, manipulating your dreams, refusing to correct her mistakes, even trying to have you taken prisoner or killed! But no matter what happened, sooner or later you would give her another chance. Another chance to mess things up for everypony. I could see it all happening as I sat there, Celestia coming back into power and reverting back to her old ways. Then, as soon as we allowed them back into the Republic they would strike again and the cycle would repeat itself. Even if Cadence and Celestia did make some sort of token effort, those ponies down there are past the point where their beliefs can be changed. So…our plans changed.”
Land Share looked back up at Luna. “I will admit that there have been a few setbacks. Gigawatt suspected something was going on almost right from the start. To be honest, I’m not sure what tipped him off but he began to follow me around. Then, to my shock, Captain Shadow Blade discovered the altered medicine and did a little digging. Princess Luna, you should be proud of that stallion for what he found. If he hadn’t run into me first, then the war would have been averted. Luckily, he did not suspect me and while we headed off to show me his findings the LBI took care of those little details. With two ponies poking their muzzles into our plans I knew I had to do something. Even if I wanted to get rid of them, they were so high up the chain that somepony would notice. I especially didn’t want to hurt Shadow since he is to marry Twi-Twilight and I did not wish to do her any more harm than I already have. So instead I mislead them. I convinced Shadow to head to the LBI headquarters after helping him and I smuggled those five mares out of their cell. Then I left some clues for Gigawatt to follow to lead him straight to them. Shadow Blade would be safe while Gigawatt went to kill those Equestrians or they killed him.
“The only other problem with our plan was getting Operation: Umbrella up and running. Bunsen Burner had done too good of a job to ensure no pony but Princess Luna could activate it. We could not do it on our own and with time running short, we had to abduct him and pressure him for the information. Thankfully, it was activated before we became too desperate.
“And that leads us to this moment,” finished Land Share. “Everything is now in motion. Until it is finished, the two of you are staying in this anti-magic cell. As an added measure, those rings on your horns will also block your ability to call on your magic. They are set on a timer and will only come off twelve hours after our estimated impact. Not even I will be able to take them off before then. Once this is over you will both be set free.”
Luna and Celestia stood there for a moment as they absorbed this information with their mouths hanging open. Neither one could see how anypony could sound so calm about a plan to commit mass genocide. Both knew they had to stop this.
“Land Share,” said Princess Luna. “You know that if you do this it will not just be the ponies of Equestria who will suffer. Bat ponies will be killed as well along with the griffons, donkeys, deer, and many others. Are you truly willing to kill so many innocent lives just to destroy one country?”
“It pains me to say this, but yes,” said Land Share with a nod of his head. “After learning so much about what has been going on between these races, there are many down there who will also wish us harm. Races like the changelings or the diamond dogs who will only see us as ponies. Or there might be greedy creatures who will pretend to be our friends in an effort to steal our technology for themselves. There are also monsters down there like hydras and centaurs who, if we ever set hoof on the planet, will try to kill us. I know there are good creatures down there, but they are unfortunate sacrifices for the greater good and safety of the Republic.”
With that, Land Share turned around and moved towards the door. “Land Share,” came Luna’s voice, stopping him in his tracks. “If you do this, you know there will be no forgiveness. You will be seen as just another Genetic Code.”
For a moment, Land Share stood there staring at the door. This pause gave Luna hope that she might have gotten through to him, even if it was just a little bit. If she got that edge in that she needed, there was a chance she could talk him down and make him see reason. However, when he did turn around his face still lacked any emotion.
“I know,” he replied. “Once the Republic finds out about what I have done, they will be horrified. Me and the LBI helping me, no matter how we justify it we will have killed billions, if not more. I…Princess, you are in that cell like this not just because we want to make sure you can’t stop us but also so that you will receive no blame. By locking you up, we are ensuring that everypony will know that we went against your will. We have all agreed that once you have been released from your cell we shall shoulder all the blame and accept our deaths.”
“NO!” screamed Luna as she slammed her body against the bars with all her might. “I won’t let you do this!” She slammed her body against the bars once again.
“Please, do not do this,” begged Celestia. “There is still time, I am sure you can stop this. Princess Cadence is right now working to fix many of the problems with Equestria. Right now she is in Appleloosa trying to help the bat ponies there! If you just gave us more time then-”
“No,” interrupted Land Share firmly, shaking his head and turning to leave again, “You had a thousand years for which ‘to fix things’. You didn’t even try.” Land Share waved a hoof at the door sensor, “And now, as with any crime of negligence, your repentances come far too late,” the door slid open, “and what innocent lives there are planetside, they are paying the price for your centuries of inaction.” This time, Land Share did not turn back as he exited the room, leaving the two alicorn sisters alone with his final words. “You had a thousand years to change,” he repeated as the door closed, “and now, you’re out of time.”
-x-
At the same time, Princess Cadence was helping to bring the last of the injured guards into the farmhouse. Slowly she walked past the couch which was already occupied by Blazing, who was doing his best to keep his moaning to a minimum, before proceeding upstairs. Once Cadence had gotten to the second floor, she walked down the hallway with her final destination being Granny Smith’s bedroom. As she passed the other rooms, she spared a quick glance at the occupants. Each bed held at least two of the injured guards who were all bandaged up as best as they could have been. Zecora was in one of these rooms, treating them as best as she could while she waited for the plants Trixie and Sunset had been sent to get. Helping her was Big Mac and the rest of Cadence’s guard. Downstairs, Granny Smith was hard at work in the kitchen in the hopes that something in the bellies might help ease their pain.
As for Lone Wolf, Poisoned Apple, and Darkwing…they were bringing those who could no longer be helped into the barn.
Once Cadence was in the room, she did her best to lay the guard on the bed. This was difficult since she still didn’t have her magic and was unused to doing things like earth ponies. She didn’t want to toss the poor stallion on the bed so instead she decided to press her body against the side of the bed, lower herself down a bit, and then rolled him onto the edge. As soon as he was off her back, however, the guard let out a short cry of pain.
“I’m sorry,” said Cadence quickly as she turned to look at him.
“No, don’t worry about it,” grunted the guard who had one eye open. “Actin’ like a foal. I’ll be fine.”
Cadence gave the stallion a ‘yeah right’ look, but said nothing as Zecora rushed in to check on him. Not wanting to be in the way, Cadence exited the room silently. As she walked down the hallway she couldn’t help but feel useless. She didn’t know enough about first aid to help any of these ponies nor could she use her magic to help ease their pain. And after everything she had been through since she left Appleloosa, she felt so very drained.
That wasn’t much of a surprise. In a short amount of time of her travels, she had seen more of Equestria’s problems firsthoof than she had ever had back at the castle. She had witnessed buffalo about to destroy a town, to a psychotic bat pony who wanted nothing more than to tear her throat out. Twice she had witnessed ponies around her being attacked and hurt badly. Cadence was beginning to feel like she was at her limits.
“Are you ok?” Cadence’s ears perked when she heard Midnight’s voice coming from downstairs. Slowly she walked down a couple of steps until she saw her daughter standing in front of the couch and looking up at Blazing. In between them was a glass of apple cider with a straw in it. Cadence noted that it was about half full, probably due to her spilling some of it while bringing it from the kitchen to the injured stallion if the trail of small puddles on the floor were any clue.
“I-I’ll be fine,” whispered Blazing through his pain. “Just need s-some aspirin and some bed rest. Then I’ll be right as sunshine.”
Midnight tilted her head, her expression unreadable due to Cadence’s position. A moment later, Cadence watched as Midnight tried her best to pick up the glass with her two tiny front legs while standing up on her hind ones. She wobbled a bit, spilling a bit more, but managed to get the straw close enough to the stallion’s mouth who eyed it questioningly. Once she had completed doing all this she said “Drink”.
“I’m not t-thirsty,” said Blazing who looked like he was going to turn his head away so he wouldn’t have to look at the filly. Cadence saw him hesitate as Midnight’s cheeks puffed up slightly.
“Granny said if I wanted to help then I had to get you to drink this,” said the filly firmly.
Blazing coughed out a laugh. “Just trying to help huh,” he said as his lips locked onto the straw. Midnight nodded her head.
“Mommy is working super hard right now,” she said as she eyed the draining liquid. “She might need a nap soon, but there’s so much to do that she might not be able to take one. So I thought if I helped then she would be able to take one.”
Blazing continued to drink until the three heard him try to slurp out the last drops before letting go of the straw. “That hit the spot,” he said as he laid back down. He then gave the filly a small smile as Midnight got all four hooves back onto the ground. “Thank you, princess. Feeling better already.”
Midnight smiled before holding the glass in her mouth. She then said something that might have been “You’re welcome”, but it came out muffled. She then galloped back towards the kitchen, the straw falling out of the cup in her eagerness.
Still on the stairs, Cadence placed a hoof above her heart as a smile crossed her muzzle. The scene she had just witnessed had simply been adorable and heartwarming. Seeing Midnight wanting to help her was almost enough to bring a tear to her eyes. And hearing Blazing call Midnight princess and sounding genuine, gave her a burst of newfound energy.
While Cadence heard Midnight asking Granny for more cider, Cadence did her breathing exercises. As she did this, she felt her fatigue lessen and the weight she had been feeling faded to a more manageable level. Neither had vanished completely, but she was feeling better. And that was what was important at the moment to keep her going.
By the time Cadence got to the bottom of the stairs, the front door opened to reveal Trixie and Sunset. Both of them were carrying large saddle bags full of herbs on their sides and in their mouths. Instantly Cadence could tell something was terribly wrong, however. When Trixie entered, she had not made a grand announcement nor had she praised herself for getting back quickly. Both Trixie and Sunset looked…pale. Sickly pale in fact, as if they were going to vomit at any moment. Then there was the blank look of horror in their eyes.
“Is everything alright?” asked Cadence slowly. “Did you have any problems when you got to town?”
“Y-Yes,” stammered Trixie as she dropped the bag in her mouth. Sunset did the same as Blazing turned his head slightly to look at the mares. At the same time, Zecora walked down the stairs.
“There was-” began Sunset but stopped to gulp loudly as she stared into empty space. “There was a problem. When we got to town there was a panic. Sweet Apple Acres wasn’t the only place that had magic taken away. All of Ponyville watched as pegasi fell from the sky and the unicorns were unable to catch them with their magic.”
“Oh no,” said Cadence as she pictured this horrifying scene, her coat becoming paler. “Has there…Have there been any deaths?”
“Trixie saw a few bodies being taken away,” answered the azure unicorn. “The others were being taken to a medical tent due to the hospital being overcrowded. If Trixie had to guess, the ponies there are trying to see if the doctors can help them. Everypony else was running around and screaming about this being the end so much that nopony could help get what Trixie needed. We had to break into the shops and stalls to steal what we were sent for! Then…” Trixie’s voice trailed off as tears began to appear in her eyes. Her lower lip began to quiver and her voice became very quiet. “Trixie…Trixie saw it happen. Canterlot is g-gone.”
Cadence felt her eyes widen as Trixie began to sob wildly. Sunset reached out to comfort Trixie which was accepted. Out of the corner of her eye, Cadence saw that Blazing was trying to get up but Zecora held him down with a single hoof.
“How can that, ugh, happen?” demanded Blazing through his pain.
“It just…fell,” said Sunset as she looked at Cadence. “We were heading back when we saw the mountain and the city just fell down.” Trixie let out a loud sniff and Sunset patted her on the back before she continued. “Everypony is even more scared than before they found out all magic was gone. It’s chaos out there! Some ponies are packing up and are planning on heading out of Equestria while others are bunkering down. And we weren’t the only ponies looting. I think that sooner or later ponies might be heading over here.”
Cadence closed her eyes while doing her best not to groan. As she did, she could hear hoof steps coming down the stairs, probably Ruby and her other guards. However Cadence didn’t greet them as she was imagining what could be going on. In all likelihood the battle in Canterlot was over by now. But was the city destroyed in the battle, or after as a sign on revenge from the Lunar Republic? Or maybe Blueblood did it in an effort to kill the Lunar troops? Did the ponies of Canterlot escape in time? If they did, where will they go? And what about the sudden loss of magic? If Ponyville was in this state right now, what about other areas of Equestria? What should she do now? Should she-
“Princess!” came the voice of Lone Wolf, forcing Cadence to open her eyes. She had been so deep in thought that she hadn’t heard the door open. There standing by the door were the bat ponies who had been in the barn as well as Shining Armor. Not a second later, Ruby and her fellow guards put themselves in between their princess and this new stallion. It appeared they were not taking any chances with her safety after the run-in with the griffon. Big Mac moved over to block the way into the kitchen, most likely in an effort to keep Granny Smith safe while beckoning Zecora to stay close to him. Which the zebra shaman did.
“Mr. Shiny!” cried Midnight happily, who ignored all the adults as she dashed towards Shining Armor. Once she was close enough she leapt into the air towards the stallion who caught her in his forelegs and brought her up into an off-the-floor hug while affectionately nuzzling her.
Both Lone Wolf and Darkwing watched in amazement as Shining Armor eventually lowered the filly princess to the ground, planting a kiss on her forehead. As Midnight giggled with delight, Lone Wolf turned to look at Princess Cadence who didn’t seem to be making a fuss or moving to protect her adopted foal. That she trusted this unicorn with her filly, and more importantly, the unicorn stallion exuded none of the hate and contempt for the bat pony child as so often experienced by the other thestrals present in the room.
“Have you come to help?” asked Midnight, gazing up at Shining with wide eyes full of hope.
“I have,” confirmed Shining Armor with a nod, his eyes moving to look at Cadence. “I have orders to take you and your mommy to the Republic where you’ll be safe. Or, at least I hope you’ll be.”
“You’re not taking Princess Cadence anywhere!” stated Ruby furiously, silently wishing she had moved in to keep Midnight safe. Much to her relief, Shining let go of the filly. But then much to her surprise, Midnight hopped eagerly to clamber upon Shining’s back, to which the unicorn knelt down to allow.
The Equestrian bat ponies stood agog at how casual and unguarded the Lunar unicorn was treating Midnight. Not as a threat to be eliminated, not as trash to be disposed of, not as vermin to be stepped upon, just...normal.
“I take it something happened,” said Shining, looking back up to Cadance as Midnight settled upon his back and him standing back up.
“A lot of things have been happening Captain Shining Armor,” said Cadence as she watched Shining flinch a bit at the use of his title. “I have just found out that my aunt was kidnapped, a war between our nations has erupted, Equestria is in chaos because we can’t use our magic, we were attacked by a griffon sent by my cousin, and now Canterlot has literally fallen. So, yes, a lot has happened. So I would appreciate it if you could tell me what is going on.” While she didn’t intend for it, Cadence heard her voice rise with every problem she had or was dealing with. She even noticed a few ponies flinch at this. But not Shining Armor.
“I will, on the way,” said Shining Armor firmly and quickly. The tone of his voice screamed urgency, which seemed unlike him. However, Cadence knew she couldn’t leave to go to the moon right now. Not with so many ponies here who needed her.
“Capt-,” began Cadence but was swiftly cut off as two more ponies entered the building. One was a bat pony stallion and the other was an earth pony mare, both wearing the silver armor of the Lunar Republic. As soon as the bat pony entered, Lone Wolf’s eyes went wide. Both ponies were wearing the same type of armor. There was no difference between them except for the slots that allowed that bat pony’s wings to be out in the open. There was no color difference like with Cadence’s guard nor did the armor look run down or used like a hoof-me-down. It was as if they were…equal.
“Captain Armor, sir,” said the stallion as he quickly saluted Shining Armor and bowed to Cadance. “We are still unable to make contact with Crescent Hope. Dome Zero remains silent as well. We need to get going.”
“Thank you Private Moon Blitz,” said Shining who was keeping his eyes on Cadence. “We’ll be leaving soon. Make sure we are ready to go.”
With a salute, Blitz and the mare turned to exit the room. While they did, Lone Wolf continued to stare at the bat pony in amazement. Not only was his armor the same as the mare’s, but he looked completely healthy. That stallion had no bandages on his body nor any visible scars. He had the look of a pony who had never gone hungry a day in his life and was well treated. While his word with the unicorn had been short, it sounded like he respected the unicorn. And the look in that stallion’s eyes, it had been brief but Lone Wolf had seen it. It was the same look that the stallions in the mural had as well as the look in Ruby’s eyes. Pride. Did they come from some place that was like what Princess Cadence was trying to make? A place where bat ponies fit in with the other pony races as ‘normal’ ponies?
“W-Who are you?” asked Lone Wolf. “Who is your princess?”
“Shining Armor, Guard Captain of the Lunar Republic, ruled over by Princess Luna,” said Shining Armor quickly before speaking to Cadence again. “Princess, I need you to trust me. Something has gone very wrong and every second counts. I promise I will tell you everything I know and everything I suspect once we begin making our way to the Republic.” Cadence opened her mouth, but Shining spoke again with greater urgency. “Cadence, please I really don’t have time to argue with you. You can bring whoever you want. Everypony on this farm can come if they want but we need to move. Whatever is going on, I think we’ll need your help on this. And you won’t just be helping the Republic, but also Equestria.”
Cadence looked at him for a moment before taking a long breath in and exhale. “Very well,” she said, turning to her own company to issue orders, “Ruby, you will accompany myself and my daughter on this journey. Thunderclap and Dusk, I want you two to remain here. Your tasks here will be to help with the injured while also guarding his house in case looters come.”
“Yes, My Lady,” came the trio of acknowledgments, alongside salutes.
Cadence turned to Blazing. “Lieutenant,” she addressed, “I entrust my Guards to you.”
Despite a wince of pain in doing so, Blazing Storm managed a salute. “I’ll take care of them like any fellow Guard under my command, Princess.”
“I wish you much luck, Princess, on your grand journey,” said Zecora. “I shall remain here to treat the fallen so you shall not need to worry.”
“Naturally ya won’t be alone,” said Bic Mac with a grin as he look at Zecora. “Gonna stay here so ah can protect mah land an the most important mares in mah life.” The zebra mare blushed as Big Mac ran a hoof through her mane.
“Ah don’t need no protectin’,” shouted Granny from somewhere in the kitchen.
“Well I’m going,” said Darkwing as he stepped forward. “If whatever is going on is affecting everywhere, it might end up hurting my colony. There’s no way I can just stay here.”
“I’m also going,” said Lone Wolf as he looked at the door Blitz had walked out of. “I want to see this ‘Lunar Republic’ as well as protecting my own colony.”
“Ah…Ah’m gonna stay here,” said Poisoned Apple. “Not abandoning my kin after Ah just found them after all these years.”
“Alright then,” said Lone Wolf as he looked over to the country bat pony. “But I’ll need you to head back to the colony first. I’m sure many of the ponies back there are asleep right now, but when they wake up and find they can’t fly there will be a panic. And it’ll only take one, like for example Jackal, to rile them up into doing something stupid. So your job is to let them know that I am heading off to see what the problem is and, if possible, fix it. Just tell them to lie low and remain safe.”
As the two bat ponies spoke, Trixie stood there silently as she thought about what she wanted to do. The idea of returning to the moon was not a thought that filled her with anything that could be considered warm or friendly, given her last visit. And now after everything that had been going on in Equestria with them she felt certain that they would not be happy to see an Equestrian pony or Princess Celestia’s student.
‘Princess Celestia’, thought Trixie as the guilt she had felt earlier returned with force. ‘She is on the moon and Trixie has a chance to save her! And even if Trixie can’t, Princess Celestia would be…proud of Trixie just for helping. Trixie…wants to make Princess Celestia proud that she chose the Great and Powerful Trixie as her student! So Trixie will be brave for her.’
But before Trixie could even open her mouth, somepony else spoke up.
“Great,” said Shining as he tapped his hoof impatiently. “Now that you have declared what you’re doing, can you please get your things so we can get a move on?!”
-x-
“I can’t believe you thought I attacked Twilight!” roared Gigawatt through the old communication device Land Share had left for the Equestrian’s. “You should have come to be if you had any information! I am the former head of the LBI and-”
“And we knew that the current one was in on this,” snapped Shadow on the other line. Everypony could hear sounds in the background that sounded like rushing wind and the flapping of wings. It was clear that he was most likely flying at high speeds to get to Dome Zero as fast as he could.
It had been several long minutes since Gigawatt and the mares from Equestria were told that Land Share was the one who stabbed Twilight, leading them to the theory that his involvements might go deeper than that. Twilight seemed to be getting her strength back at a much faster pace than before, the older medicine that had kept her asleep slowly leaving her system. Now she was able to speak in full sentences, informing all around her about Land Share’s visit. Gigawatt listened to everything his friend said while pacing pack and forth.
During this time, the communication device activated with Shadow Blade calling out for Applejack in a panic. The apple farmer mare answered it with the captain of the Lunar Guard quickly confirming that Land Share was behind all of this. Applejack then told him what was going on before hoofing the device over to Gigawatt who began their conversation by yelling at the bat pony.
Gigawatt took a deep breath. “Very well, I will concede that you have a point there,” he conceded. “Now back to the matter at hoof. We know that Land Share and Sealed Document are working together towards something. Most likely trying to destroy any chances of a future alliance. Make the one that Princess Luna is trying to make with Cadence fall through.”
“It’s far worse than that,” interrupted Shadow, causing Gigawatt’s eyes to widen. “I managed to get a lot of info out of Sealed. He and Land Share are going to drop a TOM on Equestria while Operation: Umbrella is active, ensuring that they kill all life on the planet.”
Gigawatt ignored the chorus of ‘What’s?!?’ from the Equestrians as his he stood still in frozen horror. The magnitude of such a plan. All the wonders and resources that the planet below them had to offer gone in a matter days or weeks. All of the foals killed by such an act, it shook him to his core while leaving a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach. He wanted to throw up as he thought about what would happen. He hated Equestria, but not enough to do something like this! It was beyond insane!
“Are you sure?” demanded Gigawatt once he regained his senses.
“Senator, you weren’t there talking to him,” said Shadow with a great unease in his voice. “Sealed was unnervingly calm as he talked to me. He told me that things have been set up so well that it didn’t matter what I did, there is no chance of stopping them in the short amount of time we have.”
“We’ll see about that,” said Gigawatt as he pulled away to look at the mares. “I don’t know how much time we have so we need to make every second count. I need all of you to pack up Twilight and anything else you can use in a fight. Make sure you pack light so we can move fast.” Without waiting for them to reply, Gigawatt turned his attention back to the communicator.
“You’re bringing Twilight?” asked Shadow.
“I’m going to need all hooves on deck,” said Gigawatt. “And I can’t leave Twilight here all by herself in her current state. She might need additional emergency medical attention. Also, there is a possibility that she can be used to help talk Land Share down. It’s unlikely given that he’s the one who put her in this state, but I’m not ruling that option out. Now, I need details on what we’re up against.”
Shadow waited a moment before responding. Gigawatt could tell he was still unhappy with the decision to bring Twilight along on a dangerous mission. The most logical argument he could make would be that she’d just slow them down. Yet he said nothing. Perhaps because he understood Gigawatt’s reasoning and didn’t have any other alternatives. Or because he didn’t want to waste what precious time they had arguing.
“Here’s what I know,” said Shadow after the pause. “The LBI has stationed many of its agents in key sections of the castle to control the flow of ponies. With most of the Guard being planetside and all of the captains out of Dome Zero this has been made this easier for them. Anypony who acts suspicious is quietly removed. Those who were not brought in on this, both the LBI and Royal Guard have been sent to Domes all over the Republic for various reasons. As for the Princess, we don’t need to worry about her. Sealed said that they planned on removing our forces on the planet when they were ready to begin as well as disabling our space force. Princess Luna was teleported to her cell while most of the troops teleported to Crescent Hope, which is currently unable to move. I am sure that Captain Starway is trying to get around whatever it is they’ve done to her ship, but I think it might take some time.”
“Ok, how quickly can we get back up from the Guard?” asked Gigawatt.
“I…don’t know,” admitted Shadow. “Sealed didn’t really go into detail where he sent my ponies. If I have to take a guess he’d have them sent to the farthest Domes from the castle. I’ll try and contact them as soon as I’m inbound. Until then you’re going to have one objective: getting to the central control station in the castle. It’s the only place where you have any chance of redirecting the TOM. It will also be the place where you’ll find Land Share. Everything else will have to be secondary for you.”
“Right,” said Gigawatt as he spared a glance at the Equestrians. Right now Rarity was using her magic to help Twilight stand. Applejack looked like she took a bunch of the medical supplies as did Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash was in the air, throwing punches at nothing as if to mentally prepare herself. Pinkie Pie was twirling around her rubber chickens as if they were daggers in her hooves. “I think I might need a bit more help. How quickly can you get here?”
“I’m flying towards the shuttle bay right now,” replied Shadow. Gigawatt shook his head.
“That won’t work,” he said sternly. “The LBI will never open the bay doors and you can’t crash through the Dome unless you want to kill everypony inside.”
“Who said I was flying the shuttle through space?” asked Shadow, Gigawatt sensing a smirk on the bat pony’s fanged face.
-x-
Lightning Dust walked through the halls of the castle as she did her best to look normal. To act like her best friend on the moon wasn’t in hiding and her commanding officer wasn’t trying to break into the headquarters of the ponies who were committing some of the greatest crimes in the Republic’s history. Being forced to give a friendly nod to any LBI agents she happened to pass by so that they didn’t suspect that she was on to them. To ignore every instinct in her bones to start beating up these scum balls to find out what was going on.
Trying to look normal was proving to be more difficult than she thought.
As Lightning turned towards the medical wing, she spotted three LBI agents down the hall. The three, two mares and a stallion, were standing side by side as if to block anypony who would want to get past them. Looking further down, she saw a doorway a few pacing behind them. There was a light on and, as far as she knew, that room was supposed to be reserved for ponies who had been critically injured in battle. With a frown on her face, Lightning marched towards them.
The three spotted her instantly. Lightning could see that they were quickly talking amongst low enough so that she couldn’t hear them. One thing that she also noted was that more than once did they glance behind them to look at door.
“Halt,” said the LBI stallion once Lightning had gotten close enough. Said stallion was standing in the middle in between the two mares, all three of them wearing the same black suit and black sunglasses with slicked back mane. “This area is off limits right now under orders of the LBI.”
Lightning raised an eyebrow. “I wasn’t made aware of this,” she said. “If an area is off limits for whatever reason, it should be reported to all members of the Guard so that we can assist. Especially this hallway since it’s in the medical wing. A pony might need something like this in case there is an emergency.”
“We are aware,” said the mare on the right.
“But this is classified,” said the mare on the left.
“Classified?” echoed Lightning as she began to feel uneasy. “Under whose authority?”
“That is none of your concern,” barked the stallion as he took a step further. “Especially since you are currently off duty due to injury.”
Lightning narrowed her eyes. “I volunteered to assist in patrolling the castle since most of the Guard is currently away,” she replied hotly. “We did just send a large amount of ponies to Equestria after all. And with the remaining Guard deployed to various Domes somepony has to protect the castle even if it’s a flightless pegasus.”
“The LBI can guard the castle,” said the mare on the right.
“So leave or be detained,” continued the mare on the left.
Lightning was about to respond when hear ears twitched as the sound of something toppling over came from the room several feet ahead of her. The three in front of her shifted slightly, but gave no impression that they were going to check to see what that noise was. Something that worried Lightning Dust greatly. The only other movement she saw was that the two mares turned their heads to look at the stallion in the middle.
“You should have turned around when you had the chance,” he said as he reached into his suit. Whatever he was reaching for, however, he never got the chance to pull it out. Lightning reacted instantly, rushing forward before turning around to use a sweeping kick the knock the stallion off his balance. By the time the other two agents thought to reach into their suits, the stallion was falling onto his side. As he tried to stop this, Lightning spun around again while this time extending her metal wings so that one of them hit her opponent in the next. And when he hit the ground Lightning could tell by the sounds he was making that he wouldn’t be getting up soon.
Seeing movement on both sides, Lightning jumped back just in time to avoid being hit by the two mares. As she landed on the ground, she saw that on both of their right forehooves was something that looked like a black glove with sparks dancing around them. The two mares stared at her with no emotion on their faces.
‘Ok, so they got shock gloves,’ thought Lightning as she assessed the situation. ‘All it will take is a solid hit from one of those on one of my unprotected areas and I’m out like a light. My armor has no blasters attached to it right now and no melee weapons. Also flying is out of the question right now since I’m still not used to these new wings. This is going to be…fun!’
Smirking, Lightning made a ‘come at me’ gesture with her hoof. For a moment the other two mares seemed to not take the bait and Lightning was sure they were glancing at each other from behind those sunglasses. Once the moment was over, however, the charged at Lightning and attacking on both sides at the same time. The Guard mare backed away just in time to miss the attack, but her enemies didn’t miss a beat and continued to go after her.
Lightning wanted to do this in the cockiest way she could. Something like dodging the attacks by ducking while walking backwards and smirking at her own impressive skill. Something like in one of those good fighting cartoons were the hero is just leagues above the enemy and she’s just humoring them. But Lightning knew that this wasn’t the time to be cocky. If she messed up now, it would spell trouble for her friends as well as the Republic.
So, when the next blow came, Lightning went on the attack. After dodging the attack from the mare on the right, she immediately placed her hoof on her opponent’s extended foreleg and pushed it to the side while charging forward. The mare couldn’t hide her shock right before Lightning got in close and head-butted her with enough force that the traitorous agent was sent flying towards the wall. As she hit it with enough force to be bounced off the wall, Lightning turned around just in time. The other mare had jumped into the air, ready to strike Lightning’s backside with her gloved hoof. Lightning did the only thing she could think of, she took a step forwards before leaning forwards and bucking her hard with her hind legs. While she might not have been as strong as some farming ponies, she did have more than enough leg strength to knock her against the other wall.
But as the mare felt Lightning’s back hooves connect with her chest, she was able to touch Lightning’s rear leg for an instant. And in that instant, Lightning felt pain like she had never felt before. She threw her head up and screamed as electricity shot through her body before it quickly ended. When it did, Lightning stumbled while trying to remain standing. Slowly she turned her head to look with tear stained eyes at the spot where the attack had made contact. ‘I was lucky,’ thought Lightning, spotting a furless area of her coat that was smoking. ‘Must have just grazed me with the side of the glo-’
Lightning’s thoughts were cut off as forelegs were wrapped around her neck and she suddenly found herself standing on her rear legs while her back pressed against the chest of another pony. Lightning tried to call out, but whoever was holding her tightened his hold making the only sounds coming out of her mouth gargled. Not thinking about anything other than the need to breathe, Lightning sent her elbow into the enemy’s side. Once she felt herself make contact, she leaned forwards with whoever it was holding on for dear life. As Lightning got back onto all fours, her attacker rolled off her back and landed in front of her. It was another stallion in an LBI suit.
While breathing hard, Lightning lifted a forehoof and slammed it into his muzzle while looking around to see if there were any more LBI agents. Seeing none she breathed a small sigh of relief before heading towards the door they looked like they were guarding. She moved slowly with her body pressed against the wall incase somepony came out of the room. Soon enough she got to the door and peered inside.
On the floor of the room was a doctor. She looked like she had been roughed up, most likely from putting up a fight with the LBI agent or something. As Lightning entered the room the mare looked up at her with fear in her eyes that soon looked relieved when she saw Lightning’s armor.
“Thank the stars,” said the doctor as she tried to stand. “I…I thought they were going to…” Her voice trailed off for a moment as she shuttered.
“What did they want?” asked Lightning. She knew she should ask how she was or say something to calm her down. To take things slowly. But after what happened, Lightning was sure that the LBI was making their move to do…something. Whatever it was, she knew she was the only Guard in the castle right now who knew they were up to something. And until Shadow returned it was up to her to make every second count.
“They were going to do something to my patient,” said the doctor as she pointed to a medical pod floating in the room. “Said something about sending her back to join the rest of her kind’s fate. I-I had no idea what he was going on about and told him that Princess Luna herself gave the order that she was to be treated. H-He then…If you hadn’t come along I’d…” The doctor began to tremble slightly and Lightning just nodded. The doctor had lucked out. They both had.
“This is Captain Shadow Blade calling any member of the Guard who can hear this,” came Shadow’s voice on her communicator. “Respond immediately if you are in the castle and can hear this.”
“This is Lightning Dust, reporting in,” said Lightning as she brought her hoof to her ear. For a moment, there was a pause as if Shadow was hoping there was somepony else there.
“Lightning, the situation was not what we thought,” said Shadow eventually. “Land Share is the mastermind, not Gigawatt. He has Princess Luna locked up in her special cell and is preparing to drop a TOM on Equestria.”
“Wait, what? Hold on a-,” began Lightning.
“There’s no time!” snapped Shadow. “I’m inbound right now, but it’ll take me a bit to get there. Right now Gigawatt and the Equestrians are heading to the main control room to get Land Share. They will need help. Get whoever you can and make your way there as fast as you can! We need to stop that TOM at all costs! Do you read me?”
“I read you, sir,” replied Lightning, her voice sounding a little lost as the communication was cut.
For a while, Lightning just stood there as she processed all of this information. It just didn’t seem possible. She had known Land Share ever since she was a filly, hanging around Twilight when they went to visit him. Land Share was one of the kindest stallions she had ever met and one of the most loyal ponies in the Republic. How could he do something like this? How could he betray Princess Luna like-
‘Princess Luna!’ thought Lightning as her mechanical wings flared. ‘I need to save her and fast! She knows this place better than any pony alive and she knows all the systems. Stars, she could even use her magic to stop that TOM!’
Lightning had a grin of her face as she thought about rescuing a princess that slowly faded in time. If Princess Luna was in her special cell, there was a very good chance that it would be guarded by the LBI. Most likely more ponies than what she just dealt with and she didn’t think she could take them all on her own. Who was she kidding, she couldn’t do this on her own anyways thanks to the security that was put into place. You would need at least two ponies to do this. And there was no chance the doc could help her right now, given how shaken up she was.
Lightning Dust was about to dismiss the idea all together when she noticed the healing pod again. Slowly an idea began to form in her mind.
“Hey doc, will she survive if you wake her up?” asked Lightning as she pointed a hoof at pod.
“W-What?” asked the doctor in a slight panic. “T-That is out of the question. She needs more time. We have patched up the hole in her chest as well as her internal damage, but she still lost a large amount of blood! She’ll need at least another forty minutes before she is in any condition to-”
“I need help doc,” said Lightning in a serious tone. “Lives are in danger and our princess has been captured. We need everypony we can get that can fight. Now, OPEN THIS BUCKING POD!”
Land Share sat in one of the seats in the main control room of the castle, staring at the center screen. It was large, taking up an entire wall. On it, the senator could see the planet clearly as well as all of the crystals used in Operation: Umbrella. He could also see Crescent Hope, the marvel of Republic technology floating there in the middle of space with its crew (no doubt) trying to break free of their remote control.
But all of that paled in comparison to the TOM. It was simple looking, but its sheer size caused a tremble of fear to course through the elder pony’s body. The one he had chosen already had all of the ice mined from it so that the Republic wouldn’t suffer. However, not all of the minerals inside of it, which was the same used in their anti-magic technology, had been removed. This was another reason it was chosen. Only a select few had the magic and the skill needed to break it off its course with that stuff in it. And they had been taken care of, their locations known only to him. Of course, even that was a moot point thanks to the engine attached to its back going at full blast which would make it even more difficult for anypony less than Princess Luna.
At the top of the screen was a countdown timer in bright red numbers. In less than forty eight minutes the TOM would hit Canterlot Mountain and end the world. In less than forty eight minutes, the Republic would be safe for the far foreseeable future.
As his eyes moved away from the countdown clock, Land Share noticed something on the screen. Whatever it was, it was small and it was leaving the planet. He raised an eyebrow while pressing a few buttons on his chair to magnify the image. Once this was completed Land Share saw that the object turned out to be one of their shuttles. For a brief moment, he wondered who might be in it. Could it have been one of the shuttles that had been raiding Equestria returning late? That was certainly a possibility. Equestrians who had somehow learned how to operate technology well beyond their ability to understand, coming here with a mana bomb or something in the hopes of defeating them? Laughably unlikely.
But in the end, it didn’t really matter. Whoever was in the craft would be dealt with when they got to the moon.
Everything was in motion and there was no stopping it.
-x-
“This…This can’t right,” said Shining Armor in complete disbelief as he stared at the screen in front of him.
Cadence sat next to Shining Armor in the shuttle, trying to take everything in. In front of her was a screen showing her the wonders of space like she had never seen before. There were so many stars that it through her mind through a loop. The planet below them, from what she had seen, had brought a tear to her eye at its sheer awe and spender. While she had been on the moon before, she had never seen space like this and had desperately wished it had been on far better circumstances.
Everypony else was seated behind them along with any belongings they had wanted to take with them. Granny Smith had given them a barrel of apples in case they were hungry as well as some apple pie. Zecora had supplied them with some emergency medicines that she had quickly whipped up. The last thing they had brought on board with them were Midnight’s rocks. Since they didn’t know how long they would be gone and seeing that there was plenty of room, Cadence thought it would be a good idea to not leave her daughter’s gifts at the Apple family farm.
Along with Ruby, Lone Wolf, and Darkwing there was also Trixie who had voiced her desire to come along. She had said that they might need her ‘great and powerful magic’ to aid in whatever was going on. Coming along with Trixie was Sunset, a decision that caused all of the Lunar ponies to become agitated as far as Cadence could see. It looked like, for a moment, Shining was going to object but the urgency of whatever was going on caused him not to. But despite this, there was a powerful air of tension in the shuttle that caused Sunset to stay close to Trixie.
Shining Armor had been true to his word, telling her everything that had been going on from his point of view while also filling in some holes that Trixie had either forgotten to mention or didn’t know about. He had told her what had happened in Canterlot when Princess Luna first arrived, being met with hostility from the guards and how the Equestrians started the fight. He then went on about the war vote, sending a pony named Derpy down to ask for their surrender, and all the preparations for the conflict. Shining’s role in all of this was to find her and bring her to safety so that Luna could make her the sole ruler of Equestria until Celestia was fit to rule once more by their standards.
He had also told her about Operation: Umbrella, their method of getting rid of Discord once and for all. The original plan was to send out a worldwide notice before activating it while surrounding Discord. Seeing the look of horror on Cadence’s face, Shining began to talk about the safety procedures they had in place when his attention was caught by the object next to the moon.
“Shining Armor, is that part of Operation: Umbrella?” asked Cadence.
Shining shook his head. “No, it’s not,” he said as he began to push several button in front of him. Moments later, data began to scroll around the screen in front of them at an alarming pace. “That’s a TOM. And it shouldn’t be there. According to the schedule, there isn’t one that supposed to be shot into the sun anytime soon.” More data began to appear on the screen making Cadence wonder how Shining Armor could keep up with it all. “I-It’s not heading for the sun. It’s heading for the planet!”
“WHAT!?” yelled Cadence getting everypony’s attention in the shuttle. She wasn’t sure what a TOM was, but she could see the fear in Shining Armor’s eyes and the tremble on his entire body.
“Thi- brzzzzzzzzt of Cres- brrzzt copy?”
The data rolling across the screen vanished and in its place was, as far as Cadence could tell, snow. However, for what seemed like brief moments, a mare sitting in a fancy chair appeared just before being replaced with snow. Cadence saw Shining frown and look over at the large spaceship they were quickly approaching.
“That’s…odd,” said Shining as he began to press more buttons. “Let’s see if I can’t boost the signal a bit. Ah, there we go.”
“This is Captain Starway of the Crescent Hope,” said the mare, her image coming in clear. “Shuttle craft, can you hear me? Please respond.”
“This is Captain Shining Armor,” said the stallion after pressing one final button. By the look on the mare’s face when he did that and the way her eyes looked at him then to her before locking onto him again, Cadence could tell that she could not only hear him but also see them as well.
“Captain Armor, it is good to see you,” said Starway looking relieved for a split second. Then her face hardened. “We are experiencing a problem. Me and my crew have lost control of Crescent Hope. Right now the only things we have any control over are the environmental controls and just now short range communication. We are working around the clock to try and regain control.”
Shining slowly nodded. “Do you require our assistance?”
“Even if I thought you could help I can’t even open the shuttle bay doors,” said Starway ruefully.
“I see,” said Shining. “Do you have any idea what caused this?”
“Sadly…yes,” replied the captain with some hesitation. “Shortly before we lost control, the Lunar Guard began teleporting to Crescent Hope in mass. Fighters, those that survived their assault on Discord, began heading towards the ship. We tried to contact the Princess, but we were then cut off and we lost control. The only thing I can think of that could do all of this is the central control system in the castle.”
Shining Armor sat there for a moment as that information sunk in. The system that Starway had just mentioned was one of the Republic’s safeguards. It was made in case some poor, deranged pony suffering from space madness or the like ever got hold of a military craft. This system could cut off the pilot’s control and then bring the craft back to Dome Zero. The system also had access to other things like armor teleportation and…TOM controls.
“I see you understand,” said Starway as look at Shining’s expression. “Captain Armor, do you think…is it possible that Princess Luna is overstepping her-”
“NO!” screamed Shining Armor. “How dare you even suggest something like that!”
“I don’t know what’s going on,” replied Starway, her eyes narrowing a bit. “And I don’t have the same closeness to her as you do. I am more able to keep an open mind.”
“If Princess Luna wanted to drop a TOM on the planet, she would have done so right away,” snarled Shining. “She wouldn’t send three hundred ponies down there just to teleport them back up.”
“Perhaps you’re right,” said Starway. “Or perhaps something has happened to her that we are unaware of. In any case, we need to find out what is going on and stop it. Captain Armor, the shuttles are right now the only things that are unaffected by the control system. As far as I know, you are our only hope. We- bzzzzzzzt need- bzzzrt-”
“We must be getting out of range,” said Shining as he stared that the screen. He began to manipulate the controls and everypony felt the craft began to move faster.
“Shining,” began Cadence. “Can you please tell me what is going on?”
“Right now: getting this thing to go as fast as it can,” said Shining without looking away from the controls, his hooves moving as fast as they could access them. His coat began to dampen in his own sweat. “Because if we don’t get to the Republic very, very soon, Equestria will be gone.”
-x-
Meanwhile, in front of the castle in Dome Zero, fifteen LBI agents were standing in front of the main doors. Each and every one of them stared forwards while wearing the black gloves on their forehooves, electricity dancing across their surface. Those of whom were pegasi had their wings open, ready to take flight regardless of how long they had to wait. The unicorns were also prepared, their horns glowing with the promise of a magical spell that would be unleashed at a moment’s notice.
A sudden noise caused many of their ears to twitch. It sounded like metal hitting metal, with one (maybe both) being twisted and bent. Yet none of them looked like they were going to investigate or make any other type of movement. Their orders were to remain where they were and to guard their position at all costs. And so the continued to stare at the gate in front of them that separated the Platform Station from the castle.
A millisecond later they discovered what had made that noise. The gate that they had been staring at was knocked off its hinges as a shuttle came charging through at full speed. The LBI agents reacted on survival instincts, lunging out of the way or pressing themselves against the ground in the hope that they wouldn’t be run over and killed on impact. As the shuttle flew over those who had pressed their bodies against the grey, rocky surface of the moon, nopony noticed that the rear of the shuttle had opened.
Nor did they see Shadow Blade leap out of the back as the shuttle crashed through the main entrance, the nose of the shuttle dipping towards the ground as he did. And when Shadow’s hooves hit the ground, the shuttle had crashed against the floor where it then began to skid forwards until there was an explosion of flames.
And before the LBI could even turn their heads to look at the entrance, Shadow Blade was gone.
-x-
At the same time, two figures moved towards a section in the dungeon where the Princesses were being kept. One of them was Lightning Dust who had a scowl on her face as she led the other, Hot Pants, to their destination as best she could. However this wasn’t easy for a few reasons. Lightning’s run in with the LBI had slightly injured her hind leg, giving her a slight limp. Hot Pants had it much worse, looking pale and that she would pass out at any moment. The unicorn mare was also still wearing her Canterlot Royal Guard uniform which had a hole in it.
Something that Lightning Dust was doing her best not to look at.
A sudden crash from upstairs caused the two to halt for a moment.
“What…What was that?” breathed Hot Pants as she and Lightning looked up at the ceiling.
“No idea,” said Lightning, getting the other mare’s attention. Hot Pants lowered her head and her eyes fell on the Lightning’s mechanical wings. Something about those wings sent a shiver down her spine and she found herself staring at them for a moment too long as Lightning turned her head.
It didn’t take Lightning long to realize what Hot Pants had been staring at. Her face quickly contorted in anger as she turned her entire body around to stomp towards the unicorn. Soon their muzzles were inches apart with Lightning visibly gritting her teeth.
“What the buck are you staring at?” growled Lightning, knowing full well what the answer was.
“I,” began Hot Pants as she took a step back, but a snarling Lightning moved to keep the distance between them constant. “I was just remembering that after the battle yesterday we found some wings on the ground while digging through the bodies. Some, ah, turquoise wings. I just-” Hot Pants was silenced when she was suddenly slammed into the wall.
“So you were there huh,” snarled Lightning as her anger began to rise. She was sure that Hot Pants could see flames in her pupils based on her expression. Hot Pants gave a nod that caused Lightning to see red for a moment before she suddenly backed away.
Slowly Lightning began to take deep breathes as she shot a glare at the mare. She hadn’t liked the idea that she would have to rely on an Equestrian for help, let alone one of the ponies who were there when she…lost her wings. But she needed somepony’s help and while her injuries made her more of a hindrance, her military experience might help. And Lightning Dust would rather not put a civilian in the line of fire. So, for now, Lightning needed this Equestrian.
“I-I’m sorry about what happened,” said Hot Pants quickly. “What happened yesterday was Stareye and Blueblood’s doing. They w-were riling up the others and-”
“Shut up,” snapped Lightning, not bothering to look at her. “Let’s just keep moving,” With that, Lightning began to walk as fast as she could with the other mare trailing right behind her.
“Again, I’m really sorry about what happened,” said Hot Pants, much to Lightning’s irritation. “I know you’re all not bad like the stories and ponies like Blueblood say you are. One of your bat ponies saved me and somepony who is very dear to me. He could have-”
“Shut…the buck…up,” hissed Lightning while turning her head to glare at Hot Pants. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I don’t really like you all that much. So shut your trap. The less I have to deal with you the better.”
As Lightning turned her head to look forwards, Hot Pants felt her own anger begin to build up. All she was trying to do was be nice. But ever since she had been dragged out of that…thing that was supposed to heal her and told to help her save Equestria from stuff she barely understood, the pegasus in front of her had either ignored her or was downright hostile. In fact…
“Why are you doing this?” asked Hot Pants suddenly.
“Why are you still talking?” barked Lightning as she kept walking. However, she stopped when she heard the hoofsteps behind her cease. Growling with annoyance, Lightning turned around to see that Hot Pants was sitting down. Lightning glared at the mare who returned the glare with far less hostility. “We need to keep moving.”
“Not until I get an answer,” said Hot Pants hotly. “You really don’t seem to like Equestria all that much. In fact, after all that I’ve seen from your ponies, I don’t think any of you really like us! So why not see us all die? Why protect something you don’t like?”
Lightning’s eyes became even narrower. “Get moving,” she said before turning around. “We don’t have time to waste.”
“Not until-” Hot Pants couldn’t her sentence before Lightning spun around upon her. With one hoof the pegasus mare grabbed Hot Pants by her armor and brought her in so close that it was impossible to see anything but Lightning’s anger fueled eyes.
“You’re right, I don’t like you right now especially in that armor,” growled Lightning. “And if I could, I would try and do this myself. I would fly circles around the LBI agents before knocking them down on their plots. But right now I can’t because my bucking wings were cut off by some lucky Equestrian soldier and I’m not ready to start my training with these new ones. Also it takes at least two ponies to do this. Now, listen to me very closely, shut the buck up while we go to stop somepony I thought I knew from making you Equestrians right about us.”
With that, Lightning let go of Hot Pants. There was no shoving backwards or anything like that, Lightning just let her go before turning around once again and walking away. This time Lightning’s pace seemed a bit more hurried, like she was making up for lost time. Deciding it would be best to hurry as well, Hot Pants got up and did her best to keep up with the pegasus.
“Ah, right about what?” asked Hot Pants as she moved as fast as she could.
“That we’re monsters,” replied Lightning without turning around.
-x-
Down in their cell, Luna and Celestia were far from idle. Luna had been banging her body against the cell bars as hard as she could since Land Share had left. She could feel her body bruising but she paid it no mind. With each second that passed she seemed to try harder than the last. Celestia, on the other hoof, was examining the cell in an attempt to find a way out. She had already walked around their confinement several times, tapping on the bars and walls to see if there was any weak point she might be able to exploit. Yet it seemed everything was in pristine condition.
And the fact that Luna was making so much noise wasn’t helping her any.
“Luna, would you please stop?” asked Celestia with some irritation in her voice.
“NO!” screamed Luna before slamming her body into the bars. “I need to get out of here and stop Land Share!”
“Well doing that isn’t helping,” stated Celestia as she watched her younger sister continue to slam her smaller body into the bars. “We need to hurry and get out of here before Equestria is destroyed. And that will only happen once we figure out the weak point of this place.”
“There isn’t one,” said Luna before another slam, this one so loud it made Celestia wince as she was sure her sister was hurt. “It was specifically designed to contain the most powerful pony in the Republic: me.”
“What?” said Celestia in disbelief as she walked over to her younger sister. “Luna, whoever convinced you to-”
“Nopony convinced me of anything,” interrupted Luna before another powerful slam, tears appearing in her eyes now. “It was my idea to create this cell.”
Celestia stared at Luna for a moment, her jaw hanging at the implications of this. The shock that her little sister would ever consider making something like this had temporarily frozen her in a state of shock. However the shock didn’t last long as anger and frustration began to overtake the solar princess. In an instant, she was no longer the Princess of Equestria, mover of the sun and kind hearted protector of her ponies. She was no longer the big sister of Luna and daughter of Molten Fury and Oceana. Rage had stripped away all of her masks.
“Y-You created all of this?” sputtered Celestia as she waved a hoof around to indicate the cell. “Luna…what the buck were you thinking?! Seriously, I want to know. What possible reason could you have for making something like this for yourself?”
Luna said nothing at first as she took a few steps back, tears still in her eyes. “I wanted to keep my ponies safe,” she said right before charging at the bars at full speed only to get knocked to the ground. Before she could get up, Celestia walked in front of her to tower over the younger alicorn with an angry scowl on her face.
“You wanted to keep your ponies safe so you built a cell that could contain you?” said Celestia hotly as Luna looked away. “That has to be the dumbest thing I have ever heard in my entire life. I thought you were smarter than this Luna, but it appears I was wrong. I…the logic makes no sense! How is locking you in a place where you can’t use magic supposed to protect anypony?!”
“IT’LL KEEP THEM SAFE FROM ME!” shouted Luna as she turned her head up to look at Celestia. Gone was the confidence in her features. Tears were pouring down her face and the look in her eyes…
“W-What?” stammered Celestia as she felt her rage freeze in its tracks.
Luna gulped. “I have to protect my ponies at all costs,” said Luna, her lower lips quivering. “What if I should ever lose my mind and go crazy? What if my power and authority corrupted me, making me no better than Sombra? My ponies…they would have been left defenseless. It seemed like such a good idea at the time, to reassure them that they would have a way to fight back in case the worst happened.” A sob escaped Luna as she tried to get up, but Celestia held her down with a hoof.
“Sister, don’t think like that,” said Celestia. “Something like that would never happen. You need not always assume the worst is going to happen.”
“I have to!” wailed Luna. “My ponies depend on me every day! I brought them here, to a place where if a single thing went wrong we will all DIE! We have to be prepared at all times. I have to protect them no matter…no matter what…” Luna’s voice began to choke up while the tears began to flow more freely. She wailed louder than ever, causing Celestia to take a step back. “I-I-I killed them! I killed so many innocent ponies sister! All because I wanted to keep mine safe from harm, to stop Discord from ever coming here. I tried so hard not to use it, I really did. But in the end I had no choice but to use Umbrella against him. I killed him…as well as countless other lives across the planet!”
Before Celestia’s very eyes, Luna seemed to break. The night princess’s body curled up into fetal position as she cried even harder. Luna tried to continue to speak despite her sobbing in what sounded like apologies to various ponies and other creatures. Celestia could barely make any of it out, but she did hear Eagle Eye’s name.
Celestia was at a loss. She had never seen her sister like this. Luna had always been a bit brash and headstrong, never afraid to question or speak her mind. Yet now, Luna seemed broken. It was as if everything that had been happening had finally caught up with her and Luna could not bear the weight.
“Luna,” whispered Celestia as she moved a little closer to her sister. When she did this, Luna looked up at her with tears streaming down her features.
“It didn’t need to happen this way,” she sobbed. “If…If I had just killed him and then deactivated Operation: Umbrella then maybe I won’t have killed so many ponies. But instead I gloated over him, explaining to him what had happened so that before he died he knew that the Lunar Republic had bested him. After…After everything he had done to us in the past, all of his sick games, it was so hard not to do! If I hadn’t, then fewer ponies would have suffered.”
“Sister, you don’t know that,” said Celestia gently as she laid down next to Luna, draping a wing over the midnight blue alicorn at the same time. “For all you or I know, the moment it was turned on Land Share made it so you wouldn’t be able to turn it off. Then you would have been blaming yourself for turning it on in the first place.”
“Celestia, don’t,” said Luna as she used a hoof to wipe away her tears. “Don’t try and sweep all of my mistakes under the rug. This is my fault. I should have-”
“Luna, I was wrong,” said Celestia, causing Luna to stop mid-sentence. “Sister, I always thought Equestria was fine the way it was. I kept it the same for a thousand years while telling ponies that all we needed was to be kind to each other. But what I really accomplished was keeping old hatreds and old problems. I knew to a point that bat ponies still weren’t being treated right. I knew that other nations hated us. I saw Discord’s statue crack before my eyes, having to constantly fix it but never trying to solve the real problem. Maybe if I had your decisiveness then maybe things would have turned out better.
“I mean, look at all you have accomplished! The wonders of both science and magic right at your hooves, allowing your society to do so much. Your ponies are healthy, strong, and constantly pushing themselves forwards! All because of you. The only thing I have done is kept my subjects living in the past.”
“They’re not the only ones living in the past,” said Luna as she shook her head sadly. “My little ponies are guilty of that as well. I didn’t want them to forget where we came from, why we left. I didn’t want them to make same mistake of being defenseless. I wanted to be a strong leader for them, I thought I had to be in order to keep things moving smoothly in this wasteland. But all I did was remind them of old wounds, never allowing them to fully heal. I kept them paranoid and violent. I…was far harsher on those who broke the law than I should have. Perhaps, if I showed them some of the forgiveness and mercy that you are so good at then maybe it would have rubbed off on them instead of my bad temper.
“Celestia, your ponies are the lucky ones. They do not live with the fear of death every day and have a whole world to explore whenever they want, full of life and wonder. Because I wanted to keep my ponies safe we live on an isolated and mostly barren rock in space. Because of me, they lack the social interaction that your ponies have with other races and nations.”
“You mean the races and nations that wish to do us harm because I value the word of my ponies over the claims of others?” asked Celestia with a sad smile.
“At least you talk with other nations,” said Luna. “I have no idea how to deal with other nations. I don’t even know what ‘diplomatic immunity’ is or the modern day customs.”
“I guess we both could have done better,” said Celestia soundly.
“Maybe…maybe if we both learned how to bend a bit, then this wouldn’t have happened,” said Luna with a sigh.
“Something to strive for in the future perhaps,” said Celestia.
Luna shook her head. “Sister, it is very doubtful that our nations will ever get along. Especially after the war and Operation: Umbrella. Perhaps it will be better if the Republic remains on the moon while I-” Luna was stopped by Celestia’s hoof gently touching her lips.
“Luna, nothing is going to change if we go back to the way things used to be,” she said. “For all we know, things will only get worse. If there is to be any hope for a better future, both sides are going to need time to get to know and understand the other. Only then will there be peace.”
“Which won’t happen because of Land Share’s plan,” said Luna bitterly as she looked away.
“There is still time,” said Celestia. “But Luna, if we are going to get out of here we need to work together. You know this cell, probably better than any other pony in the Republic. Please, explain to me all of the security you have in place. Perhaps then the two of us can put our heads together and figure something out.”
“I…suppose it’s worth a shot,” began Luna. “I have my doubts. When we tested this cell, I was locked in here for a week only leaving to raise and lower the moon. I tried everything I could think of until finally I gave up.”
“But you were alone at the time little, er, Princess Luna,” said Celestia. “This time will be different because you’ll have me by your side. Like how it should have been.”
Luna nodded before taking a breath, a small smile on her face as she did so. “Very well. For starters, this entire room contains our best anti-magic field technology. Even if that were not the case, right now the anti-teleportation has most likely been activated around the Dome. Meaning if we could use our magic and tried to teleport, we would just end up behind the bars of another cell.”
“And with these anti-magic rings on our heads, even if we got out of here we still couldn’t use our magic,” added Celestia as she brought a hoof to her chin. She then eyed the wall behind them. “I suppose it would be too optimistic to assume we can dig our way out?”
Luna shook her head. “Even if we could get past the metal, which is just as strong as the bars, I would never allow it. It would take us weeks to dig our way out and once we got to the surface we would be in the vacuum of space. Without our magic we would die and all of the atmosphere in Dome Zero will get sucked out, most likely killing everypony here unless they manage to engage the safety protocols. And with nopony around to redirect the TOM, it would still crash into Equestria.”
“Maybe…maybe we could pretend to be sick,” suggested Celestia with a hint of hope in her voice. “I mean, if we can’t forcibly break ourselves free then maybe we can trick them into opening the cell door. Then, when their guard is down we can make a rush for the door or take them out.”
Any hope Celestia had for this plan died as Luna shook her head. “That won’t work either,” she said. “This cell monitors our health so they will know if there is a medical emergency. If there is one, steps are to be taken to ensure that we are both knocked out before the sick pony is placed in a healing pod.”
“There has to be something,” sighed Celestia as she began to pace back and forth. “Luna, I know you are a smart pony. Surely you must have at least considered the idea that someone might take advantage of this cell in an effort to seize power from you.”
“I did,” replied Luna with a nod. “It was difficult, figuring out a method to allow me to escape when the purpose of this cell is to keep me locked up. In the end, I decided it would be best to inform the Royal Guard that in such an event they are to come down here and release me.”
“So…your plan is to wait and be rescued?” asked Celestia. Luna nodded. “Ok then. Ah, what would they have to do in order to rescue us then?”
Luna turned to look past the bars and at the door. “In order to release me, they would need a minimum of two ponies. On the main floor of this castle, there is a guarded elevator that only goes to this level. Right now, I have no idea how many LBI agents are guarding it. It could be anywhere from one to thirty. After taking out those guards, one pony must be left behind to operate the elevator. You see sister, in the event that I should somehow break out of this cell there will be nowhere for me to go. There are no controls for the elevator on this floor meaning we would be stuck down here.”
Celestia groaned. “A bottleneck situation,” sighed the sun princess. “One way in and one way out. Terrific. The minotaur will be pleased that you are using one of their classic strategies.”
While Celestia couldn’t see it, Luna rolled her eyes. “From what I remember it worked out very well for them back when I was a filly. Now then, once the guards are taken care of, at least one pony will have to make it down here to deal with a few more guards. Most likely more LBI agents. Thankfully, they will be fewer in number thanks to the limited space.
“Once they get past them and make it into this room, things will be easier. I am sure that Land Share changed the codes to open the cell as well as placed a backup system to alert him should the wrong code be entered. But what he doesn’t know is that there is a backdoor system that I put in place. On the wall next to the door is a key pad which, after putting in a five number sequence, will bypass all security measures and allow us to exit freely.”
Celestia opened her mouth to say something when a sudden noise caught both of their attention. It was a soft thud noise followed by muffled voices. Both of their eyes widened and their hearts began to pound faster. Hope bloomed in their chests that Luna’s guard was here, already working hard to rescue them. Together they strained their ears, trying their best to see if they could hear anything else that would inform them of a battle beyond the doors and walls that held them. But, sadly for them, the noises had stopped.
“I guess that was too much to hope for,” sighed Celestia.
“Indeed,” said Luna as she looked down at the ground. “I fear that we are stuck here.”
“Maybe not,” said Celestia as she walked closer to the bars. “One said that this cell was meant to hold one alicorn. However, as you can see, that isn’t the case. Perhaps if we ram the bars, our combined strength might be enough to get us out of here. But, this plan only has a chance of working if we do this together.”
“I…it might work,” said Luna, sounding thoughtful as she tapped her chin while staring at the bars. “By myself it would take years to even dent them. That’s how they were designed! I never considered the possibility that two beings of equal might working together might stand a chance.”
“Sister,” said Celestia as she held out a hoof. “Together?” For a moment, the sun princess held her breath as her sister looked at the extended hoof. Then a smile appeared on the face of Luna as she lifted her own hoof to then place it on top of Celestia’s. Celestia couldn’t help but smile as Luna echoed the word “Together”.
Yet before they could lower their hooves, another loud thudding noise interrupted this moment. Then another thud followed by panicked voices. Celestia opened her mouth to ask if Luna had any idea what was happening, but before the words came out of her mouth the door to the air vent flew open while a brightly colored ball landed in the middle of the floor. When it touched the ground, the two princesses saw that this wasn’t a ball at all but instead three foals.
“Or perhaps they could help,” said Luna, beaming happily as she recognized two out of the three.
“Oh, my head,” said Scootaloo as she slowly got onto her hooves, one of them rubbing her forehead. “Is everypony ok?”
“I think so,” said Spike. “But next time, when you see a big drop, let’s not go down!”
“I’m going to be sick,” wailed Dinky, who was looking a little green.
“Children,” called out Luna, grabbing their attention. The three looked at her in surprise, one that only grew more as they quickly realized that not only Princess Celestia was there but also they were both behind bars.
“Wait, is that Spike?” asked Celestia as she stared at the dragon turned colt. “He looks so-”
“Later sister,” said Luna quickly as the three approached them.
“Princess Luna, are you ok?” asked both Dinky and Scootaloo together.
“I’m fine,” said Princess Luna. She thought about asking them how they got into the air duct system, why they did it, and many other questions pertaining to that nature. However, she would have to ask them later. Every second counted! “But I need your help. Over by the door is a key pad that will help unlock this cage. I need one of you to input the combination. Then we can all leave.”
“I’ll do it,” said Scootaloo. Eager to continue the search for her mother and thinking that having the ruler of the Republic helping her, Scootaloo quickly crossed the short distance to the other side of the room. There, in plain view, was a number pad that had the same shine as the rest of the metal in the room. If it hadn’t been for the red painted numbers she might not have spotted it.
“Ok, please type in the following numbers,” said Luna. “One.”
“One,” repeated Scootaloo as she got on her hind legs and pressed the first number.
“Two,” continued Luna.
“Two,” repeated Scootaloo as she pressed the next button.
“Three.”
“Three.”
“Four.”
“Four.”
“Five,” finished Luna.
“That’s the same combination an idiot puts on her diary or safe,” muttered Dinky as she shook her head while the bars of the cell disappeared into the floor below.
Celestia, meanwhile, looked like she was going to cry as she and her sister walked past the threshold. “S-Sister, after all these years you remembered the combination to our diary,” she said while wiping away a tear. “I still use that combination to this day, even with the royal vault.”
“It was also the combination to mother and father’s ‘alone room’ as well as Starswirl’s for his more sinister books he wanted to keep out of the wrong hooves,” said Luna with a grin while Dinky stared at her leader, jaw hanging open. “I figured that nopony who ever think that I would use such a…simplistic code for something so important.”
“Princess Luna,” said Scootaloo as she approached the night princess eagerly. “My mom. Something happened to her! Everypony believes that-”
“Remain calm Scootaloo,” said Luna as she placed a hoof gently on the young filly’s head. “I believe that your mother is in capable hooves at the moment. And after I deal with Land Share and his plot, Twilight will be top among my priorities. But for now, we must leave this place.”
-x-
‘Six of them,’ thought Lightning Dust as she peered around a corner, keeping her head low to the ground as she did so. Not too far away, six LBI agents scanned the area while blocking an elevator door. Five of them were standing in an upside down U formation, their direction of their gazes hidden behind their shades. The sixth one was seated behind a desk, a holo-screen floating in front of him which he eyed intently.
‘Looks like these jokers aren’t even trying to hide the fact that something is wrong,’ thought Lightning as she pulled her head back. ‘I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. All I do know is that if I want to save Princess Luna I need to get past them first.’
Moving as quietly as she could, Lightning approached Hot Pants. Said unicorn looked like she had seen better days. She was standing, but putting most of her weight against the wall to keep herself up. Small patches of sweat could be seen on her fur as she panted gently.
“Hanging in there?” asked Lightning.
Hot Pants gave a slight nod. “Yeah, don’t worry about me,” she said. Her voice sounded rough, like she desperately needed a drink of water. Lightning would have given her some, if only to ensure the success of the mission. However, Lightning hadn’t brought any with her since there was still a shortage at the moment. The ice that had been brought from the planet was still being tested for bacteria and other such things that they didn’t want contaminating their already short water supply.
“Ok, we got a total of six out there,” said Lightning, getting down to business. “Four of them are unicorns and the rest are pegasi. All of them LBI agents equipped with shock gloves along with any natural talent they process.”
“Wha-What kind of training do they have?” asked Hot Pants.
“Basic close quarters combat,” said Lightning flatly. “The LBI are not fighters, they’re investigators. They find the bad guys and it’s up to the Royal Guard to bring them in. From time to time they go undercover so they are taught how to defend themselves. One on one, they would be a pushover. But right now, they’ve used the current situation to their advantage. Most of the ponies here don’t have any combat training and are used to trusting them. So, right now, it’s just us until my Captain gets his flank over here.”
Hot Pants gave a nod to show that she understood. “So, what do you need me to do?” she asked.
“Well, I was hoping I wouldn’t need you right now,” said Lightning with a hint of bitterness in her voice. “I managed to take on three of these jerks by myself with a fourth one coming in half-way during the fight. This…This might be a little too much for me in my current condition.” As she said this, Lightning gestured to her mechanical wing. “Still having a hard time moving them so I can forget about flying. I had hoped that there would have been fewer here, but this is just my luck. What I’m going to need from you is some magical backup. If it looks like they’re going to use magic on me, I need you to stop them somehow. Can I count on you?”
As Hot Pants nodded, Lightning did her best to keep her face neutral before turning around. Right now, a unicorn from Equestria was the best she could get. Hopefully she wouldn’t live to regret this.
Taking a deep breath, Lightning charged around the corner. Instantly, five of the six spotted Lightning galloping towards them at full speed. Almost as one, they reached into the suit coats to get their shock gloves. For the one in the middle, however, it was too late as Lightning turned at the last moment to body slam him with all of her weight. The force of the attack was enough to send him flying backwards into the elevator door, making a loud thud noise before he slid down to the ground.
Lightning didn’t waste a moment as she lunged for the agent on her right. The two of them rolled for a bit while the other agents moved in with their gloves firmly on their hooves. This did not go unnoticed by Lightning as she managed to position the LBI agent she had been tussling with in the path of a glove strike. The agent took the blow right in the back, screaming in pain as bolts of electricity ran through him body. Before the attacking agent could pull back his glove, Lightning bucked her fleshy shield at him sending the two of them onto the ground.
The pegasus mare leaned back on her hind legs, ready to pounce on her next target. Not giving them a moment to plan their next move or become organized. She knew that as soon as that happened, the fight would be all the tougher. But, just as she was about to spring off into the air, a yellow glow enveloped her body. Her eyes widened in realization of what this meant, but it was too late as she was now being levitated off the ground.
“That’s far enough,” said a cold voice from behind her. Lightning managed to look behind her to see that it was the agent who had been sitting behind the desk who had her in his magical field. Movement in front of her caused her to return her attention back forwards to see the one agent crawl out from underneath the one she had used as a shield while the other two moved to her sides.
“What should be do with her?” asked one of them.
“Our orders are not to eliminate anypony,” said another. “We don’t need any innocent blood on our hooves. Especially one who those blasted Equestrians hurt. We’ll just lock her up until this is over.”
“You’re never going to get away with this!” yelled Lightning as her eyes moved frantically for signs of Hot Pants. But there was no sign of her at all. ‘Figures that she would bail on me. I should have known better than to trust her.’
“Seriously, could you be any more cliché?” asked the cold voice behind her. “What do you think this is? Some sort of Boldly Go book where the vill-AAAAAAHHHHHH!”
Lightning suddenly noticed that the glow around her body was gone and the artificial gravity of the Dome was kicking in. As she fell, she noticed the shocked and confused looks on the faces of the other agents. What had happened Lightning would worry about later. All she knew now was that she was free and they had been taken by surprise.
Lightning Dust would not let this chance go to waste.
As she screaming behind her continued, Lightning landed on the ground only to bounce right back into the air and perform a spinning kick right into one of the agents muzzle. As she spun around, she noticed that the agent who had been behind her was crumpled on the ground. His forelegs were clutched to his head where she spotted the jagged remains of his horn. Not questioning what had happened, Lightning landed on the ground just in time to avoid being stuck by a shock glove at her right. Immediately she counted with her own hoof which, while lacking anything special, was powerful enough to knock out the agent as well as shaking loose several teeth.
A sudden sound, much like one of Twilight’s magical beams was heard followed by a thud sound. Looking over at the source, Lightning saw the last agent on the ground with a burn mark on his suit. She then spotted Hot Pants around a corner, looking exhausted as she stumbled towards her. If Lightning had to guess, using her magic took a lot of her energy.
Lightning didn’t give her a word of thanks, just nodding in confirmation. She then gestured for the unicorn to follow her to the desk. On the way there the pegasus made sure to knock out the agent with a firm blow to the head.
-x-
Four earth pony LBI agents stood guard at the elevator, keeping watch over that door rather than the one that lead to their princess’ cell. After all, the only way Princess Luna and Celestia were getting out of there was if somepony managed to get past them. So there was no need to keep an eye on it when all of their focus needed to be here. Especially since they had just received a signal saying that the agents on the upper floor had been attacked. If they had been defeated, sooner or later their attackers would come down here and they would be waiting with their shock gloves already on.
But when the attack came, it was not in front of them. They were so focused on the door in front of them that they missed the sound of a door opening behind them as well as the sound of eight hooves charging towards them until it was too late.
Both Princess Luna and Celestia made quick work of the four earth ponies. While it was true that their magic was gone, that didn’t mean they were helpless. The still had a great deal of strength and training in combat, much more than the four they faced. One of the agents did manage to strike Celestia with a gloved hoof, but thanks to her alicorn biology, it only hurt like the dickens.
As the three foals walked towards them, with looks of awe and admiration on their young faces, the door to the elevator opened to reveal Lightning Dust. She jumped out, looking ready for a fight until she saw the agents lying on the ground.
“What the-?” exclaimed Lightning as she poked one of them with her hoof. “You mean I only get one fight scene? This is so not cool!”
“There will be more battles ahead,” said Princess Luna as she and the others made their way to the open elevator. “I trust you left somepony at the controls upstairs?”
“Yeah, some Equestrian named Hot Pants,” said Lightning as she joined the others. “Gave her a quick rundown on how to work the controls.” As she said this, the door closed as they began to be lifted upwards and cheery music began to play softly in the background.
“Fancy Pants’ niece is here?” asked Celestia before the elevator stopped and the doors opened. The sun princess stepped out and saw that, indeed, Hot Pants was there. She was slumped over the desk, eyes barely open as she seemed to grow more tired as the seconds passed.
“Princess,” said Hot Pants almost lazily as she tried to salute, but Celestia stopped her.
“There is no time for that,” the sun princess said quickly. “I am going to go with my sister to deal with Land Share and put an end to his madness. I want you to remain here and get some rest.”
“Others are already heading that way,” said Lightning quickly as she turned to look at Princess Luna. “I know Captain Shadow Blade is on his way. Hopefully, with his help, you’ll have everything you need.”
Luna raised an eyebrow. “By the sounds of it you will not be joining us,” she said. “Will you be taking Miss Hot Pants to the medical wing?”
Lightning shook her head. “No, I’m heading to the hangar bay to work on a backup plan in case you can’t stop the TOM in the control room,” she said. Before Luna could say anything, Lightning took off at full speed not daring to look back.
“Oh my,” whispered Fluttershy as she looked at the scene before her as she and the others stood in one of the many hallways between the cave they had been staying in and their destination. Three ponies in suits and sunglasses lay on the floor courtesy of Gigawatt and Rainbow Dash. Gigawatt’s horn was still sparking from their small fight while Rainbow remained in the air, throwing mock punches to keep herself pumped.
Alongside Fluttershy was the remainder of her friends who looked upon the scene with mixed expressions. Fluttershy could see Rarity hiding her expression behind a hoof, but despite that she knew the fashionista was repulsed by what they had just seen. Pinkie Pie wasn’t hopping nor smiling, looking rather confused as if she couldn’t decide how to act in this situation. As for Twilight, it looked like this was getting to her. Fluttershy knew she was putting on a brave face, but she could not keep the sadness from her eyes.
And Applejack…
“Wish Ah had some rope ta tie these here varmints,” muttered Applejack as she looked disdainfully at those on the ground.
“Or, um, maybe we could make them a bit more comfortable so when they wake up they won’t be in too much pain,” said Fluttershy, almost flinching when Applejack’s head snapped in her direction. “I mean, they are only doing what they were told.”
“That level of kindness is wasted on the likes of them,” snarled Gigawatt as he motioned them to keep moving. “They knew what they were getting into when they decided to help commit treason! Besides, we don’t have the time to waste! Every second that TOM gets closer to destroying Equestria.”
Fluttershy didn’t respond. She just looked down on the heavily beaten agents, wishing that there could be another way. A way to reason with them or to show them that they weren’t bad ponies. But, considering her role in the events that brought about this situation, they wouldn’t be likely to listen to her. She was most likely the one that the lunar ponies hated the most, alongside Applejack and Pinkie Pie. When she looked up, she noticed that the others were already on the move. Whispering one last ‘sorry’ to those who couldn’t hear her, she began to gallop after her friends.
“I’m surprised that that’s the first group of thugs we’ve encountered,” said Rainbow Dash. “Figured this place would be crawling with goons trying to stop us. It almost feels like this place is deserted or something.”
“The LBI does not have limitless ponies at its beck and call,” said Gigawatt as he signaled them to turn a corner. “And I’m sure not all of them are here. Land Share and Document most likely only told a hoofful of agents what was really going on while the rest were sent out to various other Domes to keep them out of the way.”
“The same goes with the remaining guard,” said Twilight from the rear of the group. Despite the drugs in her system keeping her mobile, there was a limit to what she could do. “The LBI most likely told those still stationed on the moon to head to various other locations. Probably farthest away from Dome Zero.”
Gigawatt nodded. “That means that Land Share is strapped for ponies,” he said. “I’d say he’d have no more than twenty to thirty ponies in the castle. Many of those are probably keeping the entrance secure, the princesses kept locked up, and keeping the castle staff contained.”
“So it looks like it’ll be smooth sailing from-” begun Rainbow, but stopped as an LBI agent went flying face first into a wall ahead of them before slowly sliding down. Without pausing, the herd moved forwards and saw that there was another hallway on their right side which the agent had come from. Moments later, Shadow Blade walked into the hallway they were in, wiping the sweat from his forehead as he did so.
“Shadow!” cried Twilight happily as she raced towards him.
Shadow’s ears perked at the sound of his fiancée’s voice. “Twilight!” he said as he turned in her direction. The two quickly closed the gap between them, forelegs and leathery wings wrapping the other in a tight hug while a choir of ‘aw’s’ went on in the background.
“I missed you,” whispered Twilight as a tears appeared in her eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” replied Shadow in a low voice. “I should have been there when you woke up.”
“It’s all right, I understand,” said Twilight who pulled away slightly before turning to look at the five Equestrians. “Besides, you left me in good hooves.”
“Not that this isn’t touching,” said Gigawatt as he tapped his hoof on the ground. “But we really need to get moving. We don’t have much time left to stop that TOM!”
-x-
The doors to the shuttle bay opened as the craft Shining Armor was piloting entered. As the door closed and the atmosphere returned, a group of five LBI agents slowly approached where the shuttle had been designated to land. Among this group were two earth ponies, a unicorn, a bat pony, and a pegasus in the lead. When they reached their destination, all of them stood waiting at the back of the shuttle, waiting for the doors to open and its occupants to exit.
They did not have to wait long. Shortly after the engines had been turned off, the back door opened to reveal Shining Armor, the Lunar Guards he had brought along, Princess Cadence, and her daughter. Shining Armor took the lead, approaching the five while his eyes scanned for anything out of the ordinary. As he walked, the five saluted him.
“Captain Shining Armor, glad to see you made it back in one piece,” said the pegasus LBI agent. “Things have gotten a little crazy while you have been away.”
For a moment, Shining Armor said nothing. He eyed them all slowly before he spoke in a firm tone, full of authority. “I noticed. Would somepony please inform me why a TOM is flying towards the planet and what is going on with the Crescent Hope?”
“While you were away, the Equestrians escaped thanks to some outside help,” said the pegasus immediately. “We have no idea at the moment who is helping them. But whoever it is was able to direct them to the control room. We believe they had planned on dropping a TOM on one of the Domes but, like a bunch of idiots, they instead sent it to Equestria. They are currently locked in the room and we are trying our best to deal with the situation while the Guard is away. However, we are unable to teleport in thanks to the teleportation redirection field nor have we made any progress in negotiation.”
“I don’t-” began Cadence, but stopped when Shining Armor raised his hoof. The stallion’s eyes were locked onto the agent’s.
“If that’s the case, then why hasn’t anypony tried blasting their way in?” asked Shining Armor, his eyes narrowing sharply at the pegasus before him. “I’m sure with the stakes this high; Captain Shadow Blade would have allowed it. Or perhaps hacking the door open. In fact, since you knew I was coming, why hasn’t Captain Shadow Blade tried to make contact with me?”
The agents regarded each other for a moment in a silent conversation. “Sir,” said the pegasus after a moment. “We didn’t want to tell you this since, well; you would have a personal interest. You see, before they made their way into the control room they also took Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle from her hospital room and are holding her hostage. The Captain of the Royal Guard is sitting this one out and believes that you should as well. And since-”
Shining Armor held up a hoof once again, this time at the LBI agents. “Let me see if I understand the situation. A group of ponies from a world where they haven’t mastered steam technology have broken out of one of the most advanced cells in the Republic, foalnapped my sister, brought her to an area that should be heavily protected at all times both physically as well as electronically, and managed to redirect a TOM. Oh, they have also teleported all of the Guard on the planet to Crescent Hope while disabling everything other than their life support on that ship. Does that sum up the situation?”
“Ah, yes sir,” said the pegasus agent slowly. “Now if you come with me we can get-”
“I take it you think I’m stupid,” said Shining Armor as his horn began to glow. “It’s the only explanation that I can think of that would make me believe for you to think for even a moment that I would fall for that.”
The pegasus took a deep breath while pushing out his chest a bit. “Sir, I know you might be a little emotional knowing that your sister is-”
“Enough,” said the LBI unicorn as her horn began to glow red. “He’s not going to fall of it.”
“I told you that lame ass cover story would fall apart,” added the LBI bat pony as he reached into his coat for his shock glove. “But it doesn’t matter. We just need to stall them until the TOM destroys Equestria.” Suddenly the bat pony’s head jerked to the side, ears twitching as he did so. The stallion looked around with his mouth half open.
“Destroy Equestria?!” yelled Cadence angrily, horn blaring with magical power. “That will NOT happen!”
The pegasus smirked. “Every moment you waste here is another moment closer to the end of your barbaric ponies,” he said. “And we’ll make sure to draw them out.”
“Oh shut up!” growled a voice behind him, causing all of the LBI agent’s eyes to widen. They had thought that nopony other than the agents knew about Shining Armor and his crew. But this voice, a mare’s voice, was not one that they recognized. And before they could turn their heads or vocalize their confusion, three bat ponies shimmered into existence to tackle them from behind.
Ruby had gone straight for the pegasus in charge, punching him in the back of the head with her right forehoof so hard that his head shot towards the floor. As she lifted her head up, she caught a glimpse of Lone Wolf biting down on the unicorn’s gloved foreleg while jerking his head back and forth like his name sake would. As the unicorn screamed in pain, Shining Armor and Cadence used their magic to send the two earth ponies flying across the large room until they slammed into the wall at full force.
The only one who seemed to be having trouble was Darkwing. Perhaps it was because the LBI agent’s heightened hearing had clued him in that something was going on, allowing the sneak attack to fail. Now the two were in the air, wildly flapping their wings as they moved through the hangar bay. Darkwing was trying hard to grapple with the other pony and bring them both down, but the agent seemed to avoid his grasp. Eventually the agent managed to strike Darkwing in the chest with his glove, causing Darkwing to scream in pain as thin streaks of electricity danced across his body. When the LBI agent pulled his hoof back, Darkwing fell helplessly to the ground below.
But he didn’t hit it, instead being caught by Princess Cadence’s magic. As Darkwing was gently lowered to the ground, the other Lunar Royal Guards exited the craft to point their weapons at the remaining LBI agent. Not only that, the Equestrian bat ponies surrounded him making it more difficult to escape while Shining Armor’s horn began to glow.
“Well, I know when I’m beaten,” said the agent as he lowered himself to the ground. Once all four hooves were touching the metallic surface, he laid down and put his forelegs behind his head.
“That’s it?” asked Ruby as she landed. “You’re just giving up?”
The agent snorted. “Like I said, I know when I’ve been beaten,” said the agent. “So I guess the pink Equestrian princess would like to torture whatever information out of me. Or is she just going to kill me like the rest of her kind wants to.”
The fur on the back of Cadence’s neck bristled as she glared at the agent. “I would never do such a thing,” she said as her eyes narrowed.
“Calm down Cadence,” said Shining Armor as he stepped in-between the two. “He’s trying to rattle us up so that we waste our time.” The Captain of the Shield Corps then turned to look at the smirking LBI agent on the floor. “And I doubt you’re going to tell me what I want to know quickly. Meaning that I will have to-”
Shining Armor was cut off as the doors leading out of the hangar bay and into the castle opened. For a split second, everypony tensed with the fear of more foes coming. That fear vanished, however, when they saw that it was Lightning Dust. The pegasus took one look around and groan.
“Great, looks like I missed the action here as well,” she groaned as she galloped over to Shining Armor.
“Lightning Dust, what in the void is going on here?” demanded Shining Armor.
“It’s Land Share. He’s the one behind everything from your sister being stabbed to the TOM being dropped on Equestria,” said Lightning quickly, ignoring the look of shock on Shining Armor’s face as it paled. “I know it’s hard to believe, but Captain Shadow Blade found out the truth. He’s heading to the control room right now to hopefully stop all of this. Princess Luna and Celestia are also heading that way as well.”
“Princess Luna,” said a shocked Shining Armor. “She’s here as-”
“How?!” demanded the LBI agent. “How did you manage to free the princess? We had her under lock and key!” Instead of answering, Lightning hit him upside the head with her right hoof, knocking him out cold.
“The path behind me is clear,” said Lightning as she looked up at the ponies before her. “Captain Shining Armor, as the shield of both Princess Luna and the Republic, I think you know where your place should be.”
“I-I know,” said Shining Armor before looking at the captured LBI agents. “But we’re going to need to have a few ponies watch over them just in case.”
“Well take care of them,” said one of the Lunar Guard ponies.
“But you’re needed at the control room,” said Shining Armor.
“We won’t take long,” replied the guard as the others began to pick up the traitorous LBI agents. “We’ll find a secure location for them before locking them up. Once they are secure we will head directly to the control room.” Shining Armor was about to argue this. That he needed them with him and he could ask the Equestrians to do it. But the white stallion knew that wouldn’t work. They didn’t know where everything was nor would they know how to lock up a pony up. Buck, they would most likely waste more time trying to explain to them how to work the key pad system. Yet the guards knew where everything was, how it worked, and could catch up to them quickly.
Shining Armor let out a sigh. “Alright, but be quick,” he said to the guards. He then turned to where Lightning Dust had been standing only to find it vacant. Somewhat alarmed, Shining Armor began to look around until he spotted her heading towards one of the remaining fighters. “Lightning Dust, where in the void do you think you are going?”
“In case you guys don’t make it, I’m going to try and take down that TOM,” said Lightning Dust without turning around.
For a second, Shining Armor said nothing as he stared at the mare heading off into space to try and stop a rock that would end all life on the planet below. Then, with a sigh, he turned to race out the door with the remainder of his group following him.
-x-
“Here it is,” said Princess Luna as she and her sister approached a closer, silver door.
“Are you sure?” asked Celestia nervously. “It looks like every other door around here. There isn’t even a label next to it. Nor is there any pony guarding it.”
Luna did her best not to give her sister a deadpanned expression. Given what was at stake here, Luna would have been nervous about making such a mistake as well. But she didn’t have time to explain that she had been in this room many times over the years or that placing guards in front of it would have raised the alarms of anypony walking by.
“Just trust me big sister,” said Luna simply. “This is the door we want.” Without another word, Luna walked over to the key pad next to it and pressed her off against it.
“Access denied,” said the computer.
“I knew it wouldn’t be that easy,” muttered Luna before she turned to look at her sister and the three young ones with them. “If you had any doubts that this isn’t the right door, this obstacle should relieve them. There isn’t any room I’m not allowed in. Land Share has locked me out.”
“So if it won’t open normally, then can’t we put in that code again?” asked Scootaloo.
“Sadly, the code we used of our escape was for that cell only,” said Luna as she shook her head in sorrow. “And I fear we will be unable to force our way in using brute force. That door is thicker than the bars of any cell. Without powerful magic, our only hope will be to hack our way in.”
“PRINCESS!” yelled a familiar voice. Turning around, both Celestia and Luna saw a large group of familiar looking ponies heading towards them with Gigawatt in the lead. Seeing Twilight awake and moving, it took everything Princess Luna had not to go over to her so that she could embrace her surrogate daughter. The same could not be said for Scootaloo who raced towards the purple mare as fast as she could.
“Mom!” she cried out happily as she wrapped her small forelegs around Twilight’s own, tears running down her cheeks. “I-I thought something bad had happened to you.”
“I’m all right, for the most part,” said Twilight gently as she patted Scootaloo on the head while wrapping her other foreleg around the small filly to bring them closer together.
“This here door given ya trouble?” asked Applejack as she made her way to the door with a focused look in her eye.
“It is Applejack,” said Princess Celestia as she gave the door a nasty look, as it if had just said a rather insulting joke at her expense. “I have been told that we will require power mag-” Before the princess of the sun could finish, Applejack had acted. She moved in front of the door and then spun around in order to buck it. Everypony watched in surprise as the door dented on impact from the Apple mare’s powerful hind legs. But this show of strength came at a price as Applejack howled in pain and began to limp as she turned around to look at the door again.
“Dang it,” whispered Applejack as she tried her best to keep the pain out of her voice. “That door’s sturdier than Big Mac’s stomach. Don’t rightly think Ah can do that again.”
“You did your best,” said Shadow.
“Princess, can’t you-” began Gigawatt, but stopped when he saw the rings on the horns of the two princesses. “Ah. Right. Of course Land Share would think of that. If you give me some time I could probably get those off of you.”
“That time would be better spent trying to get this blasted door down,” growled Luna as she kicked the door.
“I’ll do what I can,” said Gigawatt as lightning began to dance around his horn. “But my magic isn’t fully charged. I, er, used a large amount a little while ago in a shuffle.”
“You won’t be doing this alone,” said Twilight as she moved next to Gigawatt, her own horn glowing dimly. “I’m going to help stop Uncle Land Share before he does something nopony can ever take back.”
“If you would be so kind, I too would like to assist,” said Rarity, her horn shining the brightest out of the three.
The three unicorns looked at each other for a moment, and then nodded. Together they lowered their heads to point their horns at the dent made by Applejack before unleashing their magic against it. Three beams hit close to each other, striking the door with everything they had. But despite the door making a crinkling noise, it wasn’t enough. The door was standing its ground. Yet the three didn’t give up. Instead they dug down deep for whatever power they had within them, knowing that if they held anything back at this point the world was doomed.
For a moment, their beams intensified enough to where it was painful to look at the spot they were aiming. However, it still wasn’t enough and everypony there could see that the three were reaching their limits. Sweat was beginning to appear all over their bodies and they were starting to breath heavily, especially Twilight. It was clear to everypony there that they didn’t have the power to break down the door.
That was something that didn’t sit well with Scootaloo. She knew how important it was to get in there and to stop Land Share. She knew what was at stake, wanting to help with everything she had. But what could she do? The procedure that allowed her to fly had taken away the stub of a horn she once had on her forehead. And, even if it was still there while not being useless, she wouldn’t have been able to use it since she had never studied magic a day in her life.
‘I want to help mom,’ thought Scootaloo as she looked at Twilight whose horn was dimming with each passing millisecond. ‘But not even dad can help since he doesn’t have his armor. If only I had a weapon of some kind.’ She then looked at Dinky and Spike, both staring at the door. ‘Well, maybe I can convince them to help. But do they even know how to use magical blasts? I’ve never seen Dinky really use her magic and Spike needs me to pull his tail in order to-’ Scootaloo’s eyes widened as a revelation occurred in her brain. Without saying a word, she wrapped a hoof around Spike barrel while the other grabbed his tail.
“Hey!” shouted Spike, alarmed as Scootaloo brought them over to where the adults were. “What are-”
“No time,” snapped Scootaloo. “If we want to help save Equestria then we need to do what we did when we were foalnapped!” Spike’s eyes widened at this, realizing what Scootaloo had in mind. With a quick nod, he lowered his head and Scootaloo pulled on his tail. At once magical green flames shot out of his horn, joining the others beams.
But it still wasn’t enough. The door began to faintly glow red, but held firm.
It looked like this was the end…until four more beams of magic hit the door! Everypony who could turned and looked to see Shining Armor, Princess Cadence, Trixie, and Sunset Shimmer giving their all to breaking down the barrier before them. While the door had held strong against three unicorns, it was no match for six unicorns, a dragon turned colt, and an alicorn. Within moments, the door was knocked down and the magic users ended their spells.
While Luna, Scootaloo, and the other natives of the Lunar Republic were more than a little miffed to see Sunset, they didn’t voice this as they entered the control room. Nor did they question the appearance of Equestria native bat ponies who were staring at Princess Luna, looking like they were trying to figure out how to talk to her or something. Sadly, all of them would have to be dealt with at a later time. They had bigger problems to deal with at the moment.
The control room was a moderate sized room full of workstations, each with their own computer screen floating it the air. And sitting at three of these stations were LBI agents who were looking at the Princesses with their mouths hanging open in surprise. Land Share was at the forefront at the room, staring at the massive screen that took up the entire wall, not bothering to look at the intruders.
All those gathered to stop him could not help but look at the image Land Stare was fixated on. It was the TOM, now dangerously close to the planet. The engine at its rear was burning at maximum power to direct the TOM towards its destination. But that wasn’t all that was there. Crescent Hope was on the screen as well, flying right above it as all of its fighters were unleashed to try and stop the meteor. Everypony could see energy beams and missiles being fired all over the rocky surface in an effort to take away as much of its mass as possible. However, it appeared their efforts were in vain. The TOM was simply too massive and too thick for them to do any significant amount of damage. But still they tried.
“They just started a few moments ago,” said Land Share calmly, turning his head to look at them with a blank expression. His eyes scanned the intruders and lit up when he saw Twilight. It was then that he turned around, his wide eyes fixed on the mare. “Twilight, you shouldn’t be here. You need your rest.”
Twilight opened her mouth, her eyes full of sadness. However, it wasn’t her voice that spoke out. “Senator Land Share,” stated Princess Luna firmly. “For acts of high treason and attempt of genocide, I hereby relieve you of your position and place you under arrest. If you stop this, I will consider sparing the lives of those foolish ponies who have followed you into this madness.”
“As I said before,” said Land Share as he calmly looked at Princess Luna. “We have done all of this knowing our fates afterwards. Our commitment to the peace and preservation of the Lunar Republic is absolute. No other Dome will ever befall the same fate as mine did, destroyed because of the actions of Equestrians.”
Luna closed her eyes. “I had a feeling you might say that,” she said. “But still, I had to try.”
“As long as I draw breath, I will see this through to the end,” replied a very calm Land Share as he stared at the angry expressions in front of him.
“So be it then,” said a princess. It was not Luna, but instead Celestia as both she and Luna lowered their heads in unison. Both Twilight and Shining Armor looked on with shocked expressions as they witnessed the two princesses charging at Land Share together. The renegade senator watched all of this with an impassive expression, not bothering to dodge the attack upon him resulting in having two horns penetrating his chest.
The former senator made a noise between a gasp and a cough as Celestia withdrew her horn from his body. Blood began to flow out of him from the two holes she had left in him, slowly pooling around his as he fell to the ground. The stallion looked up at Celestia’s rage-filled expression, her horn stained with his life fluid. Yet, he did not scream out in pain or swear or anything. He just looked at her with stoically silent defiance. And that unnerved the solar princess enough to take a step back from the soon to be corpse.
Land Share felt his consciousness begin to fade. He felt himself growing cold and numb. Quicker than he thought possible, his vision was beginning to fade. He could hear hoofsteps coming closer to him and when he turned his eyes to look, he saw Twilight standing above him. And, despite everything that he had done, she was crying.
“Why?” she sobbed as Shining Armor found his way to her side. “Why Uncle Land Share?”
“Twily,” said Shining Armor slowly after pressing a hoof against Land Share’s neck. The stallion closed his eyes. “He’s dead.” He watched as Twilight let out another sob while shaking her head at the same time. Not knowing what else to do, Shining reached over to bring his sister in for a hug which she accepted.
“I-I don’t understand,” cried Twilight. “He was also s-such a good pony. How c-could he…” Twilight trailed off, unable to bring herself to speak of his crimes.
Princess Luna, despite her own sadness over what had just happened, pushed forwards and headed towards the control panel at the front of the room. She sat down, her hooves instantly moving above the controls with the sole purpose of stopping the TOM.
However…
“BUCKING VOID!” roared Luna as her commands were denied. “I should have seen this coming.”
“W-What’s wrong?” asked Celestia.
“Something is blocking my commands,” said Luna as she continued to press button after button. “I think Land Share must have put an additional failsafe system in place, in case we somehow got this far. It must have been why he was so calm.”
“Can you do anything about it?” asked Celestia as she moved next to her sister.
Luna grunted. “Eventually,” said Luna, her hooves never pausing for a moment. “But…it might be too late to save Equestria.”
“I-I’ll help,” whispered Twilight as she wiped away her tears. Slowly she moved to sit on the other side of her princess and mentor, typing away as fast as she could. But her hooves moved at a snail’s pace when compared to Luna’s. The medicine in the purple unicorn’s system was still affecting her and the massive amount of magic she had used to help everypony reach this room had greatly sapped what little strength she had left. Not to mention the emotional turmoil she was going through.
There was a sudden noise behind the three. Only Celestia turned her head and saw both Shadow Blade and Shining Armor accosting two of the LBI agents in the room. Shining Armor had his hoof pressed against the back of his agent’s head in order to press it against the station. Shadow Blade had his agent against the wall, but also pressing his hoof against his head.
“How do we stop this?” demanded Blade as he applied more pressure to the LBI agent’s head, looking like he was going to squish it.
“Only Senator Land Share, a true patriot of the Lunar Republic, knew how,” gasped the agent. “And like him, I’d die for this cause. Go ahead and beat me up or kill me. In less than six minutes, it will all be over and we will never have to fear from Equestria ever again.”
“Umm, Princess Cadence,” said Fluttershy who made an ‘eep’ noise when everypony looked at her. “I was just wondering if, maybe, you could move that rock thingy.”
“That’s right,” said Ruby happily. “Princess Cadence is an alicorn! I’m sure moving something like that would be foals play!”
Cadence, however, shook her head. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have that level of power,” she admitted. “My magic is based around emotions and isn’t powerful like Aunt Celestia’s. Only an celestial alicorn like her or Princess Luna will have any chance moving it.”
“Then what are they waiting for!” snapped Rainbow Dash as she looked at Celestia and Luna. “Use your super-alicorn magic to stop that thing and save our home!”
“I’m afraid we can’t,” said Celestia as she wiped away some of the blood on her horn to reveal the anti-magic ring still safely secured on it. “Land Share, it seems, was very meticulous in ensuring that we would be unable to stop his plans. Our magic is still sealed.”
“Then get it unsealed!” snapped Rainbow Dash.
“I’m on it,” said Gigawatt as he moved to Princess Luna. “I’ll see if I can bypass whatever system he might have put in place.”
Luna waved Gigawatt off. “Deal with my sister first,” she said, continuing her work at the computer. “I cannot afford any distractions or delays at this time. If you can get that thing off of her horn then Celestia will have a better chance at being able to move that blasted rock than I.”
Gigawatt’s expression soured upon hearing this. And, as he looked at Celestia, it only grew worse. The idea of helping her regain her magic while his own princess was without was insane at best. Giving her power in this right, at this moment, would give her the potential chance to take over the Republic. Yet he knew now wasn’t the time to argue, not when the lives of so many children were on the line. So he silently approached Celestia and gestured for her to lower her horn so he could get this done as quickly as possible.
-x-
While all of this was going on, Lightning Dust had brought the fighter she had ‘borrowed’ from the hangar to the TOM. All around her she could see others in a desperate attempt to destroy the TOM with everything they had. Fighters, just like the one she was in, fired their energy weapons madly while the Windigos fired missiles to try and decrease its mass. But all they were able to do was remove a relatively small chunk here and there, nothing that would make a real difference. According to her scans, the total area of that TOM was about 600 square miles on its surface. They would need more firepower if they wanted to make a real difference.
But still, even though they most likely knew all of this was in vain, they had to try.
Lightning moved her craft to the rear of the TOM, right behind its massive engines that made her fighter seem like a speck of dust in comparison and fired wildly into them. Her hope was that she might be able to knock them out so that it wouldn’t continue to build speed or, more hopeful, cause a chain of events that would lead to it blowing up. However, nothing happened.
‘Should have known,’ grumbled Lightning in her head as she continued to fire. ‘Damn thing is too big for me to know what I’m hitting and all of the really sensitive stuff is most likely in the back and out of harm’s way. Most likely there to prevent some outside force from doing something like this. Maybe if I had a bigger, more powerful weapon installed on this fighter then I might…have a…chance.’
Lightning Dust’s thoughts began to drift as an idea came to her. An idea that she knew Twilight and the others would have rejected, calling it dangerous and insane. But it wasn’t to Lightning. Right now, Princess Luna and the others were doing everything in their power to stop that TOM. How could she do no less? She wasn’t a scientist, an ace hacker, or could move mountains with her will alone. But this plan was something she could do to make a difference and do what a Guard is meant to do: save lives.
And that was all Lightning needed to know as her hooves went to work establishing a communications link to Crescent Hope. Knowing that there would probably be many ponies trying to talk to Crescent Hope, Lightning decided to use the emergency channel in the hopes that it would still take priority. And, sure enough, within moments the image of Captain Starway appeared before her. The captain looked slightly panicked, her eyes moving from the screen which Lightning was on to all over the room as if she were trying to consume all information at the same time.
“This better be good pilot,” snapped Starway, her voice slightly hoarse. “I have a scan of your fighter which has informed me that your craft isn’t malfunctioning nor is your health compromised in any-”
“All fighters are reporting that they are not making any significant damage to the target,” shouted somepony in the background that Lightning couldn’t see. What she did see was Starway’s eyes rolling in annoyance.
“I know that already,” snapped Starway as she looked over her shoulder, ignoring Lightning completely. “We need other options. Is it possible for us to land on it and use our engines to divert its course?”
“Negative,” replied some random pony on the bridge. “Scans say that the surface is too rocky for us to land safely and our engines are not powerful enough to move something this massive.”
“How about we-”
“We need to take out the engines,” said Lightning quickly as she saw that Starway looked like she was going to cut off the communications link. Starway turned her head to frown at the pegasus on her screen.
“We have already considered that option,” she said, her hoof hovering over the button that would end this conversation. “It was rejected since the weapon systems have not yet been installed yet. So if you are done wasting my time-”
“We need something bigger than energy weapons to take down something of that size,” interrupted Lightning Dust as she leaned forwards. “We need to ram Crescent Hope into the engines.”
As soon as Lightning Dust finished this sentence, Captain Starway’s eyes widened in horror. Sacrifice Crescent Hope, one of the Republic’s greatest achievements in their recorded history?! Their ticket to exploring the universe, finding more resources, and perhaps even colonizing uninhabited worlds. But with the screens flashing red, singling the damage closing in on to the beautiful world in front of them, Starway had to admit to herself that they had run out of options at this point.
“She’s mad,” said one of the officers on the bridge who was in earshot. “Why would we give up this ship to save Equestria?”
“Because we’ll be saving much more than just Equestria,” said Starway, surprising everypony there. “And we may make up, in some small way, for the damage we caused with Operation: Umbrella. We…owe them that much.”
“It is possible,” said a member of the crew who was working at a control panel. “I just ran the calculations and there is a 100% chance that it will result in creating a chain reaction with the TOM’s engine core, creating massive explosions within it. The chances of both objects being destroyed as a result are at 85%. If this doesn’t work then there is a high chance that we will have destroyed enough of it to minimize the damage. Most of Equestria will be damaged for many years to come, but life on the planet will continue.”
“That’s good enough for me,” said Starway as she leaned back in her chair.
“However, there is a problem,” continued the same crew member. “We still don’t have complete control over all of Crescent Hope’s systems. One of those systems outside of our control is navigation so we can’t plot a course. We…we would need somepony to stay behind and…” The crew member couldn’t finish her sentence. Everypony there knew what she was saying. In order for this plan to work, one of them would have to give up their life.
“…Understood,” said Starway as she pressed a button on her chair. “Attention all crew! Attention! This is the captain! I am giving the order to abandon ship! I repeat: Abandon Ship! We don’t know if the escape pods are under our control so please don’t waste your time on them. Instead, please head to the nearest shuttle bay.” As Starway took her hoof off of the button she turned to look at her shocked crew. “You all have my permission leave.”
“But what about you Captain?” asked a random officer.
Starway chuckled to herself. “I believe there is an ancient tradition that the captain goes down with the ship,” she said. “I will not sacrifice a member of my crew to do something I am not prepared to do myself nor will I abandon this ship. I will see this mission through to the end.”
“But you can’t do that!” shouted Lightning Dust.
Starway looked down at Lightning’s image. “We don’t have time to debate this pilot,” said Starway. In the background, Lightning could already see various ponies moving to leave. Lightning opened her mouth to protest, but Starway wasn’t going to hear it as she instantly cut off the link between them.
“Void damn it,” swore Lightning as she tried to reestablish a connection only to have it fail. As she tried for a second time, movement caught her eyes. All of the other fighters were moving away from the TOM. She was also detecting shuttles leaving Crescent Hope as the massive star ship began to slow down.
Lightning narrowed her eyes, Lightning accelerated her craft towards Crescent Hope. Within seconds her fighter was able to close the distance between the two and was now flying parallel to it in search of a docking bay close to bridge. She soon found one and sped towards it while signaling it to open. Warning lights lit her cockpit, warning her of the danger of moving at the speed yet she ignored them. As soon as she came plowing through the doorway, Lightning slammed on the brakes so hard that if it weren’t for her safety harness she would have been thrown through the window. The stop wasn’t clean nor graceful with the fighter skidding across the floor while making a screeching noise that she could feel in her teeth, but she did stop and was in one piece.
And that’s what mattered right now.
Without turning off her fighter, Lightning removed herself from her harness and left the cockpit. The doors to the shuttle bay had closed, allowing her and other ponies to be on the floor. The crew had quickly swarmed onto the floor and began moving towards the shuttles at a rapid pace. Few seemed to notice Lightning and those that did only gave her a passing glance.
“Stop!” shouted Lightning towards a group of ponies heading towards one of the shuttles. “I need you guys to wait here for a minute.”
“We can’t,” said one of the crew members as he looked at Lightning and then back at the shuttle. “We have orders to abandon ship.”
“Yeah, I know that!” snapped Lightning as he grabbed the stallion’s head and forced him to look at her. “I’m going in to get another pony for you guys to take with you. Now just wait!”
The crew member opened his mouth to speak, but Lightning was already galloping away as fast as she could to get to the bridge. This was, thankfully, easy considering most of the ponies in this section of the ship had already left. That was something she was thankful for since she didn’t want to knock down anypony trying to escape. A voice in the back of her head whined that, if she hadn’t lost her wings, she could be there already. But Lightning didn’t even bother to grunt or order the voice to be silent, instead pressing forwards even harder than before.
Soon she made it to the bridge where Starway was the only pony left. She had her face down, staring at the controls in front of her as she maneuvered the ship. But her ears twitched as she heard the door open as well as the hoofsteps galloping towards her. She turned her head, ready to yell at whoever was still on board the ship. But before she could even open her mouth a forehoof connected with muzzle with enough force that it knocked her out cold, leaving Lightning the only pony left standing.
“Sorry for this,” panted Lightning as she picked up Starway and began to carry her out. “But you’ll thank me after we both survive.”
Moving quickly even with the extra weight, Lightning made her way down the hall back towards the bridge. Her plan would hopefully work. She was a much fast pony that Starway, even without her wings. There was a good chance that if she placed the ship a bit further away from the engines she could not only give it more ramming speed but also get to her fighter and get the buck out of there. And, as a backup plan, she knew that Princess Luna and the others were all heading to control center to deal with that scumbag Land Share. Hopefully they would be able to see what was going on and, if they couldn’t get control of the TOM, Princess Luna would be able to teleport her out.
All she had to do first was to get Starway off of the ship. And that wouldn’t be too difficult seeing that the door to the shuttle bay was just a second ahead of her. Smiling, she opened the door…
And entered the now deserted shuttle bay. Lightning began to whisper the word ‘no’ over and over again as she stared at the now empty spot where she had told the crew member to wait. She looked around in the vain hope that there was any craft other than her own around. But there was none.
Lightning looked over at her fighter and gritted her teeth. Slowly she took a deep breath before approaching it. While it was difficult to get into the cockpit with Starway on her back, Lightning managed to do it in a quick amount of time. She then strapped the unconscious mare into the seat before activating the autopilot to take her to Dome Zero. Once that was set, Lightning galloped out of the shuttle bay right before the fighter took off.
While this hadn’t been a part of her plan, Lightning refused to let this slow her down as she galloped towards the bridge. When she got to the helm of the ship, Lightning was pleased to see that Starway had slowed Crescent Hope down before she had been knocked out. At this moment, the star ship was right behind the TOM and would only require some minor maneuvering so that the engines of the TOM would be directly in front of her.
As Lightning began to move Crescent Hope into place, a window opened up on the screen in front of her. Lightning let out a sigh of relief when she saw that, looking at her were all of the ponies in the control room. From her point of view, Princess Luna and Twilight were in the front as they were typing into what was most likely a computer console. Gigawatt looked like he was trying to do something to Celestia’s horn right behind the two. There was a large group of ponies who looked like they were trying to stay out of the way while Shadow Blade and Shining Armor were in the back, working from another station.
“Crescent Hope, this is Captain Shadow Blade coming to you from Dome Zero control room,” said the bat pony. “Crescent Hope, do you read?”
“Good to see you again Captain,” said Lightning Dust with a somewhat hopeful smile. “Looks like you’ve managed to save the princess and retake the control room. Can I assume that you’re about to stop the TOM and give me back full control over Crescent Hope? Or hopefully the teleporters?”
“We wish we could,” said Shining Armor as he lowered his head slightly. “Seems Land Share wanted to make sure we wouldn’t be able to stop him even if we got this far. Several systems are locked out to us. Both Princess Luna and Twilight are working hard to get around whatever programs he put in place, but it’s not looking like they’ll make it in time.” Shadow couldn’t stop himself from glaring at Shining Armor. “What? It’s true! We got about three minutes left! Anyways, we detected the shuttles departing and just wanted to make sure there wasn’t another problem we had to deal with. With all that said, what are you doing on Crescent Hope? Where is Captain Starway?”
“She’s…not here right now,” answered Lightning. Before anypony could ask where she was, Lightning continued as quickly as she could. “Anyways, I have a plan that looks like it’ll work in stopping this TOM.”
“Really?” asked Shining as a smile appeared on his face. But that smile quickly faded as he noticed something on his end. The two mares could see several others in the room noticing it as well. Both Twilight and Princess Luna stopped what they were doing as horror and sorrow appeared on their faces. It was clear that they had noticed that Crescent Hope’s position was now directly behind the main engine of the TOM, waiting to ram into it. “Y-You’re not serious!”
“You can’t do this!” shouted Twilight, tears pouring down her face. “You’ll die!”
“Well one pony dying is better than an entire planet,” said Lightning in a resigned tone.
As Princess Luna closed her eyes and grit her teeth, Twilight shook her head back and forth. “Please don’t do this!” cried the purple unicorn before she began to frantically press buttons on her control panel. “We…We’ll find another way. Just give me a minute and maybe I can figure out how to control the ship and-”
“There’s no time!” snapped Lightning Dust. “I’m in position and ready NOW. Twilight…” There was a brief pause as the two old friends who had know each other since the day Lightning had crashed into Twilight. Tears were now appearing on Lightning’s face, sad that her friend was so sad but happy that she meant so much to her. It was an odd feeling to be sure. “Twilight, you and I both know that the odds of you figuring out how to stop the TOM or taking control of Crescent Hope in the time we have left…are not looking all that great. Unless we do something drastic, the Lunar Republic will be responsible for genocide.”
“You can’t do this Lightning!” cried Dinky as she took a step forwards. “The Troopers need you!”
“And you have to be there when I join the Lunar Guard,” said an equally distraught Scootaloo. “You’re part of the reason I want to join! You can’t die before that happens!” Scootaloo looked like she was going to have a breakdown, stopped thanks to her soon to be father placing a hoof on her shoulder.
Shadow then looked up at the scene. Lightning could see, as their eyes made contact, that he wanted dearly to order her to stand down. But that order never came. Shadow Blade knew they were running out of options if they wanted to save all life on the planet and that this looked like the only way they could do that in time. Besides, even if he did order her to stop, how could stop her? Threaten to demote her?
“Hey Shadow,” said Lightning as she wiped away some tears in her eyes and then tried her best to smile. Even though she couldn’t see it, if felt far too crooked. “Looks like you’re going to find a replacement for best mare at your wedding. Just make sure that you do everything you can to make that the best day of Twilight’s life.”
Shadow nodded.
Lightning looked over at Scootaloo. “Sorry I won’t be there to see you become a member of the Guard,” she said. “But I know you’re tough enough to make it. You’ll make everypony proud.”
Scootaloo sniffed as a beeping noise was heard from Lightning’s side.
“Looks like I’m almost out of time,” said Lightning as she looked at Twilight. The purple unicorn was frantically trying her best to get the teleporters working but to no avail. “Twilight, it’s ok. Thanks for putting up with me all these years. I know I can be a real pain at times. But if you ever tell your foals about this, try not to make it sound super sappy and a bit more awesome.”
“LIGHTNING DON’T DO-” began Twilight but was cut off as Lightning turned off communications.
With the screen in front of her filled with only the image of her immediate death, Lightning’s thoughts turned to her wings. Instantly she tried to move her new metallic ones without any success. She wished she could have flown freely just one more time, feeling the air as it passed her by. To get that thrill as she flew faster than anypony else, impressing all of those on the ground as she rocked the sky with her tricks. No fighting or anything like that, just a good old fashioned flight. But…she could never have that feeling again. Even if by some miracle she survived this somehow and learned how to fly with these new wings it wouldn’t be the same.
She had never given any real thought about her death before. Whenever the subject came up, she would simply shrug it off. After all, she was still a young mare and, outside of an accident, her death would be decades away. She would think about it when her end was a bit nearer and, until then, she would just live her life while having fun. And now, with her death looking straight at her, all she could wonder was if there was an afterlife would she have her wings back? Would they be waiting for her like a lost friend?
“Let’s…not get sappy,” Lightning said to herself. Quickly she wiped away the tears now forming in her eyes. Despite nopony else being there, Lightning wanted to preserve her dignity up until the very end.
So, without another moment’s hesitation, Lightning ordered Crescent Hope forward. The mare ignored the flashing warning lights as well as the computer telling her to disengage this course as the thrusters went to maximum speed. Even before the ship made contact everything seemed to be shaking about. Systems began to overload, control panels erupted and sparks flew everywhere. Temperatures rose rapidly, making Lightning feel like she was flying into the sun itself. And then, when Crescent Hope made contact with the TOM’s engine, everything exploded at once and Lightning was consumed by the flames.
Lightning didn’t feel a thing as she passed on into the beyond.
Outside, the ponies in the fighters and shuttles watched as the explosion consumed their vision. Chunks of rock and metal flew in all directions away from the TOM. Even from the control room in Dome Zero, the burst of flames consumed the TOM. And everypony there bowed in honor of the sacrifice made by one brave, selfless mare.
For a moment, the control room was mostly silent save for the sobs of Twilight Sparkle. Then a sudden beeping on the computer panel caused Princess Luna to raise her own tear stained face to the monitor before her. At first, all she could see was the remains of the explosion as they slowly began to fade. And as they did, her eyes filled with horror to see that the TOM was still there. The efforts of Lightning Dust had destroyed the engine entirely while also greatly reducing its mass. Just by looking at the screen, Luna guessed that at least half of its mass had been destroyed leaving a crater where the engine had once been.
Gulping, Luna went to the controls as everypony else began to raise their heads. As she worked she could hear cries of ‘It didn’t work’, ‘This is hopeless’, and so on. And, sadly, Luna’s fears were confirmed.
“It…It didn’t work,” came the sobbing voice of Twilight. “L-Lightning Dust died for nothing!” As Twilight fell to the ground, she brought her forelegs together and began to cry heavily into them. Upon seeing his future wife break down like this, Shadow moved to lie down next to her while at the same time draping a leathery wing across her body. He wasn’t the only one for Scootaloo also went to comfort the grieving unicorn.
“It’s true,” said Luna sadly as she felt warm tears appear on her face. “Despite the loss of mass to the TOM, it sadly wasn’t enough. The damage will still be every bit as catastrophic as before. The only thing she did was getting rid of the engine so its speed can’t continue to increase, giving us more time. Maybe five, eight minutes tops.”
“There has to be something we can do!” shouted Fluttershy, gaining the attention of everypony there. Yet she didn’t shy away. “Please, my family is down there.”
“Same here,” said Applejack while the others nodded.
“I-I just found my mom and dad,” said Ruby as she took a few steps forwards. “I can’t lose them like this. I just can’t! Please princess, isn’t there anything you can do?”
“I finally had a dream that I thought might come true,” said Lone Wolf. “A place where bat ponies could call their own, to live in peace. It can’t be destroyed. Not now…”
As the tears continued to fall down Luna’s face, she bit her lower lip for a second. Her eyes began to dart back and forth while a hoof went up to her chin making it look like she was pondering. “I’m afraid there isn’t much I can do now,” she said after a while. “With the engine gone, there is nothing for me to gain control of in order to redirect the TOM. And with our magic still sealed away, both me and my sister are helpless to stop this.”
“I’m still working on it,” said Gigawatt.
“WELL WHAT’S TAKING SO LONG?” screamed Pinkie Pie in a panic.
Gigawatt shot her a death glare. “Well, funny thing really,” he said in a humorless tone. “When we made these things, we wanted to make sure whoever had them on couldn’t take them off or get somepony else to do it for them. At least, not easily. I am doing this as fast as I can.”
“Lastly the TOM is still far too massive for us to even hope to destroy is such a short amount of time,” continued a crestfallen Luna. “I’m afraid we are all out of options.”
“But you’re an alicorn princess,” said Pinkie Pie whose mane had deflated. “Aren’t you like super old and super smart? There has to be something you can do! Mrs. Cake is going to have a foal soon for me to play with. She can’t die yet! And I never got to say goodbye to Maud, Limestone, Marble, or my parents!”
“I…” began Luna, but paused to choke back a sob. The feelings inside of her, being so utterly powerless to stop this situation, was like being crushed by the massive gravitational forces of a black hole. It was simply too much for her to bear. She had no idea how she could live with herself knowing that she had played a part, even an unwitting one, in the destruction of the world she had been born on.
As her wings slumped down in defeat, a hoof gently touched Luna’s shoulder. The night princess turned and saw that it was Celestia giving her a knowing look.
“Luna,” said Celestia, “you need to take a deep breath and calm down. You’re no good to anypony like this right now.”
“But sister I-” began Luna.
“I know you can do this,” said Celestia. “If there is anypony out there that can do something, anything to possibly make things better in a situation like this it would be you. I trust you little sister.”
Luna’s eyes widened as Celestia said that last part. Slowly she nodded before taking a deep breath. As she exhaled, Luna began to go over what she knew. She knew for a fact that unless some miracle occurred or the anti-magic ring on Celestia’s horn was removed, nothing could stop that TOM. So, if she couldn’t stop it, the only course of action she could take would be to reduce the damage as best she could.
“Alright,” said Luna, her voice carrying a bit of the firmness it once held as she turned to the control panel. “Since we can’t stop the TOM, the best we can hope to do is give the planet a fighting chance. If we can shut down Operation: Umbrella then all of the magic that is currently being suppressed will return. That should allow various races time to seek shelter faster or put up magical barriers and the like. It will also help those with wings handle the dust cloud created by the impact. But based on what we have experienced, it would be foolish of me to assume that Land Share didn’t put some sort of safety measures with Operation: Umbrella as well. So, I guess we’re going to have to do this the old fashioned way.”
While the other ponies looked at her in slight confusion, Luna broadcasted herself to all military crafts in the area and ordered them to destroy the crystals suppressing the planet’s magic. A choir of ‘Yes, Princess Luna,’ was her response as all of the fighters that had once been attacking the TOM flew towards the planet at blinding speeds. As soon as they were close enough, they began to fire at their nearest targets. While it took several shots, a few were soon destroyed. Seeing this, Luna went back to work trying to see if she could shut Operation: Umbrella off remotely.
“So you can save our home?” asked Rarity hopefully.
Luna’s hooves paused in mid air when Rarity asked that. She could feel all of the eyes of the planet’s ponies upon her. She could even hear Pinkie’s mane poof back to normal. Waiting to hear good new that she would be unable to give. Slowly she gulped.
“I believe, given the situation, it might be a little too hopeful to assume that all of Equestria can be saved,” said Celestia remorsefully, coming to Luna’s rescue. “But there is a chance that some of the outer areas of Equestria, like Appleloosa might survive if we are able to return magic to our world. Maybe some other areas might make it as well for I am sure that the TOM is visible to them by now. Hopefully there will be enough ponies with the sense to seek shelter.”
‘A very, very slim chance sister,’ thought Luna sadly as she continued to work. ‘You have no idea how powerful the impact will be. Equestria will be taking the brunt of the damage. The ground beneath their hooves will actually ripple as if it suddenly turned into water. The shockwave will knock down entire forests even when they’re hundreds of miles away from the epicenter. And then will come the flames. The ones who die from that will be the lucky ones.’ However, Luna didn’t voice this and instead focus on the work in front of her.
-x-
At that time, down in Sweet Apple Acres, Big Mac was sitting on his flank with his special somepony next to his as they looked up at the sky as the large mass of rock grew closer and closer. He had noticed it a good half an hour ago, back when it was a mere speck. At the time Big Mac had assumed it was a pegasus pony high up in the sky and shrugged it off so he could get to his chores while Zecora assisted. It was a pleasant way for them to spend time together without neglecting his work. But when he looked up a few minutes later he could better make out its rocky feature as it hung up there in Celestia’s sky. Then, not too long ago, there was a brilliant flash of light that was so bright that the red stallion was forced to cover his eyes. In the span of seconds he believed that Princess Celestia had returned just in time to destroy that…thing. But when the light faded and the ponies were able to look up, their hopes faded to see that the object continued to loom overhead.
He was mightily sure that at this point folks back in town had noticed it as well. Most likely they were panicking, screaming ‘The horror’ as they ran about. Some, he was sure, were heading to their basements in the hope that it would provide shelter in case it was heading towards Ponyville. Then there would be those who would think they could outrun it, heading as fast as they could south. Perhaps there would be one or two ponies out there that wouldn’t pay it any mind, thinking that nothing would happen. That that thing would either miss them or land somewhere else and life would go on. But they were only fooling themselves. After everything that had been going on today, nopony was in the mood to make that assumption.
As for Mac, he could tell that it wasn’t going to strike Ponyville. From what he could see, it looked like it was almost directly above Canterlot. Yet knowing that didn’t make him feel any safer. A primal instinct within him told him that when that thing hit the mountain, it didn’t matter where he was: that this was simply the end. So rather than spend his last moments alive panicking like so many others, Big Mac had decided to spend this time in peace. Here, in the fields he had worked in since he was a colt and amongst the apple trees he had tended with his parents, was where he wanted to be when he died.
One comfort to all of this was that at least he knew his sisters would survive. He knew that Applejack and Apple Bloom were on the moon and, whatever was going on with them, they were no doubt safer. They would live to see another day. Hopefully long enough to become more like Granny Smith. Imaging that brought a sad smile to his lips.
“Mac, are you are sure it is wise that we not speak to the apple monarch?” asked Zecora as she pressed her warm body next to Mac’s. Mac looked down to see her biting her lower lip slightly. “All we are doing right now is keeping them all in the dark.”
“Ah know,” said Mac as he looked down at Zecora’s lovely face, as he felt a twinge of pain in his heart. He wished to whoever was above them that he could have had more time with her. And looking into her eyes, he could see that she felt the same way. Perhaps, maybe, they could have had a family together.
He did the best he could to steel himself as he continued. “Right now, Granny should be restin’ along with the rest of the Guard. The only one fit enough to move on her own power is Poisoned. Since she ain’t outside making a fuss, Ah think she don’t know what’s goin’ on. Ah…Ah rather keep it that way. Not let their final moments be filled with fear.”
Zecora didn’t say anything at first. She simply leaned a bit closer into him. “That is a very kind thing for you to do to those you hold dear,” she rhymed. “And, I must admit, that if you were not here I would be drowning in fear. All of these things that have happened in these days past, it looks like this is the end at long last. Yet as I sit here next to you, I feel ease taking its cue. Our lack of time together is somewhat bad, still I am very grateful for those moments we had. I just wish-”
Zecora was cut off as Big Mac’s hoof touched her chin gently. Before she could speak another word the red stallion leaned down to capture her lips with his own. The two let out a bliss filled hum as they closed their eyes, shutting out the world around them in order to better savor this moment. Then, with much reluctance, Mac pulled away while keeping his eyes on hers.
“Ah know,” he said, a tear rolling down his face.
-x-
Back on the moon, Celestia watched as Luna continued her work. Information on the screen in front of her younger sister flew by so quickly that the sun princess had barely an idea what it said. But, based on Luna’s scowl, it wasn’t anything good. Still, Luna continued to type away in the hope that she might be able to do something. Knowing her, Luna would continue to seek a solution until the very last second. All while Celestia sat there, able to do nothing to help.
A lump grew in the solar princess’ throat. Her country. Her city. Her subjects. Everything that she had taken care of over the past thousand years was about to be destroyed in an instant with her being unable to do anything. Without magic, both she and her subjects were helpless against this threat. The pain she felt was so great that, despite her efforts, a choking noise escaped her.
“Princess,” came Trixie’s voice from behind Celestia. The white alicorn turned, annoying Gigawatt in the process, just in time to witness Trixie taking off her hat while lowering her head. “Trixie knows you have a lot on your plate right now. But, Trixie just wanted to tell you now how sorry Trixie is for being such a poor student.”
Celestia blinked at this. “Trixie, what in Equestria are you talking about?” asked a genuinely confused princess. “You have been a wonderful student. I have never seen you give any less than your full effort on any of your lessons.”
Trixie let out a sigh. “But Trixie misunderstood some of the things you were trying to teach Trixie,” the unicorn clarified. “Trixie didn’t understand how much you believed in Trixie or how much you trusted Trixie. Trixie was also a poor student to you in the way Trixie acted outside of Trixie’s lessons. A stupid drunk who shouldn’t have listened to what other ponies said. Trixie wishes she had realized this sooner before this.”
“Why in the void is she speaking in the third pony?” muttered Gigawatt, unable to help himself from speaking out loud. Yet his words were either ignored or simply went unheard as the two ponies never let their attention linger off of the other.
“Trixie,” said Celestia as she brought a hoof down to lift Trixie’s chin up. Their eyes met and Trixie could not hide her surprise to see that Celestia, despite everything that was going on, was smiling at her warmly. “I always knew the day would come when you would be able to see what I have always seen in you. You are an amazing mare who will one day go out into the world and do amazing things.”
“But Trixie still-”
“Trixie,” interrupted Celestia in a gentle voice. “You saw what you were doing to yourself without me having to take measures into my own hooves. And, judging by the smell of your breath, you are already working to improve yourself. Very few could find the strength to look at themselves in the mirror, say ‘I want to change’, and then actually go through with it. It is far easier to simply make excuses and leave the problem alone until it becomes too late. I stand by what I said earlier: You are a wonderful student.”
Tears appeared in Trixie’s eyes as she let her teacher’s words wash over her. Ever since she had escaped Canterlot, she had felt shame for her past behavior. While she had taken steps to improve, there had been a voice in the back of her head saying ‘too little, too late’. She had been useless ever since she had fled the capital, her only success being she had warned Cadence about Blueblood. Yet despite that, Celestia still saw her as a good student. And that was all that mattered.
“Trixie,” said Luna while her hooves continued to type. “While I know that our experiences with each other have been, er, less than pleasant, there is something that you should know. I might not always see it at first, but my sister has never failed to pick out a personal student that did not have something exceptional about them.”
Trixie gave the moon princess a slight nod. “Thank you,” whispered Trixie.
Luna did not return the gesture, however when she spoke next her voice was almost a whisper. “Sister, I…I know this might not be the best time to say this, but…thank you.” Celestia blinked in surprise, taken aback by what was just said. The same applied to Gigawatt whose hooves, for a moment, paused in his work.
“Luna, I have done nothing that deserves thanks,” replied Celestia, her eyes downcast.
Trixie frown and opened her mouth to argue this. However, it was Luna who spoke up first. “I disagree,” stated Luna firmly. “Today has been…difficult for the both of us. I cannot imagine what you are going through knowing what will soon happen. Yet you have found it in you to help get me back on my hooves twice today. Also…it felt nice to hear that you trust me.”
Celestia gave her sister a sad smile. “It was something you should have heard from me more often back in the day,” she admitted. “And, knowing you, you’ll keep working till the last second if you have to.”
A small smile appeared on Luna’s face. “That, my dear sister, is the plan.”
-x-
Cadence, meanwhile, had been looking lost for some time now. Even before Lightning Dust had made the ultimate sacrifice, she had been sitting there in the back along with most of the ponies that had arrived with her from the planet. It was a hard thing to accept that the only way they could help was to simply stay out of the way while those with the knowledge of how things operated around here worked frantically to save the planet. Right now she felt even more useless than when that griffon had attacked. At least then she was able to throw a rock in an attempt to help. Here, however, she feared that if she spoke up it would distract the Lunar ponies and cause them to lose time.
Her eyes slowly drifted to the three adult bat ponies she had brought with her. Ruby seemed like she was slowly gaining back her composure so she could better protect Cadence. Said pink princess knew this would be difficult since so many ponies that Ruby knew were still on the planet, and not just her parents. Like the bat ponies from the Everfree colony and Appleloosa. Judging by the look on Lone Wolf’s face, he was worried about the bat ponies as well. Darkwing was a different matter, frantically looking at the image of the planet. Cadence had a theory that he was trying to figure out if his home might be far away enough so that it might survive. However, before he could determine that, he needed to figure out where his home was.
“Mommy, is everything going to be ok?” asked Midnight suddenly. Currently, the young bat pony filly was sitting next to her mother, her head raised to look up at the larger pink mare with innocent eyes.
As she looked down at her daughter, a whole new level of worry appeared. Something that she hadn’t thought about until now: What was going to happen to them? Where would she go? What could she do to support the two of them? Cadence knew it was wrong to think like this when so many ponies were about to die, yet she couldn’t help herself.
The rational answer would have been that Luna would give them a place here at the castle. Perhaps take both her and Aunt Celestia on as advisors or something so they could get some income. But, then again, how much could they help in a society where they didn’t know how anything worked?
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” said Cadence, unable to bring herself to lie at this point in time. “Princess Luna is doing everything she can to help us go back home safely. But things aren’t looking so good right now. We might… have to stay here for a while.”
At first, Midnight’s eyes brightened at this. The last time she was here she got to play with Princess Luna and be with Mr. Shiny. She also had some fun with Scootaloo. On the moon was so much nicer than in Canterlot because nopony up here gave her those mean looks when her mother wasn’t watching. The little filly was almost bouncing with joy at the thought that they might be able to stay up here longer and have fun. She was about to voice her excitement when she noticed something that made her stop. Nopony else seemed to be all that happy about it, not even Miss Ruby.
“But we’ll be able to go back home soon, right mommy?” asked Midnight as she touched her mother’s leg with one of her own forelegs. “What about Mr. Wolf and Mr. Darkwing? Will they be able to go back home?”
Cadence gulped. “I don’t think so,” she answered slowly. “We…we all might have to look for a new home.”
Fear almost crippled Midnight as those works sunk in as well as their meaning to the young filly. A new home always meant new ponies. She had escaped the harshness of her first home to live on the street which was filled with ponies that were just as mean to her as her old home. Then she got a new home with a nice pony to be her mommy! But…would getting a new home now mean that she would be separated from her mommy and all the nice ponies she had met? Her small frame trembled as she looked over at Ruby and then back to her mother. Small droplets began to appear around the corners of her eyes.
“But we’ll all still be together, right mommy?” asked the panicking filly, catching her mother off guard. Quickly, Midnight wrapped her forelegs around one of her mother’s own. “Please don’t leave me!”
“What?” said Cadence as she used her free leg to stroke her daughter’s mane. “Oh course I’m not leaving you. Wherever did you get such an idea?”
“Well,” was all that Midnight was able to mutter as she lowered her head, her words becoming unrecognizable. This ended when Cadence gently brought her hoof to Midnight’s chin so that she could lift the filly’s head up.
“Midnight,” said Cadence warmly. “I’m not going anywhere nor will I let anything happen to you. Right now, knowing that you are with me and safe, is the only silver lining I can see. And I will do everything in my power to make sure it stays that way. Do you understand?” Midnight slowly nodded her head. “Good. And don’t worry about where we are going to live after that. That’s my job.”
Midnight tilted her head slightly. “But what about Miss Ruby and the others?” she asked. “What will they do? Will they be staying with us?”
Cadence bit her lower lip as she looked at the three only to find that they were already watching them. If Cadence had to guess, her conversation with Midnight had gained their attention. And Midnight raised a good point. As much as she wanted to tell them that they would all be staying together, she didn’t want to go making promises she might not be able to keep. Since this wasn’t Equestria and she had no power here Cadence didn’t want to make any promises she would be unable to keep. Especially to Lone Wolf who she had only recently earned his trust.
Still that didn’t mean she could reassure them. If worst came to worst, Cadence knew that Luna wouldn’t toss them onto the streets. Even with their strapped resources, Luna would most likely do everything in her power to see that they would be treated properly.
“You don’t have worry about that,” said Shining Armor as he walked over to them, stopping in between Cadence and Midnight. “There are plenty of spare rooms in the castle. Or, if you prefer, you can all bunker down at my place. Might be a little cramped but I think we’ll be able to manage.”
“That is very kind of you,” said Ruby as she looked over at Lone Wolf and Darkwing. Neither said anything, their expressions showed that their minds were elsewhere. Letting out an annoyed growl Ruby quickly elbowed them to bring that back to the present.
“Oh right,” said Darkwing. “Sorry about that.”
“No need to apologize,” said Shining Armor quickly. “I kind of know what you’re going through. I’ve…lost loved ones and a home before. It’s not easy knowing there’s nothing you can do to stop it.”
“No, it’s not,” said Lone Wolf in a gruff voice.
“We’ll do everything in our power to make this right,” continued Shining. “I can’t promise that everypony you know will be alright, but I will do the next best thing. As soon as it’s safe to go down I will personally see to it that every available shuttle is loaded up with healing pods and sent to search for survivors. After that, well, you can either stay here with us or we’ll help you rebuild.”
Lone Wolf’s eyes narrowed. “That’s an awfully big promise,” he stated. “Who are you to make such a claim?”
“Hey!” yelled Midnight, catching Lone Wolf’s attention. He looked down as she puffed her cheeks and spread her wings, looking like she was ready to attack him as well as adorable. “Be nice to Mr. Shiny! He’s a good pony like mommy!”
“It’s alright Midnight,” said Shining as he patted the filly’s head. “Mr. Lone Wolf has every right to be upset. And I understand if he doesn’t trust us right now.” Lone Wolf snorted as he rolled his eyes.
“Excuse me,” said Ruby as she took a step forwards. “After that, er, TOM makes contact, am I safe to assume that every second will count when looking for survivors?”
“That’s correct,” replied Shining calmly, but his head lowered slightly.
Ruby took a breath. “Then, in order to save as many ponies as we can, I suggest that we do everything in our power to ensure that not a second is wasted,” she said. “Lone Wolf is the Flight Master of the Everfree Colony, which means he knows where every other colony in Equestria is located. Or, at least will have a better idea where they can be found. Most of them are located in caves so they should have a better chance at surviving.” She turned her head to look at Lone Wolf directly in the eye. “So rather than letting our emotions get the better of us, I believe that we should be putting this information to good use and saving as many lives as we can.”
Lone Wolf stared at Ruby, taken aback by this assertiveness. There also came a moment of clarity, a realization of what just happened. Ruby had known that Lone Wolf, in his anger and mistrust, would never have given anypony this information thus putting the lives of their fellow bat ponies at risk. He most likely would have remained tight lipped even after the fact in his stubbornness. But Ruby, even now, was able to see the bigger picture with a clear head making her more capable of making sound decisions. A decision that would hopefully save more lives.
“That kind of information would help out a great deal,” replied Shining Armor, getting Lone Wolf’s attention. The white stallion was looking right at him now, waiting to see if he would consent to give this information.
Lone Wolf let out a small sigh. “If it means saving the lives of my fellow bat ponies, then I’ll give you the information.”
“Thank you,” said Shining Armor before pointing to a computer station. “Over there will be a map of Equestria you can use.” When he looked back at the bat pony, he saw a rather confused looking stallion. Shining Armor then let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched his mane with his hoof. “Oh, right. You’ve never used one before. I’ll lend you a hoof.”
“Ah, Shining Armor,” said Cadence, raising a hoof to get their attention before they could move. “Could I…Could I have a word with you real quick?”
“Ah,” began Shining Armor.
“It’s not a problem,” said Ruby as she began to push both Darkwing and Lone Wolf to the computer station Shining had pointed to. “We’ll just go over there and try to figure things out on our own.”
“But why should we-” began Darkwing.
“Come on you two,” said Ruby as she gave them another push. While doing this, Ruby turned her head to give her princess a quick wink as well as a knowing smile. After that, she gave the Darkwing another push while gesturing to Lone Wolf with her head. The elder stallion turned and took a single step towards the computer station, but after that he paused before turning his head so that he could look at her with his one good eye.
Cadence watched as the older stallion turned the rest of his body to face her. As he did, a seed of dread began to take root in the princess’s chest. She had a feeling that she knew what was coming. That he would vent his anger upon her for her not being able to do more to keep his colony as well as the rest of his ponies alive. That the promise of land, a home for the bat ponies, was going to be destroyed while she did nothing. Perhaps he would even go back further, wanting to know why she didn’t help them out sooner. And, in her heart and soul, Cadence believed he would be right. She had failed them.
“Lone Wolf, I am sorry I couldn’t do more to help save the colonies,” said Cadence soberly as her wing sagged a bit.
As Ruby turned to grab the Flight Master of the Everfree Colony by the tail, Lone Wolf began to speak. “Princess,” he began, “there is no need for you to say that.” His words caused the eyes of all the ponies around him to widen in surprise.
“But I-” began Cadence.
“You’ve done all you could and more,” interrupted Lone Wolf. “I’ve seen with my own eye you extending your hoof to help us more than most ponies have done in a long time. You have given Ruby a job as captain of your guard. You showed mercy to Jackal when any other pony in your position would have justified killing him on the spot. You brought Poisoned Apple back to her family. And…you gave all of us so much hope. If none of this would have happened, it might have been a bright future for us.” Lone Wolf closed his good eye as he sighed heavily while Darkwing and Ruby moved to either side of the old stallion. “Yet, perhaps, it might still be. I know now that you will do everything in your power to help whoever survives all of this regardless of what tribe they hail from. And that will include those that Equestria has seen as nothing more than muck stuck to its hoof. So know that, when this ordeal is over and the next one begins, the bat ponies of Equestria will follow their one true princess.”
When Lone Wolf finished saying this, he bowed low to the ground and was soon followed by Ruby as well as Darkwing. Cadence stood there, completely taken aback by Lone Wolf’s words as well as his actions. Before she could do anything, Lone Wolf rose as did the other two bat ponies. Together they turned and walked towards the computer station once again.
Once the three could be seen looking at the computer screen, Shining Armor gently placed a hoof on Cadence’s shoulder and flashed her a warm smile when she turned to look at him. “Well, it’s just the two of us now,” he said. Suddenly he felt something tap his leg. Looking down he spotted Midnight with her head up and slightly tilted. “Oh, right. The three of us. What did you want to talk about?”
“Shiny,” said Cadence once Shining Armor was looking at her once again. “Thank you. I just wish I could be doing more to help and-”
“Anything for you,” interrupted Shining as he looked the pink mare in the eye. He watched as Cadence began to blush. “I…I can tell you’ve been busy. You look…tired.”
Cadence lowered her head slightly. “I am,” she replied. “I’ve been trying to do as much as I can to help the bat ponies of Equestria. Things that should have been done a long time ago. The sad thing is, before this, it looked like things were looking up for them. Now…now it feels like, despite what Lone Wolf said, everything I did was for nothing.”
Shining Armor shook his head before placing a hoof gently on her shoulder. “Cadence, I know that you know that everything you did wasn’t for nothing. You were trying to make things right and give them hope. And…I think that’s really amazing of you.”
“Shiny,” said Cadence softly.
“I mean it,” continued Shining, a small blush appearing on his face. “From what I have seen of most of the ponies in Canterlot, there couldn’t have been many that would willingly back you up. Heck, besides Princess Celestia, who would have your back in Equestria unless there was something in it for them? Many would try to talk you out of it or think the worst of you for trying to do something that you knew was right. And, well, I think it’s the sign of a true hero to do the right thing even when there’s nopony standing beside you. I just think you’re-”
Shining Armor paused for a moment as he looked at Cadence. Despite how tired she appeared and the current situation, she now had a bright red blush across her cheeks that threatened to burn her alive. Nervously, Shining Armor bit his lower lip and looked away.
“S-Sorry,” he said. “I’m just making a fool of myself right now. Talking about such things when we have a crisis. This isn’t really the time to tell you all the things I’ve wanted to.”
Cadence did nothing for a moment other than staring at Shining Armor while Midnight sat in-between them. Then, slowly, Cadence leaned forwards until her lips were locked onto Shining’s. At first, Shining’s eyes were wide with surprise yet as the seconds ticked by they closed as the stallion accepted and deepened the kiss. Neither one seemed to notice Midnight who looked confused by this display of emotion; having never seen ponies kissing like this before. The only thing she had ever experienced herself was when her mother kissed her forehead, making her feel special.
‘Perhaps this means Mr. Shiny is really, really, really special to mommy,’ thought the bat filly. ‘I hope we can always stay together then.’
Soon, Cadence pulled away disappointing Shining who didn’t want the kiss to end. “Thank you,” the pink princess whispered in his ear.
-x-
While all of this was going on, Twilight continued to sob on the floor. Part of her knew that this wasn’t the time to act like this, that there were so many lives at stake. For her to push aside her pain and plow through in order to help save the day. Yet right now, the pain she felt was far too great to be ignored. She had nearly lost her adopted daughter to a crazy mare bent on revenge, stabbed by a stallion she loved like an uncle, witnessed with her own eyes said uncle being killed by two princesses with their own horns, and now the seemingly pointless death of one of her oldest friends on the moon. All of this in the span of a few days.
To make matters worse, the rational part of her brain informed her that there was simply nothing she could do. Even if she was in prime condition, there was no way her magic alone was powerful enough to move a TOM. She would need the help of several trained unicorns who were used to working together to accomplish such a feat. Science wouldn’t be any more help than magic was either. Land Share had effectively cut them off from any solution to this crisis. And Lightning Dust…
A louder sob escaped Twilight as she thought of her friend. She didn’t want Lightning’s death to have been in vain. She wanted to do something that might help. Yet, what could she do?
It was then that Twilight’s ears managed to pick up on hoofsteps coming towards her. The purple mare managed to open one of her eyes and looked up to see Pinkie Pie. The mare was now standing in front of her, looking down at her with an unreadable expression that made Twilight sob even harder. Part of Twilight wanted to cringe in fear as she waited for Pinkie to say something. Ready for Pinkie to start yelling at her, blaming her and the rest of the Republic for what had been going on. For lying on the ground and crying instead of doing something to stop this!
For a moment that seemed to go on forever, Twilight waited. The silence between them made the moment all the worse. Twilight wanted Pinkie to start laying it on her already. She wouldn’t blame the pink mare for saying anything…unpleasant to her. Being yelled at was the only thing Twilight felt like she could do at this moment. She just wished that Pinkie would say something or blink or anything!
Finally, Pinkie moved one of her forelegs and brought it behind her back. Twilight closed her eyes and braced herself, believing that Pinkie was going to strike her. She could feel Shadow and Scootaloo moving in response, possibly to stop her. Before Twilight could tell them it was alright, wanting the pain on the outside to match the pain inside of her, she felt something soft brushing against her cheek to wipe away the tears. Slowly she opened her eyes to see that Pinkie was the one cleaning up her face using a handkerchief. Or, rather, part of a long chain of handkerchiefs that were coming out of her mane.
“Better?” asked Pinkie. Twilight looked at the mare in confusion, but gave her a nod regardless of how she really felt. A tiny smile appeared on the pink earth pony’s face as she then gave the handkerchief rope a tug before releasing it, allowing it to go zooming back into her mane.
Twilight started to stand up, but her legs were far too weak. If she had to guess the medicine that had been helping to give her enough strength to move about as she had been was starting to wear off. Instantly, Shadow and Scootaloo were there to catch her along with Pinkie Pie. As one, the three helped Twilight back into a lying position as the rest of the ponies from Ponyville, and Spike, approached Twilight.
“Twilight, are you ok?” asked Fluttershy as she began to inspect Twilight’s body to see if her wound had opened up again. As Shadow and Scootaloo moved slightly to allow her to do this, Twilight could only stare blankly at the faces of the Equestrians who looked back at her with concern.
“Geez Twi, you need to be more careful,” said Rainbow Dash.
“Why?” asked Twilight as she lowered her head.
“Because we don’t want you to hurt yourself again?” said Rainbow Dash in an uncertain tone.
“No,” said Twilight as she shook her head, not wanting to look them directly in the eye. “Why are you being so nice to me?!”
“Because you’re feeling bad,” answered Pinkie. “I know things are kind of looking a little dark right now for you and I just want to show you it isn’t so bad. Normally I would throw a big party and get you smiling, but I can tell that all you really need right now are your friends.”
Twilight stared at the pink mare in utter disbelief. “How can I be your friend after all of this?” she all but demanded as fresh tears began to fall from her eyes. “I’m a pony of the Republic! We’ve k-killed so many Equestrians already. Soon more p-ponies will d-die because of us.”
A look was passed between the five mares, ending at Fluttershy who spoke up. “But, Twilight, none of us blames you,” she said sweetly.
“But it was my uncle who did all of this!” wept Twilight while shaking her head. “He framed all of you. He-”
“Well, to be fair, I did bring that parasprite with me,” said Fluttershy. “At the time, I thought it was the cutest, most adorable thing I had ever seen. I never imagined it could ever cause anypony harm. If I had known that it was part of Blueblood’s plan I never would have brought it with me and then none of this would be happening.”
“And I did accidently dump all that water out,” added Pinkie Pie.
“But what about everything else?” demanded Twilight. “How can you all not hate me after everything the ponies of the Republic have done?”
“Because you’re not the one who did any of that silly,” replied Pinkie in a matter of fact tone.
“I don’t-”
“Twilight, we know you are a good pony,” said Fluttershy as she interrupted Twilight. “What Equestria has done and what the Republic has done doesn’t matter because we know you. You are a kind, smart, and strong mare who has done everything possible to try and stop something horrible from happening.”
“Yeah, just look at everything you’ve done,” said Rainbow Dash. “You stood up to a princess for us, you tried to warn us despite being utterly drained from that stuff they put in you, and even went with us to confront that bas-, er, bad pony. Even after all that you were still trying to save everypony by doing…something. The point is, we’ve all seen what you’ve been trying to do to help us even if we don’t understand it.”
“But the Republic has,” began Twilight, but was stopped again by Rarity placing a hoof gently on her muzzle.
“Twilight, darling, the Republic didn’t do this,” she said firmly. “It was a few with power and influence who are the ones who did this.” Rarity then sighed as she pulled her hoof away from Twilight. “Twilight, I don’t know all of the details of what happened in Equestria while we were up here. I am sure that whatever has been going on since we’ve been up here, a lot of good ponies have died thanks to the manipulation of Blueblood and Land Share. But if we keep hating each other, painting the other in such broad strokes, that things will never get any better between us. So, I for one will not be blaming the entire Republic for what has happened.”
Twilight stared at this for a moment, confusion clear in her eyes. “I…I just don’t get this,” she said while placing a hoof on the side of her head. She then pointed at the five. “You’re all about to lose your loved ones and your home! How can you ok with any of this? Why are you trying to cheer me up when you’re the ones who are going to lose everything?!” At that, all the ponies lowered their heads a bit.
“Sugarcube, we know there’s no savin’ our kin,” said Applejack as she took off her hat and looked at it. “Hurts mighty, knowing we can’t do anything. The only thing ah can take a lick of comfort in is knowin’ my little sis is gonna survive. Sure as shootin know Rarity feels the same.” At that point, Rarity gave a small nod. “Thing is, we all know this is now out of our hooves. There ain’t nothing we can do to stop it or save anypony. The only thing we can do is help our friend.”
When Applejack said this, Twilight’s pupils shrank considerably as a feeling a warmth began to emerge from within her. Twilight could feel her eyes water slightly, but not out of sadness. Even after everything they had been through, for all the reasons they should hate Twilight ranging from what the Republic had done to , ever since they had met her the lives of these Equestrian mares had become more chaotic, they still wanted to be her friend. They wanted to be there for her, in her own personal darkest hour.
And she wanted to do the same for them. Twilight tried to find the strength inside of her to stand up once more and try to find some solution in whatever time they had left. Yet there was none left. The drugs Twilight had been given were wearing off fast, perhaps thanks to the high running emotions she had been going through. She looked at all of the ponies gathered around her, seeing that they all understood and feeling the warmth they all gave her. Not just them. She could also feel Shadow’s wing around her and Scootaloo’s body pressed against her own causing the warmness inside her to grow.
“WHAT THE?” screamed Ruby, getting everyponies attention. They looked at where she was standing, her own head turned to look at her saddle bags which were now glowing.
“S-Sister, is that what I think it is?” asked Luna, her mouth hanging open as she stared at Ruby’s bag with continued to glow brighter by the millisecond.
“It is,” replied Celestia with a smile and tears rolling down her muzzle as the room began to fill with an all too familiar energy. The energy was like an old friend that she had sorely missed, returning to cheer her up after something horrible had happened. Celestia looked down towards her sister to see that she too was crying much like her. As one, the two sisters took each other’s hoof as the ignored the countdown that was now nearing its end.
“Thirty seconds till TOM impact,” said the computer in an emotionless voice. But nopony paid it any mind as they were all spellbound by the energy that was filling the room. It was so powerful, so wondrous that even the non magical users in the room could feel its power.
The straps on Ruby’s saddle bags loosened on their own, allowing five orbs of stone to float upwards above the bat pony. Each orb seemed to shine a different color: red, blue, dark purple, pink, and orange. Once they were all free in the air, they instantly began to move over to where Twilight and company where. Each orb seemed to park itself above one of the Equestrians heads, glowing evermore brightly as it did to the point where some felt the need to shield their eyes. One by one, each of the five mares from Equestria began to rise up until the top of their head touched the stone spheres. Twilight also rose into the air until she was level with the others.
For a moment, Twilight just seemed confused by what was happening. What were these objects and why did they go to her as well as the ponies she- It then hit her like the blast from an energy weapon. The Elements of Harmony! Princess Luna had told her in-pony that she was one of the bearers before the ponies from Ponyville showed up in the Republic. That these same five ponies that she had met were the other bearers! Her mind went into overdrive, trying to remember each Element as the power continued to flow around the room as well as trying to figure out who got which Element.
Twilight looked over at Applejack who had the orange stone floating on top of her head. It didn’t take her long to realize which Element the farm mare was based on their past experiences: Honesty. Since the day they had first met, Applejack had been honest to the core. True, that honesty caused some slight friction between them when they had first met with her openly reacting with fear towards Shadow. However, she did come around quickly, sincerely apologizing to Shadow for how she had acted. Nor could Twilight forget the time when Applejack pulled her out of herself pity when Scootaloo had been kidnapped by Sunset Shimmer or the time when she had talked Gigawatt into taking her hoof so that she could lift him to safety. Both times she managed to help others with her honest words. Not to mention that, from what she had heard, Applejack’s honesty was so powerful that she fought the Truth Light to the bitter end when it tried to force her to lie.
Twilight’s gaze shifted to the pony she knew was the bearer of Generosity: Rarity. While she had reacted in a similar fashion as Applejack when she met Shadow, she was quick to help them out by exchanging their gold for Equestrian bits as well as giving them a little extra. Nor could Twilight forget that she had used fabric from one of her dresses to help bandage an open wound Twilight had, despite the dress being dear to her.
Pinkie Pie was next on the list and Twilight didn’t second guess herself when she thought of Laughter being her Element. She was the type of pony who wanted others to get along, laughing and smiling together rather than fighting with each other. When Twilight had first arrived in Equestria, the pink party pony had done everything in her power to help them feel welcome in Ponyville by throwing together a party just for Twilight and Shadow. While she did seem a bit…random at times and sometimes forgot to read the room, there was no denying that she lived to make others smile. That was why she always carried around rubber chickens and clown hankies.
Kindness could only go to one mare and that was Fluttershy. So timid and soft spoken at times, it was hard to tell if she was afraid of doing something that might upset others or if she was just afraid in general. She only seemed to come out of her shell when animals were involved, like when she wanted to show Twilight and Shadow her animal friends as well as trying to bring them to the Republic. She was the one who calmed Twilight down with her music while the purple unicorn was panicking and was even willing to show mercy to the LBI agents who wanted to destroy her home. Even if it was wanting to make sure they were comfortable.
The last of the five stones was Loyalty, which naturally belonged to Rainbow Dash. As Twilight thought back to her past interactions with this mare, it was easy to see how this could be. From what Rainbow had told her, her cousin was a bat pony and she defended the mare instead of shunning her. Not only that, she was quick to come to the defense of others she called friend. Like when she tried to stand up for Applejack during the trial or when she refused to back down when Gigawatt ordered her to. And despite the pain of Gigawatt’s attack, Rainbow still managed to get back onto her hooves in order to protect her friends.
As these thoughts ran through Twilight’s head, thinking back to all the times there had shared together, the stones began to transform. One by one, they each took on a smaller, crystal like form of each other their bearer’s cutie mark held in golden necklaces that attached them to the necks of each mare. It was only when all five were safely attached to their owner, that the final Element appeared. Formed in the friendship that they shared, a lavender star appeared above Twilight’s head before a crown materialized around it. Slowly the Element of Magic lowered itself onto Twilight’s head as her eyes began to glow white.
“Twenty seconds until TOM impact,” announced the computer.
The magic in the room continued to spiral around as Twilight realized that there was more energy to gather. More types of friendships that could be used to give the Elements more power than ever before. And it was all here in this very room. All she had to do was recognize it in order to bring it into the fold. She could feel the bond between sister coming from Celestia and Luna. Despite everything that had happened between them, they still loved and cared for each other. True, they may bicker or even distrust the other from time to time, but no matter what happened between them they would always come back to the other and give that pony a second chance. Because they were sisters that still loved each other.
The magic in the room turned towards the sisters still holding the others hoof and lifted them into the air. Their bodies began to glow in a color that matched their coats as they allowed this to happen. It was then that both of their anti-magic rings burst at the same time and their eyes began to glow the same white color as Twilight’s as the magic of the Elements became stronger.
But it could be stronger still. Twilight could sense another bond. The bond of love coming from Shining Armor, Cadence, and the little bat filly named Midnight Blossom. She could sense their feelings for each other. The love between mother and daughter. The love between mare and stallion. It was so rich, so powerful that it called out to the Elements, begging for its energy to be used to help in this dire hour. And they weren’t the only ponies with this energy, for below Twilight was both Shadow Blade and Scootaloo, the same energy that her brother and the pink alicorn had flowed through them as well. All five of these ponies were lifted into the air, hovering above those who still had their hooves to the ground while staring at them in slack jawed amazement.
“Ten seconds till TOM impact,” announced the computer before it proceeded to count down the seconds until it reached zero.
As the computer emotionlessly said the word nine, the thirteen ponies were transformed into what appeared to be beams of light that shot out in the direction of the planet. They passed through walls as if they weren’t even there, moving through space faster than anypony thought possible until they reached the atmosphere of the world in danger. The beams that had once been ponies began to spin around the globe so fast that to those still on its surface the sky looked like a rainbow blur. The crystals that allowed Operation Umbrella to work tried to suppress this magic but failed and shattered into nothing. As for the Lunar pilots, they seemed unaffected by what was happening other than seeing their cockpits taking on rainbow colored hues before moving back into space.
As the pilots did this, they could now see the TOM as it made its way into the atmosphere. Or tried to. Those watching on the moon and those in their fighter ships watched as the TOM seemed to stop as if it had hit an invisible wall. Everything they knew about science and magic said that this shouldn’t, no, couldn’t happen. And yet before their eyes it was.
The next thing they knew was that the TOM was being pushed back as the rainbow colored blur began to change. Twelve wings began to spread out, six wings on each side of the world, as well as a unicorn's head with a massive horn that came out of the top of the planet. Those who were not so stunned as to sit there with their jaws opened began to scan what they were seeing, finding the figures of various ponies in each of the wings and Twilight Sparkle at the very top of this astral alicorn’s horn. Further zooming in showed that all of these ponies had white glowing eyes, their gaze fixed on the TOM.
Despite the TOM now flying in the opposite direction, the planet alicorn lowered its horn to fire a massive multicolored beam of magic. The beam was so widespread and so powerful that it fully consumed the TOM, destroying it instantly. Yet the beam didn’t stop, veering its course so that the blast would strike the moon. Those who noticed this only had enough time for their eyes to widen slightly before the attack was upon them. Before anypony knew what was going on, the energy washed over the moon like a tidal wave until the sphere was a multicolored blur.
-x-
Gigawatt groaned as he opened his eyes, the sound of a siren wailing stirring him to the waking world. At first he thought he was back in his bed with his wife, needing to get up to another day of work with the rest of the Senate. However, as his eyes began to focus in on the world around him, he realized how wrong he was. He was not in his bed but on the floor of the command center in Dome Zero. Close by him was the exiled criminal Sunset Shimmer. There was also the dragon turned pony Spike and a few bat ponies from the planet. All of them were stirring as well as the noise, whatever it was, being the cause of this.
As Gigawatt got to his hooves, he looked over at the control panel and what he saw caused all the color on his face to vanish. He could almost feel his heart stop as he saw the warning lights flashing and the screen in front of him showing an alert of multiple Dome breaches. Not bothering to see how the others were doing, Gigawatt began to press various buttons quickly to see how bad the damage was. Breath escaped him and he felt all was lost when the computer told him that all of the Domes had been shattered.
Before despair could overtake him a thought crossed his mind. If all the Domes had fallen how was he still alive? If, as the screen seemed to indicate, all of the Domes had fallen then there would be no air. Right now, whatever remains of his body that survived explosive decompression should be floating around the room with the others! So how was it he was alive to ask such questions?
Silently, Gigawatt began to use the computer to try and figure out what was going on. He ignored the questions of the others in the room, knowing that they didn’t comprehend the possible danger they were in. When he saw the results, his eyes widened. Without a word to the others he rushed out of the room and raced towards the entrance of the castle to confirm the results with his own eyes. He could hear the hooves of ponies behind him. He didn’t know if they were the other ponies that had been in the control room with him, castle staff, or LBI agents. And right now he didn’t care.
Gigawatt eventually passed by the wreckage of the shuttle Shadow Blade had used to get in with and galloped down the hallway towards the open entrance. He crossed the threshold only to stop and stare in awe. All around him, as far as he could see, were fields of green grass so tall it went up to his knees. A breeze blew by bringing with it fresh scent of floral, meaning that there would be flowers somewhere close. He could see trees growing rapidly here and there, reaching for the now blue sky above him. His ears perked as when he caught the gentle sound of splashing water. Perhaps there was a lake nearby, just beyond the remains of what had been the Dome in one of the craters. Or perhaps it was a, oh what was the word? A moat?
“What happened?” came a voice behind him. Gigawatt turned to see various ponies behind him, staring at what he had just seen with a mixture of wonder and fear.
“Where are we?” asked another pony who was backing away slowly. “Where is our home?”
“This…is our home,” said Gigawatt slowly as a tear appeared in his eye. “The scans say that the moon has been terraformed completely.” As he then wiped away the tear, he returned to look at the sight before them. Long had he desired to see this happen, for the ponies of the Republic to have what Equestria took for granted. They no longer would have to fear daily that a Dome might break, killing all inside. Colts and fillies could now play freely without having to travel to the only forested Dome.
To Gigawatt, this was paradise.
As the other ponies murmur behind him, a glowing white sphere appeared in the sky above the castle. Slowly it descended to the ground, revealing Princess Luna and the others. When the sphere vanished, it was Princess Luna’s turn to look confused as she looked around her.
“What…what is all this?” she asked as Gigawatt and the other approached their beloved leader. “How did this happen?”
“I think the Elements of Harmony did this,” said Twilight as she too looked around. “But why?”
“Perhaps they did this to help ease the fear of the ponies who live here,” answered Princess Celestia with a smile. “Or perhaps to take away something that makes us so different so that we may relate to each other a bit better. So that we may one day be friends.”
“I fear the Lunar Republic has much to do for that to happen,” said Luna as she stared at the green ground below. “We…have done the world we originally came from much harm. I doubt they will welcome us with a parade, singing songs, and placing crowns of flowers on our heads after all of this. I believe it would be more likely that they will fear us more now than ever before.”
“Perhaps not,” said Celestia in a low tone. Around them, the others were looking around at this changed world and not paying much attention to the two princesses. Yet she did not want to take any chances for what she was about to suggest. “We could…shift the blame and make it easier for you to be forgiven.”
“What?” asked Luna, her voice slightly raised.
“While it is true that those in Equestria will fear you, there is a chance that we can make it so that the rest of the world will never know what really happened,” said Celestia. She saw Luna eye her in a way that made it clear that she couldn’t see how that was possible. So Celestia quickly elaborated. “We can tell the world Discord was responsible for everything that had happened. Magic vanishing. The rock that almost hit the world. But thanks to the combined efforts of both counties, Equestria and the Lunar Republic, we were able to make everything right again while making sure Discord will never be a threat again. What do you think?”
Luna looked at Celestia in shock. What her sister proposed…might work. Any creature that had heard of Discord would know that this was the sort of thing he might find amusing in some twisted fashion. Not only would it smooth things over with races like the griffons, this cover story might help patch things up with Equestria. Being told by their beloved Princess that Luna and her ponies saved the world from such a threat might help the healing process between their nations.
But was that the right thing to do? That was the big question Luna had for herself. She had made serious mistakes that hurt many lives, most likely ending more than a few when Operation: Umbrella was activated. She had been the one to throw the world into more chaos and confusion than Discord ever did. It was a trusted member of her Senate who had tried to end all life on the planet. So, should she pass the blame off to one who could no longer defend himself in order to escape the blame? Not just for herself but for her nation as well? And hope no one ever found out what really happened?
“No,” said Luna, slightly shaking her head as she did. “We cannot clean the slate that way. I think it would be best if we earn forgiveness while acknowledging we what really happened.”
Celestia let out a sigh. “Very well then,” she said as Gigawatt stood before the two princesses.
“Princess Luna,” said Gigawatt. “I believe that there will be some confusion as to what has just happened across the moon. It would be in everypony’s best interest if you made a public statement as quickly as possible.”
“I agree,” said Luna with a nod. “Contact all studios telling them that there will be a royal announcement within the coming hour. Everypony within the Republic will soon learn that what has transpired, both the horrible and the miraculous. Then, once you have done that, contact every member of the guard as well as our entire medical staff with the order that they are being deployed to the planet. I am sure that there are many who are injured and areas that are in need of protection. Especially Equestria. We are directly responsible for their military losses.”
“Very well Princess,” said Gigawatt with a nod. He then turned to look at Princess Celestia. “I never thought I’d see the day when our two countries could benefit each other by working together. Never before have I been so happy to be proven wrong. Thank you, Princess Celestia.” Then, before a flabbergasted Celestia could say anything, Gigawatt turned and went to work at his princess’ command.
Meanwhile, not too far away from the royal sisters, sat Twilight and the others. While Scootaloo and Midnight were off playing in the newly created landscape, Twilight leaned into Shadow as they took in the sight. Shining Armor was trying to do the same with Cadence, but the Equestrian bat ponies had pushed him out of the way to make sure their beloved pink princess was ok while the rest of the Equestrians watched in amusement.
“So, what do you think’ll happen now?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“Don’t rightly know,” replied Applejack honestly. “I reckon things will start calming down a might. I mean, it’s over…right?” Everypony there turned their attention to Twilight and Shadow. The couple blinked before giving each other a look.
“Well,” began Shadow. “There is still a lot to do. I mean, there will be a cleanup and I’m sure Princess Luna will want to try to smooth over tensions between us and the planet. I’m also sure that there will be some fallout after ponies find out what Land Share and the LBI did. While that’s going on, I’ll be busy trying to set up a remembrance ceremony for those who have lost their lives during all of this. Light…Lightning Dust especially, given how she gave up her life to give us more time. Without that, I don’t think we could have done…whatever magical thing we just did.”
At that, Twilight, Shadow, Shining Armor, and Rainbow Dash lowered their heads. Grief had not left them over their loss of the pegasus. While there was some new comfort in knowing that her death hadn’t been pointless, knowing that they would never see her again (in Rainbow’s case race again) stung at their hearts as tears threatened to appear in their eyes. However, grief would have to wait for another time. Now was the time to celebrate what they had achieved.
“And I’ll make sure to talk to Senator Gigawatt and have Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle returned,” added Twilight as she looked at both Applejack and Rarity. “I know his wife and colts pretty well, so I know they were well taken care of. Most likely they’ve been spending this time trying to get their cutie marks.” This got a laugh out of all of the mares.
“Ah guess some things are the same, no matter where ya come from,” said Applejack after she had calmed down.
“But, ah, does this mean all the scary stuff is over?” asked Fluttershy.
“I think so,” said Twilight slowly.
Fluttershy gulped. “Then does this mean we’ll never see you again Twilight?” she asked.
Twilight responded with a smile. “Of course not!” she exclaimed. “After everything that’s happened, I would never cut any of you from my life. I have a feeling I’m going to be making plenty of trips down to Equestria to help Princess Luna establish better ties with its ponies and foster some good will. And a good place to start is with all of you in Ponyville! We can even fix it so that you can come up here whenever you want. In fact, I would be honored if you girls would be there for our wedding.”
“A wedding!” shouted Rarity as stars appeared in her eyes. “Oh darling, you simply must let me design the dress! Free of charge naturally. Oooh, and I can make Shadow a rather stunning tuxedo that will match perfectly.”
“And I’ll bring some of my animal friends,” added Fluttershy. At this all of the other ponies turned to look at her so fast that one would think that a few heads snapped. Their eyes were wide in absolute horror as visions of the last time Fluttershy brought an animal to the Republic played in their heads. Thankfully, Fluttershy seemed to read their thoughts. “Um, don’t worry. This time I’ll bring something I know more about and not something given to me by a stranger. Like a fluffy bunny or this tortoise I’ve been trying to find a home for.”
“But do you all know what we should do before any of that?” asked Pinkie Pie wearing the largest smile anypony had ever seen in the history of time itself. “We need to throw a party!”
“Ah Pinkie,” began Applejack as she placed a hoof on her pink friend to try and calm her down. “Ah think we’d better check on our kin first. Celestia knows that our families are probably worried sick right now.”
“But we need to have a party!” insisted Pinkie as she began to bounce up and down. “Because all the bad stuff is over and nothing like this will never, ever happen again!”
“Pinkie,” said Rarity in a warning tone. “Don’t you dare jinx this.”
“But what could possibly go wrong?” asked Pinkie innocently. “Equestria and the Republic are going to be nice to each other from now on, there’s not another TOM falling towards our home, all of the meanies who have been having their super secret conspiracies are gone, and we’re finally going home! If all of that isn’t reason enough to throw a party that it’s all over without anything bad ever happening again, I don’t know what is.”
At that very moment in the sky above their heads there came a sound like glass being shattered. All the ponies there raised their heads to see what it was and their jaws dropped. In the sky was a crack of unimaginable size hovering above their heads. The inside of the crack was pale white, letting out an unnatural glow as several smaller cracks began to grow out of it.
For a moment, nopony said nor did anything. They just stared at it as if there were trying to process what was going on. Then, eventually, movement did begin to occur from them. It started with a twitch in Luna’s eye while Celestia covered both of hers with her hoof. After that, others began to get eye twitches followed by their bodies shaking in anger. Eventually, none of them could sit there any longer.
“OH COME ON!” they all shouted in unison.
“Ok big mean all powerful pony, I’ve had just enough!” screamed Pinkie as she shook a hoof to the sky. “First you mock me, making sure I couldn’t keep my pinkie promise to the Cakes by keeping all the tasty treats from the Republic away from me. That was mean, but this is too much! I want you to come down here this instant so I can have a few words with you.”
As Pinkie Pie said this, she slammed a hoof onto the ground. When she did this, several of the smaller cracks coming out of the larger one began to move. They snaked through the air as if it were made of solid matter as the cracks made their way to the mares below them. Seeing this the mares began to run away and spread out. This, however, only seemed to cause the cracks to increase their speed as well. Each one seemed to split off in pursuit of one of the six Bearers.
The first three to be reached by the cracks were Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity. The cracks did not touch them, but instead seemed to move around them as if they were cutting a hole beneath their hooves. And, indeed, this seemed to be the cause for as soon as all three mares had been surrounded the ground beneath them vanished in a brilliant white light taking the screaming mares with it.
Rainbow Dash was next. She had tried to out fly it while believing that, since she was in the air, she was safe. This hope was proven false rather quickly as the crack that had been following her zoomed past the multi mane colored pegasus before forming a hole right in front of her. Before Rainbow could register what it had done the sky in front of her vanished and so too did Rainbow Dash.
Applejack ran with all her might, keeping an eye on the crack following her. Sweat dripped from her brow as it soon began to circle her. Thinking quickly, she tried to jump over it before the hole could form. However, it was as if there was an invisible wall directly above the cracks keeping her in place. She turned around and tried her best to buck it, but before she could lift her hind legs she vanished into white light as well.
Now there was only Twilight left. She was backing away slowly as she and the two royal sisters tried blasting the cracks in an effort to save the last Element Bearer. Yet for all their power, their attacks didn’t even slow the cracks down. Twilight watched as Shining Armor put up a barrier that the crack passed through as if it wasn’t there as it increased its speed towards its target. Both Celestia and Luna moved to stand in front of Twilight, read to protect her with their bodies from this strange threat. Yet the crack simply moved in between the two as it headed for its target.
Seeing that nothing was going to slow this thing down anytime soon, Shadow moved to pick up Twilight. As they got into the air, the crack moved into the space between them and split them apart. As the crack began to surround a now helpless Twilight, Shadow shot towards her with all his might only to slam against the unseeable wall. But he didn’t stop. He pounded on it with both hooves as he called out her name.
And as Twilight turned to look at him, her world vanished.
Applejack was the first to stir on what felt like hardwood floor. She could hear excited, concerned voices that seemed far away. There were three of them, two female voices and one male. All of them were familiar, but her head was so groggy that she was having a hard time trying to figure out who they belonged to. In fact, her entire thought process felt like it was mush at the moment yet was getting better with each passing second. As she opened her eyes Applejack realized she was on her back looking up at three silhouetted figures. She tried to move, but the largest of the three placed a gentle hoof on her.
“Be still Applejack,” said a calming voice. “We had to pull you out rather roughly and do not know the extent of the damages done to you or your friends.” Hearing that something had happened to her friends, the possibility that they were all hurt, did not calm the earth mare down at all. Instead, adrenaline rushed through her body to accelerate her thinking process.
Her eyes began to focus more, allowing her to better see the figures around her. The large one, the one who had spoken, was Princess Celestia who was looking down at her with a clearly worried expression. Standing next to her was Princess Luna who looked more like she was observing the situation, keeping an eye out for anything that seemed off. Lastly there as Spike, looking a bit more relieved than Celestia but still somewhat worried. However, Applejack was a bit confused as she looked at him. Her memories were a bit hazy, but she was sure the last time she had seen him he had lost his scales.
Tilting her head slightly, Applejack began to take in more of the area she was in. It was a room made out of wood, with books lining the shelves that had been carved into the walls of the building. She knew at once that this was the Ponyville Library. But how did she get from the moon back to Ponyville? Before she could think of anything else, she saw that there were others in the library. Laying on the floor were the rest of her friends who also appeared to be stirring. Around all of them, including herself, Applejack spotted symbols written into the floor. And there, in the middle of the room, was a large purple crystal.
Seeing it made Applejack’s heart rate sky rocket as memories began to flood her mind. She remembered coming here to Twilight’s library because she wanted to show them a new spell. A ‘what if’ spell. And that crystal was important for some reason that she couldn’t remember! But, it looked a bit different now that she thought about it. There was now a large crack in it, visible from even where she lay at this moment.
“What in tarnation?” began Applejack as she slowly tried to get up. Her legs, however, for some reason felt weak and her head was throbbing something fierce. It felt like she was about to fall over when Spike appeared at her side to keep her on her hooves.
“Don’t push yourself so much,” he said. As he kept Applejack balanced, most of the others on the floor began to awaken as well. One by one, they opened their eyes to look around in utter confusion. The only one who was still struggling to wake up was Twilight who now had wings as well as a horn.
“How did we get back here?” asked Fluttershy after she had quickly looked around the room.
“The last thing I remember was that we were on the moon, talking about Twilight’s upcoming wedding before that…that thing appeared in the sky,” commented Rarity as she tried to slowly stand up. “Next thing I know everything goes white and I wake up on the floor. Dear me, I must look like a mess.”
“Forget what you look like,” snapped Rainbow as she too tried to get up. “We have to let everypony back on the moon now tha-” The pegasus then noticed where she was and, much like Applejack, began to remember Twilight’s spell. “Ok, what the hay is going on here?”
“And please don’t say it was all a dream,” said a deadpanned Pinkie Pie as she crossed her hooves. “That’s like totally the worst way this story could end.” The others stared at her for a moment, the pink mare’s expression shifting more towards confusion. “What?”
“Well,” began Spike. “This all started when you all came over to check up on Twilight because you hadn’t seen her in a while. When you got here, she explained how she had been working on a spell that would allow ponies to view a ‘what if’ situation. Do you all remember that?”
“I…believe so,” said Fluttershy as she closed her eyes, thinking hard. The murkiness of her mind was beginning to clear, yet that did little to ease her confusion. She could remember that day pretty well as well as the rest of her past. But, it was like there were other memories in there from another lifetime. One somewhat similar to her normal ones.
“I remember,” said Applejack who still had a hoof to her head, her memories as clear as Fluttershy’s. “But ah reckon something went wrong?”
“I think so,” said Spike honestly. “At first, when Twilight activated the spell, nothing seemed to happen. Then a bunch of tentacles shot out of the crystal and attached themselves to your foreheads. After that, you were all sucked into the crystal. I didn’t know if that was supposed to happen or not, but I thought I should inform the Princesses just to be on the safe side.” As he finished, he gestured to the two standing alicorns. “At the time, I was afraid I might be interrupting something important.”
The two sisters shared a look.
-x-Flashback-x-
Princess Celestia sat on her favorite balcony, the one that gave her a perfect view of both Canterlot and Ponyville, as she calmly sipped her tea. She knew that at this very moment, petitioners were lining up outside the castle, wishing to speak to her on various subjects. Most likely first in line would be Blueblood, coming to her to complain about not being turned into an alicorn himself or some other trifle that was slightly annoying him. Following that, there were also several other meetings she had scheduled throughout the day, ranging from a presentation on the national budget to several event planning sessions. All in all this would be a rather taxing, boring day.
Before she dealt with all of that, Celestia would need a calming moment like this. In front of her was the newspaper, the Canterlot Daily, open to the crossword puzzles so she could enjoy a game that would also keep her mind sharp. Next to it was a half eaten slice of cake she had saved from last night. There were no dire threats to her nation or some other crisis that would require her to act. Her sister was safe and in the castle, most likely asleep in her bed after a long night. Twilight was conducting a new magical study which she would enjoy reading about once it was finished. As Celestia set down her teacup while looking down at her newspaper, she felt like there was nothing that could get in the way of this perfect moment.
It was then that there was a knock on her door, causing the princess’s ears to flatten against her head in slight irritation at being disturbed during her private time. ‘Should have known this was too good to be true,’ she thought wearily as she took a deep, calming breath.
“Enter,” she said as she folded the Canterlot Daily. As she turned her head to see who it was, Celestia was delightedly surprised to see Luna entering her chambers. “Luna, how good to see you still up and about. What brings you here this early in the day?”
“I wished to speak with you,” said Luna, appearing a bit nervous as she looked away. “If that’s alright with you.”
“Of course, of course,” replied Celestia with a smile, her horn lighting up to teleport a pillow on the opposite side of the table. “Please, sit sister and tell me what is on your mind. Would you like some tea? Or perhaps some cake? I could call up the castle staff and have them whip something up.”
“There is no need,” replied Luna, who had moved over to the provided pillow while Celestia had been talking and sat down.
“Very well,” said Celestia as she put some cake on her fork and took a bite. “But if you should change your mind please let me know. Now, what would you like to talk to me about?”
“Well,” began Luna as she tapped the table with her hoof. “I have been thinking a lot lately of Shining Armor.”
Celestia grinned. “Oh, Luna. You should know better than that. He’s already taken. A bit late to propose your feelings for him.”
Luna scowled at this while her cheeks went red with embarrassment. “Sister,” she said in a warning tone.
“Sorry, but I couldn’t help it,” giggled Celestia as she placed a hoof over her mouth. “You should really see the look on your face right now. It’s priceless!”
Luna cocked an eyebrow. “I’m sure it is for you,” she said in a deadpanned voice. “But getting back on topic, I was thinking that since he is so far away from Canterlot it will be far more difficult for him to continue to do his duties as Captain of the Royal Guard.”
Celestia smiled as she levitated her tea cup to her mouth and took a sip. “I agree,” she said as she set the cup down. “While Shining Armor has done an excellent job as Captain, him being so far away will make it harder on all of us if there were ever an emergency. We can’t send him a letter via magic and wait for him to catch the next train while hoping the threat will wait long enough for him to get here.”
Luna seemed to visibly relax. “So you agree with me,” she said, watching as Celestia nodded. “I am relieved to hear that. I feared that I would have to fight you on this and the last thing I want right now is for us to have an argument. Well then, perhaps we should think about who will be succeeding him then.” Her horn then lit up before several folders appeared on the table. Each one of them had a name, rank, and picture of a pony within the Guard. “I have several candidates that I believe will make a worthy choice.”
“No need,” said Celestia as she picked up her tea cup once more with her magic. “I have already decided on who will be taking up the post of Captain of the Royal Guard.”
“You…decided this without me?” asked Luna, unable to hide the hurt on her face. “But-”
“Don’t worry,” said Celestia calmly as she sipped her tea. “I have done this plenty of times before and I have complete faith in Stareye’s abilities. Trust m-” Celestia stopped herself in mid sentence as she took note of her sister and realized what she was about to do. Ignoring her sister and her council, making all of the decisions just like she did before…before she lost Luna for a thousand years.
A wave of guilt washed over her as she eyed the folders on the table, which were now being gathered by Luna in her magic. She then looked up at her sister to find that her head was lowered, not really looking at anything as finished gathering the files that Celestia had not even bothered to really look at. Luna had clearly stayed up later than she usually did just to talk to her about this; something she felt was important and wanted to be a part of. And Celestia treated her like a little sister rather than her equal.
“Well,” said Celestia quickly, before Luna could get up and leave. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to see if there were any potential candidates that I might have overlooked. Are these your picks?”
For a moment, Luna stared at Celestia in utter disbelief. As if she couldn’t believe that Celestia was considering listening to her. Then, for a split second, a smile appeared on her face before it became more businesslike. Once again the files were spread across the table so that Celestia could get a better look.
“Indeed,” replied Luna with a hint of glee in her voice. “I have gone over many of these files and I have found these ponies to be exceptional. Lieutenant Aerial Ace has been training many of our troops for a number of years and his records show that he has given much to Equestria during his tour of duty. I believe that it would be cruel of us not to reward such loyalty and dedication. Then there is Private Hot Pants. Lieutenant Aerial Ace has reported himself that she has a talent for leadership and is good with on the spot thinking. While she does lack confidence, when the Changeling Invasion occurred she rose wonderfully to the occasion. I believe she could settle into this role wonderfully. But this one is the one I feel is best suited for the job.” With that, Luna pushed one of the files forwards with her own hooves, almost pushing Celestia’s cake off the table in the process.
Celestia eyed the picture attached to the file. “A bat pony?” she questioned before giving Luna a look. “You want to make a member of the Night Guard Captain? You better not be playing favorites here.”
“I am not,” said Luna in a matter of fact tone. “But I am surprised that in a thousand years there has never been a bat pony Captain, despite the Night Guard’s loyal service to Equestria even after I was banished.”
Celestia flattened her ears against her skull as she looked away, not wanting to inform her sister of a little piece of history that she was not particularly proud of. “A-Are you saying that we should give him the job just for that?” she asked quickly. “Other members of the Guard have been just as loyal.”
“Well,” began Luna as she took a breath. “I am glad to see that things have improved so much for the bat ponies since my exile. Ponies might give them a second look, but beyond that they have little trouble finding employment or housing. But remembering how much hardship they endured in the past, it is surprising that they have served this country in the way that they have been. Sure, eighty nine percent of the past Captain of Guard have been unicorns, there have been a few pegasi and even an earth pony or two. No bat ponies!
“But that is not the only reason I have selected this stallion. Celestia, his records speak for itself. All I ask is that you look at them, as well as the rest of the files I have brought, and make an informed decision.”
Celestia let out a small sigh before lifting the bat pony’s file up with her magic and opening it. True to Luna’s word, just by glancing over it she saw that it was impressive. While he was young, this stallion was as skilled in combat as an old war vet while still being level headed. Several of his former commanding officers had written him warm recommendations. He also had lead several teams on various missions. One thing that stuck out was a recounting of what had happened during the Changeling Invasion not too long ago. According to the file, he and his squad had been positioned on the outer edge of Canterlot which was, admittedly, the poorer section along with a group of Solar Guard. When the attack began, both he and a member of the Solar Guard, Hot Pants, had coordinated together in order to evacuate as many of the civilians as possible while doing their best to take down as many Changelings as possible. As they were planning how to make it to the castle, Shining Armor and Cadence’s love wave drove back the Changelings.
‘It’s sad that I find member of the Night and Solar Guard working together impressive,’ thought Celestia sadly. She had heard of a number of reports that day, most of them talking about how the Solar Guard put up a pitiful fight against the invading army while the Night Guard snoozed through it. Those that didn’t had hints of one Guard trying to upstage the other in order to gain some small measure of glory.
“Well Luna, his file does look impressive,” admitted Celestia. “I still feel that a unicorn might be best for this position. One that can protect Canterlot with powerful shield spells and other such magic like Shining Armor could.” Luna opened her mouth to say something, but Celestia continued. “Yet, as we have seen, a smart enemy will find ways around such spells. I will admit that I feel rather conflicted on this.”
“Well Celestia, you don’t have to make all the decisions by yourself anymore,” said Luna calmly. “Not only do you have me, but also Cadence and now Twilight Sparkle. Perhaps you could even consult Shining Armor on this matter.”
“Hmm,” mused Celestia as she rubbed her chin with her hoof. “You do bring up a valid point.” She then looked at her sister while setting down her hoof. “Would you mind listening to my reasons for picking Stareye? Perhaps then you can understand why I am considering him or point out something that you feel might make him less suited for the position.”
Luna beamed. “Of course,” she said happily.
“Well,” began Celestia. “First off I know his father very well. In fact, we-” Just then there was a flash of green flames that appeared between the two sisters followed by a scroll falling on the table. Knowing only one who could have sent her a message in this fashion, Celestia wasted no time in picking up the scroll and read the short, quickly written message.
“Sister,” said Celestia after she had finished reading, standing up with a worried look on her face. “We need to head to Ponyville! Something has happened to Twilight and her friends!”
-x-End Flashback-x-
“It was nothing that couldn’t be rescheduled Spike,” said Celestia. “And you did the right thing by contacting the two of us as quickly as you did.”
“So, ah, what happened exactly?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“It appears Princess Twilight made a small error in her spell work,” replied Luna as she gestured to the symbols on the ground with one of her wings.
“According to Spike, the spell Twilight was working on was Starswirl’s ‘what if’ spell,” said Celestia. “I remember him working on it when I was very young. Starswirl knew there were an uncountable number of worlds out there, some very similar to our own while others were completely different. After many years of study and guess work, he concluded that all of these worlds were the result of a different choice that could have been made. For example, he found where he had used his magical knowledge for self gain rather than for the greater good. In that world, Equestria was in shambles while he had been stabbed in the back by a mare who wanted his wealth. Then he found worlds where ponies were not the dominate species or we looked very different than what we normally do.
“Traveling to these worlds was tricky, however. Some worlds required certain conditions to travel to and would only be available for a short amount of time. Then there was the fact that he was entering worlds at random, not knowing what he would find and having to do research in that world to see what had caused it to become the way it was. He craved a way to witness particular worlds that he desired to see whenever it suited his fancy, yet knew that it would be highly unlikely that he could find these worlds with his limited life span without a great deal of luck. So, if he couldn’t find the desired world he would, instead, make them.” At this point, Celestia took hold of the cracked crystal and held it up in front of the smaller mares. “The spell he had left in the journey works by having this crystal collect as much information as it could before creating a micro universe within it. That universe would then move forwards along the set parameters that the creator wished. He then began to work on a method that would allow the creator as well as others to project their astral bodies into the micro universe to observe it safely. I fear that Twilight made a miscalculation that, instead of doing this, sucked your physical bodies inside before merging them with your counterparts.”
The mares stared at her blankly, clearly not understanding what she was saying. Even Pinkie Pie who normally understood this kind of stuff for some reason looked just as confused as the rest of them.
“I got this,” said Spike as he stepped forwards while clearing his throat. “Basically, you all got sucked into a tiny world Twilight created and merged with yourselves.”
“Oooh,” said all of the mane six who were awake now in unison.
“Spike, it is simply amazing that you understood all that so well,” exclaimed Rarity.
“Not really,” said Spike as she tried to play it cool. “After living with Twilight for so long you tend to pick up a few things.”
“Guess that explains why mah head feels cluttered,” said Applejack. “Feels like ah’m flipping through two family photo albums. Most of it feels mighty similar, but there are a few differences as well.”
“Same here,” said Rainbow, her eyes closed as if she suddenly had a nasty headache. “I know I never had to help Color Scheme deliver her work, but I have these memories. It’s like I lived through them myself.”
“Um, I hate to bother everypony,” said Fluttershy, who was now standing next to Twilight’s unconscious body. “But, ah, why hasn’t Twilight woken up yet?”
“It is a mystery to me,” admitted Celestia as she approached her former student. “When I and my sister realized what had happened, we feared forcefully pulling you girls out might cause some damage. In fact, had Applejack not awoken as quickly as she did I would have insisted on bringing you all to the castle hospital wing. I am at a loss as to why Twilight is having trouble waking up.”
Luna let out a ‘hmm’ as she tapped her hoof against her chin. “Applejack, you said that your memories of both worlds are similar with only a few differences here and there?”
“Ah, yes ma’am,” said Applejack with a nod, her headache beginning to dull. “At least up until the Summer Sun Celebration. That’s when things really went off the deep end of the pond.”
“Interesting,” said Luna as she looked at Twilight. “Tell me, was Twilight’s life in that world similar to the one she has lived in this world?”
“Nope,” said Pinkie Pie as she began bouncing up and down. “In that world she lived on the moon and was Princess Luna’s student instead. The two of them seemed really close, almost like mother and daughter. Her real parents were dead, Shining Armor was super duper protective of her, had a lot of friends like Lightning Dust and Vinyl Scratch ever since she was a filly, she was going to get married, adopted Scootaloo, shoot Spike because the Lunar Republic had some mean rule about no dragons, she was related to this earth pony who wanted to drop a big rock on Equestria, and had a super important job as an Assistant Director!”
Celestia stopped there, her mouth hanging open as she stared at the bright pink peppy pony as she tried to process this information. Twilight had friends when she was a filly? Was going to be getting married? Shot Spike? She could see Shining Armor being a bit overprotective, but that was it. What the hay happened in that crystal?
“Sister,” said Celestia, “what do you make of all of this?” As she turned to look at Luna, Celestia saw that her sister had a far off expression on her face.
“I…I had my own country?” whispered Luna, a hint of happiness in her eyes.
“Luna!” Celestia almost shouted, getting her sister into the present.
“W-What?” stammered Luna.
“What do you make of this?” asked Celestia as she gestured from the five standing mares to Twilight.
“Oh, right,” said Luna, looking slightly red in the face before she composed herself. “I will admit that we have never seen anything like this before and Starswirl didn’t record much about this spell. But if I had to make a shot in the dark, I believe Twilight is in her current condition because her mind now carries with it two very different sets of memories that are now clashing with each other. Hopefully, in time, the memories she has of this world will triumph. But until then, she may experience some confusion along with some other side effects.”
Spike moved in front of Celestia now and looked up to her with big, watery eyes. “But, she’s going to be ok, right?” he begged.
“We will do all we can Spike,” said Celestia evenly as she wiped away a tear from the young dragon’s face with her wing.
“Well how about we just blast those memories out of her head then?” suggested Rainbow as she pushed the air in front of her. “With those memories gone, she’ll wake right up.”
“Ah, but then won’t she think her spell failed and she might try again?” said Fluttershy. “Or won’t she be curious to see everything we saw? You know how curious she can get at times. She might want to go back in.”
Rainbow opened her mouth to say something, but it was Celestia who spoke first. “Even under the best circumstances, erasing memories is tricky,” she said, gaining everypony’s attention. “The mind is not like a book or a scroll, with everything neatly situated. It is more like an ocean, with some memories and thoughts lurking in its dark depths until they are ready to surface. If we were to do this right now and we missed some of those memories, there is the risk that she will have a full blown mental breakdown or become paranoid while she wonders what else we have altered. I believe that we should just be there for her as she works through what has happened. In time, her own memories will become dominant to that of her other self.”
Applejack opened her mouth, ready to tell the princess that if she was expecting Twilight to forget everything that happened then she had another thing coming. Well, she’d phrase it nicer of course. After everything that had happened, there was no way any of them would forget this experience. But, just as Applejack opened her mouth to speak, Twilight began to moan loudly. As everypony turned to look at the young alicorn, they saw her beginning to fidget on the ground.
“Looks like she is coming to,” said Princess Luna as she approached Twilight, standing next to her sister just in time to witness Twilight’s eyes opening.
For Twilight Sparkle, the world was a savage array of blurs as she opened her eyes. Her head was pounding unlike anything she had ever experienced in her life. She had been turned to stone, had her horn stolen by a crazy chaos spirit, almost buried alive in a cave in, and stabbed by her uncle. But this pain was so unbearable that she would have done them all over again if it meant getting some relief. At least when she was stabbed the pain was…wait, she had been stabbed?
“Twilight Sparkle, it is good to see that you are awake,” came the voice of her teacher, Princess Luna. “Are you well? Is there anything you need?”
“Luna, enough,” said Princess Celestia, the pony who had been her mentor for years. “There is no need to rush this. Let her get her bearings first.”
Twilight looked at the two princesses, her mind giving her completely different memories and emotions of the two. The taller of the two, Princess Celestia was the pony who allowed bat ponies to suffer for a thousand year and invaded her sister’s dream in order to manipulate her. She was the kind mentor who had taken Twilight under her wing, making Twilight her personal pupil until Twilight became an alicorn. Princess Luna was the mare who, in her jealousy and loneliness, had gone insane until finally she took on the name Nightmare Moon, the first threat she and her friends had faced together. She was also the ruler of the Lunar Republic, an advanced society of ponies that included Twilight who lived on the moon. She was the mare who was like a mother to her after her parents death and-
Shock filled Twilight’s heart, causing her to hyperventilate. Her parents were dead? How could that be? She had the memory of the cave in, her brother telling her that they died to give them more time back when she was just a little filly. Yet she could also remember visiting them back in Canterlot just after her coronation! Both memories felt so real!
“Twilight, you need to try and calm down,” said Princess Celestia in a worried tone along with the sound of crystal hitting the ground.
Twilight, however, was not paying attention to her. Instead she was crawling backwards on her back as she looked frantically around the room, searching her surroundings as if looking for some source of comfort. All she found were more conflicting thoughts. Part of her said that this was her home, a safe place where she and her friends would gather. It was the place where she had her first slumber party with Rarity and Applejack. It was the place her princess- No, no, NO! She didn’t live here nor had she ever. She only visited this place to gather information on how the ponies of Equestria viewed Princess Luna and the Republic. She lived in Dome One and her first sleepover was with Lightning Dust and Derpy!
“Twilight please,” came Spike’s voice as he raced over to her. Twilight looked over at him and saw how scared he was. She knew Spike, but the memories began to battle for dominance in her head once again. She shut her eyes tightly as the image of her shooting her number one assistant in the chest appeared in her head. After all, there were no dragons allowed in Equestria so what she did was…
“AHHH!” screamed Twilight, causing all the other ponies to back up. Her head hurt so much as she tried to process everything. Tears began to roll down her face while she clutched the sides of her head with her hooves. Perhaps her magic was lighting up as well, but Twilight couldn’t be sure. All she knew was that something about her memories wasn’t right. Did she have an assistant? Of course: Spike. He had been her assistant since he was very little. No, that was wrong. She hadn’t met him until recently. When Equestria sent a delegation.
“Twilight, please,” begged Celestia as Twilight screamed loudly again.
“We might have to put her to sleep,” said Luna as her horn began to glow. “At least until we can get her someplace where she can receive some help. Perhaps see that therapist you have in your employ, Dr. Jackal, will be better able to help. For her own good.”
Celestia bit her lower lip. She had no desire to have Twilight moved and taken to someplace she didn’t know. Nor did she want anypony to see the newest princess in this state. Then there was the fact that Dr. Jackal was a criminal psychiatrist, thus Celestia did not feel he was best suited for this situation. However, as she looked down at Twilight who now had veins appearing around her skull; the princess of the day knew she had to do something.
‘Perhaps we could simply put her to sleep for now,’ thought Celestia. ‘Twilight’s friends seem to be doing better by the minute so there is a good chance that Twilight might simply need more time to adjust. Or Luna could enter her dreams and help her untangle her memories, help her seem what has happened here and push aside all that happened in that other world.’
Just as Celestia was about to open her mouth and give Luna permission to put Twilight to sleep the door to the library opened. Everypony turned their head to look and see who it was. It was a bat stallion with the deepest black coat they had ever seen. His helmet was off so that they all had no trouble seeing his messy purple mane nor his golden eyes. At the sight of him, the members of the mane six who were staying felt their eyes widen in sock.
“Princess!” yelled Shadow Blade, gaining the attention of Twilight. “I’ve been hearing screaming! Is everything ok?”
Twilight’s mind registered the voice, her eye perking at the sound of it as her screaming stopped. For the first time since she had woken up, there was no contradiction within her mind with who that voice belonged to. There was only one set of memories that flowed through her head like a gentle brook. As she began to focus on it, while getting up to look at the stallion, Twilight could feel the pain in her head lessen. As she kept her gaze on Shadow and her memories of him flowing undisturbed, it felt like her sanity was returning. He was safe and here with her. She knew that, together, they would be alright.
Twilight’s horn lit, surprising everypony in the room, before she suddenly teleported in front of Shadow Blade. The stallion took a step back, only able to say the word “Princess,” before his lips were captured by Twilight’s own. Both Celestia and Luna gaped in shock, their eyes wider than they had ever been in their entire lives and their jaws nearly hit the floor. The rest of the mane six began to look uncomfortable as they watched Twilight deepen the kiss, wrapping her forelegs around the stallion’s neck so as to bring him closer. As for Shadow, he was just as wide eyed as the princesses (at least the ones not kissing him) and his body was rigid.
Finally, Twilight pulled away with a blissfully happy expression on her face. “Shadow, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said. “I think whatever that crack in the sky we saw did something…to…my…” Twilight’s voice began to trail off as her heart rate began to pick up once more. Shadow’s rigid posture was off putting as well as his expression of shock, as if he had never experienced a kiss from her before. Twilight began to wonder in something had happened to him when she noticed something: his scar was missing!
Twilight began to back away from the frozen guard as horror became clear on her face. Shadow, the Shadow she knew and loved, would never get rid of that scar. It was a reminder of the day his father had given his life to save him. There was no way in the void he would ever give have it removed! Wait, what was the void again? She-
Twilight’s rear hoof then hit something as she was backing up. She turned her head and saw the purple crystal lying there on the floor. Her eyes went wide as she stared at it. Then…
“No!” she yelled. “NO! NO! NOOOOOOOOOOO!” Before anypony could move, Twilight’s horn lit up brightly before she vanished from sight.
“Twilight!” called out Celestia as she raced out the door, her own horn lighting up so that she could trace Twilight’s magical trail. She was not about to let her student run around in this confused state. Once she was outside, Celestia opened her wings and flew off into the sky while ignoring the questioning looks of the local ponies around her.
Meanwhile, back in the tree library, Spike began to run towards the door as well along with the rest of Twilight’s friends. No words needed to be said on what their plan was. They all knew that Twilight needed help and so there was no question that that’s what they were going to do: find her and help her.
Luna, however, had other plans as she teleported in front of the doorway. “Stop!” she bellowed loudly as she stomped her hoof. The mares and Spike skidded to a holt but did not look like they were going to stay that way for long.
“Move out of the way!” yelled Rainbow Dash.
“We need ta help find Twi,” said Applejack.
“Please move,” begged Fluttershy.
Luna held up a hoof to silence them. “I know you are all worried about your friend,” she began. “But given the situation, all of you running out to find her might make the situation worse. So, I must insist that you all remain here a bit longer.”
“No way!” yelled Spike as he tried to run past Princess Luna. He did not get far as Luna used her magic to levitate Spike off the ground and move him back so he was with the mares once more.
“Spike,” said Luna as she looked at the dragon. “Twilight is in a state of confusion. While I do not know what has happened to her in that other world, I believe that my sister is best suited to handle this. She is more familiar with Twilight’s magical signature so she will be able to find her easily. When she finds Twilight, hopefully there will be nopony else around or Celestia will be able to convince Twilight to speak with her privately. That way, it will be a one on one conversation with fewer things to conflict with Twilight’s mind. My sister should then be able to help Twilight separate her memories or, at the very least, keep her calm.”
“But what if she can’t?” asked Pinkie.
At this, Luna looked away. She knew that Celestia would never willingly hurt Twilight. She cared about her former pupil far too much to do something like that. But at the same time, she would never allow Twilight to endanger herself or those around.
“If worse comes to worst, Celestia will do what needs to be done,” said Luna eventually, a bit of hurt escaping her voice. “Hopefully, she will only put our friend to sleep. And if that does happen, I am sure that you would all rather be here for her the moment she is brought back to her home. Is that not correct?”
Twilight’s friends looked at each other for a little bit before Applejack spoke up. “Ah guess what ya say makes sense. But that don’t we mean like it none.”
“Nor do I,” said Luna with a sad nod.
“Princess,” said Shadow Blade as he approached Luna. “Does your majesty wish me to assist Princess Celestia in finding Princess Twilight?”
Luna quickly eyed the sole stallion in the room. While she was less than pleased with how he had frozen in shock a few minutes ago, she was willing to let that slide for now. After all, nopony in the room was expecting Twilight Sparkle of all ponies to Prench kiss him. It was at least commendable on his part that he had snapped out of it and wanted to search for the wayward princess. However…
“Given how she reacted, I do not believe that to be wise,” said Luna before eyeing the crystal on the ground. “Perhaps we should all be caught up to speed on what happened in that other world.”
-x-
Celestia flew through the sky above Ponyville as she searched for her student. She could sense Twilight using multiple teleports that seemed random. One moment she is at the school which (thankfully) was closed for the day then she was at Sweet Apple Acres followed by Rarity’s shop. There was a small pause in between each of these jumps that led Celestia to believe that Twilight was looking around quickly before moving to her next destination.
And then Celestia felt Twilight teleport high above Ponyville and then…nothing. She was remaining as stationary as she could on a cloud, allowing Celestia a moment to let out a sigh of relief. She hoped that this meant that Twilight was calming down and would allow the two of them to speak. If she wasn’t, if she was still panicking or in a state of confusion, then Celestia knew that she would have to do something in order to help her former pupil.
With a great flap of her wings, Celestia rose up higher into the sky. She passed all of the other pegasi flying by without giving them a second glance. At this time, all that mattered was Twilight. Soon, Celestia found herself way above the clouds right behind the purple alicorn who was looking down at the small town below her with her shoulders slumped. For a moment, Celestia just hovered there. She didn’t want to say anything or move towards Twilight for fear that she might startle her. But Twilight never turned to look at her nor did she give any indication that she knew Celestia was there. She just sat there.
'Well, guess I’ll have to take a chance,’ thought Celestia as she glided towards the cloud. She kept her eyes on Twilight as she gently landed on the cloud and moved to sit besides her. If Twilight was aware of her being there, she showed no signs of it. Now that she was besides her, Celestia could see the thin strands of wetness moving down Twilight’s face.
“Twilight,” said Celestia in her warmest, most comforting voice. “I know you have been through a lot-”
“It’s true, I really am home,” said Twilight, wincing slightly as she spoke as if doing so caused her pain. “I’m…no longer Assistant Director Twilight Sparkle of the Lunar Republic. I had to look around to make sure of it, but there’s no denying what world I’m in now and who I am. I’m Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria.”
“I’m…glad you are coming to terms with that,” said Celestia, not knowing how to really approach something like this. “I take it that you are getting better at distinguishing between the memories?”
Twilight shook her head. “They’re still all jumbled around,” she said. “I am getting mixed feelings whenever I look around, mixed memories. They blur together sometimes. Like when I look down at Ponyville.” Twilight lifted a hoof and pointed it at the small town below. “I can still remember this place as my home, where I met my best friends. I can remember helping Applejack with the cider challenge, Trixie challenging me to a magical duel, and Pinkie Pie cloning herself. But I also have memories of seeing Applejack and her brother treat Shadow Blade with suspicion. A place where I found out that Princess Luna’s holiday had been corrupted. I remember standing before the two of you and saying that I didn’t believe merging our two countries would ever work.”
Twilight then turned to look at her former mentor, tears flowing with more force now. “When I look at you now it’s the same,” continued Twilight. “I know that the Celestia I see here now is a kind ruler who has governed Equestria for a thousand years with peace and love. We have so much to be thankful for.” Twilight then shut her eyes tightly. “But I keep my feelings of the other you from mingling in. I see you as her. The princess who sat back and did nothing but talk while the bat ponies suffered. The princess who invaded Princess Luna’s dreams to manipulate her into doing what she wanted. I…I can’t get that image out of my head of Princess Luna crying in a corner because of what you did to her.”
Twilight flinched as she felt something wrap around her, covering her body with warmth. She dared to open her eyes a crack and saw that it was Celestia, wrapping her body up with one of her wings as she pulled the smaller princess closer to her.
“Twilight, you have no idea how much I wish I could help you forget all of this,” said Celestia softly. “All the pain you have suffered. From seeing both Equestria and myself from being…how we used to be. But…it’s not possible.”
“H-How it used to be?” echoed Twilight as she suddenly pulled away, her eyes wide in horror. “You mean…No, it can’t be true. There’s no way you could have ever been like that!”
Celestia stared at Twilight for a moment before sadly nodding her head. “I’m ashamed to admit it, but it is true,” said the sun princess.
Now it was Twilight’s turn to stare silently at the other figure sitting on the cloud. Her mouth hung open as her already confused mind tried to process this. It didn’t seem possible. Princess Celestia had never acted like that other Celestia she knew. She had always be a figure of love and justice.
“I…I just don’t see how it is possible,” said Twilight finally in disbelief.
“Time and events change a pony, dearest Twilight,” said Celestia as she turned to look at the peaceful view below her. “Back when I first took the throne after my parents left, I believed all I needed was words. Back then, word traveled so much slower than it does now, sometimes word of certain events or atrocities being lost entirely. And when I did hear something horrible had happened, I firmly believed that a kind voice could steer my little ponies back onto the right path with nothing else to back it up. It wasn’t until my two greatest failures occurred that I woke up and saw the reality before me.”
“Was one of those Nightmare Moon?” asked Twilight as she moved besides Celestia.
“I cannot take full credit for Nightmare Moon,” said Celestia as she looked over at Twilight. “Many factors came into play to create her. Luna…her ego was starved for the love and affection that I received every day. And, like any starved creature, she became desperate to feed the growing hunger inside of her until she was willing to do whatever it took to end her starvation. Even if it meant killing her entire family and plunging the world into an endless night.” Celestia’s head lowered a bit more. “I spoke to my subjects many times trying to get them to view her night sky or appear at her court. But, that was all I ever did. I never announced I was going to see a meteor shower that Luna had planned. I was never seen out at night doing anything, just staying in my room while I awaited my slumber.
“Then came that fateful night. Luna was feeling more alone than ever. I could tell something was going wrong with her, that she needed help. Sh-She made me promise that I would be there for her when she woke up for her shift. She needed me to be there because it was an important night. I could see how much this meant to Luna, how much she needed this, so I agreed. But I had forgotten I had prior arrangements, one of which took me far away from the castle. I lost track of time and was delayed from returning. When I finally returned home…”
Celestia shuttered as a horrible memory flashed in her head. She could see Nightmare Moon standing in the audience hall of the Castle of the Two Royal Sisters, her hoof pressing down against their father’s throat as she laughed gleefully at his pain. Next to Celestia, frozen in fear, was Oceana as her remaining daughter held up the Elements of Harmony.
Eventually, Celestia gulped before turning to look at Twilight who had moved back to her mentor’s side. “I’m sorry Twilight, but it is still difficult to talk about that night. Even after a thousand years the memory is painful. Perhaps another day you will hear the full story.”
“I understand,” replied Twilight as she thought to her stabbing in that other world. She knew how difficult it could be on a pony to experience somepony they loved and trusted attacking them. “You…You said there were two things. Do you mind if I ask what the second was?”
For a time, Celestia just sat there while her wings slumped. She closed her eyes tightly; soon tears began to leak out of the corners of her eyes. It was as if she were reliving some horrible moment. Then, when she opened them, Celestia looked at Twilight and nodded.
“The other event that changed me was the deaths of Night Owl and Sonic Echo,” said Celestia before she let out a loud sniff.
“I remember them,” said Twilight as memories of both her lives picked up on the names. “I remember reading somewhere that they were the original Night Guard. There’s even a statue dedicated to them in the Canterlot Garden! In the other world, they went with Princess Luna to Hoofshire when her supports were under attack. It was that incident as well as you saying you would give a little speech on Heart’s Warming that caused Princess Luna to leave.”
Celestia’s ears perked at the words ‘her supporters’. That, along with what Pinkie Pie had told them gave Celestia a good idea on what change Twilight had made to create her own world. True, it was just a theory until she asked Twilight but it felt like the odds were in her favor that her former student had created a world where Luna had never become Nightmare Moon. That she received the same level of admiration and love that Celestia had. Yet from the sounds of it, they still had a falling out.
“I see you are getting better at separating the memories you now carry,” said Celestia with a small smile. “And…I can see my old self doing something like that.”
“So, how did their deaths affect you like that?” asked Twilight.
Celestia let out a sigh. “I suppose, if you are to best understand, you will need to know a bit more about them,” said the sun princess, her eyes falling on the Cake family as she did. The adults were pushing the baby carriage down the street below them while the twins slumbered peacefully. Celestia could not help but let out another sigh.
“You said in that other world, bat ponies were suffering and I only used my words to try to stop it,” continued Celestia. “That was true back then in this world as well. While my mother, Oceana, enacted laws that stopped the deaths of newborn bat pony foals the practice picked up right under our noses right after she left. Neither me nor Luna had any idea it was going on since there were no hospitals back then nor were there birth records. Luna, one night as she was patrolling the lands, spotted the two bat ponies who she said were caught on high tree branches. When she brought them back to the castle I was in denial. I couldn’t accept that my, er, our, subjects at the time were still doing this. So, I shut my eyes to the truth and told Luna that she should take the foals to the local orphanage in the morning.
“My sister did as I asked only to bring them right back. She said she got an uneasy feeling when the matron looked at the foals, one that she was unable to shake off. After that day, Luna cared for the two of them as if they were her own colts. They were like two small shadows that would follow her everywhere. Luna was strict with them, but always showed that she loved them and they showed her their love in return. Looking back on those days and what would come later, I believe that without them Luna would have turned into Nightmare Moon much sooner. While I enjoyed a feast of love and affection, they provided her with slices of bread. Not enough to halt her jealousy, but enough to keep it at bay for a time.
“During those days Luna also went looking for more bat ponies when she could so that she could find evidence of more abuse. However, this proved difficult since she had to do it herself during a time when only she, Owl, and Echo were awake. The few times she did find something she was too late to be of any real help. I can recall a few times when she rose me from my slumber telling me she found a dead bat pony.”
“And I take it you still didn’t do anything?” asked Twilight, already knowing the answer.
Celestia nodded grimly as she bit into her lower lip. “To my eternal shame. I wanted to believe anything else could have been the cause of their deaths, even when Luna dragged me to see their bodies. It could have been a timber wolf attack. It could have been disease. It could have been from any number of causes. I did make plans to try and figure out the cause, picking out ponies who I believed who put their all into the task, and setting aside funds to do all of this. But, I took too long.
“Eventually, the two colts became stallions. Rather than going out into the world and forging their own path like I suggested, they instead vowed to protect Luna as her first ever Guard. They began to join her on her flights through the lands, keeping monsters from entering towns and looking for more bat ponies to save. And, for a time, looked like they were making progress. Luna told me once before things went south that she had found hints that there were hidden colonies of bat ponies out there. She had decided to approach them slowly, to earn their trust. I do not know if she ever did approach them or not for my sister did not share with me any of the specifics. I believe it was in an effort to keep their trust as well as to protect them from ponies who would wish them harm. Luna did promise when that when they were ready to come out in the open, I would be by her side. But that day never came as my Captain of the Guard, Holy Justice, approached me on an issue involving the Night Guard.”
Once Celestia said the name ‘Holy Justice’, her features transformed in front of Twilight’s eyes. Her mane seemed to become more jagged. Her teeth began to grit and there was a fire in her eyes the likes that Twilight had never seen before. And her face! The one she was seeing right now made the look Celestia had given the Changeling Queen look more like a puppy trying to look threatening.
“Holy Justice,” spat Celestia angrily, “said that he wanted to better incorporate Luna’s Guard into the rest of the Guard. Said that they would never be accepted if they only hung around my sister all the time. Said he would send them on missions with other members of the Guard. I thought that was a wonderful idea so much so that I agreed to it on the spot, without asking Luna what she thought. What I didn’t know was that Holy Justice was sending them alone, under geared, on the most dangerous missions he had on his desk in order to get rid of them. They would be gone for weeks at a time, sometimes months, without a word how they were doing. And their stay at home was always short, Holy Justice made sure that they were on another mission a few days later. They never complained about this, most likely wanting to prove to everypony that Luna was not mistaken by allowing them to be part of the Guard. But, it was while they were away that Luna began to withdraw more and more each time I saw her. She even began to think that they had abandoned or turned against her in order to fit in! It was during one of their longest missions that she finally broke down and became Nightmare Moon.”
“I see,” said Twilight as she looked down.
“After that night, I stayed in my room for several days,” continued Celestia, the anger in her voice being replaced with sadness once more. “I ignored all of my duties as I laid in my bed, racking my mind trying to figure out how this could have happened and if there could have been anything to avoid it. I only left my room when heard a commotion as well as the voices of Night Owl and Sonic Echo. Realizing that they must have just returned from their mission, I teleported outside to the courtyard so that I could tell them what happened. But when I a-arrived…” Celestia’s voice trailed off as tears began to run down her face. “N-Night Owl was being stabbed by my Solar Guard. Their f-faces, they looked l-like monsters, not ponies as they gleefully sunk their spears into Owl’s body. Echo he…he was flying through the air trying to escape the pegasi. When he saw me he made a mad dash in my direction. I ordered everypony there to stop, but they ignored me. Several more times I commanded them to stop until I saw a beam pierce through Echo’s body, shot in the back by Holy Justice. Echo fell to the ground in front of me while death began to claim him. His last words were asking where his mother was.”
Twilight could not believe what she was hearing. In all of the books she had read in her lifetime, this one at least, she had never even found so much as a footnote that would indicate something like this could have happened. In fact, if it wasn’t for the ‘what if’ spell such actions would have been inconceivable to the young alicorn. But here she was, listening to Princess Celestia as she spoke of events from so long ago.
Celestia’s anger returned, her wings rising slightly as if she were a hawk ready to dive down of some unsuspecting prey. “Holy Justice approached me, claiming that he suspected that they were agents of Nightmare Moon. That he had wanted to detain them but they resisted. I didn’t buy that for a second for I had seen the looks in their eyes as they murdered their comrades. I personally sent them to the deepest, darkest pits of Tartarus and left them to rot there.”
The Princess of the Day then looked down at a shocked and horrified Twilight, feeling her anger diminishing as she did. “After that, it was like I was looking at the world for the first time. I looked at Equestria, realizing that my patience to plan things out had resulted in a sort of stagnation. Advances in the area of technology were almost zero, many unicorns still believed themselves to be superior, and so on. I resolved to change both myself and Equestria to make them better. It took time for old habits truly die hard, but I was eventually able to find what I felt was the right mix of assertiveness and patience. As for the bat ponies, it took forty five years for me to gain their trust and bring back the Night Guard.”
Twilight said nothing at first. The pain in her head had lessened a great deal, but it was still having a hard time processing this new information. She had never had a clue that any of this had happened or had taken into consideration that having to seal her own sister into the moon had resulted in a positive change for Princess Celestia. If she had, she might have rephrased her spell better.
It was then a thought crossed Twilight’s mind. As the thought continued to linger in her head, Twilight began to shift through her memories with all the focus she could muster. It must have been a weird sight, seeing the newest princess sitting on a cloud with her face all scrunched up. But Twilight didn’t care what she looked like at that moment. What mattered was trying to confirm something. And when she came up with nothing, she began to fear the worse.
“Does,” began Twilight, slightly hesitant. “Does Princess Luna know what happened to Night Owl and Sonic Echo?”
Twilight’s suspicions were confirmed as Celestia shook her head. “No Twilight. She knows they died shortly after she vanished, but I have avoided telling her anything else. While she tries to hide it, I know that Luna carries a great amount of guilt over what she became and what she tried to do. I fear that knowing this will only cause her to blame herself over their deaths.”
“I see,” said Twilight, her ears drooping as she said this.
“I think,” said Celestia as she stood up, “that we have kept your friends worrying about you long enough.”
“My friends!” shouted Twilight, her thoughts shifting towards her close friends as she jumped to her hooves. A new, fresh wave of panic washed over her. “Oh, I dragged them into that world! We could have been stuck there forever thinking that was our home! They are going to be so mad at me!”
“I believe that they are more worried about your well being at the moment,” said Celestia gently as she flapped her wings to take off into the air. With a gesture, she motioned Twilight to follow her. Twilight, she couldn’t help but notice, was having a bit of difficulty flying in any sort of straight line and several times Celestia had to assist her in order to prevent the purple alicorn from crashing into the ground below. But soon enough they both had their hooves back on the ground.
“Twilight,” said Celestia as she began to walk to Twilight’s home with Twilight right behind her. “For now I think it best if you take some time to recover. I can tell that you are slowly feeling better, but I want to make sure there are no lasting side effects. Promise me you will try and take it easy before the Princess Summit as well as seeing a doctor if you even notice something is amiss. Then, once the Summit is over, I would love to hear everything that you saw in that other world.”
“I’m,” began Twilight but stopped when Celestia gave her a worried look.
“You are not fine,” she said in a firm voice that said that the matter was closed. When she spoke next, her voice had regained its compassionate tone. “You have been through too much Twilight and it will not do you any good if you do not take care of yourself. That should go for your friends as well.”
As much as she wanted to argue with Princess Celestia, Twilight knew she was right. The pain in her head when she had first woken up was a big enough indicator that something was wrong. Well that and kissing Shadow like that! What would happened if she ran into some other pony she only knew from that other world like Scorpio, Bunsen Burner, or Sunset Shimmer? How would she react? Or what would happen if she got the worlds mixed up again or began suffering major head pains again? That might interfere with her new royal duties…whatever they were.
‘Princess Celestia is right,’ thought Twilight after voicing her agreement. ‘I should try and relax until I head up to the Crystal Empire.’
As the two princesses walked through the streets, the ponies of Ponyville moved out of the way so that their path was unrestricted. They also stopped what they were doing, being it talking to another pony or shopping on this nice day, so that they could bow as the pair passed. Twilight blushed with discomfort at this new sign of respect, hoping that it wouldn’t be like this forever. She didn’t know if she could handle it.
About halfway back to her library, Twilight noticed a familiar orange filly heading in their direction. Scootaloo was buzzing along on her scooter without the wagon that would normally be carrying her fellow Crusaders. Even though she was still some distance between them, Twilight could make out that Scootaloo was wearing both her helmet and goggles for protection. As Scootaloo got closer the young alicorn could better make out that the filly’s equipment looked newish and well cared for which was a stark contrast to the Scootaloo she had met in that other world. Over there, that Scootaloo’s possessions looked second or third hoofed and in desperate need of upkeep.
For a moment, Twilight pondered what this could mean. Was it because Celestia was so much better here that she made sure funding to all of Equestria’s orphanages were being handled properly? Or was it simply because communication and transportation were so much better that the funds simply arrived sooner, thus a smaller need to watch their budget? Regardless, Twilight knew that she couldn’t let Scootaloo stay in an orphanage. Her experiences in the other world had shown her that she could be a positive influence for Scootaloo. She wanted to help her out so much so that at that very moment, Twilight decided while she was recovering she would look into adoption procedures.
In that moment, Scootaloo had spotted the two princesses and had screeched to a halt. As Scootaloo then jumped off her scooter Celestia began to raise her hoof, knowing that the filly was going to bow before them.
“There is no need to bow to us Scootaloo,” said Celestia gently. Scootaloo, who was in the middle of pulling off her helmet, paused to look up at the larger alicorn with her mouth hanging open slightly.
“Y-You know my name?” stammered Scootaloo as she slowly removed her head protection.
Celestia nodded, something that surprised both ponies standing near her. “I do indeed,” she said. “You were one of Princess Cadence’s flower fillies, remember?”
“Oh right,” said Scootaloo as she scratched the back of her head.
“But that is not the only way I know you,” continued Celestia. “My sister spoke of how you overcame your fears during a camping trip with great pride. I also happen to be acquainted with your mother. Nearly all of her letters to me mention you at least several times. It is a shame she refuses to set hoof in Canterlot. I truly do miss seeing her in my Court.”
Scootaloo let out a groan of embarrassment at finding out that her mother was gushing about her again. At times, she liked it like whenever Scootaloo got a good grade after studying really hard or perfecting a trick on her scooter that had been extra difficult for her. But other times it felt like her mom just like to brag endlessly about her. It just always felt weird, hearing her mom talk about how proud she was over the tiniest things. It was the reason she tried not to invite her friends over, she was afraid her mom would start talking about her like she did to did to other adults.
At the same time, Twilight stood there with her eyes wide open in surprise at the conversation going on in front of her. She had assumed that Scootaloo was an orphan in this world as well. Twilight then looked over at Celestia who was giving her a look that said ‘let it go’. Could Celestia had known what Twilight had thought of doing and brought up Scootaloo’s mother to stop her before she became too invested?
“Well I’d better get going,” said Scootaloo as she lifted her helmet up. She stopped, however, when Twilight lifted up a hoof.
“Scootaloo, would you mind if I checked something first?” asked Twilight, aware that Celestia was giving her an odd look.
“Ah, sure?” said Scootaloo with a big of uncertainty in her voice. With that, Twilight reached over to touch Scootaloo on the head. And, like she had in that other world, she found the same partially formed horn on Scootaloo’s head.
-x-
A short time later, Twilight found herself standing in front of her home with Princess Celestia standing next to her. Twilight had no idea how much time had passed since they had left Scootaloo or even how they got here. For all she knew the Princess had teleported them both here with Twilight blinking and missing it.
The truth of the matter was that Twilight’s mind had been elsewhere throughout the whole trip. She still had magically induced crossbreed syndrome in this world as well. She still couldn’t fly or use magic. But she had a home and a family now. Had she been adopted or were they her real parents? Perhaps, for now, it didn’t matter. What mattered was trying to help Scootaloo like she had before.
When Twilight did register where she was she also noted that it wasn’t just the two of them any longer. Shadow Blade was standing next to the door, most likely guarding it, and looking at Twilight with darkened cheeks. The newest princess of Equestria felt her own cheeks beginning to burn as she remembered what she had done in her confusion. At the same time, both ponies looked away in utter embarrassment.
“I think I’ll head inside and let you two talk over what happened,” said Celestia quickly as she moved towards the door. She opened the door and saw Luna sitting there with a big grin on her face. Rather than ask what had her in such a good mood, Celestia decided to close the door first as well as placing several spells around the tree house that would ensure that Twilight’s conversation would remain private for the time being.
When the door closed, Shadow gave Twilight a nervous smile which she returned. “So,” he began. “I, um, heard a bit about what happened to you.”
“O-Oh,” stammered Twilight as she felt her heart pumping.
Shadow scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, your friends have been telling the Princess what happened,” he continued. “I left after a bit, but I did catch some stuff about…us.”
Twilight could now feel her heart pounding a mile a minute as she wondered where this was going. A wishful part of her brain wanted him to declare his love for her at this moment, kissing her with all the passion he could muster. But, given what had gone on with Scootaloo, it felt very unlikely. She was waiting for him to reject her, saying that had already had a special somepony and begging her never to breathe a word of this. Or something like that. But Shadow didn’t say a word. He just seemed to stand there as if he were having an internal debate.
So Twilight decided to make the first move.
“Shadow, I-” she began.
“Princess, can I say something,” interrupted Shadow, his ears flat against his head as he did.
“S-Sure,” replied Twilight. “And, you don’t have to call me Princess. Twilight’s fine.”
“Right,” said Shadow before taking a breath which seemed to calm him down. “Twilight, I’ve been standing here for a bit trying to figure out how I should approach you after everything I heard and…that kiss. Well, I figured I should start by saying that I understand why you did it. You were confused. But…I’m not the same Shadow Blade you knew. And, well, I don’t know you.”
At that, Twilight felt her own ears droop and a sad, force smile appear on her face. “I sort of knew you would say something like that,” she admitted.
“But,” began Shadow as he closed his eyes tightly. He then took a deep breath before shouting, “I wouldn’t mind changing that!” Twilight’s ears raised as a blush appeared on her face. Ponies who were passing by paused in mid step to look at what was going on, yet this went unnoticed by the pair.
“Y-You mean,” stammered Twilight.
“I mean I wouldn’t mind getting to know you,” said Shadow quickly as he peeked out of one eye. “Perhaps the next time you’re in Canterlot and I’m free we could get something to eat or something. Maybe see if something could work out?”
“Don’t you have a special somepony?” asked Twilight without thinking as she took a step forwards. As Shadow shook his head, a smile appeared on Twilight’s face. “Then I’d love to.”
-x-Epilogue-x-
It was the sound of a frustrated cry that awoke Spike from his slumber. Groaning, he looked over at the clock on the nightstand next to Twilight’s bed to find it was only slightly past six in the morning. His tired eyes then moved to Twilight’s bed to find that it was empty. With an unsurprised look on his face he got out of his tiny basket bed and headed downstairs where he knew he would find Twilight.
As soon as he could see the first level of the library he found Twilight. Ever since the she had returned from the crystal, Twilight had stayed cooped up in the library. But it wasn’t because she was trying to relax with plenty of good books or anything else like that. No, instead Twilight had been busy documenting everything she could from her alternate life. From science to magic, Twilight Sparkle wanted to bring the wonders she had seen into this world. She wrote on everything from paper, to blackboards, to even napkins. From the moment she awoke in the early hours of the morning till she went to bed in the wee hours of the night, writing had become her obsession.
When she had first begun, Spike had tried to be supportive but watchful. He made sure that she took breaks to eat or simply give her magic a break. The small dragon even made sure to get Twilight’s friends to come over for visits ever once in awhile so that they could see how each other were doing. The very last thing he wanted was for her to burn out during her recovery. Yet, over the last couple of days, he had noticed that Twilight’s behavior had become more frantic. She had begun re-reading previous notes only to growl with frustration. Her pacing had increased. When her magic faded to the point where she could no longer even get a spark she would take the quill with her mouth and write like that. Sometimes she would be so lost in her work that she would ignore Spike even while he shouted at her.
Looking at her now, Spike could see that Twilight was at the end of her rope. She was holding up several documents, frantically reading them while her hooves moved in the same way as a little filly who was trying to hold her bladder. Twilight kept muttering the word ‘no’ over and over again as she did all this before proceeding to look at something on one of the many chalkboards she had. As she moved, Spike could see that she looked like she was going to burst into tears at any moment.
“THIS DOESN’T MAKE ANY SENSE!” screamed a very flustered Twilight as she tossed her papers about, alarming Spike in the process. “HOW IS THIS EVEN POSSIBLE? I-”
“TWILIGHT!” yelled Spike. His call got Twilight’s attention, her head spinning around to look at him. At first, she appeared angry at the interruption. But when she saw Spike, her anger vanished instantly as her ears dropped in shame.
“Oh Spike,” she said as she walked over to the stairs. “I’m so sorry. Did I wake you up?”
“I think you might have woken the entire neighborhood Twilight,” Spike replied firmly.
“I, er, well,” stumbled Twilight with her words as she looked around. She then looked down and sighed.
“You know you should be in bed,” continued Spike. “I should be in bed. I’m a baby dragon and I need my sleep. Especially since we’re heading to the Crystal Empire in the morning.”
“I know Spike,” replied Twilight as she turned around and picked up a document with her hoof. As she looked at it a frown appeared on her face.
“So why are you up this early instead of getting your rest like Princess Celestia wanted?” demanded Spike.
“Because none of this makes any sense!” Twilight all but shouted as she tossed the paper back to the floor, surprising Spike.
“B-But how is that possible?” he asked as he finished moving down the stairs. His eyes looked around at everything Twilight had written in wonder. “You wrote all of this. You knew what it meant back then, right?”
“I did and that’s what’s so frustrating,” said Twilight as she gestured to everything in the room. “I understood all of this back then. But now it just reads like gibberish. Nanotechnology, cold fusion, anti gravity technology, anti magic technology…I can’t understand any of the math or the science behind it! Things that I could recite from heart back in that other world I can now feel it all slipping away from me. More and more each day. And the worst part is that I don’t know why!”
“You mean…it’s all going to go away?” asked Spike, slightly worried.
Twilight shook her head. “I can still remember what happened there, in broad strokes,” she said. “I can remember a lot of things I did back there. But many of the details are getting…blurry. I talked to the others and they said the same thing. It’s not just me.” Irritation reappeared back on her face. “But they aren’t forgetting information that could make Equestria better! They aren’t forgetting information that could help Scootaloo fly again!”
Spike took a step back. “You mean there’s no hope?” he asked. He had been told many things of Twilight’s time in that alternate world. One of which was how close Twilight and Scootaloo became. Adopting Scootaloo wasn’t possible, and it wasn’t due for a lack of trying on Twilight’s part. During her breaks from writing, she had been trying to learn as much as she could about the flightless filly. Majesty worked in the mayor’s office while Scooter had his own small chariot and wagon repair shop. While both were very busy they did provide as much as they could for their daughter and showed how much they loved her. Twilight could not bring herself to try and take Scootaloo away from this to fit her own selfish desires. The one thing she could do, however, is use her newly found knowledge to help the filly fly. But now…
“Maybe,” Twilight said in a very tired tone. “There are some things that I haven’t forgotten yet. I can still remember the basics behind curing crossbred syndrome and some of the magic that was used. There have also been studies in this Equestria about crossbreed syndrome as well as a few trial experiments trying to cure it. Perhaps if I put in a request, I will be able to look at their findings so I can see in the information I have retained will be able to help them. But I can’t say if it’ll stay that way or if it will vanish in time like everything else. For all I know, in an hour it will begin to fade away as well.”
At that moment, Twilight wanted to cry out in both frustration as well as sadness. As the tears welled up around her eyes, she thought about all she could do for everypony. Make better artificial wings for pegasi who had lost their own in an accident. Leaps in medical technology. Better entertainment. Better transportation. It could all be theirs if she could only remember! She felt like she was letting everypony down because of this. That she was failing as a princess in some way.
Before she could think about it any further, Spike placed a claw on her side.
“Hey, cheer up,” he said brightly. “I’m sure whatever you can remember you can put it to good use. Just like your plan to help Scootaloo fly again. As long as you know the important stuff and at least have an idea how it works, maybe you can figure out a way around all the tech stuff.”
Twilight brought a hoof to her chin. “I guess so,” she said slowly as her mind went to process this information. Already, new mental doorways were opening for her and she was seeing options she had never considered before. How she could possibly recreate some of the things she had seen there using the skills she had learned in her own life.
“And even if that doesn’t work out,” continued Spike, getting Twilight’s attention again. “You will have everything that you wrote down. Maybe what you wrote down will inspire ponies in the future who might be better able to understand it.”
Twilight smiled as she patted Spike on the head. “I think you’re right Spike,” she said before looking around her at all of the documents. “Once the Princess Summit is over with, I’ll have all of this shipped to Canterlot. It might take awhile, but I’m sure someday somepony out there might be able to understand all of this.”
“There you go,” said Spike before he yawned. “Well, how about we go back to bed. We’re all packed and the train won’t be leaving for several more hours.”
“Sleep does sound like a good idea,” replied Twilight. “You go on ahead. I need to check on one more thing then I’ll be up.” Spike opened his mouth to argue, but Twilight spoke up first. “If I’m not up in five minutes you can send a letter to Princess Celestia saying I’m not following her orders.”
This seemed to appease the young dragon who nodded before heading up the stairs. Before he vanished from sight, however, he turned to look down at Twilight and then held up his wrist. At once, Spike used his other hand to point at his wrist making it clear he was going to be timing her.
Once Spike was upstairs, Twilight moved towards a doorway leading to the basement. She opened it and quickly made her way down the stairway to where her secret project lay waiting. As her hooves touched the basement floor, she trotted towards the back of the room where a long workbench rested against the wall. Only one thing was on this workbench: a purple crystal with a large crack in it, sitting on a pillow. Below the table was a notebook filled with various theories she had on trying to view that other Equestria safely, without putting anypony in harm’s way.
But, before she did that, Twilight would have to fix that crack.
After she had returned to the tree library with Princess Celestia, her mentor had explained that both she and Luna had had to forcibly open up the crystal in order to retrieve them. Nopony knew what kind of effect that would have on the universe Twilight had created. It was possible that everything in there was fine, that the ponies were going about their daily lives none the wiser. But there was also the possibility that the other Twilight and friends had been pulled out of their world. Or that that universe was frozen until the crack could be fixed. It could even be that everything in that crystal had been destroyed!
Twilight knew she had to find out what was going on and, if need be, to fix whatever was broken in there. It wasn’t fair to all the lives inside that they were possibly in danger because of Twilight’s mistake and her mentor's efforts to free her. So several times a day, Twilight had been taking breaks from her writing to try and fix the crack. And, judging by her measurements, the crack was getting smaller by the day. Maybe in a month or so, the crack would be gone and Twilight could begin her experiments to try and view that other world.
Then she would be able to get some answers. Like what was going on with the Lunar Republic now that the moon could better sustain life. How was Princess Luna handling the fallout from Operation: Umbrella? How were the bat ponies of Equestria doing? There were so many questions that Twilight felt that she needed. Perhaps she could see if it would be possible one day to make contact with that world.
The purple princess let out a yawn which told her it was time to go to bed. Gently she kissed the crystal before heading up to bed. And, as soon as Twilight closed the door to the basement, the crystal began to glow faintly.
