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The Opera Phantom Discord | Kindling | Kindling
Two more weeks passed since Discord had taken Fluttershy to the roof the Opera House. But in that period, so much had changed between the two of them, that if one had met them, they would never have suspected that once upon a time, Discord was holding Fluttershy against her will.
Indeed, even the others found the change to be startling. Discord still kept to himself for a large part; he would always be somewhat of an introvert. But his laughter would ring throughout the tunnels, a sound that was not often heard. In the past, Derpy was always cautious about approaching Discord; now, her fear for her master had practically disappeared. Rarity, who often brought Discord his meals to his chamber, was still getting over the compliments he would frequently give for her cooking, not to mention how he was just so much more...cheerful.
"Something has to be done about the Master," Rainbow Dash commented one evening during supper.
Shortround gave the mare a sour look. "Done? What needs to be done? The Master is in merry spirits!"
"Exactly!" Rainbow Dash grumbled. "And...well...it's just not right!"
Rarity, who was serving everyone, made a loud dismissive sound. "Pish posh! The Master has never been in better health, and merry spirits are good for him. One can not expect somepony in his prime to spend his life brooding away in darkness."
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Unless you looked in a mirror as of late, that's all we're good for! And while the Master isn't as cursed as we are...he's not a...a 'normal' stallion...to pretend that he is would be horrible!"
Shortround shook his head. "How so Rainbow Dash? How would it be horrible for the Master to be happy now and again? It's a blessing, I say. And what is 'normal' anyway? Down here, to be a 'freak of nature' is normal," he chuckled.
All the others chuckled with him, except for Rainbow Dash who was just looking as sour as ever before. "You think it's funny that the Master is abandoning his duties?"
Shortround's smile quickly disappeared. "What on earth are you groaning about?"
"It's her fault!" Rainbow Dash hissed.
"Hush!"Rarity snapped, not wanting anything rude said about Fluttershy.
"It is! Before she came here, the Master struck fear into the hearts of those who reside above! The legend of the Opera Ghost thrived, and no person dared cross the Phantom's rules or instructions for fear of death! But now..." she sighed. "Now, what threats has he made? What fear do ponies have? None! Because of his so-called 'merry spirits', the Phantom of the Opera is becoming more of a filly story to give people nightmares rather than an entity that controlled this place!"
Shortround groaned. "You truly are the most selfish pony I've met Rainbow Dash. Why don't you just say that you're afraid for yourself, that somepony will come down here and take you away-"
"DON'T BELITTLE ME, SHORTROUND!" Rainbow Dash roared. "You had best be worried about your own skin too! Without any threats from the Phantom, sooner or later ponies will not fear coming down here, and will find us!"
"Impossible!" Shortround retorted. "You know as well as I that any pony who doesn't know these passages will either find themselves trapped, lost...or worse. The Master designed them specially; we have nothing to worry about."
Rainbow Dash found herself chuckling, although it was a cold cynical chuckle. "Yes, of course, you're quite right Shortround...but wait! If I am not correct...isn't there a young mare amongst us who somehow...got past all those traps without a scratch on her?"
Shortround refused to meet Rainbow Dash's eyes, knowing fully well that the mare was right. "The odds of another having the same luck as Fluttershy would be extremely slim," he argued.
Rainbow Dash took a bite from the food on his plate. "But not impossible." She ignored the glares she was receiving from the others around the table and continued eating, knowing very well that she was upsetting Shortround who always made it a habit to say "grace" at supper.
"Y-y-you s-s-should be nicer t-to Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash," Derpy softly stuttered, poking at the food on her plate with her fork.
Rainbow Dash was surprised by the protest, not used to hearing Derpy stick up for herself...or anypony in that matter. "Oh really?" she drawled. "Are you threatening me?"
"Stop this nonsense!" Rarity ordered, putting a hoof on Derpy's arm to calm her.
"No Rarity, this is actually getting rather interesting!" Rainbow Dash chuckled. "I'm curious to see what Derpy will do to defend her 'lady fair'."
Derpy was beginning to tremble with anger. "S-s-she's good! A-a-and m-my friend! D-d-don't talk badly a-a-about her!" She pounded a hoof on the table, causing the plates to shake. "A-a-and don't b-b-belittle me e-e-either, Rainbow Dash!"
Rainbow Dash leaned back in her chair. "I must say...I'm impressed Derpy," she sighed, bowing her head. "In all the time I've known you...you've never stuck up for anypony, even yourself...and yet here you are...defending your gypsy mare and telling me to, more or less, keep my mouth shut."
Derpy was still trembling, but she was unsure what to say or how to react to Rainbow Dash's words. Then, when Rainbow Dash began to chuckle, Derpy found herself grinning and laughing back. "At least she's good for something," Rainbow Dash muttered, grabbing hold of a wine bottle and pouring a hefty amount into her cup.
Derpy's smile faded into a dark frown. "S-s-she's good for m-m-m-many things...and if you d-d-d-disagree...t-t-then you'll have to g-g-go through me!" she threatened, her hoof slamming down once more onto the table.
"Please!" Rarity cried, worried for the food that was still on the table. "This behavior is highly inappropriate for the dinner table! I am deeply ashamed of you both!"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "You should be proud! Today Derpy has grown up and has finally stood up to me," she laughed, raising her glass and clinking it with Derpy's.
"That's enough!" Rarity barked, raising her fork in the direction of Rainbow Dash. "Let this be the last word on the subject...the Master has always taken care of us and will continue to do so! But the stallion is allowed some happiness for all the burdens he bears, including us," she emphasized, looking directly at Rainbow Dash. "We serve him, yes, but if not for him, we'd have no food on our table, no clothes to wear, no books to read," She cast a look at Derpy, "and for all I know, we'd still be prisoners to that bloody carnival! So I suggest," she growled, looking at each and every one of them, "that you show some gratitude by eating the food on your plates and giving the Master some peace!" She sat back down, shaken from her anger, and stuffed her mouth full of potatoes.
The others said nothing, just stared at their plates in silence.
"Well...that was passionate, I must say."
All four heads turned to one of the shadowed corners from which Discord emerged, his paw and claw coming together in applause. Everypony's eyes were wide; their mouths open, wondering how long he had been standing there. Rainbow Dash turned very pale.
"Master," Rarity said, quickly rising from her chair.
"Sit and eat, you've said quite enough for tonight," Discord reassured, a gentle paw reaching out and patting her shoulder. His eyes were locked on Rainbow Dash, who was trembling in his chair.
"Master...I...I just w-want to say-"
"You needn't say anything, Shortround," Discord sighed, admiring the food on the table. "Roast potatoes, baked bread, and for a main course...surely that's not artichoke, is it?"
"Cabbage!" Derpy said happily. "R-r-roasted Cabbage...w-w-which I helped with p-preparing!" she stated proudly.
Discord smiled at Derpy and patted her shoulder. "Indeed...you have proven yourself grown up in many ways, Derpy," Discord said proudly. Derpy couldn't help but beam.
Rainbow Dash however was sinking in her chair. "C-c-can I f-f-fetch you plate, Master?" Rarity offered, again rising from her chair.
"Stay and eat your food Rarity, you work far too hard to be serving anyone any further," Discord commanded gently, but with great authority. Rarity sat right back down and gazed up at Discord as he continued to circle the table. "I merely came to say that there is no need to bring any dinner to my chamber..."
"Oh?" Rarity asked, still unsure of how to react. Discord seemed to possess a dangerous calm about himself. "D-d-do you know when we shall expect Fluttershy?"
Discord smiled. "Mademoiselle Fluttershy shall be joining me this evening...I actually came to see if there is a basket that I may place some food in."
"I shall fetch it for you Master," Shortround said quickly, rising from his chair and shuffling out of the chamber.
Discord smiled after Shortround and then came to Discord's chair, smiling down at the mare. Rainbow Dash avoided Discord's eyes at all times, focusing her whole attention to the cup of wine she held in her hoof. "I must say Rainbow Dash...I had no idea how worried you were about everypony's safety here," Discord sighed, coming around Rainbow Dash's chair and seating himself in the spot where Shortround had been.
Rainbow Dash said nothing; she simply continued to drink her wine.
"Indeed," Discord sighed, "I also was rather surprised by your words...I had rather thought that you and Mademoiselle Fluttershy were getting on much better." Discord stretched himself out in the chair, his paw and claw lounging on the arms, his legs crossing over one another, his head leaning back as he gazed at Rainbow Dash. "Perhaps there is something you wish to explain?"
Rainbow Dash took another swig from her cup. "N-n-no Master," she whispered.
"No? No there is nothing you wish to explain? Or no, things are not going well between you and Mademoiselle Fluttershy?"
Rainbow Dash swallowed the lump in her throat. "I...I j-just meant-"
"Please speak up Rainbow Dash, I have been playing the organ for a good portion of the day and confess that my hearing is not as keen as it normally would be."
Rainbow Dash swallowed again. "I only meant that...i-if Fluttershy-"
"Mademoiselle Fluttershy," Discord corrected. "Until you are on better terms, I think you should remain formal, don't you?"
Rainbow Dash felt sweat dripping from her brow into her eyes. "Y-y-yes Master," she muttered. "I...I'm only concerned that...if Mademoiselle Fluttershy c-c-could get down here...o-others may a-a-as well."
Discord nodded his head and leaned forward, his arms coming to rest on the table. "Yes, I can understand your concern...but...thankfully, I know I can depend upon you to be on guard in case that did happen, yes?"
Rainbow Dash nodded her head, her eyes remaining downcast to the table.
Discord smiled. "Good," he said, giving Rainbow Dash's shoulder a hearty shake. "And as for your 'concern' that I am not doing my duties as the infamous 'Phantom of the Opera'..." he rose from his chair and leaned close to Rainbow Dash, his face near the mare's ear, his voice so soft, but so dangerous. "Answer me truthfully, Rainbow Dash...do you find me fearsome now?"
Rainbow Dash bit her lip, her whole body trembling.
"Well?"
"Y-y-y-yes M-m-m-master," she stammered.
"Good, I'm glad," Discord whispered. "Never forget..." he emphasized, his teeth clipped and his voice a hiss in the mare's ear. "I know my place and my duties...so it's wise that you remember yours."
Rainbow Dash nodded her head fervently, still looking away, her teeth biting her lip to keep from crying out.
Satisfied that his point was clearly made, Discord moved away from the trembling mare, his paw coming down on Rainbow Dash's shoulder, this time giving it a pat of reassurance. "I promise you, you'll never see that place again," he whispered, compassion coming over him for the mare who feared the carnival more than anypony else.
Discord turned to see Shortround, standing in the entryway of the cavern, holding the basket of food. "Ah! Thank you Shortround," Discord said rather jovially, taking the basket from him. "Enjoy your dinner."
They watched him disappear into the shadows, just as suddenly as he had arrived. Shortround went back to his seat, his eyes looking desperately at Rarity, hoping for an explanation, but she gave none, she simply continued to eat her food in silence. It was Derpy who broke the silence, sitting tall and proud in her seat. "The Master agrees that t-t-today, I've grown up!" she poured herself a small cup of wine and lifted it high into the air. "To Fluttershy!" she said happily. "I'm v-v-very happy s-s-s-she came!"
Fluttershy was grinning from ear to ear as she listened to the beautiful music being played beneath her. Every December right before Christmas, the Opera House gave a free public concert of Handel's Messiah. It was simple, yet elegant; the stage decorated with red and white roses, the four principle soloists sitting on four elegant red velvet chairs while the chorus stood behind them. The orchestra was playing with great gusto, and Fluttershy couldn't help but hum softly to some of the familiar tunes that her father had played on his violin every Christmas. And, much to her relief, this was one performance Fleur De Lis officially did not participate in. According to Discord, Fleur De Lis would not participate in something as meager as a public choral concert.
Fluttershy still couldn't believe it; she grinned at Discord and then smiled down at the musicians on the tiny stage beneath her. Both she and Discord were sitting on a cat walk high above the auditorium, close the Opera House's grand chandelier that hung over the audience. No one would see them, and no stage hooves would come up to where they were during the performance. It was as if she were at a private concert.
Earlier that evening, after a long rehearsal, Discord congratulated her on her progress, and felt that it was time for a treat. Fluttershy had no idea what he meant, as he had never given her a "treat" before after a rehearsal, but she couldn't help but grin when he told her to wear one of her more "elegant" gowns for that evening, and to come with an empty stomach. Fluttershy did exactly as she was told, and at exactly seven o'clock, he arrived at her chamber, dressed in one his finest black suits, wearing a crisp clean white linen shirt, cravat, and tie. He held out a rose for her, which took Fluttershy by surprise, for she was still unsure about how he felt towards her, but her heart skipped a beat as he offered her the flower and bent to kiss her hoof, hoping beyond anything that perhaps, he too, was feeling something more.
Discord still had no idea what possessed him to make such an offer. Since their conversation on the roof, he was going out of his way to be more open with her, to share his thoughts, not only on music, but on books, art, and philosophy as well. Always the professional musician, Discord would quickly bring them back to the task at hoof if their conversation began to wander during rehearsals. But she was lingering more after rehearsals to speak with him, and he now and then found himself going to her chamber, to either learn her thoughts on something, or to simply bid her goodnight. It was strange, this friendship he had with her, but he had hoped that it would help fight the strange emotions that were raging through him. Sadly, he was finding that instead, it was kindling them.
Yet he ignored his discomfort about such things and tried to focus on his music when they were apart. He was working hard with the stage and art directions for Don Juan, as well as sending up instructions daily to the managers to begin ordering supplies for the opera. He was quite determined to see it performed before the season ended. Yet with so much work at hoof, Discord knew that both he and Fluttershy needed a break of some sort...and knowing that it was the evening for Messiah, he could not imagine a better treat for his rising star than a night at the opera.
He felt like a fool, a stallion well past the age to behave like a love-sick school filly, but he couldn't stop grinning at the thought of her surprise when she learned what he had in store. He went to kitchens of his lair, momentarily taking care of some unpleasant business with Rainbow Dash before fetching the food, and then arriving to take Fluttershy to her surprise.
She was a vision like nothing else he had seen. Indeed, he felt his heart stop at the sight of her.
He had instructed her to wear the most elegant gown she had, not remembering what he had brought her so many weeks ago, but he was not prepared for what he saw. She was a vision in ivory; the gown sparkled, hugging her curves deliciously and then fanning out into a full skirt that made her look like a princess from a fairy tale. He would not have been surprised if it were glass slippers she wore under the skirt. She wore white satin gloves that went up to her elbows, and the old locket that she always wore hung delicately on her neck. Of all her gowns, this one was also the most revealing; the thin lace that served as sleeves revealed her creamy shoulders, and the neckline was dangerously low. When she greeted him, she smiled a dazzling innocent sweet smile, and then did a little twirl, asking him if she had followed his instructions properly. Discord could only nod his head, his voice momentarily gone. This was an image that would forever be burned into his mind.
They then proceeded to the catwalk, going by the underground lake, past the old animal stalls, and up some old steps that he knew were abandoned, and safe for her to climb. When Discord opened the trap door to the catwalk, Fluttershy gasped, the grand chandelier being the first thing to greet her eyes. He took her arm led her to a place on the catwalk where he knew they would be secluded in shadows, but where she would have the best view of the stage. He proceeded to lower his cape for them to sit on, and then revealed the food that had been prepared for their supper. He also revealed a bottle of wine and two glasses that were in the basket as well. Fluttershy couldn't help but giggle as Discord insisted on a toast to the evening.
"What shall we drink to?" he asked, raising his glass.
Fluttershy smiled, feeling her cheeks become aflame. "To the Angel of Music," she whispered.
Discord's brow furrowed at her words. "The what?" he asked, hoping he did not sound as if he were ridiculing her, just simply...curious to what she meant.
Fluttershy smiled and clinked her glass with his. "The Angel of Music," she said again, as if anypony would understand what she was talking about. "The Angel of Music was what brought me here...to this city, to this place...and to this moment."
Discord cocked an eyebrow at her words, curious to know more about this mysterious angel she spoke of, but clinked his glass with hers and raised it to his lips. "To your angel," he whispered, before drinking.
Fluttershy took her drink, wondering if Discord knew that her angel was indeed...him.
They ate the roast cabbage, potatoes, and bread that Rarity had previously prepared, talking quietly with one another, Fluttershy trying to guess what would be performed that evening. Discord couldn't help but find her charming, how she seemed like a little filly, fidgeting with excitement every time she heard the orchestra tune their instruments, trying to figure out what music it was they were going to perform. And then, the curtains opened and the orchestra began to play, and Fluttershy immediately recognized the opening song. "Handel's Messiah! she squealed happily, and without thinking, she leaned against the catwalk, her arms clinging to the ropes that separated her from falling to her death, and her hooves, coming out from under her skirt and dangling over the edge. It was positively unmarelike, but neither Fluttershy nor Discord cared; he had never seen her so happy...and he knew that this was the image that would truly stay with him for the rest of his life.
She kept grinning at the stage, and then at him while the musicians below filled the auditorium with their songs; her hooves swinging back and forth like a filly. Discord however kept his gaze focused on Fluttershy. He was glad that for at least one night, he could give her something to be happy about, something that may take away the pain of being his prisoner and losing her father, if only briefly. He found himself frowning as he remembered Rainbow Dash's words, his fear that Discord had more or less, gone soft; forgotten his duties to strike fear into the hearts of others as the infamous Phantom. Truth was...Discord had forgotten. He was finding bliss with Fluttershy, bliss in her voice, and bliss in her presence. He had never truly known happiness till she had come into his life...and it frightened him.
Was his guard down? Would others attempt to explore the places they knew were forbidden? He had made a vow to protect his friends, promising that they would never again know what it was like to be behind bars and subjected to humiliation. Rainbow Dash needed to be taught a lesson, Discord could see that...but he pitied the mare all the same, knowing that it was her fear that drove her to such mad fits. He glanced at Fluttershy again, thinking perhaps he did need to keep his distance, at least more so than he was now; he needed to stay focused and alert...but he could not imagine a life without her voice singing sweetly to heaven, or her laughter filling his ears. Even now, as she softly hummed to the songs below, he could feel himself being lost in the bliss that she offered. For the first time in his life...light was coming into the shadowy depths of his soul.
He then remembered Rarity's words, about how he "deserved" some happiness. He looked at Fluttershy again, thinking exactly that as he watched her face glow with excitement.
"Oh Discord thank you so much for this!" Fluttershy whispered, leaning a little closer as the famous "Hallelujah Chorus" began to play. "Oh I love this song, I-oh!" she gasped as she had leaned far too close on the catwalk, but Discord was there, his strong arms wrapping around her waist and pulling her safely back onto the catwalk.
"Careful!" he hissed, his arm slipping under her skirts and pulling her fully back. Fluttershy blushed as she felt his arm briefly brush her legs, but she was more ashamed of her fillyish behavior than anything.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I was being foolish, I-"
Discord had placed a paw to her lips. "You were merely excited, it's alright," he whispered. "Just be more careful...and enjoy the song." Fluttershy smiled at him and turned her attention back to the stage as the chorus continued to sing.
The incident had startled them both so much that neither of them had realized that one of Fluttershy's shoes had fallen from her hooves, landing softly in Box 5 beneath them. But this was no ordinary box...it was the one that the Prince occupied.
Blueblood didn't normally come to these public concerts, he saw no point as no money was made in them. But tonight, he came with hopes that perhaps the elusive Mademoiselle Fluttershy would arrive. It angered him that the private investigator he was paying quite handsomely had not found anything; but Blueblood was determined to uncover the whereabouts of the missing costume mare before her wealthy and isolated grandfather died.
"What the devil?" he hissed, when the falling shoe landed at his hooves. He looked up at the ceiling of the box, seeing nothing, and then leaned out over the edge, trying to see where the shoe may have come from, but saw nothing.
"Is something wrong monsieur?" an usher appeared, having heard the Prince swearing.
"Tis nothing," Blueblood muttered, his paw waving at the usher in a dismissive manner. He picked the shoe up and examined it, noting how fine it was. Where could such a thing come from? It was the kind of slipper a mare of great fashion would wear, but there were no boxes above him...and it had come from above...so where had it come from? He glanced back out over the edge of his box to the ceiling above. All he could see was the chandelier...and what looked to be a catwalk, although it was hard to tell with shadows covering it.
Impossible, he thought. No mare would be up there...must have been some drunken stage hoof playing a trick. Well, he'd have that settled tomorrow. Blueblood rose from the box, clearly bored from the evening's festivities. "Get me my carriage," he ordered the usher. He glanced one last time at the shoe, and decided to take it with him, as evidence to be used against whomever the idiot was that chose to play the prank.
A few more songs later, the performance had ended. Fluttershy, like the rest of the audience, rose to her hooves and clapped heartily to the performers on stage. "Oh!" she gasped, gripping the rope of the catwalk as she tried to find her balance.
"Is everything alright?" Discord asked, vaulting to his feet when he noticed her stumble.
"Oh...just..." she felt around with her hoof, but couldn't find her missing shoe. "Excuse me," she muttered, lifting her skirts, trying to see where it had gone, but...it was nowhere to be seen. "How odd..." she murmured.
"What?" Discord asked, concern etched across his masked face.
Fluttershy bit her lip, wondering if he would be terribly upset with her. "I can't find my slipper...the one to my left hoof...it seems...oh no."
Fluttershy knew the answer before she said another word. "I think we can be assured that since there was no gasping or screaming in the middle of the performance, your shoe did not hit anypony."
"Yes, but...shouldn't we be worried? I mean...don't you think somepony will wonder who was up here?" Fluttershy bit her lip, fearing that perhaps she had given away the Phantom's secret, but Discord couldn't help but grin at her worry.
"Nonsense," he assured her. "There is nothing to fear or fret about..." his eyes briefly caught that of a petrified stage hoof who was walking along another nearby catwalk and who also turned and fled at the sight of the Phantom. "But we should be on our way."
Fluttershy nodded her head, feeling tired from the night's events, still in awe of everything that they had shared. She felt so honored by what Discord had done, to think of her and bring her here to this performance, and she was so grateful for the growing friendship between the two of them...but her heart ached with love for him that she feared would never be returned.
She followed him safely down from the catwalk, and down the steps they had climbed to reach it, but she cursed her stupidity for losing her shoe, as the ground hurt her stocking-covered feet, (she had removed the other shoe and was now holding it). Sensing what she was thinking, Discord spun around and without a word, scooped her up into his arms as if she weighed next to nothing.
"OH!" she gasped, finding her arms around his neck and shoulders. "T-t-this is not necessary...t-t-thank you, but-"
"I will not have you hobble all the way back," he argued. "And you're tired...rest Fluttershy..." his voice was soft, warm, and deep; very hypnotic. Fluttershy's mouth closed and felt her eyes grow heavy, relishing the feel of his strong arms holding her, his black cape swirling around her, carrying her like one of the dark heroes from her books. Her head fell to his shoulder, and her eyes fluttered shut as he continued to carry her without struggle or complaint.
Discord was still surprised from what he had done. But it was as if an unknown instinct had taken over, and without a thought or care, he scooped her up and began to carry her as if...as if he had always done so. And she felt so right...she was small, but not thin; just the perfect shape really, and she fit so perfectly in his arms. He had not realized that he had been holding his breath when he felt her head fall to his shoulder. How could this be? How could this angel be here, with him, allowing him to hold her? To touch her? He was a monster! She had seen, several times, what his body looked like and what lay beneath his mask! And yet...she had fallen asleep in his demon arms.
Oh God above...he was done for.
He placed her very carefully in the gondola, and then sailed them back to the shore of his lair. He picked her up without struggle once again, and carried her to her chamber, where he laid her softly, gently, upon her bed, her hair spilling around her pillow like a pink silken wave. He took a blanket and carefully laid it over her gown, checked that her fire was blazing warmly, and then pulled the lace curtains around the bed to offer her more privacy.
"Discord?"
He was startled by the soft voice, thinking she was asleep. "I'm here," he whispered, bending to one knee so his face was at the same level as hers.
Her eyes momentarily fluttered open so she could see him, and she smiled. "T-t-thank you...for tonight..." she whispered.
He smiled back and without thinking, found himself leaning forward and placing a kiss to her forehead. "It was my pleasure angel," he whispered back, before quickly rising and hurrying out of there.
What had possessed him to kiss her? He was amazed that she hadn't screamed at the feel of his odd-shaped lips touching her flawless coat. But her words rang through his head; she had thanked him for what he had done, for his surprise, for his gift to her. In a world where he saw countless mares fawn over jewels and diamonds, his Fluttershy had thanked him for taking her to a secret place, eating a simple meal, and watching a choral concert. Perhaps she was right; Fluttershy was not like these mares he had based Aminta on. If she were moved by something as simple as music...perhaps it was possible to dream, to believe that...that she could love-
"Madness," he scoffed at himself, before entering his chamber and grabbing hold of a bottle of wine. He always knew he was on the brink of madness, but now...now he feared he was quickly toppling over the edge. "I will control this," he ordered to himself before taking a deep drink. "I will conquer this!" |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Merriment | Merriment
Blueblood groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose while the managers before him argued back and forth about the notes they held in their hooves. He had come to the Opera House that day to complain about the staff that was being careless overhead, bringing the infamous shoe that had fallen into his box. The managers however had other things on their minds.
"We can not ignore these any longer, Flim! Something has to be done!" Flam shouted, throwing the notes he was holding up in the air.
Flim rolled his eyes. "And what do you suggest? Going through with his orders? Stopping our schedule to rehearse and perform this...this...garbage?" Flim said with disgust, motioning toward a copy of the finished opera that lay on his desk.
Blueblood's eyes flashed to the score that lay on the desk and felt the anger rise within him. This Phantom thing was really going too far.
"What is that..." he asked, his voice clipped, "and when did it arrive?"
Flim waved his hoof nonchalantly. "A few days ago. Dreadful thing; I don't know why I haven't destroyed it yet." Although Blueblood knew the answer to Flim's query. While the older manager was not ready to admit it, his superstition towards the infamous Phantom was growing like his partner's.
Flam was massaging the temples of his head. "We have to do something; I mean it's going too far!" Before the others could protest, he quickly continued. "I'm not saying I believe that there is an Opera Ghost! I'm just saying...we can't treat this lightly anymore! I mean...look at these notes!" he practically thrusted them into Bluevlood's face. "Sabotage! Destruction! Death! Why, he's even threatened to cut down the chandelier if we do not comply!"
Blueboodl's hoof hit Flam's, causing the notes to fly about, telling the younger manager exactly what he thought of the Phantom's notes.
Flim, who always thought himself calm, collected, and realistic, found he too was at a loss. "I for one do not believe we should give in to the Phantom's demands...but..." he sighed, "Flam is right, something needs to be done about this character."
Blueblood groaned and withdrew a cigar from his pocket. "So you're suggesting we light torches, grab our pitchforks, and storm the backstage of the Maris Opera House?" he took one long puff on the cigar and blew a cloud of smoke at the managers. "Thank you gentlecolts, for showing me that I am indeed the patron of an insane asylum."
Flam ignored the Prince's sarcasm. "Monsieur, like you, I do not believe there is a 'Phantom of the Opera'." Blueblood began to scoff, but Flam quickly continued. "I, like Flim, do not believe in ghosts! But I do believe in pranksters; and I believe that is the case we have here."
Blueblood took a long inhale from his cigar, pondering Flam's words. Perhaps these stallions had brains after all.
Flim stepped forward nodding his head. "I too believe that is what we have here; somepony who thinks it a great joke to make demands of the Maris Opera House in the name of its infamous ghost."
Blueblood exhaled the smoke from his cigar. "That's what I've been telling you all along," he muttered, his gaze turning toward the fireplace in the office, his green eyes glowing with the fire's reflection. "Yet I do not find these jokes, these ghost stories amusing...especially since I'm losing more money than gaining, from them."
At the mention of money the managers tensed and began looking at each other nervously. Blueblood took instant notice and felt his anger begin to boil again. "Tell me."
It wasn't a question; it was a demand.
"Well," Flim started, his hooves moving to straighten his suit jacket while his eyes avoided the Prince's. "It is simply...you see, Fleur De Lis..."
Blueblood was growing most impatient and he rubbed the burnt tip of his cigar on Flim's desk to show his irritation.
"She refuses to sing," Flam finished.
If Blueblood had been smoking at that exact moment, he would have begun choking. Instead, he looked as though somepony had just come along and punched in him the stomach. "WHAT? WHY?" he demanded after the shock allowed him.
Flam quickly continued. "She's been receiving death threats! Personal letters sent to her! We only just found out about these yesterday," he quickly answered before Blueblood could demand why he had not been informed of these threats to the Opera House's star.
"The last few performances have been disasters; she's been drugged, kidnapped, and taken ill by mysterious circumstances. And now with these letters..." Flim sighed and handed the fuming Prince one of Fleur De Lis' notes.
"My dear madam," Blueblood began. "Your days at the Maris Opera are numbered. Be grateful it was not strychnine in the glass that you consumed before the performance of Hannibal. I will not be so kind in the future. A new rising star is coming down from the heavens to replace you...I suggest, senora, that you take my advice and end your time here in Maris before I end it permanently. I remain, ever, O.G."
Blueblood's voice had become a hiss by the end of the note. He had not failed to notice that when the note was sealed, the wax seal was a red skull. This prankster did indeed have a flair for the dramatics.
"She destroyed all the other notes," Flam explained. "But she swears this one was her seventh."
Blueblood immediately crumpled the note in his hoof and tossed it into the roaring fireplace. "I have not invested this much money into a project, only to see it go bust due to a myth!" he spat, turning on the managers, his eyes ablaze with fury.
"I WANT TO KNOW WHO THIS PONY IS!" he shouted. "I WANT AN INVESTIGATION CONDUCTED ON EVERY EMPLOYEE OF THIS THEATER!" he turned and gazed at the shoe that had fallen into his box the previous night. "There are ponies here who are not showing their betters the proper respect...AND I INTEND TO SMOKE THEM OUT!" he threw the shoe into the fire at that point, and both Flam and Flim jumped as the thing erupted into flames.
"An...an investigation, monsieur?" Flam asked, unsure what exactly that entailed.
"Yes," Blueblood hissed. "I want every stallion-" he paused as he saw Madame Luna pass the office, "-and mare interrogated. I know that these 'ghost stories' are popular amongst the dancers and that they are spread about by the stagehooves. Start there..." he instructed. "But I want everyone questioned. And I want it done now."
He turned to go but both Flim and Flam tried to call him back. "But monsieur! We have never gone about such things! How on earth do we do this?"
Bueblood grabbed his gloves and hat before turning and snarling, "Just get it done! Or I'll remove my patronage from this place by the New Year!" He slammed the door shut to the office and stalked off in the direction Madame Luna had gone. Lucky for him, she was still in the grand foyer.
"Good morning, madam," Blueblood said with a courteous bow, although it was all done for dramatic effect. She was on the top of his list of "would-be Phantoms".
Madame Luna turned with slight surprise at the Prince's voice, but returned his bow with a cold but courteous nod of her head. "Monsieur Blueblood," she whispered.
"I trust you are in good health?" Blueblood asked, although he continued onward, not giving her the opportunity to reply. "I apologize if you overheard that dreadful argument in the manager's office."
"No apology is necessary monsieur," Madame Luna replied icily. "I do not make it a practice to listen to the private conversations of others."
Blueblood flashed the dance mistress a smile, although they both knew it was false. "We were discussing the letters that the 'Phantom of the Opera', or 'O.G.' as he addresses himself, has been sending. The content of some were rather...dark and monstrous. I pray, you have not been threatened by any means?" he asked oh so sweetly.
Madame Luna smiled, although it was a cold sarcastic smile. "I am touched by your concern monsieur...but I assure you, no threats have reached me, at least not yet."
Blueblood was not surprised. "For that I am glad to hear. I must say...all these sudden threats and demands; oh I know letters have been sent before, but I have never seen this many. It seems this 'Phantom' is working extra hard to have things go his way, does it not?"
Madame Luna nodded her head. "Indeed. It is rather fascinating, I must say."
Blueblood lifted an eyebrow. "Fascinating?"
Madame Luna could not hide the smile that was threatening to break. "Oh yes, quite fascinating. Fascinating that a character that you claim does not exist and that you have repeatedly sworn is nothing more than a myth...is causing you so much stress and costing you so much money."
Blueblood's mouth fell open and he stared at the smiling dance mistress. She bowed her head to him, saying, "Good day monsieur," before leaving him standing stunned in the foyer.
He felt his face burn, his coat turning red, red as fire, and before the anger threatened to burst, he stormed out of the Opera House, slamming his hat on his head, and took quick long strides to his carriage. Yet before he climbed in, a voice erupted from behind.
"Monsieur! Monsieur Prince!"
Blueblood was in no mood to speak to anyone, but the last pony he expected to see come running toward him was the stallion he had hired to find Fluttershy.
"Oh thank Goodness monsieur, the housekeeper told me I could find you at the Opera House, but I have been looking-"
Without a word Blueblood reached forward, grabbed Crafty Crate by the collar of his coat, and pulled him into the carriage. "Idiot!" Blueblood growled, his eyes searching the streets to see if anyone had taken notice, but people were going about their business as usual. He turned and eyed the private investigator who was mopping up his sweaty brow with a hoofkerchief. "I thought it was made quite clear that you were not to seek me out or come to this place!" he hissed, resisting every urge to beat the smaller pony with his cane.
Crafty Crate bit his lip and glowered in his seat. "Forgive me monsieur, but...I had to come here! I have no choice," he groaned, hanging his head in shame.
"I am at a brick wall, monsieur," Crafty Crate sadly moaned. "I have been searching for the whereabouts of Mademoiselle Fluttershy for weeks, but I have been unable to find anything new. As you know, I have been to the residence of the Marquise Filthy Rich, but the household knew nothing about the young mare. The Marquise's valet was kind enough to speak with me and told me of the village that Fluttershy and his family had resided in, but when I reached the village-which is a small farming community, nothing more than country bumpkins if I do say so monsieur," Crafty Crate added but quickly continued based on the look of annoyance on the Prince's face. "When I reached the village, no one could give me any information that I had not already learned through the Marquise's household. That the Marquise had seized the farm which had been the home to Time Turner and his daughter, and the two had gone to Maris with hopes of finding work at the Maris Opera House."
"Yes, yes, you're right, nothing that we didn't already know," Blueblood muttered. "So there better be a point with this story, and a good point at that."
Crafty Crate sighed. "I was able to discover the apartment that Time Turner and the mare had been renting. The mare who runs the place informed me that the last time she had seen Time Turner and his daughter had been on the morning of October 24."
Blueblood's head perked up at this. "The day of the opening gala," he whispered.
Crafty Crate nodded his head vigorously. "The mare has not seen either of them since, and neither had given any indication that they would not be returning. She held their place for a month, and after that, she gave their apartment to new tenants. She still has had no word."
Blueblood was gazing out the window of his carriage at the Opera House. This mystery was growing more and more intriguing by the minute. For it was the night of the opening gala that Time Turner had come bursting into his club, raving about a monster-no, the Phantom-who had kidnapped Fluttershy and was keeping her prisoner.
And since that day, the mare had not been seen since.
Blueblood's eyes narrowing at the sight of the Opera House, a cold feeling running through his blood.
"So you see monsieur, I have no choice...I must continue my investigation here," Crafty Crate explained, looking most distressed. "But not to worry, I will be most careful, I will avoid Madame Luna at all costs...although it will probably not matter," his voice sounded muffled, as if he was about to cry. "She has extracted her case from my services, believing me to be an imbecile," he wailed, quickly dabbing his eyes with the hoofkerchief.
Blueblood groaned at the sound of Crafty Crates lament. "Get a hold yourself!" he hissed, returning his gaze back to the Opera House. A plan was forming in his mind...
"What do you know about the Maris Opera House, Crafty Crate?" he casually asked, his gaze never leaving the grand building.
Crafty Crate blew his nose and followed the Prince's gaze. "Regarded as one of the greatest architectural gems of Maris. Why, it's hailed to be one of the greatest arenas for music in all of Equestria. But I do not consider myself an opera stallion to be honest," he sniffled.
Blueblood ignored François' last comment. "Have you ever heard of the place...being haunted?" he asked, turning his attention back to the private investigator.
Crafty Crate was surprised by this question. He had considered the Prince to be a stallion of reason, not a stallion who was ruled by flights of fancy. "I'm afraid I have not, monsieur...but every building has a story, does it not? And...from what I understand, ponies who work in theater are a superstitious lot."
"Indeed," Blueblood muttered, glancing at the Opera House one last time before focusing all of his attention on Crafty Crate. "There is a ghost story that haunts the Maris Opera House...a specter known as the 'Phantom of the Opera'. There's no such creature of course...but somepony has decided to take this 'myth' and try to make it real."
Crafty Crate nodded his head, reaching into his coat pocket for a pen and some paper. "So you'd like me to track down this 'Phantom' for you monsieur?"
Blueblood's eyes widened at Crafty Crate's words. "No you fool! I'm not giving you a new assignment, especially since you haven't solved the old one!" he turned from Crafty Crate in disgust. "I am conducting an investigation of every employee of the Maris Opera House," he paused, his eyes reflecting the fire that had blazed in them back in the managers' office. "I intend to smoke the villain out," he growled low beneath his breath. "And if anyone becomes suspicious as to why you are going about asking questions of the allusive Fluttershy this is to be your cloak of disguise."
Now Crafty Crate understood, although he had rather hoped that the Prince would change his mind about the mare and pay him for his troubles or give him something new to chase. He was finding this search tiresome. "I shall between my inquiries-"
"Today," Blueblood finished, rapping his hoof against the ceiling of his carriage.
Crafty Crate paled and found himself stuttering. "T-t-t-today?"
Blueblood nodded his head while the driver opened the carriage door. "And I want the information by Christmas," he added with a wave of his hoof, indicating to Crafty Crate to leave his carriage.
Crafty Crate's mouth fell open. "C-c-c-christmas? B-b-but that's less than a week!"
Blueblood rolled his eyes and grabbed the stallion once again by the collar of his coat, practically throwing him out of the carriage. "I'm paying you handsomely enough for you to deliver that information to me by tomorrow! Don't prove me wrong!" he roared, slamming the door shut and shouting to the driver to move on.
It was a cold morning, the day Christmas came. While the rest of Maris sat huddled around the fire, throwing on shawls and rubbing their hooves together to bring life back to them, the family that lived beneath the Maris Opera House felt nothing but warmth spread throughout their bodies and souls.
Fluttershy had been dreaming quite contently when she was awoken by the sound of an exuberant Derpy coming to tell her that it was Christmas morning. "H-h-h-hurry!" she shouted, jumping up and down. "R-r-rarity is a-a-already making us a feast! A-a-a-and Shortround w-w-will lead the s-s-songs and there are p-p-presents, a-a-and stories...oooh hurry Fluttershy!"
Derpy's enthusiasm was contagious, and like a filly, Fluttershy threw the blankets off and leapt out of bed, surprised to find her chamber warm and comfortable. The fire in her small fireplace was blazing brightly; Fluttershy was always amazed by how strong it burned when every night it seemed to have been reduced to a few glowing embers. Yet despite the warm comfort in her chamber, Fluttershy knew it was not so in the stone tunnels between the caverns. Each cavern and chamber had a fire pit, and during the winter months, she had learned that they kept them blazing almost every day. But the tunnels was where the cold air trapped itself, and while the gowns Discord had retrieved for her were lovely, they were not equipped for the cold December weather. With Rarity's help, Fluttershy had been able to make herself three plain dresses, each made with a sturdy thick material that kept out the cold as best it could.
A sad sigh escaped her lips as she slipped one of her winter dresses on. Her eyes had fallen to the beautiful ivory gown that she wore on the night Discord took her to the opera. She truly felt like a princess in that gown...and for one night, she could pretend that Discord was her dark prince.
That night had only been a week ago, but since then, Discord's behavior had changed back to being aloof, antisocial, and melancholy. Their rehearsals were shorter than normal, and he only spoke to her when instructing her. When she attempted to speak to him of things other than music, Discord would calmly ask if she would be so kind as to leave, never raising his voice, never criticizing her efforts, yet never praising them either. It was like he had become a shell...and yet she noticed he was more obsessed with his work than ever before.
One night while she was reading in her chamber, she overheard Rainbow Dash complaining to Shortround about the note errands she was running for Discord. "I've been delivering notes every night this week! Last night he had me go on three different trips!"
Fluttershy wondered what these mysterious notes were. She remembered how Discord had revealed to her his desire to have his opera performed by the end of the season, but she had never truly understood how he would go about convincing the managers, not to mention Fleur De Lis, to allow such a thing to occur. Were the notes he was having Rainbow Dash deliver letters to entice the managers to obey him? A cold feeling ran through her, as Fluttershy knew that Discord ruled the world above using fear and fear alone. If there was any sense of enticement in those notes, it was enticement to not disobey him.
Her hooves did up the buttons on the front of her dress and she glanced once again at the ivory gown which lay across a chair near her dressing table. Would Discord be there with the others? Did he celebrate Christmas? If Rainbow Dash celebrated it, then Discord by all means should. She tried to smile at this new hope, believing that at Christmas, Discord would make the effort to join the others in celebration...but a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her she was being silly for hoping such a thing.
She missed their conversations, the walks they would take around his underground labyrinth and the theater above after the lights were off and everyone had gone home. She missed sharing her ideas with him, her hopes and dreams, and she missed hearing his. Even after Discord opened up to her, he was still as mysterious as ever. There were still so many things she didn't know about him, but she felt that in time, when he was comfortable, he would share his hopes and dreams for the future, but now...now it seemed he was avoiding her and the friendship they had created. She wanted to make things right again, to gain his trust...and perhaps more.
Deep in her heart she knew the things she wanted, and it was more than friendship, more than trust. But for today, her Christmas wish would not ask for more, at least...not yet.
Fluttershy grabbed a shawl and quickly set off toward the chamber that the others occupied, clutching the fabric around her shoulders to keep the chill of the tunnels from her. With each step, hope arose that perhaps Discord would be there, perhaps he greet her as she entered, extend his paw to her and raising her hoof to his lips, wishing her a most merry Christmas.
"Fluttershy!" Derpy greeted warmly from the moment Fluttershy appeared in the passageway of the chamber. The others turned and greeted her as well; Rarity, Shortround...even Rainbow Dash, who was sitting huddled in a shadowy corner with a bottle of mulled wine in her good hoof, lifted it in her direction as a greeting...but Discord was nowhere to be seen.
"Now c-c-c-can we o-o-open our p-presents?" Derpy asked Rarity, bouncing eagerly from one foot to the other. Rarity grinned and nodded her head, and Derpy leapt for joy again before diving toward a small meager pile of boxes, each tied with a single blue ribbon.
"Now Derpy, remember your manners," Rarity scolded, although everypony including Derpy knew it was not serious. Derpy grinned and quickly began passing everyone else their own present before opening her own.
"Oh! OH!" she cried happily, clutching the new book she had received to her chest. "T-t-t-thank you!" she murmured, her large hoof lovingly caressing the book's cover as if it were precious gold. "A-a-a-aray...a-a-aray-b-ann-"
"Arabian," Shortround kindly corrected to which Derpy thanked.
"Arabian," he repeated. "Arabian Nights. H-h-have you r-r-r-read it Shortround?"
Shortround smiled but shook his head. "I'm afraid not, but I have heard of the book. I look forward to you reading it to me though," he added kindly.
Derpy grinned and watched while the others opened their gifts. Rarity gasped with surprise at the beautiful yards of fabric she had been given. The colors were a rich scarlet, a deep emerald, and a royal purple. They looked like velvet but felt like silk. "Oh they are too lovely! But I couldn't possibly use them for dresses-"
"Why not?" Fluttershy interjected. "You would look like a queen wearing such finery," she grinned.
Rarity blushed deeply. "I'll be sure to make you something from them my dear-"
But Fluttershy refused. "Thank you, but they are for you and you alone. I have many splendid costumes, but for all the hard work you do, you deserve to be seen and dressed as the rightful queen that you are."
The others, including Rainbow Dash, gave a hearty "Here! Here!" to Fluttershy's words.
Rainbow Dash said nothing of her gift, although anypony could see that she deeply appreciated the new jacket she had been given to replace the tattered one she already wore. And finally, Shortround opened his gift, a small package, but what it held stunned him silent.
"What is it?" Fluttershy asked, seeing the awed expression on his face.
"It's...it's..." he finally murmured when he found his voice. "It's...an old rosary that...that the monks gave me when I came to them as a baby," he whispered, choking back the tears that threatened to break forth. "But...look at it!" he gasped, holding up the beautiful silver rosary for Fluttershy to see. "It was tarnished, rusted...beyond any hope for repair...and the chain had broken too...but...this is the same rosary, this is my rosary and it looks like it did when I first received it!"
"Oh dry your eyes," Rainbow Dash muttered, taking another swig from her bottle. "It's just a silly little cross..." but Shortround could tell that Rainbow Dash was hiding something.
"You did this, didn't you?" he asked.
Rainbow Dash's eyes widened at what she considered was an accusation of murder. "What? I did nothing of the sort!"
"You were the only one to whom I mentioned about losing it! I remember very clearly, a few weeks ago, telling you of my distress."
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Well it had no proper chain so naturally it was easy to lose-"
"Did you get the chain?" Shortround asked, feeling his heart warm all the more.
Rainbow Dash laughed. "Me? I'm the last pony who would go up there to find you a stupid chain for your stupid cross. I had nothing to do with it," she grumbled, folding her arms over her chest and focusing on the fire pit in the center of the cavern.
Despite Rainbow Dash's words, Shortround knew that the mare had something to do with his newly restored rosary. Perhaps it was something as simple as cleaning it, but whatever she did, Shortround was most grateful.
Fluttershy found herself speculating whether Rainbow Dash did have anything to do with Shortround's gift, but when she saw a tiny smile flicker against Rainbow Dash's lips when Shortround wasn't looking, she knew she had her answer.
"Open y-y-yours, Fluttershy!" Derpy cried out, pointing to the large box at her hooves.
Fluttershy blushed, not truly expecting a gift from anypony, but smiled broadly in thanks. "Who is this from?" she asked, noticing that there was no tag on the box.
Everypony chuckled and shook their heads. "We don't share that information, no matter how hard some may try to learn it," Rarity said, looking directly at Shortround.
Shortround laughed at Rarity's comment. "Half the fun is trying to guess who got who what. But for now, just consider it a gift, from all of us..."
Fluttershy giggled with the others, but a sudden realization came to her. "I...I didn't get anyone a gift," she murmured, feeling utterly horrible. It was Christmas! She knew it was Christmas, but she had forgotten to do anything for the kind hearts of her new friends.
"Oh my dear," Rarity soothed, coming towards her and patting her hoof. "Don't fret about such things, you have brought us all a gift if I may say so...you have brought light to our dreary little world here...and your friendship is a gift far finer than any fabric in the world."
Fluttershy blushed and felt a tear trickle down her cheek at Rarity's kind words. Derpy rushed forward then and enveloped Fluttershy in a huge hug, practically crushing her bones, but she smiled the whole time, even while Rarity scolded her to let her go. "O-o-open it Fluttershy!" she whispered excitedly, wanting to see her reaction to what was underneath.
Fluttershy smiled and untied the ribbon, making the process agonizingly slow, especially for Derpy who wanted to see what was inside. Finally, Flutterhsy could not contain her own excitement, and ripped through the box like an enthusiastic filly. "OH!" Derpy cried out, extremely alarmed. "No! B-b-b-be g-g-g-gentle! You'll s-s-scare her!"
Fluttershy stopped and stared up at Derpy. "Her?" she asked, wondering what was inside her package. But she did not have to ask any further, for a tiny furry black head popped out and let out a great loud "meow!" that echoed off the cavern walls.
"What the hell is that?" Rainbow Dash cried out, pointing at the furry thing that was scrambling to get out of the box.
"Well it's obviously a cat," Shortround explained. "Or has the wine taken its full effect?"
Rainbow Dash ignored Shortround's joke. "I don't like cats...we are not having any cats down here!"
Derpy stood ready to protect the black kitten that was playing with the blue ribbon from Fluttershy's present. "She's F-f-fluttershy's gift. She w-w-won't harm anything!"
Rarity sighed and shook her head. "I guess we know who's responsible for Fluttershy's gift," she looked up at Derpy with scrutiny. "We've talked about this before Derpy-"
"S-s-she was s-s-starving!" she defended. "And she's an o-o-orphan! She would have froze if I h-h-hadn't helped. I j-j-just thought...that Fluttershy would like her," she whispered, looking down at her hooves, her face turning a deep shade of red.
Fluttershy was deeply moved by Derpy's tale, and her heart went out to her. "Oh thank you for giving her to me, Derpy," she whispered with deepest sincerity. "She's so beautiful...and quite lively too!" she grinned, pointing to how the kitten was attacking the box she had been placed in. The others couldn't help but laugh a little at the sight.
"S-s-s-so you l-like her?" Derpy asked, her giant hoof reaching down and very gently petting the tiny kitten.
Fluttershy smiled up at him. "I do, very much. But...you know, I confess, I know nothing about how to take care of cats...do you think you could help me look after her?"
Derpy's face lit up like a candle's flame. "Oh! OH! Yes! Yes! I p-p-promise to do my b-b-best with helping!" she grinned broadly, looking happier than ever.
Fluttershy smiled and picked up the blue ribbon, purposefully waving it in front of the black kitten, enticing it to play. "What should we call her?" she asked.
Derpy couldn't help but grin. "I...I actually already g-g-g-gave her a name," she blushed. "C-c-c-carmen...after the opera."
Fluttershy nodded her head. "I like Carmen; a well suited name for a cat," she said with a smile.
"Bloody hell," Rainbow Dash muttered, taking another long swig from her bottle. "Just keep the hairball away from me."
The others couldn't help but laugh, and Christmas continued in the Phantom's labyrinth. While Rarity cooked over the fire pit, Shortround read to the others. Even Rainbow Dash listened, although she would never admit it. Afterwards, Fluttershy led them in singing Christmas carols, and then time came for the Christmas feast.
It was meager compared to the grand feasts that stallions and mares of great fashion and wealth would have on this day, but the glow of friendship that surrounded the table made the goose stew, the roast potatoes, the bread, cheese, and apples, seem like the grandest feast in the world. Even little Carmen got her share of goose stew, with much thanks to Derpy who was sneaking it to her under the table.
And yet, while the others shared jokes and passed the wine around, Fluttershy felt her heart grow heavy with memories of the past. True, this was one of the grandest Christmas' she had ever experienced; but she deeply missed her parents. Her mother would spend all Christmas morning and afternoon cooking for the three of them, and it was always more food than three people could eat, but it was her mother's greatest joy. Fluttershy's father would play carols with his violin, and the three of them would sing into the night in front of the fireplace till sleep finally conquered.
She wondered what her father was doing on this cold day. Was he alright? Was he warm? Was he getting enough food? Was he scared and worrying for her? She wished she could tell him not to worry, that she was truly alright, that she was even happy...but more than anything, she longed to see him again, to hold his hooves and hear his voice.
"Fluttershy?"
She was startled and looked up at Rarity who was looking most concerned. "Are you alright my dear? You look...distressed."
Fluttershy tried to smile, but it was no use. "I...I was just..." she didn't want to ruin their happiness with her own worries. "Where is Discord? Will he be joining us?" she asked, hoping for a positive answer, that he always came for the Christmas feast...but everyone looked away and she knew what the real answer was.
"He told me yesterday to bring him a tray," Rarity explained. "He is working very hard, getting things ready for his opera, as you know," she whispered.
Fluttershy nodded her head, but still felt her heart break at the other mare's words. Why? Why was he acting this way? Why couldn't he just, for Christmas, leave his vast rich chamber...and be with the ones who...who loved him? She felt her cheeks darken at this thought.
"Has he received a gift?" she asked, wondering if Discord participated in the gift-giving mystery.
Once again, everypony looked away. "The Master's not one for games," Rainbow Dash muttered, picking a piece of potato from her yellow teeth. Yet despite her gruff exterior, Fluttershy could tell that even Rainbow Dash was affected by Discord's absence, not just from the feast, but from everything they did for Christmas.
As if to change the subject, Shortround slammed one of his hooves down on the table. "I've got it!" he cried. "Rainbow Dash is responsible for my present-" to which Rainbow Dash groaned again. "-Rarity is responsible for Rainbow Dash's, I am responsible for yours, Rarity," Shortround said with a grin.
"You did that?" Rarity cried. "Oh! Shortround! You know I don't like it when you spoil surprises!" but she was truly smiling despite trying to sound cross.
"Well, I shall keep it a secret to how I came upon the fabric," he grinned, to which she threw a bread roll at him. "And as we all know, Derpy is responsible for giving Fluttershy her new kitten."
"But that still leaves Derpy's book," Fluttershy pointed out.
"The Master!" Derpy exclaimed. "H-h-he got me m-m-my present?"
"He's the only one left," Shortround grinned.
Fluttershy looked confused. "But...I thought you said-"
"The Master doesn't like it when we give him anything," Rainbow Dash muttered. "But that doesn't mean he won't participate by exchanging something with one of us."
Fluttershy was troubled by this new information. It was nice that Discord had participated somewhat in their Christmas...but it still upset her to think that he would have nothing to do with it, even by rejecting gifts for himself.
"Are you alright my dear?" Rarity asked, noticing the troubled expression on Fluttershy's face.
She faked a smile and nodded her head. "Oh, I'm fine, I um...I think I need to lie down actually, that dinner was so good but so filling...oh Rarity, you're a wonderful cook."
Everypony around the table clapped for Rarity who blushed but thanked all of them. "Well look after yourself my dear! Don't want you hurting your pretty voice."
Fluttershy smiled and asked Derpy if she would be so kind as to take care of Carmen for the evening, to which she was all too pleased to do. She left the merry group then, intentionally heading back to her chamber, but upon second thought...found herself wandering through the cavern's many cold passages. It wasn't long before she came upon the underground lake and without second thought, climbed into the boat and rowed herself across.
Despite the darkness that surrounded her, Fluttershy moved with ease through the passages, climbing steps, slipping in through empty chambers, and dodging weakened floor boards to avoid injury. At last, she finally reached her destination; the tower that led to the Opera House's roof. She climbed the narrow steep steps with ease, although she knew that later when she wished to come back down, she would have much more difficulty. But right now, all she cared about was breathing in the cold evening air, having a chance to be by herself and wrestle with her thoughts alone. She opened the trap door and was greeted by a blast of cold wind, but she welcomed it, climbing through the opening, breathing in the freshness of the cold air...and gasped when she felt a paw grab her arm and pulled her up.
"What are you doing here?" came a deep voice etched with darkness and surprise.
Futtershy didn't have to look at the face to know who it was. She wrestled her arm free and refused to meet his eyes. "Can't a mare get some fresh air if she wishes?" she retorted, walking directly past Discord and looking out towards the quiet city. In the distance Notre Mane chimed the hour.
Discord ran a paw through his tousled hair, still coming over the surprise of seeing her emerge through the door. He thought for sure it had been a stage hoof or thief, somepony who was not supposed to be up there, but when he saw Fluttershy's pretty face emerge instead-he was flooded with both relief and annoyance.
This was the only place he could conceive of escaping her presence! Her scent was embedded in his chambers, and he could hear her voice, her laughter, carry on the wind that traveled through the tunnels. He had to get away; he had to escape the wild emotions that were confusing his soul, his mind, and his heart. Ever since that night at the opera, things were different. Ever since he held her in his arms, carried her to her chamber, and kissed her forehead...things had changed. He had dreamt of her before, fantasized about her, and how could he forget the incident when he had to seek out relief for himself with his own paw. But it was easier then to disregard what he was feeling; then it was lust, pure and simple. Now...ever since they began to become friends...now it was something more. Something he was not sure he wished to resurrect within himself. And yet what he felt towards Fluttershy was far different than what he ever felt for Pinkamena. But it still frightened him; it was still something he did not feel he could control. So he found himself, once again, avoiding her presence when possible. Yet despite his success of keeping his distance for the past week, Discord knew as he looked upon her now, the wind blowing in her hair, the moon shining in her eyes, the rosy color that painted her cheek...he knew that if something was not said or done, he would go mad and lose whatever control he had.
He did not believe he could harm her; no...he could never harm such an angel. But he may frighten her without meaning to. And he was not sure if his heart could withstand to see fear and hatred in her beautiful blue eyes.
Fluttershy felt his gaze upon her, but she kept her back to him, not flinching one bit, just staring out over the city. Thoughts from before returned, thoughts of her father, and as she clutched the woolen shawl around her shoulders to keep out the cold Christmas wind, she wondered if he was warm enough, wherever he was.
Discord saw something glisten in the moonlight, and realized it was a tear that was slowly trickling down her cheek. His breath caught as he gazed upon her, and he fought the urge to go to her side and envelope her in his arms, to shield her from whatever sadness or fear was causing her such grief. He wanted to feel her body against his again, he wanted to comfort her, he wanted to protect her, he wanted....he wanted her.
"You're thinking of your father...aren't you?" he whispered. It was Christmas after all, and while Fluttershy never spoke of her family, he knew deep within his being that she missed him dearly.
Fluttershy said nothing, simply nodded her head for fear of sobbing. She quickly wiped her eyes, hugging the shawl even tighter to her body.
"I am sorry."
She couldn't take it any longer, she whirled around and marched over to him, practically standing toe to toe with him. "Why? Why are you sorry? What exactly are you apologizing for?"
Discord was momentarily stunned by her change in behavior. He found himself taking a step backwards. "W-w-what?"
"I want to know what you're apologizing for," she stated simply. "Are you simply saying it because you pity me? Well don't. Because I don't want your pity just as you don't want mine!" she snapped. "Or are you sincerely, genuinely, apologizing for something else?"
Discord found himself growing annoyed at her words. "And what should I be apologizing for?" he asked. "Obviously you know a reason, so I am eager to hear it," he dryly said.
Fluttershy lifted her chin high. "Why have you been so short with me this week?" she demanded. "Have I greatly displeased you? What have I done that has caused you to avoid me at all costs and keep our rehearsals at a bear minimum?" she sighed and felt the fight within her sag. "I...I don't want to fight you," she sighed. "But...I do want to understand why this change," she lifted her eyes to his. "A week ago, everything was wonderful. We...we went to the opera together and it was a magical night!" she exclaimed, smiling at the memory. "But the next day...everything was different," she bit her lip and turned away again, gazing back out over the city. "Is it my voice? Have you grown tired of my voice-"
"No, of course not," he interrupted.
Fluttershy softly smiled at this, but it was her next question that would determine whether her heart would break or not. "Is it...is it me?" she whispered. "Have you grown tired of...of me?" she wanted to look at him but was afraid, afraid of what truth she may find in his dark mysterious amber eyes. "I know I can be a bother, wanting to talk about silly things like books and philosophy, when you are a serious composer with an opera you're trying to debut; a-am I simply being...too...too forward? Am I being...annoying or...or b-b-bothersome?" she choked on her last words, trying to hold back any tears that threatened to shed.
Discord said nothing, he simply came up from behind her, his large gloved paw and claw, a paw and claw that had killed stallions and caused terror, a paw and claw that had bled for the sake of music, gently fell upon her shoulders, and without struggle, turned her to face him, his paw and claw falling softly down her arms, not letting her go, but not drawing her closer, although he dearly wanted to.
"Never," he whispered. "I could never grow tired of you...you..." he paused and found himself smiling at a memory. "What was it that you said that night...the toast you made...to the 'angel of music', yes?" Fluttershy blushed at the memory but found herself smiling and nodding her head. "You are that...you are my angel of music, Fluttershy," he whispered with the deepest sincerity. "You have brought light to my darkness, beauty to my music, and..." he wanted to tell her how she brought heaven to his hell, but felt foolish, so he stopped. Reluctantly, he released her, but neither stepped back. "Can you forgive me?" he whispered, his eyes full of hope that she would. He knew he had not given her a straight forward answer for his behavior, but he hoped that she would not further question him on that, as he himself was still making sense of it.
Yet Fluttershy's heart felt a glimmer of hope rise within her. Perhaps...perhaps the fearsome Phantom of the Opera was learning to trust and...just perhaps, care for another pony the way a hero and heroine care for one another. "Of course," she whispered back, her eyes sparkling and her smile spreading across her face.
Discord felt a soft smile pull at the ends of his mouth, and for a long moment, the two of them stood close together, practically toe to toe, and Discord found himself bending his head just slightly, while Fluttershy, her eyes going wider all the while, felt her head tilt upwards.
A rush of cold wind blew over them and Discord immediately straightened. "You'll freeze...come, we best get back inside."
Fluttershy awoke from the trance his eyes had created and she quickly nodded her head, her face completely flushed. "Yes, quite right," she whispered, although the cold night air had little effect on the warmth she was feeling.
As before, Discord took the rope that hung from the trap door, expertly wrapping his leg around a part, creating the hold for his foot, and held his paw out to Fluttershy. Last time, Fluttershy had clung to Discord out of fear from falling, her face buried against his shoulder so she would not have to see. But this time, as she entered his embrace, she did not hide her face but locked her eyes with his. Discord's arm tightened around her waist, and slowly, they floated to the floor like a snowflake in a gentle breeze; twisting and twirling with the rope, and the whole time, their eyes never left the other.
"Thank you," Flutttershy whispered after they landed safely.
"My pleasure," Discord whispered back, meaning every word.
They walked in silence then, past the curtains, the stage, and down the steps that led to the underground lake. Fluttershy broke the silence, telling Discord about the Christmas celebrations that went on with the others. She warned him that a new face had come to stay, meaning the black kitten named Carmen, to which Discord groaned at first, but found himself chuckling. While they were on the boat, Fluttershy felt it was time to finally ask Discord, "Why is it that you don't celebrate with the others?"
Discord said nothing at first, his whole concentration on steering the boat. "I'm not one for celebrations," he simply said. "I wouldn't want to drag the spirits of others down."
Fluttershy frowned at this. "If Rainbow Dash can celebrate and not bring spirits down, I do not think you are in danger of doing so."
Discord found himself chuckling again. "Perhaps not...but I am very busy, and had much to do."
Fluttershy frowned more at this. "So busy that you needed to retreat to the roof of the Maris Opera House?"
Discord said nothing, simply climbed out of the boat and tethered it before helping Fluttershy out. She sighed as she realized he was not going to answer her question. "We missed you," she explained. Still, he said nothing; his face was entirely unreadable. "I missed you."
That caused him to pause. He slowly turned to look at her, his face shadowed by the collar of his cape, but his eyes seemed to glow like those of a panther.
Fluttershy could tell he was still not going to say anything, so she took a deep breath and continued. "I...I just..." what was she trying to say exactly? "I consider you all to be dear friends of mine...a family to me, actually," she whispered. "And...I felt that a part of my family...was missing when you weren't there."
Discord straightened himself to his full towering height and looked down at her with curious eyes. She wanted to know what he was thinking, but he was still so unreadable in these shadows.
"I apologize," Discord finally said, bowing his head. "I did not mean to cause you or the others sadness," he took a step closer towards her. "I just have never felt that my presence would be...desired at such occasions. Perhaps, I simply felt I was not worthy to partake."
Fluttershy found her hoof rising and to the surprise of them both, caressing his unscarred cheek. Discord froze at the touch of her hoof, his heart practically coming to a stop. "You think too little of yourself," she said with all the honesty and caring she had. "You are worthy of happiness Discord...you bring happiness to all of us here..." and she thought of the happiness that he brought especially to her life.
She found herself blushing furiously as her other hoof rose and touched the smooth surface of his mask that covered the disfigured side of his face. "Derpy deeply loved the gift you gave her...but I learned that no one has given you a gift. So," she said, swallowing. "it is only right that...that I give you your gift, as I am the only one left who hasn't given a present."
Discord who had been frozen this whole time, yet relishing the feel of her small delicate hooves upon him, finally opened his mouth to ask what she meant...but was stopped short, when Fluttershy held his face, stood up on the tips of her toes, and placed her lips against his own.
The kiss was brief, but it felt like a sweet eternity. It was just the gentle brush of her lips across his, but in that moment, in that gentle brushing of lips, Discord felt his heart explode with wonder and amazement, and Fluttershy felt her love finally pouring out and shouting for joy at being free. Neither of them moved, and finally, Fluttershy leaned back, back down to her height, her soft hooves releasing his face, and the two of them stood in front of the other, neither speaking, neither moving, simply staring at the other and breathing erratically.
"Merry Christmas Discord," Fluttershy whispered, before moving past him to return to her chamber.
Discord said nothing, he simply stood where he was, his chest rising and falling as if he had run a marathon. Truly, he had been holding his breath the whole while. He closed his eyes, the feel of her lips still fresh upon his own. He ran his tongue along them and could taste them there.
It was the first Christmas present he had ever been given...and the sweetest. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Seduction | Seduction
The days that followed Christmas were awkward days for both Discord and Fluttershy. After the kiss, Fluttershy had retreated to her chamber, blushing furiously, wondering if she had done the right thing, if perhaps she had jeopardized the steady friendship they had been building. In her heart she knew she loved him, but she was afraid of saying the words out loud for fear of what he would think of her.
She remembered the night he had saved her from being raped; while she was most grateful to him, the two of them despised each other, and she remembered all too well the words he had said to her, how he was not some knight in shining armor from a fairy tale. Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at the memory. Discord was far from being a knight on a white horse...and she would have it no other way.
He was tall, dark, and brooding. His temper was short, his emotions were like stone, and his patience was extremely thin. And yet, she had heard him laugh, seen him smile, and felt his kindness. He gave her this beautiful chamber, taught her to sing like a star, calmed her fears, and on the night he took her to the opera, carried her back without protest after losing her shoe. Discord was still very dark, still short-tempered, and she had a feeling that he would be as brooding and stone-like as the pony statues on the rooftop, but she hoped and prayed that with every day they spent together, with every conversation they had, she had been able to chip away at the stone barrier he kept.
She tossed and turned in her bed that night, remembering the kiss with every breath of her body.
It had been brief, fleeting; a simple brush of their lips and then it was done.
...but it had been the most electrifying, heated sensation Fluttershy had ever felt. Had Discord felt it too?
Fluttershy was not an experienced kisser, she had only been kissed once before, by a farm colt in her village when she was fifteen, and the experience, she recalled, was not spectacular.
Was it the hypnotic way he held himself when they were together? The way he stood, the way he looked at her? Often she found his voice, deep and rich, dark and soothing, to be the most hypnotic thing about him, but his very presence was having such a deep effect on her, that in that fleeting moment, Fluttershy could not hold herself back. She came towards him, placed her hooves against his skin, as if it were the most natural thing to do...and stood up as high as she could and kissed him, as if it too, were the most natural thing to do.
But the sensation she got from it was nothing natural. It was everything Discord was; sensual, dark, and extremely seductive. It had only been a light brush of lips, and yet she recalled a strange trembling feeling develop in her knees, in the pit of her stomach, and that shot through her body.
Fluttershy was young and innocent, but she was not ignorant. After all, she grew up on a farm and knew all about animals and their mating rituals. But her mother had never told her what it felt like to feel...intense passion for a stallion. Did it...did it hurt when a stallion and mare lie together? She had heard stories in the village; colts boasting to one another. They seemed to get something from the act, but was it pleasant for mares? Was it normal for a filly to question such things? To feel such sensations as she felt when she kissed Discord? She had to admit...she liked the sensation. Would it always be like that? Discord was surprised by her kiss, but...did he feel what she felt? Did he...did he know about such things?
Fluttershy found herself blushing furiously and scolding herself immensely for thinking such things. If Discord did not share her feelings of love, how then could he share her feelings of passion? She bit her lip, wondering slightly if...if he, like other men it seemed, was..."experienced". She shook her head immediately, not sure she wanted to know the answer to that question.
She knew he wore the mask to cover his scars, and even if his face was not disfigured, she knew Discord was not what society would call "fashionably handsome" even if he looked normal. He was tall, thin, with a workstallion's callouses, and strong arms, shoulders, and back. His hair was black and somewhat wild; it was not long, and went up the length of his back. His face was rough looking as well (and this was the non-scarred side). And overall, one can never forget his body.When she touched his cheek, she remembered how it felt like sandpaper. Discord had a small beard and a soft face, but his face felt right, just as his roughened paw and claw felt right when he offered her his paw. No, he was not handsome by society's standards...but no other stallion had ever been as devastatingly attractive to her as Discord was.
The way he moved, spoke, even the way he looked at her! Her body screamed with desire as she felt his eyes upon her. These bold and unashamed feelings frightened her, for she had no idea how to handle them. For the first time in her life, Fluttershy was beginning to understand what it felt like to lust after a pony.
Yet more than anything, she wanted to teach him love. She loved him; for how long, she was unsure, but it had been growing for quite some time. She hoped and prayed that perhaps his feelings towards her were growing as well. After all, he had entrusted her with the secrets of his lair.
But did that mean he trusted her with his heart?
The next few days were extremely awkward. Fluttershy arrived at Discord's chamber for her lesson, unsure what to say, unsure how to behave, and worrying how he would react when he saw her.
Discord, who had been feeling emotions of joy, fear, uncertainty, and desire, stared at Fluttershy as she entered. She wore a simple maroon gown, plain in its appearance, and yet she radiated in it. Her eyes reminded him of the ocean, deep and blue, like the sea he had crossed when the carnival had "bought" him. Her hair was the color of pink flowers, and it felt like silk. Now and then, when she walked by him, he'd catch wisps of it, and he longed to thrust his paw and claw into her strands and run his paw and claw through the locks. And her body...dear God in heaven, so many times he recalled the night he saw her bathing. It took every ounce of will power he had to not return and watch her again. While his desire for her was growing like wildfire, his respect for her had grown even more.
But new thoughts and feelings were racing through him now, for he continued to recall the kiss she had given him. In truth, it was the first kiss he had ever received. While he was not "inexperienced" when it came to mares, he had never allowed the mares he paid for a moment's pleasure to kiss him...or be close to his face at all. But her kiss, Fluttershy's sweet fleeting kiss, had changed all that. In that brief but blissful moment, he knew what heaven smelled, tasted, and felt like. It was the closest he'd ever be to heaven.
"G-g-good morning Discord," Fluttershy stuttered, quickly clearing her throat to try and sound as normal as possible.
Discord nodded his head, not trusting his own voice at the moment, and for a while, the two stared at one another, neither moving nor speaking. Fluttershy felt her legs sway slightly, and was sure her knees would buckle if she didn't do something.
"I-"
"Shall we-"
They both stopped and gave a rather nervous sounding chuckle, before Discord broke the awkward silence and moved around the piano, opening the score to a later portion in his opera. "Come," he said, instructing her to approach the piano. "There is a song I have longed to hear you sing ever since you mastered the role of Aminta." Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at this. When it came to music, Discord was ever the professional.
"Do you recognize this?" he asked.
Fluttershy gazed at the score and felt her eyes go wide. "Point of No Return?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She remembered the song all too well. The music was sensuous and the lyrics were graphic. Oh God above, how was she going to survive singing this song in front of him?
"In Don Juan, this takes place towards the end when Don Juan is attempting to seduce Aminta to his bed, triumphing over her lover and before he murders them both."
Fluttershy held back her groan of disdain. Extremely cheerful, she thought sarcastically.
"Now, it is a duet," Discord instructed. "But for right now, we shall concentrate on Aminta's part. Ready?" And they began.
Fluttershy sang the role as best she could, although her heart was not entirely in the music, as Discord became all too aware half-way through. He first thought it was because they had not had the proper warm-ups to singing, so they went through those for a good half hour before coming back to the score. But once again, Fluttershy struggled.
It was not the music or the rhythm of the song that caused her to struggle, but simply the memory of the opera's sad, tragic story. She knew deep in her heart that it didn't have to end the way it did; that Aminta truly loved Don Juan despite his disfigurement and that she would not betray his trust.
Fluttershy knew deep in her heart that it was she, she was describing, not Aminta.
After an hour of Fluttershy's depressing singing, Discord sighed and chose to end their rehearsal, believing it to be a case of post-Christmas fatigue. Fluttershy left his chamber then, believing it to be for the best, but was determined to think of a way to convince Discord to perhaps change the ending to his opera. Or at least to consider it.
The next day was not much better. This time Discord's patience was waning thin, and he bit his tongue so as not to shout, but Fluttershy could feel his frustration. She was just as frustrated, although over an entirely different reason. "You're not trying," he growled, playing the introduction to the song once again. "I know you can sing this, I've heard you sing it before, now show me the spirit of the mare I know!"
That did it. Fluttershy belted out the notes as he played, matching the passion of his music, although it was not the same sort of passion. It angered her that he thought the lack of heart in which she sang had anything to do with a weakened spirit. She had more heart and spirit than he perhaps knew, and now she sang the words with great gusto, her voice soaring and flying over the notes. She was no longer singing Aminta, she was Aminta, and she sang to him as Aminta sang to Don Juan.
"You have brought me
to that moment where words run dry,
to that moment where speech disappears into silence,
silence...
I have come here,
hardly knowing the reason why...
in my mind, I've already imagined
our bodies entwining, defenseless and silent-"
She continued singing passionately, despite the fact that her cheeks glowed red. Also, at this point, her eyes were locked with his; no longer was he reading the music as he played, but he was gazing back at her, the way a panther gazed at its prey before attacking.
"And now I am here with you:
no second thoughts,
I've decided,
decided..."
"Good!" Discord interrupted, his playing coming to a stop, awaking Fluttershy from the trance of his eyes and the power of his music. "That was much better," he commended, "but I want that fire at every rehearsal! Why did you struggle so?"
Fluttershy's eyes were focused on the ground. "It doesn't..." she began, knowing his reaction and dreading it. "It doesn't feel..." she sighed, having difficulty with saying what was on her heart.
Discord frowned. "Doesn't feel? Doesn't feel what, Fluttershy? Tell me, you promised you'd never hold any secrets from me during our rehearsals."
He would say that, wouldn't he? Fluttershy sighed and looked directly at him, preparing herself for the possible battle. "It doesn't feel right," she stated plainly. Discord's brow furrowed with confusion, but she continued before he could speak. "Singing this song and knowing the story behind it! Discord, have you not read the words that she is saying to Don Juan?"
Discord scowled at her. "Of course I know the words, I composed them!" he snapped, standing up from the piano and organizing the music before him.
Fluttershy sighed and continued. "Discord, this is a love song! Yes, there are indeed dark elements to it, elements that are sensual and provocative, but...it is what it is...a love song that the two characters are singing to one another-"
"I know very well what it is!" he barked, taking his beloved music and moving it away from the piano as if he feared she would harm it in some way. "This is about the plot again, isn't it?" he groaned. "Good God, I thought we were past that now."
Fluttershy frowned, not appreciating the patronizing tone his words carried. "It doesn't make sense Discord, why would Aminta do this? She loves Don Juan! That is made clear so many times before, and yet, for no apparent reason, she betrays him for another stallion?"
Discord slumped himself into a cushioned chair at the other end of his music chamber, his black cape billowing around him as he did so. "Need I remind you that Don Juan has been hideously scarred, and Aminta's new lover is a handsome rogue? I thought perhaps that would make it plain-"
"No it does not!" Fluttershy shouted, stomping her foot with great indignation. "I know Pinkamena and other mares throw themselves constantly at hoofsome stallions, but Aminta is not that sort of mare! She loves him! She would not abandon him! I am not like that!"
Fluttershy's hoof flew to her mouth the second the words came out. Discord did not miss them; he was on his feet in an instant and staring at her from across the room. Yet before he could say anything, Fluttershy turned on her heel and flew from the chamber, not daring to go to her own for fear that he would follow her, but flying to some private corner of the Phantom's realm where she could be alone. And of all places, she ran to the chamber where the costume cages were kept, seeking shelter inside, hiding amongst dusty dresses and forgotten gowns, praying that he had not followed, not sure if she could face him after her explosion. Silent tears dripped down her cheeks and she hid her face against a tattered garment that hung from above, the words echoing in her head the whole while.
She loved Discord with all her heart, but hearing his words hurt her deeply. Did he not think she or any mare was capable of loving a creature such as himself? How could she help him understand that she would never betray his trust or his love, that she was his and his alone? She sighed, for it was true. He may not know it, but Fluttershy was his, and perhaps, if he could return her love...he would be hers.
Discord never followed, and Fluttershy stayed in her hiding place for several hours before retreating back to her chamber. She held her breath as she approached, unsure whether to find him there or not, a part of her hoping that he may be there, waiting...but he was not.
The next day dawned and Fluttershy was dreading the rehearsal already. What would he say to her? What did he think? Should she tell him her true feelings? After all, she had kissed him, but then a horrible thought came to her. Did he think that her kiss was simply a kiss of pity? Or that she had kissed him only because it was Christmas? After all, she had referred to her kiss as a gift...
Fluttershy grasped her mother's locket that she wore around her neck, taking a deep breath as she entered the Phantom's chamber.
"You're late," he stated simply as she entered, already sitting at the piano and playing several cords from the overture of his opera. He didn't even turn to look at her.
Fluttershy inwardly groaned, realizing that this was going to be a hellish day. Yet she held her head high and approached the piano, prepared for whatever he threw at her.
"Point of No Return," he instructed, placing the score before him.
Fluttershy's eyes widened. "A-a-again?" she gasped, thinking that of all the songs, that would be the last he'd want to hear her sing.
"Yes," he stated again. "Although this time, I will be singing with you."
Fluttershy stared at him, her face going from pale to rosy and back to pale in a matter of seconds. "Y-y-y-you w-w-will be s-singing as well?"
Discord gave a wry grin. "Perhaps you only think I'm good at playing music?" he chuckled. "Not to flatter myself, but I do believe I can sing a good note or two. And besides, this song is a duet, and I want to hear how it sounds with two voices. I want to hear you sing back to another, I think that will help the essence of the song greatly."
Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat, her hooves gripping the piano slightly, biting her lip and wondering what all this would have in store. Discord's voice was already mesmerizing, but what would it be like when she heard him singing? And not only that...but him singing back to her, singing these seductive lyrics full of fire and passion. Like Aminta, she felt herself coming to a point of no return.
Discord began playing the introduction to the song, and then, without warning...
"You have come here
in pursuit of your deepest urge,
in pursuit of that wish,
which till now has been silent,
silent..."
Fluttershy's breath had caught in her throat as she heard the Phantom's rich voice, singing both tenor and baritone with ease and skill, the words dripping off his tongue like honey...
"I have brought you,
that our passions may fuse and merge-
in your mind you've already succumbed to me,
dropped all defenses,
completely succumbed to me-"
His amber gaze, which looked like molten fire, was burning into her own as he sang.
"Now you are here with me-
no second thoughts,
you've decided,
decided..."
She was under the spell of his eyes, his voice, his music. Fluttershy felt her skin tingle, her blood boil, her heart speeding, and that strange wonderful sensation return between her legs.
"Past the point of no return-
no backward glances:
the games we've played till now are at an end..."
Discord could not look away, nor did he need to. He knew the music and lyrics by heart, but he was entranced by Fluttershy, he sang as if he were Don Juan, singing to the beautiful Aminta, seducing her to come lay with him.
"Past all thought of 'if' or 'when'-
no use resisting:
abandon thought,
and let the dream descend...
What raging fire shall flood the soul?
What rich desire unlocks its door?
What sweet seduction lies before us...?"
Fluttershy whimpered softly to his voice, the tenor in it singing of seduction, while the baritone promised pleasure.
"Past the point of no return,
the final threshold-
what warm, unspoken secrets will we learn?
Beyond the point of no return..."
Despite the trance his voice had over her, Fluttershy began singing, as if it were second nature, responding to Don Juan's seductive questions.
"You have brought me
to that moment where words run dry,
to that moment where speech disappears into silence,
silence..."
Her eyes were still locked with Discord's as she sang, and she was not sure if she was imagining it or not, but he seemed to be breathing even harder than before, the same way she had been breathing while he sang.
"I have come here,
hardly knowing the reason why...
in my mind, I've already imagined
our bodies entwining, defenseless and silent-
and now I am here with you:
no second thoughts,
I've decided,
decided..."
She approached the piano, pressing her body against it and found herself leaning closer to him, leaning rather provocatively against the instrument, her eyes, the color of a stormy sea, burning into his.
"Past the point of no return-
no going back now:
the passion-play has, at last, begun..."
She leaned against the piano even more, her chest now pressed against its surface, her face leaning closer towards his, licking her lips between notes.
"Past all thought of right or wrong-
one final question:
how long should we two wait, before we're one...?
When will the blood begin to race,
the sleeping bud burst into bloom?
When will the flames at last, consume us...?"
Discord pushed himself away from the piano, rising so quickly that the bench toppled backward, but he did not take notice, nor did he care. He advanced upon Fluttershy, singing with her the next part of the song, neither of them paying attention to anything else, the two completely lost with one another.
"Past the point of no return,
the final threshold-
the bridge is crossed, so stand and watch it burn..."
Fluttershy gasped as she felt Discord's arms encircle her, his paw and claw pressed flat against her back, drawing her body fully against his own. Her own arms gripped his shoulders, and she moaned loudly as she felt his growing hardness throbbing against her, the tingling between her thighs growing more and more intense. A paw snaked into her hair, and he tangled his fingers in the silky strands, before cupping the nape of her neck. One of her arms went around his neck, clutching him close, drawing his face even closer to hers. His other arm carefully and tightly held her steady, and then he dipped her somewhat, causing her to lose all balance and completely surrender herself to him. Fluttershy's other hoof now carefully moved to his right cheek, touching the smooth surface of his mask. Could he feel her beneath its surface? His breath caught briefly as he felt her hoof go there, and she swore she heard him groan in pleasure as she caressed its surface.
"We've passed the point of no return..." they both softly sang, gazing into one another's eyes, clinging to each other, the music of their hearts echoing throughout the chamber as they were caught up in its spell. Time seemed to have stopped, and for a several agonizing seconds, the two did not move.
Fluttershy held her breath as she gazed up at Discord, feeling his paws tighten at the back of her neck, and her eyes were pleading, pleading for him to do what she wanted him to do, what he wanted to do, and her own hoof massaged the back of his neck, drawing it closer to her, her eyes fluttering closed, her lips moistening, awaiting, praying for the feel of his against her own.
Discord swore his heart had stopped. His breathing certainly had as he gazed back down at her, his eyes moving from hers to her inviting lips, the memory of her last kiss still fresh. What would it be like to taste her? He had had a tempting savoring of her mouth, but he wanted to taste it further, to feel her lips surrender against his, to open her mouth for him and allow his tongue to ravish hers. He had never kissed a mare before Fluttershy, but any fear from lack of experience was gone; he wanted her, all of her, but for now, he would sate his appetite with the joy of her lips.
Fluttershy whimpered a thankful sigh as Discord's mouth came crashing against hers. She moaned and easily surrendered her mouth to him, willingly opening herself for him, welcoming his tongue with her own. Discord's arms tightened even further around her body as his mouth ravished hers, tasting her sweet essence, tasting the beauty of heaven.
Fluttershy clung to him as he kissed her even deeper, her own tongue boldly exploring his mouth, causing Discord to groan in pleasure as she kissed him back deeply, her hooves digging into the flesh around his neck, through his hair, running over the surface of his mask, caressing his unscarred cheek. He was in heaven, and he didn't want it to end.
Fluttershy gasped as she felt her feet lift off the floor. Was this happening? Was this truly happening? The dark hero from her dreams, the creature who haunted her more than any spirit ever could, was kissing her, holding her...oh God, was this how it felt to make love? Surely, this was different than mere coupling; this was passionate, pleasurable, and utter bliss. If he wanted her, she knew she could not stop him, nor did she want to. She wanted him so much, and she longed to feel his body against hers, to know what it was like to be made love to and to make love. She would surrender herself if he wished it, and in her heart she knew, there would be no regrets.
Discord had literally picked Fluttershy up, one of his arms sliding down the back of her legs, scooping her up at the bend of her knees, and he was carrying her, carrying her past the organ, beyond the music chamber, and into the chamber where he slept, laying her down upon the plush Persian pillows that engulfed his bed. A claw was sliding along Fluttershy's leg, and she whimpered against his mouth as she felt it slide upward along her thigh. Fluttershy's hooves were moving along his shoulders, inside his jacket, and she was quickly shoving the fabric aside, caressing the strong muscles she felt beneath the linen of his shirt.
. Discord's hooves tangled in his hair as she kissed him, and one hoof discovered the tie of his mask. She wanted his mask to be gone, so that she could kiss him properly, without feeling it brush and bump against her lips. She wanted to rain kisses all over him, and perhaps by doing that, perhaps by showing him that she loved him despite his scars, that to her, he was handsome and the stallion of her dreams, perhaps by at least touching him there...he would understand that she would never betray him, that he could trust her with his heart, that she truly loved him!
Fluttershy continued kissing him, her passion growing, her heart racing, as her hooves quickly untied his mask. Yet before she could remove it from his face Discord bolted upright, grasping it to him, and staring at her in horror.
"What game are you playing at?" he asked her harshly, quickly attempting to tie the mask back, but his paw and claw were fumbling as he did so.
Fluttershy sat up, her hooves moving to his, but he jumped away from her, backing away from the bed. "Why? What were you trying to do?" he ordered, turning his back to her quickly while he finished tying the mask in place.
It felt as if the all the warmth of the world had been sucked out, and Fluttershy sat atop his bed, shivering as she stared at the creature she loved who seemed to look at her with both wariness and revulsion. "Aminta..." he whispered, looking at the ground, quickly adjusting his shirt and jacket. "Of course...we were playing roles..."
"No!" Fluttershy practically shouted, rising from the bed, and like Discord, adjusting her dress. "No, Discord, we were not playing anything...that was me you were kissing, not Aminta, and I was kissing you, not Don Juan...don't you see? It was us, not characters from an opera!"
But it was as though he could not hear her. Even though his mask was firm in its place, he still clutched it with his paw. "Why Fluttershy?" he asked again, his eyes locking with hers as he continued to back away. Fluttershy wanted to scream at him, to shout that she loved him, to tell him that with or without a mask, he as still the only stallion she had ever wanted, the only stallion she would allow to touch her as he did, to kiss her, to know her as a husband knows his wife.
"Discord, listen to me, please, I wasn't trying to play any tricks or games on you, I wanted you to kiss me, and I wanted to kiss you!"
He shook his head, and then grabbed her by the wrists, causing her to gasp as he hoisted her away from the bed and towards the door. "Discord! Let go! You're hurting me!" she cried, pulling her wrists from his grip and rubbing them.
"Get out," he practically spat. "Leave me! I see now that you simply wanted to play games of 'unmasking the monster', like those fillys who were sent to my cage at the carnival, offering tempting kisses and then screaming in my face! It's the same way Aminta plays with Don Juan's emotions!"
Fluttershy couldn't stand it any longer. "Damn it Discord! I am not Aminta! I-"
"GET OUT! LEAVE ME BE!" he shouted, before turning his back upon her and striding to his organ and banging his paw and claw hard upon its keys, causing a great gust of wind to come out from its pipes and practically blast Fluttershy off her hooves.
With hot tears flowing down her cheeks, Fluttershy turned and fled from Discords chamber, crying for her lost love, for that was exactly who he was. She thought she had been doing some good, but apparently, it did not matter. Any hope of winning Discord's heart was gone, for now he had no more trust within her. How could she explain to a creature who had spent a great deal of his life in a cage, his disfigurement placed on display for money and mockery, that it was his face, both the masked and unmasked version, that haunted her dreams and filled her with desire?
It was the third day following Christmas, and all too soon, Fluttershy realized that her wish had come to an end. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Plotting | Plotting
The walls of Blueblood's library were illuminated in a soft orange glow, the same glow that poured over him as he gazed into the fireplace at the small but blazing fire. He grunted softly as he stared into the flames, trying to concentrate on the task at hoof, but finding it extremely difficult while other thoughts from Christmas night invaded his mind.
Christmas had been two days ago, but the news that Crafty Crate had delivered him had been most perplexing and disturbing.
He grunted again, closing his eyes and trying one last time to concentrate but exhaled a frustrated groan, knowing it was no use.
"Get up!" he barked, and a red head popped up from between his legs.
The chambermaid pouted softly, knowing that she had not been able to please her master entirely. "But monsieur, I haven't-"
"Get up and leave at once!" he growled, avoiding the mare's eyes and doing up his own trousers, tucking himself back in, feeling utterly frustrated from both his thoughts and lack of relief.
The maid pouted once again, but rose to her hooves, righting her dress and did a small curtsy, before quickly exiting the library.
Blueblood paid the maid no heed, after all, she was just a servant and maids were only good for one thing as far as he was concerned. He continued to stare into the fire, allowing himself to fully concentrate on the news Crafty Crate had delivered two nights ago.
It was almost 11 o'clock on Christmas night, and Blueblood was impatiently awaiting word from the private investigator. Finally, the butler entered the library announcing Crafty Crate' arrival, and the smaller stallion entered, wiping snow off his coat, his face extremely red. He was panting and collapsed in the nearest arm chair, wheezing for the butler to bring him a brandy, even though Blueblood as host made no such offer. Blueblood chose to ignore this, and focused entirely on the stallion before him.
"Goodness, what the devil happened to you?" he asked, sipping his own brandy and leaning back in his chair.
Crafty Crate wheezed a little more, then finally muttered, "Couldn't...get...a cab...had to...run..." the brandy arrived then and Crafty Crate took a hearty drink. "Thank you," he muttered.
Blueblood lit a cigar, hoping the smoke would help calm him. While Blueblood had made his deadline, Blueblood was most impatient for any news. "Well?" he demanded after taking one long puff. "What news do you have?"
Crafty Crate mopped the sweat from his brow and took another long swig of his brandy before finally retelling his discoveries.
"As you had advised, I played the part of someone seeking out information on the Phantom," Crafty Crate began. "And I began my inquiries with people who I felt would see a great deal of what goes on back stage, but who few would regard with any importance," Crafty Crate said proudly.
Blueblood held back his groan of frustration. "Stagehooves?"
Crafty Crate beamed. "Exactly monsieur! Yes, I felt it best to speak to them, as I feared the dance mares may tell Madame Luna of my presence and we would not want that, would we?"
Blueblood made no response, just glared at the stallion to continue.
"Yes, well," Crafty Crate quickly went on, "I saw several burly looking fellows smoking cigarettes near the orchestra pit, and felt it best to approach them. I must say, monsieur, it amazes me that such places of grandness and refinement would hire such rude, grotesque-"
"Get on with it!"
Crafty Crate practically fell out of his chair from Blueblood's bark of impatience. "Forgive me, monsieur, I digress," he apologized. "Yes, well, I approached these stallions and introduced myself as one who was investigating the whereabouts of the so-called 'Phantom of the Opera'."
Blueblood choked on the smoke he was inhaling from his cigar and pounded his hoof against his chest as he stared at the other stallion with wild eyes. "You...you what?" he coughed. "You idiot! I told you to only say that if anyone inquired as to why you were asking questions! Not as an introduction!"
Blueblood rose from his chair and stalked over to the other side of the room, feeling that if he did not get far enough away from Crafty Crate he'd cause the stallion great pain...and think nothing of it. Even Crafty Crate was shrinking back in his chair. "F-f-forgive monsieur! I...I d-d-do not think t-t-that you are in danger of...of being discovered h-however-"
Blueblood cursed and threw what was left of his cigar into the fire. "Now the maniac who is playing these jokes on me will know about the investigation I'm conducting and gain even more glee at my frustration!"
Crafty Crate shrank even more, but lifted his voice with news that he hoped would please his employer, "I did learn more about the mare, however."
Blueblood froze, his eyes both large and wild as he gazed at Crafty Crate. "Continue..."
Pleased that the Prince didn't want to kill him anymore, at least not at the moment, Crafty Crate quickly continued. "The stagehooves I spoke with laughed at my introduction, telling me that the Phantom was no stallion I could catch, even if I wished it. They all claimed to have seen him, that he lurks in the shadows behind the stage, that he haunts the many catwalks high above, that he knows everything that goes on and that he runs this theater-"
Blueblood growled at those words. "Get on with it," he snarled.
Crafty Crate swallowed his nervousness. "T-they all seemed quite sure that this Phantom is not a prankster, that he truly exists...and I scoffed at them, saying it could be anypony; the letters could be written by any number of ponies wanting to make demands, but they became quite insistent that the Phantom exists! They then told me about ponies who...who did not follow the Phantom's wishes, who did not obey his orders, and who met the wrath of the Opera Ghost," Crafty Crate paused briefly, grateful to see that the Prince did not look homicidal, but, rather intrigued.
"They told me of men who had disappeared, who went below the stage, down far below the Opera House, where once upon a time the theater kept its props and supplies, but now were lost to the Opera Ghost. They said that's his domain...and those that have gone down there, were never heard or seen again," Crafty Crate shivered at the memory of the stallion's words, still recalling how chilling the tale was. "And I laughed, trying to show my doubt to their words, and asked them who was the last pony to have disappeared...and then they all exchanged glances with one another before saying the name of...Time Turner."
Blueblood stared at Crafty Crate, bewilderment slowly settling in. The old stallion had raved like a lunatic about the Phantom...was it possible? "You mentioned you had news on Fluttershy?"
"Oh yes monsieur! In fact, one of the stagehooves interrupted the others who said Turner's name, claiming that it was in fact the costume mare who was last seen disappearing below stage. You see, on the night of the opening gala, one of the stagehooves was meant to go below stage to fetch a prop, but they all claimed to know better, that below stage was strictly off limits! However Time Turner overheard the stallion arguing, and claimed he would go below to fetch the prop himself. Needless to say, the stallion never returned."
"Needless," Blueblood muttered. "And?"
"Well...after it became apparent that he had been missing, his daughter became extremely agitated, wanting to form a search party to find him, but Fleur De Lis said something that offended the young mare, and...well...punched the star soprano directly in the eye," Crafty Crate bit his lip recalling how the stagehooves burst out laughing at this story. "As you can imagine, the mare was fired on the spot! However, instead of returning home as she was advised, she approached these stallions and demanded to know if they had seen her father. They informed her he had gone missing after descending below stage, but without word or thought, she too descended...and...hasn't been heard or seen since."
Blueblood sat there; trying to absorb everything he had just been told. "And the mare who owned the apartment they occupied...hasn't seen either of them since that day?"
Crafty Crate nodded his head. "Which...only brings me to this conclusion monsieur...either the two of them have truly disappeared from society...or..." he wasn't sure he wanted to tell the Prince that he was beginning to believe the stories of the infamous Phantom. "They say that the Phantom dresses in black, and that he wears a mask to hide his horrible face!"
These words soaked over Blueblood, and he recalled how Time Turner had briefly, in his madness, described the Phantom to him, as a horrible grotesque figure with a misshapen face and a demon's soul. But it could not be possible? Could it?
"You've done well, Crafty Crate," Blueblood murmured, staring into the flames before him. "I do not believe I will be needing your services further...I shall have my valet fetch you a carriage and pay you what I owe."
Crafty Crate beamed at Blueblood's words; however he did not think he had truly solved the mystery. "Thank you, monsieur, but...if I may ask, where will you go from here in your search for the missing mare? I mean...it is extremely hard to believe that she has been kidnapped by the mysterious Phantom...is it not?"
Blueblood said nothing, simply continued to stare into the fire...as he was doing now, two nights since the conversation he had had with Crafty Crate. For the past two days that followed the Christmas conversation, Blueblood had been deep in thought of what next to do about the case of the missing costume mare. He couldn't simply storm his way down below the stage, and he wasn't entirely convinced that this whole "Phantom" nonsense was more than a prank. But something needed to happen, after all, how much longer was the Marquis Filthy Rich going to live? He had to find Fluttershy if he was going to get his hooves on that fortune!
And then an idea struck him. "CRESCENT MOON!" he shouted, rising from his chair and striding to fetch his coat which had been thrown over another chair. The butler appeared, looking extremely tired as it was nearly midnight. "Have my carriage prepared, I leave at once."
Crescent Moon, the butler, looked extremely confused. "But monsieur...where are you going at this hour?"
Blueblood grinned to himself. "To see an old...'friend', so to speak."
The night was cold, the coldest yet, but Discord knew it was just going to get colder. He went about his work, lighting the fire, stoking the dying embers, and adding more wood now and then. He continued to do this until he was satisfied that the fire would last the rest of the night, yet it normally took several hours to reach this level of satisfaction.
Discord sighed, a part of him not knowing why he still did this, yet deep down, he knew...he was just afraid to admit it.
He gazed at the orange flames that danced in the small fireplace, feeling their warmth wrap around him, and he remembered a similar fire that not so long ago roared through his veins...a fire that still remained, yet he feared the burning that he knew would utterly consume him from such a blaze.
He turned his eyes for a moment, allowed them to linger, and then added one last log before turning and leaving the chamber.
"So this is where you've been late at night."
Discord met Rainbow Dash's eyes, but said nothing. Instead, he walked right past the peg legged mare, away from the entrance to Fluttershy's chamber, and began heading back to his own chamber to lock himself away with his music.
"Master-"
"What?" Discord turned and growled at the mare.
Rainbow Dash swallowed the lump in her throat, her courage fleeting with the cold night wind that rushed through the tunnels. "I...I s-s-simply w-w-wanted to r-report to you t-that we still have found no trace of...of the mare's father," she whispered.
Discord felt the tenseness in his muscles slowly melt away, but his jaw remained hard and set. Ever since that Christmas night when Fluttershy came to the roof, he had given orders for the others to learn of Time Turner's whereabouts. It was the least he could do, even if things between the two of them were...more muddled than ever before.
"Keep searching," Discord growled, before turning on his heel to leave.
However, Rainbow Dash stopped him with a question. "Forgive me, Master, but...why are we doing this?"
Discord paused, the tenseness slowly returning. Rainbow Dash swallowed another growing lump, but continued. "Why now? I...forgive me, Master, but...it is no secret to the...to the rest of us that...that you two are not speaking...a-a-and why now...why are you still concerned with...with finding her father? And...and I must confess Master, I...I am surprised..." Rainbow Dash motioned toward Fluttershy's chamber. How long had Discord been visiting the sleeping mare to keep the fire in her fireplace from going out? Why did he still do these things when it seemed so obvious to him that...that the two of them despised one another?
Discord kept his back to Rainbow Dash. He too had been questioning his motives and reasons, but the answer to them he was not yet prepared to give...at least not out loud. "You do these things Rainbow Dash," Discord began, slowly turning his head and catching the mare's gaze with his amber eyes that looked like liquid fire, "because I tell you to."
With that, Discord disappeared into the shadows, leaving a trembling Rainbow Dash behind in the darkness. Whether Discord was going to admit it or not, it was obvious to Rainbow Dash that the Master had a secret, one he was not prepared to say...but one that was becoming more and more apparent in his eyes.
"Time Turner!"
The old stallion's eyes slowly fluttered open. He groaned as he shifted on the uncomfortable prison cot, bending his head to see the officer standing just outside his cell. "Look alive stallion!" the officer barked. "You have a visitor."
Time Turner's brow furrowed at these words. Visitor? For as long as he had been in this jail, no one had stepped foot to see him, mainly because no one, sadly, knew of his whereabouts. Once upon a time he hoped beyond anything that Fluttershy would somehow escape the Phantom's clutches; that she would find him, and together they would leave this city that had become a nightmare. He dreamt of perhaps traveling back to Sweetlan, the two of them, and starting a new life there. But his dreams died with every passing day, and with the change of the seasons, so too did his hope change to despair.
Yet now, with the announcement of a visitor, Time Turner suddenly felt his hopes rise again, and he quickly rose from the cot as fast as his old weary limbs would allow. Yet the hopeful smile on his face quickly died as the last pony he ever expected to see approached the cell.
"Ah, Monsieur!" greeted Prince Blueblood. "At last, we meet again."
Time Turner sank back down onto the cot, yet a scowl now replaced his look of sadness. "You..." he hissed. "What are you doing here?" he demanded through a harsh cough, clutching the thin blanket around his boney shoulders.
Blueblood sighed and quietly kneeled down so he was at the same eye level as the old stallion. "I come asking for your forgiveness, actually."
Time Turner stared at the stallion with a dumbfounded expression. "F-f-forgiveness?" he practically choked.
Blueblood nodded his head. "Yes...for being a fool and not realizing that it was you who had come into my club that night so many months ago," he sighed, running a hoof through his dark blonde hair. "Had I but known...had I not been so damn drunk..." he cursed himself under his breath and hung his head in shame. Time Turner stared at the stallion with eyes as wide as saucers, realization slowly coming over him.
"You...you remember me?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "You...you know who I am then?"
Blueblood lifted his head and gave a sad smile. "I do, Monsieur Turner, I do. But that night..." he cursed himself again. "Forgive me, I was drunk and had no wits about me, for if I had, I would have recognized you at once. But...sadly, I mistook you for a beggar, thought you were a raving drunken lunatic..." he hung his head again. "I have been away from Maris for several months, and arrived just this past week. When I went to the Opera House to speak with the mangers, it was then that I learned of your absence, and I made the horrid realization. Oh forgive me, monsieur, if you can. I am to blame for your misfortunes, it is I who has locked you in this place."
Time Turner felt his heart move with pity at the sincerity of the stallion who knelt before him. "Oh monsieur..." he whispered. "I...I should have known...I was covered with mud, it would have been hard to recognize me and think otherwise."
Blueblood shook his head. "No, I will not accept any sort of excuses, I was the one who caused you this pain; because of me, you had no other choice than to go to the police, and this is what has happened," he cursed. "Oh monsieur, if you can find it in your heart, although I do not deserve it, please...please forgive me, this is all my doing."
Time Turner shook his head, reaching out with a boney hoof and touching Blueblood's sleeve, which was gripping one of the cell's bars. "No monsieur...this has nothing to do with you...it is that cursed Phantom that has done this."
Blueblood slowly lifted his eyes to meet Time Turner's. "Truly?" he whispered, his green eyes coming alive with a strange glow. "I remember...I remember you saying something about your daughter...that...that she was a prisoner of the Phantom?"
Time Turner nodded his head most passionately. "Yes! Oh that horrid beast! He has her, he took her from me! Oh monsieur," Time Turner felt hot tears roll down his cheeks, and he turned his head away, sobbing into his boney hooves, coughing now and then.
Blueblood removed his handkerchief from his pocket and gave it to Time Turner, who thanked him whole heartily. "Please...tell me more about this Phantom," Blueblood whispered.
Time Turner shuddered at the memory. "He's a demon, monsieur," he whispered. "A monster to be sure. Tall, like a giant...covered in black from head to toe, and his body, a mishmash of different pieces, a monster to be sure...but...oh God above," he crossed himself, "his face...that face still haunts my memory..." he wrapped the blanket tightly around him, yet his shivering only intensified. "He wears a mask, monsieur...a mask to cover his God forsaken face!"
Blueblood was practically leaning against the cell bars. "Can you describe this face to me?"
Time Turner trembled and shook his head most violently. "I...I dare not even think..." he began to cough most heavily, and pounded a boney hoof against his chest to calm himself. "Please monsieur...it...it is only half a face...that is all I can say...one side of his face looks like that of any other stallion...but the other...oh the horror of it is indescribable."
Blueblood leaned back, breathing in deeply everything he had just learned. "And you say he has your daughter?"
"YES! Oh monsieur...I...I did not believe in such stories, so to prove myself, I chose to go below and fetch the prop that the stagehooves had been ordered to retrieve, but...I was trapped and...and he found me," he shuddered deeply. "Fluttershy...oh bless her, she...she came after me..." Blueblood remembered everything Crafty Crate had told him, about the stagehooves who swore that Fluttershy had gone down below the stage, the same way Time Turner had disappeared, and yet had not been seen nor heard from since. "Fluttershy found me, yet sadly, the Phantom found her...but she made a bargain with Satan himself! She offered her life in place of mine...oh monsieur...what horrors may have befallen upon her? My poor daughter...my poor sweet filly..." he sobbed again, his whole body shaking with his tears.
Blueblood rose to his feet and found himself pacing, both Time Turner's news and that of Crafty Crate's washing over him. "And she is still there? With this Phantom?"
Time Turner nodded his head. "I...I can only assume...although who knows if she is even alive! Oh monsieur, she is all I have left in this world! I...I do not know what I will do if she is...if...if she is..." he began to sob again, but Blueblood banged his hoof against the cell's bars.
"Get a hold of yourself stallion!" he practically roared. "If we are to help your daughter, we need all our wits about!"
Time Turner looked up at Blueblood, a smile slowly spreading across his old grizzled face. "You...you will help me, monsieur?"
"Yes," Blueblood whispered, lowering himself again, "but we must keep this a secret between ourselves...I do not want any of the officers here learning of what we have been discussing for fear that they may lock you away in an asylum!"
Time Turner trembled at this, knowing that asylums were far worse than Prench prisons. "I understand," he whispered.
"Good," Blueblood said. "Now, I need to know this for a fact...is this 'Phantom'...an actual living, breathing...stallion?"
"He's a demon if you ask me..." Time Turner hissed. "But...he is flesh, if that is what you mean, monsieur...he is no specter, despite the stories the dancers tell."
Blueblood was pleased at these words. "And...how did you come upon his lair?"
Time Turner trembled. "There is a trap door back stage...a door that leads directly below...but I do not advise that you go down there, monsieur, there are traps everywhere, and...and he has an army!"
Blueblood raised an eyebrow at this. "Army?"
"Well...there are others...they all wore shrouds when I came upon them, but they work for him, minions you see."
Blueblood nodded his head, although he found this piece of news rather hard to swallow. "Well I think you're right, this is not something one wants to be rash about...this will take careful planning, but fear not, monsieur, I am quite determined to find your daughter, bring her to safety, and reunite the two of you once again."
Time Turner felt his face break into a wide smile, his eyes tearing up again, only this time out of joy. "Oh bless you, monsieur! Thank you! Thank you! I knew you were a good stallion, I knew deep in my bones, and now Fluttershy will see that she was wrong and that you truly are a knight in shining-"
"What?" Blueblood stared at Time Turner with wild eyes. "W-w-what do you mean...Fluttershy will see she is wrong...?"
Time Turner bit his lip, looking down at the cell floor. "Forgive me, monsieur...I did not mean to offend...only...you see, Fluttershy, I'm afraid, is sometimes too...realistic I suppose, for her own good. Her mother was a lady of wealth, and she married me, a poor musician. It is not hard for me to believe a pony of great wealth falling in love with...well, with somepony society would say is 'below them', but...Fluttershy has a harder time believing in the possibility, sadly."
"Well...let us hope that I too can...prove her wrong," Blueblood said through clipped lips, but with a genuine smile.
Time Turner did not notice the clipped tone and smiled back. "Oh monsieur, how can I thank you? I know that with your influence, you can summon an army of heaven's angels to do battle with that horrific Phantom and save my daughter. Oh bless you, monsieur...bless you," Time Turner reached out and grasped one of Blueblood's hoof and kissed it.
Blueblood's first reaction was to shake the stallion off him, but he caught himself in time and allowed Time Turner to show his gratitude before removing his hoof. "Once I have found Fluttershy, I will then be able to convince these imbeciles that you are not a mad stallion, and have you released at once."
Time Turner smiled even more. "Oh thank you, monsieur, but all that matters is the safety of my daughter. But thank you, monsieur, oh thank you so much."
Blueblood nodded his head, before turning and leaving the cell block. Outside, he was greeted by Chief Inspector Silverstar, the stallion he was paying to keep Time Turner locked behind bars. "Well?" the inspector asked. "You wish for me to release him?"
Blueblood scoffed at the stallion. "Are you mad? The stallion is clearly insane! But I was able to retrieve the information I desperately needed," he said with a wry grin. "I think it will only be for a few more days that you'll have the...delight, shall we say, of Monsieur Time Turner's company."
Silverstar nodded his head. "And then?"
"Well, that depends," Blueblood sighed. "If all goes according to plan, I shall remove Time Turner off your hooves myself...but if not...I'll gladly pay the fare for the coach that has to drive him to the asylum."
Flam yawned very loudly as both he and Flim sat in their office, awaiting the arrival of the Prince, whose message they had both received in the middle of the night, stressed great urgency for the two of them to be at the Opera House extremely early for important matters of business.
"I do not know if any business is this urgent," Flam muttered, yawning again. Flim heartily agreed with his business partner, but said nothing.
"Ah! Good morning gentlemcolts," Blueblood greeted rather cheerfully, entering the managers' office and offering each of them cigars. "I do feel today is a day of celebration," he explained with a wide grin.
The two managers stared at the Prince in stunned silence. Never had either of them seen the stallion looking so...happy. Only when discussions were about money did he look anywhere close to being this happy.
"G-g-good morning, monsieur," Flam said rather nervously, looking at Flim for explanation on how to handle Blueblood's new and strange mood.
"I trust all is well monsieur?" Flim asked, smiling and thankfully accepting the cigar, although he too was just as puzzled.
"Oh very well, thank you," Blueblood chuckled, lighting his own cigar before lighting those that he handed out. He then took Flim's desk chair, seating himself and inhaling deeply before releasing a large cloud of smoke. "Well, I shall not delay your questioning glances further," he sighed, taking one last long puff on his cigar before focusing on the two confused managers.
"I called for this special meeting because I wish to have things started at once, after all, New Years Eve is only...good heavens, two days away, and that's counting today."
Flim and Flam exchanged looks. "I...I beg your pardon monsieur?" Flim inquired. "What...what exactly are you wishing we 'start'?"
Blueblood's smile spread even further. "Why...planning the ball of course."
"BALL?" both managers shouted together, rising to their feet and coughing on the smoke from their cigars.
Blueblood grinned and inhaled deeply. "Yes, a ball given in honor of the whole company; the singers, dancers, musicians, even those that work behind the curtain...I want them all there," he exhaled a long stream of smoke into the direction of the managers. "I suggest you get right on it, especially since I already had the invitations issued this morning."
"I-i-i-invitations?" Flam gasped, pounding his fist against his chest from the smoke he was choking on. "F-f-for the company?"
"Of course not!" Blueblood scoffed. "I expect you to inform the company...the invitations are for the elite of Marisian society."
"M-m-m-marisian s-s-society?" Flam practically spat.
Flam pushed the younger manager away, looking at the Prince straight in the eye. "Am I to understand, monsieur...that you have sent out invitations to...to half of our most prominent patrons-"
"All of them, actually," Blueblood sighed. "You have no idea how much fine paper costs, especially when you're paying by the letter."
Flim forced himself to remain calm. "You have practically invited all of Maris to come here, on New Years Eve, for...for a ball?"
Blueblood smiled and nodded his head like a little boy who had been told he had done something very good. "Yes, and not just any ball, a masked ball, so I'm counting on you to inform the company of that as well."
Both Flim and Flm were looking at each other as if they should call the asylum to inform them that the Prince had completely lost his mind. "This was...this was the urgent news?" Flim slowly asked.
Blueblood exhaled another large cloud of smoke. "Of course it is! What could be more important than that?"
Flam was pacing back and forth, his hooves in his hair. "I...I just thought...monsieur, you know we are in great financial debt, what with the last few...performances," he hissed. "How on earth are we going to afford-"
Blueblood waved his hoof. "Do not worry about expense, I shall handle all finances; but I'm counting on you to organize everything by New Year's Eve! And the party begins promptly at 8 o'clock, so have the doors open then."
Flam couldn't hold it back any further. "BUT WHAT OF THE PHANTOM?"
Blueblood, who at that moment had been rising from Flim's chair, stopped and stared at the younger manager who looked ready to pull out his own hair. "What of him?" he responded coolly.
Flim was rubbing his temples as his partner wailed on. "Pardon me, monsieur...but...am I not correct in recalling that we needed to discover the whereabouts of this prankster, this stage hoof who is attempting to send us into financial ruin?"
Blueblood could only grin. "Do you still have a copy of that score?"
Flim lifted his head. "Yes...b-b-but why? It's utter rubbish, as you said so yourself-"
"Well, I think you should hold onto it...at least just for a little bit longer," Blueblood explained. "You see...I was sure that the invitations announced that not only was this ball in honor of the whole company...but also, at the ringing in of the new year, an announcement will be made on the new 'project' that the Maris Opera House is preparing for later this season."
The jaws of the two stallions dropped as they stared at their greatest of all patrons. And then, slowly, realization dawned on them both.
"This is...this is all a ploy...a plot to...to drag this so-called 'Phantom' into the light," Flim whispered. "This is all deliberate so that he...or she...will reveal themselves-"
"And thus ending our dilemma! OH IT'S BRILLIANT!" Flam exclaimed.
Blueblood looked rather smug. "Yes it is, I must say," he sighed, taking one last long puff on his cigar before stuffing it out. "So you best get to work." No need to tell either of them about his encounter with the old stallion, Blueblood thought. This was the perfect trap, using the Phantom's score as bait to lure him out into the open, and finally put an end to this ghost story. All that mattered was the simple fact that the Phantom was flesh, and whether the infamous Opera Ghost turned out to be a stage hoof playing a great prank...or a freak of nature that the old stallion claimed to exist, he would have his answer by the new year.
And with the answer of who really is the Phantom of the Opera, he hoped to discover the truth and whereabouts of the just as elusive Fluttershy. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Surprise! | Surprise!
She looked like an angel, standing in the snow that fell through the lagoon ceiling, the flakes swirling around her body, her hair blowing softly in its breeze.
But the warmth she once radiated seemed dead; despite her angelic beauty, she looked like a statue, a cold stone object that had no warmth, no life.
Once upon a time, she danced with the snow, her arms outstretched as she twirled like a child at play, laughing as the little black kitten named Carmen leapt to catch snowflakes.
Now, she stood in silence, her wings curled around her like a shield, the kitten mewing at her feet, but she showed no sign that she was listening. She just stared...at some unseen abyss.
He was a safe distance away, hidden by the shadows that had long been his friend, glad that she could not see him, yet feeling deep regret as well.
His efforts for avoiding her since...the incident...was proving to be very hard. They had not spoken to each other since; there had been no lessons, no form of communication whatsoever. The distance they had made between one another was like a canyon, which was just fine with Discord.
Or so he tried to tell himself.
But old habits die hard. Discord couldn't stay away as the nights grew colder. Ever since that first snowfall, while Fluttershy slept, he would go and tend to her fire, making sure that she would not freeze. Some nights were simple and quick, in a matter of minutes he would have her dying fire roaring with life again. Other nights, he may be there for what felt like hours, yet he didn't mind. She was so beautiful, the way her hair fell across her pillow like a pink pool, the way her coat looked in the dying firelight, the way her body softly rose and fell with each sleeping breath. Discord was torn with burning desire to feel himself wrapped in her softness, and the heart-wrenching longing to feel her arms around him. He had never felt such passion, such desire, such...such yearning for another.
Yes, this was far more than lust, and it was far deeper than attraction or friendship.
Not since the first night he had seen her bathing, Discord had returned to the lagoon for fear of coming upon her again in such a state. Once he would not care about such things, but he valued her too much, he respected her too much to ever leer and ogle.
However, since the winter days and nights had crept in, he knew that the chance of her bathing were extremely slim. And he remembered how the day after Christmas he had come upon her playing in the snow with the kitten, dancing and twirling with joy, reminding him once again that truly, she was an angel, a beauty that had fallen from heaven to the depths of his hell. He had not the heart to make his presence known; he simply hid in the shadows and watched her with ever-growing longing.
But her joy was gone now. She no longer played, she no longer danced. In a matter of days, she had grown so much older and for the first time, he noticed the ill effects his world was having on her. She was not overtly thin, but she did look so much frailer than before. And she had grown distinctly pale; her skin once had a creamy glow about it, and there was a rose to her cheek...yet now she looked like a small pale china doll. And there were dark circles forming under her eyes, and her cheeks looked swollen and puffy...
And yet, despite these unpleasant changes to her appearance and personality, she still radiated beauty. And as he had thought when he first saw her dancing in the snow, he still knew that no matter what, he would always be what he was...a monster.
And it was hopeless to even believe for a second she would ever see him as anything else.
"Master?"
The soft voice interrupted Discord's thoughts, and without a word he turned and walked passed Rainbow Dash, heading to his chamber where Fluttershy would not be aware that he had been near.
Rainbow Dash quickly followed, and once they had reached the chamber and Discord had seated himself at his organ, Rainbow Dash quickly delivered her message. "I beg your pardon Master, but I felt this was urgent."
Discord was already playing, a song that had been in his head for several nights now. It had no words, and he had not begun to write it, but the melody had been haunting him like a dream. "What is it?" he simply asked, not lifting his eyes from the keys he so expertly played.
Rainbow Dash took a deep breath and held out the note with her good hoof. Discord was actually surprised by the token; normally it was he, who delivered the messages here. Without another word, he stopped his playing and took the note, breaking its seal and began reading the elegant writing.
Rainbow Dash watched as Discord's eyes went wide, and then narrowed to tiny slits of fire. Every muscle in the Phantom's body tensed, and his paw gripped the note as if he depended upon it to breathe. "Who gave this to you?" Discord barked, his gaze only briefly leaving the note.
Rainbow Dash swallowed the lump in her throat. "It was found..." she quickly continued as she saw Discord's jaw twitch with impatience. "I was in the northern caverns, checking our traps, and...I heard a noise...near the trap door behind the stage, and..." she took a deep breath, "I saw, through one of our spy holes, the Prince leaving it on the floor." There, she had said it...now she simply had to wait for Discord to explode.
But the Phantom made no such noise or gesture. He simply stared at Rainbow Dash, and then moved his eyes down to the note. He glanced once more at Rainbow Dash, then once more at the note...and then erupted with violent laughter. "The...the c-c-clever b-b-bastard!" Discord laughed. This reaction startled Rainbow Dash greatly, and it was not merry laughter, but cold, dark, and calculating. It was the laughter of a mad stallion.
"Master?"
Discord stopped his laughter, but continued to smile most maliciously. "He's calling me out," Discord whispered. "It's his way of challenging me, but little does he know what he's truly getting himself into."
Rainbow Dash was extremely curious to know what the note said. It didn't matter if she had opened it or not before giving it to his master, she couldn't read anyway. But whatever it said, Discord's reaction was one of triumph and evil glee, despite the fact that the Prince had, as Discord said, "called him out."
"If the Prince wrote that...and deliberately left it here for...for one of us to find..." Rainbow Dash needn't say any more, nor did she wish to dwell on it further. The Prince knew of their existence, he now believed the ghost stories to be true, but instead of reacting with fear as everyone else had, he was challenging the Opera Ghost. "Master, what are we to do?" Rainbow Dash asked with desperation in her voice. Horrible images of the carnival crept back into her memory.
Discord crumpled the note and threw it over his shoulder. "Nothing," Discord said casually. "However, I have an appointment with Monsieur Blueblood, as well as with all of Maris that I must prepare myself for...excuse me," and with that said, Discord, still chuckling, fled the chamber, disappearing once more into the shadows that enveloped him so well in mystery.
Derpy grinned as she dangled a piece of string in front of Carmen, laughing as she batted it back before giving a most indignant meow. "She's g-g-getting f-f-frustrated, which makes her j-j-j-jump a-a-all the more h-higher."
"Well you would be too if someone were dangling something you wanted in front of you," Rarity scolded, although it was in a playful tone. She was sitting in the corner of the main chamber where she and the others slept, sewing some patches onto an old pair of trousers. She glanced over at the young mare seated next to her, the smile on her face quickly disappearing.
Fluttershy was working just as diligently on a shirt that belonged to Shortround, but there was no sign of life in her at all. She made no sound, she showed no emotion, she simply went about her task. And it was extremely unlike her.
"My dear," Rarity whispered, her hoof reaching out and resting atop Fluttershy's. "I do not think work will make things better, no matter how hard you throw yourself into it."
Fluttershy, for the first time showed some sign of life, her eyes lifting to the old mare's. "What makes you think-"
"I see it every day with the Master, and yet I know that despite his best efforts to immerse himself in his art, I know that he is still yearning...still aching."
Fluttershy looked deeply into the other mare's eyes. "Y-y-yearning?" she whispered. "Yearning for what?"
Rarity couldn't help but smile and softly squeezed Fluttershy's hoof. "I think you know, my dear."
Fluttershy suddenly flew to her hooves and she began pacing back and forth most passionately, groaning with great frustration, her body on the brink of breaking down and sobbing till she could no longer move out of exhaustion. "I don't know what to do!" she cried,flaring her wings high in the air, letting her frustrated tears spill forth. "I...I thought...I thought that maybe, if...if I just...if I showed him that...that I don't care about his face, that I...that I'm not like those mares, that...that I'm different, that...that I...that I..."
"That you love him?" Rarity whispered.
Fluttershy stopped and stared down at the smaller mare whose wisdom caused her to tower over everything else. "You know?"
Rarity chuckled and grinned at Derpy who was grinning back. "We've all known my dear...please don't take offense when I say...it has been rather obvious."
Fluttershy collapsed in a heap on the hard cavern floor, her hooves cradling her weary head. "Obvious to everyone but the one creature my feelings are for," she murmured, before leaning her head into Rarity's lap, her small hooves running through Fluttershy's tangled waves.
"Have you told him how you feel?"
Fluttershy held back a sarcastic laugh. "I do not think he would listen, let alone believe me...he would think I was simply playing a part, that it's impossible for anyone to love him." She lifted her tear stained face to Rarity's. "But I do! I do love him, but...I'm so scared..."
Rarity sighed and brushed a strand of hair away from Fluttershy's cheek. "In all my years of living here with the Master, I've never known him to feel so content, and I've never seen him so happy, until you came into his life and ours," her hooves cupped Fluttershy's chin, her eyes locking with the mare's. "Tell him...he respects you, he listens to you better than anyone else, tell him your feelings, tell him that you don't care about his face or his body, but tell him! Until you do tell him, he'll never believe it possible for love to come into his life. Until you tell him Fluttershy, you'll never know if he returns your feelings," she sighed again, her hooves moving to Fluttershy's shoulders and slowly pushing the mare away, encouraging her to stand. "I know it's frightening, the uncertainty of it all. But only you can do this," she emphasized. "The Master feels love is a weakness...but you need to show him that it is indeed strength."
Derpy grinned and clapped her hooves. "F-f-fluttershy w-w-will make the Master happy j-j-just like the gypsy mare makes t-t-the h-hunchback!"
Rarity smiled at Derpy, although Fluttershy saw the guilt in the old mare's eyes for the white lie she once told Derpy about her favorite story. Yet Derpy's words hit her; why couldn't Quasimodo have a happy ending with the gypsy Esmeralda? Why did the beauty have to run away, why couldn't the "beast" find love? No...she was not going to join that long list of tragic characters. She was not going to let anything dictate who she could and could not love. "You're right Derpy," Fluttershy said with new determination. "I will make him happy, and I must tell him...at once!" She turned to leave, to march to Discord's chamber and tell him everything, barring herself at the entrance so he could not turn her away. She would make him listen, she would show him that when they had kissed, it was because she, Fluttershy, wanted to kiss him, that she loved, desired, and wanted him. And she would kiss him again to prove it, she would never stop kissing him, even if he tried to push her away, she was most determined. She was going to win his heart and prove to him that he was indeed worthy of love.
Yet before Fluttershy could leave, Rainbow Dash came bursting in, gasping with breath, Shortround at her side, holding a crumpled piece of parchment in his hooves. Rarity could tell that something was wrong and quickly rose from her chair. "What has happened?" she asked, her eyes going from Rainbow Dash to Shortround and back.
Shortround looked just as grim as Rainbow Dash. "A letter had been delivered," he quickly explained. "Rainbow Dash came across it and brought it to the Master," he glanced down at the letter, dread filling his spirit as he once again read the words. "It appears that on New Year's Eve, there is to be a ball...a masked ball, held here, at the Maris Opera House, in honor of the whole company, and half of Maris has been invited."
"New Year's Eve..." Rarity whispered before realization struck. "Good heavens! That's tonight!"
Fluttershy was also feeling Rarity's discomfort. "So...so naturally Discord is upset...because this means something is going on without his permission, yes?" She hoped that was the answer, but the dreadful feeling that was growing in the pit of her stomach told her otherwise.
"If only," Rainbow Dash muttered. "Turns out, according to what Shortround has told me, at midnight, an announcement will be made about a particular 'project' that the Opera House will be taking on, before the end of the opera season."
Fluttershy knew at once what this meant. She also knew Discord's reaction. "W-w-where is Discord?" she asked, her voice growing soft and shaky.
Rainbow Dash glanced at Shortround, and then sighed. "The Master disappeared after reading the letter...I...I believe he has gone ahead..."
"Lord have mercy," Rarity whispered, before quickly crossing herself. Fluttershy held her hooves out, to which Shortrounf sadly placed the letter.
"B-b-but the M-m-master w-w-wears a mask...n-n-no one w-w-will take notice, right?" Derpy asked, although she too was looking extremely worried.
Rainbow Dash grumbled something before removing a tin flask from her boot and taking a deep swig. "The Master is sure to stand out wherever he goes," she muttered. "And what's more, he's 'dressing up for the occasion'," she took another long deep swig. "Last I saw him, he was running in the direction to where the costumes were kept...no doubt he'll find something to his liking...who knows what he's turned himself into!"
Fluttershy looked up at Rainbow Dash, the letter shaking in her hooves. "The signature simply says 'B'."
Rainbow Dash glanced and Shortround and sighed. "I saw the letter being left near the trap door behind the stage curtains...by Prince Blueblood."
Fluttershy's eyes went wide as she recalled Discord's hatred for the Prince, as well as the Prince's refusal to believe that the Phantom existed. "It's a trap..." she whispered. "He's calling Discord out...he wants Discord to reveal himself...oh God."
Derpy began sobbing at the thought of losing her Master, and Rarity quickly leapt to her hooves. "Damn Discord!" she growled, surprising everyone by her tone. "Damn him for being obsessed with revenge rather than thinking of those who love him!" she said this with an obvious look at Fluttershy.
"His hatred for the Prince blinds him," Shortround sighed. "Just as much as his obsession with music. I fear that the two combined..." he quickly crossed himself.
"So what are we going to do?" Rainbow Dash cried out, throwing her now empty flask against the wall. "Just...just sit here and wait for them to invade our home and take us away again?" Derpy began to sob at the thought.
"No of course not!" Fluttershy shouted. "Nothing is going to happen to any of you...or to Discord!"
The others stared at her with confusion. "W-w-what are you saying, my dear?" Rarity asked, although she felt a strange sense of joy and hope rise within her as she saw Fluttershy's fiery spirit spring forth with life.
"I will go above and stop him before he does anything rash...or before anything happens to him," she vowed.
Both Rarity and Shortround brightened. "Yes! Yes of course!" Rarity declared. "You are the only one of us who can go above undetected! Yes! You can find the Master and warn him and bring him back before anything happens-"
"I don't like it!" Rainbow Dash muttered. "What do you mean 'undetected' anyway? You don't think ponies will wonder where she's been all this time if they see her?"
Shortround rolled his eyes. "It's a masked ball Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy will be disguised."
But Rainbow Dash remained stubborn and indignant. "It's an excuse...an excuse to escape!"
"How dare you!" to everypony's surprise, it was Fluttershy who spoke. "How dare you Rainbow Dash! How dare you think so little of me and how dare you accuse me of trickery! Have I not proved to you after so long that I would not betray any of you or your trust in me?" she marched over to her, her shoulders squared, her chin lifted, and her eyes burning like a storm-driven sea. "After months of having opportunities to escape, you think I would do so now...when my friends need me most? You truly think so little of me?"
Rainbow Dash turned away, but her face was already etched with shame. Derpy approached and touched Fluttershy's hoof. "Y-y-you w-w-will come back?" she whispered, her voice full of hope.
Fluttershy smiled up at the mare and squeezed her hoof before touching her face with the other. "I will not abandon you Derpy...I promise."
"Come, come! We do not have time to argue or reassure one another," Rarity declared, taking Fluttershy's hoof and pulling her away. "We must get you ready for that ball..." the urgency was still in her voice, but so was an air of excitement. "And I know just the gown for you!"
Fluttershy blushed and grinned as the tiny mare pulled her along the cold stone corridors. "It needn't be anything extravagant," she murmured. "I am only going above for what I hope will be as short as possible."
But Rarity was hearing none of it. "Nonsense! I don't care how long it takes for you to track the Master down and put a stop to this whole silly mess. The point is he will be seeing you...and I want him to be robbed of his breath!"
"Are you sure this was a wise decision Flam?" Flim whispered, feeling utterly ridiculous in the costume he was wearing. He wore a green mask that resembled some sort of skull, and a green satin cape that at the time looked festive and dashing, but now he felt like an utter clown in the get-up. However, nothing was more ridiculous than Flam's costume; a black suit that was covered with pictures of bones from head to hoof. He wore a red satin cape and a half-skull mask that covered his eyes and nose, as well as a black satin top hat to compliment the look. If it was possible for the look to be complimented...
"I have faith in the Prince's plan," Flam said with a smile, greeting guests here and there. "I thought for all the lectures you give me about trusting our dearest patron, you too would have great faith?"
Flim adjusted his waistcoat. "Yes, but that was before I knew I was going to look like a buffoon!" he hissed.
The masquerade ball was well underway. Guests from the richest families in all of Maris were arriving, each wearing a costume more extravagant than the ponies before them. In the grand foyer, the sounds of laughter could be heard, as well as the smell of champagne and the dizzy sight of swirling gowns dancing to the orchestra that played. Amazing how well very little planning and notice went off.
"Monsieur!" Flam exclaimed as Blueblood quietly approached the two managers. Blueblood smiled and bowed his head to the two ponies, however it was obvious from the look on his face that he was looking for someone else. "Monsieur, where is your costume?" Flam inquired, taking notice that the Prince simply wore an elegant tuxedo.
"I do not believe in such frivolities," Blueblood muttered, his eyes scanning the stairway and balconies above.
"That makes two of us," Flim muttered, removing his mask at once.
Flam ignored Flim's comment and followed the Prince's gaze. "I...I have not seen anypony...unusual, monsieur," he confessed, although finding somepony unusual looking at a masquerade ball was like seeking a needle in a haystack.
"I have no fear that our 'guest of honor' will make his presence known in good time," he smiled, before taking a glass of champagne that was offered to him from a pretty young mare. "Now if you will excuse me," he said, following the pretty thing away from the managers.
Flim did not like this at all. While it seemed that it was indeed the perfect trap, it still meant that the "Phantom" had an advantage; this was his territory...whoever he was.
"Good evening."
Both Flim and Flam turned to the voice behind them, and gasped at the sight of the stallion before them. He was clothed from head to toe in red, the color of fresh blood. His jacket, which was tightly buttoned up, his breeches, even the cloak that he wore...all the color of blood. The only portions of him that weren't red were his black knee-high boots, his belt and sash, and the mask that he wore, which, ironically, looked like a skull, yet with more refined detail. It covered his whole face, save for his mouth. His hair was dark, black it seemed, and pulled back away from his mask. And his eyes...the color was both intimidating and penetrating. You wanted to look away immediately, but couldn't. Something compelled you to lock eyes with him. And it was extremely frightening.
"G-g-g-good e-e-evening, m-monsieur," Flam barely whispered, his lips trembling as he spoke.
The stallion, who towered over both managers, made a simple bow with his head, but his eyes never left their stunned pale faces. His eyes drifted over both of them, before looking them up and down, as if measuring their character. "Nice costume," he muttered to Flam, before sweeping past the two of them into the throng of dancers.
Flam and Flim stared at the stallion in red as he went past them and disappeared into the crowd. "W-w-w-who was that?" Flam finally muttered when he found his voice again.
Flim had no idea, but a strange and cold feeling was beginning to swell within him. "I'm not sure I want to know," he whispered.
"M-m-m-most likely noble blood," Flam attempted to reason. "After all, he...he looked like nobility."
"Nobility from hell?"
Flam shrugged his shoulders. "It is after all a masquerade...one is supposed to look different than they normally would...yes?"
Flim realized that Flam was seeking reassurance, however he was not positive if he had any to give. "Perhaps we should find the Prince..."
Yet they were not the only ones seeking out the Prince's presence. Blueblood, who was dancing with a most delectable creature, was not aware of a pair of amber eyes watching him like a hunting predator. However, before the predator could move in for the kill, those two bumbling idiots came bursting through the crowd, pulling the Prince away from his partner.
Blueblood, who was not pleased to be taken away from his next conquest, shook the hooves off the managers and glared at the two of them. "This had better be good!" he hissed, his eyes losing sight of the sweet morsel he had been dancing with.
"Monsieur! We...we met someone, a stallion, dressed all in red, wearing a skull!"
Blueblood stared at Flam as if he were the village idiot. "Oh, well that gives me a clear picture!" he sarcastically groaned, before tearing Flam's own skull mask off.
"Monsieur, we have...reasons to perhaps believe that...that this pony...well, he may be our stallion," Flim said carefully, hoping he at least did not sound nearly as foolish as his partner.
Blueblood groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "So let me understand...you encountered a stallion, dressed all in red, wearing a mask the shape of skull-"
"Wouldn't be surprised if it were a real skull!" Flam mumbled.
Blueblood ignored the stallion's comment. "And simply because...this stallion looked menacing to you both...you assume therefore, that he is 'The Phantom'?"
Before, Flim thought his comment sounded extremely intelligent. Not so much now. "If you had seen him monsieur," he explained. "I've never seen anyone like that before-"
"OF COURSE YOU HAVEN'T!" Blueblood exploded, however he quickly lowered his voice so no one else would look. "This is a masquerade ball! No one looks like anyone you've seen before!"
"But monsieur!"
"I've had enough of this conversation!" Blueblood hissed, turning on his heel to leave the two stallions, however the sight of a young mare entering the foyer momentarily stopped him. She was dressed in a golden gown with blue lace at the shoulders and bust. The gown was delectably cut low, leaving little to one's imagination, and her curves were lusciously flattered by the cut and style of the dress. Her arms were bare, save for a pair of lace gloves that she wore on her hooves, and her hair, which sparkled with golden jewels, flowed wild and free off her bare shoulders. Blueblood stared at the mass of pink waves, sensing something familiar about the mare, but he couldn't see her face. She wore a golden mask that covered the upper part of her face, however the soft pink glow of her cheeks was still visible and beautifully illuminated by the candlelight of the foyer.
Flim and Flam also took notice of the mare in the dazzling gown, as did several other jealous mares who were purposefully tugging on the sleeves of their partners, who couldn't help but gawk somewhat. "Excuse me," Blueblood muttered to the managers, quickly crossing the foyer to where the mare stood. "Mademoiselle," he greeted warmly, bowing humbly before taking one of her small lace-covered hooves and kissing its surface.
Fluttershy jumped at the sound of the Prince's greeting. She had been looking around for Discord the second she had entered the foyer, but knew it was going to be close to impossible to find him in this thick throng of masked dancers. However, now she had a different dilemma to contend with: the Prince.
"Monsieur," Fluttershy said with a curtsy, hoping he would not recognize her voice. Blueblood gave no indication whatsoever.
"Would you care to dance?" he asked, extending his hoof to the beautiful golden mare. He was extremely curious as to who she was; something about her...just seemed so familiar.
Fluttershy's first reaction was to decline his invitation. After all, she cared little for the handsome Prince, and she had not forgotten his treatment of her so many months ago. Yet if she refused his offer, it may cause suspicion, and the last thing she wanted was him attempting to pursue her the whole night. Perhaps one dance would sate him, or so she prayed. "Thank you, monsieur," she said politely, taking his hoof and following him out to the dance floor. At least by dancing together, he would not be able to unleash a trap on Discord...
Everyone was dancing, couples swirling around in a mass of color and silk, all the faces masked, all of them laughing and being merry. But where was her Discord? Where was her masked love?
Fluttershy's focus changed as she felt the Prince lean a little too close to her chest, as his feet expertly began dancing to the music. "I must say...I'm most curious as to know who you are," he murmured, his eyes dancing over her masked face and hair. Fluttershy only prayed that her eyes would not give anything away...however she had little fear in that, as she believed her eyes were the last things his would focus on.
"Come now, monsieur," she chided. "Why ruin the mystery with revealing names?"
Blueblood chuckled. "Too true, my dear, too true." He swirled her around, and Fluttershy gasped as she saw a masked figure leering at her, but when she was swirled again, she realized the figure was not who she thought. No matter what costume Discord was wearing, Fluttershy knew in her heart she would recognize him when she saw him.
"You don't like to talk much, do you?" Blueblood remarked. Blueblood blushed and turned to face her dance partner. Blueblood's brow furrowed even more. "You also don't seem to know this dance."
Fluttershy's eyes went wide. Naturally he thought her a mare of great wealth and connections, a lady who would have been trained at an early age in all sorts of formal dancing, but because Fluttershy was a country mare, she knew nothing about formal dancing, other than the simple country dances she and other country born children learned at village assemblies. "Forgive me," she replied. "It's just...not too long ago I suffered an ankle injury...and this is my first dance since," she gave a sweet smile which she hoped would distract him from her lack of dancing skills.
Blueblood cocked an eyebrow. "You must have been off your feet for quite some time."
Fluttershy bit her tongue. Even if she wasn't dancing very well, a gentlecolt should never make such a rude comment! But she plastered a smile on her lips and gave a fillyish giggle, which seemed to have distracted the Prince entirely.
"I really am curious as to know who you are, however," he whispered. "I know everyone connected with the Opera House...as well as everypony who was invited tonight in Maris...therefore, I am left with either two conclusions."
Fluttershy held her breath.
"Either your disguise is so sophisticated that I truly am at a loss as to guessing who you are...or you are lying to me and should not be here."
This accusation caused Fluttershy to pale, however she could tell in the Prince's dancing green eyes that he was having fun with his joke. "So tell me the truth...did you really hurt your ankle some time ago? Or did you decide to throw on one of your mistress' gowns and play Cinderella for the night?"
Fluttershy knew that if she weren't in the situation she was in right now, she would greatly slap Blueblood for his arrogance and rude behavior. However, she decided to prove who was the better actor of the two: her, or him whose mask was that of a noble gentlecolt.
"Promise not to tell?" Fluttershy whispered, looking up with large doleful eyes, before sharing a secret smile. Blueblood was momentarily at a loss for words; he had not expected his theory to be correct, but so it was.
"Your secret is safe with me, madam," Blueblood vowed, as well as vowing to himself to become better acquainted with this luscious minx all the better. "And I must say...whoever your mistress is...you truly outshine her and all the other mares."
"Thank you, monsieur, you are too kind," she replied with a smile, although it was a smile of pride for her acting skills, not for his compliment.
Now with that mystery solved, Blueblood continued to swirl the mysterious mare around the dance floor. "Since I promise to keep your secret safe, why not grant me a name?"
"Oh monsieur, by doing that I may reveal too much...come, can you not lose yourself for one night in mystery?"
He could, yes, but it frustrated him so. He was the seducer; he was the one in charge; he didn't like losing control over a situation...or another person. "Very well, I shall play your game," Blueblood muttered. "And what was it exactly that compelled you to retreat here this evening?"
Fluttershy knew exactly what he wanted to hear...and she suddenly felt a slight touch of the Phantom's vindictiveness wash over her. "Why...to see you of course, Monsieur Prince."
Blueblood stared at the mare. "You know me?" he quickly shook his head, as if shaking off the stupidity of that comment. Of course she knew him, practically all of Maris knew who he was. "I am flattered my dear...but I highly doubt that is your sole reason."
Fluttershy couldn't believe the arrogance of the stallion; while he admitted he wasn't the only reason for her to come, he had not denied that it was a reason. "Tis true monsieur," Fluttershy murmured. "After all, you did compare me to Cinderella...if I am she...then you must be the prince."
Blueblood felt the smile on his face grow even broader. "I thank you my mare, although I do hope you will not flee at the stroke of twelve."
Fluttershy suddenly remembered the words of the invitation that Rainbow Dash and Shortround had shown her. "Not at all...for by doing that, I will miss the announcement of the new opera the company is planning."
Blueblood's smile fell away, and he stopped dancing at once. "How did you know it was going to be about a new opera?"
Fluttershy held back of gasp as she realized her mistake. She could not pale or blush, she simply had to look as natural as possible. "Well, the invitation clearly said...that at the stroke of twelve, there would be an announcement...about a new project the Maris Opera House was going to do before the end of the opera season..." she prayed she had not missed anything. "One can only assume therefore that it is a new opera...yes?"
Blueblood saw her logic, and had to admit it was fairly accurate and an easy assumption to make. "Yes...yes of course," he whispered, his hooves once again picking up where he had left off.
Fluttershy slowly let out a shaky breath, knowing that had been too close to call. "I feel the need for some fresh air," Blueblood announced. "Come, let us retreat somewhere more...private."
Fluttershy paled at his invitation. "Oh, but...monsieur, the dance-"
"-will still be carrying on when we return, do not worry," he began to lead her away from the floor and Fluttershy was not sure what she could do without causing a scene.
However, her fear in that regard was quickly squashed.
"I'm cutting in."
Fluttershy didn't see him...but she didn't have to. His voice was enough to tell her where he was, which was right behind her, and the tone told her exactly how he felt...which was far from happy.
One fear squashed, but a new one arose in its place.
Blueblood turned at the voice, his brow furrowed in frustration at who would dare come between him and the mare of his choice, but for the first time since Fluttershy had known him, she saw the Prince's face pale with fear. She could only imagine how menacing Blueblood must look...
"W-w-who are you?" Blueblood murmured, his eyes locked with the hard amber ones of the other stallion.
"Let's say...an old acquaintance," Discord softly remarked, his voice thick and cold. "And once more...I'm cutting in."
Blueblood was at a loss for words, and slowly, agonizingly, Fluttershy turned around to face her captor, her teacher, and the stallion she loved. And as she slowly lifted her eyes to meet his...she realized how correct she had been about his menacing displeasure.
After the managers had pulled Blueblood to one side, Discord retreated away from the dance floor, caring not for the strange looks he received from other dancers as he passed. Several members of the company stopped and stared at him, some trembling with fear as he passed. But he paid them no heed, he did not turn to meet any of their eyes, he simply climbed the great staircase and disappeared into the shadows high above the foyer.
Several couples were there as well, heavily kissing or attempting to do much more, but upon his presence, they quickly disappeared, leaving him in peace with the shadows. He watched as the managers and the Prince talked, a smirk spreading across his face as he imagined the Prince's displeasure for being interrupted from his latest seduction. At last, the Prince was turning away, and now would be the perfect time to make his presence known to the pompous arrogant aristocrat, yet before he even took one step out of the shadows...something caught his attention in the far entryway of the grand foyer. Something golden...something sparkling...something...something beautiful.
And as the crowds softly parted to let this lovely creature in, Fluttershy's eyes were filled with her dazzling beauty, and he swore he felt his heart stop. He knew he was not breathing...
But that feeling only lasted a brief moment before it was replaced with a hot feeling of anger at the sight of her. What was she doing here? What in the devil's name did she think she was doing? He wanted to wrap his paw and claw around that neck of hers and strangle her...or at least grab her by those shoulders and give her a good hard shake till some sense was knocked into her.
But his feeling of anger was quickly replaced with something even darker and deadlier. For he was not the only stallion that was taken by her beauty; the Prince was approaching...and Discord stood in stunned silence as he watched the bastard ask for the pleasure of a dance...and Fluttershy accept his offer.
No. The Prince had gotten away with too much now. He had his pick of all the other mares in the room, and Discord had no doubt that they would all gladly fall on their backs and spread their legs for the bastard. But not his angel...not his Fluttershy.
Discord would rather die a thousand horrifying deaths than see the Prince's hooves on her.
Fluttershy gazed up at him, swallowing the large terrified lump in her throat. She knew him very well, and in the time of living below the Opera House, she had gotten to know and see the vast array of emotions he went through.
But not since the first time they had met when she had come to rescue her father, had Fluttershy felt more foreboding.
Yet despite his wild look of anger and...was that jealousy? Despite how he looked at her now...the heat of his gaze still caused her blood to boil with longing. Despite the costume and mask that he wore, one that caused others to back away out of fear...Fluttershy could not help but find him devastatingly handsome and seductive. She knew she would find him handsome no matter what magic he had used to hide his true form.
For a long silent moment, one that crept on for what felt like an eternity, the two of them stared at one another, and soon, the whole room became silent, watching to see whether the strange tall pony dressed like Red Death would lure away the beautiful mare in the golden gown from the handsome Prince.
This very thought was what caused Blueblood to protest. "No monsieur, you may not!" he wrapped an arm around Fluttershy's shoulders, a gesture which only made Discord's eyes inflame brighter. "There are many mares seeking a dance partner...ask one of them."
"I am asking this mare," Discord growled deep and low, his gaze falling back to Fluttershy's. She trembled as her eyes locked with his once more, but then, so silently that only her ears could hear him, he whispered, "Honor me with a dance, mademoiselle?"
The question was hypnotic, and Fluttershy's hoof was already moving to take hold of Discord's. His penetrating gaze seemed to have an effect on the other women too, for several of them began fanning themselves rapidly, as others leaned away from their partners, hoping to look more available.
Blueblood stared in horror as his mysterious companion was willingly leaving him...HIM...for this masked mad stallion! "Unhoof her!" Blueblood roared, one of his hooves grasping Fluttershy's arm very tightly, attempting to yank her away from Red Death, while his other hoof went to throw Discord's off her.
However, as Fluttershy gasped from the pain, Discord's hoof twisted out of the Prince's, and went immediately for Blueblood's throat. The whole room gasped as Blueblood was lifted off the floor by Red Death's strong grip, the Prince flailing about like a fish out of water, releasing Fluttershy and pounding against Discord's arm to release him as he choked for breath.
"I could kill you now," he growled dangerously, "but I won't...that will wait for another day..." he evilly promised. "But if you touch her ever again...ever, I will skin you alive and cut into your flesh until you beg me to kill you!" he spat, before throwing Blueblood from him, the Prince landing with a great thud, the whole room gasping and several mares screaming and fainting from the scene.
The managers rushed over to the coughing, sputtering Prince, but Blueblood, with as much strength as he had, pushed them aside, his eyes alight with green fire as he stared at the stallion dressed as Red Death.
Discord, satisfied that his point had been made, led the stunned Fluttershy out onto the dance floor, which had emptied significantly the moment he approached. "A waltz!" Discord roared to the orchestra who was also staring in stunned silence. When the cords of the music did not begin, he cast them a glare which immediately brought them back to life. At once, the music started, and Discord enfolded the still stunned Fluttershy into his arms, and began to lead her through the elegant dance steps.
Fluttershy clung to Discord's shoulders, her eyes wide with disbelief for what had just taken place. Discord's eyes locked with hers, and for the longest time, the two of them danced in silence, the music the only thing filling their ears.
Yet while they danced, while Discord led her through the steps, his hooves moving with expert skill, swirling her around as if she weighed next to nothing, Fluttershy was not aware of anything other than him. She knew that they were being watched by everypony, and she knew that this was not the reason that she had come above, that she had to warn him, to bring him back before anything horrible happened...but she was caught under the spell of desire. How long had she dreamed of this moment, to be in his arms again, to feel his body so close to hers? She had often imagined the two of them dancing...but had no idea it would feel this intense, this passionate, or in such a setting as this.
"You dance divinely, mademoiselle," Discord whispered, his voice so deep and low that Fluttershy's spine tingled at the sound.
"As do you, monsieur," Fluttershy whispered, feeling the Phantom's spell of seduction coming over her once again. "Where did you learn to dance like this?"
Discord chuckled softly. "You'd be amazed at all the things I do know..." without warning he dipped her deeply, causing both her and the other mares in the room to gasp with shock.
He grinned as he saw her eyes go wide from the move, but he was pleased even more so at seeing how much she liked it. He moved his head down, till his lips were just above her ear. "Why did you come here?" he hissed so only she would hear.
Fluttershy lifted her head, her eyes locking with his. "It's a trap!" she hissed. "They are going to do something horrible!"
Suddenly, without warning, causing more people to gasp again, Discord let out a loud roar of laughter. Fluttershy's eyes narrowed at the sound, disliking the way he laughed at her concern. "You honestly think I haven't considered that?" he growled in her ear.
Fluttershy frowned. "If you have, then did you also consider what may happen to your friends, should anything happen to you?"
"Nothing will happen to me," Discord reassured, but Fluttershy did not like the way he said it. It was too smug. She gasped when she felt his hoof flatten and press against her back, causing her body to arch into his strong broad frame. "I appreciate your concern," he whispered sincerely, "but do not think that will get you out of any trouble." Before she could respond, he once again dipped her deeply, only this time it was slower and far more seductive. The cords of the music ended, and Discord's eyes locked with Fluttershy's open and parted lips, remembering their texture and taste, and felt his desire to once again lose himself in her kiss.
But he quickly rose to his full height, bringing Fluttershy with him, the mare stunned and panting from the intense heat of the dance. Discord's eyes scanned the crowd around the two of them, thinking it rude that no one was even offering a round of applause for their dancing; however, he would be lying to say he was surprised.
"I think the time has come, my dear," he murmured. "For the Phantom to make his debut for the whole world." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Inevitable | Countdown
Blueblood groaned, his head aching as he held the cold wet cloth to his right temple. There was far too much noise going on in the managers' tiny office, and what he needed now more than ever was peace and quiet.
"Send everypony home!" he growled at the managers who were trying to keep ponies calm and who were running out of excuses to explain what had happened that night.
"We're trying monsieur!"Flam said with desperation. "We're trying our best!"
"Try harder!" Blueblood barked, cradling his head and moaning at the throbbing ache of his temple.
Fleur De Lis was pacing back and forth, fuming at the events of the evening, while Fancypants, like a lapdog, was following her every direction. "The party was ruined!" she cried. "I can't believe you let that happen!" she shouted at all the stallions in the office.
"It was not intentional, my dear," Blueblood grumbled.
"Fleur De Lis is quite right!" Fancypants scolded. "That party was in her honor! It was thrown so that all of Maris would know that their prima donna lives on! And you let that...that mad stallion, steal her glory!"
Normally Fleur De Lis would tell Fancypants to shut up, however, because he was filling her ears with words she wanted to hear, she simply patted her dog on the head while lifting her nose in the air. "The ball was in honor of the whole company," Blueblood muttered. "And once again...everything that happened tonight was not done intentionally!"
Fleur De Lis glared at the stallion who she had shared her bed with for well over a year. "I can't believe you let him get away!" she spat.
Blueblood glared at her. "I'm not sure if you noticed my dear, but I was the only one attempting to stop him before he...he performed that...that 'spell', so to speak! I don't recall seeing your precious Fancypants racing into action to stop him!"
Fancypants sputtered at Blueblood's insult, however had nothing to say as it was true. "And I'm sorry I failed to follow him after he branded me over the head...let alone choke me to death!" Blueblood growled, muttering obscenities to himself while clutching the cloth to his head.
"Madame Luna is seeing out all the guests," Flim declared, before collapsing into his own chair. "Thank Goodness for that mare..."
"And the way she can order ponies," Flam commented, also collapsing.
Blueblood looked at the two managers, his eyes glowing wildly. "Madame Luna...GET MADAME LUNA IN HERE NOW!"
The two managers stared at the Prince as if he were mad. "G-g-get Madame Luna...now?"
"Yes, damn it! Bring her here at once!" he swore as the pain in his head throbbed all the more harder. "Get her in here now!" Flam and Flim exchanged exhausted glances, before they rose from their chairs to retrieve the dance mistress.
Fleur De Lis continued to glare at Blueblood. "Perhaps none of this would have happened if you hadn't been dancing with that...that...that twit!"
Blueblood glared right back. "You can not possibly be serious," he muttered.
Fleur De Lis lifted her chin, securing her fur wrap around her shoulders. "Perhaps if you had been dancing with me instead, rather than that mare, none of this would have happened!"
Blueblood had never wanted to throttle Fleur De Lis more than this very moment. Listening to her high-pitched shrieks of displeasure was more than he could handle. But listening to her lectures was ten times worse. The events of the evening slowly replayed in his head; after the stallion dressed as Red Death had threatened his life, prior to hurling him across the floor, Blueblood watched in horror, hatred, and fascination as the mysterious mare willingly went into the other stallion's arms, dancing with him as if...as if she knew him, and...it caused Blueblood's jaw to clench as he recalled how her body responded to Red Death's touch. He scrambled to his hooves as their agonizing dance finally came to an end. He would have his revenge on whoever the masked fiend was.
And then the loud chimes of midnight could be heard echoing throughout the grand foyer.
"Happy New Year!" Red Death announced to the stunned crowd. The smile in which he wore was one full of cold calculating promise. "Why so silent? After all, you were expecting me, yes?" Everypony simply stared with wide eyes and open mouths. "Well, I suppose there's no need for formalities," he sighed, slowly ascending the great staircase, Fluttershy at his side. "As promised, there is an announcement in regards to the opera season, and since my dear managers appear speechless...perhaps they will allow me to break the news?" Neither Flim nor Flam spoke, they simply stared in awe. "I'm afraid the news is both good and bad," Red Death continued. "What is left of the opera season...has been canceled." Fleur De Lis gave a most indignant gasp that filled the whole room. "However, the reasons for its cancellation are due to the announcement of a new opera...one that will take place at the end of the season: Don Juan Triumphant!"
A great gasp went throughout the whole room, and the two managers paled with realization as who was addressing them. Blueblood on the other hand, who was also in shock, felt his anger flow as the menace who had been causing him so much trouble for far too long...had finally emerged.
"This opera is of my own creation," Red Death explained, causing everypony to gasp even louder, and for the mare in the golden gown to stare at him with wild blue eyes. "And...I suggest my dear messieurs," Red Death directed, his eyes falling on the managers, "that you comply with the list of instructions that I have, here." He then produced a piece of parchment from his waistcoat, thrusting it out into the air. "The instructions are quite clear," he explained. "Therefore it should not be too hard for you to follow them...after all, we would not want any more...accidents..." his eyes fell on Fleur De Lis, who paled and shrank behind Fancypants who stood nearby. "...to occur."
The paw that had been holding the parchment now rose again to his waistcoat. "Thank you Monsieur Blueblood," Red Death saluted with an elegant, as well as mocking, bow. "This has been quite the party...and I do believe it is going to be a most promising new year."
"STOP HIM!" Blueblood roared, pushing past the managers, racing toward the staircase and climbing the steps two at a time. However, Red Death was ahead of him. He removed something small from his waistcoat, threw the object on the ground, which created a small explosion that caused many of the guests to cry out with fear, before disappearing in a great cloud of thick white smoke. However, the stallion had not disappeared entirely, for as Blueblood scrambled through the smoke to find the place Red Death had been standing, he felt a hard thud come crashing against his right temple, causing him to fall backward and roll down several steps.
When he came to, the Opera House was in uproar. Stallions and mares were running around screaming, the managers were trying to calm everyone down, and everywhere he turned, he kept hearing the same words over and over again. "The Phantom of the Opera! He was here! That was him!"
Blueblood was quickly ushered into the managers' office where he was given a cold cloth to press against his head, but all he could think about was the Phantom...and how greatly he had underestimated the situation.
The Phantom was real! That was no stagehand playing a prank. That was a flesh and blood stallion, a creature who dressed like Death, a creature who still possessed a great threat to him and could send him into financial ruin! And, as he recalled the creature's iron grip around his neck, he also possessed unusual strength.
"Here she is!" Flam announced, ushering in the ballet mistress who looked both cold and annoyed that she had been summoned.
"Yes, monsieur?" she sighed, her wings tight behind her back, her expression cold and hard like stone.
Blueblood rubbed his throat once more, before slowly rising from his chair. "Who is he?" he demanded.
Madame Luna's brow furrowed at the Prince's words. "I beg your pardon, monsieur?"
"WHO IS HE?" Blueblood roared, throwing the cloth on the ground. "WHO WAS THAT? TELL ME WHO HE IS AT ONCE!"
Despite the Prince's explosion, Madame Luna remained ever calm and collected. "I do not know, monsieur."
"Horse shit!" Blueblood spat, causing everyone, save for Madame Luna, to gasp. "You know him, you know who he is...and I demand that you tell me at once...or I will see to it that both you and your precious daughter are thrown out onto the street!"
The managers opened their mouths to protest, but were quickly silenced by one of Blueblood's icy stares. Madame Luna, however, did not bat one eye or show any sign of intimidation. "You know who he is monsieur...he did not formally say it, but he made himself quite known tonight."
Blueblood couldn't decide who he wanted to kill more, Fleur De Lis or Madame Luna. "Was that the Phantom?" Blueblood growled.
"What do you think, monsieur?" she asked.
"DAMN IT!" Blueblood roared again. "ANSWER MY QUESTION!"
Madame Luna sighed and lowered her head. "He certainly fits the description, according to what the stagehands say. Mask, cape, tall, dark, and extremely menacing in appearance...it all seems to fit together, does it not?"
Blueblood stormed right up to the mare, towering over her small dark frame, using all the will he had left to not wrap his hooves around her neck and squeeze. "Now listen to me carefully Madame...listen well, for your daughter's dancing career depends greatly upon this answer," he threatened. "Do you know him?"
Madame Luna raised an eyebrow at his question. "How exactly do you mean?"
"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHAT I MEAN!" he shouted. "Are you protecting him? Are you a spy for him? ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION!"
Madame Luna ignored the spit that flew in her face from the Prince's shouts. "I have been at this opera house since I was 14. And like all places that are old, there tends to be a history of strange occurrences, and one can not help but begin to believe the mysterious stories they hear, the tales of ghosts lurking in the shadows. Like all those stories, I heard of his too...a creature of darkness that runs everything here-"
"NO!" Blueblood shouted. "I run everything here! Not some...some masked fiend!"
Madame Luna continued, ignoring Bluebloodl's outburst. "For many years, the Maris Opera House ran smoothly, becoming one of the most successful and beloved places of music and art in all of Equestria. However, since we've been under new management," her eyes fell on Flam and Flim who's eyes fell, "problems have arisen...more notes have been written...and there seems to be a growing list of threats."
"And you deny that you are not in league with him?" Blueblood growled.
Madame Luna simply matched his green fire gaze with an even icier one. "If you mean, 'am I out to destroy you' monsieur? No. I have more important matters to deal with; you are not worth the time or effort."
As Fancypants had done earlier, it was Blueblood's turn to sputter in shock. Madame Luna could not repress a tiny smile at this sight. "I know the Phantom of the Opera the same way all the rest of company know him...we know of his presence, we know of his demands, and we know our places and how he likes to run things. But if you mean do I know who he is, and where he is from...I can not answer that for you monsieur, because he is truly an enigma. Like darkness itself, he too is just as aloof."
Blueblood stared at the mare, shocked speechless by everything she had just said. "You're hiding something..." he murmured. "You know more than you're letting on..."
Madame Luna sighed. "If I do monsieur, are you prepared to throw me out, knowing that you will not receive this information? For I assure you, if anything were to happen to either me or my daughter, then the possibility of you learning more...is gone."
Damn the mare! Damn her cleverness and coldness! Blueblood turned away from her, barking an order to the managers to remove her at once from the office. He collapsed once again into his chair, both his hooves rising to cradle his aching head. The Phantom was real...he was no myth, no ghost story, no nightmarish figment...but a real flesh and blood stallion. Crafty Crate had been right; Time Turner had been right; everypony who believed in the Phantom had been right! And tonight, his plan had fallen to pieces; the Phantom answered his bluff, but instead of having control, Blueblood lost it and the Phantom immediately swept it, grabbed it, and announced his opera to the whole of Maris, showing everypony how much of a fool he, Prince Blueblood, was.
Alright, Blueblood thought. If it's war this ghost wants, then war is what he'll get!
"This is that mare's fault!" Fleur De Lis exclaimed after Madame Luna was removed from the office. "Did you not see how possessive he was to her?" she swore. "If you had released her, no, if you hadn't danced with her in the first place, then none of this would have happened!"
Blueblood was ready to roar at the spoiled soprano, but stopped himself, her words catching him off guard. "Possessive?" he whispered.
Fleur De Lis stared at Blueblood as if he were crazy. "Yes! You were there! You saw how possessive he was of her, whoever she was," she muttered.
It struck him then. The hair...the voice...the eyes...everything...
"Fluttershy..." he whispered.
"Beg your pardon, monsieur?" Flim asked.
"Nothing," Blueblood grumbled, rising from his chair once more and walking over to the fireplace, his eyes reflecting the burning embers. The allusive Fluttershy...the old stallion was right; she was the Phantom's prisoner.
But why then, had she gone so willingly into his arms? Why did it seem as if...she enjoyed their dance? His jaw clenched all the more as the images of the Phantom and Fluttershy dancing together floated across his memory. Why was she there in the first place?
"Escape..." he whispered. Of course...she was hoping to escape her captor's clutches! That had to be it! And she was pretending to be a nobody so as to not draw the Phantom's attention! She had found him because, as Time Turner had said, he was the only one who could help her. The Phantom found her before she could escape, and most likely took her with him again. The poor dear...especially since she was filthy rich and had no idea.
He only hoped that the goods weren't damaged; he wanted to be the first to be with her.
"Monsieur?" Flim called out, glancing at Flam with worry. "Monsieur! What should we do?"
Blueblood shook his head, focusing again on the managers before him. "Do? We..." he paused, thinking quickly. "We play his game," he finally concluded.
Both managers began to cough and choke. "W-w-what!"
"Yes gentlecolts, I fully intend to play along, to announce to all of Maris, as our dear Phantom suggested, that the rest of the opera season has been canceled and to make way for...for whatever he calls it," he muttered with a wave of his hoof.
"Yes, and then what?" Flam inquired.
Blueblood stared at the flames as they seemed to roar with a new life. "Then, we set the trap...only this time, we'll use better bait...and we'll know how big of a trap to get."
"DISCORD! DISCORD YOU PUT ME DOWN AT ONCE!" Fluttershy shrieked, her tiny hooves pounding as hard as they could into the Phantom's back, yet she could put a dent in it for all she knew...he showed no sign of releasing her.
After Discord's revelation to the whole ball, and before the Prince could reach them, he threw some sort of vile onto the ground, causing a great explosion and a large cloud of white smoke to be released, offering the two of them the perfect escape. She gasped as she felt his arm wrap around her, no longer that of a stallion but changed back into the creature she truly knew, and bit back a scream as she felt the ground beneath her hooves disappear. Yet as always, Discord was by her side, keeping her safe, knowing exactly what he was doing. She wondered how many trap doors were in this theater.
The fall was not long, and amazingly enough, they landed softly on the ground. Discord said nothing; he simply grabbed hold of her hoof and broke out into a fast-paced gallop. She clung to his paw to keep up; cursing the slippers she wore as well as the beautiful, but very heavy, skirts of her gown. Finally, when they at last came to an area that she recognized, he stopped his running, which only caused Fluttershy to bump into his back, before turning on her, fiery rage alight in his eyes.
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING UP THERE?"
Fluttershy shook his paw from her and squared her shoulders, her own eyes returning his glare. "I WAS TRYING TO WARN YOU!" she spat. "UNLIKE YOU, I HAPPEN TO CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR FRIENDS!"
Discord growled low and deep, a dangerous growl which caused the hairs on the back of Fluttershy's neck to rise. "I don't need your help! I am PERFECTLY capable of looking after myself!" he hissed. "I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING! AND HOW DARE YOU CLAIM THAT I DON'T CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO THEM!"
Fluttershy turned her back on him, the rage boiling in her blood. She had gone above not only out of concern, but out of love for him, pure passion-filled love! And for one beautiful moment, she was able to forget the danger they were both in, and lose herself in his arms.
But that moment had been shattered.
Reality had come crashing back like the icy cold waters of the ocean. Once again, the creature who hid behind the mask stood before her, the creature who refused to allow anyone or anything to get truly close to him. "Don't walk away from me," he growled, crossing the short distance between them in one easy stride. His paw grasped her shoulders and he swirled her around to face him. Angry at his gesture, Fluttershy pushed against his chest with all her might, her body momentarily free from his grasp.
"Don't touch me!" she shouted. "And don't tell me what to do! I'm not a filly or some...some slave you can command whenever you wish!"
Discord's eyes were growing darker by the second. His paw and claw were flexing back and forth into fists of rage. "You are a thorn in my side is what you are!" he bellowed.
Fluttershy lifted her chin with indignation. "Well, I beg your pardon, monsieur," she said with great sarcasm, offering a curtsy which reflected her tone of voice. "I shall remember that next time you throw yourself into danger-"
"GOOD GOD, I WASN'T IN ANY DANGER!"
"Oh really? What pray tell do you think the Prince was up to? That it was a simple and friendly invitation? That he wanted the two of you to let bygones be bygones?"
DIscord gritted his teeth. "I could tell you enjoyed his company," he growled with loathing. "Perhaps you should tell the truth my dear...that 'coming to my rescue' so to speak, was an excuse to play dress-up and buck the Prince!"
Fluttershy's eyes widened at his coarse language. "HOW DARE YOU!" she cried, her right hoof rising to slap his face, even though the skull mask that he wore would catch her blow.
Discord however moved quicker, grasping her wrist with his large powerful claw, his eyes locking with hers. "Have I struck a nerve?"
Fluttershy screamed with rage and pounded her free hoof against his chest. Without another word or thought, Discord easily scooped her up, and much to her disdain, threw her over his shoulder, ignoring her high-pitched protests and pounding hooves.
He spoke not one word to her as he carried her back to his lair, the whole way Fluttershy screaming for freedom. "PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT DISCORD! PUT ME DOWN!" Yet it was no use, Discord was in one of his determined moods which meant nothing, not even all the angels of heaven and the demons from hell could stop him.
The others heard Fluttershy's screams and came into the tunnels, happy to see their master alive and unharmed, but trembling with fear as they saw the rage written in his eyes. "ALL OF YOU BACK TO YOUR CHAMBER!" he roared at them. "I have a score to settle with Mademoiselle Fluttershy."
Fluttershy heard his words and momentarily froze her hooves wondering what exactly he meant. But then the fire was boiling within her anew and she wriggled her hooves, pounded his back, she even attempted to pull at his hair, anything to get him to put her down. "I swear Discord, if you do not release me, I'll tear up your music and never sing again!"
Suddenly, without warning, Fluttershy came crashing down onto her backside, gasping as she fell, but thankful for the Persian pillows that softened the blow. She looked around and realized they were in his music chamber. His back was to her and he was removing the red velvet suit coat and sash, as well as changing his mask to the one he normally wore. He only turned to face her until he was satisfied that the mask was securely in place.
Fluttershy's anger only kindled more as she felt her heartbeat betray her; it quickened as she took in the sight of Discord, dressed now in a simple linen shirt, the neck wide open, and the tight red breeches he had worn at the ball. Damn him for being so seductive! Damn her heart for loving him with such a passion! She quickly scrambled to her hooves, throwing off the mask that she still wore, her eyes alight with the same fiery rage, although his seemed so much colder...which was all the more frightening.
"Do not EVER treat me in such a way again!" she shouted, throwing the lace gloves on the floor next to her mask. "And don't you EVER talk to me as you did, you vile, loathsome-"
"Beast?" he offered for her, his arms folding across his chest.
"NO!" she screamed with perhaps a little too much passion. "I wasn't going to say that!"
"Ah, but you were thinking it," he growled, turning his back on her and grabbing hold of a wine bottle to which he pursued to guzzle.
Fluttershy hated it when stallions drank as a way to shut up mares. She reviled the gesture, and knew it would only make things worse. She crossed the chamber to where he stood, and much to his surprise, grabbed hold of the bottle from his fist and threw it hard against the wall.
"DAMNATION MARE!" he shouted, watching the bottle's contents drip down the wall. "ARE YOU MAD?" he roared, grabbing hold of her shoulders and shaking her hard.
"Apparently so since I actually cared to come above and warn you!" she hissed.
Discord pushed her away from him and crossed the chamber again, needing to get away from her, not wanting to lash out, but feeling the desire to do so grow by the second. "I told you..." he said through very tight lips. "I-"
"Knew what you were doing, yes, yes, I know!" she growled back, crossing the room to where he stood. "How foolish of me to care! How foolish of me to not have seen through your plans!"
He whirled around and grabbed her by the shoulders again. "WHAT IS IT THAT YOU WANT?" he roared, giving her another good hard shake. "You want me to tell you...how glad I was to see you there? Because I wasn't!" he said with a hard shake. "I thought we had trust, Fluttershy!"
Fluttershy pushed her hooves against his chest, but he was having none of it, his grip on her shoulders did not lesson. "Don't you speak to me about a lack of trust! You clearly have little for me!"
Discord's eyes widened at her words. "I have shown you EVERYTHING! I have taken you through all my tunnels, you know practically every secret passageway of this theater! I have even shared my music and valued your opinions!"
Fluttershy released a cold harsh laugh. "Except when I try to get you to see reason about the character of Aminta!"
Discord felt the demon within him rise up, ready to burst forth and wreak all sorts of havoc. "Do not even attempt to speak with me about that! You yourself proved all too well tonight how much a stallion can trust another mare!"
Fluttershy stared at him, her blue eyes growing wider at his words. "What do you mean by that?" she gasped.
"Oh I think you know my dear," he growled, suddenly sweeping her up in his arms and dancing around the chamber with her. "Have you so easily forgotten the Prince's dance?"
Fluttershy paled and then felt heat rush to her cheeks. Discord scoffed at the sight. "Even now, the mere mention of his name causes you to blush!"
"I only danced with him so as to not cause suspicion!" she hissed. "You know his personality! If I had refused, he would have pursued me all evening, determined to make his conquest! And by dancing with him, I knew that he could not bring any harm to you!"
Discord threw back his head with laughter, the same cold laughter that echoed throughout the grand foyer not so long ago. "Oh how thoughtful of you!" he declared with great sarcasm. "Dancing with my greatest enemy for my benefit! Truly, your kindness knows no boundaries."
Fluttershy shoved against him as hard as she could, not wanting to be in the circle of his arms, wanting to hate him, wanting to loathe him, not wanting to be reminded that despite how greatly he infuriated her, that she still loved him. Discord was also fighting the same battle, telling himself to release her, that this could only lead to more trouble, but the dance they had shared earlier reminded him once again how right she felt in his arms...and how right it felt to be so close to her. No! He had to be strong! He could not lose his senses as he had done that night when they had kissed.
"I've told you before, I care nothing for the Prince!" she spat.
"Oh yes, your disgust with him was quite plain for the entire world to see," he growled.
Fluttershy glared up at him. "I...am...NOT...Pinkamena!" she screamed between each word. "And don't you EVER compare me to her again!"
"I don't have to! It's quite obvious!" he shouted back. Before she could protest he carried on, his grip around her body tightening all the more. "Do not think that your mask saved you from his suspicions...if I recognized you, what makes you think he didn't?"
"What are you talking about?"
Discord's eyes glowed with a dark fire. "Come now! Arriving in such a gown that was made to catch the eye? All the stallions were leering at you when you entered!" he growled at the memory, never before feeling more hatred towards his own gender as in that moment. "And you think he had no memory of your hair?" he asked, his eyes focusing on the lovely pink waves that sparkled with golden jewels. "Or your eyes?" his own focused deeply into hers, and Fluttershy stopped struggling as they locked. "Or the curves of your body?" he whispered deep and low, and she gasped as she felt him rub against her. She suddenly felt dizzy, and that strange sensation had returned between her thighs. Discord's arms tightened even more about her, pushing her body against his, reveling in the feel of her softness against him, wanting to rip her from the gown and feel her skin touch his, to run his paw over her curves, to taste her flesh, to bury himself deep within her and pour his very essence into her soul.
Fluttershy's eyes were fluttering as she gazed up at him, her lips parted, all manner of speech having been robbed. She clung to his arms for balance, but she felt as limp as a doll. Her eyes kept going back and forth between his and his mouth, as were Discord's. They were only a breath away...if she leaned up on the tips of her hooves...and if he bent his head just a little further...
Discord quickly pushed her away from him, releasing her from his grip, practically hobbling away from her as if he had been burned. Fluttershy almost fell to the ground, her knees trembling violently. They stared at one another, only a short distance between the two of them, but Discord dared not cross it. If he did...there would be no turning back.
"L-l-leave me," he whispered, his voice shaking with...fear? Regret? Sorrow? He was feeling all those things at once.
Fluttershy remembered how events had played out the night they had kissed, and Rarity's words were ringing loud and clear in memory. She stood her ground, prepared once again for battle. "No."
Discord looked at her, his paw and claw gripping the piano for support. "This is no game Fluttershy! I mean it! LEAVE ME NOW!"
She took a deep breath and slowly began to approach him. "No," she repeated.
Discord stared at her, his eyes growing wider and the visible side of his face growing paler at her persistence. "I'm warning you..." he growled.
"I'm not leaving you again, Discord," she murmured, her hooves slowly moving to touch his face, but his were faster, gripping her wrists tightly. Yet Fluttershy continued, knowing this was her only chance. "Yes, I was pretending tonight when I danced with the Prince, but not with you...never with you," she whispered passionately. "I loved our dance..." his paw loosened around her wrist and Fluttershy was free to move it over his unmasked cheek. He was holding his breath as he felt her soft touch make contact; his eyes were swimming with tears of confusion, disbelief...and perhaps...hope? "And when we kissed," she murmured, her voice full with emotion as she lifted herself up onto the tips of her hooves, tilting her head to meet his lips, "I was not pretending then either."
"NOOOOO!" Discord screamed in agony, the emotion spilling forth as he pushed her away from him. "This is not real! This is a...a trick!" he choked. "You p-p-pretended with one stallion...how do I know y-y-you w-w-will not pretend with me?" He seized her then, shaking her shoulders as hard as he could. "DO NOT TOY WITH ME! WHAT REASON DO YOU HAVE FOR DOING ALL THIS?"
"BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!" she shouted, gasping as the words escaped her lips.
She had said it. There was no going back now...and yet Fluttershy did not feel dread...but the greatest sense of freedom she had ever known!
Discord stared down at her, looking extremely horrified by what he had just heard. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. His voice was gone and all he could hear were her glorious words over and over again, words that he had been dreaming to hear from her for so many nights...but that he never imagined she would say. After all...she was an angel, his angel...and he was a monster.
Fluttershy saw the confusion and the disbelief in his eyes. She could feel him drift away, feel his body try to back away from her, but she gripped the edges of his shirt tightly. "I love you Discord! I love you! I wanted you to kiss me because I love you! I came to you tonight because I feared for your safety! I do trust you; I do value everything you've shared with me! And I do all these things, because I love you!"
But DIscord was backing away all the more. "Please...please Discord!" Fluttershy begged, but he pushed her away from him, backing away even quicker. Fluttershy crumpled to the floor, hot tears spilling from her eyes as she watched the only creature she had ever loved drift away from her like a ghost from one of her novels. "DISCORD!" she cried out, her hoof reaching out to him, but he turned on his heel then, running as fast as he could, leaving her there to sob on the floor. "No..." she mourned, wrapping her arms around her trembling body, rocking back and forth. "NOOOO!"
Fluttershy's screams filled the caverns all around him, but Discord didn't dare look back. He simply ran faster and faster, his legs flying through the tunnels until at last he reached his destination...the world above.
It was the middle of the night. And despite the fact that it was now the New Year, the streets were extremely quiet. Discord needed peace and quiet, but he needed to get away from the Opera House even more.
Did she mean it? Was it possible?
NO! He was a monster! A demon! She had seen his face! She knew the horrible things he had done! He even murdered another stallion in front of her, splattering her with that very stallion's blood! She was intoxicated by the champagne at the party; she was thinking of the handsome Blueblood, she was going mad for living underground for so long! Anyone of these reasons was good enough! She could not love him!
But oh God above, how he wanted her to.
He was not deserving of her love. He was not a creature that was meant for love! Long ago, after Pinkamena's true character was revealed, Discord had learned that love was a sickness, a weakness that ensnared one's senses and turned them into blind blubbering fools! Pinkamena had a promising career as a dancer! She could have been great! But she threw all that away for what she called love. And where was she now? Either lying dead in a ditch or working as a prostitute in some God-forsaken place. If that was what love did to someone, then he wanted none of it! You didn't need love to have pleasure! After all, for the right price, you could "buy" love in a manner of speaking.
The sudden familiar smell of a prostitute's cigarette invaded his nostrils. Discord turned his head and saw a mare dressed in a gaudy pink gown leaning against the wall of an ally, her face overrun with paint, her lips cracked from the cold and smoke. She was not beautiful, but beauty was not what he was interested in. He needed to sate this raging beast within him and there was only one way to do so!
"You!" he hissed from the shadows. The prostitute turned her head, peering into the darkness. Discord did not have his cape or hat; he could not conceal his masked face as well as in the past.
The mare looked wary. "Who's there?" she barked, not taking one step towards the ally. "Show yourself!"
"It's me, madam," Discord simply said, not knowing if she was one he knew or not, he never really tried to know the mare he bucked.
The prostitute however seemed to recognize his voice. "Oh! Oh it's you, monsieur!" she said with relief. "I can't see you very well though..."
"That doesn't matter," Discord growled. "Come, we're wasting time."
The prostitute put out her cigarette and sauntered over to the shadows. "I trust you, monsieur, you always pay us well," she grinned, stumbling here and there, the smell of alcohol extremely pungent. Obviously she had been celebrating the New Year for quite some time. "It's been quite a while, monsieur, the mares were beginning to wonder if something had happened to you?"
Discord grunted, quickly undoing his breeches. The prostitute, while she couldn't see him very well knew the sound of a stallion undressing. She licked her lips. "Will it be the usual, monsieur? Or are you interested in something...a little more special?"
Discord said nothing, he simply grabbed her by the waist and pinned her up against the hard cold wall of the ally. "The usual then," she grinned. Discord could not ignore the foul stench that covered her, but he did not care. In fact, it was all for the better, how then would he be able to think of Fluttershy with this wretched creature before him?
"Oh my!" she gasped, and Discord groaned as he felt her hoof on him. "I see you're in desperate need," she grinned.
Discord's eyes fluttered closed as the prostitute continued to run her hooves over him, but it was not her hooves that were touching him...it was Fluttershy's small soft delicate hooves, all because of her, all because of his desire for her...
"Monsieur?" Discord's eyes snapped open at the prostitute's voice. "Are you alright?" she whispered. She peered closer, straining to see his face in the darkness, thinking she could see something white on the right side of his face.
"I'm fine," he grunted. "And I'll be even better once we start."
The prostitute grinned and wrapped her legs around his body. But once again Discord found himself imagining Fluttershy's legs, smooth and slender, wrapping around his body as he drove himself into her.. Yes...he felt his paw being drawn to Fluttershy's thighs, and he imagined her crying out as he teased her...oh how would she respond? Would she gasp? Would she whimper? Would she scream with delight? How would it feel to have her bare and naked, crushed against his chest? Had she been with a stallion before, he wondered? No...not his Fluttershy, she was an innocent, she was a romantic, and she would wait for the dark hero of her dreams to come to her and cover her with kisses before offering him the greatest gift a pony could ever know. She would be true to this stallion, she would love this stallion; only through love would she give herself to another.
"Oh monsieur...I'm dying! Please! Do not force me to wait another second!"
"Fluttershy..." he groaned with a ragged breath.
The prostitute eyed him suspiciously. "You want me to be 'Fluttershy'? Alright, I'll be this mare, call me Fluttershy, monsieur, I'll be your Fluttershy."
Discord's eyes flew open and he stared at the mare pinned against the wall before him. Good God...what was he doing?
"Monsieur? What's wrong?"
Discord suddenly felt disgust at both the mare he held in his arms and the act he had been about to commit.
"Monsieur?"
He swiftly put the prostitute down on the ground, backing away from her and quickly doing up his breeches. "Take the money!" he shouted, throwing several gold coins on the ground.
The prostitute was no fool, she immediately fell to her knees, gathering the coins and placing them in her bodice. However, she had a large pout on her lips as she glanced up at the shadows before her. "Monsieur, is everything alright? I thought...monsieur? Monsieur!"
But she was alone in the ally with the darkness.
Discord was running blindly through the streets, expertly maneuvering himself in and out of dark allies and forgotten passages, feeling the harsh January winds smack against his body from all sides.
He couldn't do it. He couldn't be with another mare while thinking of Fluttershy.
It had been for quite some time now that the only mare he dreamed about, fantasized about, the only mare he wanted or desired in any capacity...was her. But it was deeper than lust. If it were pure simple lust, he could easily have done what that prostitute had suggested, pretend she was Fluttershy and that it was Fluttershy he was bucking.
But Fluttershy was not a mare a stallion should ever "buck". No...she was so pure, so beautiful...she was a mare to be treasured, a mare to be...made love to. He wondered what it was like to make love...the thought alone gave birth once again to his desire.
No...this was more than lust. This was something far deeper, something far deadlier, and something that he had no control over. He had never been more afraid or more hopeful in all his life.
The snow softly began to fall over his head as he sprinted onward, his feet carrying him, flying him to an unknown destination.
Fluttershy had never left the music chamber. She remained, huddled in a ball, her head resting on the organ stool that her beloved often occupied in this room. Of all his instruments, the pipe organ was his favorite. Fluttershy lifted her shaking hooves to the keys, softly running their tips across them. She imagined his paw and claw touching the keys, playing them with expert skill, the music flowing from his heart and soul like one's blood flowed through one's veins.
"Discord..." she whispered, feeling the hot tears once again threaten to burst forth. Her cheeks were red and puffy from all the crying she had done. She had taken the risk, she had told him of her love...and he had run away.
He didn't believe her, it was obvious. He thought her enamored with the Prince; of all the stupid things she had ever done, dancing with that stallion had been one of the worst. She had thought at the time she was doing some good, but Discord was convinced that she was like all the others; he would never believe her.
She turned her face into the crook of her arm, gasping as she felt another sob escape her throat. She hugged the stool to her body, trying to absorb any warmth that it held, but it was a lost cause. It was cold, so very cold. She had never realized how cold the world felt when she was outside his arms.
"Discord..." she whimpered painfully. "Oh Discord..."
"Fluttershy."
She froze at the sound. That voice...that beautiful, rich, deep voice...could it be? Was it possible?
Slowly, afraid that this was a dream, Fluttershy turned her tear-stained face to the entryway of the Phantom's music chamber, her heart coming to a stop, her breath catching in her throat...
He stood there, staring down at her, his amber eyes dark and intense, his chest heaving with each breath. His hair clung to him; there were remnants of snowflakes on him, and his whole body seemed covered in sweat; his shirt was clinging to his body.
"D-d-discord?" she said shakily, hardly believing he was there. "Discord...is it you?"
She pushed herself up against the organ stool, clambering to her feet most ungracefully, but Discord was there in that next instant, his arms sweeping around her body and lifting her to her feet with expert skill.
The two stared at one another, Fluttershy biting her lip as she looked up into his masked face, hardly knowing what to say, simply grateful that he had returned and that she had him in her arms once more. She could feel the warmth flooding through her once again.
Discord stared down at her, his eyes moving all over her face, in her hair, feeling her body come alive against his own. He dared not move, he could not. But he had to speak.
"Did you mean it?" he whispered, his voice trembling the same way her body was trembling. "What you said to me...did you mean it?"
Fluttershy felt a smile tug at the corners of her mouth. "Yes," she whispered. "I meant every word. I love you DIscord...I love you."
Discord stared at her for another fleeting moment, before uttering, "God above, have mercy."
Fluttershy lifted her hooves to his masked cheek. "I love you Discord, I love-"
All other words were lost in the hot sensation of Discord's mouth crashing down upon hers. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Awakening | Awakening
She had returned to him, the angel of his dreams. She beckoned him close, her arms outstretched, promising warmth in his darkness, and love in his loneliness. As he approached her, he noticed the golden gown that she wore, and her hair sparkled with golden jewels. He was transfixed, he could not deny either of them, and he went willingly into her arms, losing himself within her, moaning her name as her softness enveloped him...
Discord awoke from the dazzling dream then, gulping in air as if he had been underwater. His body was trembling and the air was cold. His skin was slick with perspiration, no doubt from his dream. He closed his eyes briefly, groaning as he once again came crashing back to reality. Gone was his angel...once more he was awake, once more he was alone...
Wait. Something was different.
There was an unusual weight upon his right arm...in fact he could not even move the arm! And something...something tickled his chin...
He looked down and saw several pink waves that appeared to be the source. How on earth did they...
A sleepy groan arose from the chamber and Discord knew it did not belong to him. His eyes went wide as he looked down at his side where his arm was outstretched. There, snuggled in the crook of his arm, her beautiful head pillowed against him, lay his angel, sleeping peacefully with a lovely smile.
Discord's face paled at the sight. He lay frozen as Fluttershy sleepily moaned again, shifting her body this time, moving in closer to him.
What was she doing here?
He felt his breath catch as he realized...the two of them were naked, her body curled into a ball beside his. Good God...had...had they...?
He remembered. It wasn't a dream...she was here, sleeping beside him, beautiful and naked. He didn't know if he should rejoice with happiness or run with dread. What had he done?
Fluttershy shivered and once again he felt the cold air hit his flesh. He gently lifted her head, gazing in wonder at her beautiful sleeping face, before carefully removing his arm. He then reached down and pulled a warm thick blanket over her body, watching as she buried her face into the pillow, drawing the blanket's warmth around her.
At least she will not freeze, he thought. He quickly rose from the bed, his eyes spying the remnants of their clothes on the floor. Instead, he reached for a black and gold dressing gown that he had strewn across the back of a chair in the corner of the room. He quickly put it on and retreated to his music chamber, stumbling as he went, his legs barely carrying him.
It had happened. The memories came crashing back like a great tidal wave. He remembered the ball, he remembered her arriving in a golden gown, and he remembered the two of them dancing. He also remembered being extremely annoyed with her arrival, and the two of them having a most passionate argument. However...the argument changed; somewhere in the middle of their shouting, they began to give in to their overriding desires. Somewhere in the midst of their argument...she confessed her feelings for him.
"She loves me..." he whispered, the word causing his voice to tremble. Was it possible? Could such a creature love...love him? HIM? "So many things happened last night," he groaned, collapsing upon the organ stool, his head falling into his paw and claw. He remembered running from her, retreating into the night and searching for something. He remembered with great disgust the prostitute he had found, thinking that she was the thing he was searching for, a moment's pleasure to take away his frustrations, to make him forget Fluttershy's blue eyes, Fluttershy's voice, Fluttershy's spirit! He needed to escape...
"But I couldn't do it..." he groaned softly, his head lifting to stare at a piece of parchment he had been writing notes upon for the last several days. "I'm doomed," he groaned. "I...I can't stop thinking about her, I can't stop dreaming about her..." his paw and claw braced himself against the organ, his eyes burning the parchment with his gaze.
Written at the top were the simple words "Fluttershy's Song".
"She has bewitched me," he whispered. "I will never want for another, but...but she's so beautiful! How...how...?" his voice growled, the beast within rising. "Damn her! Damn her eyes!" he growled, visions of passion-filled sapphires filling his head. "Damn her sweetness! Damn her beauty! Damn her angelic soul!" he growled loudly, pushing himself away from the organ and pacing like a crazed caged tiger across the chamber.
"It's impossible! She's so pure-well, was pure until I stole that from her!" he cursed. "She's so lovely...and I'm...I'm..." his gaze caught something in the corner of the chamber. Discord made it a habit to not keep mirrors; he despised them, there was no purpose for them whatsoever. But his reflection was caught in the glass case of an old clock that he had near the piano at the far side of his music chamber. Even though he wore a mask to conceal his horrific face it still reminded him of his marred flesh, of the murderous monster within. "AAAAAAAAAHHH!" he roared, filling the cavern with the sound as he grabbed hold of a marble bust with both paw and claw, lifted it over his head and hurled it as far as he could against the clock, shattering the glass as well as breaking the mechanisms.
Fluttershy awoke with a start at the sound of the noise. Where was she? This wasn't her chamber! She looked frantically around, and then...she remembered.
She was naked. She was in the Phantom's chamber, in his bed! And...she was alone.
"Oh God..." she whispered, blushing brightly as memories from the previous night flooded back.
"Yes, you may wish to begin offering up prayers of repentance," Discord growled from the entryway. "Sorry to wake you, my dear," he added, before stepping fully into the chamber.
Fluttershy stared at him, her mind still overcoming the shock of the situation. They had...truly, they had...
The blush of her cheeks spread so far that Discord swore she would glow if he blew out the candles in his chamber.
He couldn't help but chuckle with amusement at the way she was behaving, clutching the blanket tightly around her body, pulling it all the way up to her chin. She watched him with large wary eyes, her skin burning to the touch, as Discord crossed the room to a corner where he proceeded to pour himself a drink. "Well, I think it's safe to say that we've entered what is known as the 'awkward morning after' moment. Care for anything?" he asked as he put the stopper back onto the bottle. "I don't believe it's too early in the day to get drunk, do you?" he asked before downing the contents of his glass.
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed at his behavior. "That is your answer...to get drunk?"
Discord poured himself another glass. "Perhaps...what is the question exactly?"
Fluttershy scowled at him. "Why are you acting like this?" she asked, a part of her wanting to rise from the bed and remove the glass from his fist, but the other part of her reminding her once more that she was naked.
Discord couldn't help but chuckle, a sound that made Fluttershy's scowl grow even further. "How should I act Fluttershy? Tell me please...perhaps your novels can help us find an answer."
"Don't patronize me Discord," she hissed.
"On the contrary my dear, I'm treating you like an equal! I figured since you're well versed in romance due to the content of your books, not to mention the simple fact that you don't look like this," he indicated to his masked face, "that you would know the proper things a mare and stallion should say or how they should behave after a night of passion."
Fluttershy blushed deeply at his words, but she did not like his tone. "Do not mock what we did!" she hissed. What had happened to him? Last night he had been so tender, so loving when they were in each other's arms. Why was he being so sarcastic? So dispassionate now?
"I'm not mocking it," he said with extreme seriousness, his paw placing the recently poured drink down, not being able to finish it out of respect for her. "I'm merely curious as to why you're looking to me for answers on what happens next. After all, I won't deny that this is an entirely new experience for me as well."
Fluttershy blushed and clutched the blankets even closer. "But...but I thought..." her words trailed off as she remembered how they had made love, the way he guided her, the way he touched her, the way he showed her passion.
Discord saw the confusion written across her face and sighed heavily. "I'm not a eunuch Fluttershy; I am a normal creature, despite my face."
Hot jealousy suddenly boiled through her. "Well, I'm glad I was able to help you with your...'needs'," she muttered sarcastically. "Forgive me for misjudging your masculinity, after all, what do I know, I'm just a simple-minded country chit!" she spat angrily, sniffing back the hot tears that threatened to fall. "Now if you will please give me my clothes, I will be gone from your presence-"
Fluttershy had every intention of leaving, even if it meant she left with the blanket wrapped around her and her clothes remaining on his chamber floor! However, before she could even put one foot on the floor, Discord was there on the bed, his muscular paw and claw seizing her by the shoulders. Fluttershy gasped as she stared up at him, the wild look in his eyes causing her heart to stop.
"You are not going anywhere until you explain yourself, mademoiselle," he growled. The confused expression on her face only caused his frustration to grow. "You must however forgive me, my dear, if the situation does strike me as...surreal, shall we say."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed with even more confusion. "Surreal?"
"Yes!" Discord growled loudly, his paw and claw loosening somewhat on her shoulders, not ever wanting to hurt her, but his eyes continuing to burn into hers. "After all, you did give yourself freely and willingly to the infamous Phantom of the Opera...are you sure you weren't drunk on champagne last night?"
Fluttershy let out an exasperated cry, wriggling against his grip for one of the pillows that lay beside her, wanting to beat him over the head with it! "Have you so easily forgotten?" she shouted. "Or is it that you refuse to believe me when I tell you that I lo-"
"STOP!" he shouted, his claws moving over her mouth. "Don't say it..." he growled, dangerously deep.
Fluttershy's eyes widened as realization came to her and she pushed his paw away. "This isn't about me...it's about you," she whispered. Discord stared at her with confusion, but before he could speak she quickly continued. "You refuse to believe that anypony could love you...that you're unworthy of love, that you're incapable of it."
"Am I?" he demanded, moving away from her and holding his arms out from his body. "Honestly Fluttershy...you know of the things that I've done, you've SEEN me do them! Do you honestly believe it is capable for a stallion one minute to murder somepony in cold blood...and then swear undying everlasting love...?" he was staring deeply into her eyes, his chest rising and falling heavily. Despite the coldness in his voice, Fluttershy could read his eyes and see desperation within them, a longing for acceptance, for compassion, and for love.
"I believe that anypony can be forgiven if they honestly repent and work to do good," she strongly stated. "And you have done good Discord...I've seen the good that you've done, I've felt it."
"Save me your sermons," he grumbled, pushing himself off the bed and away from her. Fluttershy stared at his back with great puzzlement. She opened her mouth to speak, but Discord stopped her with his words. "I don't understand how you can even...say such a thing?" He turned on her then and Fluttershy gasped when she saw tears glistening in his eyes.
"It's true," she implored.
"Like hell!" he spat. "You of all ponies know the evil I do! You've been prey to it!" he turned his head, ashamed to look into her angelic eyes. Gone was the cynicism; his barriers were falling and a great vulnerability surfacing. "I've had the opportunities to show mercy, and I chose murder instead. I pay mares to satisfy my carnal lusts! I have purposely caused stallions to go mad! And now, I seem to have developed a new sinful habit...kidnapping innocent fillies and stealing their virginity!"
"You also protect those who are helpless!" Fluttershy shouted, her hoof stretched in the direction of the chamber that the others occupied. "And you saved my life! You stopped those stallions from-"
"Have you forgotten the cruelty I inflicted upon your father?"
"OF COURSE NOT! I REMEMBER IT EVERY DAY!" Fluttershy screamed in frustration, gasping and covering her mouth with her hoof after the words echoed off the chamber walls.
Discord sighed, a sad painful sigh, however he appeared satisfied that his point had been made. "I told you once Fluttershy...this is no fairy tale. Just because you've kissed the beast and told him that you love him...he still remains what he is. I am no prince and never will be." He turned then, as if to leave, but Fluttershy, who was trembling with a new found rage, rose from the bed, not caring that she was naked, and threw a pillow at his head as hard as she could.
Discord whirled around after the pillow struck him, his eyes wide both at her reaction, as well as the fact that she stood before him, glorious and naked, scowling most disdainfully. "What you did to my father was horrible, I will not deny that," she hissed. "Every day I wonder what has become of him...is he alive? Is he hurt? Is he getting enough to eat?" the tears were pouring down her cheeks and Fluttershy's arms moved to wrap around her naked form. Discord felt his heart breaking at the sight. "But..." she whimpered. "You were not the creature you are now..."
Discord barely breathed. "What am I then?"
"A good stallion!" she declared. "A stallion who provides, protects, and cares for his family. You didn't have to save them when you saved yourself, but you did! And the night you saved my life...you may have only pursued me in order to protect the others, but you did save my life, you did stop those stallions from raping me! And...and you taught me to sing..." Fluttershy whispered, coming towards him, her hoof extended to touch his unmasked cheek. "You believed in my talents, you gave me courage to see my dreams take flight, you showed me your world, you gave me your trust, and you shared yourself in every way with me-"
Discord stopped her hoof mere inches from touching his face, but his eyes no longer held any cruel humor or disdainful cynicism. Instead, she saw hope within them, hope that yearned for freedom behind a cloud of disbelief. "Why Fluttershy...?" his voice was barely above a whisper, and Fluttershy felt his hoof tremble against hers. His disbelief was crackling. "After everything...w-w-why...?"
Fluttershy felt the cold air hit her tear-stained face but she did not flinch from it, and rather than retreat, she moved her hoof behind his grip and softly made contact with his face. He groaned as he felt her feather light caress against his unmarred skin, his own eyes betraying him as tears began to seep from their brim. Fluttershy gave a soft smile through her tears at the sound, and then, as she had done on that magical Christmas, leaned up on the tips of her toes, both her hooves lovingly holding his face, to brush her lips against his...
"Wait," Discord stopped her, his paw and claw going to her shoulders and gently pushing her back. Fluttershy gazed up at him, fear written across her face that he would reject her again, but much to her shock, Discord scooped her up and quickly carried her to the bed, hastily placing her under the lush warm Persian blankets that adorned it. A happy smile was lit across her face as she thought perhaps he was rejoining her, but it was quickly erased by another look of confusion as he moved away, only a few inches, pacing slightly, glancing at her now and then and looking rather nervous.
"Discord, w-w-what is it?" she asked, concern etched across her lovely features.
"There's something you should know," he muttered, his pacing finally coming to a stop before facing her. He swore his heart stood still as he saw the worry in her beautiful blue eyes. "Please," he pleaded, coming to her side on bended knee, his masked face looking up at hers. "Do not fret, it's nothing bad, it's just..." he sighed, turning his eyes away. "I do not wish to raise your hopes, but...I need to tell you...that I've been trying to discover the whereabouts of your father."
Fluttershy's world came to a halt. She stared at the creature who knelt before her, his black hair the only thing she could see of him, and yet in that very moment she could be blind, it would not matter. It was the words he had spoken to her that were ringing over and over in her head. "W-w-w-what?" she stammered softly.
Discord turned and looked up at her, his eyes locking with hers, the tears in their beautiful blue depths reflecting the ocean after a storm. "The others, as well as myself...have been trying to find out all we can on where your father might be. I'm sorry to say that we haven't learned anything, but...after that night on the rooftops...after seeing you cry...I...I had to do something, if anything, it's the most I can do for you Fluttershy, perhaps the only thing I can give you, but-"
His speech was cut off by the sudden impact of Fluttershy's lips upon his.
She literally took his breath away, her small soft hooves clasping his face, and her even softer, sweet lips, locking against his own. For several blind moments Discord knew not what to do! This was the last reaction he had expected, he thought surely she would be reminded of the horror he had inflicted upon both she and her father, that she would want to be as far from him as possible, but this?
However,Fluttershy's kiss was extremely intoxicating and Discord quickly found himself kissing her back. It wasn't until he realized she was practically falling out of the bed that he drew away from her.
"Silly mare, you'll catch your death!" he scolded, pushing her back into the bed and tightly wrapping the blankets around her. However Fluttershy kept trying to catch him, trying to pull him against her, trying to kiss him! What had he done to deserve such affection? What had he done to deserve such an angel?
"Oh Discord," Fluttershy sobbed, although she was crying out of pure happiness at his news. "How...how..." she choked between sobs. "How can you even...even think that...that you possess no goodness...after this?" she smiled up at him through her tears.
He wanted to believe her, so desperately, but even now as his heart warmed at her words and at the happiness he could see in her tear filled eyes, he doubted himself. "It is all I can give you Fluttershy," he whispered, forcing himself to look away from his angel's face. "I wish I could do more...I wish I could give you your father-"
"You've given me hope, Discord," Fluttershy exclaimed, grasping his paw with her hoof in another attempt to draw him to her.
"Have I? If it is false hope, will you still look at me as you do now?" he asked, his eyes locking once more with hers. "Will you still love me?" this question was barely a whisper, and Discord was not sure he wanted to know the answer. She loved him. SHE LOVED HIM! But after everything...did he deserve it?
Fluttershy took his paw and placed it over her heart. Discord groaned softly as he felt the beat beneath his paw, and he stopped breathing as her other hoof reached up and touched his masked cheek. "I will always love you..." she vowed, before leaning up, and pressing her silken lips to the cold shield that hid his disfigurement from the world. "Always."
Discord could not stop the tears; they flowed freely from his eyes. The icy reserve that encased his heart had truly melted, and with a mighty cry, his arms enfolded her body and he crushed her against him. "Oh God...Oh God..." he groaned, his face buried within the curls of her hair. "God I love you...I love you..." he sobbed, his arms clutching her even tighter, rocking himself against her as he felt her soft tiny hooves thread through his black mane.
Fluttershy's heart leapt with joy at the sound of the words she longed to hear, the words she had dreamt about him saying to her for weeks, perhaps months now. Her love for him had been growing with each passing day, she wasn't sure when it had begun, but she knew without any doubt that this stallion, this wonderful stallion who had saved her life countless times, who had shared with her his deepest secrets, and who now, without her asking, was seeking out her father...she could not imagine her life with any other.
"Discord," she whimpered, gasping with happiness, but which he mistook as squeezing her too hard, for he instantly loosened his grip on her.
"Did I hurt you, angel?" he asked, his eyes filled with worry as he looked upon her lovely face.
But Fluttershy's smile told him it wasn't so. He had never seen her face glow more radiantly than this very morning. He had been wrong; when he saw her the night before, dressed in gold, he thought she couldn't be more beautiful. But now...adorned only in a Persian blanket and a loving glow...she had surpassed that gown ten times.
"Say it again," she whispered, her hooves clutching at the shoulders of his dressing gown as she drew him down atop her, her mouth open and her heart racing with excitement.
Discord smiled and felt the passion within his body rise again. "I love you, Fluttershy," he growled. "I love you more than music."
Fluttershy gave a cry of happiness before lifting her head off the pillow to meet his hungry mouth, which eagerly kissed her back, his tongue diving once more into her sweet depths while his paw and claw slid over her writhing body, eager once more to feel the softness of her skin and to lose himself in the damp heat between her thighs. Fluttershy pushed the dressing gown away from his shoulders, and Discord quickly shrugged it off before diving under the blankets with her, his body instantly entwining with hers, yearning once more to be encased in the silk of her body.
"Fluttershy..." he growled against her mouth, groaning as he felt her body arching up against his. "Oh God...God how I want you..."
"Yes," She wrapped her legs around his waist. "Please...please make love to me Discord...please...I need you so much..."
"Yes...yes...YES!" he cried out.
Others may think him a monster, and even he felt he looked like a demon from hell, but by becoming one with the mare he loved...nothing could be closer to heaven.
Together they soared through the pleasure their love had created; they soared past the world around them, beyond the opera house, beyond heaven, to a place where the sweetest music was played, where masks were not needed. As they trembled in the beautiful aftermath, they clung to one another, never wanting to let go, never wanting the dream to end.
Blueblood pushed through the doors of the police station with a stern and unpleasant look upon his handsome features.
Inspector Silverstar was surprised at the Prince's arrival, thinking the handsome noblecolt would be "recovering" from a night of New Year's festivities. "Monsieur!" he greeted warmly, although the warmth quickly faded by the deadly glare the Prince shot at him. "H-h-how may I...be of service?"
Blueblood's stare never left Silverstar's face. "Take me to Time Turner...now."
The coldness of Blueblood's voice chilled Silverstar's heart, but he did not stop to question the noblecolt, he quickly took his keys and led Blueblood to where Time Turner's cell lay. The old stallion was sleeping on his cot, the thin blanket wrapped tightly around his body. "Time Turner!" Silverstar bellowed, rattling his keys against the iron bars of the cell, causing the poor stallion to awake with a start. "The Prince is here to see you," he reported sternly.
"Thank you, Chief Inspector," Blueblood said. "Now, kindly leave us."
Silverstar glanced back and forth between the Prince and the old stallion, not sure if leaving would be a wise choice given the Prince's present state. However, he bowed his head and left the two to speak in private.
Time Turner was still getting over the shock of being woken up, but as soon as his old eyes focused on the handsome face of Blueblood, he felt a smile spread across his grizzled face. "Oh monsieur...you're back! Oh I pray that you bring good news!"
"I'm afraid not," Blueblood said through clipped lips. "I have seen your daughter, Monsieur Time Turner," Blueblood explained, ignoring the hope that lit the old stallion's face. "But it is as we feared...she is still in the clutches of the villainous Phantom."
Like that, Time Turner's face fell and he gripped the hard iron bars of his cell to keep him steady. "Oh God above have mercy," he whispered, crossing himself.
Blueblood rolled his eyes. "I believe she was trying to escape him," Blueblood quickly explained. "Last night there was a great masquerade ball at the Opera House. It was meant to be a trap to lure the Phantom, however..." he grimaced as he recalled the events of the previous night and the way the Phantom had humiliated him in front of all of Maris. "...I was not prepared to see your daughter there," he continued. "Like everyone else, she too was masked, a disguise so that she could escape his evil clutches, and escape she would, if I had been able to get her away before..." his jaw clenched at the memory of the Phantom pulling Fluttershy from him and dancing with her. "The cursed monster spotted her through the throng and carried her off."
"Oh my poor filly!" Time Turner wailed, one hoof clamping over his mouth in shock. "Oh curse that fiend! Oh my poor Fluttershy..." he whimpered, the tears already spilling down his cheeks.
"Please!" Blueblood snapped, slamming his hoof against the bars, the sound of Time Turner's dog-like whimpers fraying his last nerve. Time Turner jumped at the action, but Blueblood quickly composed himself. "Forgive me...I too am angered by this masked villain."
Time Turner nodded his head, however he moved away from the cell, his eyes warily watching the Prince. "I thank you for all that you have done and are doing, monsieur," he whispered.
Blueblood however was nowhere near ready to part ways yet. "Listen to me monsieur, and listen closely," he hissed, leaning close to the cell bars. "I need you to tell me everything you can about the Phantom from the brief time you were in his presence."
Time Turner stared up at the Prince with both shock and confusion. "I...I have already told you everything I can remember monsieur..."
"Tell me more!" Blueblood demanded. "Everything! I need details, Monsieur Time Turner, every last detail! What was it like when you went through the trap door? Where did he take you? Tell me about these 'minions' you say he has? What was he wearing? Tell me about his face-YES HIS FACE!" Blueblood practically roared when Time Turner shuddered at the memory. "I need to know everything, I can't make this clear enough!"
Time Turner stared up at the Prince, the noblecolt's eyes glowing with an odd madness in their blue depths. "F-f-forgive me," he stuttered before swallowing the uncomfortable lump in his throat. "But...how...how will this help?"
Blueblood straightened himself and smoothed his hooves over his coat. "You were right, Monsieur Time Turner; the Phantom of the Opera is no ghost, despite what he wants others to believe. Evil he may be, but when you strip away the demonic layers, he is what he is. And that, monsieur, is a great advantage to us."
"How?" Time Turner whispered.
Blueblood sighed and looked at the shadows that filled one corner of Time Turner's small prison cell. "When you know everything you can about your enemy, you gain an upper hoof. The Phantom of the Opera is a stallion...and all stallions have weaknesses." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Bliss | Bliss
"Past the point of no return...no backward glances," Discord softly sang in Fluttershy's ear, his lips teasing the delicate lobe. "The games we've played till now are at an end..."
Fluttershy whimpered as she felt his paw and claw play along her body, stroking the fires of desire once more. "Past all thought of 'if' or 'when'-no use resisting," he growled, before moving his weight over her body. "Abandon thought, and let the dream descend..." he growled.
"What raging fire shall flood the soul?" he groaned, his paw and claw gripping her to wrap around his body. "What rich desire unlocks its door? What sweet seduction lies before us...?" Fluttershy's head thrown back in pleasure as they continued to passionately make love.
"Fluttershy?"
The young mare jumped as her day dreams were interrupted by the sound of Rarity's voice.
Fluttershy's face was extremely flushed, her chest was rising and falling at a somewhat rapid pace, and she bit her lip with worry at the perspiration that one may notice on her brow. "My dear...are you all right?" Rarity asked, lifting one purple brow in speculation. "You do seem to be breathing rather hard..."
"I'm fine!" Fluttershy practically squeaked, quickly clearing her throat and giving Rarity a rather nervous smile. "I'm fine, thank you," she murmured, before looking away from the other mare's questioning eyes and focusing once more on the knitting in her lap.
Rarity's brow furrowed at Fluttershy's change in behavior. All week the mare had been behaving strangely. Ever since the night Fluttershy had gone above, things were different. Rarity could not forget how the two of them had returned, Fluttershy screaming at the Master while he carried her over his shoulder. She was worried for Fluttershy, not that she believed the Master would harm the mare, but she knew of Fluttershy's feelings for the Master, and worried that the poor mare's heart would be torn in two.
However, as the days passed since that night, Rarity did not see much of Fluttershy. And when she did come upon the mare, Fluttershy was always humming or smiling, her eyes looking far off in the distance. Something was on the mare's mind, and that same something was still there.
"So are you going to tell me?" Rarity asked, calmly threading her needle and eyeing Fluttershy closely.
Fluttershy practically jumped at the question. "T-t-tell?" she stuttered, before coughing, as if she were clearing her throat.
Rarity could not help but grin slightly. "Yes my dear, after all, we haven't had much of an opportunity to talk since...well, since New Year's Eve."
Fluttershy blushed slightly but continued to look down at her knitting. "Yes, I'm sorry...I've been very...busy, with...rehearsals."
Fluttershy inwardly groaned at herself. She was the worst liar in the world.
"Rehearsals?" Rarity repeated, the tone of her voice obvious and disbelieving, however she didn't press the issue further.
For a long while the two sat in a rather uncomfortable silence, at least uncomfortable for Fluttershy. She knew Rarity was examining her and trying to put the puzzle pieces together. A part of Fluttershy didn't know why she hadn't told the others. After all, it was no secret about her feelings for Discord; they all knew that she was head over heels in love with their master. However, Fluttershy could not help but grin. She rather liked having a secret that was hers and Discord's alone. She believed that the others would be happy for her, especially Rarity, however Fluttershy was unsure exactly how to announce it. Perhaps Discord should be the one to tell them? Perhaps he preferred that they not know? Fluttershy deeply blushed; there was no need to tell them the details, of course. She could only imagine the scolding she would receive from Shortround if knew what was going on in the Phantom's chamber.
"Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy glanced up from her knitting and felt her face flush again as she realized that, once more, she had not been listening. Rarity smiled tenderly, but did look somewhat concerned. "You do seem to be daydreaming more frequently than before," she said with a cluck of the tongue. "What is it that consumes your thoughts so?"
Fluttershy's red cheeks only turned redder. "I...w-well...that is..." what should she say? It was silly keeping this a secret, she should tell the others!
"Is it about that night?" Rarity further inquired, watching Fluttershy's face closely.
"W-w-w-what?" Fluttershy practically choked on the nervous lump in her throat.
"The night you and the Master returned! I must say...I've never seen him more infuriated," Rarity shivered. "What did he say? What happened?"
Fluttershy opened her mouth but no words came out. Should she tell her? Tell Rarity that both she and Discord had confessed their feelings for one another and that Discord was as much in love with her as she was with him? She wanted to shout to the world her love! And felt she could freely do so now that he knew and had not turned her away! But it didn't feel right to reveal everything without Discord present. After all, these people were his family long before they became a part of hers.
"Well?" Rarity asked, leaning close and looking into Fluttershy's eyes for answers. Fluttershy continued to stare back at the mare with flushed cheeks and an open mouth, unsure what to say or do-
"You're late."
Fluttershy's mouth closed and both she and Rarity turned their heads to see Discord standing before them, wrapped in shadow, his amber eyes fixed on Fluttershy's face.
"Your lesson began ten minutes ago."
Everything he did, even standing as still as he was and looking at her the way he was...everything he did was predatory. It was easy to see how the Phantom had received his reputation for being a menacing spirit. Yet for Fluttershy, she felt her blood boil and her heart race at the sensual sight of him. Lord, what he did to her.
Rarity was alarmed at Discord's sudden presence, and even more so at his cool crisp tone. "Oh Master, do not be hard on her, she was helping me as you see, with the mending-"
"She knows better than to be late for a music lesson," Discord cut in, his tone unchanging, his eyes never leaving Fluttershy's.
Rarity bit her lip and began to wonder if the two of them were still fighting since the night of the ball. However, as she glanced at Fluttershy and then back at Discord, she could have sworn lightning was passing between the two the way they gazed at one another. What was going on between them?
"Are you going to sit there and waste more of our time?" Discord sighed, folding his arms across his chest and cocking his head to one side, his gaze never faltering.
Fluttershy blushed deeply at his words, her eyes narrowing somewhat, but she rose to her feet and gently placed the mending down. "I'll return to help later, Rarity," she promised the mare, before turning towards Discord and walking passed him with her head held high. Discord could not help but give a wry grin at her behavior.
He turned to follow, but Rarity rushed towards him, her hoof grasping him. "Please be kind, Master," she pleaded. "She's a good mare, you know that." Indeed, he did. However the way he knew Fluttershy was far different than the way Rarity was referring. "One should never be punished for displaying kindness."
Discord cocked an eyebrow at her words. "Even when kindness interferes with punctuality?"
Rarity released his paw as if she had been burnt, however it was more from the cold shock of his words. "What has happened to you Master? You are so...different..." the mare was backing away, hugging the thin shawl she wore about her shoulders even tighter.
Discord sighed and knelt before his friend. "I am still the creature I have always been..." he lied. "And you know of my strictness when it comes to music," to this he was telling the truth. "But rest assured, I will be...kind...to Mademoiselle Fluttershy." He never realized how many meanings the word "kind" could have till now. Without another word, he rose to his full height and exited the chamber, vanishing into the shadows after Fluttershy.
Rarity stared at the Master's retreating figure, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Strange," she muttered to herself.
"What's strange?" Rainbow Dash barked, emerging from the other entrance to the chamber at the opposite end. Shortround and Derpy followed, the hunchback giggling as Carmen, the black kitten, mewed from her shoulder.
"Derpy you shouldn't tease her like that," Rarity scolded as she eyed the tiny ball of black fur scrambling to stay aloft on Derpy's shoulder.
"She l-l-l-likes it!" Derpy defended, scooping the kitten up and placing her on the ground, to which she immediately leapt at her leg, holding fast to the fabric of his trousers in an attempt to climb back onto her shoulder. "S-s-see?"
Rarity rolled her eyes. "I'm going to be mending more holes in your clothes than ever before."
Rainbow Dash, who had collapsed upon the heap of old mattresses that was her bed, asked again, "what's strange?"
Rarity sighed and returned to her mending. "Just...the Master's behavior, that's all."
Shortround's brow furrowed at her words. "I haven't noticed anything different...other than his renewed enthusiasm towards teaching."
Rarity shook her head. "No, it's more than that. Fluttershy's different too. She daydreams more..."
"She's a young mare," Shortrounf reasoned. "They are prone to daydream."
"How would you know?" Rainbow Dash groaned. "You grew up with monks! She's the first young mare you've ever been in close proximity with!"
Rarity cut in before the two of them could begin an argument. "The point is something has changed! Ever since the night they returned from the ball...something's different," she sighed, knowing she would not be able to concentrate on her sewing.
Derpy's head rose as she said this. "W-w-w-what's that do you think?"
Rarity glanced at Derpy and felt color invade her cheeks as her imagination began to run away from her. "I'll tell you when you're older."
Fluttershy's steps quickened as she heard Discord's swift stride come up from behind her. She could only imagine how he looked at that moment; she could feel his eyes burning through her, as well as hear his breathing. She wondered if he could hear the pounding of her heart as she quickened her pace even more.
Finally, they arrived at the music chamber, but Fluttershy did not stop till she reached the piano. Dare she turn around and look into those molten eyes? She could only imagine the darkness of his expression, which would freeze anyone from its coldness...yet for her, it made her blood run hotter. "I am ready maestro," Fluttershy softly murmured, however she let out a great gasp as she felt a very strong claw and paw grab her by the shoulders and swing her around.
"As am I," Discord growled, before crushing his mouth over hers in a hungry desperate kiss that spoke of intense longing and need.
"Discord..." she whimpered, her hooves tangling in his hair.
Discord could only groan, his desire would forever remain ravenous for this extraordinary mare.
He would have it no other way...
Blueblood angrily thumped his hoof along the wooden arm of the uncomfortable chair in which he was seated, his other hoof softly massaging the bridge of his nose, as if trying to call upon some ancient meditation to calm his irritated nerves.
He had once more returned to the police, only this time to see Chief Inspector Silverstar. Silverstar was seated across from him, looking rather befuddled. This expression had been on the inspector's face ever since Blueblood had mentioned the words "Phantom".
"So...you're telling me that...the old stallion's ravings are in fact...true?" Silverstar slowly asked, as if trying to piece together a giant puzzle.
"YES, DAMN IT!" Blueblood roared, the last string of his patience snapping. Silverstar practically fell backwards from his chair.
Blueblood bolted up, the hard discomfort of the chair becoming more than he could bear, and it took every ounce of will power to not pick the chair up and fling it across the room in rage. He pressed his hooves on the small table between himself and Silverstar and leaned across, a dark menacing shadow falling across his face. "The Phantom is real...I saw him with my own eyes on the night of the New Year's Eve masquerade. He was there...he is not a myth, he is not a specter, he is a flesh and blood stallion...and he lives somewhere in the Maris Opera House."
Silverstar swallowed the large nervous lump in his throat, his body shrinking back into his chair. "B-b-but, forgive me monsieur...b-b-but how can you be sure it was indeed the Phantom? It was a masquerade-"
"I KNOW WHAT IT BLOODY WAS!" Blueblood shouted, slamming his fist upon the table. "But that was NO guest, that...was...the PHANTOM!" he said through thin clipped lips. "His costume was red from head to toe, he wore a mask that looked like a skull...trust me...it was him."
Silverstar wasn't exactly sure how to respond. After all, he had always believed that the ghost stories about the Phantom of the Opera were simply that: ghost stories! Yet now, the Prince, the Maris Opera House's greatest patron, was telling him the stories were true! He was so confused; he was not sure what exactly to believe. The only thing he was sure about was that he did not wish to anger the Princefurther.
"Forgive me for asking, monsieur," Silverstar said very carefully. "But...why do you think the Phantom would show himself...now? I thought he relied upon notes to make his presence known...why suddenly reveal himself?"
Blueblood leaned away from the table, straightening his suit jacket and pulling a cigar from his the left breast pocket just inside. "I invited him," he simply said as he lit the cigar.
Silverstar's eyes widened with even more confusion. "I beg your pardon?"
Blueblood sighed and inhaled the smoke deeply. "The whole purpose of the masquerade was to bring him forth. Or, as I had suspected at the time, to reveal who the prankster was that was playing the part of 'the Phantom'," he explained. "Along with the countless notes the managers had been receiving, arrived a score...a score for a new opera."
Silverstar's brow furrowed. His wife was the opera lover, not him. However, he knew that his wife would have told him if something like a new opera was going to be performed. And as he recalled, he had received no such news. "It was believed that this score came from the Phantom then?" he asked, still being careful with his words.
"It WAS from the Phantom," Blueblood growled, exhaling a thick gray cloud of smoke in Silverstar's face. "It was the Phantom's opera! He wrote an opera that he demands to be performed before the end of the opera season," he took another long puff on the cigar. "So I set the trap, using the score as bait to draw him in. I had the managers arrange for a grand masquerade ball to take place on New Year's Eve, and at the stroke of midnight, an announcement would be made in regards to a change in the opera season," he exhaled the smoke, his eyes fixed on an invisible object, his voice sounding far off. "It seemed clever at the time...the perfect trap," he sighed and sat back down into the hard wooden chair across from Silverstar. "But the tables were turned; instead of him calling my bluff, I discovered that I, and everypony else, were calling his. He made the announcement himself about his own opera, and more or less...introduced himself to the whole world."
Silverstar was still coughing from the smoke that had been blown in his face. "So..." he paused to cough. "He told everypony that he was in fact...the Phantom?"
"NO!" Blueblood growled, turning his head away in disgust. "But he did announce that it was he that had written the opera; that the opera was going to be performed, and the rest of the season was canceled." Blueblood groaned at the memory of all the ponies he had been speaking with over the last few days; all were demanding to know what was going on and who the creature dressed as Red Death was. He had been so busy making excuses over the last few days that he had been unable to speak with Silverstar till now, practically a week after the incident.
Silverstar's brow was furrowed with confusion once more. "Monsieur, please know that I hold your opinion in highest regard," he hastily said. "I just struggle with understanding how you know that this masked stallion, who did not reveal himself as the Phantom...is in fact, the Phantom?"
Blueblood's first reaction was to shout at the stallion, to grab him by the collar of his suit and throw him against the wall before spitting the truth in his face.
But he restrained himself.
Instead, he gripped the end of the chair very tightly, while taking another long puff on the cigar, inhaling a large cloud of gray smoke before breathing it all out. "I am not a superstitious stallion...I do not fall prey to ghost stories, I do not believe in fate, and I certainly question everything I'm told, as well as everything I see," he said simply, his voice clear and even, but also low and menacing. "Since my father's time, I recall hearing tales about the so-called 'Phantom'...and I never believed them. Even after I began receiving notes signed 'O.G.', I still held to the understanding that it was someone's ill attempt at having fun. Trust me Silverstar, when I say that I am the last stallion in this world to ever believe that the Phantom of the Opera exists...and yet I have seen the damn beast with my own eyes!" he growled, throwing his cigar against the wall.
Silverstar cringed at the motion, unsure what to say or do. Calming the Prince was perhaps the best thing. "Alright, alright, this creature that you saw is the Phantom, the Phantom does exist," he reasoned. "But, forgive me," he cringed somewhat further. "I am unsure what exactly I can do..."
Blueblood's face paled; his eyes went wide with disbelief at what Silverstar had said. "You're the chief inspector! Rally your officers together and arrest him!"
"How?" Silverstar argued. "Where do I go? I know, I know, you said he lives in the opera house," he quickly cut in. "But where do I begin to look? That building is huge! I can't have my officers looking under every nook and cranny for the Phantom...why, he may not even live in the opera house! We don't truly know for sure, monsieur, and further more," he added before Blueblood could interrupt. "On what charges can I arrest him if I do find him?"
These words were almost too much. "What charges...? WHAT CHARGES?" he rose from his chair causing it to fall backward with a loud thud. "MURDER! THEFT! KIDNAPPING! ARE THOSE CHARGES WORTHY ENOUGH?" he pounded his hooves hard onto the table.
Silverstar raised his hooves, both as a sign to calm the Prince down, as well as to defend himself should the stallion become violent. "I don't know of such charges, monsieur! I mean, I have heard of...of accidents that have occurred over the years there, and the old stallion claims his daughter-"
"DAMN IT, THE PHANTOM IS REAL, HE LIVES IN THAT OPERA HOUSE, AND HE HAS FLUTTERSHY WITH HIM! I'VE SEEN HER, SHE WAS AT THE BALL! I DANCED WITH HER! AND HE TOOK HER!"
Silverstar lifted his hooves higher, praying he could bring reason back to this situation. "Monsieur, you told me this when you arrived! You told me that at the time you didn't know it was Time Turner's daughter until the Phantom took her! She was costumed, she wore a mask, and no one else has mentioned anything about the incident until now, and it's been a week since! It is not enough evidence for me to conduct a proper investigation, I am sorry!"
Blueblood was seething. He glared at the chief inspector from across the table, his eyes wild with green fire, his palms flat on the table, his jaw set and the muscles under his eyes twitching. "Mark my words, Silverstar," he hissed. "You will regret this day..." he pointed a hoof at the stallion, and then, in a great rage, grabbed the wooden table between the two of them and threw it hard against the wall, causing it to shatter into several large pieces. "REGRET IT!" he roared, before turning on his heel and stalking out.
Silverstar did not move; even after the Prince left, he remained in his chair, afraid to move.
Blueblood pushed passed anypony who was in his way and marched directly to his carriage. "Take me to the Opera House!" he barked at his driver.
The carriage driver cringed at the Prince's voice, knowing from the tone that things had not gone well. "Inspector Silverstar will not be able to help?" he carefully asked.
Blueblood simply sat back and stared ahead at an invisible target, the muscles under his eyes still twitching with anger. "Oh he'll help, I'll see to that," he vowed. "He just needs a little...persuasion...evidence to convince him to look into this matter."
The carriage driver shivered at his master's words; however it was what he said afterward that made his blood run cold. "If evidence is what he wants...I'll make sure that is what he gets...now DRIVE ON!" Blueblood roared, the carriage driver quickly scrambling to his seat and urging the horses at a quick pace to head to the Prince's destination.
Blueblood stared out the window of his carriage at the citizens of Maris; however his gaze was a thousand miles away. He was concocting a plan, a plan that would rid him of this Phantom once and for all, as well as return the beautiful Fluttershy to him once more.
He would have that Mare; she would be his in every sense of the word, she and the fortune that was going to be left to her once the Marquis Filthy Rich finally died. Nothing was going to stop him, he had never failed in a conquest before, and he wasn't going to start now.
Yes, he thought, a devious smile spreading across his hoofsome features. She would be his bride...and on their wedding day...he would have them dance on the Phantom's grave. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Alterations | Alterations
Fluttershy purred happily as she stretched her arms over her head, sighing as she remembered the delicious dream she had been having; she and Discord had made love, but prior to that, Discord had...well...he had...
Fluttershy couldn't help but blush deeply at the memory, her hoof covering the pleasured smile that spread across her face. Did she dare tell him of her dream? They had made love atop his piano! How would he react from hearing such thoughts? Would he be disgusted? She prayed he wouldn't, but she was unsure, after all, she had never imagined couples doing what...well, what they had done in her dream.
She sighed once more and stretched her arms out against the bed, and then froze as she her hooves made contact with the plush Persian pillows that adorned Discord's bed.
She was in Discord's bed!
Then...it had not been a dream?
Fluttershy felt her face grow a deeper shade of scarlet at the thought that, yes...that exquisite moment which she had thought was a dream...had actually happened!
Oh God, how could she face him? He must think her so wanton!
And then Fluttershy shook her head, feeling so foolish for her embarrassment. "Really Fluttershy, I'm sure the many times you have given yourself to him freely have long since proven that you are wanton," she muttered to herself. Still...the blush remained bright upon her cheeks.
A sweet haunting melody filled the chamber and Fluttershy lifted her head, hearing the warm rich tones of Discord's organ reverberate off the stone walls. She rose from the bed, taking Discord's dressing gown and wrapping it around her body, before emerging into the music chamber.
Discord was at his organ, dressed in a plain white linen shirt and black trousers. He was hunched over the instrument, playing several notes before pausing to pick up his pen and write a few words on a piece of parchment. She stood silently in the entryway and watched as his paw and claw skillfully danced across the organ keys with such grace. As he played, he would softly hum to the music, now and then breaking into song.
"...silently the senses...abandon their defenses..." he softly sang, nodding his head as if agreeing with somepony that yes, these words were suitable. The tune was so haunting and so beautiful; in fact, Fluttershy could have sworn she had heard it once before...
Fluttershy hugged the robe ever closer around her body, sighing as she watched her lover and Phantom perform his art perfectly. Her eyes softly began to drift shut as both the cords from the organ and DIscord's voice wove around her like a spider weaving its silken web.
"Slowly, gently,
night unfurls its splendor...
Grasp it, sense it-
tremulous and tender...
Turn your face away from the garish light of day-"
The music was having such a hypnotic effect on Fluttershy that she had completely lost her balance! In a last attempt to keep from falling, she grasped the velvet curtains that were drawn at the entryway which separated DIscord's bedchamber from his music chamber, but it was all in vain, for she was toppling over, squealing as the curtains came down with her.
Discord whirled around at the sound, completely startled by Fluttershy's presence. It was very rare that Discord was taken unawares. There on the floor, lay the velvet curtains with a rather large lump beneath them. The lump attempted to scramble to her feet as well as push the fabric off her, yet it seemed that Fluttershy only became tangled further. She was cursing at this point, a very unmarelike thing to do-which DIscord could not help but grin at.
"Perhaps you are the true 'Phantom', mademoiselle?" Discord asked, his grin spreading even further as he heard Fluttershy grumble at his words. "I confess you do look more like a ghost than I..." he teased, before approaching and kneeling before the curtain-covered lump. "Would you care for some assistance?"
Fluttershy finally managed to find an opening and freed her head, giving Discord a most filthy look. "I can manage fine on my own, thank you," she snapped, before attempting to stand which was proving to be more difficult than she had thought.
Discord bit back the laugh that threatened to escape and immediately helped her up; ignoring the dirty looks she kept sending his way. "Thank you," she muttered, to which he gave a rather elegant, yet teasing bow.
"My pleasure as always," he murmured, the teasing in his voice dying down as he took in the sight of her. Her hair was deliciously tangled, her cheeks had a fresh rosy hue, and she was wearing his dressing gown which only reminded him of the delectable body that lay underneath. The fire in him began to burn once more at the memory of her flesh...
Fluttershy's skin tingled at the way Discord looked at her. She blushed once more as the memory of their past lovemaking returned. "That music was beautiful," she squeaked, before quickly coughing to regain composure to her voice. It was hard to have composure when DIscord undressed her with his sensuous eyes.
He smiled at her compliment and took a step back, although it took every ounce of willpower he had. "Thank you," he whispered, before gathering the music together and placing it in a leather-bound folder.
Fluttershy's brow furrowed at the rather hasty way he was hiding the music. "Oh! No, I did not mean that you had to stop playing!" she implored, coming to his side to rest her hoof atop his paw. "Please, continue, I would love to hear more-"
"Hush," Discord whispered, moving his paw to cover her lips. "It is not ready yet, but all in good time," he smiled, before placing the folder on a pile of parchment that lay next to the organ. "Besides, we have much work to do, it can not be denied that you are rather...behind on your lessons..." he murmured silkily, his eyes burning into hers with a knowledge that only the two of them shared.
Fluttershy felt her face grow hot. Indeed, this whole week during their rehearsals they had not touched one single piece of music. They had been otherwise...occupied. "I do not recall you protesting to the use of our time," Fluttershy teased, despite the deep flush that covered her cheeks.
Discord could not help but grin, and reached out for her, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her down onto his lap. "I would be a fool if I did," he growled, his lips finding hers and kissing them softly. Fluttershy moaned against his mouth and opened hers to invite him in, but he reluctantly withdrew his lips much to the disappointment of both of them. "There is a matter of great importance that I wish to discuss with you," he sighed, his claw gently brushing a few stray waves from her face.
Fluttershy's eyes grew wide at the seriousness of his tone. Had something happened? Was it about her father? No, if something had happened to her father, she was sure Discord would have told her immediately. "Go on," she insisted, preparing herself for the news.
Discord gently reached over and squeezed her hoof before reaching for a piece of blank parchment. "I have been thinking about...what you said about Aminta..." he began, "about why she would not betray Don Juan."
Fluttershy remained silent as he spoke, but her heart was pounding wildly at what he could mean. He looked down at her gave a sad soft smile. "Perhaps you were right...perhaps I was writing about Pinkamena, that I was angry with her and wanted to release the pain she had caused me in some way..." he sighed. "But all that's changed now..." he looked up into Fluttershy's eyes, amazed at how deep, at how innocent, and at how blue they were. "Ever since I heard you sing so many nights ago, I knew that I had found my Aminta...but what I hadn't realized was that at the same time...I had discovered who Aminta really is..."
Fluttershy's breath caught in her throat as Discord lifted her hoof and softly brushed his odd-shapen lips across her knuckles. "Do you remember the first time we were on the roof?" he whispered, looking into her eyes, still amazed at the love he saw in them. Fluttershy smiled and quietly nodded her head. "I remember it very clearly," he whispered. "The words you said to me about how I could not judge all mares based solely upon Pinkamena's actions. That when you love a stallion, you would love him wholly and fully..." his paw moved to catch a tear that was slowly sliding down Fluttershy's cheek. "Indeed...you have proven to me that you are a most unique mare, Fluttershy," he murmured, his voice filled with awe.
Fluttershy smiled at his words but her eyes darted away, feeling somewhat unworthy of such praise. But she felt Discord's strong paw cup her chin and draw her tear filled gaze back to his. "Do not hide from me angel," he whispered, his paw moving to wipe away the tears that had escaped.
Fluttershy blushed and smiled at him, shaking her head and moving her hooves to wipe her face, feeling foolish for crying, but she couldn't help it; in all her life she had never imagined she would experience such passion, that her heart would burn for another the way it did for this creature. And this was a creature, who once upon a time she had despised, but that was all forgotten; now she couldn't imagine feeling anything for him other than love.
Discord smiled and thought how unusual it was that he was doing just that...smiling. Truly, not since this mare came into his life had he ever really smiled before. He wasn't sure what he had done to win God's favor or God's forgiveness, but he was eternally grateful for this mare to have trespassed into his world so many months ago.
"You tell me that you love me-"
"I do love you," Fluttershy declared, her hoof moving to touch his own that lay against her cheek. She moved her lips to his palm and placed the softest of kisses against it. Discord groaned inwardly at the gesture, his heart swelling with love and his body yearning to feel hers once more.
"I believe you," he assured, although he was still amazed. She could tell him every second of every day for the rest of his life that she loved him...he would never ceased to be amazed. "I don't understand why," he sighed, "but I believe you when you tell me that you love me...and..." he looked deeply into her eyes and felt his amazement double. "...I can see it in your eyes, the love you speak. This is why...I'm changing my opera."
Fluttershy's eyes widened at these words and her mouth fell open as if to speak, but no noise came out. Discord could not help but chuckle at the look on her face, his paw moving to her chin to close her mouth. "I didn't think it was going to be that surprising," he teased.
"Do you mean...when you say you're changing your opera...you mean...Aminta and Don Juan...they...they will..." she was too flabbergasted to finish, and a part of her needed to hear him say the words, to tell her that this was real.
"Yes," he assured, his heart warming at the smile that spread across her face from his words. "I am going to change the ending; your Aminta will return to Don Juan not as a mare who betrayed him...but as a mare who still loves him...despite the horrific scars that disfigure his body and soul," he murmured softly, his eyes moving away from hers. Fluttershy opened her mouth to protest Discord's meaning, but he quickly continued, not wishing to dwell on the topic. "This is where I need your help, my dear."
Fluttershy was taken aback by his words. "M-m-my help?"
"Yes," Discord said matter-of-factly, reluctantly removing her from his lap to sit beside him, and reaching for a clean piece of parchment and setting it before them. "The ending needs to change obviously, and I want your advice on how you best think it should be handled. Now I have a few ideas, such as a grave misunderstanding, or perhaps Aminta's hoofsome lover filling her head with lies to lure her away from Don Juan...actually I rather like that one, what do you think?"
Fluttershy stared at him, her mouth falling open once more, but no sound was coming out like the last time. DIscord cocked one black eyebrow at her expression. "I confess, that was not the ending I was thinking, but I'm sure there's some way we can work it in."
Fluttershy quickly closed her mouth and gave his shoulder a playful shove, which naturally had no effect on him whatsoever. "You're serious? You wish...you wish for me to help you with changing the ending of your opera?"
Discord shrugged his shoulders as if it were the most general question anyone should ever ask him. "Of course, you are my star as well as my muse, and I greatly value your opinion when it comes to music...after all, you did improve that one song of Aminta's, and you did promise me to never hold back your thoughts when it comes to music, did you not?"
"Well yes, but..." she stared at him, truly amazed at the change in this stallion. Oh he still knew how to be tall, dark, and brooding, but...something had changed within him, something that seemed to melt the icy exterior that was wrapped about him like the black silken cape he always wore. "You really want to change the ending...a-and you're not simply doing this because of me, a-a-are you?"
Discord smiled at her question but shook his head. "I would be lying to tell you that a part of me isn't doing it because of you...but this is my own decision Fluttershy...I see now what you had been saying all this time, and I agree...Aminta would never betray Don Juan."
Fluttershy couldn't help herself, she gave a happy cry and threw her arms around Discord's neck, surprising her Phantom tremendously, but a surprise at which he welcomed, wrapping his own strong arms around her and hugging her tightly to him. "No she would not DIscord," she happily cried, letting the joyful tears spring forth. "She loves him...just as much as I love you..." she sniffled, blushing and grinning all at once. "And I would be honored to help you in any way that I can."
Discord smiled at the beautiful mare before him, his paw tenderly running over her tear-stained cheeks. "Thank you," he murmured, his own voice filled with emotion. It was a "thank you" with many meanings...and DIscord meant every single one of them.
"So," he cleared his throat, gaining control of his emotions once more. "Do you have any suggestions for an ending?"
Fluttershy quickly wiped her eyes and regained composure of her emotions once more. "I think for the sake of the story that it would make the most sense to have a misunderstanding caused by Aminta's hoofsome young lover."
Discord nodded his head and dipped his pen into the inkwell beside the organ. "Do you have any more suggestions?" he inquired, while writing a few notes down on the parchment.
Fluttershy blushed as a knowing smile spread across her face. "Write them a song, Discord," she pleaded.
Discord lifted his head and cocked another eyebrow at her. "Don Juan and Aminta's young lover?"
"No!" Fluttershy groaned, once again shoving Discord's shoulders to which he grinned. "A song for Don Juan and Aminta! At the end of the opera, when they are together again...a...a love song," she whispered, blushing but smiling happily at her masked lover.
"Ever the romantic," he teased, but the smile he gave her told her that he liked her idea very much. "Very well then, I shall compose a song for them...but I will still need your assistance. Your knowledge of gothic romance can help with the lyrics."
Fluttershy grinned and eagerly sat up, her back straight like a good student, prepared to help her mentor and lover in any way that she could. "I am ready, maestro."
Discord smiled; he couldn't help but find her eagerness charming. "Then let us begin..."
"So, what you're telling me is...it was all a stunt of some sort?"
Flim simply nodded his head at the newspaperpony who sat across from him, a fake smile plastered to his face.
The newspaperpony seemed distraught by this news, his brow crinkled with confusion. "Madame Sapphire Shores has always been a reliable source when it comes to news in Marisian society and the arts. I just can't believe she'd be wrong about something like this..."
"Yes, well, it did seem rather...realistic, to say the least," Flim sighed, forever holding his smile. "But that is why we are one of the best opera companies in the world! We have the greatest actors."
"But I understand that the Prince was threatened-"
"Come now, monsieur, do you truly think we would allow any harm to come to our highest paying patron? The Prince is a business stallion, he saw this as an opportunity to help raise ticket sales."
The newspaperpony eyed Flim suspiciously before sighing and closing his briefcase. "Very well, I thank you, monsieur, for taking your time to answer my questions. I must say, no offense of course, but I am rather disappointed that this whole story of 'The Phantom' is nothing more than a publicity stunt. Stories of murder and gore always sell better. Ah well," he sighed before picking up his hat. "Good day then."
"Yes, good day," Flim replied, his smile never fading as he held the office door open for the newspaperpony.
Just at that moment, Flam came rushing in, his face red from whatever sprint he had just completed. "FLIM! GOOD GOD THIS IS THE WORST NEWS EVER! I'VE JUST RECEIVED ANOTHER NOTE, WAIT TILL YOU-"
"FLAM!" Flim practically shouted, grabbing hold of his partner's shoulders and giving the stallion a good hard shake. "I don't believe you've met Monsieur Flash Bulb, he's with the NEWSPAPER," Flim said very crisply and clearly.
Flam's face immediately paled as he slowly turned to acknowledge the stallion who was staring up at him with wide uneasy eyes. "Oh! Oh good afternoon, monsieur!" Flam greeted warmly, his face adopting a smile similar to Flim's. "I beg your pardon, I did not mean to intrude, I um...that is...well you see, it's just awful, I was coming to tell Flim that I have just received a note from one of our dear patrons who sadly has taken ill."
Flim's smile remained steadfast, while inside he wanted to throttle Flam for his ill attempt at lying.
The newspaperpony eyed Flam with great suspicion before asking, "Which patron may I ask?"
"I'm afraid we can not speak of such things, monsieur, I apologize!" Flim practically pushed the stallion out the office door. "We must keep the confidentiality of our patrons, you understand! Yes, well, my business partner and I have much...um..."
"Business!" Flam piped up.
"Yes! Business, we have much business to go over...to um...to prepare for our next...performance." Flim wanted to crawl into a hole and die right at that moment.
The newspaperpony tried to turn to ask them further questions. "Which opera? When shall it be performed?"
"You'll just have to buy a ticket to find out!" Flam declared, before pushing the stallion entirely out of the office and slamming the door before he could ask anything further.
Both managers collapsed into the nearest chairs at that point. "Goodness," Flim groaned, his hooves massaging his cheekbones which ached from smiling. "I never thought he'd leave...damn Madame Sapphire Shores and her big expensive mouth," he cursed.
"Madame Sapphire Shores sent him?" Flam asked, his hooves pointing in the direction where the newspaperpony had been standing.
Flim nodded his head. "Yes, and yesterday it was somepony who had heard news from Monsieur Arpeggio, and the day before that from Madame Pearl," he groaned as he recalled how many reporters had come in that week, each wanting to know whether the Opera House was truly canceling its season, and who the stallion dressed as Red Death was. And Flim was beginning to run out of excuses.
"What are we going to do, Flam?" the older manager groaned, his hooves rising to rub his throbbing temples. "It's amazing we've been able to keep the papers silent for this long! But with so many tattling witnesses, and with a company that's frightened beyond all belief to perform-"
"Goodness, I almost forgot," Flam gasped, before thrusting the note he had been waving about earlier into Flim's face. "This is the last straw Flim, by God, it's the last straw!"
The older manager frowned at the note and quickly removed it from Flam's shaking hooves. Truth be told, he did not want to open it. Instead, he wanted to thrust it into the fireplace and let it burn along with the other notes they had been receiving that week.
But he didn't dare; ever since Red Death's appearance at the ball, Flim was far less skeptical about the so-called Phantom of the Opera.
"I'm not going to like this, am I?" Flim groaned, opening the letter to read its horrid contents. Flam was already on his hooves, pacing the office like a caged animal. Flim's eyes, which had been narrow as he began reading the note, slowly widened with shock and horror at what was before him. He looked up at the younger manager, his mouth agape and his face pale.
"Yes," Flam groaned, shaking his head sadly. "Yes, that is what it is...a casting list!" he shouted out of sheer frustration, picking up a small vase filled with flowers and throwing it against the wall.
Flim jumped from the outburst and quickly rose to his feet. "Will you get a hold of yourself!" he hissed at his partner, praying that no one would come and inquire after the noise.
"GET A HOLD OF MYSELF? FLIM...HE'S MADE A BLOODY CASTING LIST! HE'S CHOSEN WHO WILL PLAY WHOM IN THIS...THIS...SHIT OF AN OPERA!"
Flim flinched at the words and without a second thought reached out and slapped the other stallion hard across the face. "Will you be quiet?" he hissed again. "The last thing we need is...well..." he glanced at the walls around them, "more reasons for him to send us into financial ruin!"
Flam had been stunned by Flim's reaction to his outburst; however it did allow him to gain some composure which had fleeted him for those moments. "What are we going to do? If she finds out about this...oh God almighty..." Flam groaned, quickly crossing himself. "We're ruined Flim! Truly, this Phantom will-no, is ruining us!"
Flim wanted to respond with a hopeful answer, with something that sounded both calm as well as brilliant, but he was at a complete loss. And this casting list was simply the tip of a very large and very destructive iceberg.
"I mean, do we dare comply? We have to do something! The company is beginning to talk!" Flam panicked. "You know it's only a matter of time before one of them goes to the newspapers! And what are we going to do about this opera? We can't go through with it!"
"Of course you can."
Flam stared at Flim, astounded that his partner would say such a thing. But he realized then that it was not Flim who spoke, and turned his head towards the door to where the voice had come.
"MONSIEUR!" both managers exclaimed, a fleeting sense of hope filling them as they gazed at the Prince who stood before them.
"Oh thank Goodness you are here!"
"We've been battling reporters all week!"
"-have no idea what to tell the company-"
"-Fleur is going out of her mind!"
Blueblood sighed and raised his hooves to silence both managers. They instantly complied. "Gentlecolts, indeed we have much to discuss...but this is hardly..." he too glanced around the room suspiciously, "...the proper place for such a conversation. Come."
The two stallions stared at the retreating figure of the Prince before quickly grabbing their coats and hats and immediately following their patron. Blueblood led them to his carriage and had the driver take them to his club. As it was the middle of the day, the club that Blueblood attended was practically empty, save for a few gentlecolts. It was the perfect place to discuss business matters...and far away from invisible eyes and ears.
Blueblood found a quiet table away from any other prying eyes, ordered a bottle of champagne, and immediately lit a cigar. "Well, let's get to it," he muttered, deeply inhaling the cigar's smoky calmness. The managers glanced at one another and then both of them, once again, burst out at the same time with their problems.
"-we've been receiving notes all week!"
"-company is in an uproar-"
"-running out of excuses-"
"GENTLECOLTS!" Blueblood bellowed, before immediately lowering his voice. "One at a time!" he hissed. "I too have been dealing with questions all week. Like you, I too have been using whatever excuse I can think of...and like you, I'm beginning to run out."
Flam practically whimpered. "If you can't help us, monsieur, who can?"
"Calm yourself!" both Blueblood and Flim hissed, especially as their champagne had just arrived. The bottle was uncorked and the glasses were poured, but no one moved to take a drink. Blueblood took a long puff on his cigar and blew the smoke into the air over the managers' heads. He eyed them both, and feeling that Flam had at last gotten a hold of his nerves, quietly asked, "you said you received notes?"
Both stallions shivered and groaned in agony at the question. "Yes," Flim muttered. "The day after the ball, we received a note filled with instructions for how to direct his opera! Said he would be 'watching in from time to time' to make sure we did things the way he wanted!"
"He's sent threats too!" Flam hissed. "Threats that would make your blood run cold!"
Blueblood remained calm. "For example?"
"Scandals! Thievery! Even..." his voice was barely above a whisper, "murder."
Blueblood cocked an eyebrow at this. So the Phantom was still using the same playing card, still threatening lives should his demands not be met? Perfect. It all played into Blueblood's hooves even more. To get Silverstar's attention, he needed a murder or some sort of tragedy to befall somepony at the opera house...someone that could potentially cause great scandal. He looked at Flam and wondered if Silverstar would investigate should the younger manager reach an untimely end.
"Monsieur?" Flam asked, noticing the distant look in the Prince's eyes. "Are you all right?"
"I'm fine," Blueblood muttered, waking from his trance. "What other notes have you received?"
Flim sighed and began counting them off. "The conductor, Madam Octavia, received her own copy of the score, along with a note that demanded the replacement of the third trombone, not to mention an extra bassoon," he groaned.
"Notes on costume design, set decoration, lighting, props-" Flam added.
"Not to mention the note about sacking half of the chorus," Flim grumbled.
Flam's eyes widened with realization. "OH! Madame Luna even received a note!"
Blueblood's eyebrows rose at this news. "Really? And did she too receive threats?"
Flam's face fell at that. "Well...no, simply that she needed to instruct the dancers in Spanish dances."
"Interesting," Blueblood muttered. Despite what she said, Blueblood knew deep in his bones that Madame Luna knew more about the Phantom than she was letting on. Once he thought the mare to be the hoof that penned the infamous notes; now he believed her to be an accomplice to the caped menace that haunted the opera house. "And Fleur de Lis?" he inquired.
Both stallions looked at one another and groaned painfully. "She is threatening to leave...again," Andre muttered.
"And she demands that the season continues, as she has her heart set on playing the Countess in 'Il Muto'," Flim grumbled. "She glanced at the score for 'Don Juan' and called it garbage. She won't sing it, she doesn't care if we lose every penny!"
"Well, that won't be a problem now, will it?" Flam muttered with great sarcasm.
Blueblood's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
Flam sighed and without another word, simply handed the Prince the letter he had received earlier that day. Blueblood took the note and began reading, his brow furrowing all the more. "What is this?"
"A casting list," Flim explained. "He's gone ahead and chosen the cast for his opera."
Blueblood studied the list carefully. "Fancypants will play Don Juan, hardly a surprise at that...but the role of Aminta, the lead female...it's left blank."
Both managers groaned once more, and Flam took hold of his champagne glass and downed the contents in one gulp. "Read on monsieur, you'll see..."
Blueblood cocked another eyebrow. "Surely Fleur de Lis would be playing the lead-"
"Read on," both managers instructed.
Blueblood sighed and did just that, reading down the cast list, many of the names meaning nothing to him as they were all members of the chorus, however his eyes stopped as one name filled his vision. "Fleur de Lis is cast as...Gypsy #2?" he practically choked.
"GYPSY #2!" both managers wailed in agony.
"It's a role of such insignificance that even chorus nobodies are casted higher!" Flam groaned. "You know how she can be monsieur, when she finds out-"
"She won't find out!" Flim hissed at his partner. "We're not going to do this...this filth!"
Blueblood, now fully recovered from the shock of the casting, calmly exhaled a large gray cloud from his lips. "Of course you are, don't be a fool Flim."
Flim froze as if he had been stabbed through the heart. "I...I b-b-beg your pardon, monsieur?"
Blueblood handed the note back to Flam who was looking just as stunned. "You heard the Phantom's orders...we're performing this opera and canceling the rest of the season. Why look so surprised? I told you after the ball that we were going along with his plan."
Now both managers were staring at the Prince with wide eyes and even wider mouths. True, they both remembered how Blueblood had informed them the night of the masquerade that they would perform the Phantom's opera, however they had simply believed he was still suffering from the severe blow on the head the Phantom had given him.
They were at a complete loss for words, just the way BLueblood preferred them. "I know I have long been the cynic of our business venture," he sighed, taking a sip of his champagne. "But I will admit when I'm wrong...and I was wrong about the Phantom; well, partially wrong. After all, he is not a ghost, that much..." he recalled how the villain had gripped him by the neck and lifted him off the ground, "...we can be certain," he muttered.
Flim finally closed his mouth and attempted to make sense of this new situation. "Am I to understand then...that you actually WANT us to...to put on this production?"
Blueblood smiled and took another deep puff from his cigar. "Exactly."
Flim blinked several times before speaking again. "I beg your pardon monsieur, but...ARE YOU MAD?"
Flam reached out and slapped Flim hard across the face, something he had been wanting to do for some time. Flim sat back, stunned by the gesture as well as Blueblood's revelation that they would be performing Don Juan Triumphant.
"Thank you, Flam," Blueblood muttered. "And no, Flim, allow me to explain and you will see how wise a decision this is." Content that he had both managers full attention, he continued. "So it appears our Phantom fellow is real. Therefore, so are his threats. If there is a story of a murder that he has committed, we can only assume it is true."
"A mad stallion...a mad stallion living somewhere in our opera house!" Flam hissed.
Flim turned to the Prince. "Surely the police will-"
"No," Blueblood coldly replied.
Both stallions stared at Blueblood with absolute horror. "The police won't help?"
Blueblood shook his head, still fuming over the conversation he had had with Silverstar. "They need more proof than stories or letters to conduct a proper investigation. We are completely on our own, gentlecolts," he sighed, taking another sip of his champagne.
"Good God," Flam whispered. "He's right Flim...we have no choice! We'll have to perform the opera if we wish to avoid...any sort of scandal!"
Flim shook off Flam's clinging hooves that were gripping his arm. "Monsieur," he said turning his attention back to Blueblood. "I have looked over the opera...and it's ludicrous! Complete lunacy! Why, even Madam Octavia says it's impossible to conduct, the cords go every which way, the music is off key-"
"Sounds rather...modern," Blueblood sighed, exhaling the smoke from his cigar.
"Exactly! Extremely modern, monsieur! The reviews will crucify us!"
Blueblood rolled his eyes at Flim's hysterics. "Since when do you care about reviews? It's the money that matters! The profit we make from tickets, not reviews! Those reviews would matter more to the composure, and if he doesn't like them, let him haunt the bloody newspaper."
Flam bit his lip at the mention of tickets. "What will our patrons think, monsieur? If we do this opera and cancel the rest of the season, they'll surely demand their money back!"
Blueblood rolled his eyes again. "Obviously you both know nothing about the aristocracy or the delightful selling power of social gossip," he grinned. "Say nothing to the papers, say nothing to your patrons. Should anypony approach you about what is going on at the opera house, simply reply that 'you are hard at work for the next production', and nothing more. Rumors will begin to fly of course, and instead of ticket sales dropping...they will rise. People will want to know what is going on! Why is nothing being said? And then, when the time is right, make your announcement that you will be premiering a brand new opera! Dazzle them by letting them think they are an honored group to see this first hoof before anyone else. Say nothing about Fleur de Lis, in fact, say nothing at all about it. Don't even mention the Phantom! Simply let rumors be what they want to be. Those who insist on remembering the wretched events from the masquerade may continue to do so, while others will most likely have forgotten by that point. But trust me, my dear managers...we will not lose one penny if we are smart."
The Prince's words were somewhat reassuring; after all, they could see the logic behind them. However, there was still one more serious matter to discuss. "What of Fleur de Lis?" Flim whispered, dreading having to say the mare's name at all.
Blueblood was drinking his champagne when Flim mentioned her name. He quickly downed the remaining contents of his glass. "Leave her to me," he sighed, although it was more of an irritated groan.
"But...what about this...this 'Aminta'?" Flam asked. He opened the letter again and pointed to a note that the Phantom had written in the corner. "Says here that he will cast her part in due time, that we should not worry about it. Fleur de Lis will definitely take notice when we have no female lead at rehearsals!"
Blueblood's brow furrowed at the side note he had not seen earlier. Why would the blasted Phantom take so much time to cast everyone but the role of Aminta? What did he mean by waiting?
...and then it slowly occurred to him.
"Fluttershy," he whispered.
"Fluttershy?" Flim asked. "Wasn't she Fleur's costume mare?" he asked, looking to Flam for an answer.
"Yes...I remember her now, the daughter of our elusive violinist," the younger manager muttered. "Fleur de Lis had her fired, and we never saw the old stallion again. What made you think of her, monsieur?" Flam asked Blueblood.
Blueblood crumpled the note, an evil jealous glare shadowing his eyes. "He has her...he intends to cast her in the role of Aminta."
"What?" both managers gasped. "Surely you're mistaken, why...why would the Phantom have Mademoiselle Fluttershy?"
Blueblood grabbed the champagne bottle and quickly refilled his glass. "She was at the masquerade. I danced with her. It all adds up. After Fleur de Lis fired her, she went missing! According to the mare who rented the apartment out to the mare and her father, neither of them was seen again since the morning of the opening gala! Don't you see? She's been in the Phantom's clutches all this time!"
The managers paled at this news, however they did find it rather hard to swallow. "You say you danced with her?" Flim inquired.
Blueblood gulped down the contents of his glass. "Yes," he rasped. "The mare in the golden gown...that was her. She was attempting to escape, I'm sure of it. But the bastard..." he growled. "He stopped us and took her!"
"My God," Flam gasped. "That poor mare! Who knows what horrors she's had to put up with all this time!"
Flim was still skeptical. "What makes you think the Phantom intends for Mademoiselle Fluttershy to play the part? Can the mare even sing?"
Blueblood did not know the answer to that question, but something deep within his soul told him that this was the Phantom's true intention. "It's her...I know it's her, why else would he have kept her alive all this time other than to use her for some diabolical scheme?"
Both managers shivered at the thought of what the young mare must have gone-must be going through, in the depths of the opera house as a prisoner of the Phantom. However, Flim found himself still confused by the whole idea. "Why do you think she went with him so willingly then?"
Blueblood's head snapped up. "What?"
"W-w-well," Flim swallowed. "Of course she was trying to escape, as you said, by disguising herself at the ball...but...why then, did she go so willingly with him when he took her from your side?"
"SHE DID NOT GO WILLINGLY WITH HIM!" Blueblood roared, rising to his hooves and caring not for who looked at them. "SHE HAD NO CHOICE OF COURSE! SHE HAD BEEN CAUGHT, SHE HAD TO GO WITH HIM, WHAT MAKES YOU THINK SHE WENT WILLINGLY? WHAT MAKES YOU THINK SHE'D LEAVE WITH HIM INSTEAD OF ME IF SHE HAD THE CHOICE?"
Both stallions had shrunk back in their chairs by the force of the Prince's roar. "I'm sorry, monsieur! I truly did not mean to offend!" Flim whimpered like a frightened dog. "Of course, you're right, she had no choice, she had to go with him, and she was trying to escape but could not."
Blueblood looked satisfied by this acknowledgement, and quickly calmed himself, smoothing the wrinkles out of his jacket from the outburst. "Of course," he replied rather calmly, although his whole body was shaking from the rage that still brewed within him. "If my suspicions are correct, then Mademoiselle Fluttershy will return to us...however it won't be for some time, no doubt she will not be released till close to opening night."
"How...how can we rehearse without a leading female?" Flam carefully asked, not wanting to evoke the Prince's wrath.
Blueblood shrugged his shoulders. "That is not my concern," he took another gulp of champagne. "But we do this...perform his opera, follow his instructions to the letter, and act as if his wrath truly frightens us-"
Both managers exchanged glances with one another. They would not have to act very hard.
"-then his guard will be down, and that is when we will STRIKE!" he hissed, pounding his hoof down upon the table, causing the glasses to shake.
The managers couldn't help but jump at this motion. "Go on..." Flim whispered.
"I'll think of some way to get the police there," he muttered. "But it is without a doubt, he will be there to see his so-called masterpiece performed."
"Yes!" Flam exclaimed. "And we'll be certain the doors are barred!"
"And certain our stallions are armed!" Flim added.
"Indeed!" Blueblood proclaimed. "And when the curtain falls...so will he!"
"Brilliant, monsieur, brilliant!" both stallions exclaimed, lifting their glasses to toast their patron. Blueblood couldn't help but grin at their gesture, a haughty smile spreading across his hoofsome face.
"Um...begging your pardon, monsieur," a waiter interrupted, standing beside their table, holding a tray in one hoof. Blueblood frowned at the stallion, but his frown deepened even further as his gaze fell upon the note that lay on the tray. "This just arrived for you," the waiter explained, offering the note to the Prince.
Blueblood took the note very reluctantly and felt his blood turn to ice at the familiar red skull seal that adorned the parchment. Without another word or glance at his managers, he ripped the seal open and began to read the letter at once.
My dear Prince,
I am pleased to hear that you have finically agreed to see my opera performed. It pleases me to know that an esteemed patron of my opera house is so eager to provide support to the arts.
The letter was dripping with sarcasm.
Since you are showing such eagerness to seeing this production take flight, then no doubt you will work hard to see my needs met. It would be of a great service that you stay clear of the young ladies of the company, both dancers and singers (this of course excludes La Fleur de Lis, as she is no mare but rather an over-zealous cow), as they have much work to accomplish to be ready for the opening night. In fact, it would probably be for the best that you stay away from the opera house entirely. Let somepony who knows something about music handle the production; a patron's job is simply to provide financial support, therefore your place is in an office, not the arts. Oh, and one more thing...
Blueblood's eyes were tiny green slits as he read the last lines of the letter.
Since you are going out of your way to see my needs met, then you will understand that I am in need of a box for the opening night. I must confess, I do rather enjoy the view from your seat, Box Five...so thank you for being so understanding in this matter.
Respectfully, O.G.
That was the last straw.
"What did it say, monsieur?" Flam asked, biting his lip and praying that the Prince would not explode, although he did look ready to commit murder.
"YOU!" BLueblood bellowed to the waiter who had delivered the letter. "Who gave this to you?"
The waiter was startled. "I...I don't know, monsieur, the doorpony gave it to me, said a black carriage delivered it, but that's all I know, I swear."
"A black carriage?" Flim whispered. "Good God, it couldn't be, could it?"
"Who else could it be!" Flam gasped. "He must have heard us! He must have been watching us! How else could he have sent that note here?"
"Flam, I swear if you do not get a hold of yourself..." Blueblood muttered in a most deadly tone. The younger manager quickly shut his mouth. "Fine," Blueblood muttered through clipped lips. "I'll play his game, I'll let him believe he has the upper hoof over this situation and that he can get away with ordering us about," he grasped his champagne glass tightly and downed its contents in a matter of seconds. "But in the end...the disaster will be his." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Concern | Concern
Discord laid on his back, panting deeply, as the beauty that had been sitting above him collapsed against his chest, slick with perspiration from their lovemaking. God, he would never tire of this or cease to be amazed by this incredible mare.
Fluttershy purred happily as she felt Discord's warm arms entwine around her, his paw and claw running lazy circles across her naked back. This was pure heaven, truly. All her life, she had never imagined that the creature she would give her heart to, and who would love her in return, would resemble one of the romantic figures of her dark gothic novels. Never had she envisioned the hero of her dreams to be a creature in a mask, casting his seductive spells over her with the power of his voice. And never...never had she imagined she would respond so eagerly to his passion.
Discord gazed at her and felt himself amazed once more, only now his heart swelled as he saw the love she had for him reflecting in the beautiful blue pools of her eyes. His paw tenderly brushed a few mussed waves from her face, and he held his breath as he took in her beauty, her love, and her happiness. Was it possible that he, an ugly, horrifying, murdering monster, could cause such happiness, could inspire such love and passion? Never in his whole life had he believed such love, such beauty, could be his. And yet here she was, in his bed, in his arms, gazing at him with longing and desire. What was he going to do? How could he ever let her go?
"Discord?" Fluttershy whispered, her voice drawing his attention back once more. One of her small hooves was gently caressing the unmasked side of his face, and Discord could not help but lean into the touch.
"You make it impossible to stay focused my dear," he sighed, his voice teasing as his eyes caught hers once more.
Fluttershy smiled at his words, but a part of her could not help but feel a little worried. She could tell something had bothered him in that faraway gaze he had just had. It was a worry that she too had been secretly harboring...
"As much as I would love to spend the whole day like this...I feel it would be wise that we resume our lessons," he sighed, slowly rising from the bed and reaching for his dressing gown.
Fluttershy blushed and bit her lip as she felt Discord's body slip away from hers. She grasped the edges of the Persian blankets that adorned the bed and wrapped them tightly around her naked body, although not even the soft warmth of the blankets could entirely hold off the chill she was suddenly feeling. "Discord...is...is everything alright?" she asked, her voice soft, as if she could keep the worry out of it by speaking softly.
Discord glanced at her, his brow furrowed by her question. "Why do you ask?"
Fluttershy looked down at her lap, a part of her dreading to ask this question. "I understand the managers are agreeing to perform the opera..."
"Yes,"Discord answered shortly, still curious as to what was bothering her. "They have finally seen reason and must follow through with my instructions in order to avoid any sort of scandal with their ticket-holders."
Fluttershy looked up, worry etched across her face. "Does it not seem strange to you that they simply agreed? They have been fighting it for so long, and then suddenly, they are in agreement?"
"What are you trying to say Fluttershy?" Discord asked, his eyes narrowing. He could not help it that his tone sounded somewhat cold. The very thing he did not want to comprehend was upon him, however he had worked over half of his life on this opera. "My dear," he sighed, softening his tone, and coming towards the bed and sitting opposite of her. "Why don't you just say what's in your heart...you have never held back from me before, why is now so hard to speak your mind?
Fluttershy looked into his eyes and felt a smile slowly spread across her face. However it was a smile that contained sorrow. "I worry for you Discord...I worry that these stallions are plotting something."
Discord couldn't help but chuckle somewhat at her words. "Flim and Flam are too stupid to plot my demise, if that is what's bothering you."
Fluttershy didn't like it when Discord laughed at her worry for him, or when he threw caution to the wind. "Do not be so arrogant! You have said so yourself, the Prince hates you! And I fear that after you embarrassed him at the masquerade, he will stop at nothing to seek his revenge!"
Discord frowned at these words. "Your faith in me, my dear, is overwhelming," he muttered with pure sarcasm, rising from the bed and walking away.
Fluttershy groaned and quickly rose, clasping the blankets to her body. "I do not lack faith in you! I know you are clever, far cleverer than he, but I do not think it is so wise to simply disregard carefulness! He is the sort of person who will behave irrationally over the most irrational things, surely you realize that!"
Discord stood in the entryway between his bedchamber and the music chamber, his head turned just slightly to look over his shoulder. "He is the one who should be taking care," he whispered. "All of them...but especially him. He was lucky that I chose to spare him the night of the ball. That public display of embarrassment was a warning; if he is wise, he will stay away from the opera house."
Fluttershy stood just behind Discord, her small hooves reaching out to his arm. "But that is my worry, he is not wise Discord, how could he be? No pony is wise when vengeance clouds the brain."
His eyes narrowed further at these words and he moved away from her into the music chamber. "We've wasted far too much time," he barked, seating himself at the piano. "There is still much to do and now we have limited time to do it. Come, we shall begin with Act II," he ordered, his experienced paw and claw already flying across the piano.
Fluttershy, however, stood exactly where she was, not moving into the music chamber, her face still etched with worry. Discord glanced up at the entryway, his annoyance spreading like wildfire. "Fluttershy, I'm not in the mood to play games, so come-"
"What happens after Don Juan, Discord?"
Her question practically stopped his breathing. He had to shake his head somewhat to regain consciousness. "W-w-what?"
"What happens after Don Juan Triumphant is performed?" she asked again, her eyes locked with his. "Or before that, even. What happens when the time comes that...that I need to go above to rehearse?"
It was a question Discord had been dreading to face for weeks. No, more than that. Before they both gave way to the passion that was crashing inside them, before he first felt her lips touch his, perhaps before they began to grow as friends...Discord had been dreading this question, and purposefully had been avoiding even the mere thought of it. It seemed so long ago that he had made that pact with Fluttershy, the deal to release her should she allow him to train her voice and star in his opera. Now his opera was going to be performed! And yet, for the first time in his life, Discord was regretting it...
"When the time is right, you will be ready to rehearse with them and perform...but that time is not now," Discord said simply, brushing the worries under the rug once more.
Fluttershy's eyes filled with sadness at these words. She did not know what she wanted to hear, but simply denying her question was certainly not what she wanted. She had not forgotten their bargain, however at the time they made it, Fluttershy longed for her freedom! Now...now things were so much more complicated. She loved her father, and dearly missed him. She worried about him and prayed that wherever he was, he was all right. But Discord...she had fallen in love with her captor, with the infamous Phantom himself! And the thought of having to leave him and this paradise they had created beneath the earth seemed too much to bear...
"I...I don't feel very well,Discord..." she whispered, her hoof rising to her head and softly touching her face. She felt hot and flushed, and things were beginning to spin. "I'm sorry...I...I don't think I will be able to sing...f-f-forgive me..."
Discord bolted to his feet when he noticed Fluttershy's eyes roll back, and flew to her side just in time to catch her as she crumpled to the floor.
She heard singing. A rich tender voice in a distance, soothing her with sweet words, words to a song she had never heard before, and yet...she knew it. It was a song she had never heard with her ears, but one her heart seemed to know, one that filled her dreams. An enchanting song filled with longing, desire, and the promise of everlasting love.
"You alone can make my song take flight..."
Fluttershy's eyes fluttered open then, the blurred image of a face looming close to hers, a face that was only half revealed, while the other half hid beneath a white mask. For some, it would be a startling image to awake to, but for Fluttershy, it was an image that made her heart soar.
"Welcome back," Discord softly whispered, a tender smile spreading across his face, however it was also etched with sadness. "How are you feeling?"
Fluttershy looked around, her eyes filled with confusion. She remembered very little of what had happened, but she was sure she had not been in her chamber. Yet here she was, lying in her bed, the lace curtains drawn around them and the warm fire glowing brightly in her fireplace. She looked up at Discord again, who was lying next to her, although he was propped up on his elbow, his paw tenderly running over her right cheek as he gazed down at her. "How...what...?" she asked, trying to sit up, but her head still felt heavy.
"Shhh..." he whispered. "It's alright, just rest yourself." It was amazing at how tender he could be, she thought. She looked up at him again and saw the love in his eyes, as well as the worry. Gone was the ferocious mad stallion that filled the stories of the dancers, gone was the musical task-master that demanded perfection; the creature she loved lay next to her, a creature who by no means was a monster, despite his short temper, odd body and scarred face. For this was a creature that the stories did not know, a creature who showed tenderness, concern, and compassion; a creature who was indeed capable of love.
"I...I don't remember much," she confessed, feeling foolish for her lack of memory.
Discord smiled softly and bent forward to kiss her forehead. "You fainted and gave me quite a scare," Discord murmured against her skin. True, it had been most frightening; the only other time he recalled Fluttershy fainting was when he took her prisoner so long ago. Since then, she had proven to him many times that she was strong, independent, and not the sort of mare who gave way to fainting spells. Mares of high fashion did it all the time, he had seen it many times throughout his years at the opera, but normally they were faking or had very weak nerves. Not his Fluttershy, she was neither of those things. But when he saw her crumple before him then, it felt as if someone had buried a knife deep into his chest. If he had any doubts before, they had all been dashed in that moment.
He could not live without her.
Yes, he had made the promises once upon a time to release her, should she allow him to teach her and perform in his opera, but that was before he knew it was possible to feel love...and to be loved in return. Now, the thing he had been working so hard on for years was becoming something he was dreading, and Fluttershy's questions increased that dread.
Aminta was a part she was born to play, he could not imagine another playing it, nor did he want to. He had written the opera prior to knowing Fluttershy, but she had created Aminta, the true Aminta.
But the time would come when she would need to go above and rehearse the opera with the rest of the cast. And then what? Ponies would wonder where she had been all this time, and they would speculate as to why he, the Phantom of the Opera, chose her to play the part. They would be curious as to know how she learned to sing so beautifully, and they would want to know why the Phantom favored her to play the leading female role in his opera. When he wrote his notes he thought nothing of it, he didn't care as to what they thought so long as they did their jobs...but now he realized he was putting his beloved Fluttershy at risk. They would question her; perhaps threaten her if she did not tell them about the Phantom.
Discord's blood grew cold at the thought of his beautiful Fluttershy being threatened by the likes of the Prince. He meant what he said at the masquerade ball; if the Prince ever laid a hoof on her, he would kill him, long and slowly.
And what would happen after the opera had been performed? Discord could not imagine now ever saying goodbye forever to Fluttershy. And then there was the promise he had made to find her father. Discord felt ashamed, for while he had Shortround and Rainbow Dash exploring the streets of Maris long after darkness filled the city, he had not been doing his part with searching for the old stallion. When he was not with Fluttershy, Discord spent all his time writing notes and inspecting the opera house, making sure things were going as he had instructed. But now, as he looked at Fluttershy's lovely face, he felt deep shame for the pain he had caused her and for raising her hopes. Shortround and Rainbow Dash were extremely limited in how far they could search, but Discord could do more, much more; despite his face, he at least was gifted without having any other physical disfigurements.
"Discord?"
He gasped as he was brought out of his thoughts by the soft touch of her small hoof on his cheek. His amber eyes met hers, beautiful and blue, and he felt his heart swell with both longing and despair. He could not let her go, despite the promises he had made. And yet, he could never cage her either; he knew what it was like to be in a cage, and he could never inflict that upon her and risk twisting her love for him into resentment.
"Discord, what's wrong?" she whispered, sitting up now, her eyes lit with concern.
He gazed into her eyes and forced a smile, an idea instantly coming to him. "Nothing that a hot bath cannot fix."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed with confusion. "A hot bath? You have a bathing tub?"
Discord smiled and shook his head. "No, I actually have something better, another secret of my lair that I will now share with you."
Before Fluttershy could ask what he meant, he scooped her up and proceeded to carry her out of the chamber. "W-w-w-where are we going?" Fluttershy asked, shivering somewhat as the cold air from the tunnels hit her skin. She realized then, that she was still wrapped in the blanket from Discord's bed.
He smiled down at her and simply whispered, "you'll see."
Fluttershy still had many questions, however the warmth and safety that she was feeling from Discord's arms was extremely intoxicating, almost as intoxicating as his voice. She found her head falling to his shoulder, and her arms twined around his neck as he carried her through dark passages she was unfamiliar with. For now, she would lay her questions aside, and simply focus on the moment she had with this creature. Yes, that would be for the best...
Discord carried her through cold tunnels that were so dark that even he, whose night vision was far advanced from a mere stallion's, had to squint his eyes in order to see where he was going. "We are almost there," he assured her as he felt her shiver slightly. "And it will be worth it, I promise."
Fluttershy believed him, but she still clung to him tightly. "I would be lost if I came here," she whispered.
Discord's arms tightened even more. "That is why you have an experienced guide," he murmured, causing a seductive shiver to run down her spine. "Do you remember the old catacombs I once pointed out to you?"
Fluttershy thought for a minute, and then recalled how on the first time they traveled by boat, the first time Discord took her to the roof, they rowed past a dark tunnel that he told her led to the old catacombs beneath Maris. The seductive shiver Discord had sent through her earlier changed. "Do not tell me we are inside those?"
Discord chuckled softly, his arms tightening even more. "Have no fear, my sweet. Yes, we are in the tunnel that leads to them, however, there are no bones around us...I will not take us that far, I promise."
She was grateful for that piece of news, however she was still curious as to where exactly they were heading, not to mention Discord's statement about a bath.
"Ah, here we are," he announced, coming to a stop. "Now I'll need to put you down for a moment...but keep the blanket wrapped tightly around you, I will be quick," he informed, before setting her on her feet.
Fluttershy still felt a little wobbly, so she quickly sat down, the blanket clung tightly around her, as she heard Discord's steps echo off the tunnel's walls. She didn't have long to wonder where they were exactly, for a light glowed softly from an oil lamp that lay just to her left. Discord was lighting several lamps that hung from the cavern's walls, and she gasped as she saw a pool just before them. It was small, much like the tiny pool that was inside her chamber. Yet she noticed something that set it apart from the other pool as well...it was bubbling softly.
"Believe it or not, I discovered a hot spring in this passage many years ago," Discord informed her as he finished lighting the lamps. "Unusual yes, but I've long since learned not to be too surprised by the secrets that the opera house holds."
Fluttershy blushed as Discord approached her, removing the dressing gown he still wore from earlier. His naked form glowed softly in the firelight, and Fluttershy felt her cheeks glow as well. Discord felt no shame, and knew that Fluttershy's blush, which was very obvious despite the shadows that danced across her face from the oil lamps, was not out of embarrassment but out of her innocence. No matter how many times they made love, she would always be innocent, for her love was pure. Discord felt both his heart swell at the thought, as well as his arousal.
"Come," he whispered, reaching for her and lifting her up again. Fluttershy did not protest while he removed the blanket from her body, exposing her naked flesh once more, however the glow of her blush quickly spread, and she immediately felt that tingling return between her thighs.
She gasped as she first felt the warm waters lap at her body. Discord also sighed, his arms still holding her close. "You should have told me about this ages ago," she giggled as she turned away from him and stretched her body against his.
Discord smiled and closed his eyes briefly as both the sensation of the water and Fluttershy's naked body ran over him. "Yes, you're quite right...but better late than never," he whispered against her ear, causing her to whimper as his paw and claw were already moving over her.
"Discord..." she moaned. "What is this spell you have cast over me?"
Discord smiled, however his paw stilled for a moment. "I have a confession to make, Fluttershy," he whispered, his paw moving to her shoulders and turning her to face him. The desire that had clouded her eyes disappeared and was replaced once more with worry.
Discord looked at the beautiful mare before him, a part of him screaming to tell her his worries, his fears of losing her, of wanting her to never leave him but to forever remain by his side. However, the other part of him was telling him to not ruin this moment, that it was better to wait. He felt weak as he gave in to the second voice.
"On the night I gave you the gowns," he whispered, "I saw you bathing in the lagoon."
That was not what Fluttershy had been expecting to hear, however her whole face paled before glowing the deepest red imaginable. "You...you s-s-saw me n-naked!" she gasped.
Discord tried to keep a straight face, but found it difficult from the delightful flush of her cheek. "I did not mean to spy, and I swear to you that the next time I saw your beautiful body was the night we first made love," he felt a growl rise deep in his throat at the way she blushed even more at these words.
Fluttershy didn't know what to say, and scolding him was clearly foolish, for after all, he had seen her naked many times since. However, a part of her was curious if that was all he had wanted to say. The tone of his voice now seemed filled with merriment, yet prior, it sounded sad...desperate even.
She shook her head, brushing the worries off, and gasped as she felt Discord's arms wrap around her and press her back against one of the sides of the pool. "Do you have any idea of what you do to me?" he growled softly, his mouth already ravishing her throat. Fluttershy whimpered and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressing him closer, her legs moving to wrap around his waist.
The two of them clung to each other as they made love in the pool, the warm water turning hot as it splashed and lapped around them. Perhaps in their passionate bliss they could somehow make reality stop...
It was a calm January afternoon. Crafty Crate, the private investigator that had helped the Prince with learning the whereabouts of the elusive Fluttershy, was settling himself down at his desk, sipping a strong cup of spiced tea to push away the cold that filled his tiny office, when he heard shouting coming from the hall just outside.
"No! I'm sorry Madame, but he's busy! Please, I shall tell him you stopped by-"
"Stand aside and let me through!"
"Please Madame! At least let me announce you, please-"
But the mare who had been arguing with the chambermaid threw open the door to Crafty Crate's tiny office, and shoved her way inside, despite the maid's protests.
Crafty Crate's eyes widened at the uninvited guest who now stood before him, dressed from head to toe in her matronly black, a netted veil covering her face, and a scowl that looked even darker, underneath. He recognized her at once. "Madame Luna! I um...I must say...this is an unexpected surprise-"
"Shut your mouth and sit down!" the mare barked, to which the private investigator immediately obeyed.
The chambermaid gave a weak curtsy to her employer. "I'm sorry, monsieur, I tried to stop her, but-"
"It's alright, Bonbon," Crafty Crate reassured, although he did not take his eyes off the grim-looking dance mistress. "Why don't you go and prepare a cup of tea for my guest."
"Don't bother," Madame Luna snapped. "I won't be staying for very long. Leave us!" she bellowed, to which the chambermaid gave a small shriek before quickly shutting the office door. She turned her attention back to Crafty Crate who was loosening the collar of his shirt so that he could swallow the nervous lump in his throat. "Hard at work, I see," she grumbled, eyeing the cup of tea he had been sipping as well as the messy desk, which was horribly unorganized. "Perhaps now I can begin to see why you were unable to do the job I hired you to do."
"Madame-"
"SILENCE!" Madame Luna barked, and as before, Crafty Crate shrank back, his mouth closed and his face pale. She looked at him with utter disgust, causing icy shivers to course down his spine. Finally, she sat down at a chair across from his desk, however her focus never left his pale face. "Understand now, that until I ask you to speak, you will remain silent," she hissed, before lifting the veil. Crafty Crate simply nodded his head, his whole body frozen with fear. Madame Luna eyed the private investigator before speaking, the coldness in her expression never ceasing.
"I understand you were at the Maris Opera House not so long ago," she began.
"Madame, let me explain, I-"
"A simple 'yes or no' will suffice!" she hissed, to which Crafty Crate immediately squeaked, and then numbly nodded his head.
Madame Luna's features relaxed somewhat, however her back remained rigid and straight, the icy fire in her eyes still burning for satisfaction. "I learned of your 'visits' from a few stage hooves. I overheard them talking about a private investigator...who had come to learn about the Phantom. When I spoke with them, they mentioned the questions you had asked...all pertaining around Fluttershy."
Crafty Crate could not meet the mare's eyes; his very soul would freeze at the simple glance.
Madame Luna continued. "At first, I thought perhaps you were still doing research for my case, although I had fired you some time before hoof," she growled. "However, what intrigued me was learning that you were also curious about the 'Phantom of the Opera'. I know that the managers did not hire anyone to ask questions about the Phantom, and I certainly didn't hire you to ask about him, in fact I mentioned nothing of the Phantom! And yet you were there, days after you had been fired. That is most loyal service...however I do not think it was service for me."
Crafty Crate swallowed and carefully glanced up at the dark matron before him. She held his gaze and slowly rose from her chair, her hooves resting on his desk as she leaned forward, like a bat ready to swoop down and seize its prey. "Now tell me the truth, monsieur," she hissed. "Were you working for somepony else?"
He glanced at her, his mouth open but no sound coming out. Madame Luna leaned back away from the desk, her eyes still hard and cold however. "You may speak now," she sighed with a wave of her hoof. "In fact, I'll make it even simpler for you. Answer this question for me. Were you hired by the Prince?" she paused and locked her eyes with his once more. "A simple 'yes or no' shall suffice."
Crafty Crate tried to keep his calm; after all, he did not wish to expose his highest paying client. However, he did not wish to anger the dance mistress either, especially after he felt the sting of her icy stare. "I...that is..." he swallowed hard, trying to think of what would be the appropriate thing to say. "I thought...well, I learned that the last anyone had seen of Time Turner or his daughter was at the opera house, so perhaps...perhaps someone there would know of their whereabouts-"
"STOP LYING TO ME!" she shouted, causing Crafty Crate to shrink back in his chair.
Madame Luna was furious, and she began pacing the room like a caged animal. "Let me tell you what I think, monsieur," she growled. "I think the Prince hired you, not out of concern to know the whereabouts of Monsieur Time Turner or his charming daughter, but mainly because he wanted one thing and one thing only," she eyed him with great suspicion. "I know that Mademoiselle Fluttershy 'refused' the Prince, and the Prince is not one used to rejection, the pompous arrogant ass."
Crafty Crate gasped at Madame Luna's language, as well as who she was speaking of. "It seems like a lot of trouble, however, to hire a private investigator to find a mare for him to bed. Which leads me to two conclusions," she leaned over the desk once more. "Either the Prince's desire to seek revenge against the Phantom has truly made him mad...or there is something about Fluttershy that I am unaware, but that you learned...and that you're going to tell me, right now," she threatened.
Crafty Crate sat up in his chair, trying to look braver than he felt. "Now see here, madam, I...I will not be intimidated! I-"
Madame Luna dropped a package of money onto his desk. "Will 500 franks help you answer?"
Crafty Crate stared at the money, his eyes wide with disbelief, both at his good fortune, as well as Madame Luna's offer to pay him for information right now! It wasn't nearly as much as the Prince had paid him, however it was still 500 franks! He reached for the package, but she snatched it before he could lay his hooves on it. "Answers first," she hissed, waving the package before him to entice him to speak.
Crafty Crate eagerly answered. "The Prince learned of your interest in discovering Time Turner and his daughter. He did not inform me as to why he wished to discover the pair, but he did hire me for that reason. I soon learned that the night of the opening gala was the last anypony had seen of them."
Madame Luna nodded her head, knowing that indeed this was true. She had gone to the apartment both Fluttershy and her father had been keeping since they came to Maris, however she was shocked to learn that Fluttershy was not there. For a week she kept visiting the apartment, hoping to find the young mare, but there was no sign. She spoke with the land owner, hoping that perhaps she had seen the mare, however her fears grew when she learned that the mare hadn't seen either Fluttershy or her father since they had left for the opera house on the day of the opening gala.
"So I thought perhaps it would be for the best to inquire after the two of them at the Maris Opera House itself," he continued.
Madame Luna eyed him suspiciously. "Why did you tell the stage hooves you were investigating the Phantom?"
Crafty Crate had to admit he found it curious that Madame Luna was worried about the Phantom. However, he chose it was simply because she worked at the opera house, and like all the others, she too, was superstitious. "The Prince informed me that he and the managers would be conducting an investigation as to who was sending messages as the so-called Phantom. He thought it would be the perfect disguise."
Madame Luna's eyes narrowed at Crafty Crate's revelation behind the plot by the managers and the Prince. So that explained the whole masquerade ball-it had been a ruse to capture Discord, however until the night of the ball, she had a good feeling none of them believed that the actual Phantom was indeed the Phantom himself! However, just because they were not prepared on the night of the ball did not mean they would be so clumsy in the future. Discord was in danger, whether he knew it or not...
"What else did you learn?" she snapped.
Crafty Crate gasped and quickly continued. "Well, the stage hooves told me that they had seen both Time Turner and the mare, that Time Turner had gone through a trap door backstage to fetch a prop...however they had warned him that he would be entering the 'Phantom's lair' and if he came back, would not return...alive."
Madame Luna's eyes closed for a second. It was as she feared; DIscord did not confirm for her that Time Turner had met the Phantom's wrath, but everything pointed to that suspicion as being the most likely. "You said they saw the mareirl?" she inquired, hoping to hear some good news, however dreading what he would tell her.
Crafty Crate nodded his head. "Apparently she approached them after...after she had been released from her duties. She asked if they had seen her father, and when they told her, she grabbed an oil lamp and also disappeared below."
Madame Luna sprung to her feet, her eyes wide and her pale face as white as a ghost. "W-w-w-what?"
Crafty Crate was startled by Madame Luna's reaction. "Y-yes...that was the last anypony has seen of her. Like her father, she disappeared beneath the opera house, and no one has seen her since...however, those stallions could have been drunk, it is possible, after all, it does seem far fetched that she became a victim of the Phantom's-"
"SILENCE!" Madame Luna barked, to which Crafty Crate immediately obeyed. Fluttershy had gone below...in a brave attempt to find her father; she had gone below to meet her doom, to become another victim of Discord's wrath, to-
Wait.
Images from the masquerade ball came flooding back. Images of Discord, dressed as Red Death, dancing with a mare in a beautiful gold gown. He was very possessive of the mare...she had been dancing with the Prince, but Discord took her from him. At first she had simply thought it was Discord's way of embarrassing Blueblood, but as she thought about the mare...her hair, pink and wavy, her height small, her figure somewhat voluptuous...was it possible? When Discord made his grand exit, she did not recall seeing the mare either. Had Discord taken her? Was the mare...Fluttershy?
Yes. Fluttershy had disappeared beneath the opera house...and was now Discord's prisoner.
Good God, was it possible for him to sink to such depths?
"I thank you for your information, monsieur," Madame Luna murmured, moving towards the door.
Crafty Crate rose to his feet, his eyes filled with worry as he was seeing his money disappear with her. "Wait! See here, you promised to pay me!"
Without another look, she tossed him the package, to which Crafty Crate greedily grabbed. However, his happy smile fell quickly, as he realized that the money inside the package was simply bits and pieces of blank paper. Before he could shout for her to return at once and pay him with proper money, her carriage was already gone. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Spies | Spying
She watched him like a predator, hidden deep in the safety of the shadows. She watched him emerge from the building, a satisfied smirk creased across his hoofsome lips. He put his hat on, followed by his gloves, and then pulled the collar of his great coat up around his chin, shielding the winter wind from his face. His carriage was pulled in front of the building, anxiously awaiting his arrival, however before he stepped inside, he turned his head in her direction, the smirk disappearing and being replaced with a creased brow of suspicion. The coachcolt asked him if anything was wrong, and with a shrug of the shoulders, the Prince quickly climbed inside, and the carriage immediately pulled away.
Madame Luna waited till the carriage was out of sight before emerging from her shadowed hiding place. Despite the strong winter winds or the heavy snow that was falling, she cared not, and with great strides, walked directly up the steps of the building her adversary had emerged from.
It was late, and there few police inside the station, but they all whirled their heads as the matron of the dancers, dressed in her traditional black, stood in the doorway.
She scowled at each of them, her eyes moving about and surveying the room. Ever since her encounter with Monsieur Crafty Crate, Madame Luna had been spying on the activities of the Prince. To her great surprise, he did not visit the opera house as often as he had done in the past. She had a growing suspicion that he was now sending notes of his own to the managers, yet she had been unable to retrieve or intercept the letters herself. And she also had a growing suspicion that Blueblood was giving instructions for his letters to be burned immediately upon reading them, as large piles of burnt paper were appearing in the office fireplace. No, whatever game the Prince was playing, he was being clever. And while he was giving nothing about himself away at the opera house, she had noticed that he was now frequenting the police station more often than one of fashionable society does. She had spied him entering this place three times thus far, and tonight she intended to learn why.
"May I help you, madam?" an officer timidly asked. He practically shrank from the cold stare he received. "Is s-s-something amiss?"
She removed her gloves and lifted the black-netted veil that covered her face. "I wish to know the business of Prince Blueblood," she stated quite bluntly.
Several of the officers who were present practically gasped in unison. The silence was extremely thick. "I...I b-b-b-beg your p-p-pardon?"
"You heard what I said," she murmured, her voice low and dangerous. "Tell me why the Prince frequents this place as often as he does. What is his business here? What information are you providing for him? I demand to know!"
Her voice began as soft as a whisper and had risen to a powerful bark. The officer with whom she had been speaking to paled at her words, and then turned his head, crying out, "Inspector Silverstar! Inspector Silverstar!"
Within a few seconds, the chief inspector emerged, worry etched across his face from the sound of the officer's voice. "What is it? What's wrong?" he asked, looking about frantically, but then his eyes fell upon Madame Luna, who was now giving him an icy stare. No further questions were needed; he knew the source of his officer's distress.
"May I help you, madam?" Silverstar asked politely, but also standing straight and tall, his chin high as if trying to intimidate her with his position.
It wouldn't work.
"I demand to know why the Prince has been coming here. What business does he have with you?"
Silverstar was shocked by her question, but he quickly hid it. "I beg your pardon madam...but the Prince has not been here," he answered calmly.
Madame Luna's eyes narrowed into angry cold slits. "Do not lie to me, inspector. I am no fool you can easily dupe. I have watched the Prince, I know his carriage, and it was outside your station. I have seen him emerge from this place three times this week. Which means you either are an idiot for not recognizing him, or..." she lowered her voice to a dangerous level, "you are lying for him. And I am believing it is the latter..."
Silverstar kept his head held high, however his eyes betrayed him as they flashed a brief light of worry at her words. "Frankly madam, it is quite disturbing that you believe to have seen the Prince when I assure you, he has not been here, but even more than that, that you claim without any reservation, that you have been spying on him! If anyone has been committing some sort of criminal activity, it sounds as if it is you!"
Madame Luna merely smiled coldly at Silverstar's words, a reaction he had not anticipated. "I never accused the Prince of criminal activity...such an interesting choice of words..."
Silverstar paled. "I...now see her madam, I...I never once revealed-I mean assumed...oh damn it!" he hissed. "The Prince has not been here! And even if he had, I would not reveal his reasons, as they are confidential matters! You forget that I am a stallion of the law and must uphold the rights of our citizens!"
Madame Luna eyed Silverstar as he finished his statement, his chin lifted high again and his eyes matching the very coldness her own possessed. "Very well," she sighed, shocking them all as she turned to leave the station. Silverstar almost lost his balance from how rigid his legs had been. He stared at the retreating figure of Madame Luna with utter surprise. However, that surprise was short lived, as she turned and flashed them all one last hard cold stare. "You're right, inspector...you are indeed a stallion of the law...I just hope you remember that in your next meeting with the Prince."
None of the officers moved after she departed; they were afraid she might come back! Finally, Silverstar turned toward one of his officers and said quite sternly, "Send a message to the Prince at once...tell him he is being watched and that he needs to lesson his visits here," he ordered.
The officer nodded his head. "Who do you suppose she was, inspector?"
Silverstar gazed out the door as the mare disappeared once more into the shadows. A sudden shiver went down his spine, and it wasn't from the cold. "I don't know...nor do I really wish to find out."
"I HATE THIS OPERA!" Celestia screeched in the midst of rehearsal. All the other chorus members who were going through warm-ups, immediately stopped as the diva picked up an orchestra member's trumpet and threw it through one of the backdrops.
The conductor gasped at her actions before losing his own temper. "Now see here, senora! You can not simply do that with musical instruments!"
If Fancypants had not been there to hold her back, she would have launched herself at the conductor and rip his eyes out. "WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, YOU LITTLE WORTHLESS SHIT?" she screamed, trying to wrestle Fancypant's arms off. Several stagehooves realized the effort Fancypants was undergoing with trying to hold back the demon diva, and quickly rushed to the tenor's side to also hold the possessed mare at bay. "I AM A GREAT STAR! I SHOULD BE IN THIS OPERA! PONIES PAY TO SEE ME PERFORM, NOT SOME HORRID, MODERN, DISGUSTING PIECE OF FILTH THAT DARES TO CALL ITSELF MUSIC!"
The conductor paled at her words and anxiously, along with half the cast on stage, began looking around and over his head. "Senora, do not say such things when the composer is present!" he hissed.
Celestia, who was now being held back by four stallions, retorted, "the composer is not here! AND I WILL SAY WHATEVER I DAMN PLEASE!"
Twilight Sparkle, who had been standing off to the side with several of the other dance mares, said exactly what everyone else was thinking. "Are you certain of that, senora?"
Celestia glared at the mare and then began to curse in her native Italian. All four stallions dragged the sputtering prima donna off the stage with great effort, while everyone else continued to look about nervously for fear of upsetting unseen parties. "L-l-let's continue with rehearsing," the conductor stuttered nervously, glancing about one last time.
High above the stage, hidden in the shadows of the catwalk, Discord watched as the chorus and dancers rehearsed. He was pleased with the progress they had made, especially that of the orchestra, however the dancers was still off by several notes, not to mention he could tell several basses were off key as well. He demanded perfection, and he was going to have it for his masterpiece.
He moved about the high catwalk with great ease, eyeing every little detail. The sets were much better than before, he was pleased with the work of the stagehooves. There were still issues of lighting, however that could wait till the approach of opening night. Yet as he inspected all the details, he could not suppress the smile that was bursting forth as the delightful memory of Celestia's rage returned. He remembered the day the news was delivered that she would be playing an insignificant role in his opera; the ground was littered with shattered fragments from whatever she could throw. Pity that all the screaming she mustered did not cause her to lose her voice. Still, he could not deny the pleasure he felt when she was reminded, once more, that she was virtually nothing in his opera.
Yes, things were vastly improving, however there was still a great deal to accomplish. Including the issue of introducing Fluttershy to rehearsals.
Discord's amusement changed to dread once more. The impending doom of this realization was becoming harder and harder to deny.
He recalled the sickening memory of watching her faint before him like a withered flower. When he caught her, she felt so limp and so frail...
Lifeless.
He thought he had tasted fear in the past; the fear of being put on display, the fear of being tortured, the fear of being discovered by intruders; no, none of that measured up to the fear he felt at the thought of losing Fluttershy forever. His world would not be the same without her, music would not be the same without her...his life was never going to be the same again.
Once upon a time, he thought music was the only thing that could give him joy. He knew now, that without Fluttershy, music held no joy, no beauty, no life. He needed her just as a pony needs air to breathe. He needed her to live...for life was not worth living without Fluttershy.
A new memory stirred within him, one that was far happier and of complete bliss. It was but a few nights ago, when they were both lying in her bed, tangled within its sheets and one another's limbs. Her head was pillowed against his chest, her hair filling his nostrils with its sweet perfume. The fire from her fireplace glowed and cast golden shadows upon their naked bodies. No words were spoken, yet none were needed. Until the softest sound interrupted their peaceful silence...
Humming. The sweetest, softest music he had ever heard. Where was it coming from? What could make such a sound?
And then he realized that the humming was coming from Fluttershy.
"What is that?" he whispered, his fingers curling over her right hoof, which lay atop his chest. "That tune...I am not familiar with it..."
Fluttershy turned a bright red when she realized that he had heard her. She had not even been fully aware that she had been singing! "I'm sorry, I thought you were asleep-"
"With such an angel beside me?" he murmured, his paw cradling her hoof and lifting it to his lips. "Please, tell me what you were humming, it was so beautiful..."
Fluttershy moved her head so that she could look up into his amber eyes. Her heart practically burst from the love she saw reflected in those tiger-eyes. "When I was little, my mother sang me a lullaby to calm my fears. You see...she became very sick one winter, so sick that both Papa and I were afraid she was going to die. She did not die that winter, however the sickness forever weakened her heart..." she sadly murmured. "I was so scared, and I prayed as hard as I could every night, but I was still afraid. And then...one night she called me to her bedside, and she whispered to me, 'Fluttershy, do not fear. The Angel of Music will watch over you'."
Discord's brow furrowed at her words. "The Angel of Music? Didn't you-"
"Yes," Fluttershy blushed, but smiled at the memory. "The night we saw Handel's Messiah, I toasted to the Angel of Music. You see, Papa had once told me that there were different angels in heaven, and one of those angels was the Angel of Music. My mother remembered this too, and told me that the Angel of Music watches over those whose heart is pure as song. And then she sang to me, a tune I had heard Papa play many times, but I had never believed meant anything...until then."
Discord's eyes were filled with tenderness, and his claw gently stroked a fallen wave of hair from her cheek. "Sing it for me?" he softly pleaded.
Even in the firelight, Discord could tell Fluttershy was blushing. He thought he would have to ask once again, but then the most beautiful sound emerged from her perfect throat.
"Angel of Music, guide and guardian,
Crown to me your glory...
Angel of Music, hide no longer,
Secret and strange angel..."
Discord thought his heart might melt from the tender chords her voice sang. Never had he heard anything more beautiful in his whole wretched existence. He was amazed to feel a tear drip from his right eye. "Fluttershy..." he finally murmured after a long reverent pause. "That...I have never heard anything so..." his voice was filled with such emotion from the beauty of her music.
Fluttershy could hear the emotion in his voice. Her hoof flew to his lips and she smiled as his eyes caught hers. "I...I know you thought me strange for toasting to the Angel of Music that night," she whispered, her eyes bashfully looking away, briefly, before returning to gaze into his. "But...the reason I did...oh you will think me so foolish for this," she sighed, attempting to look away, but Discord's paw caught her chin.
"Please tell me," he simply whispered.
Fluttershy let out a shaky breath and smiled. "Well...I...I believe you are my angel...the Angel of Music," she finally revealed.
Disocrd's brow creased with confusion. "I am the Angel of Music?"
Fluttershy could not help but giggle at his expression. "Yes, you."
Discord cocked one brow up. "Perhaps you are unfamiliar with how angels look. I do not think I hardly fit the description-"
"You have always watched over me, protecting me from any harm, guiding me and revealing to me the glory of my dreams," her hooves softly ran over his unmasked cheek. "Yes Discord...you are my angel."
Discord stared back at her in amazement. He opened his mouth to speak, but was rendered silent by the soft caresses her fingers were running over his mask. "Discord...I love you with my whole heart, every part of you..."
"Fluttershy..."
"Please," she softly pleaded, her eyes full of hope as she locked them with his. "Do not hide from me? Let me see all of you."
Discord froze at her request. He knew she had seen him before without his mask, and he remembered that she did not flinch those other times...but what if that broke the spell? What if he removed the mask and then she realized she had willingly bedded a monster? "Fluttershy, I...I am afraid..." his voice was so soft.
Fluttershy's hooves ceased their caresses and she looked deeply into his eyes, her love there for him to see, begging for him to trust her, begging for him to never hide from her again. She loved him, every part of him, including the scars on his flesh, as well as on his soul. He tried to avoid her eyes, those oceans of beauty where he often lost himself, but he could not do so, not when he could feel her warm inviting gaze. She saw his fear, but she offered comfort. She was asking for trust, and she was giving him love. He had not been able to deny her anything, and she had asked for so little.
He nodded his head and held his breath as he felt the mask slowly being lifted away.
His tangled and ruined flesh lay there for the whole world to see, to ridicule, and to spit upon. In the depths of his memory he could hear the screams of mares and the mocking laughter of stallions. He waited, waited for her scream to join the din...
But instead, he felt the softest touch of silk. His eyes flew open as he realized that the touch had come from Fluttershy's lips. He let out a long ragged breath as he felt her perfect pink tongue trace one scar, and then gasped as the feel of her lips once more lingered over his mangled flesh.
He was shocked to see that her eyes were swimming with tears just as his were. He groaned as he felt her feather soft hooves touch his disfigured skin, and with an oath of passion, he caught her beautiful face in his paw and claw and brought her lips down upon his.
Discord let out a long shaky sigh as the memory lingered, before being interrupted by another of Celestia's screams. He growled and glared down at the diva as once more, she stalked on stage, Fancypants at her heels, begging for her to see reason, which was like begging a fish to leap of the water and walk. True, he enjoyed driving the diva mad, but any more of her shrieking and he would be hanging her like one of the many sandbags from the curtains.
He heard the sound of hoofsteps nearby and glanced over his shoulder, catching the eyes of a frightened stagehoof. Without a word, Discord swirled his cape around him and leapt into the nearby shadows just as the stallion was crying out, "The Phantom! I...I've seen the Phantom!"
Concealed by the blackness of shadow, Discord retreated through one of his many secret passages that led to the forbidden depths of his lair. He walked briskly, a determined look alight in his eyes, however it had nothing to do with the opera rehearsal.
No, he was thinking about Fluttershy and what must be done. The truth of the matter was that if Fluttershy didn't play the part of Aminta, Celestia would snatch it up and thus ruin everything. And frankly, he'd rather burn his score (along with the whole opera house) than see, let alone hear, Celestia's harpy voice sing Aminta's songs. Besides, Fluttershy had earned her right to play Aminta; he was the true manager of this opera, not those two fops, and as far as he was concerned, she had auditioned, practiced, and transformed the role into her own creation. Plus, he was the composer as well as the director...and he wanted no other but Fluttershy in his opera.
Yet there still remained the problem of what would happen after she went above. Also, where would she go? He cursed himself for not being able to find her father, yet even if he had, where would they stay? They had little money, if any, and would not be able to afford even the cheapest of flats. Quite frankly, Discord did not like the idea of his precious Fluttershy sleeping on a lice-infested bed or freezing from the lack of heat that was sure to be found in such places. And what if the old stallion could not be found? It broke Discord's heart at the thought of having to tell Fluttershy that he had failed her in finding her father; perhaps she could forgive him one day, but he would never be able to forgive himself for the sorrow he would have caused her. What then? She would be penniless, homeless, a spinster with no family to speak of. For many mares in such situations, there was only one alternative, and Discord's blood turned to ice at the horrible thought of his Fluttershy wearing the meager garb of a prostitute.
No, he could not-he WOULD not allow Fluttershy to face such horrors on her own. He loved her, he needed her, he did not want to know what it was like to live without her!
...And then a sudden thought struck him.
What if she stayed with him? Yes, she could stay at the opera house with him while rehearsals went on...and perhaps after the opera as well.
Even if his opera flopped, he had no doubts that she would become a star over night. People would soon forget all about La Celestia; let the harpy make her threats and leave; Fluttershy would have Maris, and soon her fame would reach the far corners of the globe. And he would continue to teach her, to write music for her, and perhaps produce more operas for her to perform!
And if ponies grew suspicious and wondered where the beautiful mare lived? Well, anonymity always sold tickets, plus it would be considered a part of her stage career. She would be a mare of mystery, a diva that went and stayed wherever she desired. He recalled how he had Rainbow Dash drive the black carriage he kept hidden in the depths of the opera house to Blueblood's club that day the Prince and the managers' left to discuss his opera. He could use it to fetch Fluttershy after every performance, whisk her away in a cloud of mystery, only to later return to the opera house where they would descend to their Eden.
Yes...it was possible! It would work! They would be together, no one could tear them apart, and no one needs know of their secrets! And with time, the suspicions as to why she was favored in the Phantom's opera would disappear into legend.
Discord found himself beaming from ear to ear at the idea. He burst into his chambers, hoping to find Fluttershy there, but his heart sank only momentarily when he discovered she was not. Yet before he turned to search for her, his eyes caught the parchment lying atop his organ. It was the song that for so long now he had been working on, a song that had no title other than, "Fluttershy's Song".
With a gentle paw, he picked the parchment up and examined it carefully. The melody had been with him for a long time, and it had only been a few weeks since he had begun to place lyrics to the music.
It was a song that reminded him of Fluttershy and the way she had transformed his world, his music, and his heart. And as he gazed at the lyrics a new realization came to him...
This song, which he had come to recognize for so long as a declaration of love, was something else as well...it was a marriage proposal.
Discord let out a long shaky breath at the thought. He had never truly considered himself a religious stallion...however, with Fluttershy in his life, he was beginning to believe that God had not truly abandoned him as he thought...that perhaps he had found favor with the Lord for the arrival of his angel. And he knew of Fluttershy's faith, which was deep and pure. She had never referred to their love making as sinful, but he knew that marriage would mean so much to her. And the more he thought about it, the more he found that he too, liked the idea of marriage.
The two of them shared a bond deeper than anything he had ever felt, but through marriage, they would be bonded forever as husband and wife and no one, no one could drive them apart. Even the thought of calling Fluttershy "his wife" caused Discord to groan with desire.
He remembered the beautiful ivory gown she wore on the night he had taken her to see Handel's Messiah. It was like a wedding gown, and he had the greatest longing to see her wear it again. In fact, he was sure that somewhere in the costume cages there was a veil. And they could be married immediately! Shortround had been raised by monks, he had been training to become one, and could perform the ceremony! The others would be witnesses, and it would all be settled!
Except a ring; he needed a ring...
In a secret chamber, far from where he stood, Discord kept several treasured objects, including gold and jewels that he had collected over his years living beneath the opera house. Yes, some of the objects had been stolen, he would not deny that, but he was sure that amongst them he could find a ring for his bride.
His bride.
Discord felt his heart soar and his blood boil with growing desire at the thought. They could be married tonight! Yes! He would propose to her with his song, ask her to wear that gown, present her with the ring, and then Shortround and the others would be ready, and later that night, they could both enjoy the passionate ecstasy of their marriage bed.
But he would not tell her anything. No, instead, he would keep it all a secret; he would leave her instructions to meet him for a special evening rehearsal in his chamber, and to wear that beautiful gown. He would have the chamber adorned in candlelight, he would play his song for her, and when the time was right, he would fall to one knee and present her with the ring.
Yes, he would marry his angel; he would become her husband and take care of her, look after her, and make love to her every night if she so wished it.
Without any hesitation, Discord immediately wrote up a note for his future bride, leaving very little detail as to what he had planned. Several minutes later, he was standing outside her chamber, holding his breath as he peered to see if she were inside it. For the first and only time of his life, he was grateful to find it empty. He quickly placed the note upon the pillow of her bed, and then found the ivory gown and laid it atop the blankets. For a finishing touch, he plucked a single red rose from a vase that was in the corner, and placed it next to the note. He then quickly retreated back to his chamber to make everything ready for the evening ahead.
It wasn't long before Fluttershy returned to her chamber with a weary look in her eyes. She knew that Discord was examining the rehearsals today and would not return until evening. She had been hoping to speak with him before he left that day; she hated waking up and finding him already gone. She wanted to talk to him about the future, about what would happen when the time came for her to go above to rehearse. She didn't like the thought any more than he, but it was something they had to face. She just didn't want to face it alone...
Also, things were growing tense between her and the others. Today for example, Fluttershy had been working with Rarity, and while Rarity had long stopped asking her questions, she could feel the small mare's eyes burning into her, as if trying to assess what secrets she was hiding. Even Derpy was looking at her strangely.
Discord had told her that it was none of their business what she and he did when they were alone. She just disliked the idea of hiding their love; especially from those that she felt had grown to become her family. She had no guilt over the passion she shared with Discord, but through hiding their feelings and keeping things as secrets, she felt as if a cloud of guilt were doomed to come crashing down upon them.
She sighed again as she entered the chamber, her hooves aching from the hours of mending she had been doing, but stopped short as she gazed upon the bed. The rose was the first thing she saw, bright and red through the lacy curtains, but as she approached the bed, her curiosity peaked at the sight of the note and the gown that was lying across the blankets. Without a moment's hesitation, she tore the seal off and began reading the letter at once.
My dearest Fluttershy,
It would give me great pleasure if you would wear this and meet me tonight, in my chambers, at nine o' clock, for a special rehearsal. Please don't be late.
With deepest love, O.G.
Fluttershy could not help but grin at the signature. Even when writing to her, Discord would forever be the Phantom when writing his notes. She began to wonder what sort of "rehearsal" it would be? She ran her hooves over the gown and smiled as she felt the beautiful fabric. The last time she had worn this dress had been one of the happiest nights of her life. Perhaps its good fortune would return?
Perhaps they would sing the new song they had created for Aminta and Don Juan! She remembered the beautiful melody Discord had composed and her heart sighed at the lyrics she had helped to create. Truly, it was one of the most beautiful love songs she had ever imagined...
A strange giddy feeling came over Fluttershy as she began to speculate as to what Discord had in mind for the night. Perhaps he had found a solution for their future problem! Perhaps he had learned something about her father! It still touched her so deeply that he was even looking. And then a most outrageous thought came to her...
...perhaps Discord was going to propose marriage?
Fluttershy quickly shook her head at such a notion. "You're such silly mare sometimes, Fluttershy," she muttered, glancing at one of her novels, which lay near by. "You don't seem to know what's real and what's fiction anymore."
Still...it was an idea she couldn't shake off entirely. Perhaps she didn't want to. She held the gown up to her body and twirled around the chamber with it, giggling the whole time. Oh to be his bride, to become his wife. No matter what happened, she knew that in her heart, he would always be her husband...
Darkness had fallen early that night as a winter storm was brewing. Rainbow Dash hated venturing out into the city, even if she were simply sticking to allies and dark corners in unpopulated areas. Still, she feared her master's wrath more than anything, and so he ventured once more as night fell over Maris.
It was the same search she had been conducting every night ever since Discord first ordered her to seek out Fluttershy's father. While Rainbow Dash believed it was beyond all hope to find the old stallion, she continued looking every night in all the places she could, both because of her orders, as well as for Fluttershy. She would deny the latter reason till he was blue in the face, but truth is, she was growing fond of the mare. She was nothing but trouble, she believed that without a doubt...but she was growing fond of her.
She was in a new section of Maris, an area she had not yet explored; an area that had few shadows, but even fewer ponies. The winds were blowing strong and harsh, and Rainbow Dash wrapped her jacket even tighter around herself. The sooner she could leave this place the better! He spied one building she had been dreading to come near for a very long time, but it was a logical place to look, this much she knew. Swiftly and softly, she followed the shadows till she was standing directly across the police station.
There were a few low barred windows; Rainbow Dash was hoping they belonged to several jail cells. She could crawl down, peer inside, see if Fluttershy's father was anywhere to be found-
She froze as she heard two muffled voices draw near.
"Is he coming tonight or not? That stupid old stallion has been crying out for him since this morning!"
"Inspector Silverstar says he won't, says that mare who was here the other night knows too much and it's best if he stays far away from this place."
Rainbow Dash didn't have time to bolt around the corner, so she did the only thing he could in such a situation; press herself as flat as she could against a shadowed wall and pray they would not notice her presence.
The voices belonged to two officers who were taking long drags from hoof-made cigarettes. They had momentarily stepped outside to smoke, and thus began complaining about recent events pertaining to their jobs. Neither had noticed Rainbow Dash at all, they were too involved in their current conversation.
"I'm getting tired of us holding him here. The stallion should clearly be in an asylum," the taller one grumbled.
The shorter officer, with a rather stout belly, joined in his companion's grumbling. "Do you recall how when he first arrived he did nothing but moan and wail about his daughter?"
The other stallion began to chuckle. "Oh yes, that's right, claiming that a ghost had stolen her from him."
"Oh not just any ghost!" the short fat officer mimicked, a mock look of horror spreading across his features. "The dreaded, infamous...PHANTOM OF THE OPERA!"
Rainbow Dash gasped at the stallion's words, almost too loudly. The short officer paused and glanced up at his friend. "Do you hear something?"
The taller officer was clearly paying no heed. "Then he finally stopped his ranting and wailing and we had peace at last," he sighed, taking a long drag on his cigarette. "But then you-know-who shows up, and after a few late night visits, Time Turner begins howling all over again about the supposed Phantom!"
Time Turner.
Rainbow Dash could barely move, let alone breathe from the shock of it all.
They had him; Time Turner was there, locked away in there jail like a common criminal. She had to get back to the opera house and tell her master at once.
"Now I know I heard something that time!" the shorter stallion grumbled, pushing past his taller friend and peering into the shadows where Rainbow Dash was hiding. "Who goes there! Come out right now!"
"What are you going on about?" the taller stallion groaned. "No one's there, can't you-hey!" Whatever he was going to say was cut off as Rainbow Dash wasted no time and bolted from her hiding place, running as fast as she could with the two officers in pursuit.
"Come back here!" they shouted, pulling their whistles from their pockets. "Stop right now!"
Rainbow Dash didn't dare look back, she just kept running, down dark allies, past shadowed buildings, their hoofsteps and whistles ringing loudly in his ears.
And then, she felt a hoof grab her by the scruff of her coat, and before she could even cry out, she felt her body being hauled up inside something.
She tried to twist herself around, to fight off her assailant, but the way she had been caught, she kept twisting herself even more in her coat. Her peg leg lashed out, hoping she could at least frighten her attacker if not hit them. But she froze when a voice finally spoke from the darkness.
"Relax Rainbow Dash, it's me, I won't harm you..."
She stopped fighting and felt the hoof release his collar. She then quickly turned around to see for herself if the voice were not a figment of her imagination. "Madame Luna?"
The dance mistress smiled at her. "Rather cold night to be out for a stroll, don't you think?" she casually asked as she leaned back in her seat. Rainbow Dash glanced around and realized she was inside a carriage. She looked back at the mare again, her body still tense from the narrow escape of the police officers, let alone the information she had just heard.
"How...how did you know where I was?" she finally asked as she felt her breathing return to normal.
Madame Luna softly smiled. "Like you, I too was spying on the police, although I'd be quite interested in hearing your reasons."
Rainbow Dash quickly looked away from the mare's hard cold eyes that could burn through stone. She knew that presently, the Master was not on speaking terms with the mare, however she was extremely grateful for the help she had offered, yet the Master was the one with whom she solely took orders from.
Madame Luna noticed the mare's silence, as well as her refusal to even look at her. "Did Discord ask you to spy on the police?" she simply asked, hoping that perhaps she would somehow give away something.
Still nothing.
"Well, it is rather obvious that Discord had asked you to do that," she continued. "After all, I know that you would never go out willingly, so there must have been a good reason as to why Discord had you come all the way here..." she murmured, her eyes still watching him closely.
Rainbow Dash still said nothing, yet she was beginning to fidget uncomfortably.
Madame Luna sighed, tired of playing silly games. "I know Discord has Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash."
Rainbow Dash turned her head and stared at Madame Luna, her eyes wide with shock. Before she could look away, Luna reached out and placed her hoof on her arm. "I can see it in your eyes, Rainbow Dash...and I know she is alive, or at least was a few weeks ago, because I saw her at the masquerade ball." She said nothing, but she did not look away.
Madame Luna sighed again, removing her hoof from Rainbow Dash's arm and leaning back once more, but her eyes remained locked with Rainbow Dash. "You know as well as I do that what Discord has done is wrong...and I need to speak with him, but he will not let me travel below as before."
Rainbow knew this much was true. Madame Luna knew of many entrances into Discord's realm; however there were far more that she did not know, and all the ones she did know had been locked or the traps had been changed. More or less, the world was truly locked out.
"Rainbow Dash please, I beg of you," Madame Luna pleaded, her voice soft and desperate, a sound that she and many others had never heard her speak. "Take me to Discord; let me at least speak with him one more time...at least for Fluttershy's sake."
Rainbow Dash's eyes fell to the carriage floor. "He will not be happy," she murmured.
Madame Luna reached out once more and tenderly touched her arm. "I fully take all the blame for my intrusion," she assured him, yet Rainbow Dash still felt uneasy about all this.
The carriage finally reached its destination, and the coachcolt immediately opened the door. Rainbow Dash hid behind the collar of her coat as he followed Madame Luna down. The dance mistress gave the driver several firm orders to return for her in an hour and wait for her by the front steps. She then turned to Rainbow Dash as the carriage pulled away, awaiting his decision. "May I speak with your master?" she asked once more, hoping that Rainbow Dash would at least do this much.
Rainbow Dash knew something was going on between the Master and Fluttershy, but what exactly, she was unsure. But now that she knew the whereabouts of her father, and that information she did feel responsible to deliver. While she had not warmed to Fluttershy the same way the others had, she did know she was kind, loyal, and most trustworthy; she deserved to be reunited with her father again.
And it was only a short period of time before she would leave for good. What did it matter now if it was sooner rather than later? Still, she could feel his heart sinking as she nodded his head to the dance mistress. She may take the full blame for trespassing, but she would still feel the blunt of it in some form.
"Follow me," Rainbow Dash said at last, leading her into darkness. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | End of Act One | End of Act I
"Touch me...trust me...savor each sensation..."
Discord felt his heart swell as he softly sang the lyrics on the parchment before him. He was adding the final touches to his song, which now had a proper title.
"Let the dream begin,
let your darker side give in,
to the power of the music that I write...
the power of the music of the night!"
His voice was filled with such deep emotion, and as he sang he envisioned her face before him, her beautiful eyes shimmering with tears, or perhaps fluttering closed as he had seen her do when he sang to her. Either way, he would fall to his knee at that point, taking her hoof in his, and hold the bracelet out to her. Discord could not help but smile as he imagined the surprise on her face when he would present the bracelet; he had found the perfect one after several long hours of searching. It was simple and elegant, much like his Fluttershy, yet the diamonds that it held, while not overwhelming, was indeed mesmerizing he had to admit. He was extremely pleased, both with his choice for a bracelet as well as with the song he had composed. Now he simply needed to find Shortround and inform him of his plans-
Discord paused as he heard hoofsteps approach his chamber. They were soft feminine hoofsteps, and he felt the grin spread even further across his face. "You're quite early, my dear, however I will forgive-"
"Hello Discord."
He froze at the sound of the voice, and felt his smile melt away, as did the color from his face. Slowly, he turned to face the mare who had spoken, yet his face was already prepared; the lines deeply set and the dark shadows already forming over his masked features to add an ominous touch to his already menacing glare.
"Madame Luna," he whispered, his own eyes matching the same cold orbs that gazed back at his.
Rainbow Dash stood a few steps behind her, her eyes locked with the ground, her body trembling slightly from the distinct chill the chamber now emanated. Discord merely glanced briefly at Rainbow Dash before coldly dismissing her. "Leave us," he ordered. Rainbow Dash did not need to be told twice, she quickly backed out of the chamber and could be heard running from the place.
Madame Luna waited until the mare could no longer be heard. "Do not be angry with Rainbow Dash, it was I who forced him to bring me here," she explained very dryly.
Discord turned his back on the mare and rearranged his new song under several heavy layers of parchment. "I do not blame him for bringing you here, I know you are quite capable of intimidating anypony," he dryly replied, before turning back and facing her, his arms folded across his chest.
Madame Luna smiled gently to herself. "Everypony, save for you, Discord," she murmured softly.
Discord said nothing; he simply waited for her to state her reasons for being there. Truth was, they had not been corresponding with one another since the night both Fluttershy and her father invaded his world. While they had not officially cut all ties between each other, the argument they had had left little discussion of renewing their "friendship", if one could call it that. Besides, neither of them were going to apologize, they were both far too stubborn for their own good. So he simply waited for her to speak and explain what was so important that she had to intimidate Rainbow Dash into bringing her down there.
Madame Luna recognized Discord's body language and got right to the point. "I know you have Fluttershy down here," she stated plainly.
Discord said nothing, nor did give any indication that her words affected him. She continued. "I saw her that night at the ball...I didn't realize it at first, but I thought something about her seemed familiar...and then I learned recently that the last time anyone had seen her was the night of the opening gala, the same night her father disappeared." She looked up at Discord to see any sign of acknowledgement, but found none. "Several stagehooves confessed to speaking with her and then seeing her disappear beneath the stage to search for her father who had also disappeared the same way...and you did not deny that Monsieur Time Turner had entered your world, if I recall," she added coolly.
"Nor did I confirm your suspicions," Discord replied, just as coolly. "I too remember that conversation, and you were quite quick to accuse me of murdering the old pony."
"I had good reason, due to your history," she icily hissed.
Discord found himself softly chuckling. "All too true, after all, I do abhor trespassers, ponies who simply arrive unannounced as if they own the place or something," he groaned, his statement all too clear as he gazed upon Madame Luna. "I would not do such a thing to somepony else's home...and a stallion does have the right to defend his own home, does he not?"
"Damn it Discord!" Madame Luna growled, her patience waning. "Enough of this, where is the mare?"
Discord leaned back against his piano, his arms still locked across his chest. His eyes speculated her for a moment while a soft cold smile spread across his face. "You claim she is here, after all, you said so yourself that you saw her. Although I must admit, I am rather shocked that it took you so long to put the pieces together. Yet perhaps you were simply avoiding a confrontation? I know I can strike fear into the hearts-"
"You do NOT frighten me!" Madame Luna practically shouted, her black-booted foot stomping down firmly on the ground. "Perhaps I did not wish to jump to such conclusions because I did not think you possible of committing such...such...vile villainy!"
Discord's cold smile vanished, as did any amusement that had lit his gaze. He glared at the mare before him and felt his muscles tense at her words. "Villainy, madam?"
"Yes!" she hissed, stepping towards him. "It would have been one thing to learn that she had disappeared after entering your world, to learn that her fate was the same as the others who trespassed...but Discord...this is not a matter of defense, this is pure villainy! When I realized that the mare you had pried from the Prince's embrace had the same hair, the same figure, the same height as Fluttershy-"
Discord was seething at these words. Was it possible that Madame Luna saw the Prince as some sort of hero?
"-I just never thought it possible that you had...that you had lowered yourself to such evil, to lock up an innocent mare for who knows how long, and to use her for...for..." she felt sick at even thinking such vile thoughts.
Discord had been accused of many things, and many of those things he had been accused of were sadly true. But he had never been accused of using a mare for such diabolical means as Madame Luna was referring to. Even he could not lower himself to that level of filth. In the past he had been guilty of using prostitutes to sate his savage urges, but he was by no means guilty of the acts the dance mistress now accused him of. And now, after so many months of learning about Fluttershy, of living with her, getting to know her, and at last loving her...hearing such horrid things and being accused of such atrocities was more than he could bear.
"Well, I must say that didn't take very long," he growled low and deep.
Madame Luna stared at him with confusion. "What didn't take very long?"
"To step in and be my judge and jury, accusing me of being a vile monster...but I suppose it's rather hard to not be accused of such things when one looks like a monster."
Madame Luna rolled her eyes heavenward, seeking patience from God above. "Damn it Discord, do not bring your face into this! Just tell me where the mare is!"
"No!" Discord barked, his amber eyes glowing like molten fire. "You do not TELL me what to do, madam! And how DARE YOU barge in here and accuse me of rape!"
Madame Luna eyed him coldly. "You deny, then, my accusations?"
Discord opened his mouth to speak and then stopped when a sound outside his chamber indicated that somepony was nearby and listening. "We will not discuss this further...at least not here," he growled, grabbing Madame Luna by the wrist and marching out of the chamber, dragging her behind.
Discord did not know who it was that had been listening, the eavesdropper had vanished by the time he and Madame Luna had exited the chamber, however it was only wise that they did move somewhere else to speak; the last thing he wanted was for his beautiful Fluttershy to walk in and see him strangling the dance mistress. And if he didn't calm his anger soon, that would be exactly what he would do.
Madame Luna had no idea where Discord was taking her, but said nothing; she was too busy trying to catch her breath from the brisk pace Discord was setting.
Finally, they arrived at the destination Discord had intended; the southern chambers where many props and the infamous costume cages were kept. Once there, Discord whirled around and practically pushed the mare away from him, his glare dark and menacing.
Madame Luna rubbed her wrist and eyed the masked creature suspiciously. He was hiding something; she could read it all over him, why else would he insist on carrying on this debate somewhere far from the ears of others? And yet, he had not admitted to holding Fluttershy captive either. Had she jumped to the wrong conclusions? "Answer me once and for all Discord; do you have her?"
Discord's eyes were dark slits of fire as he glared at the dance mistress. He didn't have to tell her anything, this was his home and Fluttershy was his business. And even if he didn't tell her he had Fluttershy, what went on between the two of them was their business! He owed no one anything...
Madame Luna decided it was time to change tactics. She wasn't going to get anywhere with this. "You surprise me Discord..." she began.
Discord shot her another death glare. "Good to know I can still keep you on your toes."
She ignored his icy comment. "I never thought you a stallion of mercy..."
Discord opened his mouth to speak, but paused at her words. What did she mean by that exactly? One minute she was accusing him of villainous acts, the next she was praising his clemency.
Madame Luna noticed his look of surprise and quickly continued. "You have quite an infamous reputation, as you well know. The Phantom of the Opera, who kills anypony who displeases him, especially trespassers-"
"I know of my own reputation, perhaps you should just say what you are babbling about."
Madame Luna eyed him one more time and nodded her head in agreement. "Very well. I saw Monsieur Time Turner this evening."
Discord practically lost his ice-cold composure at the mare's words. Fluttershy's father-he was alive! Yet Discord was a mastermind when it came to giving off a particular persona, and instantly regained the frigidness of his character. "What makes you think it was Time Turner? You said so yourself, you know of my reputation-I have killed stallions for less than what Time Turner did, what makes you feel so sure-"
"Rainbow Dash was the one who discovered him," she interrupted.
Discord's eyes went momentarily wide. He opened his mouth to respond, but once again, she cut in.
"Rainbow Dash also told me that she was at the prison because...you had ordered her to search for Time Turner."
A part of Discord wanted to throw all his rage at the peg legged mare, yet he knew that Rainbow Dash's icy nature was no match for Madame Luna's, and if the mare wanted information, she would get it. For the first time in his life, Discord began to realize what it must feel like to be under Madame Luna's cold hard hoof.
"I can only assume two reasons as to why you would give orders to know the whereabouts of Monsieur Time Turner. One, he escaped your clutches and you are tracking him down to forever silence his tongue, or two...you have other reasons, reasons to which I do not fully understand, but reasons that point to the fact that you ARE keeping Fluttershy!"
"ENOUGH!" Discord shouted, his temper hitting a breaking point. He refused to feel like a bug in a jar in his own domain. "Perhaps your first guess is correct; perhaps Time Turner somehow escaped and I wish to know where he is to be sure he will not have mobs barging down here and destroying not only my life, but the lives of several others!"
Madame Luna cocked a dark brow at these words. "Yet no one has escaped your realm...this place, this labyrinth, is so diligently armed against trespassers...Time Turner could not have escaped, at least not without somepony who knows the workings of your traps. It is far more likely to believe you showed mercy on another being, than it is to believe you would be so careless as to allow someone to easily escape."
Discord's head was throbbing at the constant change from accusations to bewildered praise. She was playing some sort of game with him, trying to get him to reveal something he did not wish to reveal. "State your theories, madam," Discord growled deep and low. "I grow weary of both you and this discussion."
Madame Luna lifted her chin. "Very well. I believe you released Time Turner, although why I do not know. Perhaps-" she gasped and a hoof flew to her mouth as she put the pieces together. "Fluttershy...she offered her life for his! And you took it! You took her in exchange for Time Turner!"
"Like lambs to the slaughter," Discord grumbled, his arms folding once more across his wide chest.
Madame Luna was now the one who looked horrified. "Oh God Discord, I...I did not want to believe you capable of-"
"I WILL NOT STAND BY AND HAVE YOU INSULT ME SO GRAVELY AS YOU DID BEFORE!" Discord shouted, his voice reverberating off the cavern walls. "I NEVER LAID A PAW ON HER! NOT ONCE DID I FORCE MYSELF UPON HER, NOT ONCE DID I RAISE A CLAW TO STRIKE HER! SHE CAME HERE ON HER OWN ACCORD AND SHE STAYS ON HER OWN ACCORD!" His chest was heaving from his shouting, the words still echoing all around them.
Madame Luna stared at him wide-eyed, her mouth open but no sound coming out. A realization dawned upon her as the last puzzle piece slowly fell into its place. "My God..." she whispered. "You love her."
Discrd quickly turned his back to the mare and began to march out of the chamber, not caring what happened to her, just needing to be away from her before he gave in to temptation and wrap a Punjab lasso around her neck.
"She remains here because you love her! And...and that is why you were looking for Time Turner; it was all done for her, not for yourself!"
Discord halted and Madame Luna, who had been following his tall shadowy form close behind, almost slammed into him. "You will leave this place...and you will leave now," he growled, dangerously low. "I will not ask you again."
Madame Luna remained where she was and she watched his figure retreat into the darkness. She knew that she was playing with fire by continuing to stand where she was and even call out to him...but she had to be heard at least one last time. Fluttershy was down here, and she had a right to know about her father, she had a right to be in a world filled with sunshine, nature, and ponies. She had a right to live.
"What are you going to do about Time Turner?" she cried out to his retreating form.
Discord knew he shouldn't turn around, every fiber was telling him to ignore the mare, to go back to his chambers and to prepare for Fluttershy. This was not Madame Luna's business, nor was it the business of others for that matter! He loved Fluttershy, he worshipped her, he would give up his music for her, and she had told him so many times, as well as shown him, that she dearly loved him.
...yet what had he done to deserve her love?
He took her father from her, made her a prisoner, forced her to live a life underground with a bunch of carnival freaks, trained her to sing to the point of causing herself physical pain...and then took her virginity, thus defiling her before God.
But she did all these things willingly cried out a voice inside him. Did she not give her body to you? Did she not take joy in your music? Did she not make all these decisions on her own? He never truly possessed her, because she was her own person!
And she forgave him, the angel that she was. She forgave him for taking her father away.
...and now was the opportunity to make things right.
"Discord..." he practically flinched as he felt Madame Luna's hoof touch his arm. "Never in my life did I believe it possible that...that you would come to know the joy of love-and yet, love also carries a tremendous burden."
He shook her hoof off his arm. "Do not talk to me about love, madam. Whatever love you have felt in life does not even begin to compare to Fluttershy."
"I know..." she sighed, taking a step away from him. "The love my late husband and I shared is nothing like the love you share for Fluttershy. And the reason that is, is because REAL love demands sacrifice."
Discord stared at her, a sick feeling boiling in the pit of his stomach.
"Both my husband and I made sacrifices for each other. We both had to give up things we wanted, make hard choices, and live with one another's consequences. And yet we did these things because we wanted the other to be happy-our happiness was entwined with the happiness of the other. Did you know why I stopped dancing Discord? The dance mares say it is because of an injury, but that is not true. I healed from the injury to my knee, I could return to dancing anytime I wished! But I didn't...because my husband had fallen ill and needed me by his side. I gave up dancing for him, something I am very passionate about, but I realized that no matter how much I love dancing...it does not even compare to the love I feel for my husband." She pulled out a tiny framed picture from her purse and looked down at the old photograph tenderly. "After he died, I dedicated my strength to my daughter. When I see her, I see him..." she sighed, placing the picture back inside her purse. "Twilight will be a great star one day...and he will live on through her." She lifted her eyes once more to Discord's and locked them with his. "That is the burden of love Discord...it gives joy, but it also demands sacrifice. Fluttershy sacrificed herself for her father, because she loves him! She has chosen to live in a world of darkness when what she needs is light! She needs warmth, she needs fresh air, she needs-no, she deserves the family that you have robbed from her!"
Discord was struck by these words as if somepony had clobbered him with a heavy club. "Giving a mare gifts is not the same as putting her wants ahead of yours. Keeping her here as your own caged songbird is not love...its selfish possessiveness disguising itself as enduring affection." She took a step away from him, her eyes glowing like beacons on a stormy night. "Goodbye, Discord...I will not disturb you again." Without so much as another look, she turned on her heel and disappeared down a dark cavern that led back to the outside world, leaving him there in the cold tunnel, a tunnel that did not seem to possess such bitterness, until now.
It seemed like hours had passed.
Discord remained in the tunnel long after Madame Luna had bid him farewell.
The mare's words had a damn nuisance of penetrating his soul. He recalled that horrible time she compared him to the Prince; now was no different, he felt numb all over from the sting of her truthfulness.
Fluttershy's father was alive. This was both wonderful and terrible.
In truth, Discord had forgotten the old stallion. And would he be lying if a part of him had even been hoping that Time Turner would not be found? Discord cursed himself for his selfishness; if Time Turner remained unfound, yes it would mean Fluttershy had no choice but to stay with him...but was that what he wanted?
No. He did not want Fluttershy staying with him because she had no other choice...he wanted her to stay because she wanted to stay; hence his plan to propose to her.
And Fluttershy, while she may deny it now, would live to resent him for the rest of her life. She would inwardly blame him for the death of her father, and she would not be wrong. And that hatred would fester and eat away at her soul until there was no love left-and all that remained was a hollow shell of the mare that once responded to his touch. He would truly become the monster that he was before her eyes...and he would not blame her.
Damn it all! What a fool he had been! To even begin to believe that somepony like him could be happy; could have a mare like Fluttershy with him for the rest of his life. He was cursed to remain in darkness, to haunt the shadows and thirst for the simple pleasures of pony existence.
A puddle of water pooled near his feet and he caught sight of his masked reflection. In anger, his hoof came crashing down on the puddle, sending the water splattering every which way, distorting the reflection from his eyes.
Why had he believed himself to be more than what he was? Damn love, damn dreams, and damn Fluttershy! If she had left him to die in the streets of Maris that one night, he would never know this pain he was now feeling.
She was to blame for all this. She came into his life, turned his world upside down, and then did the unthinkable: she fell in love with the monster. And he all too eagerly allowed himself to be caught in the web her love created.
But creatures like him were not meant to find happiness with others. Creatures like him were not meant to know the joys of the flesh, they were not meant to feel the warmth of a mare's arms, and they certainly were not meant to feel the equal of stallions who had no need to hide their faces behind masks.
That was when the song that had haunted his heart since the first night he had laid in Fluttershy's arms, began to fill his head.
"Turn your face away from the garish light of day..." he whispered, the lyrics now so familiar to him. "Dare you trust the music of the night..."
Discord's paw rose to his head and pulled at his dark hair as if wishing to rip it out. Then, with a angry cry, he threw his head back and let all the caverns hear the pain and rage that filled his being.
He began to run.
He was flying through the caverns as if trying to escape something.
That song. It kept playing over and over inside his head, and it was mixed with another song...that damn lullaby Fluttershy had sung to him several nights ago. She called him angel, she thought of him as her personal angel! Damn her, he cursed. She made him believe that he could perhaps be that for her too; he should have known better.
He needed to destroy it. He needed to find the song he had written and destroy it quickly before the pain engulfed him.
He flew to the entrance of his chambers, determined to thrust the parchment into the fire before its haunting melody inflicted him further, before its lyrics of love and hope mocked him again, before-
"Discord!"
Discord halted the second he entered the chamber, gasping at the sight before him.
Good God...she was vision.
Fluttershy stood before him; her cheeks pink and her smile warm, radiating a glow that stabbed at his heart. She was wearing the ivory gown he had requested that she wear, and the rose he had left on her bed was in her wild and lovely pink hair. She stood before him, smiling with blushing pride, her hooves holding onto the folds of her gown, as if trying to show him that she had done what he had requested, hoping he would be proud.
Was it possible for this mare to look any lovelier? Why was it that every time he saw her, she seemed to glow with even more beauty?
Her smile was so radiating, so beautiful...
He never thought it possible to despise that smile until now.
"Fluttershy..." he simply whispered.
She grinned and did a small curtsy. "Thank you for inviting me, and for the rose," she blushed, her grin spreading further as she touched the fragile flower.
Discord felt his heart being torn to shreds. Did she have to look at him like that? Did she have to grin like that?
"I confess, I was hoping that perhaps we could rehearse that song from Don Juan? The song where both Aminta and Don Juan sing of their love to one another?" she asked timidly, her hooves reaching out for his.
Discord froze at her words. Anything but that right now...God give him strength.
"I know that you believe music can always be perfected, but I do so love it, and it's so beautiful, oh please Discord, I want to sing that with you-"
She had been reaching for him then, her small beautiful hooves almost touching his, her sweet lips tilted upward to kiss his own. One touch of her hoof would be his undoing, let alone one kiss.
Discord pulled away from her before Fluttershy could reach him, a move that caused Fluttershy momentary alarm. Her smile slowly began to vanish and she could read from his body language that something was not right. Perhaps he needed to discuss with her something about the opera before they moved on to rehearsing?
"Forgive me," she apologized. "I was getting ahead of myself, it was you who asked for me to come, and therefore you have matters of great importance you wish to discuss. Please Discord, tell me what-"
She had been reaching for him again, and once more, Discord pulled away from her before she could touch him. This time Fluttershy knew something was wrong by the way Discord moved...and by the way his eyes adverted hers. "Discord? What's wrong..." she whispered, a soft trembling in her voice.
Discord cursed himself as he heard the sudden change of tone in her voice. He was causing this worry, this growing apprehension that something was wrong. And while he knew that it would break his heart, to do what he had to do, it was the only way to truly free her from the cage he had placed her in.
"There will be no need to rehearse Don Juan and Aminta's song," he said harshly, his back still turned to her.
Fluttershy felt a chill wash over her, but chose to ignore it. "Discord, I know you are a perfectionist, but you have already achieved perfection! The song can not be perfected further, it-"
"You misunderstand me," he cut in, his tone razor sharp. Fluttershy stared at his back, her arms wrapping around her body in an attempts to fight off the growing chill that was spreading. "There will be no need to rehearse the song..." he growled, slowly turning to face her, "...because I have removed it completely from the opera."
Fluttershy stared at him, her eyes wide with disbelief. "W-w-what?"
"Don't pretend to be deaf Fluttershy, you have a sweet little voice, but lack talent when it comes to acting."
His words bit into her like a snake striking its victim. What was wrong with him? Why was he behaving so coldly, so maliciously?
"What's wrong Discord? What happened?" she approached him swiftly, her hoof reaching for him, but he moved away from her with more grace than a pony half his size could possess. Even his movements stung her.
"Nothing is wrong my dear, in fact, nothing could be better. I saw the error of my ways and handled the problem immediately."
She stared at him as if she had never known this creature in her life. She was beginning to think that was possible. "The problem?"
He said nothing, simply strode over to the organ, found several pieces of parchment, and without a glance in her direction, proceeded to throw the parchment into the fire that warmed the whole chamber. Fluttershy watched in horror as he paid no attention to her and went about his task as if it were something he commonly did.
"Discord!" she practically screeched his name as panic was beginning to take hold. "What are you doing? What do you mean by 'problem'?"
He sighed and lifted his eyes to hers. "Kindly lower your voice madam, at least to a level that will not cause dogs to howl."
Fluttershy stared at him in shock from the biting remark. She could feel tears beginning to sting her eyes. "WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!?!"
"NOTHING!" Discord roared, turning on her, anger flashing wildly in his eyes. "Why must something be wrong with me? Perhaps nothing is wrong with me, perhaps I am simply seeing the light for once!"
Fluttershy took a step back, truly feeling afraid of him for the first time since the night she traded her life for her father's. Discord took notice of the way she looked at him, of the way she trembled, and instead of retreating, simply advanced. "I played your game Fluttershy, I knew that if I didn't make those changes and wrote your precious love song, that your nagging would never end! It was for my own sanity that I wrote that song, not out of any favors to you," he mocked, his words cutting and spitting with fire.
Her eyes were shimmering with cold tears. Who was this stallion that stood before her? This was not the stallion she had fallen in love with, this was not the pony she had willingly given her body to almost every night. This was...was...
"A monster?" he simply asked.
Fluttershy's eyes widened at his words. "W-w-what? I...I never said..."
"I can easily read what you're thinking, it's not very hard actually, and you're quite easy to comprehend."
Fluttershy felt a flare of anger ignite within her. "Am I?"
Discord smiled, a cold calculating smile that held no warmth or affection. "Quite. After all, look at what you read! Gothic romances filled with mystery, intrigue, and passion. It wasn't hard to seduce you at all...a few songs, several late night rendezvous', not to mention a midnight waltz on New Year's Eve...yes, it was rather easy getting you into bed actually. And all I had to do to keep you there was simply tell you what you wanted to hear-"
Fluttershy screamed with rage and raised her hoof to slap his uncovered cheek, but his strong powerful grip caught her wrist before it could make contact, squeezing and twisting the skin until she whimpered. "That was rude," he hissed. "At least let me finish before you attempt to strike me down with your little fists of fury." He released her wrist and she stumbled back, clutching her arm to her chest, her whole body trembling with both rage and sorrow. "As I was saying," he continued as if nothing had happened. "Filling your head with words of love was a guaranteed way of keeping your back on the mattress and your thighs parted-"
Discord ducked just in time as Fluttershy picked up a vase and hurled it at his head. She then wasted no time with screaming her attack and throwing herself at him, her hooves attacking his face and chest, ripping the mask off and attempting to scratch his eyes out.
Discord was momentarily stunned by the strength she possessed and found himself fighting her off with some difficulty. He knew his Fluttershy could do anything if she truly put her mind to it, and right now, nothing would please her more than to kill him.
Good. That would at least make her pain less when she left his world forever.
He finally managed to push the little hellion off him, shoving her so hard that she fell backwards and landed with a loud thud. He bent then to retrieve his mask that she had removed, the whole time keeping his eyes on her in case she attempted to attack him again.
She didn't. Instead, she found herself, much to her own disgust, weeping in deep misery. Her strength had only been momentary, now it had been sucked out of her completely. She felt so tired, physically, mentally, and most especially, in her heart. So tired that she could not fight off the tears; they flowed down her cheeks freely, like two ice-cold waterfalls.
Discord slowly placed the mask back on his face, his tongue tasting blood at the corner of his mouth. Fluttershy had not been entirely unsuccessful in her attack. He gazed down at the girl before him, the mare he had reduced to a weeping heap with only a few words. It hurt, God how it hurt, seeing her like that, hearing her sorrow, her misery...but it was the only way...
"I don't know what's happened to you," she whispered, her tear-stained face lifting to meet his eyes. "But I can not...I do not believe that...that it was all a lie..."
"Whatever makes you happy my dear," Discord grumbled, moving past her without another look. He sat himself down at his organ and began to play a few notes from the overture of Don Juan Triumphant. Fluttershy watched him as he played, seeing how rigid he sat, noticing that there was no passion in the way he played. Slowly, she scrambled to her feet.
"You love me Discord, I know you do!"
He ignored her and continued playing, although every fiber in his being screamed at him to answer her.
She sighed and began to approach him, determined to not let him push her away again. "I don't know why you're doing this, saying these things and behaving in such a way, but I KNOW that you love me! I've felt your love! I've seen it!"
His playing did not cease, nor did his concentration. Fluttershy felt the anger rise within her again and she reached out and grabbed him by the shoulders, forcing him to turn and face her. "DAMN IT DISCORD, YOU WILL ANSWER ME!"
He flew to his feet as he felt her tiny hooves grip his shoulders, whirling about so quickly that she almost stumbled backwards. He caught her by the shoulders before she fell, but his touch was not tender.
This will be the hardest part I have ever had to play...
"Love you? Good God, is that what you think? That I love you?"
To Fluttershy's horror, Discord began to laugh. A deep menacing laugh that filled her with dread and made her flesh crawl. She writhed in his arms, but not the way she writhed within them before. Then, it was because of the extreme pleasure they were experiencing together...now, it was out of pure hatred and disgust. She wanted to be far away from him, she didn't want to feel his touch; she didn't want to remember what it felt like to lay within his arms and feel his body cover hers. She wanted the stallion she loved, her Phantom, to come back to her...not this creature who harshly held her and was laughing manically in her face. Who was this creature]?
God forgive me...
"Truth be Fluttershy, I've had my fill of you. In fact, you were growing, for lack of betters words, somewhat tiresome," he spat.
Forgive me Fluttershy...although I do not deserve it...
"I am a stallion nearly 20 years your elder. You're nothing but a mere child; while you are spirited, your youth lacks imagination to keep a grown stallion satisfied for very long."
God this hurts, seeing her flinch...seeing her cry. Kill me now, please...
"However, you are only a country mare, and the only rituals of mating that you are acquainted with is that of farm animals. Pity then, that you did not understand fully that stallions are predatory beasts; when we find prey that we hunger for, we'll do anything necessary to capture it.
Hate me Fluttershy; I never deserved your love. Hate me and leave this place, never looking back...
"In your case, it was telling you that I loved you, when in reality-" Fluttershy gasped in terror when his paw stroked her chest. "-all I wanted was to sup at the delights you eagerly displayed before me."
"GET YOUR PAW OFF ME!" she screamed, her hooves clawing away at his paw that continued to grip her. She had never felt so disgusted in all her life.
End this now; just tell me that you hate me Fluttershy, please...end this suffering!
"What's wrong my dear? I thought you loved me," he mocked, his paw moving down to her thigh. His other arm held her tight to his body so that she could not escape while his paw began to pull at the hem of her gown. "Isn't this what you wanted? I thought you loved the way I touched you...I thought you loved the way I made you feel..." his breath was hot against her neck, but the shivers it caused Fluttershy were not shivers of pleasure.
Fight me, Fluttershy! Lash out, strike me own! HATE ME!
"Don't you want the Phantom of the Opera to buck you?"
"NOOOOOOOOOO!" she screamed, her knee wiggling free from Discord's powerful hold of her body and with all the strength she could, kneeing him hard in the groin, causing him to let her go and stumble backwards.
Had Discord not reached out to grip a stone bust that was near, he would have fallen to the ground from her sudden attack.
Well done Fluttershy, I'm so proud of you...
"Don't you EVER touch me again!" she spat, moving around the piano to keep the instrument between both herself and him.
Discord slowly rose back to his full height, although panting still from the painful blow she had caused. "Touche my dear, you caught me entirely unawares. You fight well...for a mare."
Fluttershy's cheeks flared a hot shade of pink at his words.
"I was wrong...you still have that spirit I admire so," he sighed, moving away from where she stood and retreate back to the organ.
I will never touch her again. Fly away, my angel, fly away from this Hell...
"Your spirit was one of the reasons to why I decided to keep you those many months ago. I thought a sweet little hellion like you could make things interesting in bed for at least some time-not to mention you would be light on my purse."
FLuttershy's eyes went wide at his meaning. "I am no whore!"
No, you are an angel, an angel who deserves freedom from the demon that I am...
He cocked a brow. "Really? Are you sure? What would you call yourself then? A mistress perhaps? No, that won't do at all, even mistresses are given an allowance; well, whatever you were, I won't deny that you were worth every penny," Discord then reached for a black wooden box that sat near his organ, and from inside it, he withdrew a small gray bag. "I think that shall cover all expenses between then and now."
Fluttershy stared at the bag in his paw and then back at him. Was he joking? Was he actually telling her he thought of her as nothing but a streetwalking whore?
Take it, Fluttershy. Take it and leave this place!
"Come now Fluttershy, even if your pride is hurt, I would take the money if I were you...you'll need it when searching for a new residence."
Her eyes had narrowed to hate-filled slits. "You bastard..." she hissed. "I will take NOTHING of yours! I WANT NOTHING TO DO WITH YOU!"
She's right, you are a bastard and deserve every cruelty life gives you. Just tell her what she needs to know and end this suffering before it's too late!
Discord sighed and tossed the bag down on the ground. "You may wish to reconsider my offer. If you will not take it to use for yourself, then you may wish to have it when you go to the prison to release your father."
Fluttershy's face paled at Discord's words. Time had truly stopped. His words were still echoing in her ears when she finally found her voice again. "M-m-my f-father?"
Discord kept his stone countenance even though what he was about to tell her would perhaps hurt most of all. "Well of course...it's time that you know the truth my dear," he sighed, turning his back on her and facing his music again.
Don't look at her; don't look into her angel eyes. They're filled with hate, which is what you deserve!
"Your father has been rotting in a Maris prison for at least several months now...poor stalllion, probably thinks your dead."
Fluttershy stared at his back, both shocked as well as vengeful. "Y-y-y-you've known? You've known all this time?!"
Iscord took a deep breath and put on a calculating grin before he turned to face her once more. "Of course my dear...but I couldn't have my mistress leaving my lair for a pitiful old stallion when I was far from done with her, now could I?"
Go find your father and never come back, Fluttershy. I free you from this prison, I free you from my heart...
A part of Fluttershy wanted to kill him; she wanted to lift that bust that stood near his organ and throw it down upon his head! Or at the very least, she wanted to burn all his precious music. But another part of her just couldn't believe that this creature, this creature who she thought had loved her, who she had foolishly given her heart to...had known all this time where her father was, but had purposefully kept the information from her so that she would stay and...
Her stomach churned with revulsion at the many memories of their nights together.
Discord watched the conflict of emotions flash across her beautiful tear-stained face. It took every nerve in his body to not go to her, fall to his knees, and beg forgiveness for the horrid way he had treated her, for the terrible things he had said. He did love her, he loved her more than anything in this world...but damn Madame Luna, she was right; Fluttershy was not meant for this existence and he had been a fool to believe that it could possibly be true.
Painful as it was, this was the only way to let her go and know that at least she would not have to suffer the same pain he would suffer for the rest of his life. Better that she hates me than wallow in sorrowful misery.
"My offer still stands Fluttershy," he said, breaking the silence. She glanced at him and then glanced down at the bag of money he had thrown on the ground. She didn't want to take his money, by doing so she would be admitting, at least to him, that she had been his whore all this time.
But her father needed her, and if what Discord said was true...
Her pride could be put aside for this. She quickly snatched the money up and cradled it to her breast, backing away from him before he could reach out and grab her again.
Discord looked at her for a long moment, before turning his back on her and resuming his playing. "Take the boat and go out the way I showed you that leads towards the stage."
He said nothing more, he simply continued his playing, the notes growing louder and louder so that he would not have to hear her tiny hooves dash out of the chamber and leave his world forever.
He played for what felt like hours, the blisters on his paw and claw breaking from the way he pounded the keys. He did not wish to stop, for if he did, he may hear her go, or he may turn and see her still standing there. He didn't know what he would do if she were still there-he did not think he would be able to let her go then.
"Master?"
Discord gasped at the sound, and then let out a long shaky sigh as he turned to face Shortround, who stood there, holding his bible in one hoof, his face filled with concern.
"Master? I know that you had wished me to come to your chamber tonight...but..." something was troubling the stallion. Discord said nothing; he just waited until Shortround finally finished his thoughts. "Is something wrong? I...I saw Fluttershy a short time ago...she...she looked so upset."
Discord felt his heart burst at the stallion's words. He could only imagine the pain that must have been written across his Fluttershy's lovely face.
"Master...what has happened? She held several small bundles in her arms; she was going to the lake...she was crying. Master, is she all right? Please...what has happened?"
Discord looked away, his focus drawing now to a copy of the song he had composed for Don Juan and Aminta to sing. "I let her go..." was he all said.
Shortround's eyes widened at his master's words. "You...you what?" Fluttershy was gone? She was leaving, never to return? "How...why...why did you let her go?"
Discord still kept his eyes focused on the song. "It was necessary...I had to..."
Shortround's head was reeling with questions. "But why Master? I...I thought...I thought that perhaps..." he had been so sure, for so many weeks now that something had happened between the Master and Fluttershy. Something good...or so he thought.
"Because..." Discord sighed, turning his eyes to the other stallion's, eyes that for the first time ever, revealed tears to his friends, "...I love her."
Shortround's face paled and his eyes widened at the Master's revelation. It had been true...after all this time, the dark, cold, menacing Phantom of the Opera...had fallen in love.
Yet before Shortround could say more, Discord had leapt to his feet, a frantic look washing over his face. He pushed past the stallion, and began racing out the entrance of his chamber, flying through the cavern tunnels, climbing the endless steps and passages of the Maris Opera House, until at last, he reached the familiar stairs that led to the roof. He burst the door open and ran to the ledge, his eyes wild, seeking out a familiar figure amongst the darkened streets.
It was snowing, and snowing very hard. Discord could barely see through all the snow what he was looking for. He peered through the flakes and shadows, scanning the horizon, until...at last...his eyes fell on a small figure, running down one of the main streets.
She had changed her clothes, and was wearing that blue dress she had worn the first day she had arrived. The coat she wore was flimsy and would never keep her properly warm. Her arms held small bundles, and she clutched the bundles tightly to her chest. Discord watched, his eyes wild, as the figure continued to run, faster and faster it seemed, down the street until finally, turning a corner and disappearing from his sight forever.
He lowered his head then, his paw and claw gripping the ledge, his blood turning the snow red. The sobs came then...long and desperate. The tears flowed down his cheeks like molten fire. He threw his head back and screamed his cry of agony for the entire world to hear.
"FLUTTERSHY!!!" |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Entre Act | Entre Act
The housekeeper grumbled in irritation as she approached the pounding door. It was the middle of the night, and she was a having a wonderful dream of being a queen in a far away land with servants of her own to tend to her every need. And then, the irritating pounding came, awaking her from her make-believe paradise. Who on God's green earth would be calling this time of night?
She opened the door a crack, only letting the knocker see her face. "Here now! What on earth are you doing at this ungodly hour?" she snapped.
A young mare stood on the door step, several bundles cradled in her arms, her hair a great mass of tangled waves, covered in snowflakes, and she wore a thin coat, one that did not look very warm, proven by the fact that she was shivering and her teeth were chattering. "P-please, I...I n-n-need to...to s-s-speak w-w-with Madame L-l-luna..."
The housekeeper eyed the waif with suspicion. "Do you know what hour it is? Madame is sound asleep, and so should I! Do your begging somewhere else and leave this door step at once!"
The housekeeper moved away and attempted to shut the door, but Fluttershy's hoof shot out, catching the door before it fully closed. "Please...l-let me speak w-w-w-with her...I b-b-beg of you..."
The housekeeper frowned and attempted to push Fluttershy away. "Go away, you vile, disgusting, little-"
"What seems to be the problem, Sandy?"
Fluttershy looked past the angry housekeeper and felt relief wash over her at the sight of Twilight Sparkle. "Oh, Twilight, please...I...I n-need to speak with-"
"Don't go bothering the young miss!" the housekeeper retorted in Fluttershy's face. "Just some pauper attempting to take advantage of Madame's charity," she informed Twilight.
"Sandy wait!" Twilight placed a hoof on the mare's shoulder and pried the housekeeper away from the door. "Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy wanted to smile, so happy to see somepony she knew, but she was cold, tired, and emotionally exhausted after everything she had endured that night. The smile was fleeting, and gave way to a cascade of tears that were only inevitable. Twilight ignored the housekeeper's harsh words about letting a beggar in, and drew Fluttershy inside the small home of the ballet mistress and her daughter.
"My Goodness, you're frozen all over!" Twilight gasped at the feel of Fluttershy's hooves. "Come, sit here, and I'll fetch Cosmic to build you a fire and Sandy will make you some hot tea."
The housekeeper's eyes widened at the mention of her name. "I most certainly will not! You can't go trusting some homeless waif that shows up on our doorstep just because-"
"Do as my daughter says, Soles," came a cold voice from above.
All heads turned to the top of the narrow staircase to see Madame Luna descend the steps, tying a dark robe around her body. "Twilight, go wake Cosmic to build that fire, and then fetch Mademoiselle Fluttershy a clean night gown, as well as a robe. Soles, make us a whole pot of hot spiced tea."
It wasn't a request, it was a clear demand. The housekeeper eyed Fluttershy warily one last time, before grumbling and disappearing in the way of the kitchen. Twilight also disappeared to fetch the other servant to build the fire, as well as to get clean clothes for Fluttershy. She sat alone with Madame Luna in the small parlor; the snow that had crowned her curls had now melted and left her hair a cold wet mass.
Cosmic, the other servant, entered the room and quickly went to work lighting the parlor's fireplace. Twilight then returned with fresh nightclothes for Fluttershy and took the young mare to her room where Fluttershy could change. Fluttershy then returned to the parlor, where Madame Luna sat, sipping some of the spiced tea that Soles had brought. "Feel any better my dear?" she softly asked as Fluttershy sat down across from her.
Fluttershy slowly nodded her head, but Madame Luna could tell the mare was going through an emotional conflict of great proportions. "Thank you Twilight, Soles," Madame Luna softly dismissed. Sandy Soles was all too grateful to go back to bed, yet Twilight hesitated.
"Are you sure mama? I don't mind-"
"Thank you dear, but you need your rest, tomorrow will be a very busy day with rehearsals for the new opera," she said in a low voice, her eyes never leaving Fluttershy's face.
Fluttershy practically flinched at the mention of Discord's opera. She had forgotten all about it, and wondered if that had been a lie too. Did Discord really think she had potential for being a great singer? Or were the lessons his way of keeping her there longer so that he could eventually bed her?
Strange...he seemed so genuine when he told her how he wanted to change the ending of Don Juan. He also seemed so sincere when he told her he loved her...
Had she been so blind? Or was Discord truly that good of an actor? She didn't know what to think, she was so confused.
"Drink this my dear, it will help," Madame Luna soothed, holding a cup out to Fluttershy. She had been watching the mare ever since she came into the house. She had this distant look in her eyes, the look of one who had experienced some sort of horrifying trauma. Had she been wrong? Perhaps Discord was not in love with Time Turner's daughter, perhaps her worst fears were correct and Discord had taken advantage of the poor mare, using her for whatever purposes he wished to have sated.
Yet she remembered how Discord turned away with disgust at the mention of raping Fluttershy. It was not just his own honor that he was defending then, but she felt that perhaps he had been defending Fluttershy's as well. Yet love can blind people, she reminded herself. Discord may believe himself in love with Fluttershy, but that didn't mean he was doing what was right by her. Fluttershy had been locked away for months down there, and even if Discord had not laid one hoof on her, it was still extremely traumatic to be taken away, locked up, and have one's own family removed.
And yet Discord had been looking for Time Turner, something he had been clearly doing for Fluttershy. Perhaps he was beginning to see the light of his errors.
"I'm glad you came here," Madame Luna whispered, leaning across and placing a soothing hoof on Fluttershy's. "You did the right thing, coming here."
Fluttershy hadn't been paying attention until she felt Madame Luna's hoof touch hers. Her mind was far away, in a darker place, with the memory of the stallion she loved, God help her, the stallion she still loved...and yet it had all been an illusion.
"I didn't know where else to go," she softly murmured.
Madame Luna smiled, yet it was a sad smile, one full of pity for the young mare. "You are always welcome here, my dear. Should anything ever happen, you will always have a place here."
Fluttershy looked down at the teacup she held in her hooves. "Thank you," she whispered. Then, suddenly, her memory stirred to why she had sought out Madame Luna in the first place. "My father!" Fluttershy gasped, the teacup almost falling off her lap. "He is being held in a Maris prison! We must go to him! Please, we must free him at once-"
"Hush my dear, I promise you we shall, but we must wait till dawn, then we shall go at once and release him."
Fluttershy looked at Madame Luna, a puzzled expression written across her face. It was then that she thought it odd that the dance mistress hadn't even questioned to where either she, or her father, had been all this time. True, Fluttershy reminded herself, Celestia had fired her in front of both Madame Luna and the managers, and therefore the dance mistress may not have assumed Fluttershy had been missing this whole time. But to suddenly show up on her doorstep without warning...and to blindly accept everything Fluttershy was saying...
Did Madame Luna know more than she was letting on?
"You say that as though...you're not surprised to learn he is in jail..." Fluttershy whispered, a new feeling of anxiety coming over her.
Madame Luna recognized the emotion the young mare was feeling and reached out, grasping both of Fluttershy's hooves in her own. "My dear, I only just learned the news tonight...and...I only just made the discovery about...about you being kept below by Discord, tonight as well," she sighed.
Fluttershy's eyes widened further at Madame Luna's revelation. "You...you know Discord?"
The older mare nodded her head, releasing Fluttershy's hooves and leaning back in the chair she sat on. "Yes, I know him," she sighed again and looked down at her own teacup. "One could say I was his...liaison to the outside world. The Phantom's representative to the world above."
"Of course," Fluttershy murmured, the pieces of this strange puzzle falling together. "How else would he have gotten food, fabric for clothing, even the money..."
Madame Luna lifted a dark brow at Fluttershy's words. "Money?"
Fluttershy nodded her head and then reached down, picking up one of the small bundles that she had carried in with her. She opened the bundle, reveling a cascade of gold coins. "He..." Fluttershy stopped momentarily to wipe one of her cheeks. "That is, the Phantom...he gave this to me..." she did not wish to explain the full reasons why Discord had given her the money, but she could tell the older mare her intentions. "He knew about my father too," she whispered. "He said I could use the money to free him."
Madame Luna nodded her head with understanding. She had provided Discord and his little family with many things over the years; food, fabric for clothes, parchment for music, books, candles, oil for lamps, and many other things. Yet she never gave him money, for she knew he would only waste it on prostitutes. She was aware that Discord had developed the art of pick pocketing, although he justified his stealing by only taking money from those who could more than afford it, such as the Prince. If Blueblood only knew how much money he was losing every night he went to the opera...
However, seeing this huge pile of money that Fluttershy had revealed caused the dance mistress to take pause and think about Discord in a new light. She had many thoughts go through her head when she saw Fluttershy that night; she had hoped her words would have softened Discord to at least the thought of releasing Fluttershy, but she had not expected that he would have done it so soon. Also, he had revealed to the girl that her father was in jail; yet something about the way Fluttershy had said, "he knew about my father too", caused Madame Luna's brow to crease with confusion. Fluttershy made it sound as if Discord had known for some time that Time Turner was in jail, which she knew for a fact was not true. Discord always tried to give off a stony exterior, yet when she had delivered the news to him earlier that night about Time Turner, he had been taken completely by surprise.
What had transpired between both Discord and Fluttershy after she left?
"That is a hearty fortune my dear," Madame Luna murmured, taking another sip from her teacup. "It will certainly be enough to help your father," she added, hoping to give Fluttershy a chance to smile.
Foolish notion, she thought to herself. The poor mare had just learned that her father, who had been missing all these months, was in jail somewhere in Maris. She wouldn't be happy until she and the old stallion were reunited. "Come," Madame Luna sighed, rising from her chair and reaching to take Fluttershy's teacup. "There is a spare bedroom next door to Soles's. I wish I could offer you better, especially a place away from my grumpy housekeeper," she muttered. Madame Luna wondered how Fluttershy had been living these past few months. Had she been caged? No, she could not imagine Discord being that cruel, however, she had never imagined Discord keeping a mare, period! Perhaps she slept in the same chamber with the others...on a pile of rags. This bed may be the first Fluttershy had slept on in a long time. The tiny servant's room may seem like a palace.
Fluttershy followed Madame Luna's example, and rose from her chair, hugging all the bundles to her body, afraid that if she let them go long enough, she may lose one of them. She said nothing; she simply followed the dance mistress to the spare bedroom she had mentioned.
"Here we are," Madame Luna motioned to the door. "There are clean sheets and blankets, and I promise to wake you as soon as it's dawn, and we will go at once to fetch your father."
Fluttershy nodded her head, although she knew that she wouldn't get any sleep that night. However, before Madame Luna turned to leave, Fluttershy reached out and grasped the older mare's arm. "Madame, I...I need to know something..."
Madame Luna looked at Fluttershy with concern, thinking that perhaps the mare wished to know what prison her father was being kept in, or how, perhaps, she had come to this information about her father.
However, her question was none of those things. In fact, it took the dance mistress completely by surprise.
"How...how well do you know the Phantom?"
Madame Luna looked down at the mare, Fluttershy's blue eyes shimmering with new tears and filled with a need to hear answers to many unspoken questions.
"Well," she took in a deep breath and began. "I met him when I was younger...not as young as you, but before I married, and not long after I began dancing in Maris. He was only seventeen at the time; I remember recognizing him from the carnival. I'm not proud to admit it, but I went with several mares to the carnival and I remember seeing him there, caged and beaten..." she spoke these words with such venom. "The night I met him, I thought I was alone. I was rehearsing for a complicated scene in the upcoming opera, when I heard a noise from off stage. I followed it and found him trapped, his leg caught in a trap door that led below stage. He had been looking for scraps, and when he heard me enter the auditorium, he attempted to flee but got himself caught," she sighed, remembering everything so clearly as if it were yesterday. "I helped him free himself, to which he said nothing, he simply dashed away. I was surprised that he was there, but I was also happy...happy that he had escaped such a horrible place. The next day, I stayed late again, only this time I had brought food with me. I placed it near the trap door I had found him at the other night, and sure enough, he came," she smiled softly to herself. "He was starving, it was quite obvious, and for the next few nights, that's what I did...I brought rations and would leave them by the trap door. And then, one night, he finally spoke to me."
Fluttershy had been enraptured by this tale, and all thoughts of how things had transpired earlier seemed to have vanished. "And? What did he say?"
"He said, 'could you bring more for my friends?'," Madame Luna could not help but smile tenderly at the memory. Fluttershy found herself smiling too, and then a wave of confusion coming over her. How could a stallion, who cared so deeply for his companions, be as cruel as he had been to her that night? It just didn't make any sense...
"The next night I did as he asked, bringing more food than usual. I soon learned that while he had eaten some of the food I had brought him the night before, he was giving larger portions to the others. This way, they all could have an equal share," she explained. "And then, the night that followed that one, Discord struck a bargain with me. I was to begin to tell ghost stories about a mysterious creature called The Phantom, who haunted the Maris Opera House, and who oversaw everything. If one didn't do as they were told, The Phantom would see to them. And then I was to say that The Phantom lived beneath the opera house, and anyone who dared to enter his domain, would not return...alive. And thus began the legend of the Opera Ghost," Madame Luna concluded.
Fluttershy looked up at Madame Luna, puzzlement still written across her pretty face. "In all the time you've known him, has Discord-I mean, the Phantom, has he...has he ever taken anypony...hostage?"
Madame Luna slowly shook her head, a hoof rising to brush across the mare's face. "No my dear, at least not that I have been aware of..." she paused, her own brow furrowing. "Of course...I did not learn that he held you prisoner until tonight," she confessed. "I had my suspicions, for instance, the night at the New Year's masquerade I thought I recognized you-and then my suspicions were confirmed when I realized the mare in gold had disappeared with Red Death...but I was never sure, until tonight."
Fluttershy had felt her heart lift and then dash into a thousand pieces. She had been hoping that Madame Luna would tell her that Discord was not capable of the cruelty he had inflicted. Yes, she knew he could be frightening, but she knew that his reasons were to protect himself and his friends from trespassers. However, if Madame Luna had only tonight learned of Fluttershy living below, there may have been other times she was not aware of Discord keeping somepony else below for...whatever purposes he had.
"You really should get some rest, my dear," Madame Luna murmured, coaxing Fluttershy into the small bedroom. "Tomorrow will be a new day, we shall find your father, and everything will be made right."
Fluttershy wanted to agree with the mare, but her heart was still breaking. She simply nodded her head and shut the door of the tiny bedroom. She placed the small bundles she had been cradling down upon the bed, eyeing them all carefully. There were four bundles total; the money that Discord had thrown at her feet, and the others were items she had gathered from her chambers.
She slowly sat down and began to unwrap them, her fingers shaking as each bundle slowly revealed its secrets.
One held the books Discord had given her. She ran her hooves across the leather bindings, remembering how happy she had been upon discovering her gift.
The second bundle contained the dresses Rarity had made for her. They were plain compared to the grand gowns Discord had fetched for her from the costume cages, but they were dear gifts that she treasured. A tear trickled down her cheek as she thought of her friends who she sadly did not say goodbye to.
The final bundle was one that Fluttershy was very wary of opening. It was the smallest of all the bundles, and she still questioned herself as to why she brought it. Yet at the time, when she looked at it, she couldn't imagine leaving it either.
Slowly, she opened the bundle, her hooves trembling as she did so. Inside, lay one of Discord's black leather gloves. One evening he had come to her chamber, and they made love for what felt like hours. Discord had dropped the glove, and she always meant to bring it to him, but always forgot. Tonight, she spotted the glove, and without another moment's hesitation, snatched it up and stuffed it in with her other bundles.
Fluttershy lifted the glove and ran her fhooves along the smooth black leather, remembering how his paw and claw felt when they had touched her, how tender he had been when they first made love, how careful he always was when they were together. He never rushed her, he always waited until she was ready; what had happened to them?
She squeezed her eyes shut as hot fresh tears began to pour down her cheeks. She ran the glove's smooth fabric along her cheek, wishing it truly was Discord's paw, that he would be there and tell her it had all been a horrible misunderstanding, that he didn't mean what he said, that it had been a nightmare-that he still loved her and would never do anything to hurt her.
She opened her eyes then, and let out a soft wail as she sadly realized she was still in the tiny bedroom. Indeed, this was a nightmare...but it was one that she was living.
"HE DID WHAT?"
Shortround winced at the rather ear-piercing shriek from Rarity and Derpy, but sadly nodded his head.
"S-s-she's...s-s-she's g-g-going away?" Derpy whimpered, her face already growing wet from tears.
Shortround sighed and reached out, placing one hoof on the hunchback's arm. "Yes...I'm afraid it's true. And she's not going away Derpy...she's...she's already gone."
Derpy's eyes widened in disbelief; this couldn't be happening! "But...b-but I thought...I t-t-thought s-she liked it here? I...I t-t-thought s-she liked us?"
Shortround squeezed Derpy's arm tenderly, wishing he could explain things better. "She does Derpy, she does, it's just...well...she just had to go."
"WHY?" Derpy cried, her face now shining from her spilt tears.
Rarity was also struggling with the news. "Fluttershy would never...she would never just leave without saying anything to us!"
"Well, she did, so get over it," Rainbow Dash grumbled from her corner.
Rarity turned towards the peg legged mare, her eyes narrowing into tiny slits of fire. "You had something to do with this, didn't you? DIDN'T YOU!"
Rainbow Dash sprang to her feet, her own eyes burning with the same angry fire. "You know nothing! Do not accuse me unless you have proof!"
"Stop it!" Shortround roared, his hoof already rubbing Derpy's shoulder, which was trembling from her sobs. "Fighting will not bring Fluttershy back; nor will it help the Master," he murmured.
Rainbow Dash and Rarity glared at one another before Rainbow Dash retreated back into her darkened corner. Rarity took Derpy's hoof in her own and led her over to her bed, where she coaxed her to sit down. The anger still burned within her eyes and veins, but she tried to calm herself so as not to upset Derpy further.
"You never cared for her, you always made that abundantly clear," she grumbled towards Rainbow Dash.
Rainbow Dash glared back at her, but said nothing. She simply stared at the shadows and huddled her body around the heap of rags that she slept on.
Shortround watched Rainbow Dash pensively for a moment, before Derpy's question interrupted his thoughts. "W-w-why...w-w-why d-did Fluttershy h-h-have t-to go?" She hiccuped here and there through her sobbing.
Shortround sighed. "You remember how the Master was giving Fluttershy singing lessons?" Derpy nodded her head. "Well...the Master made a bargain with Fluttershy; if she would let him train her voice, he would...he would release her when the time was right," Shortround lifted his hoof to brush away a tear that was trickling down his own cheek. "I suppose that he felt that now was the right time."
Raritys brow creased with confusion. "But...but surely she will come back? I mean...if what you say is true, if the Master truly made such a bargain with Fluttershy, then...then surely she would at least visit..."
"S-s-she h-has to!" Derpy wailed, before scooping up the tiny black kitten that was trying to sleep next to her pillow. "Carmen! S-s-she f-f-forgot Carmen!"
Rarity eyed Rainbow Dash from her corner, an uneasy feeling washing over her. "I'm not wrong with thinking that you do know something more to all this..." she murmured. Rainbow Dash said nothing, she simply huddled her body closer, attempting to turn her back on the prying eyes of her companions. "Rainbow Dash..." Rarity rose from Rarity's bed and began marching towards the mare. "Rainbow Dash you will answer me," she said through clipped lips. "You at least owe us that much."
"I owe you nothing!" Rainbow Dash snapped, turning slightly to send the mare a death glare.
Rarity was not phased one bit by the look. "What do you know about Fluttershy's leaving?"
Without warning, Rainbow Dash leapt to her hooves once more, this time she was bearing down upon Rarity, her eyes wild with anger and...something else. "You want to know what I know? FINE! But I will not be blamed for this!" she shouted. "I was doing my part for the Master, I was doing my job! He ordered me to search for the mare's father, that was EXACTLY what I did! And I found him, yes I found him!" she roared at all three of them. "He was in a prison cell, I overheard two police officers say his name and how they had been holding him for quite some time..." she paused as she recalled the danger of the situation. "They saw me...not my face, or my..." she glanced down at her leg and moved her arm behind his back. "But they saw my shadow and chased me...if it hadn't been for her, I would have...I...I would have..." her words trailed off as the nightmares from the past began to fill her head.
Shortround slowly approached the trembling mare, his voice calm and soothing. "Who helped you Rainbow Dash?"
Rainbow Dash woke from her trance and glanced into Shortround's eyes, before looking once more at the ground. "Madame Luna," she muttered. "She pulled me into her carriage and brought me back to the opera house," she paused for a moment before continuing. "She demanded that I take her to see the Master."
Rarity gasped, her hooves flying to her mouth. "Madame Luna was here? She spoke with the Master?"
Rainbow Dash nodded her head, but couldn't look into anypony's eyes. "She...she said it was important...and...and I knew it had something to do with Fluttershy...I...I didn't know what else to do, and I had to tell the Master about Fluttershy's father-"
"It's alright Rainbow Dash," Shortround interrupted. "Madame Luna can be a very commanding person; if you had not taken her to the Master, I'm sure she would have discovered her own way inside...and you're right, you had to tell the Master about Monsieur Time Turner."
Rainbow Dash said nothing; he simply kept her eyes to the ground. "I listened for a short while, outside the Master's chambers...they were arguing, he and Madame Luna; arguing about Fluttershy."
"Oh dear," Rarity whispered. "She must have thought the Master had kidnapped her and...and done terrible things to the poor mare!"
Rainbow Dash slowly nodded her head. "The Master must have heard me, because he quickly led Madame Luna from the chamber to another place...I...I dared not follow, the Master looked...I've never seen the Master look so angry in all my years of knowing him..."
A chill went down the spines of all four friends. They had known Discord for many years, and they had seen his fits of rage and the extremes his temper could be taken. But something about Rainbow Dash's words caused a sense of dread to creep into the hearts of all of them.
"Well, that explains it then," Shortround sighed. "The Master released her because of her father. If he was in prison, Fluttershy had to go and save him, naturally."
Rarity lowered her head, a feeling of shame washing over her. "I'm so selfish-I had forgotten all about the poor old stallion. Of course, Fluttershy had to go and save him, she had to go and be with him," yet Rarity's brow was still creased with worry. "But...but something still doesn't make sense. I understand Fluttershy's need for leaving, but...but why didn't she say goodbye?"
Shortround shook his head. "I'm not sure. Perhaps...perhaps she thought it would be too painful?" He reflected on his thoughts and slowly murmured, "You should have seen the Master's face. I...I've never seen him like that before..."
Rainbow Dash's eyes widened at these words. "W-w-what do you mean? W-was he still angry?"
"No Rainbow Dash, you do not need to fear him," Shortround reassured, but no calming smile creased his lips. Instead, his eyes shown the deepest concern a pony could ever show for another. "I've never seen the Master look...look so sad. As if his very life had been sucked out of his body-not even his music could give him joy. He just...he looked so lifeless, so-"
"He's in love," Rarity whispered, yet her words rang clearer than any bell.
Shortround sighed, and softly nodded his head.
The others stared at her, their eyes wide as realization slowly fell upon them. "I...I always wondered since the night Fluttershy had gone above to warn the Master if something...if something had happened between them..."
"They were spending much of their time together..." Shortround continued. "And the Master had given me specific instructions to come to his chambers this evening and bring my bible..."
"And he was hard at work when I brought Madame Luna in to see him," Rainbow Dash finished. "He was smiling when I first saw him...and then he became so angry, especially when Madame Luna began to...well, to accuse him of doing horrible things to Fluttershy..."
Rarity looked at the others, a tiny smile lighting her face. "After all this time...the Master has fallen in love."
"And that is why he released Fluttershy," Shortround sighed. "He knew her father needed her, and he knew she missed him dreadfully."
"But it wasn't enough," Rainbow Dash muttered. "She's still gone, for a good reason, yes, but she's not coming back, you said so yourself that the Master told you she's gone for good."
"But surely she will come back! I mean, where will the poor mare stay, even after she's saved her father?" Rarity bit her lip with worry. "I mean, she loves him! We all know that she loves him, and if he loves her...well, they should be together! And her father could stay here too, they could-"
"Rarity," Shortround interrupted, his eyes full of wisdom and truth, truth that Rarity did not want to see.
"Yes, yes, I know," she sighed, feeling tears burn her eyes. "I just...she brought light to our darkened world, and for once I believed in goodness because of her," she smiled as several memories of Fluttershy returned. "And while we have no choice to live in hiding...this is no world for a mare like her, or an old stallion."
Shortround nodded his head, although he too was saddened by the truth of the situation. "The Master knew what he was doing...and he did the right thing by letting her go."
"Yes, you're right," Rarity sighed, although her heart was aching with the sad truth. "I just hope Derpy can understand why she had to go. Derpy?" she turned towards the mares's bed, but gasped when she realized she was gone.
"Where...where did she...?"
"Must have left while we were talking," Rainbow Dash grumbled. "Took that blasted kitten with her too," she pointed to the blank spot on the bed where Carmen had been sleeping.
"Oh dear," Rarity bit her lip. "We have to find her, she won't understand, she'll think Fluttershy abandoned her-"
"It will be all right," Shortround soothed. "We'll explain everything when we see her later, but for now, let her have some time to herself."
Rarity nodded her head, but a horrible feeling was washing over her body. "Yes, of course...it's just...something doesn't feel right," she murmured, more to herself than to the others. "Something doesn't feel right at all..." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Reunion | Reunion
"What do you mean this isn't enough? I have well over 300 franks in gold!"
The officer groaned and shook his head, feeling a pounding migraine come on from the young mare's screeching. The sun hadn't even peeked over the horizon when the young mare came barging into the station, demanding that her father be released at once. Behind her followed another mare, dressed in black from head to toe. The officer recognized the older mare immediately, yet tried to advert his eyes from hers; she made him feel like a fly caught in a spider's web.
"I'm sorry mademoiselle, but it is not enough, as I've told you now for the fourth time."
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed into hateful slits. She wanted to leap across the counter that separated her from the police officer and strangle him. It seemed as if some of Discord's violent ruthlessness had rubbed off on her.
"What crime has this stallion committed?" she barked at him, her hooves flattening on the counter top, as if preparing herself to vault over it and throttle him. "He is an old stallion, gentle and harmless; he's MY FATHER!" she shouted, not caring if her scream caused the officer to wince in pain. "I DEMAND THAT YOU RELEASE HIM AT ONCE!"
"I CAN'T DO THAT!" the officer shouted back, his own rage clearly seen in his pale brown eyes.
Madame Luna, who had been standing by and watching the scene this whole while could not be silent any longer. She had entered the station, determined to keep her mouth closed, knowing that this was Fluttershy's battle, and thinking that with over 300 gold franks. Time Turner would be in the mare's arms before one counted to ten.
Something wasn't right; a stallion like Time Turner could be released with less than 100 franks. No, they were keeping him for some reason...or for some one. And Madame Luna had a good idea who was behind it...
"Why exactly can you not release him?" she asked, very calmly, surprising both Fluttershy and the officer with her tone. Yet despite the tranquility of her voice, her eyes held only dark wrathful promises if the officer did not respond to her liking.
"I...that is..." he swallowed the growing lump in his throat, trying to keep his wits about him despite the cold stare she was sending his way. "This stallion is a lunatic, for one."
"HE MOST CERTAINLY IS NOT!" Fluttershy shouted, pounding her hoof down on the counter.
"The stallion was raving about a monster!" the officer continued, ignoring Fluttershy's protests. "He came in here, talking about some sort of masked fiend that had stolen his daughter, or something like that. He was clearly mad! Such a stalion is not safe in public!"
Fluttershy's teeth clenched at the man's words. "I am his daughter!" she hissed. "And I am here, now, so you can release him!"
The officer turned back to Fluttershy, weary of the mare's screeches and fits of temper. "Yes, mademoiselle, I see that, but all the more reason to point to the stallion's lunacy! And how do I know you're the stallion's daughter? You could be some strumpet that was hired-"
"You dare you speak to a mare in such a way?"
Both Fluttershy and Madame Luna had been prepared to throw their hooves at the officer for saying such things, but the third voice stopped them and they turned to see who had spoken...both completely shocked at the figure that stood in the doorway.
"Monsieur Prince!" the officer gasped, bowing as if being presented before royalty. "I...I didn't mean...that is...I beg your pardon, monsieur, but I-"
"You were simply being an imbecile," Blueblood growled at the officer. "Now apologize at once to the mare!"
The officer stared at the Prince as if the stallion were a strange creature from another world. Then, he immediately turned toward Fluttershy and began apologizing for his behavior in a series of blubbers.
Madame Luna simply watched with narrowed suspicious eyes.
"It's a start," Blueblood growled once more, turning away from the officer to face Fluttershy.
Fluttershy stared up at the hoofsome Prince, not sure what to say or think. Of all the ponies in this world who would come to her defense, he was the last stallion she had ever imagined doing so. True, while the Prince had the appearance of a gallant knight coming to a maiden's rescue on a charging white steed, she knew him to be pompous, arrogant, and extremely conceited. Also, his behavior in the past did not win him merit for being chivalrous. So what was he doing there?
"Mademoiselle," Blueblood greeted with a deep bow. "I apologize for the rudeness you had to endure just then; I promise you I shall speak with this stallion's superior on your behalf."
Fluttershy gave a slight curtsy out of politeness, but still looked at the Prince with wary eyes. "I thank you for your offer, but that is not necessary-I'm sure nothing of the sort will be necessary if he simply accepts my offer and gives me what I have come here for!" she hissed once more at the officer.
Blueblood turned his head, his eyes catching the officer who was fidgeting nervously from all the stares he was receiving. "And what offer is that, mademoiselle, if you don't mind me asking?"
Madame Luna wanted to open her mouth and shout at the Prince to stop playing games. He knew why they were there, she was sure he was responsible for Time Turner's imprisonment; she just needed proof.
She was surprised when Fluttershy responded to the Prince's question. "They are keeping my father prisoner," she explained, lifting her chin in defiance. "I offer over 300 franks in gold, and yet I am told it is not enough to release him!"
Blueblood's calm coolness almost fell away at the mention of the amount of money she carried. Over 300 gold franks? Compared to his vast wealth, the amount was nothing; but where did she obtain such an amount? Fluttershy's puzzled expression reminded him that his questions would have to wait for a later time.
"Keep your money, mademoiselle, I shall take care of the payment."
Everypony in the small lobby stared at the Prince, as if he had just announced he was going to fly to the moon by simply sprouting wings. "I...I b-b-beg your pardon?" Fluttershy finally stammered after the shock had washed over her.
"Monsieur?" the officer asked, his eyes filled with confusion.
Blueblood reached across the counter, grabbed the officer by this coat collar, and shook him hard. "RELEASE HIM!" he roared, before pushing the officer away from him in disgust.
The stallion didn't say another word; he scrambled away from the Prince and went through a door that led to the prison cells. Madame Luna eyed the Prince suspiciously once more; she had not missed the officer's surprise by the Prince's declaration.
Fluttershy's heart began to lift as she saw the officer disappear, wondering how her father was, anxious to see him and to hold him close. She looked up at the Prince, joy lit in her face, but confusion still clouding her eyes. "W-w-what do you mean y-you will take care of the payment?"
"I mean exactly that," Blueblood said, bowing to her once more as he had done before. "Keep your money and allow me to do this for you."
"But monsieur, there is no need for that-"
"Nonsense," he interrupted, reaching out and taking her hoof in his. "It may come as a surprise to you, mademoiselle, but I remember your father's kindness to me. And if there is any way I can help either of you, please, do not hesitate-"
Madame Luna was seething, but before she could do anything, the door the officer had gone through burst open once more, and several stallions came out, each hauling another stallion forward.
"PAPA!" Fluttershy cried, rushing past the Prince towards the frail old stallion, pushing through several of the officers so that she could throw her arms around her father.
But she stopped short, her breath catching in her throat and her face paling at the sight. "P-p-papa?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Her father wasn't walking; these stalllions were dragging him. A hoof flew to Fluttershys mouth as she took in the sight of her father-there were bruises on his face, a cut on the side of his lip, he was covered from head to toe in absolute filth, his clothes were mere shreds of fabric, and he looked so thin and frail...as if he could snap in two by a simple twitch.
Cold silent tears coursed down her cheeks. "What have you done to him?" she gasped, her eyes wide with fear and anger at the officers who were holding him. "YOU MONSTERS! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?"
Time Turner let out a great cough and Fluttershy's attention fell to her father once more. She pushed the stallions away from him and wrapped her trembling arms around her father's weak and feeble form. "Papa...Papa, it's me, I'm here...I'm here," she whispered into his ear as she held him even tighter, fighting back the sobs that threatened to burst forth.
"H-h-he d-d-did it to himself, mademoiselle, I swear!" one officer argued, but quickly shrank away at the cold stare Madame Luna sent towards him.
"Papa? Papa, it's me, it's Fluttershy, I have you now, you're safe...Papa, don't you understand me?" there was still no answer from the frail old man. "Papa?" Fluttershy turned her face up towards the officer who had been there earlier. "What's wrong? Why can't he talk?"
The officer sighed, glanced briefly at Blueblood, and then looked back at Fluttershy. "He's been sick for some time mademoiselle-one prisoner that we brought in had Consumption...he infected over half the prisoners and two officers."
Fluttershy's eyes widened in horror at the stallion's words. "WHY DIDN'T YOU GET A DOCTOR?"
The officer stared at her as if that were the oddest thing to suggest. "Beg your pardon, mademoiselle, but...they're prisoners. It would be a horrid waste of money-"
"Do shut up," Blueblood growled at the stallion, jabbing the officer's stomach. He glared for a long time at the small crowd of Maris policestallions before kneeling down to where Fluttershy held her father on the floor. "I have a carriage just outside. Is there some place I can take you? I will have my valet fetch my doctor and he will examine your father."
Fluttershy was so overtaken by the shock of the situation that she had barely heard the Prince's offer. She simply stared up at him, her cheeks moist with tears.
"There will be no need for that," the dance mistress hissed, pushing her way past the stunned Prince and bending to help Fluttershy lift the old stallion to his hooves. "I have my own carriage to transport us, and I will have my doctor fetched to help Monsieur Time Turner. Good day to you monsieur!" she icily snapped.
Blueblood's eyes narrowed at the figure of the dance mistress, but he did not hesitate to help carry Time Turner out of the station and to Madame Luna's carriage. Any other day, Madame Luna would have told the Prince to shove off, but both she and Fluttershy were struggling to carry the old stallion, so for this moment, she bit her tongue.
Once Fluttershy's father was securely inside the carriage, Fluttershy turned to face the Prince and gave a small curtsy. "Thank you, monsieur," she said simply, before climbing into the carriage herself.
However, before the door shut, Blueblood reached out and grasped one of Fluttershy's small, gloved hooves. "Please, should you need anything...anything at all, do not hesitate to ask."
Madame Luna took hold of Fluttershy's wrist and pulled her hoof away from the Prince's. "You're too kind, monsieur," she muttered sarcastically, before shouting instructions to her driver.
"Do send me word when he recovers!" Blueblood called out to Fluttershy, watching as Madame Luna's gray carriage disappeared around a corner. He stood there for a long moment, gazing down the street, contemplating on all that had taken place.
She was free.
Her face, while he was pleased to see it, was the last he had expected to greet him at the police station that morning. And he had not failed to notice that Madame Luna was with her; somehow Madame Luna had learned that Time Turner was being kept there, yet it seemed she had not managed to figure out how he had come to be there, or who was responsible for keeping him there.
Just as well, he would not have his plans ruined, not when he was so close to obtaining that which he desired more than anything. How she managed to escape the Phantom's realm he knew not, but that would be learned soon enough. Right now, he had more pressing concerns to attend to.
Fluttershy paced back and forth in her room, hugging the red shawl she wore around her shoulders ever closer to her body. She could not stand this suspense; it was driving her mad! The doctor had been summoned the second she and Madame Luna reached the older mare's town house. Madame Luna ordered Soles to immediately begin boiling water, and had Cosmic carry the old stallion up to Madame Luna's own room. Within the hour, the doctor was there, and had been there all morning and a good portion of the afternoon. While the doctor said nothing, Fluttershy's worst fears were growing by the second...
Her father had Consumption, or heaven forbid, Influenza. The way the doctor hovered around him, checking his pulse, checking his heartbeat, ordering for more hot water, fresh linens, and more pillows to elevate his head...
Fluttershy could not bear it any longer, she broke down in sobs and the doctor had to order her to be taken out of the room. She sat in the tiny servant's bedroom just a few doors down, but she could still make out some of the hushed whispers between the dance mistress and the doctor.
It wasn't looking good.
The doctor kept commenting on her father's breathing, how it wasn't regular, it wasn't right. He would also comment on how weak his pulse seemed to be growing, and Madame Luna would respond if there was any more she could do, but the doctor never responded, he simply commented on how they had to wait; wait and see what happened.
Fluttershy couldn't sit still, she had been pacing for what felt like hours, and her eyes were red, swollen, and dry from all the tears she had shed. What would she do if her father never recovered? She didn't want to think of such things, but the impending doom of the situation continued to grow further and further with every passing hour.
She couldn't lose her father after finding him again. There were so many things she needed to tell him, so many things she wanted to say.
She wanted to apologize for being so selfish and losing herself in the arms of another stallion, a stallion who was in fact the enemy, a stallion who had attempted to kill her father, and in the end, threw him out onto the streets to suffer at the hooves of the elements and the cruelty of humanity.
She had been so foolish. She was an ungrateful child, playing princess in a dark mystical realm like the characters from her gothic novels, never thinking about the world above, never thinking about the suffering her father was enduring, not just physically, but emotionally as well. He must have been so worried for her...and what had she done?
She lost herself to passion. The fires were kindled within her heart, but how quickly they were extinguished when reality came crashing down.
Discord had been right...
This was no fairy tale. He was no gallant hero that turned into a hoofsome prince from true love's first kiss...
She had been such a fool. A fool for losing herself in passion, a fool for giving her body away too easily, a fool for...for falling in love...
God above, help her. She still loved him...
She collapsed onto the bed, pulling her knees up to her chest and curling up into a tight ball. How could she have been so blind? She always thought of herself as being a sensible person, thinking with her head instead of her heart. Perhaps that was the problem...perhaps she had clouded her head with too many gothic romances?
She shut her eyes, praying to drown out the sounds of servants, rushing back and forth along the corridor carrying pots of boiling water and clean linens. She didn't want to hear the doctor give yet another poor diagnosis, she didn't want to hear the hopelessness in Madame Luna's voice, she didn't want to hear her father's gurgled breathing, but then when it stopped, her heart would only freeze with horror that perhaps he had stopped breathing.
She just wanted everything to be as it had been, before coming to Maris, before losing their farm, before her mother died...
"Fluttershy..."
No. This was the last thing she wanted to hear...
"Fluttershy..."
"Go away," she whispered into the sheets, burying her face against them, wanting his voice to vanish completely from the world. She did not think herself strong enough to listen to his voice, to the seductive combinations of his baritone and tenor.
"Fluttershy, I have missed you..."
"Discord please," she whimpered against the sheets. "Do not do this, leave me be."
"Come back to me...come back and stay with me..."
Her heart skipped a beat at the words. "I can't...you don't love me, you told me it was all a lie..."
"I do love you Fluttershy...I'm sorry for hurting you, I wanted to spare you of the life you would have lived, locked under ground, separate from the world above-I thought I was doing the right thing, sacrificing my desires so that you would not be condemned to the same life I am."
Fluttershy held her breath at his words. He loved her? Everything he had done...all those horrible things he had said...they weren't true?
With a shaky breath, she lifted her head away from the sheets, her eyes glancing upward towards the wall in front of her. She let out a gasp as she saw his shadow cast against the wall from the setting sun.
She was not sure she had the courage to face him. "No more lies Discord. I...I don't know what to believe anymore..."
"Believe that I love you. I know that I have betrayed your trust, I know that I have caused you pain, and I curse myself for every tear that I caused you to shed. I...I thought I was doing the right thing...I thought I was being selfish, keeping you in my world, a world without sunlight, a world without fields, forests, and horizons. I thought that perhaps...it is better that she leave, but that she leave hating me, despising me, wishing she had never known me...and then perhaps her pain would be less. Perhaps she could live the life she was meant to live, forgetting me completely, or at least sooner than...than I would be able to forget her. In truth, I would never...I could never forget you. You not only taught me to love, Fluttershy...you taught me that I was not a monster, but a stallion. You showed me passion, faith, hope...and goodness. I...I do not blame you if you hate me, in fact, I do not ask for your forgiveness for I do not deserve it. I do not believe I am worthy of your forgiveness, let alone your love. But I do realize that what I did, saying what I said, forcing you to go...was the most foolish thing I have ever done in my whole life. I understand if you struggle with trusting me, I do not blame you...but please know this...I will spend the rest of my days telling you and showing you, how deeply I love you. I will gladly worship the ground on which you tread, and spend my life pleasing you in whatever manner I can."
Fluttershy did not think she had any tears left in her body, but slowly, she began to feel them trickle down her face. She looked down at her hooves; they were shaking. "You...you really love me?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
She let a long shaky gasp, as she felt his paw touch her shoulder, gently, but warmly. "More than music itself," he whispered back.
She could not hold back any longer. Her heart was bursting, just as the tears were bursting forth, gushing in streams down her cheeks. "Oh Discord!" she turned then, ready to throw her arms around her lover, her friend, her Phantom...
"Fluttershy! Fluttershy!"
Her eyes flew open as she felt her body being shaken. She looked up through wet lashes, her hopes sinking as the face she gazed at was none other than Madame Luna's.
It had been a dream.
"You fell asleep my dear," Madame Luna informed, helping Fluttershy to sit up. Fluttershy's heart sank even further as her suspicions were confirmed. She should have known that it was a dream, after all, how could Discord have been there in Madame Luna's home? It just...it had all felt so real, even the touch of his paw on her shoulder...
"I have wonderful news!" Madame Luna said excitedly. Fluttershy quickly wiped her cheeks, took a deep breath, and turned to face the dance mistress, determined not to give anything in her eyes away about her recent dream. "Your father..." she began.
Fluttershy's face lit up at the words. "Is he better?" she asked, her voice so shaky. Lord, she prayed that this wasn't a dream either...
"Oh much better than that!" Madame Luna grinned. "He was suffering from a severe fever, but it has broken. The worst is over! And he did not have Consumption as we had feared. And..." she smiled, squeezing Fluttershy's hooves. "He is calling for you..."
Fluttershy's eyes widened. "He's...he's awake?"
Madame Luna simply nodded her head, and watched with happiness as the mare leapt from the bed and ran to the room where he was lying. "PAPA! PAPA!"
Time Turner's head lifted at the sound of his daughter's voice, and he cried out happily as she burst through the door and flew to his bedside. "FLUTTERSHY!" he gasped, so pleased to see his daughter safe and sound, his frail arms wrapping around her as she collapsed against him, hugging him so tightly.
"Oh Papa..." she cried against his chest, her arms holding him even tighter. He was safe, he was awake, and he was breathing strongly; everything was going to be fine.
"Oh my sweet mare," Time Turner murmured into Fluttershy's hair, his hoof running through the pink tangled waves. "How I have missed you and how I have longed to know if you were alright."
"I'm fine, Papa, I'm fine," she grinned through the joyful tears that were trickling down her face. "Oh I missed you so much, I was so scared, so very scared..."
Time Turner's arms, while still very weak, tightened around his daughter at her words. "Hush my dear, there's nothing to be afraid of anymore...you're safe."
Fluttershy frowned slightly at his words, and then realized what he meant by them. "Oh Papa, no, you misunderstand, I meant I was scared that you weren't-"
"How did you escape?"
Fluttershy was taken aback by her father's question. In truth, it was something she had not considered. Would he believe her if she simply told him that the Phantom had released her? Would anyone?
Her father gripped her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him, fear written across his face. "Did he hurt you?" he asked, his voice shaking with terror, but trying to sound strong. "Did...did he..." he couldn't bring himself to say the words; it was too horrible to even comprehend.
Fluttershy took hold of one of his hooves and gently squeezed it. "I am fine Papa, no, he did not harm me in any way..."
Other than breaking my heart, she thought to herself. But even that seemed odd. His words at the time were biting and horrible, meant to cause grief, anger, and pain. And yet her recent dream...made some sort of odd sense. His face had been so cold, and yet...did she not see pain in the very depths of his eyes? And if truly he had only meant to use her for his own purposes...why was he so gentle with her when they made love? Why pretend to love her? Why pretend to be tender, to be caring? Why care at all to how she felt when they laid together? Even the greatest actor in the world could not pretend all that.
Or did her heart simply want to believe in her dream?
"Fluttershy, please! I need to know!"
She awoke from her trance and gazed back at her father who looked desperate. "Answer me, please...how did you escape?"
Fluttershy did not know why Discord had said those cruel things, but a part of her, once a tiny voice now growing louder and louder, wanted to believe that his cruelty had been the performance, not his love. "I didn't escape Papa," she murmured softly, taking his hooves in hers and smiling gently into his eyes. "He let me go."
Time Turner stared back at his daughter, his brow furrowed with confusion. "W-w-what?"
"It's true," Fluttershy sighed, squeezing his hooves tighter. "He released me...he told me I was free to leave."
Time Turner continued to stare with confusion. This didn't make any sense! "That horrible...monstrous...fiend, simply let you go?"
Fluttershy knew it would be too hard for her father to believe. After all, his only encounter with the Phantom had been one filled with malice, fear, and revenge. How would he even begin to understand that during the long months she had spent with Discord, she was treated more like an equal, than a prisoner?
"He's...he's different now, Papa..." she softly murmured, unsure if he heard her.
At least he seemed different, Fluttershy thought to herself, sadly.
Time Turner shook his head, confusion still etched across his face. "I just don't understand...I truly don't understand..."
Fluttershy gave his hooves another squeeze before bending her head to kiss his brow. "The important thing is that we're together, and we're both safe," she smiled, tenderly touching his cheek.
Time Turner gazed back up at his daughter and returned her warm smile. "Yes, yes, you're quite right. And while I do not understand how...how such a beast could show such mercy by letting you go...I am grateful that you are here. Oh Fluttershy, I have missed you," he sobbed, pulling her back into his arms and holding her close.
Fluttershy smiled, despite the tears, and hugged him just as tightly. But was it truly mercy that Discord had shown? While she was grateful to be reunited with her father, she also longed for her Phantom.
She cursed herself for being silly and selfish; basically she wanted her cake and to eat it too, but in truth, that could not be. She could not have her father and stay with Discord, and vice versa. Perhaps the dream had been truer than she had thought; perhaps Discord had long since realized that the two of them could never be...and decided to end this fillyish fantasy.
She quickly wiped her eyes before looking back at her father, forcing a happy smile. "I will go down at once and get you some hot soup. You need to eat if you are to get your strength back," she smiled, leaning once more and kissing his forehead.
Time Turner smiled as Fluttershy rose from the bed and walked towards the door. "It is so good to see you again," he sighed happily.
Fluttershy turned and smiled back, forcing her breaking heart to stop its selfish splintering. "I love you Papa," she whispered.
"I love you, my mare," he murmured back, before settling under the blankets and gently closing his eyes. She watched him for a moment longer, before finally turning and shutting the door.
"Soles is making some soup," Madame Luna murmured, startling Fluttershy in the corridor. "You look tired my dear, perhaps you should get some rest?"
Fluttershy's eyes went wide at the dance mistress' suggestion. While she could not deny she was tired (unless one finds oneself greatly worrying over something, one will not understand how exhausting worry can be), the mere thought of falling asleep and having another dream, frightened Fluttershy. She was not sure if she could bear the reality that the last dream had presented, again.
"I'm fine," Fluttershy lied, smiling at the dance mistress. "I'm just so happy that he's alright. Oh Madame Luna, I cannot thank you enough for all that you've done."
The dance mistress smiled, but she could not stop thinking about the words Fluttershy had spoken in her sleep earlier, when she had gone in to wake the poor girl up.
Discord.
Fluttershy had cried out Discord's name, and she had said it in such a way that Madame Luna found herself doubting her original suspicions about what had gone on between the Phantom and his prisoner. Was it possible? Did Fluttershy return Discord's affections?
"Madame Luna?"
The older mare shook her head, realizing that Fluttershy was looking at her with some worry. "I'm sorry my dear, I believe I am feeling a little exhausted myself. But sleep will have to wait," she turned towards the stairs and began to descend them. "I must go to the Opera House and see how the dancers are doing with rehearsals. But I will be back shortly, as will Twilight," she smiled up at the mare.
Fluttershy had forgotten all about the opera. She remembered Madame Luna mentioning something about it the night before to Twilight. She decided it was something she need not think about at the moment, besides, after recent events, she was not even sure if Discord would want her in it. She was not even sure if she wanted to be a part of it...
"I'll tell Soles to bring the soup up when it's ready," Madame Luna informed, before disappearing through the kitchen doors.
Fluttershy smiled faintly, her thoughts already filling with questions about Don Juan Triumphant, but those thoughts quickly disappeared when she heard a strange sound come from the servant's bedroom she had been occupying earlier.
Her heart leapt into her throat as she distinctly heard the sound of a stallion's voice, grunting. Was it possible? Was Discord...had Discord...?
She flew down the small corridor to the room she had been in earlier, throwing the door wide open. "Discord?" she called into the growing darkness.
Something moved in one of the shadowy corners. Fluttershy held her breath as she watched the figure, which had been crouched on the ground, rise to its full height...
"F-f-f-fluttershy?"
Fluttershy gasped at the voice, and slowly, her eyes adjusting to the shadows, she realized who exactly had crept into the room. "Derpy?"
Derpy slowly emerged from her hiding place, looking both happy and bashful at the sight of her. "Oh Fluttershy!" she cried out, engulfing her in her big arms and pulling her tightly against her
Fluttershy was happy to see the hunchback too, but had to push against her slightly so that she would not crush her completely. "I...I k-knew I c-c-could find you!" she grinned. "I...I just...I just f-f-followed your f-footprints in the snow...a-a-and w-waited till it got d-d-dark, before c-c-climbing through the w-window," she stuttered proudly.
Fluttershy stared up at her as realization slowly dawned on her. "You mean...you followed me all the way here last night?" she gasped.
Derpy nodded her head.
Fluttershy shook her head, trying to grasp everything Derpy was telling her. "But...but if you've been there all day, why didn't I see you when Madame Luna and I took the carriage and left for the police station?"
Derpy looked down at his feet. "I...I didn't want M-m-madame Luna to s-s-see me. I was a-a-afraid she would force me t-t-to go back. S-s-so I hid u-up in the rafters when you t-t-took the carriage...a-a-and when you brought it back."
"But why Derpy? Why did you follow me?" All she could think about was poor Rarity and how worried the mare must be.
Derpy looked at Fluttershy strangely. She had thought it had been obvious to why she had come. "Y-y-you l-left w-w-without s-saying goodbye," she whimpered softly. Fluttershy felt her heart sting with pain. "A-a-and you f-f-forgot Carmen," she explained, reaching into her pocket and pulling out the black kitten, which mewed in protest from being removed from its warm cozy pouch.
Fluttershy bit her lip, determined not to show Derpy any tears. She reached out and gently rubbed her hoof against the kitten's furry head. "Thank you, Derpy," she whispered, taking the kitten in her arms and gently petting it till it began to purr. "But now that it is dark, you must hurry back. Rarity must be sick with worry-"
"B-b-but you're coming w-with me, a-aren't you?"
Fluttershy looked up at Derpy's face and saw the hope within her eyes. Of course, she should have realized. She had come not to say goodbye, but to bring her back...to bring her home.
"Derpy..." Fluttershy placed Carmen on the bed, and then reached out to take Derpy's hoof in hers. "I know that this might be hard to understand...but I can't go back..." Even if I wanted to, she silently thought to herself.
Derpy's face scrunched up with sad confusion. "B-b-but w-why?"
Fluttershy sighed. "Well, you see, my father was in prison...but now he's free. But he was very sick and is only just now getting better-"
"You c-c-can bring him!" Derpy cried, hope once more returning to her voice. "I mean...w-w-when he g-g-gets better, y-you can bring him b-back w-with you."
Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at Derpys solution. If only it were that simple. "I wish I could," she sighed. "But...my father needs me. And...I need to stay with him...here."
She could not have both worlds, it was just not meant to be. She couldn't be selfish any longer, she had to make a choice...and she had made hers. Either way, her heart would break.
Derpy looked back at her, the sadness returning to his eyes. "B-b-but...b-but I thought...I thought you liked us..."
Oh God, give me strength, she prayed. "I do, Derpy, please believe me, I do like you...all of you, and I will miss you very much."
"Is it b-b-because of t-t-the Master?" she asked.
Fluttershy felt her body grow tense. Did Derpy know all that had happened?
"I k-know t-t-that the Master c-can be s-s-scary sometimes," she continued. "A-and I know that he's ugly-"
Fluttershy had to interrupt. "He's not ugly," she stated firmly. "None of you are ugly. It's the world that's ugly, for not seeing the beauty within the heart and soul of it's fellow pony."
Derpy couldn't help but blush at her words. "All p-ponies s-should be like you Fluttershy..."
Fluttershy smiled, but quickly shook her head. "No Derpy..." she murmured, her hoof rising to touch his cheek. "All ponies should be like you and your family."
Derpy blushed again. "Rarity is right..."
Fluttershy bit her lip. "R-r-right about what?"
Derpy smiled softly. "T-t-that the Master h-has n-n-never been s-s-so happy s-since he met you."
Fluttershy felt the tears trickle once more down her face from Derpy's revelation. How she wanted to believe her words, how she wanted to believe that voice in her head that kept telling her that something was wrong, that Discord didn't mean what he said the other night. But she didn't know what to believe; she wasn't sure if she could trust her heart.
"H-h-he loves you..." Derpy murmured, smiling back at Fluttershy. "I k-know it. I've s-seen the w-way he looks at you...I c-c-can hear it in the way he t-talks to you. And I know t-t-that you love him," she declared. "So y-you should be together!"
Fluttershy turned her face away and released Derpy's hoof. "I...I want to believe that," she whispered. "But...I can't go back Derpy. I...I need to stay with my father. I need to stay in the world above. And, I think your master understands that too," she sighed, although she hated the reality of it all.
Derpy stared at her, her sadness giving way to anger. "N-no!" she practically shouted. Fluttershy whirled around at the sound of his voice, her eyes wide with surprise; she had never heard Derpy become angry before. "Y-you a-a-and the Master d-d-deserve t-to be together!" she stomped, causing the furniture in the room to shake.
"What's going on up there?" Soles shouted from downstairs.
"Don't you s-see? It's j-j-just like that story!"
"What's causing all that racket?" Soles shouted again, only this time it sounded as if she were climbing the stairs.
Fluttershy began to push Derpy towards the window, knowing that if Madame Luna's housekeeper caught sight of the hunchback, she'd scream till every police officer in all of Maris was there.
"Fluttershy, don't y-y-you understand?" she implored.
She looked up at him, her eyes filled with confusion. "No Derpy, what story are you talking about?"
"The Hunchback of Notre Mane!" he almost shouted. "Y-y-you a-and the Master belong t-t-together j-just like the hunchback a-and the gypsy mare!"
Fluttershy closed her eyes at Derpy's words, feeling her heart grow even heavier.
"The w-w-world t-thought him ugly...b-but the gypsy mare loved him! A-a-and they did live h-happily ever after! See? It c-c-can happen! It d-d-does!"
"IT DOESN'T!" Fluttershy shouted, her hoof flying to her mouth as she realized the words that had just escaped.
Derpy stared back down at her, her eyes wide with horror from Fluttershy's words. Fluttershy stared back; feeling horrible for shouting at her, let alone smashing her hopes. She wanted to apologize, to tell her that she was right, that fairy tales can come true and that sad endings could be rewritten. But the sound of the housekeeper's footsteps coming along the corridor at a quick pace brought reality crashing back.
"You must go!" she hissed, urging Derpy to escape.
"I hear voices!" Soles accused from the corridor. "Mademoiselle? To whom are you talking?"
Fluttershy ignored the housekeeper. "Quickly! Run all the way back to the opera house, do not stop until you get there, don't let anyone see you!"
"Mademoiselle!" Soles shouted once more.
"B-b-b-but Fluttershy-"
"GO!" she hissed once more, gasping and turning around as the housekeeper threw the door open and stomped into the room.
"What the devil is going on in here?" she growled, glaring at Fluttershy coldly.
Fluttershy quickly glanced over her shoulder at the window, a long sigh of relief escaping as she realized Derpy had gotten away. "N-n-nothing," she lied.
Soles continued to glare at Fluttershy with suspicion. "I heard you talking to somepony, and I heard stomping coming from below! What were you doing?"
Fluttershy bit her lip, not sure exactly how to explain herself. "I um...t-t-that is...I w-was praying."
The housekeeper cocked an eyebrow. "Praying?"
"Yes," Fluttershy quickly continued. "I...I was so thankful t-that my father was awake and on the mend, t-t-that I was thanking God, a-and d-dancing for joy..." she weakly demonstrated a giddy dance, hoping that the housekeeper would accept her answer and leave.
Soles eyed Fluttershy strangely. "You are a funny one, mademoiselle." It was clear insult.
She turned to leave, and then let out a shriek. Carmen, startled by the housekeeper's intrusion, leapt to her feet and was hissing at the grumpy mare. "How in high holy heaven did that get in here?"
Fluttershy swooped forward, catching the hissing kitten before the housekeeper could hurt it. "She's mine," she defended, holding Carmen close.
Soles scrunched her nose at the hissing creature. "I hate cats," she grumbled. "And the mistress' daughter is allergic to them! I won't let you keep that beast in this house!"
"She'll stay in this room until my father fully recovers!" Fluttershy practically growled at the mare. "And then you can be rid of us all!"
Soles lifted her chin and turned her back on the mare. "The sooner, the better." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Conflict | Conflict
Rarity bit her lip as she slowly peeked her head through the entryway of Discord's chamber. "M-m-master?" she softly called out, but to which she received no reply. She took a deep breath and entered the chamber, prepared to deal with the gathering storm that was surely ready to break should the Master be disturbed, but gasped loudly at the sight before her.
The place was in shambles. Curtains were torn, music strewn about, and many of the stone busts and figures that decorated the chamber lay smashed into thousands of pieces across the floor. A hoof flew to Rarity's mouth as she realized that the piano had been overthrown as well, the ivory and ebony keys lying in a heap on the ground, while several long stiff wires from within the instrument had been pulled, looking like some grotesque sculpture from one's nightmare.
"What are you doing here?"
Rarity nearly screamed as she felt two strong hooves grasp her by the shoulders and whirl her around. Her hoof flew to her heart and she panted with relief when she realized the voice and hooves had belonged to Shortround.
"You shouldn't be here," Shortround warned, glancing up and quickly ushering Rarity away from the ransacked chamber.
"What happened?" Rarity whispered, constantly glancing back at the chamber's entryway.
Shortround sighed and looked down at the ground. "Did you hear those noises last night?" he whispered.
How could she not? Sleep was impossible, they were all too saddened by the news of Fluttershy's departure, but their silent sorrow was interrupted by loud crashes and anguished cries that filled the night air.
There was no question as to who was causing the noises...but now she knew what the Master had been doing.
"Did you see his piano?" Rarity murmured. "I...I never imagined him destroying..." she knew that the Master's sorrow was great...she just had not comprehended the lengths his sorrow could go. To destroy his own music and the instruments he dearly cherished, the only things that brought joy into his life...
There was no joy left in this world. All that was good, all that which had caused delight in their lives, had vanished with Fluttershy.
"The Master needs his time...we must grant him that, at the very least," Shortround whispered, moving away from the chamber's entrance.
Rarity silently nodded her head, but a cloud of worry was already washing over her. If the Master was capable of destroying his precious piano, he was also capable of behaving most irrationally when it came to his own health. "Shortround...you haven't by any chance seen Derpy today, have you?"
Her heart sank as Shortround shook his head. "I'm sure she is fine," he reassured, a weak attempt at trying to ease Rarity's worry. "We all just...need time. Time will heal..." although not even Shortround was certain his words provided any comfort. Could time heal such wounds as this? He glanced once more at the wreckage of the music chamber and sighed heavily. Shortround always had his books to fall back on when things seemed bleak; it would take a miracle to lighten the despair that hovered over their dark world.
Blueblood groaned and rolled over onto his side, his chest slick with perspiration. He reached for his jacket, which was lying nearby, and pulled his cigar case out from his inner pocket. He lit the cigar and inhaled deeply, relaxing as the smoke filled his nostrils.
"I think those things are disgusting," came the voice beside him. Blueblood shut his eyes, as if that gesture alone would shut out the mare's voice. "However, you smoking after we make love is always a sure sign that I pleasured you greatly..." she purred, moving her head to nestle against his chest, her tongue flicking out to tease his ear.
Blueblood grunted, but not out of pleasure-more out of annoyance. He stiffened at the words "make love"; he always made it clear that what he did was "fucking", never "making love". When a stallion made love to a mare it meant he owed her something, and Blueblood never wanted Celestia to think he owed her anything.
He took another long puff on the cigar, before gently pushing the blonde soprano's head off his chest. Celestia pouted as she felt Blueblood rise from the bed, and her pout only increased as she watched him pull on his breeches. "Why do you always rush off?" she complained. "If you stay a little longer, I'll do that thing with my tongue that I know you enjoy..." she grinned, running her tongue seductively across her lips.
Blueblood showed no amusement at her offer, and only continued to get dressed.
Celestia's grin quickly disappeared, and her eyes narrowed into angry slits. "I swear, sometimes you make me feel like a cheap whore," she spat, angrily folding her arms across her chest.
Blueblood said nothing; the truth would only infuriate Celestia further.
She glanced at him again; annoyed that he was not even acknowledging her presence. With an outraged shriek, she grabbed one of the bed pillows and flung it at his head. Blueblood took a deep calming breath before finally turning back to the pouting soprano. "You have something you wish to express, my dear?" he asked sweetly, although the tone was dripping with sarcasm. He took the pillow that she had thrown and flung it back at her.
Celestia glared at him and quickly sat up, fire burning in her eyes. "I'm getting tired of this Blueblood," she hissed angrily.
Blueblood cocked an eyebrow at her words. "Truly? I thought you enjoyed our 'meetings', my dear," he could not help but grin at the angry frown she cast his way.
"You know what I mean!" she snapped, gathering the sheets around her body. "At first I thought you were simply an awestruck admirer."
Blueblood smiled fondly at the memory. "Tis true, I can not deny that upon our first meeting, I was indeed awestruck," he grinned, remembering the way he had her beg for him rip her dress off and take her between acts in the corridor just past the stage.
Celestia did not show any sign of fond remembrance. "As time went on however, I began to realize that it wasn't the 'pleasure' of my company that you sought, but rather...an opportunity for you to get something!"
Blueblood closed his eyes briefly, his hoof rising to rub the bridge of his nose. He would need all the patience he could muster for this one.
"I know all the stories about you, monsieur," she muttered with disgust. "And don't think that I've forgotten how you wanted to seduce my costume mare all those months ago!" she accused.
Blueblood pasted a look of hurt across his face before sitting back down at the edge of the bed. "You believe those vicious rumors? They are spun by silly dance mares who are jealous of your beauty, your talent, and your charisma in the bedroom-"
Celestia rolled her eyes and rose from the bed, gripping the sheets tightly around her body as she began to stalk back and forth across the dressing room floor. "You are a worse liar than those two imbeciles who run this opera house!"
Blueblood let out a long frustrated sigh before rising once more. "Clearly you have something on your mind, and clearly it's not entirely about my hasty departure. So why don't you simply say what's bothering you, after all, you never hold back your disdain to anyone else," he growled, while leaning against the dressing table.
Celestia cast him a vengeful stare, before fully turning and facing him. "You all must think I am a complete idiot!" she charged, her face darkening with anger. Blueblood held his tongue, although the temptation was extremely great. "But I am not as blind as you may think, Monsieur Prince," she spat.
Blueblood groaned and rubbed his nose once more. "Meaning?"
"Meaning this pile of shit that you and the managers dare call opera!" she screeched. "I am not blind Blueblood! I have noticed how Fancypants has been singing the lead at rehearsals...but what I find interesting is that we have no female lead. In fact, we are conveniently skipping her scenes and songs altogether!"
Blueblood gripped the edges of Celestia's dressing table to keep himself from reaching out and throttling the prima donna.
She eyed him suspiciously and slowly sauntered over to him. "In fact...I think that your 'visits' are simply a way to keep me distracted from what is really going on," she murmured, running her hooves along his chest. "Am I wrong?"
Blueblood smiled down at her, although it was not a smile of seduction, rather of one that was obviously covering up feelings of annoyance.
Celestia returned the smile, however hers was one of calculation and triumph. She turned on her heel and began to walk away from the Prince. "I want a copy of that piss-awful opera in my dressing room within the next hour," she ordered.
Blueblood eyed Celestia's back and watched as the diva dropped the sheets, before stepping into her dressing gown. "Are you threatening me, senora?" he calmly asked, resuming his cigar smoking.
Celestia turned to face him as she finished tying the sash of her dressing gown. "If you wish to call it that," she replied haughtily.
Blueblood moved away from the dressing table as Celestia marched towards it and sat herself down, running a brush through her disheveled waves. He continued to watch her as a hawk watches the prey its about to devour. "And if I do not comply with your orders?" he simply inquired.
Celestia put the brush down and stared back at him in the reflection of her mirror. "Maris is not the only city that wants me, monsieur," she spat. "I have many offers. Vienna has been begging me to come and perform on their stage for over a year. And Brussels has made an offer that by far exceeds what this company pitifully calls a salary."
Blueblood could not help but smile at her threats. "Why, I'm sure that even your beloved Venice would sell its soul for the opportunity to have its prima donna grace the stage once more."
Celestia slammed her brush down once more. "Perhaps they would!" she screeched. "And perhaps I will take their offer! I should, after the horrible ways that you and this company have treated me!" she grumbled.
Blueblood's smile darkened and his eyes locked with hers in the mirror. "But you won't," he simply said.
Celestia whirled around and stared at him. "Who says I won't? You? HA!" she laughed. "You silly aristocrats, thinking that you can buy anything, even stars like myself!" She turned back towards the mirror and began to powder her face. "I can not be bought, monsieur, and I will not be used any longer! I will have that role in this opera, or you will be the one to suffer!"
Blueblood cocked an eyebrow at her words. "How so?"
She couldn't help but grin evilly. "Money matters very much to you and the managers. If I go, so go your ticket sales."
"Ah, but there you are wrong," Blueblood sighed, his arms moving around his back. "You see my dear, you weren't the only one doing some detective work."
Celestia froze at his words. "W-w-what do you mean?"
Blueblood could not help but grin. "Simply that I decided to investigate these so-called 'pleas' that you have been receiving," he paused as he watched the color drain completely from Celestia's face. "There are no pleas. Vienna could care less of what became of you, and Brussels has actually pleaded that we do not release ourselves of you, in fear that you would come to them," he leaned down till his face was just hovering over her shoulder, staring back at her in the mirror. "No one wants you Celestia...not even your beloved Venice. The great La Celestia is no longer great; she is simply a memory of someone who perhaps at one point in her career had some talent...and you're scared as hell if Maris releases itself of you."
He straightened himself up and continued to watch as the prima donna sat completely still, not even moving an eyelash...save for a single tear that trickled down her over-made up cheek. "In truth, senora," Blueblood continued, reaching for his suit jacket, "it is I who have helped you maintain your fame and fortune here in Maris. I am regarded as the patron saint of the arts in this city; whatever the Prince deems as worthy to patronize, so goes society. I have filled society's ears with praises of your great name and talent, although we all know that's a white lie," he sighed. "In a manner of speaking, I have brainwashed society into still believing you are the great star that at one time you were. My scheming, with the power of your name, has brought much wealth to this opera house, but in the end, it is I who holds the cards Celestia...not you."
Blueblood adjusted his jacket and picked up his hat. "I bid you good day senora...and I trust that you'll go along with the instructions for this opera. I have too much resting on it to let some spoiled soprano ruin it for me." He calmly opened the dressing room door, only to find Fancypants standing on the other side, his eyes wide with horror at being discovered by the Prince. "Ah! Senor, I do believe I am finished; by all means, have at her."
Blueblood never looked back as Celestia's angry screams filled the corridor, along with the sound of smashing vase.
"More?" Fluttershy inquired, grinning as her father finished a third bowl of soup. He was too busy slurping the bottom of the bowl, to hear Fluttershy's question. "Well, its good see that at least your appetite has returned," she giggled, taking the empty bowl away and placing it on a tray.
Time Turner smiled and took his daughter's hoof in his own. "I must say, I do feel my strength improving," he sighed happily. "Although, I believe most of that is because of you," he said, squeezing her hoof.
Fluttershy squeezed his back, so happy that he was alright and they were together. But there remained that gnawing feeling of despair, a feeling that she feared would never fully leave.
"Are you alright dear?" Time Turner asked, his smile disappearing and being replaced with a look of concern.
Fluttershy was startled by the question. "What? Oh! Oh, I'm fine, truly Papa, I was just...thinking about how we could ever repay Madame Luna for her kindness to us these last few days."
The old stallion's smile returned and nodded his head to his daughter's words. "Yes, both she and her daughter have been true friends to us these last few days, as you said," he sighed, leaning back in the bed. "Both they and the Prince."
Fluttershy's head snapped up. "The Prince?" she asked, her eyes growing wide from the revelation. "Prince Blueblood?"
Her father returned the puzzled look, his brow furrowing at the way she spoke. "Why yes, of course...I had assumed that he had been the one to tell you of my whereabouts."
Fluttershy rose to her feet, although her legs felt rather shaky. "Madame Luna had recently learned of your imprisonment and was the one who took me to you...w-what does the Prince have to do with all this?" she asked, her voice somewhere between trembling suspense and screeching hysteria.
"Calm down my dear, you say that as though the stallion has done some great ill against us, when in truth, he has shown such loyal friendship."
Fluttershy took a deep breath to try and calm herself, but in truth, she desperately needed answers. "Papa, please, explain to me about how the Prince knew of you being in the prison."
Time Turner stared at his daughter as if he were afraid she'd leap out the window. What had gotten into her? She sounded ready to go mad! "The Prince learned of my imprisonment and came to visit me," he explained. "Unlike those imbeciles who call themselves detectives, he believed me when I told him about the Phantom kidnapping you."
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed with confusion. "You...you told him that?"
"Yes, of course! I wanted to save you, but...those idiots wouldn't listen," he sighed with annoyance. "They thought me mad, and locked me up. But the Prince learned of my whereabouts and came directly to me. He tried to have me released, fully prepared to pay the bail himself, but those idiots claimed that I could only be released to a member of my own family. Huh, can you believe it?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest. "A stallion with the connections, the wealth, and the power of the Prince, was not regarded as good enough to believe. He even implored them, telling them that my words were true, that you were in great danger, but still, they wouldn't listen," a small smile creased at the corners of his mouth. "I suppose in our misunderstanding, the Prince and I are not very different."
Fluttershy frowned slightly at these words. "Yes, but the difference of course being that you, a poor working class stallion, is deemed a threat to society and must be locked away, while he, an aristocrat who is also telling the same story, is free to go about as he pleases." She could not help but hide the venom in her voice.
Time Turner shook his head, as if the reality of the situation meant little to him. "The world has always been prejudiced to the poor, I was not the first example, nor will I be the last."
Fluttershy knew her father to be right, but she was not as ready as he was to happily draw the comparison between the two stallions.
"I am very grateful to him though," he continued, turning and smiling at her while taking her hoof in his. "I know there was nothing he could do, about rescuing you I mean. After all, we both know how heavily laden with traps that place is," Time Turner murmured, a shudder going through him at the memory. "And it would take an army to overthrow that fiend. Sadly, because the police would not believe the Pince's story, he could not assemble a mob to overtake the Phantom's lair."
Fluttershy felt her blood freeze at her father's words; even more at the hateful tone in which he said them. She pulled her hoof away from his, a gesture which startled the old stallion. "Fluttershy? Is something wrong?"
She inwardly cursed herself for her silly gesture. She couldn't blame her father for his feelings, after all, he had not known the Phantom the way she had. But the very thought of a mob, bursting through the barriers Discord had spent years perfecting, and possibly hurting him and the others, caused her blood to boil with rage.
"If you're finished, I'll take your bowl downstairs," Fluttershy offered, her hoof going out to the empty soup bowl.
Time Turner watched his daughter with sad eyes, cursing himself for being foolish enough to bring up the past. His poor filly, it must have been extremely traumatic, all those months, locked away in a world of darkness. He would never understand the reasons as to why the Phantom simply "released her", as Flutershy insisted, but whatever the reasons, he was so grateful to have her back, safe and sound.
"You should get some rest," Fluttershy whispered, bending and kissing his forehead. "Your health has greatly improved, but you are still on the mend."
Time Turner opened his mouth to speak, but a sudden knock came from the bedroom door. Without waiting for anyone to open the door, Soles burst in, a deep scowl written across her already grim features.
"There's a gentlecolt here to see you, mademoiselle," she grumbled.
Fluttershy's brow furrowed with confusion. "A gentlecolt?"
"Yes, although I don't understand what a stallion like him would want with a mare like you," she muttered, too soft for Time Turner to hear, but just at the right level for Fluttershy. "It's Prince Blueblood, and he's presently waiting in the parlor downstairs."
"Oh! The Prince is here?" Time Turner asked, his face lighting up with pleasure. "Oh Fluttershy, you must go down and see him at once! Please, apologize on my behalf, I would like to see him and thank him personally, but will you do it for me?"
Fluttershy smiled faintly at her father, but in truth, she did not share his enthusiasm for the Prince's presence.
"He is waiting, mademoiselle," the housekeeper grumbled again, her tone clearly of one filled with irritation.
Fluttershy cast an icy glare at the mare, and then lifted her chin. "I shall be down at once...why don't you make some tea for my guest?"
Soles returned Fluttershy's cold glare with one of her own, but walked past the young mare on her way to the kitchens.
"You look lovely, my dear!" her father called out to her as she exited the bedroom. Fluttershy inwardly groaned; the Prince may have been most helpful to her father, but she should have known he was playing matchmaker once more by the way he filled her ears with praises towards the hoofsome noblecolt.
She descended the stairs and took a deep breath before entering the parlor. The Prince stood with his back to her, gazing out the window, his hat, and gloves in his arms. "Good day, monsieur," Fluttershy said politely with a curtsy.
Blueblood turned around at the sound of Fluttershy's voice and his face seemed to radiate a pleasured glow. "Fluttershy!" he beamed, before quickly bowing in response. "I beg your pardon; Mademoiselle Fluttershy," he corrected. He pulled a chair out for her and offered his hoof. "Won't you have a seat?" he asked, his smile continuing to radiate warmth.
Fluttershy smiled back politely, although she could not help but feel somewhat foolish for her lack of manners when it came to being a hostess. After all, it was she who should be offering him a place to sit, but she gratefully took the chair he offered, quickly hiding her embarrassment. "I must say, this is an unexpected surprise," she said while sitting down. She froze as she felt the Prince's lips brush over her hoof, but as soon as he had planted the kiss, he had released her hoof and was seating himself on the chaise lounge directly across from her.
Fluttershy continued to smile out of politeness, however it didn't compare to the beaming grin that the Prince offered her. "I'm afraid Madame Luna is not here, she is-"
"At the opera house, yes," he interrupted. "I just came from there actually, although I did not chance to speak with her."
"Ah," Fluttershy added, not sure how else to respond. Perhaps that was why the Prince thought it safe to pay a visit, since the dance mistress was out? Soles entered the parlor with the tea tray and placed it on the small table between the two of them. Fluttershy murmured a polite thank you, to which the housekeeper simply grunted.
"How is your father, if I may ask?" Blueblood politely inquired, although there did seem to be a genuine feeling of concern in his voice.
"He is greatly improving, thank you," Fluttershy murmured, offering the Prince his tea. He gratefully took the cup and saucer, his hooves lingering just slightly over hers as he accepted it, a gesture which caused Fluttershy to shiver, however not in the way she was sure the Prince intended.
"I am glad to hear it," he smiled, his eyes lingering on her face as he sipped his tea.
Fluttershy squirmed just slightly under his watchful gaze, sipping her tea but keeping her eyes to the floor. Had he simply come to inquire after her father? Or was there something else? "Monsieur," she began, "I...that is, I am very grateful for what you did at the police station."
Blueblood smiled warmly. "It was my pleasure," he softly replied, bowing his head slightly and keeping his eyes focused on her face.
She returned his smile, although it still did not hold the same amount of warmth that his held. "I do want you to know, however, that I fully intend to pay you back, when I get the money," she added firmly; however a worried look passed over her face as she wondered how long that would take.
Blueblood's smile disappeared then and was replaced by a look of confusion. "I beg your pardon?"
Fluttershy lifted her eyes to his, somewhat surprised by his surprise. "The money at which you paid for my father's release; I just wanted you to know that I have every intention of paying you back...in fact, I can begin paying you now, actually, I do have that gold-"
Blueblood reached out and placed one large hoof atop hers. "Fluttershy, you owe me nothing," he reassured. "I was more than happy to help you and your father, please..." he gave her hooves a gentle squeeze. "Let this be my gift to you."
Fluttershy eyed him suspiciously for a moment. She had to admit, this did not seem like the Prince that she knew. Well, in truth, she didn't know very much about the Prince, other than the stories she had heard from Discord. Yet even Discord's prejudice seemed justified by Madame Luna's mistrust of the stallion. Besides, she had not forgotten that time he tried to seduce her in his private lounge at the opera house. Does one good deed outweigh a lifetime of sins? She bit her lip at that thought; she wanted to say no, but then she had easily forgiven Discord for the many sins he had committed over the years. Of course the difference there was that she loved him...still.
"Fluttershy?"
She shook her head and returned her gaze to the Prince. "Are you alright?" he asked, his voice filled with concern, as were his eyes. Perhaps she had poorly misjudged the stallion? "You seem...troubled, if I may say. Forgive me if I am wrong, though," he quickly added.
Fluttershy shook her head. "No, I am fine, thank you, just...tired, actually," she lied, hoping that would satisfy his curiosity. It seemed to do the trick.
"Of course, you have been very busy, I am sure, helping your father regain his strength. Forgive me; I am probably intruding upon your resting time-"
"No, please," Fluttershy insisted, feeling somewhat ashamed for her prejudice and rudeness towards the stallion. While she was not ready to trust him, at least not completely, she was thankful for the graces in which he had performed. "I am most thankful for all that you have done, monsieur, it is an honor to have your company."
Blueblood beamed once more at her words and settled himself again on the chaise lounge. "The honor is all mine, mademoiselle, and besides, it is not only I who is honored to be in your presence this fine day..."
Fluttershy was puzzled by his words, and opened her mouth to ask what he meant, when suddenly, the door to the kitchens opened, and both Flim and Flam came bursting forth.
"MADEMOISELLE!" they cried happily, bowing politely, each stallion beaming as brightly as the Prince.
Fluttershy jumped at their entrance and even more so at their outburst. "M-m-messieur's..." she stuttered, her eyes flashing back and forth between Blueblood and the managers. "T-t-this is a surprise!" she added, although she wasn't sure which exactly surprised her more: the fact that these stallions were here, or the fact that they knew the name of Celestia's costume mare.
"So glad to hear that your father is on the mend," Flim stated proudly.
"And so happy to see you once more!" Flam included, taking her hoof in his and giving it a rather dramatic kiss.
Fluttershy simply stared at each one of them in absolute confusion.
"Messieur's, please, we must allow Mademoiselle Fluttershy an opportunity to regain her composure; I think the two of you scared her to death!" Blueblood cheerfully reprimanded, smiling warmly at Fluttershy.
"Oh we do beg your pardon, mademoiselle," Flm apologized, pulling up a chair and seating himself on Fluttershy's left.
"We are just so overjoyed to have you with us once more," Flam explained, also pulling up a chair and sitting on Fluttershy's right.
Fluttershy was beginning to feel as if the walls were closing in on her.
"I...I am very grateful that you both are pleased to see me...a-as I am pleased to see you," she added politely, although in truth, she had not thought about the two managers since the day they hired her to work for Celestia.
"I think it would be best if you both explained to Mademoiselle Fluttershy why you are pleased to see her...I do not think it fair to keep her in the dark much longer," Blueblood intervened.
Flim nodded his head in agreement. "Mademoiselle, I know that you have been...away...for some time," he mumbled. "But you should know that during your absence, the Maris Opera House has been having an extraordinary season!"
"Very...unique and original, one must say," Flam added, his smile never fading, despite the somewhat hysterical look in his eyes.
"Indeed so," Flim agreed. "And now, as our season is coming to a close...we have decided to drop the schedule we originally had, and end the opera year with a rather...um...rather..." Flim looked to Flam for help.
"Original!" the younger manager cut in.
"Yes! Rather...original, new piece, titled Don Juan Triumphant."
Fluttershy's face paled at the words and she suddenly felt as cold as ice. "D-d-don Juan T-t-triumphant?"
"Yes, Don Juan Triumphant," Flim smiled. "You know, mademoiselle, you say it as if you've heard it before," he added, his gray brow furrowing with confusion.
Fluttershy's eyes went wide and she turned to look at the Prince, whose own eyes she caught by surprise; they were like a hawk's, eyeing its prey. "N-no, I um...simply, as you said, it is an opera with a...unique name. Not at all what you originally had planned when the season began, if I remember correctly."
Both managers exchanged a grievous look, each feeling the truth of those words.
"Yes, well, we have been rehearsing for nearly a month now, but are still struggling with certain areas..." Flim continued.
"Certain areas in regards to casting," Flam clarified, although the bright smile he once wore was now long gone.
Fluttershy stared at both stallions, her face pale and her eyes wide. Were they asking her what she thought they were asking her?
"Well, I see no point in beating around the bush," Flim sighed, taking one of Fluttershy's hooves in his. "Mademoiselle Fluttershy, it would be a great honor, if you would grace us with your voice in singing the part of Aminta in our opera."
Fluttershy pulled her hooves away from Flim and rose so quickly from her chair that it fell over with a loud thud. Both managers stared up at her in shock, and Blueblood rose to his hooves as well, concern etched across his hoofsome features. "Fluttershy? Are you unwell?"
She ignored him and kept her focus entirely on the managers. "Y-y-you're asking me to...to perform...to perform in..."
"The Phantom's opera, yes," Blueblood sighed, coming around the table and gently placing a hoof on her shoulder. Fluttershy turned and looked at him, her blue eyes wide with questions. "You have a right to know Fluttershy..." Blueblood softly murmured, nodding at Flam, who grimaced as he pulled an envelope from his coat pocket.
Fluttershy stared at the envelope that the younger manager held, her legs trembling at the sight of Discord's seal, a blood-red skull. With shaky hooves, she reached for the note, gasping as if someone had struck her when she touched the paper.
Blueblood, noticing her reluctance, took the note and opened it. "Monsieur Flam and Monsieur Flim received this letter several days ago," he explained. "Almost a month ago they received a letter similar to it, containing a casting list for the Phantom's opera. All parts were assigned by the Phantom himself...with the exception of the main female lead."
Fluttershy attempted to swallow the large lump in her throat but found the chore extremely difficult. "This letter gives strict instructions, as all his letters do, as to who shall play the part of Aminta," he continued. "It mentions one single name: Fluttershy." He held the letter up for her to see, and Fluttershy let out a long shaky breath as she read her name in Discord's unique hoofwriting.
Her world was spinning. Fluttershy shook her head violently so as to make the whirlwind stop. She crossed the room then, her arms gripping the red shawl that she wore ever more tightly around her body. She reached out and gripped the windowsill for support, her eyes gazing northward where she could see the spires of the Maris Opera House overhead.
The managers rose from their chairs, each casting one another and the Prince a look of concern. "We...we do not understand ourselves why the Phantom chose you, mademoiselle..." Flam carefully explained. "But...we do know this much; ever since receiving this opera, the demands have been great, but the accidents few and far between."
"We are hoping that by complying with the Phantom's instructions, and performing his opera, he will...perhaps...cease haunting our lives for good," Flim added, although his voice held something that Fluttershy couldn't exactly make out; a hint of assurance, as if he knew for a fact that the notes would stop after opening night of Don Juan Triumphant.
"More or less, mademoiselle, it is a selfish reason, true, but we, that is the Maris Opera House, can not afford another scandal this season," Flam sighed. "We can not afford NOT to follow the Phantom's instructions. And so, we come begging, that you will help us in this endeavor by playing the part of Aminta."
Fluttershy bit her lip as several tears betrayed her eyes and slowly began to trickle down her face. Blueblood sensed the uneasiness only growing and quickly urged the managers to take their leave. "We look forward to seeing you on stage mademois-" Blueblood shut the door before they could finish.
He groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose, cursing the two mangers for their lack of understanding. "I'm sorry you had to go through that," Blueblood moaned, turning his attention back to Fluttershy. She remained by the window, only this time she was gripping it as if for dear life. "Fluttershy?" he asked, his voice filled with concern. He quickly crossed the room to where she stood, gently reaching out to touch her shoulder. "Fluttershy?"
"I can't believe this is happening," she whispered, turning her face away so that he couldn't see her tears.
Blueblood exhaled a long worried sigh, before retrieving his hoofkerchief and handing it to her. Fluttershy murmured a thank you before taking the hoofkerchief and blowing her nose. "I know it was horrible of them to ask you to perform, especially after everything you've endured..."
Fluttershy turned to face him then, her face contorted with bewilderment at his words. "What are you saying?"
Blueblood gazed down at her for a moment before folding his hooves behind his back. "I know about the Phantom taking you prisoner. He originally kidnapped your father, but you..." he smiled softly. "You sacrificed your own life for his. I confess, I have never known such bravery."
Fluttershy gave a faint smile to his words, but now was not the time she wanted to hear how brave she was to endure what truly had been the happiest months of her life.
"I can't even begin to fathom the sort of horrors you must have endured all that time...and I am still in awe of seeing you now, safe and alive," he said with wonder. "However you managed to escape, I can't imagine, but somehow you did find a way."
Fluttershy said nothing; if her father had trouble believing that the Phantom had released her, there was no hope with the Prince.
"Fluttershy, forgive me, I know I am being very forward," he reached out and took one of her hooves then, enfolding it in his much larger ones. "But I want to offer my services to you."
Her eyes went wide at the words. "I...I b-beg your pardon?" she was very much aware at how iron tight his hooves felt when holding hers.
Blueblood grinned. "I want to help you, and your father, in any way that I can. I am but your loyal servant," he said with an elegant bow.
Fluttershy gave a faint smile but quickly pulled her hooves away. "You are too kind, monsieur, but that won't be necessary."
Blueblood frowned slightly at this, but remained steadfast. "Please...my name is Blueblood, and it would do me the great honor to hear you call me by it."
Inwardly, Fluttershy was groaning, but she smiled out of politeness and nodded her head. "Very well...Blueblood," she tested the word. "You have done more than enough for my father and me, truly, and I am very grateful for your kindness and charity-"
"I do not do these things out of charity, Fluttershy," he said, somewhat darkly. The change in his tone caused Fluttershy to practically jump. Blueblood quickly smoothed his tone before continuing. "What I mean is...I know that you do not trust me, and there is no use for arguing," he silenced her when she opened her mouth to protest, "because I can read it in your eyes. You don't trust me, and I can not blame you," he sighed, looking down at the floor before him. "This may come as a surprise to you, but I have not forgotten that day either, and I think you know what day I mean..." he looked into her eyes and Fluttershy felt a tremble go through her body. His face was extremely hoofsome, there could be no doubt about that...but it also held a darkness. There was darkness in Discord's face too, however his, while dangerous, also held something sensual. The Prince's cast no such sensual spell; its darkness remained very sinister, despite his fair-haired Apollo-like beauty.
"I am a stallion who has been born into a great many privileges. Wealth, power, titles-and yet despite all these privileges, I never realized until that day that the title of 'gentlecolt' was not one a stallion was simply given; it was one that he had to earn. I had assumed all my life that because of my money, because of my estate, because I was the next in line to become the Prince, that I was also a gentlecolt. However...you taught me that day," he murmured, reaching for her hoof once more. "What makes a true gentlecolt, and it isn't any of those things."
Fluttershy gazed up at him, unsure how to respond. "How...how did I teach you that?"
He smiled down at her, and Fluttershy began to see why many of the dance mares regarded him as so charming. "By snubbing me, and telling me exactly how insulted you were by my treatment of you," he added, wincing at the memory.
Fluttershy couldn't help but smile slightly. Perhaps he was learning after all. "From that moment," he went on, "I began to realize that my treatment of mares was utterly disgusting, and while I am by no means a perfect stallion," he softly chuckled, "I do owe you my thanks for helping me realize the stallion that I want to be..."
Fluttershy began to feel slightly uncomfortable with their closeness, and slowly tugged her hoof free. "You flatter me, monsieur, in ways that I do not deserve."
"I do not think that is possible. I think you deserve every ounce of flattery in this world, and beyond. But I can tell that my boldness is making you very uncomfortable, so I shall cease," he said with a polite smile, taking a step away from her. "But my offer still remains; I would like to be of service to both you and your father, and...if I may be so bold as to make a suggestion?" Curious, Fluttershy nodded her head.
"Madame Luna has been very kind to both you and your father, opening her home and allowing you a place to stay while your father recovers. That is kindness indeed," he smiled. Fluttershy returned the smile, however she was unsure where he was going with this. "However...I have noticed a few...tensions in the household?" he cocked his head in direction of the kitchen to where Soles had disappeared earlier. "And while I know that Madame Luna would never dream of urging the two of you to leave, I did notice the small pile of newspapers when I first entered the house near the door...all of which were turned towards the listings of available apartments."
Fluttershy felt a flush invade her cheeks, somewhat amazed by the Prince's eye for detail. "I have been making inquiries," she explained. "My father is quickly improving, however as soon as he is well enough to venture outside, we shall not intrude upon Madame Luna's hospitality a second longer."
Blueblood nodded his head in understanding. "And have you had any luck in your search?"
Fluttershy grimaced slightly. "What we can afford is not much," she whispered. "But we shall make due, we always have in the past," she gave an optimistic smile, despite how she truly felt.
"Yes, well, we can't have that now, can we?" Blueblood murmured, his eyes twinkling as he gazed down at Fluttershy. "I know you already feel greatly indebted to me, but please, allow me to make this one other offer. I have friends from the country who sometimes come and visit me when I am in Maris. I keep an apartment for these friends when they visit, but right now, it is available. I already pay the monthly rent for it, and knowing that it is being used by someone, rather than simply collecting dust as it is presently, well...in all actuality, you would be doing me the favor."
Fluttershy gazed up at him, her eyes wide with amazement at his offer. "It is too much..."
"Fluttershy, please, let me do this for you," he implored. "At least let it be for a temporary period. Once you find something that is not only comfortable, but also affordable, you may feel free to move out, no questions asked. But let me help you now...please..."
She gazed into his emerald eyes, searching them for a long time to see if there was any sign of expectation for accepting his offer. She could not find any. Perhaps he truly was changing? "Very well," she whispered. "I shall tell my father the news and when he is ready to move, we shall do so...but it will only be for a temporary period," she emphasized, perhaps a little too bluntly.
Blueblood said nothing; he simply bowed his head to her. "You do me a great honor, Fluttershy," he smiled. "I shall begin to make the arrangements for your stay," he pulled his gloves on and put on his hat, walking briskly towards the door. However, once reaching it, he paused and turned to face her once more. "And what of the opera?"
Fluttershy's smile vanished at his words and she felt that chill return. "I...I don't know..." she whispered, avoiding his eyes.
Blueblood watched her closely for a moment before speaking again. "As Monsieur Flam said, we do not understand why the Phantom requests that you sing in his opera, and I understand your reluctance Fluttershy..."
She highly doubted that, but she said nothing.
"However, I see this as an opportunity to take something and make it your own."
She looked up at him, her eyes narrowed with confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Simply that you take this opera, you take this role, and you mold it into something uniquely your own. That way, you have complete control over it, that way you have nothing to fear; it does not rule you...you rule it."
Funny, Fluttershy thought, but those words were so similar to what Discord had once said.
"It is your way of gaining the upper hoof on our masked friend," Blueblood muttered sarcastically, that cold darkness returning to his voice once more. Fluttershy eyed him warily; was he talking about her or himself? "Besides," Blueblood continued, the lightness in his voice returning, "do you really want to see Celestia butchering this role which is rightfully yours?"
The Prince's words caused Fluttershy to stiffen, and a cold wave of realization hit her like an ocean wave. If she didn't sing Aminta, Celestia would...and despite what happened between her and Discord, she couldn't let that witch murder Discord's work. She didn't know what was true; that gnawing voice in the back of her head that told her to not believe Discord's hateful words was continuing to grow louder. Whether Discord envisioned her to play Aminta or not, Fluttershy believed that she had earned the right to play that part after months of intense training. It may be the Phantom's opera, but it was her character.
"Please tell Monsieur Flam and Monsieur Flim that I shall report to rehearsals at the beginning of next week." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Pain | Pain
Four days.
He had locked himself away in that place for four solid days.
Rarity stood outside the chamber, remembering happier times when she had come to it, remembering the laughter that had once filled it, and the warmth that had once radiated from it. But all those things were gone; ever since she left them, life as it seemed, had been taken as well.
The mare held the tray of food in her mouth and prepared herself for the argument that she was sure would greet her. Ever since Discord had shut himself away in Fluttershy's former chamber, he refused to see or speak with anypony. At first, Rarity had been leaving trays of food outside the chamber entrance, but she would return later and find the food cold and untouched. Now and then a piece of bread would be found missing from the tray, but not much else. It was as if the Master were trying to waste away...
And yet despite his attempts to disappear, he was still just as mighty and just as fierce. It was only yesterday that he chased her out of the chamber for daring to disturb him, throwing the tray she had brought against the wall, leaving a colorful mushy mess on the stone. Who knew what today would hold? Rarity took a deep breath, and bravely entered the chamber.
"Master?"
He did not answer. She carefully and quietly walked towards him, a ghost-like figure, cloaked in shadow, sitting motionless upon the bed in the center of the room.
Rarity recalled her shock at seeing his chamber; the torn music, the broken statues, and of course, the overturned piano. When she had learned that he had been staying in Fluttershy's chamber, she suspected that it too, would have been torn to pieces. However, much to her surprise, the chamber remained untouched. Everything was perfectly in order, as if she had never left. Discord sat upon the bed, his back towards the entryway, his figure hunched over, as if examining something. Rarity cleared her throat so that he would know of her presence, but still, he remained still and silent.
She set the tray down. "Master...I have brought you some food..." she waited for a reply, or at least some acknowledgement that he had heard her, but there was nothing.
"Please...a few crusts of bread here and there will not keep your strength up..."
Nothing.
Rarity sighed and slowly walked around the edge of the bed. The lace curtains were drawn, but Discord's dark figure was clearly visible behind them. What was it that he was examining so intently? She peered through the shadows and saw that his paw and claw were gently running over the silken fabric of an ivory dress that lay flat on the bed.
"Master, we all miss her-"
"Get out."
He didn't raise his voice; the words were barely above a whisper. But the threat behind them was as clear as a bell ringing on a silent morning. The mare said nothing more; she quickly walked back towards the entrance. But before exiting, she paused, and turned once more to face him.
"Why don't you search for her? Find her and tell her of your feelings..." he said nothing; it was like talking to a brick wall. With a heavy heart, Rarity turned away. "She does love you Master, please know that...she loves you..." without another word, the mare picked up her skirts and quickly hurried off before he could respond.
Discord sat in the mute stillness of the chamber, his paw ceasing only momentarily from stroking the fabric. "Not anymore..." he whispered to the shadows. "Not anymore."
Fluttershy trembled as she gazed up at the great stage, memories of first entering the Maris Opera House coming back to her as clear as visions from yesterday.
Things were not so different. Then, ponies were busily preparing for the opening gala-now, they were preparing to put on Don Juan Triumphant. Sets were being designed, stage hooves worked in the background, painting and installing the various pieces, while the dancers rehearsed another meticulous dance number upstage. The sound of hammering and sawing could be heard throughout the auditorium, oddly mixed with the orchestra's playing. The smell of cigarettes and cheap perfume wafted the air, and in the distance, Celestia's angry screeches reverberated off the walls. Yes, little had changed since she had last seen this place; in fact, it was as if sompony had handed her a painting of her first visit, and she had stepped through it to go back in time. A time when she did not know the Phantom of the Opera, a time when both she and her father had steady work.
A time when she was not afraid of what the future held...
"Ah! Mademoiselle! There you are, at last!" Flam cried happily, leaving the conversation he was having with the conductor and rushing to her side.
Fluttershy smiled back politely, however she regretted his small outburst as dozens of eyes turned to stare at her.
When the Prince had visited almost a week ago, Fluttershy had felt determined to come and sing the role she believed she had worked so hard to earn, even if Discord had cast her for the role without hearing anypony else. The point being that she had practiced and trained for such a role over long, meticulous hours, many of which had been quite stressful. In her mind, she had earned that role, creating and shaping Aminta's character into Fluttershy's vision of a young mare, desperately in love with a stallion who did not think he was worthy. The truth of that role stung very deeply, Fluttershy thought.
And yet, as the days past, Fluttershy's doubts began to grow. Had she done the right thing, agreeing to perform? A part of her warned her to stay as far away from the opera house as possible, that returning would only cause further heartache and trouble. But she was also drawn to the place, a part of her wanting desperately to see how Discord's unique musical vision was being brought to life. In the end, despite her worries and fears, she convinced herself that she could at least try one rehearsal and see how things went. Perhaps the managers would not be pleased with her; after all, it had been some time since she had last rehearsed, perhaps it had all been a foolish day dream, that she could not sing as well as she thought, that Discord was completely tone deaf after long months of listening to Celestia's screeches.
"Mademoiselle?"
Fluttershy shook her head and gazed at the younger manager who smiled and offered her his arm. She smiled back once more, out of politeness, taking his arm and following him as he led her up to the stage. The butterflies in her stomach were fluttering about wildly, and her legs felt extremely shaky as she felt every eye turn and fix itself on her. Some expressions were filled with curiosity, others were filled with confusion, and even some held no emotion whatsoever. But it was the stares of disdain and judgment that caused the cold sweat to form on Fluttershy's brow.
"Attention please, attention!" Flam announced, a "salespony" smile pasted across his face. "I would like to introduce you all...to our new star...and lead in this most..." he paused, the next words slightly tricky to get out. "...original, opera," he continued, the smile never fading. "Our Aminta: Fluttershy!" he practically shouted her name and then erupted into applause. Fluttershy's face turned a bright shade of red, as she was quite aware that the only ponies truly clapping for her were the two managers. Flim stood off to the side and was also clapping wildly, wearing the same smile that Flam had plastered across his face, as well.
The managers continued clapping and only seemed to just realize that no one else was sharing in their applause. Their smiles disappeared only momentarily as they cast a dark menacing look at the rest of the company, who then broke out into a very light and somewhat faint applause, so light that Fluttershy could hear whispers.
"Wasn't she Celestia's costume mare? I heard she was fired! Haven't seen her in ages."
"I heard she punched Celestia in the face...she gets my applause for that, at least."
"Why is she here now? Where has she been all this time?"
"I heard that she was selected by the Phantom himself to play the part!"
"Why would the Phantom pick some nobody to sing the main role?"
"I heard some stagehooves say she went below stage."
"That's impossible, if she had done that, she wouldn't be here now!"
"That's not what I heard...I heard she slept with the Prince to get the part."
"I heard she slept with both him and the managers to get the part!"
"Oh please, the Prince would never waste his time on a mare like that! Look at her! She's not that pretty. Sure she has some 'country bred' beauty, but this is the city; she won't last too long on stage with that going for her."
"Can she even sing? She doesn't even look like she can manage holding her breath for very long!"
"What makes her so special anyway?"
Fluttershy felt her head grow dizzy as all the whispers swirled around her, and the different stares penetrated her spirit, measuring her up as to whether she was "worthy" in their eyes to even set foot on this stage. But it was one voice in particular that rang out over the others, causing everyone to fall silent, even the unsuspecting managers.
"Ah, so our dear little ingenue has decided to grace us with her presence," Celestia mocked from off stage, her smile both condescending and venomous.
Fluttershy felt as if she had been hit by an ice storm; the coldness in Celestia's words, combined with the suspecting stares of others, froze Fluttershy in her place.
"Indeed, let us applaud our newly found star!" she shouted, her hooves joining together and clapping loudly. Even her clapping was sarcastic. Fluttershy watched with wary eyes as the woman slowly climbed up to the stage, her eyes floating up and down Fluttershy's figure. "Yes, a star in the making," she chuckled, eyeing Fluttershy's rather plain gray dress. It lacked the lace, ribbons, and ruffles that Celestia's outrageous orange gown held.
"Senora," Flam greeted warmly, hoping to keep peace between the two mares; he had not forgotten Fluttershy's violent outburst upon the prima donna all those months ago. "Perhaps you will be able to offer some advice to Mademoiselle Fluttershy?"
Celestia smiled at Flam's words and quietly approached the young mare, her dazzling eyes focusing on Fluttershy's pale face. "Of course monsieur, I would be glad to. First," she reached out and held a bit of the material of Fluttershy's dress. "An opera star needs to dazzle the audience, take them away to far away places...not make them feel that they are simply watching their servants perform," she released the material with disgust.
"Second, an opera star needs to hold her head high, to stand boldly, and to look as though she owns the stage! Not appear meek, or shy, or even sweet...she is not here to win the audience's sympathy, she is here to conquer them with her presence!"
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed as Celestia walked around her, making her feel like some object on display. "And finally, an opera star needs to be someone who draws attention, someone who can make the audience anticipate her next move, her next breath, and especially her next performance..." she came around and faced Fluttershy fully.
Fluttershy lifted her chin slightly and returned the blonde soprano's steel gaze. "Basically, if I am correct, you are saying that an opera star needs to be more like...you, senora?"
Celestia's lips curved into a wicked smile. "There may be hope for you yet, my dear," she purred, reaching out and patting Fluttershy on the cheek like one would pat their dog.
Fluttershy glared at the woman, but Flim and Flam quickly intervened before anything else could be said. "Thank you for that lovely bit of...advice," Flim coughed, trying to smile but failing miserably.
"I help whenever I can," Celestia sighed, looking innocent and smiling as Fancypants offered her fur wrap to her.
"True, but you forgot a very important detail, senora," a voice interrupted from the back of the auditorium. All eyes turned and several dancers burst into excited giggles as Blueblood emerged. "An opera star needs to be a great singer."
Several ponies on stage began to snicker behind their hooves, while others gasped at the Prince's comment. Celestia glared at the stallion, all traces of amusement vanishing in that instant. Blueblood turned to Fluttershy and gave her a warm smile, to which she returned out of politeness, but it quickly vanished when to her shock, he winked at her. Several more giggles erupted from the ballet who had noticed the gesture in which he had given her, and yet again, there were more whispers.
"All right, all right," Madam Octavia, the conductor, called to order. "Come now, we have much work to do. Mademoiselle? Shall we?"
Fluttershy blushed as she realized he wanted to have her sing. She mutely nodded her head, but grimaced as she felt the butterflies rise once more. The last thing she wanted was to get sick right then and there on stage.
"Let us take it from Aminta's entrance in Scene III from Act I. The song titled 'Think of Me'."
Fluttershy froze at the conductor's words. She remembered singing that song for Discord so long ago; she remembered falling in love with that song, and blushing as she felt Discord's eyes upon her when she sang it. Could she do this? She was seriously doubting her decision to come there and sing in this opera.
"Mademoiselle?"
She blushed and quickly apologized to the conductor. She looked at Fluttershy critically before tapping her baton on her music stand, calling the orchestra to attention and silencing the whole company. All eyes were glazed upon her as the beautiful introduction to the song began.
Fluttershy took a deep breath, keeping her eyes focused on Madam Octaica, as the cords floated over her. "Think of me..." she began rather weakly. "Think of me fondly, when we say goodbye..."
The last word came out more as a squeak than anything else. Madam Octavia tapped her baton against her music stand rather rapidly, calling the orchestra to stop their playing. Fluttershy felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment, and all around her she could hear the whispers once more.
Celestia was positively glowing. "A fine choice, my dear managers," she teased, grinning at Fancypants who was also chuckling. "Your Phantom's tastes are quite...extraordinary."
Blueblood glared at the mare and then turned his full attention back to Fluttershy. Madam Octiavia tapped her music stand once more, calling for silence and attention. "My dear," she said, looking directly at Fluttershy, her voice somewhat stern. "You need to project more; I can barely hear you over the orchestra! And if I am struggling, the audience surely will struggle too, do you understand?"
Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded her head. She reached up then and grasped the locket that hung around her neck which contained her mother's picture. The tiny trinket had always given Fluttershy courage; she needed that courage once more to get through this.
The music rose again; Fluttershy closed her eyes and imagined herself back in the Phantom's lair, standing at the piano with Discord softly playing the notes. Sing for him, a voice inside her heart whispered. Sing for Discord...
"Think of me...think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye..."
Her voice was stronger, clearer, and more confident. Everypony who had been whispering and scowling earlier had stopped; even Celestia froze at the sound of young woman's voice.
"Remember me, once in a while-please promise me you'll try..."
Everypony's undivided attention was focused entirely on Fluttershy. She slowly opened her eyes and felt the song overtake her, her voice reaching out to him in the depths of the opera house, singing for him, always for him.
"When you find, that once again you long, to take your heart back and be free-
if you ever find a moment..." Fluttershy's heart swelled as she thought of the plea she was singing to Discord. "Spare a thought for me..."
The orchestra burst into its interlude and the managers glanced at one another, grinning at the thought of the money they would make from their new discovery. Celestia was fuming, and Blueblood was simply smiling with pride as he gazed up at the stage.
In the depths of the opera house, far below the stage, Discord awoke with a start at the sound of music. He had fallen asleep atop Fluttershy's bed, his maskless face buried against the silken fabric of her gown. He sat up, his eyes wild as he heard the chords to "Think of Me" being played. Grabbing his mask, he leapt off the bed, moving at a quick pace towards the sound. He had grown accustomed to hearing the company rehearse his opera, but something was different this time, something was...new.
And then he heard her. Through the stone, wood, and cement that separated him from the world above, he heard her voice, guiding him home, like a beacon to a lost ship.
"We never said our love was evergreen,
or as unchanging as the sea-
but if you can still remember,
stop and think of me..."
Fluttershy's voice felt somewhat heavy as the reality of the lyrics settled over her. She could feel her legs trembling slightly and her palms growing sweaty-not out of nervousness, but out of anxiety as to whether her song, the song he had written, was being heard. She was not being Aminta in that moment; she was singing as Fluttershy to him.
"Think of all the things we've shared and seen..." her voice began to dissolve then. "Don't think about the things which..." it was barely above a whisper. "Might...have been..."
Fluttershy stopped; she couldn't go on anymore.
Everypony had been in a trance when she had begun to sing. Now, they were slowly waking from it, and the whispers began to erupt again. Flim and Flam exchanged looks at one another and Blueblood frowned in confusion.
Madam Octavia called for order with hee baton, silencing the orchestra and casting disdainful looks to the chorus and dancers who were busy gossiping. "Mademoiselle, there are still several more bars left, we are not finished."
Fluttershy had been frozen in her place and only just then did she glance up at the conductor. "Mademoiselle? Are...are you alright?" Madam Octavia inquired, a look of genuine concern crossing her older features. Fluttershy stared back, and it was then that she realized her cheeks were wet with tears. She looked all around her, feeling everypony's eyes on her once more, and then she caught the eyes of the managers, of Blueblood, and Celestia, who was now looking extremely smug. Without a word, she ran from the stage, causing several chorus members to gasp in surprise by her behavior.
Celestia continued to grin. "I wonder, do you think she will do that on opening night?"
Fluttershy ran far back stage, pushing past ponies, not caring how they looked at her or what they thought, she was sick of ponies looking at her and judging her, attempting to understand who she was and what she had gone through. Let them think what they will, not one of them would understand the pain of a broken heart and a lost love the way she did. She finally found a dark shadowed corner, far enough away from the stage and its many eyes, and there she crumpled to a heap on the ground, her face buried inside her hooves, sobbing.
God above, help her, she prayed. It hurt so badly, the pain in her heart, the pain in her spirit. Being here, a place so alive with the Phantom's presence, and yet she felt so cold, so alone, and so empty on that stage. She longed for Discord to reappear, and as he had done at the masquerade ball, to simply whisk her away to his underground world, away from their judging eyes, away from their harsh whispers. And yet, she knew with a heavy heart that she couldn't go back, no matter how much she wanted to. She had her father to look after, and she couldn't abandon him after being separated for so long. But this pain was so severe; she was terrified to fall asleep at night for fear that she would dream of him, only to wake in the morning with the agony that it had simply been a dream. She longed for his strong arms to wrap around her, to carry her away, to hear his voice whisper into her ear that he loved her, that he would let no harm ever come to her. She longed to feel his body beside hers at night, and she longed to look into his dark amber gaze and lose herself in their seductive promise. But more than anything, she wanted to see his face again, unmasked, to touch his disfigured cheek and show him over and over how deeply she loved him, and how hoofsome she found him to be.
But it was all in vain it seemed.
"Fluttershy?"
She gasped at the sound of her name and quickly wiped her face, not wanting to show her tears to anyone. She turned as she heard the Prince's hoofsteps softly approach. "Fluttershy?" he called again, and then let out a sigh of relief at finding her. "Are you alright? I was worried when I saw-" he paused when he noticed her trembling hoovess brushing away the last of her tears. "Fluttershy...what's wrong?" he tenderly asked, reaching out and touching her chin with a soft hoof.
"I'm fine," she lied, moving away so his hoof touched only the air between them.
Blueblood noticed her quick gesture to free herself from his touch, but he swallowed his hurt pride and quickly dropped his hoof back to his side. "Somepony who is 'fine' does not burst into tears and then run away..." he murmured, his eyes trying to capture hers, but she kept them adverted.
"I was nervous, that's all," she explained, keeping her eyes locked on the floor. "I have never sung before an audience before, a-a-and I thought...I t-t-thought perhaps I was doing very poorly, a-and so I lost my confidence. Quite silly I know, but-"
Fluttershy gasped when she felt the Prince's hoof gently touch her lips to silence her. She looked up at the hoofsome noblecolt, her eyes locking with his steady emerald gaze.
"You actually think you sang poorly?" Blueblood asked, his voice a mixture of shock and wonder. "Fluttershy...I have never..." a warm smile spread across his hoofsome features. "I have been coming to this place ever since I was colt. And in all my years, both then, and now as a patron, I have never heard anything so...so beautiful," he murmured in absolute awe.
Fluttershy felt her cheeks flush at the compliment, and a soft smile spread across her lips. She wondered if Discord had heard her. Would she have made him proud? After all, any compliments she received for her singing should truly be directed for him.
"I know that there were ponies who were not being entirely...kind," he added gently. "I find that it comes down to two things. One, jealousy," Fluttershy couldn't help but softly chuckle at this. "And two...they simply do not understand," he sighed. "They don't understand why you've been asked to sing this part when many of them have been involved within the company for years. However, I think after this moment, we can all begin to understand why the Phantom favored your voice."
Blueblood meant the comment to be one of merriment, but his smile disappeared when he noticed Fluttershy stiffen just slightly at the comment. Suddenly, a loud crashing sound could be heard overhead, and Fluttershy gasped loudly as Blueblood pushed them both away, just missing the falling sandbag.
"What the devil?" he shouted angrily, one hoof flying to smooth back his blonde hair. A stagehoof rushed forward at the sound of Bluebloods voice, and before the stallion could ask what had happened, the Vicomte had the stallion by the throat. "You idiot! You nearly had us killed!" he growled, shaking the stallion viciously.
"Blueblood, put him down!" Fluttershy protested, pushing at the Prince with all her strength. "It was an accident! Please! You're hurting him!"
Blueblood glanced at Fluttershy, seeing her terror at his behavior reflected in her blue eyes, and immediately released the stallion, who crumpled to the floor, coughing and gasping. "I...I'm sorry..." Blueblood quickly apologized, although he was keeping his eyes on Fluttershy and not the stallion he had nearly strangled. "But that sandbag could have struck Mademoiselle Fluttershy! All of you need to be more careful!"
The stagehoof weakly nodded his head, and then scrambled to his hooves and dashed away before the Prince could do anything worse. Blueblood watched the stallion go before turning back to face Fluttershy, grimacing when he saw the expression on her face. "I'm sorry you had to see that mademoiselle, but...well, many of these stallions are drunken louts who do not pay enough attention to their jobs at hoof. If I didn't put the fear of God into him, someone has to; seems to be the only way to communicate with them," he muttered, smoothing his hair back once more.
Fluttershy said nothing; she simply kept her distance from the Prince. "I should apologize to Madam Octavia for my behavior," she said simply, wrapping her arms around herself and heading back towards the stage.
Blueblood silently cursed himself and then glanced down at the sandbag, kicking it rather violently, before lifting his eyes heavenward to see where it may have come from. Had he been looking close enough, he would have seen a pair of eyes glaring back at him, but the eyes were well hidden in the shadows. Those eyes continued to watch the Prince as he turned and departed the same way Fluttershy had gone, all the while sending looks of utter hatred for the hoofsome noblecolt.
Nothing could begin to describe Discord's rage at seeing the Prince stand so close, and talk so intimately, to his Fluttershy. He had followed her voice from the very depths of his world, hearing it grow more and more clear the closer he got to the stage. And once he had reached his hiding place on the catwalk, the very place he and Fluttershy had watched Handel's Messiah all those months ago, his heart seemed to stop at the very sight of her.
She stood there, on his stage, singing his music. It was a vision unlike anything he had ever known. He remembered how once upon a time, this was all he dreamed about, hearing her voice sing his music on stage. But it meant so much more now; the first feelings he felt were sheer joy at seeing his beloved Fluttershy there, and then his thoughts immediately changed to confusion. What was she doing there? He had assumed since...since...
He did not like to think about that night, but it forever haunted him.
After all those horrible things he had said, he had assumed she would want to stay as far away from this place as possible. Ah, but his Fluttershy was extremely stubborn, a thought that he couldn't help smiling to. Joy once more erupted; perhaps she had returned? Perhaps she had come to tell him that she still loved him, that she would not leave him no matter what he said, that he would have to make her leave-and he knew that would not be possible.
But then something happened. He noticed the tears before anyone else. He heard the trembling in her voice before the conductor took notice. Her voice disappeared into a sob, and then the next thing he knew, she was flying from the stage, disappearing deep into the shadows beyond the curtains.
Discord flew from his place, flew to a spot where she may have gone. He longed to take her up in his arms, to hold her tightly, to tell her over and over how sorry he was for hurting her, to beg her forgiveness, even though he did not deserve it. To comfort her, to tell her how deeply he loved her...
And then he saw him with her.
The hoofsome, charming, Prince, coming once more to a damsel's rescue, armed with manners and a hoofkerchief. Discord struggled with hearing all of the words that past between the two of them, but he did not miss the smile Fluttershy flashed when the Prince spoke to her, and he felt his blood boil with fury as he watched the Prince reach out and touch his beloved angel...and the fury only kindled when he saw that Fluttershy did not pull away from him as she had done so earlier. His anger burst forth into a wild blaze, and before he knew what he was doing, he took out the dagger that he always concealed in his boot, and with a single swipe, cut the nearest sandbag.
He had no intentions of harming Fluttershy, it was truly meant to strike the Prince. But he cursed her for warning his hoofsome adversary with her gasp, and he cursed himself when he realized, after the Prince pushed both himself and Fluttershy away from the falling sandbag, how close he had been to actually striking her as well.
It was not possible to begin describing his hatred for the blonde noblecolt, but he knew that if any harm ever befell on Fluttershy because of his anger, he would never forgive himself. He was already damning himself for the pain he had caused her to make her leave...if he truly hurt her or...or worse, that would be the end of everything.
Discord's heart swelled with pain as he heard his angel begin to sing once more. He could understand why she had cried when he listened to the words closely.
"Think of me, think of me waking,
silent and resigned.
Imagine me, trying too hard
to put you from my mind.
Recall those days, look back on all those times,
think of the things we'll never do-
there will never be a day when I won't think of you!"
Indeed. There would never be a day when he would not be consumed by thoughts of her.
Rarity grumbled as she attempted to walk while holding an overly large pile of dirty clothes in her arms. They all badly needed mending and washing, and it always amazed her at how much work the five of them generated for her to do. She longed for Fluttershy's help, at least to hear the young mare's sweet voice to help pass the time and the chores.
Rarity dumped the large pile of clothes down on the floor beside her little bed, reaching for the round steel tub that she used to wash clothes, not realizing that she was not alone in the chamber she and the others occupied.
"W-w-w-where is it?"
Rarity gasped and turned to see where the voice had come from. "Derpy?" she whispered, and then let out a joyful cry as she saw the hunchback emerge from the shadows. "Oh Derpy! I've been so worried! I haven't seen you for days! I mean, I knew you were present, I kept finding leftovers being eaten, and your books had been strewn about, but where have you been sleeping all this time? And where is that kitten that is always by your side, why-"
"WHERE IS IT?" she practically roared, a sound Rarity had never heard come from her.
She stared up at the hunchback who she had regarded for so many years as a daughter, and for the first time in her life, actually felt afraid of her. "W-w-where is what?" she asked, her voice trembling with confusion and apprehension.
Derpy lifted the book that she held in one of her hooves. "I c-c-can't find it," she explained. "I c-c-can't find the p-part w-where the gypsy mare a-agrees to stay w-w-with the hunchback, w-w-where she tells him that she loves him, a-a-and they live h-happily ever after."
Rarity felt her insides grow cold as Derpy's words slowly washed over her. In her hoof she held The Hunchback of Notre Mane. Shortround had indeed been a fine reading teacher. With a heavy heart, she sighed, and sat down on the edge of her bed, suddenly feeling very old.
"Derpy...t-there's something I need to tell you," she whispered, not sure she could look into her eyes.
"J-j-just t-tell me w-what page it's on...a-a-and I'll r-read it f-for myself."
"No, Derpy, you don't understand...it's not...it doesn't have a page," she slowly lifted her eyes to meet hers, which were a mixture of confusion and despair.
"W-w-what do you mean?" he softly asked, his whole body trembling with fear at what she would say next.
"Derpy," she gently began. "The reason you can't find that passage...is because I..." she took a deep breath, summoning all her strength. "...is because I made it up."
She stared at Rarity, unable to move. "M-m-made it up?"
"Yes," she whispered, her eyes already misting. "I...I wanted to give you a story that would give you hope...a story that showed a kind, gentle, and loving side of life. I...I didn't mean to cause any harm, I just wanted to make you happy Derpy, please know that?" her tears were welling over as she gazed back at her; Rarity's heart breaking as the realization slowly dawned on her.
"The g-g-gypsy mare n-never loved the h-hunchback?"
Rarity bit her lip. "She cared for him, she became his friend...b-b-but...no, they did not f-fall in love as I told you..."
Derpy stared at her, her voice barely above a whisper. "T-t-they d-d-did not live h-happily e-ever after?"
She looked down, unable to bear it another second. "No."
The sound of the book falling to the ground was louder than any capsized boulder. Rarity winced with pain as she heard the book echo off the walls, and her pain only increased as she heard Derpy's heart-wrenching cries fill the cavern and the tunnels beyond, as she ran from the lies that Rarity had harmlessly spun. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Intentions | Intentions
"So...aren't you going to say anything?"
Fluttershy, who had been poking the food around on her dinner plate, looked up at her father, confusion in her eyes. "Say anything?" she repeated his words back at him.
Time Turner groaned and rolled his eyes. "About the rehearsal! I've been waiting to hear you tell me how things went...and I thought since you did not wish to talk when you arrived home, that it meant you were simply tired and it would wait for dinner...but..." he looked at the food on her plate which she had barely touched. A wave of concern washing over him and he reached out to grasp her hoof. "Fluttershy, what's troubling you?"
Startled by his question, Fluttershy simply pulled her hoof away. "Nothing is wrong...I...I'm just not very hungry to be honest," she mumbled, her eyes adverting his.
Time Turner watched her intently. "Are you not feeling well?"
Fluttershy's face scrunched up at the thought. "I confess, I have been feeling rather queasy, but I'm fine Papa, truly," she reached out to take his finished plate, but before she could even touch the dish, a bubbly servant mare burst forth, snatching the plates up herself.
"I'll take care of those mademoiselle!" she chirped, smiling as she took both Fluttershy's plate and that of her father's.
"Would mademoiselle care for something else perhaps?"
Fluttershy gave the mare a weak smile. "Thank you, Cherry Jubilee, but that won't be necessary." Fluttershy confessed she was not used to having servants wait upon her and was not exactly sure how to behave around them. Even when she was living in the Phantom's realm, she never thought of Rarity and the others as servants, but rather, friends. This was going to take some getting used to, not simply having a servant mare do all the cooking and cleaning, chores Fluttershy herself was used to doing, but living in such an extravagant place as this!
She remembered the day she and her father arrived to the Prince's guest flat, and how speechless they both were at the sheer size of the place. It was ten times larger than the tiny flat they had occupied all those months ago, with more rooms than she and her father would know what to do with.
Blueblood was extremely proud, he gave them what he called "the grand tour", showing them the different rooms; two lavish bedrooms, each larger than the chamber Discord had given her, and each possessing their own luxurious private bathrooms. There was a grand parlor for entertaining guests, a library, a small billiard room, and much to Fluttershy's surprise, a music room, complete with a beautiful pianoforte.
It was too much; there was no possible way she and her father would be able to repay the Prince for this sort of hospitality. Yet Blueblood insisted, reminding her that he was already paying the rent for such a place, and felt much better knowing it was being used than collecting dust. He also introduced them at that time to Cherry Jubilee, the servant mare who would be staying and tending to their every need. Time Turner shook the Prince's hoof heartily, thanking him over and over for his kindness and generosity. Fluttershy however could not share in her father's joy. What Blueblood was doing for them was extremely kind, but she could not help but feel his charity, even when it seemed quite genuine in its offer, had a price of some kind.
"So?" her father interrupted her thoughts. "Tell me about the rehearsal! I wish to hear how my daughter dazzled all those 'veterans of the theatre' with her voice," he grinned, thanking Cherry Jubilee as she poured him a small glass of brandy.
"There is not much to tell," Fluttershy murmured, still adverting her eyes from her father's gaze.
"Not much to tell?" he exclaimed. "Utter nonsense. I know you astounded them all with your voice, my dear."
Fluttershy sighed heavily. "Papa, please don't, I do not deserve so much flattery, especially..." her voice trailed off as memories of the day returned once more.
Her father's brows rose at her words. "Especially? What do you mean 'especially' Fluttershy?" he reached out once more and took her hooves into his. "Please...something is troubling you, I can see it...please tell me?"
She finally looked up into his eyes and smiled faintly back at him, squeezing his hooves in return. "My first 'performance' was not exactly my finest moment," she sighed. "Oh Papa...I don't know what I was thinking, I do not belong there, it's quite obvious..." Time Turner eyes narrowed with concern. "When I sang today, I...I was a complete mess. My nerves were in shambles, my pitch was off, and many of the lyrics I forgot-"
"But my dear, it was your first rehearsal. You...you make it sound as if you have been rehearsing for weeks, months even."
Fluttershy paled slightly at her father's words. "I...that is, I um...I simply wanted to fit in with the others," she lied. "Many of them have their lyrics memorized..." Fluttershy was a horrible liar, and she winced at how badly that had come out. However, her father simply shook his head, a tender smile creasing his face.
"Oh my dear, you must move at your own pace, and do what feels right, not what others are expecting." If only her father knew the whole truth, she thought; ah, but he would never believe her, or at least not easily.
"Do not be discouraged by your first rehearsal my dear," her father smiled, giving her hooves one last reassuring squeeze before releasing them. "It's quite natural to feel nervous in front of others, hence your stomach feeling uneasy," he grinned. "But I'm sure, despite your doubts, that you did astound them today. After all, the Prince believes so, therefore-"
Fluttershy's eyes went wide at her father's words. "W-w-what? How...w-what do you mean the Prince believes so? Did you...did the Prince speak with you?"
Time Turner nodded very proudly. "He did stop by around tea time. He wished to know how things were going here, if Cherry Jubilee was enough help for both of us, and if there was anything he could do further."
Fluttershy grimaced at this piece of news. "I hope that you told him we have far more than we could possibly need?"
Time Turner frowned slightly at his daughter's tone, but chose not to dwell on it. "I thanked him, of course, and did explain that you and I were doing quite well. I invited him to stay for tea, and during which he then proceeded to tell me all about how you dazzled the company with your singing."
Fluttershy inwardly groaned. "Oh Papa, he only heard me sing one song, one which I did struggle through," she admitted, a slight shiver running down her body as she recalled how difficult "Think of Me" had been. "I would hardly call that a fair review of my singing."
"Why are you so quick to harshly judge the Prince?" Time Turner asked, a deep frown settling across his face. "The stallion has shown us nothing but generosity and kindness, and yet you seem so determined to prove him to be a villain?"
"It's not that," Fluttershy groaned. "I...I am very grateful for all that the Prince has done for us, but..." she sighed. "I just...I can not help but feel that perhaps he is...expecting something, in return for his kindness."
Time Turner couldn't help but chuckle at this. "Oh my dear, I blame your mother's family for creating such a wariness of the upper classes in you."
Fluttershy lifted her chin, not pleased that her concerns were being laughed at. "I'm surprised you've forgotten how horrid they were to us, taking away our home, refusing to acknowledge my very existence, their own granddaughter and niece."
Time Turner shook his head and reached for her hoof once more. "I have not forgotten their cruelty, but your mother, a daughter of a Marquis, a mare who grew up amongst the wealthy and powerful, was a pony with a kind heart and a generous soul. Now why can not the Prince be the same sort of pony?"
Fluttershy did not care for where this conversation was heading. "The difference Papa, is that Mama was willing to set aside all those things to be with you, to start a new life with the pony she loved. I...I confess, I can not see the Prince doing such a thing..."
"Nonsense. The sad truth of the matter is that your mother had no choice. If she followed her heart, she would have to give up those things, as I could not enter her world," he murmured, somewhat sadly. There would always be a part of him that would never forgive himself for taking his beautiful wife away from a world of luxury. "But this is different," he continued, lifting his chin and forcing a smile. "The Prince does not have to make such a choice, you can enter his world and no one will think anything of it!"
"Papa!"Fluttershy gasped, shocked by what her father was saying.
"Oh Fluttershy, I only want what is best for you; a stallion who can give you everything you desire-"
She pulled her hoof away and stood up quickly. "I will choose what is best for me!"
Time Turner stared up at her, rather shocked by her cold behavior. "But he is a good stallion Fluttershy, can you not see that? He is a good stallion who I know would provide for you, protect you, and cherish you the way you should be cherished!
And I can tell that he lov-"
"ENOUGH!" Fluttershy shouted, her blood boiling with rage. She would not be made to feel like an auctioned item for the highest bidder. "I think I shall go to bed now," she muttered, turning on her heel to disappear into her room, yet before she managed to take a single step, Cherry Jubilee appeared, a broad smile beaming from her pretty face.
"The Prince," she announced, giving a small curtsy.
This cannot be happening, Fluttershy thought gloomily. Time Turner straightened up at the servant mare's announcement and grinned broadly as the hoofsome noblecolt entered the dining room, quickly removing his hat and elegantly bowing before them, a warm smile spreading across his hoofsome features. "Monsieur Time Turner, Mademoiselle," he greeted, his tone sharing the same warmth as his smile. "Forgive me for interrupting your meal, but I could not wait until tomorrow to deliver the news, I had to see you at once."
"Oh not at all, monsieur," Time Turner replied, his own face beaming with delight at the sight of the stallion. "Please, won't you sit down? It would be a great pleasure to have you join us." Fluttershy wanted to protest, but instead, forced a smile out of politeness' sake. She slowly seated herself back down in her chair, while Blueblood happily sat in a chair on her left.
"Thank you, monsieur, you are very kind, but I'm afraid I must decline. Sadly, I have a dinner engagement that I can not put off, however I do look forward to perhaps having both you, and your charming daughter," he added, grinning at Fluttershy, his emerald eyes sparkling, "as guests at my town house, before the week's end?" he asked, his eyes looking most hopeful as they focused entirely on Fluttershy.
Fluttershy felt a rush of color flood her cheeks, more out of embarrassment if anything. She prayed that her father was wrong; she did not exactly like the idea of the Prince being in love with her. Even love itself seemed to come with a price, where the Prince was concerned.
"Oh!" Time Turner grinned, his eyes also focusing on Fluttershy. "We would be most happy to accept!"
Fluttershy could feel her father's gaze upon her, knowing he wanted her to reply to the Prince's kind offer. However she chose to remain looking meek, in hopes that perhaps the Prince would stop staring at her as if she were a bug in a jar.
Time Turner could not help but show a little displeasure at his daughter's lack of response, but quickly reassured, "yes, we are very happy to accept such a kind, generous offer." Fluttershy winced at her father's words, knowing they were an attempt to make her feel ashamed for her silence and lack of trust towards the Prince.
Blueblood however didn't seem to take notice, he simply continued smiling and once more directed his attention at the old stallion. "I hope that you both are settling in well? I know that I asked this question of you earlier, but please, do let me know if there is anything I can do to help you both...anything at all, I truly wish for your stay here to be comfortable and see that you receive the best service."
Time Turner smiled but shook his head. "Does your compassion know no ends? You are too kind, monsieur, and I can't begin to thank you for everything that you have done already...but forgive me, you did say something about news? That you had news you wished to share?"
Fluttershy turned her head back towards Blueblood, curious to see what news he did indeed have that needed to be shared with them immediately.
Blueblood's grin broadened at Time Turner's words. "Well, after I visited you, monsieur, I felt an urgent need to return once more to the opera house, and so I did...and I called for a meeting with both the managers to discuss the sad order of events that took place prior to your...disappearance," he murmured gently.
Time Turner's face fell somewhat at these words. He had learned through both Fluttershy and Madame Luna during his recovery that Flam and Flim had him fired, believing his disappearance to be deliberate. Yet now, as the Prince spoke, a hopeful spark slowly began to come to life within him.
"Well," he continued, his smile not being able to conceal itself. "After carefully explaining the full details behind your...disappearance..."
Fluttershy's eyes went wide at this. Was Blueblood telling everypony about what happened to her and her father?
"...they both realized that your absence was truly out of your control, and therefore, have agreed to hire you once more, to play lead violin, in the orchestra," he beamed.
Both Fluttershy and her father stared wild-eyed at the Prince the second the words left his mouth. Neither one of them spoke, the shock was too great. Yet Fluttershy's father, while at a complete loss for words, began sobbing his joy, gripping Blueblood's hoof tightly and blubbering praises and words of thanks. "Oh monsieur...thank you...thank you! I...I don't know what to say...just...thank you!"
Fluttershy simply stared, her mind reeling at the news, her body rigid from the shock.
Did the Prince just tell them that he had convinced the managers of the Maris Opera House to rehire her father? Did the
Prince give them this beautiful luxurious flat? Did the Prince pay a large sum of money for her father's release from prison?
Did the Prince's charity know no bounds?
These were all wonderful things! So why couldn't Fluttershy share in her father's happiness?
"Fluttershy?"
She shook her head, waking herself from the questions that were plaguing her thoughts and turned to her father, who had been calling out her name. "Yes Papa?" He looked so happy; there were tears of joy streaming down his cheeks, and his smile was so radiant, so full of life. She should be grateful that the Prince could bring such happiness to her father... And yet she could not shake off the feeling that there was something dark and untrustworthy about the hoofsome noblecolt.
"I was simply saying how wonderful the Prince-"
"Please, monsieur," Blueblood smiled, attempting to look modest. "I believe formalities are no longer needed; call me Blueblood."
Time Turner beamed even more at this. Fluttershy couldn't help but frown.
"Blueblood has given so much to us...I do not know where we can even begin to repay him!" the old stallion smiled, reaching out and taking Fluttershy's hoof in his.
"Yes," she whispered, although there was genuine worry in her tone. How could they begin to repay the Prince for his...charity? And what sort of payment was he expecting?
Blueblood smiled at Time Turner, but his eyes were fixed on Fluttershy's pretty face. "Your thanks alone, is enough for me," he replied, his tone rich and warm, like a blanket on a cold winter night.
Fluttershy smiled faintly at his words, but her discomfort over the matter would not fade away.
Time Turner smiled, squeezing Fluttershy's hoof tenderly in his. "You are indeed a good stallion, monsieur," he murmured warmly, as his left hoof, which held Fluttershy's, slowly began to pull hers to his right, which held Blueblood's.
Fluttershy's frown deepened as she realized what her father was doing, and quickly wriggled her hoof free and stood up.
Her actions were so swift that the chair, in which she had been sitting, nearly toppled over. Both stallions looked at her in surprise, and Blueblood, out of gentlecoltly politeness, quickly rose to his feet, but a distinct look of confusion had clouded his hoofsome features.
"I...I beg your pardon..." she whispered, her eyes swiftly glancing back and forth between the two of them. "I do not feel particularly well...I think getting some sleep would be best, if you'll excuse me," she added, giving a quick curtsy before turning on her heel and swiftly walking to her bedroom. She did not wish to wait for either of them to reply.
Blueblood watched Fluttershy quickly slip away, his eyes narrowing slightly at her actions. Time Turner groaned before hanging his head in embarrassment. "I apologize for my daughter's behavior," he sighed. "Please do not think ill of her, she is simply...exhausted, I mean, today was very stressful for her, from what I understand-"
"It's alright, monsieur," Blueblood quickly interceded. "She has been through a great ordeal, that we must keep in mind."
Time Turner nodded his head, his eyes looking down at the table and his hooves gripping the edges. "Damn Phantom...damn beast!"
Blueblood could not help but smile at the old stallion's words. "Indeed...but do not worry, monsieur...everything will end as it should."
Fluttershy was leaning against the inside of her bedroom door, a shiver running down her spine as she heard the hate in her father's voice and the slightly sinister words from the Prince's throat. She wrapped her arms around herself, yearning for Discord's embrace, wondering if she would ever feel his arms again. She let out a sigh of relief as she heard Blueblood rise from the table and make his farewells. However the slight joy she was feeling at Blueblood's leaving quickly vanished as she imagined her father, pounding on the door, demanding an explanation for her behavior. Oh what did it matter? Somehow the Prince had won her father's love and respect; nothing she said would convince him that the stallion could not be trusted. She sighed again, only this time out of frustration, and sat down at the bedroom's dressing table, awaiting the inevitable knocking.
It had only been a glance, extremely brief. Her eyes floated upward to look at her reflection in the mirror, as one does when before one, not looking for anything, not really looking at herself, simply a reflex really. But in that brief moment, in that glance, she saw the flash of a black cloak and a white mask out of the corner of her eye, just outside her window.
Her eyes went wide at the sight, and instead of freezing in place, she whirled around, his name leaving her lips before she even realized what she was doing. "Discord?" She rose to her feet and dashed across the room, lifting the window and gripping the sill, looking out at the snow covered city streets of Maris, her eyes darting wildly, looking to both her left and right, trying to see where he had gone...
Nothing.
She saw and found nothing.
There were no prints on the tiny ledge that ran long her window; there was no sign of a black cape or anything that was a part of her beloved Discord. Absolutely nothing.
She had imagined it.
This realization hurt her more than any of the memories she had been having of the night she left Discord. For while those memories were indeed painful, here she had actually, for the briefest moment, believed he had been there, watching her, that he had found her and that perhaps, he truly did love her...
But it wasn't real, it was simply her imagination playing tricks on her, telling her what she wanted to see, what she wanted to believe...but none of it was real.
Fluttershy collapsed atop her bed, silent tears stinging her eyes. She was so tired; tired of mourning, tired of hoping, and tired of arguing with those around her. She curled herself into a tiny ball and pulled the blankets up over her head in hopes to create a personal sanctuary, a place where prying eyes, unkind whispers, and unwanted suitors could not find her. She cried herself to sleep; yet not once did she whimper or let out a sob. In truth, she was too exhausted. She had returned to a world of sunlight, fresh air, and people. She and her father were together again, and her dreams of singing on stage were finally coming true...
So why did she feel more alone now than ever before?
Discord cursed himself for being clumsy and allowing her to see him. Had it not been for the stone pony that adorned the ledge above hers, he would not have been able to hoist himself up and away before she threw open the window.
Now was not the time for reunions, although he longed to hold her again desperately. It pained him to watch her look about for him, trying to find where he had gone, but he held himself back from swinging through her window and taking her then and there. If he so much as touched her, he would not be able to let her go, and although he dearly wanted to, he knew it would not be fair to the old pony who he had deeply wronged.
But after seeing her that day, singing his music on stage, he had to see her again; he could not wait until she returned the next day. He truly had believed that he would never see her face, that he would never hear her voice, except in his dreams. But when he realized that he was not dreaming, that she had indeed returned to the opera house...he truly learned then that he was completely addicted, that there was no cure for the ache he felt in his heart for her.
But there were a few unanswered questions that he had...many of which that involved Fluttershy's relationship with the Prince.
He was still trembling with anger after seeing the two of them talk so "intimately" in the shadows. And his suspicions continued to grow as he learned through the various gossip of the chorus that she was staying at the Prince's fashionable guest apartment. And it took every ounce of willpower to not kill a chorus wench that began spreading rumors that Fluttershy was sleeping with the Prince in order to sing the lead.
A satisfied smile spread across Discord's face as he remembered overturning a trunk filled with spiders and dead rats atop the vile mare's head.
But despite that moment of vengeful satisfaction, Discord's worst fears seemed to be coming true. Without telling the others, he took the black coach, pulling the collar of his cloak up to hide his face, and from a safe distance, slowly followed Fluttershy home. He recalled how his blood froze when he saw her enter an extremely fashionable building. And he swore he felt his heart stop when he climbed the building and saw the inside of the apartment that both she and her father occupied.
It was true. Fluttershy had accepted the Prince's so-called "kindness", and was staying in a place that belonged to the fop. By doing this, she was turning herself into the Prince's possession...a thought that caused Discord to crush the piece of stone that his right paw held.
A long, deep, primal growl, escaped his throat as he watched through narrowed slits of fire, the Prince exit the building.
He had been there, he had been with her, he had spoken to her...and perhaps he had even touched her.
Rage, unlike anything Discord had ever experienced, coursed through him, and without a second thought, he swung himself from the stone pony to another ledge, before easily dropping himself atop the Prince's moving carriage.
"What the devil-"
The carriage driver never finished his words; Discord punched him so hard that he lost all consciousness, before throwing the limp driver from his seat.
"What's going on up there?"
Discord growled even deeper as Blueblood's voice filled his ears. The sound of Blueblood tapping furiously against the carriage's ceiling made Discord want to reach in and beat the blonde fop to death. But without a word, he picked up the reigns and gave them a good smack, the horses quickly bolting from where they had been standing.
He could not help but grin as he heard the Prince fall backward and utter curses at the driver's name.
Killing him now would be too merciful, too simple-no, he had his own plans.
After regaining some composure, Blueblood sat and contemplated all that had gone on today. He thought things between him and Fluttershy were changing, that she was beginning to trust him. He grimaced at the memory of how she practically flinched when her father had attempted to join both his hoof and hers. What was wrong with the mare? After everything he had done for her, releasing her father, giving her a luxurious place to stay, seeing to it that she was able to sing on stage...good God, even calling himself a jackass for his behavior towards her all those months ago! He favored her above any other mares, could she not see that? What more did she want?
He muttered a curse under his breath and sighed deeply. He would just have to be more patient. After all, some progress was being made; she had at least accepted his offers. He just prayed that he would not have to wait much longer-he was not sure how many more days the Marquis Filthy Rich had left to live.
It occurred to Blueblood at that moment that he should be at his townhouse by now, and that the coach was traveling rather...faster than usual. What the devil was going on?
He looked out the carriage window and gasped when he noticed slums instead of townhouses, dirt instead of cobblestone, and paupers instead of aristocrats. "Joe!" he shouted, anger and confusion fueling through him. "Where the bloody hell have you taken us?"
He waited for his driver to respond, but there was nothing. Blueblood groaned and poked his head out from the carriage window, his walking stick ready to beat the driver should he not respond again. "Joe! Answer me, damn it, why-eeehgh!"
Blueblood did not even have the opportunity to gasp as he suddenly felt something scratchy and extremely tight wrap around his throat. His hooves flew to the rope that had mysteriously found its way around his neck, trying to tug at it and free himself, but the rope only grew tighter, causing Blueblood to gag for air.
"I do apologize, monsieur," came a dark, menacing voice, from behind a black hood. "But Joe needed to relieve himself...so I happily took over."
Blueblood could barely see anything; he was too busy trying to pull at the rope. Yet the voice sent chills down his spine; cold, sinister chills, that eerily seemed familiar...
"Now, to answer your question..." the voice continued, taking the end of the rope and pulling it tighter, causing the Prince to thrash and flail like a fish out of water. "You did ask me to take you home...and so that is what I have done. Now, you may not think this is your home, but that is where you are wrong, good monsieur," the voice explained, its tone dripping with sarcasm and malice. "You see, you truly do belong here...in the mud, in the slime, in the very cesspool of pony filth, for that is what you are, monsieur...absolute filth," the voice spat.
Blueblood gurgled something, the veins around his face looking ready to pop through his skin from the strain that the rope was causing.
"What was that?" the voice asked. "I'm sorry, it's very difficult to understand you, however I do consider myself quite good at reading one's thoughts. Let me see...no doubt you are cursing me, after all, I am trying to kill you," the voice sighed casually, tugging on the rope just a little more, causing Blueblood to gurgle even louder. "Or perhaps you were arguing with me, disagreeing with what I said about calling you filth." Blueblood attempted to lift his eyes to the hood where the dark voice was coming, his hooves flailing upward, hoping, just hoping, he could manage to throw the hood back...
"But I don't think it was either of those things," the voice murmured, dark and low, almost near his ear. "I think you were begging...begging for me to spare your miserable existence," it hissed. "But I already warned you, monsieur...several times as a matter of fact. I warned you stay away from the Maris Opera House, and I warned you to never touch-"
Blueblood swung his arms upward and gripped the edge of the hood, as well as something else, and pulled with all his might.
The voice immediately stopped talking, in fact, it released the rope that had been around the Prince's neck, and Blueblood crumpled to the ground, gasping and taking in great gulps of air.
A great indistinguishable curse tore through the night air, followed by the sound of horses and stallions shouting his name.
The figure who had been speaking to him had disappeared, and before Blueblood could pull himself up onto his feet, he was being surrounded by several police officers.
"Monsieur! Monsieur, are you alright?"
"We fired at the villain, monsieur, but he got away."
"Found your carriage driver out cold on the street. When he came to, he told us you had been kidnapped!"
"Somepony get me a knife! We need to cut this thing off him."
Blueblood could barely understand what was happening, but groaned with relief as he felt the rope being cut away from his neck.
"Best get you to a doctor, monsieur," one officer muttered, eyeing the rope that had been strung about the Prince's neck.
"Those welts are extremely nasty looking."
Blueblood pushed the stallions away as he slowly drew himself up, gripping the carriage door for support. "Joe!" he barked, his eyes somewhat glazed over by the shock of the whole evening.
The carriage driver timidly came forward, a massive bruise covering half his face. "Yes, monsieur?"
"Take me home,"Blueblood grumbled, pulling himself inside the carriage.
"But monsieur-"
"I SAID, TAKE ME HOME!" Blueblood bellowed, fire burning in his emerald gaze. The driver didn't need to be told twice, he quickly climbed to his place, took the reigns, and was already urging the horses at a quick trot in the direction of the Prince's townhouse.
"But monsieur! The villain! Did you get a look at him? Monsieur! MONSIEUR!" the officers' cries disappeared as the carriage drove further and further away.
Blueblood groaned and continued to take in deep gulps of air, never before relishing the gift of breathing as much as this moment. He looked down at his hooves, amazed to find the cloak that he had pulled off the stallion still clasped tightly within them. But there was something else...something heavier within the cloak. He recalled how when he had pulled at the stallion's hood, he had also felt something else. He grabbed at whatever he could, tugging, pulling, simply hoping to distract the villain long enough to release him. He pulled back the folds of the cloak to see what exactly he had managed to steal from the murderous bastard.
His eyes went wide at the sight. The question as to who had attempted to strangle him was now answered...
In his very hooves, Blueblood held the Phantom's mask. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Return | Return
Discord stormed into his realm, his sanctuary, anger and rage coursing through his veins, every curse imaginable escaping his disfigured lips. None of the others would dare try to talk to him now, they knew better than to approach him when he was in such a fury. And Discord's rage only deepened every time he felt the cold winter air touch his mutilated flesh.
He had him; he had the Prince right where he wanted him to be, squirming and gagging and begging for his miserable life to be spared. Discord entered his dilapidated chamber, walking over the rubble and parchment that littered his floor, grabbing a wine bottle and began gulping great swigs of the dark liquid.
He had been careless.
Discord wasn't sure what angered him more; the fact that he had his chance to kill the Prince, but let his personal arrogance get in the way of finishing the job...or that the Prince had outsmarted him.
He took another long swig from the wine bottle and growled low and deep as his paw gently touched his disfigured cheek.
He had underestimated the Prince.
Somewhere in the city of Maris, the Prince was recovering from his attack, nursing his wounded neck, and most likely smiling with triumph at the prize he had stolen from Discord's own face.
He cursed his own name this time, realizing that his carelessness not only put himself at danger, but also his closest friends. A wry smile curled at Discord's lips as he remembered Fluttershy's words of warning on the night of the masquerade ball. She had warned him then that his hunger for revenge would get him into trouble, as well as reminding him that his selfish idiotic behavior may in fact harm those that depended upon him for survival.
"It's just my mask," Discord whispered to himself. "It's not enough evidence to condemn us."
Like hell it wasn't.
Discord groaned as he realized just how lucky he had been in the past. Before, the Prince didn't even believe in the Phantom, he simply passed off the notes as some prank. The Prince was not so blind anymore, yet even now, the police, while cow-towing to every thing he said, were not prepared to go chasing some bedtime story that was used to frighten dancers into the beds of lust-crazed stagehooves.
But now, armed with his own mask, the Prince may have just enough proof to push the noses of several police officers into places they should never poke about.
True, he had all sorts of elaborate booby traps at every imaginable entrance to his world (and even some not-so-imaginable), but those were designed to stop one stallion at a time, not an army of them, not a mob.
His blood turned to ice as he imagined a mob storming into his labyrinth, the others desperately trying to escape, him being captured and strung up. The Prince would see to his demise, he had no doubt about that-but the others? Discord had promised all of them that he would never let any harm come to them, that they would never know what it feels like to be kept inside a cage again...
The Prince, being the sort of greedy villain that he was, would no doubt realize the fortune he could make with such a commodity of freaks. He knew that they would rather die than be put on display again, it was the same feeling he had about the subject.
Discord put the bottle down, remembering Fluttershy's words about how drunkenness never fully absorbed one's pain, and it never solved one's problems. He could not help but smile tenderly at the memory of the fire in her blue eyes when she grabbed the wine bottle out of his paw and threw it against the wall. She was right; now was not the time to feel sorry for himself and mourn over his lost opportunity, his lost mask, and his lost sense of pride.
He looked across the shambled room, spying a single granite bust that remained intact. The bust wore a black mask, one that covered both sides of one's face. It was fitting, Discord thought, as he walked across the room and removed the mask from its holder. The color matched his mood, and the way it hid all portions of his face, save for his mouth, chin, and eyes, matched the new sense of mystery and caution he needed to carry.
As he held the black mask in his paw and claw, he reevaluated his choices and actions over the last week and a half.
Things were going to be different now.
He wasn't going to sit and mourn for his lost love when he had the power to put things right. He wasn't going to wait and worry as to whether the Prince would come storming after him, and he certainly wasn't going to allow the Prince to think he ran this theater any longer.
No. This was his opera, his production, and his theater.
"Let them plot against me and believe they have the upper hoof," Discord coldly muttered as he pulled the mask on. "I'll be ready for them."
They wanted a war? They would have one.
"The Phantom is back."
"I do hope he is alright," Time Turner mumbled, gently running his bow along the strings of his violin. "I would hate to think that his simple visit to us last night would have gotten him ill."
Fluttershy could not help but roll her eyes at her father's worries. That morning he didn't speak with her, she could tell that he was annoyed by her behavior last night, and even after they had arrived at the opera house for rehearsal, he refused to speak with her. But now, after a few hours of steady playing and singing, and no sign of the Prince, her father's vow of silence towards her was being broken.
Yet Fluttershy found that she missed the silence, since all her father could talk about was Blueblood's absence. "Perhaps he fell ill last night at his dinner engagement? After all, he did mention he had dinner plans, perhaps the food was undercooked and he was unable to get out of bed."
Fluttershy could not help but cynically smile at her father's words. "Yes, I'm sure something kept him in bed," she muttered.
"What did you say my dear?"
Fluttershy sighed, feeling a tad irritated at her father's concern for the Prince. "I'm sure he is fine, Papa, he is a busy stallion after all...perhaps he will come by this afternoon?"
The old stallion nodded his head in agreement, but there was still worry in his eyes. "Are you feeling well my dear?" he asked.
Fluttershy was rather surprised to find the concern now directed at her. "Yes, I'm fine Papa, why do you ask?"
"Well, you barely had any breakfast this morning, and I surely thought you would be starving since you barely ate your dinner last night," he explained.
Fluttershy gave a weak smile, but the mere mention of food caused her stomach to twist. "I'm fine Papa, truly, I think...I think one of the dance mares had a severe cold yesterday, and has now past it on to me. But I'm sure I will be feeling better before the day is finished. Please, don't worry about me, I'm fine."
Time Turner cocked an eyebrow at her words. "Don't worry? I'm your father, I have every right to worry, besides...after months of separation, I have some worry to catch up on," he grumbled matter-of-factly, although his eyes danced with merriment.
Fluttershy couldn't help but smile and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him close. "That makes two of us," she warned, grinning as he made a face at her words.
"Monsieur! Mademoiselle! If you please, we would like to finish today's rehearsal...today!" Madam Octavia muttered with exasperation, tapping her baton with great frustration.
Both Fluttershy and her father blushed with embarrassment and quickly returned to their places. Satisfied that his orchestra was in place, and that the chorus and dance were ready, Madam Octavia lifted her hooves for attention, ready to begin Act II of Don Juan Triumphant, when-
"STOP! STOP EVERYTHING!"
Madam Octavia let out an exasperated shriek as whirled around to see who dared interrupt the rehearsal. Both managers were running and huffing down the aisle, their faces red and covered with sweat as if they had just finished running a marathon. "Messieurs! What is the meaning of this interruption?" Octavia grumbled, her baton slamming down on her music stand. "I am trying to conduct a rehearsal! And I can't have these-"
"HERE!" Flim shouted back, dangling a note in the other stallion's face. "Here is the cause for your interruption!"
The conductor almost shrank back from Flim's tone, before taking the note with trembling hooves. "W-what is this?" she asked, looking at both Flim and Flam warily.
Flim turned to the stage and orchestra pit, everypony's attention completely on him. "I do hope you all are learning your music and stage directions to the point of memorization..." his eyes locked on Fluttershy for a moment, before continuing. "Because, instead of having another month to rehearse and prepare for this..." he struggled with the next words. "This...most original...opera, we now have one week."
A great gasp went up from the stage, and everyone began talking at once, looking at one another with confusion and horror, especially Madam Octavia, who seemed to have gone the color of snow. "O-o-o-one w-week?" she stuttered.
"Nonsense!" Fancypants's voice shouted over the crowd, all eyes now turning to him. "What utter nonsense! I will not stand for it, I will not be ordered about and told when to sing!" he gave a smile to Celestia, hoping his show of authority would gain some respect from the diva. Rather, she rolled her eyes and walked away.
"You have no choice, signor," Flam muttered. Everypony now turned to him to see what he had to say. "Seems our illustrious...composer...has also sent a note to the papers."
"WHAT?" Madam Octavia shouted, her eyes looking ready to pop from her head.
"See for yourself!" Flam groaned, thrusting the morning's newspaper in the conductor's face.
Everypony gave his or her undivided attention as the conductor began reading. "The Maris Opera House announces a new production to be added to their season. Don Juan Triumphant, a new opera, premieres next Friday evening, on stage for the first time." Another great burst of whispers erupted as Madam Octavia read the article out loud, looking as if she would faint any second.
"And that's not all," Flam muttered, his gaze focused entirely on Fluttershy's flushing face. It seemed that everypony was now staring at her, and many of their stares felt like daggers stinging her back. "It appears that our dear composer, who takes full credit for sending word to the papers...failed to mention all other details about the opera, with the exception of Mademoiselle Fluttershy."
A great gasp went up from everypony and Fluttershy thought surely her heart had stopped beating.
"Yes, read it for yourself," Flam muttered, his eyes narrowing as he continued to look at the pretty pink haired mare.
Octavia mopped her brow and continued reading where she had left off. "Fluttershy, a new and rising opera sensation, will sing the lead. She is sure to amaze audiences with her pure, angelic-like tone, and spirited acting."
More whispers, as well as an outraged screech. No one needed to look as to whom that had come from.
Fluttershy's breathing had grown rapid as Octavia finished the article. What game was Discord playing at? She didn't know whether to be excited or saddened at the idea that he may have heard her singing the other day. Had he ordered the opera to be performed sooner so...so he would not have to hear her again? Or did he enjoy making her and the others suffer; did he want to punish her by making her rehearse harder, demanding more and more perfection? Did he enjoy seeing her squirm under the scrutinizing stares of others?
"T-t-there's nothing you c-can do?" Octavia whimpered, her hoofkerchief growing quite damp as she continued to mop her brow.
"It's in the blasted papers!" Flim growled. "We can't afford any more scandals! We have to perform next Friday!"
"BUT WE'RE NOT READY!" Octavia helplessly wailed. "The sets aren't even close to being finished, let alone the singing!"
"Don't you think we realize that?" Andre cried, his face turning so red that it looked as if smoke would start coming out of his ears. "You'll just have to work harder!"
A great groan came up from the ponies on stage, but Flam stomped his hoof on the ground. "REHEARSALS WILL NOW LAST FROM 7 TO 8!"
The groan grew even louder, and Fancypants began to swear at the managers in Italian, as well as throw curses to the shadows overhead. Celestia, who had been quite furious a few seconds ago, now appeared to be the calmest pony in the entire room; in fact, she looked rather smug. The soprano strutted over to where Fluttershy stood and whispered in the young mare's ear, "Now we'll see if you truly can handle the pressure of being a singer, as well as live up to your...admirer's praise...oh most favored of the Phantom..." she silkily hissed, sarcasm dripping from her lips. Fluttershy glared as Celestia strutted away, softly chuckling and turning to blow Fluttershy a patronizing kiss.
"Silence! Silence!" Octavia ordered, tapping her baton so violently it seemed as if it would snap. "It does us no good arguing!" she grumbled, mopping at her brow once more. "The papers say next Friday-that gives us nine days. We can do this, if we simply...work hard enough." If only Madam Octavia believed her own words, perhaps everypony would not feel so hopeless. "Right, let us take it from Act II, Scene I-mademoiselle?" she inquired, turning to Fluttershy.
She nodded her head and quickly opened her music. She glanced at Celestia one last time, feeling utter hatred for the mare. She would prove to the so-called diva that she could handle such pressure, that she was destined to be a great singer. The stage quickly cleared as the music from the orchestra rolled up in the introduction to her song. She would prove to them all: Celestia, the managers, Madam Octavia, Discord...everyone.
This was her opera too...
"GOOD GOD STALLION, I'M TELLING YOU, THIS PROVES THAT HE EXISTS!"
Inspector Silverstar winced as the Prince's voice rose to a painful height. He had received the news late last night, how the Prince had been attacked on his way home, how the carriage driver had been knocked out, and the villain had kidnapped the Prince in order to commit foul play against the noblecolt. Thankfully, the driver came to, and told several officers who were patrolling what had happened. They quickly followed the carriage in the direction it had gone, and before the horrific deed could be committed, they had managed to stop the villain and save the Prince's life.
Inspector Silverstar was not at all surprised to see the Prince at the station early that morning, however the story that the Prince arrived with was one that caused the stallion to groan with frustration and helplessness.
The Phantom of the Opera.
The Prince was once more raving about the infamous Phantom, and how this so-called ghost was behind the attempted murder from the night before; the only difference however from the previous times he had heard the Prince's story was that this time he had brought "evidence".
On the table between the two of them lay a black cloak, and half a mask, the mask that the Prince claimed was the Phantom's disguise.
"I'm sorry, monsieur, but this is not enough," Silverstar attempted again, knowing it was in vain.
"NOT ENOUGH?" Blueblood shouted, pounding his hoof down on the table. "Ask any stagehoof has reported seeing the Phantom and they will all tell you the same thing...he wears a mask, a mask just like this one!"
Silverstar groaned and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "It was not that long ago, monsieur, that you believed the 'Phantom' to be some ghost story, and that the notes belonged to some prankster. Could this not also be a prank?" he sighed, hoping to make the Prince see reason. "Now my stallions will get to the bottom of this, and find the stallion who attacked you, but to simply believe that it was-"
"DAMN IT STALLION, I'M TELLING YOU IT'S THE BLOODY PHANTOM!" Blueblood shouted, pushing himself away from the table and pacing to the other side of the room. It was taking every ounce of willpower he contained to not lash out at the imbecile.
Silverstar said his next words very carefully, knowing he was playing with fire. "Can you think of anypony who would wish you harm? An enemy in business, or an old acquaintance that's gone sour-"
"I have enemies, Silverstar, but none of them would dare come at me like this," Blueblood hissed, keeping his back to the chief inspector. "The Phantom has threatened my life before," he murmured, recalling the incident at the masquerade ball. "He's jealous that I have possession of Fluttershy - he told me that night if I so touched her he would kill me. He must be stalking her, and saw me come out of the building..."
"I have not heard any complaints from Mademoiselle Fluttershy of a stranger following her, or any threats that she's received since her...well...her..."
"Her 'sudden reappearance' into society?" Blueblood finished, his words filled with venom.
Silverstar groaned once more. "Now see here, monsieur-"
"NO!" Blueblood roared, his hoof crashing down once more atop the table. "Are you actually going to sit there and tell me, after months of 'missing in action', when not one soul can recall seeing her or knowing of her whereabouts, and then suddenly reappearing, declaring for the release of her father in a rather desperate state, that there is nothing...unusual about that?"
Silverstar squirmed under the Prince's fiery gaze, his throat going dry at how exactly to respond.
"And let us not forget that the last time she was seen was retreating below stage, on the same night her father was seen going below, the very night he was also arrested for raving, like a madstallion, about a horrible masked creature, otherwise known as the Phantom of the Opera, for kidnapping his daughter!"
"It's still not enough!" Silverstar hissed, before quickly shrinking back from the Prince's venomous stare. "I'm sorry, monsieur," he sighed. "While the story fits together, I...I can not begin to fall prey to what is surely impossible!"
Blueblood glared at the inspector. "We're not dealing with some...some specter, some ghost! This is a madstallion! A flesh and blood monster that will stop at nothing to see me dead!"
Silverstar groaned and shook his head, total frustration taking over. "And what do you suggest I do?"
"Oh, I beg your pardon," Blueblood muttered, not at all missing the irritation in the stallion's voice. "How foolish of me to sound concerned, after all, it is only MY LIFE!" he roared, grabbing hold of the chair he had been sitting on and kicking it over with his hoof.
Silverstar jumped by the sudden action, and a surprised officer poked his head inside the door. "Is everything alright inspector? I heard a noise-"
"Yes, everything's fine..." Silverstar grumbled, glaring back at the Prince.
"Wait!" Blueblood shouted, turning towards the young officer who had opened the door. Both policestallions looked surprised. "I recognize your face..."
The younger officer swallowed the nervous lump in his throat and nodded his head. He was a colt really, Blueblood noted; couldn't have been more than 18. "I was the one who cut the rope from your throat, monsieur..."
A slow, devious smile, slowly spread across the Prince's hoofsome features. "Really?" the colt nodded his head and Blueblood's smile spread even further. "What did you do with the rope?"
The colt looked at Silverstar then back at Blueblood. "Well...w-we have it, monsieur; we keep all murder weapons, as it may be a clue that could...well, that could lead us to-"
"Wonderful, will you fetch it for me?"
The colt glanced once more at Silverstar before nodding his head and disappearing. Blueblood could not help but grin broadly, and with a composed air that he had not possessed a few seconds ago, he calmly picked up the chair he had kicked over, and casually sat back down.
Silverstar eyed him suspiciously. "Have you taken a sudden interest in studying crime related items?"
Without a word, the Prince removed a cigar from his coat pocket, lit it, and calmly began to smoke.
A few seconds later, the colt returned with the rope in hoof. Silverstar thanked the colt before dismissing him, and with an annoyed sigh, held the rope up for Blueblood to see.
The rope was not some common thread; in fact, it was a noose. But an interesting sort of noose, that the Prince could tell right away. He leaned in and gazed at the fine threads, his hooves slowly rising to touch the bruised welts that now adorned his neck.
"Interesting..." he murmured.
Silverstar looked puzzled. "What is?"
Blueblood leaned back in his chair and took a long drag from his cigar before finally focusing on the chief inspector. "The thread," Blueblood simply explained. "I simply remembered that when the Phantom...I'm sorry, the mysterious masked fiend who by all means can not possibly be the Phantom because the Phantom is truly some silly figment-"
Silverstar rolled his eyes.
"-anyway, I remember that when he had me about the neck, the threads, while extremely tight...were not necessarily rough, meaning made from a rough material."
Silverstar narrowed his eyes, his own attention now focusing on the noose he held. "True," he whispered. "These threads seem...strange, not at all like the sort of rope one would find at a dock yard or...or used to string crates together..."
"No," Blueblood whispered, reaching out and taking the noose from Silverstar's hooves. "Indeed...this material, it is rather soft, at least it is when not wrapped around one's neck," he grunted. "In fact...it reminds me of something..."
"Reminds me of the cord to these expensive curtains my wife insisted on purchasing," Silverstar grumbled with disgust.
Blueblood's eyes went wide at the inspector's words. "Curtains...?" he whispered. "Of course..."
Silverstar looked at the Prince with confusion. "Monsieur?"
"What sort of curtains are they?" he de,anded.
Silverstar stared at the stallion as if he had lost his mind. "What?"
"The curtains, stallion!" Blueblood shouted, pounding his fist again on the table. "Tell me what sort of curtains they are!"
"I don't know!" Silverstar defended. "Marsian looking if you ask me...Marsian, or...or Middle Eastern! I had nothing to do with them, my wife said they're the latest fashion, but a waste of good money if you ask me-"
Blueblood rose from his chair, throwing the noose into Silverstar's lap. "Your wife is not wrong," he muttered, pulling his gloves on and grabbing his hat. "Middle Eastern decor is at the height of fashion right now."
Silverstar stared at Blueblood as he turned to leave the room. "Wait just one second!" he called out, rising to quickly catch up with the Prince's long strides. "What does that have to do with anything?"
Blueblood turned and looked at the chief inspector with a determined gaze, his voice dark and cold. "I'm not entirely sure, but I know it has something to do with the Phantom-and I will prove it to you, no matter what, that he does exist and that it was him last night who attempted to take my life!"
The hours at rehearsal had been long and endless.
Fewer breaks were called because there was now less time to prepare for opening night. The managers continued to bustle in and out of the auditorium, followed closely by different reporters. It seemed that every hour, a new reporter would join the growing throng, each asking the same questions, over and over.
What was this new production?
Why hadn't anything been said until this moment?
Who was this new composer?
What was this opera about?
And the one question that Fluttershy had been dreading above all others; who was this mare that was singing the lead?
Every now and then, a few reporters would interrupt the rehearsal, asking if they could speak with Fluttershy, but thankfully, Madam Octavia refused, demanding that time was of the essence and could not be stopped for some interview. Fluttershy was rather thankful for Octavia's stubbornness; she had no idea what she would say and feared she would make an absolute fool of herself in front of the reporters.
Yet a break from singing and rehearsing was extremely tempting.
For three hours straight, she had been rehearsing with either Fancypants or the chorus. Her voice was beginning to grow horse, and her throat was beginning to feel raw. She remembered Rarity's special tea and longed for a cup to relieve her vocal cords. But in truth, it was not her voice that was bothering her; all day she had been feeling weak and light-headed. The room felt so warm, and now and then she thought she would lose her balance out of a sudden spell of dizziness. She blamed it on the fact that she hadn't eaten anything all day, but every time she thought of food, her stomach seemed to churn with uneasiness. What she really needed was some rest, a chance to lie down and rest her head...
"Mademoiselle! If you please!" Octavia grunted, tapping her baton with irritation.
Fluttershy shook her head and offered a weak apology as she once more took her place. She and Fancypants had been rehearsing the infamous scene from Act III, the scene where Don Juan attempts to seduce Aminta into his bed, the scene that possessed the haunting song "Point of No Return".
They had gone over this scene for practically an hour and Fluttershy was not sure how much more she could handle singing this song over and over. Every time she did so, she remembered Discord, the primal fire that burned in his amber eyes as he sang Don Juan's role back to her; the way his long paw and claw ran over the keys, a promise of what hecould do to drive her beyond the point of no return...
Her thoughts were shaken as Fancypants's tired tenor filled the stage, the boredom in his voice quite apparent for all to see. Fluttershy took a deep breath and began to sing her role, trying very hard to fight the waves of dizziness, and sing above the weakness that had taken hold of her body and voice.
Several reporters who had been questioning themanagers paused to listen to Fluttershy sing, as did everypony else on stage. Celestia, clearly revolted by the whole scene, began to make some rather loud and crude comments in regards to the young mare, remarking how extraordinary it was that a country strumpet who had no knowledge or experience in musical theater, had suddenly been handed the lead role. A few reporters began scribbling down Celestia's words, a fact that Fluttershy had not missed.
The room felt extremely warm, and even though she stood perfectly still, everything began to spin. She was tired, she felt sick, and the cruelty of Celestia's words cut to the very core.
And then the spinning stopped. She felt weightless, as if she were floating in the air...
A great scream erupted from the stage as Fluttershy's body crumpled to the floor.
"Fluttershy! Fluttershy!"
She heard her name being called across the darkness. She was having the most peaceful dreamless slumber...and then, her head reeled with pain as the bright lights of the room illuminated her eyes.
"She's waking up!"
Fluttershy's eyes slowly fluttered open and she gazed back at the faces of several young mares, all of whom were chatting amongst themselves as they gazed back down at her. She felt a warm familiar hoof grip hers, and she turned to see her father sitting beside her, a thankful, yet worried smile, spreading across his wrinkled face. "Oh thank Goodness," he whispered with relief.
Madame Luna pushed the dance mares who had been crowding around her away. "Give her some air!" she scolded, before kneeling down on Fluttershy's other side. "Are you alright, my dear? You gave us such a scare!"
Fluttershy eyes drifted from the dance mistress to her father, her expression one of utter confusion. "W-w-what happened?"
"You fainted, my dear," Madame Luna calmly explained. "No doubt caused by some overzealous rehearsing," she murmured, glaring at Octavia, who shrank from the mare's cold stare.
"You silly mare," her father scolded, still looking worried, but also rather upset. "You barely ate anything last night, and this morning you won't even touch your food...no wonder you fainted!"
Madame Luna looked at the old stallion with curious eyes. She then looked at Fluttershy, a dark brow lifting with question. "You have been feeling ill recently?"
Fluttershy did not care for the way Madame Luna looked at her. In truth, Fluttershy had been having trouble looking into the dance mistress' eyes ever since she had announced that both she and her father would be moving out of the mare's home...and into the guest apartment of the Prince.
Needless to say, Madame Luna did not take the news very well.
"I'm fine," Fluttershy lied, attempting to sit up too quickly, her head already spinning once more.
"Clearly you need some rest," Madame Luna announced. "Come, we shall take you to your dressing room."
Fluttershy stared up at the mare, confusion filling her eyes. "D-d-dressing room? I...I don't have a dressing room."
"Actually, you do," Twilight grinned, and several other dance mares began giggling all at once.
Madame Luna cast them all a cold glare, which immediately silenced them, and with the aid of Fluttershy's father, helped the young mare sit up and walk off stage. In a matter of minutes, they were opening the door to her dressing room and helping her inside.
Fluttershy stared wide-eyed at the room, overwhelmed by its beauty; there were vases filled with sweet-scented roses, elegant curtains that hung from the wall, beautiful Italian furniture that adorned every corner, and against a far wall, stood a large mirror, that touched the floor and seemed to stretch to the ceiling.
And then realization hit her. "This is Celestia's dressing room!" she gasped.
"No," Madame Luna corrected. "This is the star's dressing room, and belongs to the female lead. Celestia has simply held that title for so long that we all think it's her dressing room. But Celestia is not the star of this production, my dear, so it is your dressing room...and don't let anyone argue that point."
Fluttershy could not help but smile at the thought, but she groaned as she imagined the hell Celestia would raise once she found out that Fluttershy had taken the room.
"Get some rest, my dear," Madame Luna instructed. "I will explain everything to the managers-I believe they fainted as well at the thought of losing their new star." Fluttershy chuckled softly as she saw the amusement in Madame Luna's eyes. "Besides, the dance could use some extra rehearsal time, come monsieur," she motioned for Time Turner.
Time Turner helped his daughter sit down on the chaise lounge in the center of the room. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead before rising and smiling down at her. "If you don't eat every last bit of food that Cherry Jubilee prepares tonight, I'll start doing all the cooking...and you know that's a fate worse than death," he teased, although Fluttershy could still see the genuine worry that clouded his eyes.
She sighed and pulled her legs up to her body as she was left alone in the dressing room. Her arms wrapped around them and with a tired groan she buried her face against her knees. She realized that this was the first time she had been left alone in the opera house since her return. She looked around at the elegant room and a sad smile slowly spread across her face. Once upon a time, this was all she dreamed about, becoming a great singer who would return to her dressing room after every perforstallionce to find dozens of roses left by her admiring fans. She truly believed that with Discord's help, that dream could indeed become a reality...
But now...now what she truly yearned for had nothing to do with fame and glory. Her eyes focused in on a bouquet of dark red roses, and her thoughts immediately drifted to Discord. Had he seen what happened? Did he know that she had fainted? Did he care? Her heart ached to be with him, her arms ached to hold him, to feel him close to her once more. She missed him so much...
"Angel of music..." she softly, painfully sang, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Angel of music, guide and guardian...grant to me your glory..." she sniffed back the tears that began to fall. "Angel of music, hide no longer..." she turned and buried her face once more against her knees, her arms hugging her legs tighter to her body. "Come to me strange angel..."
Her words, her beautiful and sorrowful words, were like a prayer being offered up to heaven, a prayer beckoning her angel, her love, to come to her once more. He heard her words despite their softness, her voice like a beacon to his ears.
He had seen everything. That horrible sickening feeling returned as he watched his beloved crumple to the ground, nothing more than a rag doll. He was frozen as they cried out her name, feeling so helpless and so frightened. With great relief, he began to breathe again as she slowly sat up with the aid of her father and Madame Luna, and he flew to the secret tunnel that ran alongside the dressing room, watching everything take place from the other side of the long mirror.
The mirror was an illusion, a secret passageway that no one, not even Madame Luna, knew about. From within the dressing room, it looked like a simple mirror, when in truth, he could see in and enter the world above, through it.
He held his breath as Fluttershy was left alone in the dressing room, very much aware that the two of them, in a sense, were completely alone. Yet she of course, had no idea that he was there...and while it was tempting to break through the glass and take her in his arms, he stood completely still, the pain in her eyes and in her voice tearing him apart.
He had been a fool to drive her away. He had done it all because he thought it was the selfless thing to do, but God had somehow brought her back to this place, back into his life...and he knew now that he could not live without her, that she belonged to him...and he to her.
As if by some unknown instinct, the song rose up within his throat and the words escaped his lips...
"No more talk of darkness,
forget these wide-eyed fears.
I'm here, nothing can harm you-
My words will warm and calm you..."
It was the song that he had written with Fluttershy, the song that would have been sung by Don Juan and Aminta at the end of his opera, if he had kept the new ending.
"Let me be your freedom,
let daylight dry your tears.
I'm here, with you, beside you,
To guard you and to guide you..."
He sang the words just as softly as she had sung her song. There was no way she could have heard him, but somehow he hoped that she could feel him there, near her, that her pain would lessen, and her fears float away.
He sighed and silently watched her as she turned her face towards the mirror, her eyes closed, as if in some deep thought. Her sadness was still evident, but at least she had stopped crying.
What happened next, however, took him completely by surprise.
"Say you love me,
every waking moment,
turn my head with talk of summertime..."
He stared at her through the mirror as her voice filled his ears.
"Say you need me,
with you now, and always...
promise me that all you say is true-
that's all I ask of you..."
How could she possibly...?
Discord shook his head, not sure how to go about explaining it, but somehow, and for some reason, Fluttershy was singing Aminta's response, as if...as if she had heard every word he had sung...
"Let me be your shelter,
let me be your light.
You're safe:
No one will find you-
Your fears are far behind you..."
Fluttershy's voice began to respond to his once more, and this time her face focused in on the mirror where he stood.
"All I want is freedom,
a world with no more night...
and you, always beside me,
to hold me and to hide me..."
Discord watched as she slowly began to rise from the chaise lounge, his own voice responding once more, his eyes locking in on her face as she began to approach the mirror.
"Then say you'll share with me
one love, one lifetime...
let me lead you from your solitude..."
She was drawn to the mirror, although she knew not why. All she could see was her own reflection in the glass, but she felt something...something calling for her from just beyond.
"Say you need me
with you here, beside you..." he continued singing, his gaze running over her beautiful face as she drew closer to the glass.
"Anywhere you go, let me go too-
Fluttershy...that's all I ask of you..."
Fluttershy's voice rose as she stood before the mirror, unable to see him, but gazing up at his face as if she knew he were there. His voice joined hers, and they sang to each other, the glass the only thing truly separating them...
"Say you'll share with me
one love, one lifetime...
say the word and I will follow you...
Share each day with me,
Each night, each morning..."
The two of them stopped singing, and Fluttershy slowly lifted a tentative hoof to the glass, resting it against its cool surface, her eyes searching. "Say you love me..."
Discord watched her hoof lift to the glass, and immediately lifted his own paw, mirroring her hoof exactly. "You know I do..." he answered.
A soft, joyful smile slowly spread across Fluttershy's face, and Discord felt the same joy swelling within himself, ready to burst. He gripped the edges of the mirror, fully prepared to fling it open...
"Love me-" they both sang, "that's all I ask of-"
"FLUTTERSHY!"
Fluttershy gasped and whirled around, and Discord flew from the mirror, cursing Madame Luna's brat who had entered the dressing room unannounced.
"Oh I'm sorry, did I startle you?" Twilight apologized, her eyes moving from the mirror to Fluttershy's rather flushed face.
Fluttershy took a deep breath and quickly shook her head, wondering how she must have looked, singing to a mirror when Twilight had burst in. "I'm fine," she lied, trying quickly to compose herself. "Am I being summoned? Do the managers or Madam Octavia wish to see me?"
Twilight shook her head. "Oh no, Mama spoke with them, you are to be given a full day of rest tomorrow, and your father feels it is best that you go home now...he asked me to come and fetch you."
Fluttershy smiled, but still could not conceal the redness that flamed her cheeks. "Thank you, Twilight," she whispered, turning to follow the mare, but taking one last glance at the mirror in the room.
She had felt him. She had felt his presence with her in that room. She could not explain the power that had drawn her to the mirror, or that had compelled her to sing. There was no other explanation other than for a brief moment, she had been under the spell of the Opera Ghost himself.
But as just as suddenly as she had felt his presence, so the feeling disappeared. With a heavy heart, she exited the dressing room, never seeing the amber gaze that had remained locked on her face long after she had shut the door. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Clarity | Clarity
Blueblood glared at the article before him, his eyes filled with hateful spite. He had only just arrived at the Maris Opera House, his face a harsh color of red, a newspaper in his hooves. It came as quite a shock to him when he awoke that morning to see Don Juan Triumphant in the headlines. He stormed into the stallionagers' office and began destallionding answers for whose idea it was to say anything to the papers. Now, he was gazing down at the original article that Flam had received the day before, as well as the note that came with it. With a growl, he took his cigar and stabbed the burnt end into the paper. He glanced up at the two stallionagers, both of who were looking rather nervous. "And why was I not informed of this news yesterday?" he inquired.
Flim and Flam glanced at one another, and then back at the Prince, before erupting into a din of excuses.
Blueblood groaned and lifted his hoof to silence them; he could feel a headache coming on. "This new turn of events does change our plans somewhat," he muttered.
Flam nodded his head in agreement. "We must quickly come up with a plan to capture that fiend! We have only a week until opening night! Surely he will be there then, we simply must find a way to lure him-"
"We have the bait," Blueblood muttered, gazing at the article he held in his hooves. "We simply need the trap."
Flim's brow furrowed at the Prince's words. "You mean his opera, monsieur?"
Blueblood shook his head. "No...I mean Fluttershy."
Both stallionagers stared at the Prince with wide eyes and sudden realization. "Of course...she was chosen by the Phantom to play the lead," Flim whispered.
"And she was the only detail mentioned in the article," Flam added.
Blueblood nodded his head. "Yes, Fluttershy is the link in all this. The Phantom is clearly obsessed with her," he growled, his hoof lifting to rub his neck. "Not to mention extremely possessive; he is most eager to see his so-called masterpiece performed with her singing the lead...perhaps he rushed the perforstallionce date, out of fear that she will flee, or out of fear that we will catch on to him...but whatever the reason, mark my words, he will be present at that perforstallionce."
Flam quickly nodded in agreement. "Yes, we simply need a trap as you say!"
"What of the police?" Flim inquired, looking hopeful.
Blueblood grunted, and immediately Flim's hopes melted. "The police remain skeptical," he muttered with disgust. "While all the evidence obviously points to the truth that the Phantom is indeed a madstallion living within these walls, they remain unconvinced. They need more...evidence."
Flam threw his hooves up into the air. "Good God! What sort of evidence? A dead body?"
Blueblood quickly concealed his sinister grin at the younger stallionager's words. "We shall simply have to keep our eyes open for ideas, but have no fear gentlecolts...I am most determined to see his end."
Both stallionagers could not help but tremble at the cold way the Prince spoke, however, that dreaded feeling was quickly replaced by another, and a far more dreadful feeling...
"WHAT THE HELL IS THE MEANING OF THIS?" Celestia shrieked, throwing the door to the office open.
"Signora? What is the matter? What-"
"You shut-up!" she hissed, pointing her hoof in Flam's face. "AND EXPLAIN WHY THAT LITTLE BITCH HAS MY DRESSING ROOM!"
Flim and Flam went white at her words. They attempted to speak, but rather than giving her explanations, a series of nervous and indistinguishable sounds came out of their mouths. Blueblood groaned as Celestia began to shriek once more, his head pounding now. "It's quite obvious, signora," he muttered. "Mademoiselle Fluttershy is the star now...therefore it's her dressing room."
Both Flim and Flam looked ready to dive behind a desk to avoid Celestia's explosion. Indeed, the Prima Donna looked shocked from the simple, matter-of-fact way that the Prince had replied. But the pale shock on her face slowly changed to a deep angry red, and she opened her mouth, a scream rising in her throat, her eyes shooting daggers of fury at the hoofsome blonde noblecolt who stood a few Hooves away.
Both managers took cover.
"Please don't," Blueblood cut in, a weary and annoyed sigh escaping his lips, as he reached out and placed one hoof on Celestia's pouting lips. "I am not having the best of mornings, and I do not think I can tolerate another outburst."
A great gasp escaped from the stallionagers and the diva. "How dare you-"
Blueblood cut her off once more. "My dear, please...why are we arguing this point? What possible threat can you throw at me?"
Celestia was turning a deep shade of red, more from fury than embarrassment. "I'll leave!" she hissed. She turned her eyes on the frightened stallionagers who had gone a shade paler at her words. "I'll leave this wretched piss hole, and go to Vienna!"
"Fine," Blueblood sighed, ignoring the blank stare the stallionagers were giving him at his words. "You'd best be on your way, signora, there is probably a train leaving for Vienna within the hour."
Celestia was at a complete loss of words. She watched with venomous eyes as Blueblood once again sat down in his chair, pulling a new cigar from the inside of his coat, and lighting it. "I mean it..." she repeated, although the confidence in her voice was slowly disappearing.
Blueblood took one long puff on his cigar before exhaling the smoke in one long steady stream. "Of course you do, my dear," he whispered, his eyes locking with hers.
It was an empty threat; they both knew it. But now Celestia had a new challenge; either stay and live in the shadows of a new rising star, or leave with her pride, but face the reality of being penniless.
She didn't have control anymore; Blueblood was making that abundantly clear.
"Damn you," she hissed at him, her eyes filled with humiliation and hatred. "Damn you to hell!"
Blueblood exhaled again and smiled. "After you, signora."
She swore in Italian before turning on her heel and exiting the office, the door banging loudly in her wake. Both Flim and Flam, who had been watching the whole scene in silence, let out a long sigh filled with both relief and anxiety. "Monsieur, I...I can't believe...I can't believe that you almost-"
"Shut up," Blueblood muttered. "If you didn't spoil her in the first place this would never have been a problem!" He rose from his chair and grabbed his belongings. "La Celestia will no longer be threatening us," he grumbled as he pulled on his coat. "But she is not our concern; we must focus all our attention on how to capture that monster!"
The stallionagers glanced at one another, both shivering slightly at the cold sinister tone of the Prince's voice. "Quite right," Flim agreed, although the confidence in his voice was lacking.
"Yes, absolutely," Flam quickly replied, although he too looked doubtful.
"Excellent," Blueblood muttered. "I will speak with you both later, but right now, I need to...look into something." Without another word, Blueblood left the office and headed directly to the auditorium, his steps quick and his jaw clenched.
Madame Luna and her dancers were warming up on stage, preparing to rehearse a dance scene from Act III. Several chorus members were talking with a few orchestra members, and Blueblood spotted the old stallion who he was looking for.
"Monsieur!" he called out, a charming smile now creasing his hoofsome features.
Time Turner turned to the voice and his own features brightened with a warm welcoming smile. "Oh! Monsieur Prince! So good to see you today!" he warmly greeted, before doing a quick polite bow.
Blueblood grinned and shook his head. "Monsieur Time Turner, please...I have told you before, call me Blueblood."
Time Turner grinned and nodded his head. "Thank you monsieur-Blueblood," he quickly corrected. "I must confess, we were worried when we did not see you yesterday. We feared that perhaps something was amiss."
Blueblood's smile momentarily vanished as he remembered how he spent the whole day recovering from his attack and attempting to have the police see reason. "Yes, well...I had some urgent business matters that needed attending. But I am glad to be back," he added, his eyes surveying the rest of the large room, hoping to find a particular brunette. "You said, 'we were worried', monsieur..." Blueblood added, his eyes sliding back to the old stallion.
"Oh! Yes, I meant both myself and my daughter." Inwardly, Time Turner was frowning. Fluttershy had not shown any concern, or interest for that matter, on the Prince's whereabouts the day before. He shook his head, wishing that Fluttershy would not be so doubtful as to the Prince's intentions. She was far too suspicious for her own good; perhaps it was those books her mother read to her? Yes, there were some wealthy gentlemen who took advantage of young ladies, especially young ladies below their station, but the Prince seemed so different! His feelings seemed quite genuine and sincere, and if he meant harm, why had he gone out of his way to help them? No...the Prince was a good stallion, Time Turner was convinced of this. And he genuinely seemed to hold Fluttershy in high esteem, even in deep affection.
Time Turner sighed. He was an old stallion and was not sure how many more years he had left. He wanted to know that Fluttershy would be taken care of, that she would be loved and cherished and have every comfort available. Perhaps with time, she would see that the Prince was not this horrible beast she seemed convinced to believe him to be. But who knew how long that would take; best that he help the situation in any way that he could. "Both my daughter and myself were terribly worried for you," he lied again.
Blueblood studied the old stallion carefully. Was he being lied to? No, that was impossible. Fluttershy was simply modest and humble, believing it to be impossible that a stallion of Blueblood's birth, education, and power, could possibly take any interest in a lowly farm mare. She simply needed more convincing; but it was impossible to comprehend that she did not find him attractive. After all...he was, well...him.
"I must confess, I had hoped to speak with both you and your daughter today...but I can not see her anywhere," he murmured, glancing once more about the auditorium and then back at the old stallion.
"Oh, she is not well," Time Turner explained. "She is home, resting, but will be back at rehearsals tomorrow."
"Not well?" Blueblood asked, through slightly clenched teeth. Those stupid idiots who called themselves managers forgot to mention that one detail. "Its not serious I hope..."
"Oh no!" Time Turner quickly defended. "She is a silly mare, brought it on herself, I think," he muttered. "Barely ate anything yesterday, and after long hours of singing and being on stage, she fainted. Oh she is alright now, let me assure you," Time Turner added, after noticing the Prince's slight alarm. "I think it is simply nerves-she's never sung on stage before, and now with the news of the opera opening in a week..."
"Yes," Blueblood added, his teeth grinding once more. "I can understand the stress she is feeling. And I am glad to hear that she does not suffer from any illness other than heightened nerves," he turned his attention back to the old stallion once more. "It would be most disappointing, as I was hoping that perhaps both Fluttershy and yourself would be my guests tomorrow evening for dinner."
Time Turner's eyes widened with surprise. "Oh monsieur-Blueblood, I...I don't know what to say...what an honor-"
"Please monsieur," Blueblood smiled. "The honor is entirely mine." Time Turner smiled warmly back, but then it quickly disappeared, something to which Blueblood took immediate notice. "What is wrong?" he asked, his tone somewhat demanding.
"Oh it is only...sadly," the old stallion sighed, "while I am most thankful for the invitation, I must sadly decline. You see, I am desperately trying to catch up with the rest of the orchestra with learning this opera-they have had over a month to practice where I have had only a few days. And now that it is being performed in a week-"
"I understand," Blueblood muttered, his attempt at hiding his disappointment, failing.
"Oh please, do not take offense," Time Turner pleaded, seeing the displeasure in the Prince's eyes. "And do not feel you need to change your plans. I am simply saying that, sadly, I must decline, but my daughter on the other hoof..."
Blueblood went tense for a moment. Was the old stallion that naïve when it came to how things worked in society? No father would ever allow a young single mare to be left alone with another gentlecolt, no matter how wealthy he was. But perhaps this simply showed that the old stallion truly trusted him, that he had the old stallion's loyalty-something, which would come in hoofy, should Fluttershy need...convincing...to accept his marriage proposal. "Do you think Fluttershy will accept the invitation?" he calmly asked.
Time Turner only too eagerly nodded his head. "Oh she will be delighted!"
Blueblood cocked one golden eyebrow. "She will be fully recovered?"
Time Turner smiled and nodded his head. "She plans to return to rehearsals tomorrow, I'm sure she will be well enough to also attend dinner."
Blueblood smiled at this, but his brow furrowed with confusion. "Surely she is very busy with trying to learn everything before opening night-"
"Oh no," Time Turner interrupted. "She knows all the songs by heart."
Blueblood froze at these words. "S-s-she knows e-everything by heart?" he whispered. "All the music...e-everything? After only a few days of rehearsal?"
Time Turner nodded his head proudly. "Amazing, really. She does have a gift for quickly learning music, but even I was impressed with how swiftly she memorized her songs and notes."
"Indeed," Blueblood whispered. Yet another piece to this puzzle involving the Phantom of the Opera, and it was evolving into a picture that the Prince did not like one bit.
"Monsieur Time Turner!" Madam Octavia bellowed from the orchestra pit. "We would like to rehearse now! And seeing as we only have a week..." the conductor muttered with irritation.
"Forgive me," Time Turner murmured to the Prince.
"Not at all," Blueblood smiled at the old stallion, once again regaining his calm cool composure. "Please give your daughter my best wishes for her improving health, as well as my invitation. I shall meet her here, after rehearsal, and I will gladly bring her home."
Time Turner smiled and bowed his head once more, ignoring the frustrated cries of the conductor. "Thank you Blueblood...it is a great honor and pleasure."
Blueblood smiled and bowed his own head, watching as the old stallion turned in the direction of the pit. He turned then to the stage, not surprised to see the grim face of the dance mistress staring back at him. With a polite smile, Blueblood bowed his head to her, a gesture that only deepened her scowl.
"Madame Luna? If your dancers are ready?" Octavia asked from the pit.
The dance mistress nodded her head and quickly clapped her hooves. Several mares immediately took their places on stage, while a few could be heard giggling off to the side. Frowning, the mare crossed the stage in several great strides and clapped her hooves again, the sound reverberating off the walls like thunder. Blueblood turned to see where the mare's gaze was directed, and caught the glimpse of several dance mares huddled around a stagehoof.
The sudden thunderous clap awoke them from their trance, and they quickly turned to take their places on stage with the others. Madame Luna glared at the stagehoof, who shrank slightly beneath her cold stare, before turning and nodding her head once more at the conductor. The music rose, and the mares immediately fell into the trained steps of their dance.
Normally the Prince would have thought nothing of the scene that he had just witnessed; it was not that uncommon to see the stagehooves attempting to lure the dance mares into the shadows, but this particular stagehoof caused the Prince to pause. In truth, it was the object that the stallion was holding that had captured Blueblood's interest.
Everypony else was distracted by the dancer's rehearsal, that no one noticed Blueblood approaching the stagehoof. "Excuse me..."
The stallion gasped and whirled around to see the Prince tower over him. The stagehoof was short, pudgy, and had a scraggly graying beard on his pudgy face. He also smelled like somepony who slept in his own fluids, a stench that caused Blueblood to gag somewhat. But he quickly regained his composure and kept his emerald gaze locked on the stallion's plump face. "Where did you get that?" he pointed at the stallion's hooves.
"I didn't do no harm! I didn't touch one of those mares! I'm just doin' me job!"
Blueblood rolled his eyes at the stallion's defensive pleas. "I'm not accusing you of anything," he muttered. "I just want to know where you got...that."
The stagehoof looked down at the object that he held in his hooves.
It was a noose. And not just any noose...one that looked oddly familiar to the one Blueblood had examined at the police station.
"I didn't do nothin', I was just doin' as Donkey did before he disappeared."
Blueblood's brow furrowed with confusion. "Donkey?"
The stagehoof nodded his head. "Used to be chief stagehoof, till he was fired all those months ago. No one's seen him since..." he leaned in and whispered, as if sharing a big secret. "Some think the Phantom got him!"
Blueblood cocked a brow at these words. "Do they? And what did you mean by 'doing what he did'?"
The stagehoof glanced upward and then looked all around him before speaking. "Cranky Doodle Donkey told stories about...about the Phantom," he whispered. "Now that he's gone, I feel it's my duty to continue them."
Blueblood nodded his head. "And that?" he indicated at the noose the stallion held. "A prop to aid your storytelling?"
The stallion looked down at the noose once more before glancing around again. "Ain't no prop...it's real."
Blueblood frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I've been working at this theater for nearly 25 years," the stallion stated proudly. "And I've seen many a thing that can't be explained. But none so strange as...well..." he looked around again, the nervousness on his face growing more and more.
"Go on," Blueblood urged, more anxious than irritated.
"W-w-well," the stallion continued, swallowing the nervous lump that was in his throat. "Once there was this stallion by the name of Snowflake...don't remember too much about him, a big fella, but not much going on in the noggin, the sort that just asked for trouble. Always drinking when he shouldn't have been...chasing anything that wore a skirt..." the stallion sighed and shook his head sadly. "Phantom warned him...told him to start doin' his duties or else. But stupid Snowflake...he didn't believe in the Phantom, thought him nothin' but a ghost story...well, he don't think that now, wherever he be."
Blueblood narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
The stallion looked surprised at the Prince's question. "Snowflake was warned, but ignored the warnings! Kept on doin' as he did, poor soul."
Blueblood groaned as the stagehoof bowed his head as if in prayer. "What happened to him?" he hissed. "Did the Phantom kill him? Tell me!"
The pudgy stagehoof jumped at the Prince's voice. "It w-w-was during a perforstallionce of Faust-Snowflake was up there," he pointed at the catwalk high above. "The dancers were dancing, no one saw it coming until..." he shivered at the memory. "His body fell...b-but before it hit the stage, it stopped...h-he was hangin' you see...but he never screamed! H-he was already dead!"
Blueblood eyed the stallion suspiciously. "You saw this?"
The stagehoof nodded his head. "I...I saw his body hangin' from off stage...Doodle claimed h-he saw the Phantom throw him."
"And the police? Were they summoned?" he anxiously asked.
The stagehoof nodded his head. "Snowflake reeked with alcohol, police said it was an accident, that he was so drunk he fell off the catwalk himself, and his neck got caught in the ropes."
Blueblood wondered if Silverstar was chief inspector then. He doubted it, but he was beginning to see where the stallion's incompetence had come from.
He glanced at the noose once more, before grabbing it out of the stallion's hooves. Just like the other one, it was made of fine smooth threads. "He was hung with this?"
The stagehoof shook his head. "No...t-that was what killed him. The Phantom strangles his victims with it. Doodle called it the 'punjab lasso'; s-said it was from Persia, how he knew that I don't know, b-b-but he said he s-saw the Phantom strangle Snowflake with it, and then wrapped the ropes from several sandbags around his neck, before throwing him over!"
Persian. Just like the expensive curtains he had in his own town house.
Why or how the Phantom got his hooves on threads like these made no sense, but every cold-blooded murderer had a "signature" of some kind. Apparently the Phantom preferred Middle Eastern thread for his nooses than mere rope.
"How did you get your hooves on this?"
The stallion looked around again, the nervousness extremely apparent now. "Doodle got it somehow...I...I don't know how exactly...b-b-but he claimed to have several things of the Phantom's. I knew w-where he kept them, s-so after he disappeared, I felt it was me duty to continue his stories...and warn others about the Phantom."
Blueblood eyed the noose one last time before looking at the short pudgy stagehoof. "I'll give you 100 franks for it."
The stallion gasped. "100 franks?"
"Sold," Blueblood muttered, tossing the money at the stagehoof without a second thought. However, before he turned to leave, a new question arose in his mind. "You said you've been working here for nearly 25 years...?"
The stagehoof reluctantly looked away from his money. "Me and Doodle have been here the longest..." he paused, before adding, "well, guess it's just me now..."
Blueblood ignored the stallion's sad recollections. "When you joined the company, was the Phantom already sending notes?"
The stallion opened his mouth to reply, but stopped, a pensive look creasing his grizzled features. "You know...when I think about it...I don't remember hearing anything about the Phantom or any notes until...well...at least a few years later?"
"Interesting," Blueblood whispered. "Thank you for your time, and for the story."
The stallion watched as Blueblood walked away. "Here now...w-what are you goin' do with that?"
Blueblood heard the stallion's question, but didn't bother to turn around and answer him. He knew exactly what he was going to do. "Your move, Monsieur Phantom."
Fluttershy sighed as she gazed out her window, watching several soft flakes fall from the sky. A cold winter breeze blew in through the opened window, but she didn't care. Her heart was longing for him, singing to him, praying that perhaps he would feel her, just as she had felt his presence the other day.
Fluttershy had protested when her father told her to stay home and rest. He assumed it was because she wanted to prove to everyone that she was capable of singing the lead, as well as handle all the pressure. But that wasn't it at all; yesterday, in that dressing room, something happened. For the first time since her return to the Maris Opera House...she had felt him.
She spent so many moments wondering if Discord knew she was there, wondering if he was watching her, wondering if he could hear her sing, and if so, what he was thinking. Was he pleased? Disappointed? Did he even care?
But yesterday, when she was left alone in that dressing room...something happened. Out of nowhere, the song that they had created, the love song between Don Juan and Aminta, rose up in her throat and escaped her lips. As if by some mysterious spell, she could hear his voice singing back to her, singing Don Juan's part...and while she knew it sounded crazy...she swore she saw him...in the mirror...
"I don't know what to think anymore..." she sighed unhappily. A part of her wanted to hate him, to despise him, to simply forget him and all that they had shared, to focus entirely on the horrid things he had said and accept that as the simple truth.
But the other part of her, the part of her which was louder and stronger, told her that this was all wrong, that the words he had said and the thoughts she were having...were not true. She momentarily closed her eyes as she remembered the song...
"...Say you love me?" she softly whispered. Was she mad? She could have sworn she heard his beautiful voice respond...
"Mademoiselle! Come away from there, you'll catch your death!"
Fluttershy turned to see Cherry Jubilee hurry into the room and quickly rush over to shut the window. One last blast of cold air hit her face as the window closed with a thud. With a deep sigh, Fluttershy prepared herself for the pretty maid's lecture.
"Mademoiselle, you should be in bed, resting! I have strict orders from your father to make sure you get plenty of rest, and that you eat every last bit of your supper," the maid ordered, pulling the tray of food that she carried over to Fluttershy's bedside.
Fluttershy said nothing, she simply eyed the food with disdain, however she was in no mood to argue, and after all, the mare was simply following orders and doing what she thought was right...even if she did speak in a patronizing tone; Cherry Jubilee couldn't have been much older than her.
"Thank you," Fluttershy murmured, deciding that the soup on her tray was the safest option.
Cherry Jubilee smiled and did a little curtsy, before turning to leave...but then paused when she reached the door. "Begging your pardon, mademoiselle, but...may I ask you something?"
Fluttershy could not hide her surprise at the young mare's question. She had not had the opportunity to truly speak to Cherry Jubilee, at least not on a level where one got to know the other. "Yes, of course," she smiled politely, wondering what was on the mare's mind.
"Well...I know it's none of my business..." the maid began, her face turning pink with each word. "But...but I was just wondering...well..." she could not contain her giggles anymore, and they erupted in a mighty shower. "Are you and the Prince engaged?"
Fluttershy began choking on her soup. "W-w-w-what?" she coughed.
Cherry Jubilee stopped giggling and quickly rushed over to pat Fluttershy's back. "Oh dear, did I ruin the surprise? I'll never forgive myself if I have," she murmured with worry.
Fluttershy shook her head, her coughs now under control. "No...no...you ruined nothing, please..." she lifted her hoof to stop the young maid from pounding her back. "W-what made you think w-w-we were engaged?"
It was now Cherry Jubilee who looked puzzled. "Why, he seems to frequently call on you, and last night...well, the other night he was talking to your father after you had gone to bed, so...well...I had assumed..."
Fluttershy's eyes widened at these words. Was it possible? Had Blueblood discussed the possibilities of marrying her with her father...behind her back? How could her father do such a thing without telling her!
But she quickly shook her head, telling herself it was a simple misunderstanding. Why on earth would the Prince wish to marry her? She had no money, no connections, no titles to her name; yet he did always seem persistent. Good God, what if her father was right, that somehow, the Prince did...love her?
She shook her head at this notion; it was not that she believed people could not fall in love with others above and below their station, after all, her mother, the daughter of a wealthy Prench aristocrat, had married her pauper father. It was simply that she was unsure if the Prince could love someone that way. True, he had shown tenderness and kindness...but Fluttershy could not shake this feeling that he had ulterior motives.
"Mademoiselle?"
Fluttershy shook her head, realizing that Cherry Jubilee was awaiting an answer. "No, we are not engaged, he is simply...being charitable to us."
The maid frowned at this, but chose not to say anything further on the subject. "I'll come back later to collect your tray," she murmured with a curtsy, before turning and leaving Fluttershy alone in the room.
She wasn't a mare with high social connections, but Fluttershy was beginning to realize just how scandalous it must seem to have Blueblood's recurring presence practically every evening. "This is all my fault," she groaned, regretting now her acceptance for taking his flat. "No wonder they're whispering things at the opera house. I must look like his...his..." she couldn't finish the words. No, what she needed to do was to get out of that place, she and her father needed to find a place of their own and soon. But was it too late? Had the gossip gone too far? No one would ever think ill of the Prince; after all, it was not unusual for men of his...kind...to have mistresses.
Fluttershy's stomach churned at the very thought.
She pushed the food away, her appetite now completely gone, and pulled the blankets up around her. This was not how she wanted to live her dream, this was not how she wanted her opera to be. It sickened her to hear the rumors that she was bedding the Prince, and even the managers, to have the part. Ponies were more afraid of angering the Phantom, than paying any attention to whether she was a decent singer. She wanted to play this role because Discord had, in a sense, written it for her, and because she had made it her own.
But it didn't seem to matter anymore. She felt wretched, vile, and disgusting.
With a sad sigh, she laid her head down, and prayed for a dreamless sleep to take her far away.
Her prayers were in vain, for she was dreaming.
"Fluttershy..."
His voice. It was Discord's voice, haunting her once more. Why? Why was she being tortured like this?
"Fluttershy..."
She looked around herself, noticing that nothing had changed about the surroundings in her dream. She was in her room, only it was very dark, and there was a distinct chill. Funny, she didn't recall ever feeling cold in her dreams before...
What sort of dream was this? She continued hearing him call out her name, but he was nowhere to be seen. Had he truly become the Opera Ghost in this dream? She wrapped the blanket about her shoulders, hugging the fabric to her body to block out the cold. It seemed to be coming from her window...
"I thought Cherry Jubilee had closed it?" she whispered to herself. But this was a dream, she reminded herself, and anything was possible in dreams. In her dream, the window was once again open, blowing a crisp cold wind into her room.
"Fluttershy..."
"Discord?" Fluttershy froze when she heard his voice once more. Only this time, it didn't seem to be coming from across the plains of time...but rather...from her window.
She sat fully up, her bare Hooves just barely touching the carpeted floor. He sounded so close...as if he were just beyond the curtains. "Discord?" she whispered again, swallowing the lump in her throat. "Are...are you here?"
Suddenly, the curtains flew open, and a great stream of snowflakes burst into the room, like tens of thousands of butterflies having hatched from their cocoons. A great stream of moonlight flowed through the open window, piercing the darkness of the room and illuminating it in a silver glow.
But nothing was more breathtaking in that moment than the stallion who stood beside the curtains, the moonlight illuminating his masked face, while the shadows continued to swallow his body. How strange, she thought. Her dream Discord wore a different mask, a black one that covered both sides of his face. The mask itself was slightly more terrifying than the white half-mask that she knew him to wear, but Fluttershy held no fear as she gazed at him; how could she be afraid when his beautiful amber eyes burned with such passion, such warmth?
She held her breath as she watched him take a step towards her, now fully coming into the light. He was dressed simply, no cloak, no suit coat, no costume-just a white shirt, open at the neck, revealing his broad chest, black breeches, and knee-high boots.
He was her dark prince, a hero out of her gothic romances...and he had come for her.
She opened her mouth to speak to him, a part of her wanting to reach out and touch him, and a part of her reminding her silly self that this was a dream, and he was, indeed, a phantom of her imagination. However, before she could speak, before she could decide whether to go to him or whether to tell herself to wake up...he began to sing.
"Night-time sharpens, heightens each sensation..."
Fluttershy felt a shiver run down her spine at the sound of his voice, such a strange combination of baritone and tenor. Indeed, she was feeling heightened by sensations...
"Darkness stirs and wakes imagination..."
He continued singing, slowly, quietly, approaching her, his eyes locking with her own.
"Silently the senses abandon their defenses..."
Fluttershy thought her heart would stop beating as Discord held his paw out to her. Not once did she look at it, and not once did she stop to think and question what she was doing.
On instinct, she placed her small hoof in his paw, and let out a long shaky breath.
"Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor..." he sang, pulling her to her Hooves. "Grasp it, sense it-tremulous and tender..."
Fluttershy held her breath as she felt his claw softly touch her chin and lift her face towards his.
"Turn your face away from the garish light of day,
turn your thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light-
and listen to the music of the night..."
He released her chin and then took both her hooves in his paw and claw, leading her into the pool of moonlight that flooded the room.
"Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams!
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before!
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar..."
Fluttershy moaned and felt her lashes flutter against her cheeks as his silken spell wove around her.
He leaned in, his lips mere inches from her ear. "And you'll live as you've never lived before..."
Fluttershy whimpered as she felt his paw stroke her face, her eyes fluttering open once more to gaze into his own.
"Softly, deftly, music shall caress you..." she gasped as she felt him move around her, his hooves sliding down from her face to her shoulders, and then slowly, agonizingly, running down the length of her arms.
"Hear it, feel it, secretly possess you..." he sang, his voice growing deeper, almost like a passionate growl, and Fluttershy whimpered and leaned back against him as she felt his arms entwine around her waist.
"Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind,
in this darkness which you know you cannot fight-
the darkness of the music of the night."
Fluttershy gasped when she suddenly felt her body being whirled around, till once more, she was facing him. She looked up at him and whispered his name, before gasping once more as his strong paw and claw gripped her around the waist, and lifted her off the floor. Her hooves gripped his powerful shoulders, her eyes never leaving his as his song continued.
"Let your mind start a journey through a strange new world!
Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before!
Let your soul take you where you long to be!"
He held the note of the last word for so long that Fluttershy gasped when finally he caught his breath. She let out another long shaky breath as he slowly, painstakingly, lowered her back to the floor, her body on fire as she brushed his.
"Only then...can you belong to me..." his words were practically a whisper.
Fluttershy's eyes drifted shut once more as she felt him gently turn her again, so that she was leaning against him once more.
"Floating, falling, sweet intoxication! Touch me...trust me..." one paw held her hoof and lifted it up to the side of his face that was disfigured. Fluttershy whimpered as she ran her hoof over his masked cheek, wishing she could feel the skin beneath. She let out an even louder gasp when she felt his other claw brush over her thigh, before sliding up her body and running across her breasts. "Savor each sensation..." he whispered in her ear, his voice filled with passion, and his body showing his desire.
"Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
to the power of the music that I write-
the power of the music of the night!"
Without warning, he whirled her around once more, and with a passionate groan, his mouth crushed hers. Fluttershy moaned against his lips, her mouth immediately opening and offering him entrance, her tongue eagerly welcoming his, pulling him even closer to her.
Discord kissed her back with as much passion, if not more, his arms enfolding her and pulling her off the ground and against his chest. As he kissed her, he began to twirl her around the room, the snowflakes swirling and dancing around them. He felt her joyful tears run over his cheeks; fitting, as they were mingling with his own. He could hear the happy, thankful laughter bubbling in her throat as they twirled in the snow, only to be suppressed by the intensity of the kiss which they were sharing.
He longed for more, and he could feel her body eagerly respond to his. It would be so easy, to simply fall upon her bed and to lose themselves to this overwhelming passion. He wanted to make love to her more than he had ever wanted anything in his life...
But he could hear thehoofsteps in the hallway just beyond her door, and he knew that her father would wish to see how she was. He also knew that Fluttershy believed this to be a dream, and for the moment, he would let her believe that.
He would see her again, he needed to. Everything would be put to right, and he and his angel would be reunited once more, and no one, not even the Prince himself, would part them.
She may be accepting the Prince's charity, but her kiss tonight, the passion he felt in her embrace, and the love he saw in her eyes, told him everything-her heart belonged, and remained, to her Phantom.
Reluctantly, Discord lifted his face from hers, his lips brushing across her forehead, before sweeping her up in his arms and carrying her back to the bed. Fluttershy gazed up at him as she felt him lay her down upon the sheets, and watched with aching sadness as he pulled the blankets up over her body.
He would not be joining her. But then, this was a dream, she reminded herself.
However, instead of instantly disappearing into the shadows, he lowered himself down to one knee and took her hooves in his, singing once more.
"You alone can make my song take flight..."
She watched as he pulled something from the pocket of his breeches. She could not see what it was, but she gasped as she felt it touch her hoof. He leaned down and brushed his lips once more against hers, before murmuring against them, "Help me make the music of the night..."
She watched as he slowly rose from the edge of the bed, his tenor holding the note in such a way that it sent shivers down her spine, but it also caused her eyes to grow heavy, as if he were casting some sort of sleeping spell over her with his lullaby.
He continued to hold the note, his voice growing ever softer as he slowly backed away from the bed, until his body was once more swallowed up by the shadows of the room. And just as her eyes drifted shut, so did the moonlight disappear with him.
"Fluttershy?"
Had he returned? Her eyes flew open at the sound of her name being called, but she realized quickly that it was not Discord's voice that was calling her, but that of her father's.
"Fluttershy? Are you alright?"
She looked up to see her father's worried face hovering above. "I thought I heard...singing..." he softly explained, although he knew it must sound unbelievable.
Fluttershy sat up at his words, and she stared at her father with wide eyes. "Singing?"
Time Turner nodded his head. "I know, very strange, must have been my imagination," he sighed with a shake of his head. He quickly wrapped his arms around his body as a shiver overtook him. "Awfully cold in here," he muttered.
Fluttershy looked at the window, but noticed it was shut, just as Cherry Jubilee had done earlier that evening. She knew it had been a dream, she knew it even while she dreamt him...yet it felt more real than any dream she had had before.
"Fluttershy? Is something wrong?" her father asked, his eyes filling with concern.
She looked up at him and smiled at the tenderness she saw in his face. "I'm fine," she promised, taking his hoof in hers and giving it a gentle squeeze. "It was simply a dream, that's all."
Time Turner's brow furrowed at her words, but nodded his head in agreement. "Yes, you're right...I must have dreamt what I heard. Well, you should continue to get your rest, my dear, tomorrow the managers are hoping to see you at rehearsals," he explained.
Fluttershy smiled and nodded her head. For the first time since she had joined the company, she was actually beginning to look forward to rehearsals. "Goodnight, Papa," she murmured, kissing his cheek as he bent to kiss hers.
"Goodnight, my child," he smiled, before turning and quietly shutting the door to her room.
Fluttershy sighed and fell back against her pillows. Funny, she thought. She would have thought that after such an intense dream she would be sad. Truly, it felt as if Discord had been there! She remembered his embrace, she remembered his kiss...everything! And yet she felt...happy. As if her hopes were being renewed...
She pulled the covers up to her chin to ward off the distinct chill that now filled the room, determined to somehow get some sleep despite this strange feeling that was coursing through her, when she let out a great gasp of realization.
She pulled her left hoof out from beneath the blankets and stared at it with wide-eyed shock.
Her once naked hoof, now wore an elegant gold band. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Misunderstanding | Misunderstanding
Blueblood strolled into the police station, his expression one of smug satisfaction. The officer who noticed his presence first groaned inwardly, but hastily pasted a smile across his face. "Good day, monsieur, we were not expecting you today."
Blueblood smiled at the young officer. "To tell you the truth, I had not planned to visit, but after a recent conversation, I realized that yes, I could afford time out of my schedule to stop by."
The officer continued to smile, although it was extremely apparent that it was not genuine. "Inspector Silverstar is not here at the moment-"
"I do not wish to speak with Inspector Silverstar," Blueblood cut in. "And stop smiling like that, you look like an absolute idiot."
The officer's smile quickly fell, but his interest was now peaked at Blueblood's announcement that he did not wish to speak with the chief inspector. "May I ask then, monsieur, what...well, what-"
"What perhaps you can do for me?" Blueblood finished the sentence, his smile growing by the second. "Yes, you may." Without another word, he tossed the noose that the stagehoof had sold to him to the officer.
The young officer let out a surprised gasp and stared at the object he now held with wide eyes. "This looks like...forgive me for bringing up painful memories, monsieur, but...this looks like-"
"The same noose that had been around my own neck but a few nights ago? Yes," Blueblood confirmed, although his warm smile had momentarily vanished. "I got this one off a stagehoof at the Maris Opera House, and no, he was not the stallion who attempted to murder me, so don't even begin to make such accusations."
The officer closed his mouth and quickly nodded his head. He gazed once more at the noose he now held and then back at the Prince. "If you don't mind me asking, monsieur, but...how exactly did he obtain-"
"The Phantom of the Opera," Blueblood said with a nonchalant wave of his hoof. "And before you begin to mimic your chief inspector, do this for me, and I shall pay you hoofsomely."
The officer once more closed his mouth and without another word nodded his head. "Yes monsieur! What can I do for you?"
Blueblood sighed and gazed at the noose in the officer's hoofs. "I assume you keep records of all your cases? At least of all your severe cases?"
The officer quickly nodded his head. "Oh yes, we keep records and files of many of our past cases, especially severe ones, such as murder investigations, if that is what you mean?"
Blueblood's cool smile returned. "I want you to go through those past records, and find me all the cases that deal with the Maris Opera House."
The officer's eyes widened and his face paled at the Prince's instructions. "But monsieur! T-t-that could take hours...days even!"
"Don't worry, I only want you to investigate the past 25-" he paused for a moment, and then smiled even wider. "Make that the past 20 years. Go back 20 years and find me everything you can about police investigations with the Paris Opera House."
The officer could not suppress his groan of disdain. "It will still take many hours."
Blueblood's calmness remained intact. "I do not mind, I have other...business...to attend to first anyway. Perhaps later this evening?" The officer looked ready to protest, but Blueblood knew the answer that would win anyone over. "As I said before, I will pay you quite hoofsomely for your troubles."
The officer closed his mouth a third time and simply nodded his head inagreement. "If you come back later this evening I may have it ready?" he suggested.
Blueblood thought for a second. "Tomorrow," he concluded, before placing his hat back on his head and turning to go. "I have a very important dinner engagement this evening."
Fluttershy was furious.
She had not spoken to her father since that morning at breakfast when he announced that she would be joining the Prince for dinner that very evening. The shock of the announcement had momenarily stunned Fluttershy speechless; but when she regained her speech, her reaction was not the one her father was expecting.
"PAPA, HOW COULD YOU?"
Time Turner stared at his daughter, the shock she had worn now mirrored on him. "B-b-but my dear, I...I thought you would be thrilled-"
"THRILLED? YOU THOUGHT I WOULD BE THRILLED?" she threw her napkin down and pushed herself away from the table. "Naturally I would be thrilled," she muttered sarcastically. "After all, he's rich and hoofsome and charming. I must be a complete idiot to not find him agreeable!"
Time Turner winced at his daughter's high-pitched tone. "Fluttershy-"
"NO!" she rounded on him, her hooves pressing down on the table, causing it to creak, while she leaned down and stared at him, her eyes reflecting anger and betrayal. "I have told you, many times, that I do NOT like the Prince, at least not in the way that you would have me like him!"
Time Turner flinched slightly at her words, but more at the sight of angry passionate tears that began to drip down her cheeks. "Fluttershy, he is a good stallion-"
"Why, papa?" she demanded, her arms now folding across her chest as she glared at her father. "Why do you wish me to marry him? And don't deny that you were not thinking that, I can tell that this whole plot to have me be alone with him was simply another way to get the Prince to propose." She held her tongue about the scandal her and Blueblood's meeting would cause; her father was misguided, but not vicious. He saw her as Cinderella and the Prince as her hoodsome fairy tale prince. Because it had happened to him, he thought it only natural that somepony who was an aristocrat would marry someone who was a pauper.
Her father stared up at her, shock written across his aged face. He opened his mouth to speak, but Fluttershy, who was pacing furiously back and forth across the room, rounded on him once more. "Is it because he is rich? Is that what this is all about?"
Time Turner gasped at her words. "Of course not! Fluttershy, I will not deny that I want you to have every comfort in life, Lord knows I wish I could have provided your mother with the same, but I would be just as satisfied with him were he one of those stagehooves at the opera house."
Fluttershy groaned at his words. The stagehooves were poor examples of decent stallions-yet perhaps fitting where the Prince was concerned.
"Fluttershy...I've tried to understand your dislike for the stallion. But the only reasons I can find is that you believe him to be arrogant and you dislike his social class; not exactly reasons I find worthy to condemn him for all eternity."
"No, of course not," she spat, turning and grabbing her coat which Cherry Jubilee had laid out for her. "Never mind that I've told you, repeatedly, that he makes me uncomfortable, that I do not hold him in high esteem, and that I believe his kindness holds selfish motives that are only meant to benefit himself!" She pulled her coat on and stormed out the door, not pausing to even glance back at her father.
And so the day had continued. Upon arrival at the opera house, she made herself busy to avoid her father at all costs. If he attempted to speak with her, she knew that she would cause a scene, and more gossip was the last thing she needed. She threw herself into her work, her singing extremely passionate, although Madam Octavia had to pause every now and then to remind Fluttershy to stop shouting her lyrics at Fancypants, who looked somewhat terrified.
A thirty minute break was called, but Fluttershy still did not feel ready to face her father, so she retreated to the only place where she was sure she could be alone; a place that she had been thinking about a great deal.
She quickly entered the star's dressing room, shutting the door and locking it, before leaning against the wooden surface, closing her eyes, and taking in a deep breath of relief. Peace and solitude; these were things she was beginning to cherish ever since she began singing with the company.
The room was rich in a beautiful fragrance. Fluttershy opened her eyes to see where it was coming from, and gasped at the sight of hundreds of roses, of every shade and color, that adorned the elegant room.
They were strewn across her dressing table, scattered over the chaise lounge, and several bouquets hung from the large mirror against the wall. Fluttershy's hooves flew to her mouth in surprise at the beautiful sight, but her blue eyes sparkled with happiness, and her lips curled into a grin.
Discord had done this. He had been with her the last time she was in the dressing room, it wasn't just her imagination. And last night...
Fluttershy had hidden the bracelet she had found on her hoof last night, not exactly sure how to explain it to her father. She had kept the bracelet in a small pocket on her skirt, and now reached in to retrieve it. It was very beautiful, but also simple. Unlike the gaudy jewelry she saw many mares of wealth wear, with large jewels set atop more jewels that looked to weigh the wearer down, the bracelet was a simple, elegant gold band. Fluttershy smiled and tenderly ran her hooves over the bracelet before taking a deep breath and slipping it once more upon her hoof.
It wasn't a dream. He had been in her room last night, he had found her and his message with the bracelet was the same with the roses...
"He still loves me," she whispered to herself, hope springing to new life within her heart.
Without another thought, she picked up her skirts and ran to the mirror, pounding on it, running her hooves over its edges, seeking desperately to find the trigger mechanism that would open it. "Discord!" she cried, hoping that perhaps he would hear her. "Discord!"
"Who is Discord?"
Fluttershy gasped at the sound of the other voice and whirled around, her eyes wide with shock at the sight of Celestia, who was stepping from beyond the changing screen in the far corner of the room. Had she been hiding there this whole time?
"W-w-what are you doing here?" Fluttershy asked, her voice shaking from the shock at seeing the prima donna, as well as with fear, wondering how much the soprano had witnessed.
Celestia grinned, although it was a grin filled with sinister promises. "I believe I asked you first. It is rude you know, to ignore somepony else's question."
Fluttershy stared at the mare blankly. "This is my dressing room-"
"Don't be cute with me!" the diva snapped, her calm composure momentarily disappearing. However, another smile quickly replaced the frown she wore and she glided over to the dressing table, her hooves running over the roses that lay there. "I'll ask again...who is Discord?"
Fluttershy's face paled. What could she say? By telling Celestia who Discord really was, she would be betraying Discord's trust, not to stallionstion endanger the lives of Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Shortround, and Derpy.
Distraction was her only answer.
"I was simply rehearsing a scene from Don Juan," she said plainly, lifting her chin in hopes to not appear intimidated.
Celestia eyed her suspiciously. "There's no 'Discord' in Don Juan," she retorted. "I've seen that score with my own eyes, I've watched every scene from rehearsals..." she cocked a golden eyebrow at Fluttershy. "I think you're lying to me..."
Something inside Fluttershy sparked to life at Celestia's words. With her head held high and her eyes locked with the blonde soprano's, she said with an even tone, "Truth be told, signora...it's none of your damn business."
Celestia's eyes widened at the young mare's words. All signs of cool collectiveness were gone. "How dare you speak to me in such a way, you disgusting little-"
"No, signora," Fluttershy interrupted, her voice filled with cold disdain. "How dare you sneak into my dressing room and hide here, plotting who knows what," she accused, causing Celestia's mouth to fall open from shock.
"I...I...I w-was..." she shook her head, anger boiling in her for the insolence of this country girl who was enjoying her new star status far too much. "This was MY dressing room at one point!" she angrily snapped back. "And I have as much right to come in here as-"
"No you don't, signora," Fluttershy cut in. "This was your dressing room at one point, but not anymore. Your privileges to enter it at any time have been stripped from you, at least during the rehearsal and performance of this particular opera," she calmly explained, before crossing the room to open the door. "Now, signora, if you don't mind," Fluttershy said with a sweet smile, although her voice was anything but. "Get the hell out of my dressing room."
Celestia was completely speechless. She stared at Fluttershy with a mixture of hatred and astonishment. She attempted to speak, but her voice came out in gurgles. She attempted to move, but her anger had her frozen in place!
"Oh! Fluttershy! There you are!"
Both mares turned to see Twilight Sparkle standing in the doorway of the dressing room. Twilight was smiling, but one glance at Celestia's face, which was the brightest shade of scarlet she had ever seen, caused the dancer's smile to quickly disappear. "Um...sorry, I...I didn't mean to interrupt anything..."
"It's quite alright Twilight," Fluttershy reassured, her eyes traveling to Celestia. "I am done with Signora Celestia," she stated quite plainly, before glancing back at the dancer. "Am I wanted on stage?"
Twilight nodded her head, but her eyes were still fastened on the prima donna who looked ready to explode like Pompeii. She gave Fluttershy a smile, before quickly disappearing from the impending disaster.
Fluttershy turned once more to the mare whose eyes looked to be throwing daggers. "Allow me to present you with my own accusation, signora, as you were quite ready to call me a liar," Fluttershy said quite evenly, folding her arms across her chest. "I think you came in here with hopes to find some reason to be rid of me, or perhaps to spread more malicious gossip in order to intimidate me and make yourself feel superior-but allow me to reassure you that none of it will work." She glared back at Celestia, her words cold as ice, and their meaning twice as sharp. "I remember you calling me 'most favored of the Phantom'. Perhaps you are right...after all, I was chosen over you, to play the lead. Perhaps I am favored?"
Celestia just growled.
"The truth of the situation is this, signora," Fluttershy concluded. "I am playing Aminta, and you can not make me leave, and you will not succeed in doing so," she pleasantly smiled, despite the other mare's silent fury. "Now," Fluttershy gestured towards the door, "if you would be so kind as stay out of my dressing room from now on?"
That did it! Celestia had had enough of this mare's impertinent-
She stopped momentarily, her eyes darting to Fluttershy's hoof as the light from the room reflected off the bracelet she wore. Fluttershy didn't seem to notice, and Celestia wanted to keep it that way, so without another word, she stormed out of the dressing room, grumbling in Italian to herself, but her mind still fresh with the image of the bracelet.
Fluttershy let a large sigh escape her and leaned against the open door. She still couldn't believe that she had stood up to the mare! She bit her lip, a part of her worrying if perhaps she would later regret her words, but she lifted her chin, telling herself that she had a right to stand up for herself and not let others push her around. She smiled at this thought, and quietly closed the door behind her, before retreating to the stage where she could already hear Madam Octavia call her name in annoyance.
Behind the mirror, Discord smiled as he watched his angel depart. When he realized she had gone to the dressing room, he hastened to the mirror, wanting to see her reaction to the roses, but stopped short when instead he found her arguing with the harpy.
Never before had Discord been more proud of her. She stood up to the harpy's threats, put the damn mare in her place, and hopefully, reinstated the fear she and the others should have when it came to the Phantom of the Opera.
"Well done, Fluttershy," he whispered. "Well done."
The afternoon rehearsals were long and tedious. Fluttershy groaned and tried to massage the muscles in her lower back and neck, yearning for the time when she could go home and collapse upon her bed.
Would Discord come again tonight? She felt her heart skip a beat at the expectation at what the night would bring. Her eyes momentarily closed as memories of his beautiful song floated through her. It was as if he had written that song just for her...
Oh how she longed to lose herself in her fillyish dreams and fantasies. But every time she glanced at the orchestra pit, her heart sank as she saw the sadness written across her father's face.
Fluttershy's anger towards her father began to dissolve not long after her confrontation with Celestia. Also, the absence of the Prince during the day's rehearsal gave her fewer reasons to hold a grudge. Truth be, she knew her father loved her, and that he was only encouraging her to court the Prince because he wanted what he thought would be best for her. Sadly, her father was so blinded by Blueblood's charms, that he could not see how manipulative the hoofsome noblecolt was.
She couldn't entirely blame her father for liking the stallion. After all, according to her father, the Prince had often visited him in prison, and it was through Blueblood's help that she had been able to free him. Fluttershy was extremely grateful to Madam Luna and the hospitality of her household, but she knew that both she and her father were intruding upon them all, and once more, the Prince stepped forward with a solution.
Yes, she wearily thought, she could not blame her father for finding the stallion agreeable. Anyone in his situation would think she was mad for not being flattered by the Prince's attentions. Her only excuse lay with Discord, who revealed to her all the horrible things Blueblood had done throughout the years he was a patron to the Paris Opera House. It was hard enough trying to convince her father of her own distrust towards the Prince; she could not even fathom how difficult it would be to reveal that her distrust came from stories revealed to her by the infamous Phantom.
"Time Turner!"
Fluttershy gasped at the bark of her father's name, quickly waking from her trance and glancing at the orchestra pit to see why Madam Octavia was fuming.
"You're half a beat late...again!" the conductor groaned, throwing her baton down on the music stand.
Time Turner gave a somewhat sheepish smile, but quickly readjusted his music, avoiding Gerard's disapproving gaze. "I beg your pardon," he softly murmured. "I'll get it the next time."
Octavia threw her hooves up in the air. "The next time? THE NEXT TIME?" she grabbed hold of her hair and looked ready to tear it out. "Monsieur...we've rehearsed this introduction sixteen times! And still, each and every time, you come in half a beat late!"
Time Turner flushed with embarrassment and began to shrink as the conductor threw curses to the wind. He glanced up at Fluttershy, his eyes filled with sorrow and shame, and her heart immediately melted.
"Madam Octavia!" she called out, causing the swearing conductor to momentarily pause and turn to her. Fluttershy took a deep breath and gave the mare what she hoped was a pleasing smile, before speaking again. "Could perhaps we take a quick break? Of ten minutes? I know that Signor Fancypants has been standing for quite some time and would probably benefit with a quick stretch of the legs," she suggested, smiling at Fancypants, who in truth did look exhausted.
Octavia eyed Fluttershy for a moment before shrugging her shoulders in agreement. "Fine. We're not exactly making any progress at the moment anyhow," he muttered.
The orchestra groaned with relief, and Fluttershy immediately went to her father's side, who was silently tuning the strings on his violin.
She didn't say anything; she knew this was his way of dealing with his shame. Her father was a perfectionist; he didn't need somepony to tell him how disappointed they were with his playing, he was already reprimanding himself for it. He finally looked up at her, a sad smile spreading across his face. "Looks like I need to practice harder," he said simply. Fluttershy returned the same sad smile he had shown, knowing he was trying very hard to rise above his own disappointment.
"It's not easy music to learn," she sighed. "And you've had less time than everypony here to rehearse. They should be praising all that you have accomplished, not pin-pricking the tiniest of details."
Time Turner smiled to himself. "Ah, but my dear, sometimes the tiniest of details make the most difference to whether someone will be moved by music." She smiled at his philosophy, knowing that she too possessed such a spirit when it came to singing, thanks in large part to Discord. "Besides," her father added. "It took you no time at all to learn your songs. Now that is an accomplishment."
Fluttershy's cheeks flushed at his words, but remained calm, knowing that her father was merely speculating, as opposed to putting puzzle pieces together. She reached out and took his hoof in hers, giving his hooves a gentle squeeze. "I'm sorry for shouting at you this morning...and for avoiding you all day," she gave a heavy sigh and looked down at her feet. "I've been a selfish filly."
"No, my dear," Time Turner murmured, squeezing her hooves back. "It is I who should ask for your forgiveness." He smiled sadly, and reached out to brush a stray brown curl that had fallen across her cheek. "You are my pride and joy in this world and your happiness matters more to me than anything else," his words were warm, but Fluttershy read the deep sadness in his eyes. He looked down and softly groaned, before whispering, "When I lost you to the Phantom, I thought my life had ended. And as those long days in that prison turned into weeks...and then months...I wondered if I would ever see you again. I feared I would die before seeing your face once more..."
"Papa-"
He lifted his hoof, motioning for her to allow him to continue. "Then a miracle happened," he smiled. "You found me, and we were together again," a few tears trickled down his wrinkled face as he gazed into her eyes. "But after that moment, I realized that my greatest worry was not whether I would see you again...but knowing whether you would be alright."
Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded her head. She knew now what her father was trying to say. "The Prince was good to me," he continued. "Whenever we were in need, he always seemed to be there, ready to help, and I thought to myself...this is a stallion that I know I could trust with the safety, comfort, and life of my dearest treasure..." he smiled and caressed her cheek with gentle hooves. Fluttershy smiled at the gesture, but her own eyes were unable to meet his; how could she begin to give her father hope when it would be lying to her heart?
"He seems like such a good stallion...and he is very hoofsome," he added, a soft chuckle in his voice. "And you would never want for anything...even love, for I do believe he does care deeply for you..."
Fluttershy closed her eyes to block back the tears. She did not wish for her father to see her crying, especially not over the Prince.
"...but I can never condemn you to such a life."
Fluttershy's eyes flew open and she looked up at her father, her brow furrowed with confusion. "W-w-what?"
Time Turner smiled, a sad smile, but one filled with love for his daughter. "What I wish for you is not the same as what you wish. I told you Fluttershy, I want nothing more than your happiness, and while I want you to be loved and cherished for the precious treasure that you are...so do I want you to feel love and to cherish someone just as fiercely."
Fluttershy's mouth fell open with surprise. She knew she was crying, but she wasn't exactly sure for what reason. "Papa...are you...are you saying-"
"You have told me, many times, that your feelings for the Prince are not entirely favorable," he murmured. "I did listen to you, but a part of me wanted to hold onto the belief that perhaps you would change your mind. But he is not the stallion for you...I see that now. And it wasn't right of me to make arrangements for you to have dinner with him..."
"Papa-"
"No Fluttershy, it's true. What you said this morning was true," he took both her hooves in his and squeezed them tenderly. "I want you to be happy, and I want you to find a stallion who you can love, and who will make you happy. That is my wish for you," he smiled and reached up to wipe away one of her tears. "And I will speak to the Prince this evening and apologize for answering on your behalf, and simply explain that you will be unable to have dinner with him."
She could not deny the fact that she was grateful to hear him say that, but the ease she yearned to feel did not come. "No Papa..."
Time Turner's eyes widened at her words. "No?"
Fluttershy took a deep breath; she couldn't believe what she was about to say. "I...I will have dinner with him, tonight."
The old stallion looked very confused. "But...but I thought that you-"
"I don't...I mean, yes, I am grateful for all that he has done for us...but my feelings for him are not warm or tender or loving," she sighed deeply. "I don't love him, and it would be a lie to pretend that I care for him in any great capacity. But even if you do apologize on my behalf, I do not think he will understand what you are trying to say for me. And...you shouldn't be the one who has to say it, it's my responsibility, really."
Time Turner stared at his daughter, discomfort mounting in his eyes. "Fluttershy, he is a gentlecolt. While it is not news that most stallions would favor, you make it sound as if he'll...he'll hunt us down and force you to marry him!"
Fluttershy bit her lip. Why would Blueblood wish to marry her she had no idea, in fact, she doubted very much that it was marriage that ruled the Prince's mind. She was simply another conquest in his eyes, an uncharted land that he wanted to explore and claim as his own. "The Prince is most persistent," she muttered. "If you tell him my feelings, he may not understand or believe them to be true. I should be the one to tell him, and I will, tonight."
Time Turner now bit his lip, the worry lines on his forehead creasing greatly. "I do not like the sound of this Fluttershy..."
Neither did she; but as far as Fluttershy could tell, it may be the only way to convince Blueblood to stop pursuing her. Now all she needed to do was convince herself that this was the right thing to do...
Eight o' clock came far too soon.
Fluttershy had spent the rest of the afternoon and evening dreading every passing hour. And she was beginning to seriously doubt her plan.
Her father, who had always been praising the Prince's kindness and gentility, truly looked concerned when she said she would accept the invitation. That in itself was disconcerting. But more than that was the question as to where they would be having dinner. She recalled how a few nights ago the Prince suggested that both she and her father join him at his town house. It would not be proper at all for a single mare to attend a private dinner party at the house of a single stallion, no matter how renowned his reputation was. The scandal would never hurt Blueblood, but she could greatly suffer from it.
She took a deep breath and ran her hooves across the bracelet, praying for courage to get her through the evening.
At a quarter to eight, the auditorium doors opened, and Blueblood stepped forth, dressed in his finest, a bouquet of yellow roses in hoof.
Several dancers began giggling when they noticed him holding the flowers, but Madam Luna quickly shushed them to silence.
Celestia had noticed the Prince's grand appearance, and her eyes glowed with hateful fire at the roses he held.
Madam Octavia knew it was hopeless to try and keep order with the company, now that the Prince had entered, so with her hooves thrown in the air, she muttered in a defeated tone, "until tomorrow," and ended the rehearsal.
Fluttershy felt her cheeks grow hot under the Prince's gaze. She quickly glanced at her father, whose expression was one filled with worry and uncertainty. "Good evening, monsieur," he greeted in a somewhat strained voice as Blueblood slowly approached the stage.
"Ah, good evening Monsieur Time Turner," Blueblood returned warmly, bowing elegantly before the old stallion. "And good evening to you, mademoiselle," he murmured, his eyes moving over Fluttershy hungrily.
Fluttershy smiled back, somewhat nervously, but Blueblood didn't seem to take any notice. His eyes were too busy raking across the swell of her breasts beneath the lacy green gown that she wore.
Blueblood momentarily snapped out of his trance and held the roses out to Fluttershy. "Shall we?" he offered, extending his hoof to help her down from the stage.
Fluttershy smiled once more, although it took great force to do so. She reluctantly took the flowers, and even more reluctantly, took his hoof. "I just need to gather my belongings."
"Ah, actually, my coachcolt, has already fetched your things," Blueblood smiled, clapping his hooves as if he were calling a dog, and the coachcolt came rushing forward, with Fluttershy's coat open.
Time Turner eyed the Prince suspiciously. "You do seem to plan for things well in advance, monsieur," he murmured.
Blueblood turned and smiled, taking Time Turner's words as a compliment. "Thank you...but what is this 'monsieur' business? Please, call me Blueblood..." he looked at both Fluttershy and her father, indicating that he wished for them both to be less formal with him.
Fluttershy glanced around the stage warily. She could feel dozens of eyes gazing upon her, some of them curious, some of them envious, and many of them judging. She caught Madam Luna's gaze which chilled her to the bone. The ballet mistress' dark eyes seemed to grow even blacker as she watched Fluttershy politely take Blueblood's arm as he led her out of the auditorium.
She could only begin to imagine what some of them were thinking of her...
Blueblood led her out the doors into the cold night air, his finest carriage being pulled by four beautiful snowy white horses, waiting for their departure. Time Turner followed them all the way out to the carriage, and watched with unease as Blueblood helped Fluttershy inside. "Monsieur," he reached out and grasped the Prince's arm before he could climb in after her.
Blueblood turned, his eyes filled with confusion, as well as some annoyance with being delayed. "Please Monsieur Time Turner, call me-"
"Blueblood," Time Turner finally muttered. "It...it has been a very long day for my daughter, she has been singing all morning and afternoon, and...I do not think she has entirely recovered from her brief illness two days ago, I...I think it would be best if...if perhaps you bring her home within the hour."
Blueblood stared at the old stallion as if he had been told that Fluttershy herself was the Phantom of the Opera. The hoofsome stallion's face broke into a smile, and then rich deep laughter erupted from his chest.
Time Turner scowled at the way his concern was being mocked. He was beginning to understand his daughter's disdain for the stallion.
"Oh...forgive me, forgive me," Blueblood sighed, his laugh tapering off. "You did say that...you wish me to bring Fluttershy home within the hour?"
Time Turner lifted his chin stubbornly. "Indeed, monsieur, and I do not appreciate my concern for my daughter's health to be mocked!"
All the jest that was alight in Blueblood's eyes vanished. He did not appreciate ponies giving him orders, especially when the pony was an old lunatic. However, instead of letting his irritation show, he put on another charming smile, and reached out to give the old stallion's shoulder a firm squeeze. "Forgive me," he bowed. "I assure you, I will have her home before midnight; she will get the rest that she rightly deserves," without another word or glance, Blueblood released Time Turner and climbed inside the carriage. "And good luck to you, monsieur, with your violin playing!" he called out, just as the carriage driver cracked his whip.
Fluttershy leaned her head out to look at her father for a brief moment as the carriage began to pull away, the worry clearly evident in his eyes. She truly doubted the sense in her plan.
Blueblood watched her intently as she settled herself back in her seat. He noticed how rigid she sat, how every muscle in her body was on full alert. "Relax, my dear," he murmured warmly. "You have had a hard day from the sound of it," he smiled, reaching into a basket that lay under his seat.
Fluttershy knew that when she was alone with the Prince, she would never truly relax.
She watched as he pulled out a bottle of champagne and two glasses. "I think we can begin our celebration somewhat early. After all, you do deserve it," he grinned, popping the cork off the bottle and happily pouring himself a glass.
"No thank you," Fluttershy replied, as Blueblood handed her the glass. "I prefer to wait until we are at dinner."
The Prince scowled, but only momentarily. "As you wish, mademoiselle," he smiled, lifting the glass in her direction, before taking a sip of it.
Fluttershy smiled, but it was still a smile of nervousness. She wanted to have all her wits about her, especially when they were alone together in a carriage. But it was most disconcerting to watch him drink-what if he lost all of his wits? Her hooves simply tightened about her purse and she turned her eyes to gaze out the carriage window. "I must say," she began, hoping to distract him with conversation; she detested the way he eyed her. "I was surprised to see you at the opera house."
Blueblood, who was gazing at Fluttershy's skirt and imagining what her legs looked like under it, was momentarily shaken by her words. "Surprised?" he asked, taking another sip of champagne. "But you knew-"
"I meant I was surprised because I did not think you would be taking me to dinner yourself...I assumed you would be meeting me there, and your driver would take me," she explained.
Blueblood smiled, now fully understanding what she meant. "Well, that would have made excellent sense if I were having you join me for dinner at my town house...however, after your father told me that he would be unable to join us...I made new arrangements."
As if on cue, the carriage came to a stop. Fluttershy's brow furrowed as she gazed out the window at the lovely stone building with candles lit in every window. "Where are we?" she asked, turning back to the Prince.
Blueblood grinned and climbed out of the carriage after the coachcolt opened the door. He offered his hoof and helped Fluttershy down as well. "Welcome to the Château de Sugar Cube Corner," he smiled proudly. "One of my favorite restaurants in all of Maris."
Fluttershy bit her lip as she gazed up at the elegant building. She always believed that the lacy green gown that she was wearing was quite pretty, but it was nowhere near as stylish a dress for such a fancy place. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as one elegantly dressed couple exited the restaurant, the mare dressed in purple silk, fine jewels, and mink fur, eyeing her with contempt. She tried to reassure herself that at least she would not be alone in his home; surely that would lessen the scandal. However, now that they were being seen in public, who knows what sort of gossip would spread...
As far as Fluttershy was concerned, it was a lose-all situation for her.
"Ah! Monsieur Prince!" a finely dressed waiter greeted them as they entered the restaurant. "So good to see you this evening!" the waiter turned to Fluttershy and smiled down at her, although he too seemed to be judging her simple appearance.
"Pleasure as always, Horte Cuisine," Blueblood grinned. "I trust you have my table reserved and waiting?"
"But of course!" Horte Cuisine replied, happily leading them through the throng of patrons that crowded the front of the restaurant. Blueblood is used to people gazing at him, he probably expects it, Fluttershy thought. But as hard as she tried to keep her head held high, she could not conceal the blush on her cheek as she noticed several people lean in to whisper to one another, while also pointing their hooves in speculation, at her.
"Here we are!" Horte Cuisine happily announced, opening a silken curtain to reveal a small, private dining room, decorated with candles and crushed rose petals, overlooking a beautiful view of the river.
"It's beautiful," Fluttershy whispered.
Blueblood's chest seemed to swell with pride. "Thank you Horte Cuisine, I shall help mademoiselle with her seat."
The waiter bowed graciously. "I will be serving you this evening. I will bring you a bottle of our finest-"
"1854 Bordeaux," Blueblood finished.
Horte Cuisine smiled and nodded his head, before closing the silk curtains behind him.
Fluttershy whispered her thanks as he helped her with her coat and then pulled her chair out for her. It was indeed a lovely room, nothing like she had ever imagined. If only her company were different...
"They have excellent fish here," Blueblood explained as he opened his stallionsu. "Although I find the filet minion is quite excellent as well," he murmured, studying the list of entrees.
Fluttershy knew this wasn't going to be easy; both having to explain to him to stop his attempts at courting her, as well as getting through the meal. Louis, their waiter, arrived in a matter of minutes, opening the bottle of wine that Blueblood had ordered, and taking their orders. As they waited, Fluttershy listened as Blueblood went on and on about himself, talking about his estate in the south, how long it had been since he had last been there, but how he planned to spend the summer months down there, as well as visit several of his favorite casinos. Fluttershy detested gambling, but even if she attempted to show her displeasure, it wouldn't matter; he was too enamored with himself.
"I am thinking of renovating the eastern wing of my estate, it is far too old fashioned," he muttered. "Middle Eastern decor is all the rage here in Paris, I am speculating of building a mosque-like structure on the grounds...I am told that my gardens rival even the most beautiful here in the city. Perhaps I shall have a garden ball on midsummer's eve...yes, it is time I have a party at my estate, it has been far too long...or instead I could invite a few close friends to stay for a weekend; it has been quite some time since I had a hunting party, and there is a great deal of game on my land; fox, rabbit, deer...I must say, I do like that idea far more, however there is the issue of the dogs, I need some new ones, many of them are just too old. Perhaps my winnings from my casino visits can go to purchasing new ones..."
Fluttershy was so grateful when their food arrived; it meant he would have to pause now and then to chew. Had she simply been invited to be an audience to his endless tirade of himself? She was so surprised when he actually directed a question at her, that she nearly dropped her fork.
"How is your fish?" he asked politely.
Fluttershy smiled back, although it was rather forced. "Very good, thank you. A fine recomendation, monsieur."
"Blueblood," he corrected her, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "And I am glad you took my advice. I imagine that your advice is coveted by those who are fortunate enough to receive it..." he murmured. Fluttershy glanced up at him to see the gleam in his eyes; it, like his words, it held many meanings.
"Perhaps you can tell me about my opera?" he went on, taking another bite of his steak.
Fluttershy practically choked on the piece of fish that she was swallowing at his words. "I...I beg your pardon?" she asked, reaching for her water glass and taking a long swallow.
"The opera I am endorsing," he clarified, not having missed the way she reacted to his previous words. "I know very little about it, other than that the composer is a mad stallion," he smiled, before taking another sip of wine. "Please, I would like to know about it from the perspective of a rising star."
Fluttershy blushed at his words, however she frowned when he called Discord a mad stallion. "Very well," she replied. "It's a beautiful story, really...and a tragic one too," she murmured. "A stallion by the name of Don Juan falls in love with a young mare by the name Aminta."
"The part that you play," Blueblood pointed out.
Fluttershy nodded her head and continued. "Sadly, Don Juan was horribly disfigured in a fire-"
"I thought Don Juan was a great lover, like Casanova?" Blueblood interrupted.
Fluttershy ignored his rudeness. "In this opera, little is mentionned of his past. It is eluded that he had many conquests before his accident, but the focus of the story is on his love for Aminta."
"Ah, the tragic love story that is most opera," Blueblood muttered, taking another long sip from his wine glass, before taking the bottle and pouring himself some more.
Fluttershy frowned at his actions, but continued. "Aminta is a country mare who does not find Don Juan frightening...she is fascinated by him, as well as moved with pity for how cruel the world has treated him."
Blueblood cocked one eyebrow at this. "A country mare? How appropriate that you were cast for the role..."
She ignored him and continued. "The devil tricks Don Juan into selling his soul, promising that he will make Don Juan hoofsome once more to win Aminta's heart...but only when Don Juan looks through a particular mirror, does he see how he once looked; to the rest of the world he is...he is-"
"A monster," Blueblood finished for her.
"No, not a monster!" Fluttershy snapped, surprising them both. Blueblood stared at her with question, but Fluttershy adverted her eyes and went on. "Aminta loves Don Juan regardless. But...but there is a horrible mistake..."
Blueblood cocked another golden brow at this. "Mistake? Go on..."
"There is a young stallion who is infatuated with Aminta...and...and Don Juan sees him with her and believes they are lovers, which is false for she loves Don Juan alone."
Blueblood's brow furrowed at this.
"Don Juan seeks out the devil and pleads for the power to overthrow his enemies. Don Juan plots to kill both Aminta and the young stallion he believes to be her lover, and lures the unsuspecting Aminta to his home, where he seduces her with promises of unending pleasure and love..."
Blueblood watched as Fluttershy became more and more impassioned with her tale. Her eyes even seemed to be shimmering with unshed tears...
"But all is made well," Fluttershy sighed, taking in a deep breath. "Don Juan realizes that he can not kill his beloved, and Aminta explains everything. With the help of her love, Don Juan is redeemed and wins back his soul. And...the opera ends with the two of them sharing a beautiful love song..." her voice trailed off into a whisper, and she gasped as she felt the tears that had been swelling beneath her lashes finally find release.
Blueblood silently hoofed her his hoofkerchief, his hooves lightly tapping against his lips as he gazed at her. "Strange," he murmured to himself. "That sounds like a completely different opera..."
Fluttershy looked up at him, seeing the speculation in his eyes. Why did she do that? She inwardly cursed herself for momentarily losing her senses; perhaps it was the wine? She groaned, knowing that it didn't matter how much she drank at dinner, it was no excuse for losing herself in the story of Don Juan and Aminta...the story she and Discord had composed and revised together.
"Now, granted I have not seen every single scene being rehearsed, nor have I read the entire score...but from what I have seen, and what I have read, I recall Aminta having tricked Don Juan, having run away with this young hoofsome lover of hers, and Don Juan succeeding in killing them both...before killing himself, of course," he quickly summarized.
Fluttershy felt like such a fool, and she despised how the Prince, who sat there pretending he knew nothing about the opera, had instead lied and been testing her. "If I had written it," Fluttershy muttered, "that would have been how I would have ended it."
Blueblood could not help but chuckle. "Ah, Fluttershy is a romantic, I see," he grinned. "An interesting idea, I must say...an opera with a happy ending-is that truly opera then?" He continued to chuckle as he took another sip of his wine.
Fluttershy was fuming, but instead of losing her temper, or simply allowing him to laugh at her, she lifted her chin and returned his smile with one of her own. "Happy for everyone but the young stallion," she explained.
Blueblood lifted his brows at this. "I beg your pardon?"
Now she grinned, although there was something cold in her smile. "You said how interesting it was, to have an opera with a happy ending. I was merely clarifying that it was a happy ending for everypony but the young stallion mistaken for Aminta's lover."
The amusement in Blueblood's eyes vanished. "Meaning?"
Fluttershy took her own wine glass and lifted it to her lips for a sip. "In my version, monsieur...the young stallion is the villain. And in all gothic rostallionces, the villain dies."
The evening quickly came to a close after Fluttershy's final comment on Don Juan. The meal was finished in silence, and now they were both in his carriage once more, being taken to the guest apartstallionst that she and her father presently occupied.
Little was said in the carriage. Fluttershy knew that she still needed to tell the Prince that she would not see him further after this evening. In a few days, she and her father would leave the apartment he kept, and find a place of their own. The sooner the better, she thought to herself. Perhaps Madam Luna could help them? She hated falling back on the ballet mistress, feeling as if she were using her, but Fluttershy knew that the most important thing at this moment was to separate herself as best as she could from the Prince.
"You never told me how you escaped..." Blueblood whispered into the shadows of the carriage. Fluttershy was startled by his question, and practically jumped. He looked very strange...sinister even. There was something in the depths of his eyes that gave her cause to tremble. "I am curious, as I know others are," he repeated. "How did you escape the Phantom's lair?"
Fluttershy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat, not exactly sure how to respond. It was still strange to her that he knew about her staying with Discord. Well, no one truly knew it the way she did, and perhaps it was for the best. Better that they fear the Phantom than know of Discord's tenderness.
"I...I was kept in a cage," she murmured, remembering the costume cages she had originally been locked in. "And...one evening, after giving me my meal...he had not locked the door properly...and I managed to escape."
She was lying. Not only was her story unconvincing, but her very mannerisms betrayed her. However he chose to not press the matter further, at least not at the moment.
The carriage slowed, and the coachcolt quickly climbed down to open the door. Blueblood exited first, helping Fluttershy out, and walking with her to the door.
It was now or never.
"Thank you for joining me this evening," he elegantly bowed, before taking one of her hoofs in his and bringing it to his lips.
Fluttershy, however, quickly withdrew her hoof, and Blueblood found his lips caressing the air instead. He looked up at Fluttershy, his eyes narrowed with confusion. Fluttershy took a deep breath, as well as a step back. "Monsieur, I thank you for all that you have done for my father and I..."
"It was a pleasure," he replied, taking a step towards her.
Fluttershy took another step back. "I fully intend to repay every last bit of money that you spent on our welfare..." There was a strange look in his eyes, one that she could not describe, nor did she wish to dwell upon.
He continued stalking forward. "I told you Fluttershy, that is not necessary, in fact, if you attempt to pay me, I shall refuse it."
Fluttershy's last step brought her back against a stone column near the doors of the building. "You have been most charitable," she practically squeaked. "And...and for aiding my father, I thank you very much-"
"Blueblood, Fluttershy..." his voice was a deep whisper, and he was leaning towards her. "My name is Blueblood...say my name-"
"Blueblood please!" Fluttershy's hoofs were on his chest and she was pushing him away. He had been too close, his body closing in, his lips descending to hers. Crying out his name and pushing him with all the force she could, had momentarily broken the spell that he had been under, and he stumbled backwards, just catching his balance, his cheeks flushed with obvious embarrassment.
"I...I'm sorry," Fluttershy sighed. "But...this must end, tonight...now."
Blueblood stared at her, confusion mixed with irritation, clearly written across his face. "End? What must end Fluttershy? What are you referring to exactly?"
Fluttershy swallowed another nervous lump and lifted her chin. "Any girl would be flattered to be in my place," she sighed. "You're hoofsome, you're charming, you have high social connections, and of course, you're very rich. But...such attentions should be placed on a mare who...who is worthy of taking your arm and entering such fine places as the Château de Suger Cube Corner."
Truth masked as flattery. By enlarging his ego, she hoped she could convince him to leave her be.
Sadly, her words seemed to have had the wrong effect.
Blueblood had been staring at her with wide eyes as he listened to his words; for the briefest moment, Fluttershy saw something wild and dangerous in their green depths. However, it had been fleeting, and the harsh set in his jaw relaxed, replaced by a perfect hoofsome smile.
"Oh my dear Fluttershy," he murmured, reaching out and taking her hoof in his. "What must I do to prove that you are worthy of such attention?"
Fluttershy gasped and felt the color drain from her face. "No, Blueblood, you don't understand, I-"
"Hush," he whispered, as one of his hooves touched her lips. "There shall be no more talk on this tonight. You are sweet girl, Fluttershy Time Turner, always thinking of others," he smiled, and before she could remove her hoof, planted a soft kiss upon her knuckles. "It may take some time to convince you, but I am more than willing to help you see that you are worthy of being seen on my arm."
Fluttershy couldn't believe what she was hearing. The arrogance of the stallion! She sadly recalled their dinner conversation and remembered how it was entirely about him, until they reached the subject of the opera. Oh to be condemned to a life of having to feed his ego every few seconds! Of having to fill his ears with praises, even at the cost of ridiculing herself!
Was it possible for hell to be much worse?
"Goodnight, monsieur," Fluttershy snapped, grabbing her skirts and turning on her heel, leaving him to stare after her retreating figure as she slammed the door to the building in his face.
Blueblood was momentarily stunned by her actions. He couldn't possibly understand what had upset her? "Most likely she is embarrassed by her feelings of self doubt," he reasoned with himself. After all, that was what had to have been bothering her...right?
Upstairs, Fluttershy burst into the apartment, throwing her coat onto the floor, not caring about anything at the moment, just wanting to retreat to her room where she could be alone with her thoughts.
"Fluttershy?" her father heard her enter and rushed into the parlor. "Are you alright? He didn't do anything he shouldn't have done, did he?"
"No Papa, he was a perfect gentlecolt," she muttered with disgust. "Most of the time." Her father opened his mouth to ask her more questions, but Fluttershy lifted her hoof to indicate that now was not the time. She brushed passed him and went into her room, shutting the door and letting out a frustrated sigh. "Of all the stupid messes I've ever gotten myself into," she groaned. Getting rid of the Prince was going to be more of a chore than she had intended.
A brush of cold wind blew through Fluttershy's hair. Her eyes snapped open and she stared at the open window at the other end of the room. "Oh no..." she gasped. "No...please, please no..." She flew to the window, her hooves gripping the sill as she looked wildly about.
Nothing. Just like the night she thought she saw him standing on the ledge and looking in.
Fluttershy bit her lip and turned to face the room. Had he been there? She would never forgive herself if she had missed him being there. Last night had felt like a dream, but she was so sure that he had been in her room...had he come back?
Then her heart froze as a new horror dawned upon her.
Did he see her with Blueblood?
As if to answer her question, Fluttershy's eyes were drawn to something that lay upon her bed. Silent, cold tears dripped down her cheeks as she gazed upon a single red rose, with a small note attached by a black piece of string.
With trembling hooves, she reached for the rose, and carefully, so as not to damage its petals, she untied the note.
The words cut into her heart more than a thousand knives.
"I gave you my music...made your song take wing...and now, how you've repaid me: denied me and betrayed me..."
Fluttershy's tears were already blotting out the remainder of the words. "No...no, not when I just got him back..." she wailed, before crumpling the note in her palm. She rushed to the window and threw her head out into the night. "DISCORD!" she screamed. "DISCORD, PLEASE!"
Her anguished cries fell on deaf ears, at least on the deaf ears of her intended.
Fluttershy crumpled to the ground, her body trembling from her sobs. She couldn't believe this was happening to her, all over again.
Her worst nightmare was coming true; the tragic tale of Don Juan Triumphant was coming to life.
From a safe distance, Derpy watched as her master descended the building he had mysteriously disappeared into for several hours. She had followed the Master that evening, curious to see what it was that was driving him into the cold night air. She had watched the Master leave several nights ago and then once more last night. Tonight, she decided to follow.
Derpy had been distant from the others ever since Fluttershy had left. She had never realized how dark and dismal that place was until Fluttershy left them. She had hoped she would return, but she chose to remain in the world above...although there were some moments she swore she could hear Fluttershy singing.
Things had gone from bad to worse. The Master rarely spoke to them, although in the brief moments she did see the Master, he did not look as unhappy has he had been. Yet that did not improve the emotions of the others; Rarity never smiled, Shortround always frowned while praying, and Rainbow Dash...well, Rainbow Dash seemed more miserable than ever before. As for herself...Derpy had lost all interest in reading ever since she made the discovery about her favorite story.
She sighed and watched as the Master clung to the shadows and began his journey back to the opera house. Whatever had driven the Master out into the cold had not had the happy effect that Derpy had speculated. She could tell by the way the Master moved that he was upset. Best not to reveal herself, Derpy silently thought. She too would cling to the shadows and follow the Master home-
But something caught the hunchback's attention; something in the water of the river...
A reflection.
Derpy glanced up at the object that had been reflected, and he felt his breath escape his lungs at the awesome sight.
Notre Mane Cathedral.
"The p-p-place the h-hunchback lived," she softly breathed to herself. In all her life, she had never thought she would see the place where her story had been set...but there it was, standing proud and tall, its ancient stone filled with stories, and its bells beckoning for her to come closer.
"It's true..." she whispered. "I k-k-know the s-s-story is true..."
Forgetting all about the Master, Derpy turned in the direction of the majestic cathedral, hope flaring in her heart once more. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Resolve | Resolve
Time Turner gasped with shock as his daughter burst into the bedroom, the bang from the door echoing throughout the apartment. "Fluttershy?" he murmured, sitting up in bed and looking to his daughter for answers, but she gave none, she simply marched over his window and threw open the curtains.
It was barely dawn.
"Fluttershy, what is going on? Are you all right? Answer me, please!"
She finally turned to her father, a determined look upon her face. "I must go. I just wanted to let you know should you awake and not find me here."
Her father was still rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "G-go? What are you talking about? Go where?"
"The opera house," she simply replied, before turning and leaving the room.
Time Turner stared after his daughter with puzzlement. He had never seen her in such a state. She looked as if she were ready to go into battle and face a great foe, like Goliath. He quickly got out of bed and began to dress at once. As soon as he had pulled his shoes on, he exited the room to find Fluttershy by the door, buttoning her coat.
"What is this all about?" he asked, his tone both worrisome as well as sleepy.
Cherry Jubilee suddenly appeared, a shawl wrapped tightly around her nightgown. "Monsieur? Mademoiselle? Is something wrong?"
"Everything is fine Cherry Jubilee," Fluttershy softly explained to the pretty maid. "And I really must be going, I can not waste any more time," she explained to her father, turning to leave, but Time Turner caught her arm and whirled her around to face him once more.
"Fluttershy, so help me, you will answer my questions!" he nearly shouted. "The sun has barely risen, what do you mean, having to go the opera house?" He paused and softened his voice. "Is this...is this about last night?"
Fluttershy was looking down at her feet. At her father's question she glanced up at him and then briefly at the maid who was practically leaning in to hear every last word.
Her father quickly understood. "Thank you Cherry Jubilee, you may go back to bed."
The pretty redhead jumped as she realized she had been caught and was being dismissed. She gave a small curtsy and then quickly turned and left the two of them in peace.
"Now," he sighed, turning to face his daughter once more. "Will you please explain what is going on?"
Fluttershy groaned and then threw her hooves up in the air out of exasperation. "Oh Papa, everything went wrong!" she wailed, collapsing onto one of the couches in the parlor and burying her face in her hooves.
Time Turner's face paled with concern. "But I thought you said he didn't..." his stomach churned at the horrible idea. "He didn't touch you, did he?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "No, no, other than kissing my hoof and helping me out of the carriage, he did nothing of the sort...but...I'm such a fool," she whispered, her voice dripping with self-hatred. "I felt so sure with what I was doing; I thought that I could explain to him to stop his attempts..." her voice trailed off and she slumped further on the couch.
Time Turner bit his lip and tenderly rubbed his daughter's shoulders. "I shouldn't have let you go in the first place. As your father, I should have spoken with him, it was my responsibility, and I encouraged him-"
"No, Papa," she sighed. "It wouldn't have mattered. I see that now only the plainest, and bluntest language, will work to convince him."
Her father's face softened with sympathy. "What did you say to him exactly?"
Fluttershy groaned as the memories came back. "I thought that by inflating his already over-sized ego, I could successfully convince him that I was a waste of his time. I told him that I was wrong for him, that a pony of his station should place all his attentions on a mare who is worthy to be seen and interact in his stylish aristocratic world."
A small smile appeared on her father's lips. "Oh Fluttershy, but you are worthy. In truth, it is people like him who are unworthy to be seen with you."
Fluttershy couldn't help but smile softly at her father's compliment. "Thank you, Papa," she whispered. "But it was all in vain. My plan backfired; instead of bruising his arrogance by attempting to show him that I was an embarrassment to his title, he tried to 'ease my worries' by telling me that I was worthy enough to seen with him, and then he complimented me on always thinking of others, more or less 'forgiving me' for being of inferior birth."
Time Turner sighed and wrapped his arms around his daughter's shoulders. "Oh my dear," he whispered into her hair. "I truly do not know what it was that I saw in him. I was blinded by his charm and manners, but I see now that he would have made a very poor son-in-law."
Fluttershy couldn't help but chuckle at his words.
"But what does this have to do with you traveling to the opera house so early?"
Fluttershy bit her lip. How did one explain that the stallion, who the rest of the world saw as villainous, was the stallion that had captured her heart? "I...I can't explain that right now," she murmured, "but I will...soon...but right now I must go, for I have already wasted more time than I should!"
Time Turner watched with confusion as his daughter rose from the couch. "Wait!" he called after her, grabbing his own coat and hurrying out the door after her. "I may not know what has gotten into you this morning, or what exactly is going on, but I will not allow you travel alone!"
Fluttershy said nothing; she obediently waited for her father to catch up, but walked very briskly down the wet cobble-stoned streets. She was so exhausted after last night, that she cried herself to sleep after reading Discord's hateful note. Had she not fallen asleep, she would have stormed the opera house walls until she found him.
Hopefully there was still time to do that this morning.
She hastened her steps as her mind reeled with questions. Why didn't she consider the possibility of him seeing her leave the opera house with the Prince? After all, everyone else saw it. Oh what the gossip would be like that day...
"Hang the gossip," she muttered to herself. The only thing that mattered was putting things right with Discord. "He loves me...I know he does!" It had to be true, she felt so sure of it! Somepony who did not have love in their heart for another would not have bothered to leave such a note. She knew now that his reasons for sending her away in the first place had to do with her father, there could be no other answer. And while his words were vile and filled with such hatred...she knew deep within her heart that they were not true.
"No more lies, no more pretenses," Fluttershy softly vowed. She would demand the truth as well as tell it. She shuttered to think how horrible it must have looked if he had seen her with Blueblood on the front steps outside the apartment. She had only just stopped him from kissing her! Of all the stupid ideas! She would make it quite plain the next time she saw the Prince that she was not a candidate to be one of his paramours.
"Don't know what good this will do," her father grumbled as he hurried to keep up with her. "The opera house will surely be locked up."
"The stagehooves will be there," Fluttershy answered back. "And Madame Luna always arrives before dawn."
Her father muttered something, but it was inaudible. Fluttershy glanced over her shoulder at the red-faced stallion who was desperately trying to keep up. "No more lies," she whispered once more to herself. Fluttershy made a solemn vow that before the day was over...she would reveal everything at last to her father. She owed him that much.
The faintest of the sun's rays wove through the cracks in the cavern ceiling just over the lagoon. Discord, standing straight and tall, his black cloak wrapped tightly around his broad shoulders, watched as the rays gently played across the water.
What a fool he had been.
He had no one to blame but himself, he knew that deep down, yet still...of all the ponies in this world...and after she knew the sort of creature he was!
He closed his eyes, feeling his jaw tighten at the memories of watching her leave the opera house on his arm. It couldn't be true! He watched from the roof as she was escorted into the Prince's carriage, before flying to the cellars to retrieve his own black carriage to silently follow. He saw them disappear into an elegant restaurant, and he waited several hours at the end of the street until he saw them once more emerge. He began following them again, until it was clear to him where they were going. He left the carriage a few streets away, before continuing his journey on foot, traveling through the shadows and climbing buildings, until he reached the rooftop of the building at which they stood before.
He remembered cracking the stone pony with his own claw as he saw the Prince advance upon her. And then, to his great horror, he watched as the stallion bent his head to Fluttershy's beautiful face...
He could not bear to see more.
Pure fire ran through his veins. He descended through the window into her bedchamber, placing the red rose he had brought, upon her pillow. He had originally planned to come to her again that night, but to stay...to stay until she realized that she wasn't dreaming, and to fall to his knees and beg for her forgiveness for how he had treated her before.
But it was too late.
His romantic gestures had not been enough to heal the wounds on her heart by his horrific words, and could he blame her? She probably assumed he was toying with her, purposefully confusing her, telling her to leave when in truth...he wanted her more than ever before.
He had driven her into the arms of his greatest enemy.
In a moment of heartbreak and anger, he wrote her the letter and tied it to the rose. He wanted her to feel his pain, for her to know the betrayal that he felt.
It was only later, after he abandoned her room and arrived at the opera house, that he realized it was truly his own fault. He returned the horses and hid the carriage, before descending to his lair. Lord help him, how was he going to get through another day of those blasted rehearsals? What was once his pride and joy had now become something he loathed more than anything; how he despised this opera.
It was pure torture, hearing her beautiful angelic voice reverberate throughout the whole opera house, being so close to her, and yet not being able to reach out and touch her. And now this on top of everything else; oh how wished for death to free him.
"Master?"
Discord turned his head to the sound of the small voice that came from the entrance to the lagoon's cavern. Rarity stood there, a shawl wrapped tightly about her body, her face etched with worry.
"I wish to be alone now," he softly commanded.
"I understand that Master, but...please, this is of great importance."
He glanced at her once more and saw how deeply distressed she looked. His heart, which he thought had turned to stone after enduring what he saw the previous night, melted at the sight of the tiny mare who had truly been the closest thing to a mother in his life. He sighed and softly approached her, lowering himself until his eyes were level with hers. "What troubles you Rarity?"
"It's Derpy...I...I haven't seen her since yesterday and I have this...this terrible worry..." she choked back a sob that threatened to escape her throat. "I fear for her life!"
Discord reached out and took one of Rarity's hooves in his paw. "I'm sure she is fine," he reassured. "She is most likely in one of the far northern caverns, keeping to herself. She seems to be doing that more lately," he softly added.
Rarity's brow furrowed. "You're a one to talk," she muttered.
Discord ignored her comment. "Do not worry yourself Rarity; she will reveal herself when she is ready."
But the tiny mare could not be consoled. "No Master, this is different from those other times!" she wailed. "I...I don't know how to describe it, but...I feel something deep in my bones! Something is not right, something..." she bit her lip to keep herself from going into hysterics. "I fear for her life!"
Discord's brow furrowed at her words. "Her life? You believe her to be in danger?"
She nodded her head. "Ever since..." she glanced up at Discord and saw the way his jaw clenched. He knew exactly what she was thinking. "Ever since...she left...Derpy has retreated into complete solitude. She doesn't read anymore, she barely touches her food, and there are many mornings when I awake to see that she has not slept in her bed. But...but this is different from those other times. She...she recently learned that...that I had been lying about her favorite story..."
Discord arched a brow at this. "The Hunchback of Notre Mane?"
Rarity sadly nodded her head. "She hasn't spoken to me since. I had hoped that Shortround...or even Rainbow Dash, could perhaps talk to her, but they have not had any success either...and they are preoccupied with their own problems," she whispered.
Discord softly cursed to himself. He had been blind to all that was going on around him-mainly because he chose to be so. His own selfishness had kept him from seeing the distress of those he had sworn to protect, and now, something could seriously be wrong. He wanted to convince Rarity that Derpy was fine, but even he was having serious doubts.
"Find Shortround and Rainbow Dash and have them begin searching the southern and western corners of the labyrinth. You take the eastern tunnels, and I will search the northern caverns, as well as the catacombs."
Rarity let out a sigh of relief and squeezed Discord's paw tightly. "Thank you Master, thank you so much!"
"Do not thank me until we find her," he muttered, but he gave the tiny mare a reassuring smile, before squeezing her hoof in return.
Rarity quickly scurried away to find the others to help them in her search. Discord glanced one last time at the lagoon before turning to leave himself. The opera would have to wait; besides, he welcomed a distraction from it.
"Damn it!" Fluttershy cursed as her attempts with opening the hidden door behind the mirror in her dressing room failed once more. There had to be a trigger somewhere! Surely if Discord used the mirror to get to the dressing room, there had to be some way to go back as well.
Her hooves were red, raw, and blistered from all the pulling and prying. She refused to cry, but the frustration was so great that it took every nerve to not let any tears be shed. She gazed at the mirror with both longing and irritation. "Perhaps if I break the glass..." she whispered to herself. Her eyes narrowed at the idea; surely that would be too easy? If anyone broke the glass, then they would be able to get through...but it was the only option she had left.
Upon first arriving at the opera house, Fluttershy went immediately into the auditorium, going directly to the trap door that was backstage, the same door that she took so many months ago that led her to the Phantom's lair.
It was bolted shut.
A stagehoof, who saw her trying to force the door open, stopped her. "Won't do no good," he muttered. "And a pretty thing like you don't want to go down there, believe me."
She ignored the stallion's words, but stood up to face him, wiping the sweat from her brow. "This used to be open before, why can't it open now?"
The stagehoof shrugged. "S'pose the Phantom had his fill of trespassers," he mumbled. "Been bolted for weeks now, all the secret doors," he waved his hoof around the auditorium. "Just as well if you ask me; only askin' for trouble if you go down there."
All the passages were bolted.
It made no sense. Surely Discord continued to freely travel throughout the opera house-perhaps there were passages that the stagehooves didn't know about? She tried to remember all that Discord had shown her in the time she was with him. Sadly, she knew all those secret doorways from the other side; she would have no idea where to begin looking for them now. The only door she could think that the stagehooves didn't know about was the mirror in her dressing room. It had to be a door, she was sure of it! She felt his presence so clearly through it, and what other reason could explain the sudden appearance of all those roses? So without a second thought, she fled to her dressing room, eager to tear open the mirror and find her masked love.
But the project had been harder than she had anticipated.
Fluttershy pushed back several damp waves that had fallen across her forehead, a weary, but determined sigh escaping her lips. So help her, she was going to find him and put everything to right!
With a deep breath, she picked up the wooden cushioned stool that sat by the dressing table, prepared to fling the piece of furniture at the mirror with all her might. "I'd rather have seven years of bad luck than a life without Discord," she hissed to the air. With one last breath, she gave out a battle cry, charging at the mirror with the stool-
"FLUTTERSHY!"
The sound of her name being squealed startled her so, that Fluttershy lost her balance and tumbled forward, going directly over the stool.
"Oh! Oh Fluttershy, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you!"
Fluttershy groaned with embarrassment, frustration, and a little pain, as she pushed the cursed stool away from her. She glanced up to see Twilight Sparkle rushing towards her to help her stand. "Are you alright? Oh I pray nothing is broken or sprained...good God Fluttershy, what were you doing?"
Fluttershy forced a smile upon her lips and winced slightly as Twilight helped her stand, her knees feeling the worse for wear. "Rehearsing," she mumbled. "A scene from Act II."
Twilight seemed satisfied with this answer and pressed nothing further. However, the eager expression on her pretty face caused Fluttershy to tremble with slight worry. She had a bad feeling about this...
"Well?" Twilight giggled, her eyes bright with anticipation.
Fluttershy tried to smile back, but she was so confused. "Well...?"
Twilight rolled her eyes but let out another giggle. "Oh don't be modest Fluttershy, we all know!"
Fluttershy felt the color drain from her face. "K-k-know what?"
Twilight groaned, but reached out to grab Fluttershy's hoof. "ABOUT YOUR ENGAGEMENT OF COURSE!"
Fluttershy thought her heart would stop beating. She couldn't believe what she was hearing! However, before she could begin to question Twilight on where she had learned this news, a mass of giggles erupted from the hallway, and over a dozen dance mares scrambled inside the dressing room, each grinning and giggling and demanding to see Fluttershy's engagement Bracelet.
"Knew the Prince liked you...saw how he looked at you ever since the day you came here!" one mare practically shouted.
"I'm so jealous! What is your secret Fluttershy? How can I land a rich husband?"
"Never thought the Prince would settle down, but then you go and snatch him up! How did you do it Fluttershy?"
Her head was spinning with all the questions and the giggling faces that surrounded her. This couldn't be happening...of all the misunderstandings in the entire world...
"MARES!"
Madame Luna's bark echoed off the dressing room walls. All smiles disappeared as a deadly silence filled the room.
The dance mistress stood in the doorway, her scowl darker than the black gown that she wore. "You should be on stage rehearsing!" she hissed. "You dance for one of the most prestigious dance companies in the whole world! And here you are, acting like insolent fillies who are unworthy to dance on that stage!" She moved away from the door and pointed one long finger in the direction of the stage. "Everypony leave at once and begin practice immediately!"
Without another word or glance, the mares quickly filed out of the dressing room in the direction Madame Luna was pointing. Twilight bit her lip and whispered "sorry" to Fluttershy, before hurrying out with the others. "Sorry Mama," she murmured as she past her mother. Madame Luna said nothing; her eyes were now focused entirely on the pretty pink haired mare.
Fluttershy felt like a bug being examined in a jar under Madame Luna's scrupulous gaze. She was still trembling with shock at the news she had just received from the dance. Engagement! She couldn't believe her misfortune.
"I suppose I should congratulate you," Madame Luna muttered. "Although you must forgive me if I struggle with doing so; after all, he is not a stallion worthy of you, but I suppose a hoofsome face, a great estate, and a hefty allowance make up for everything else-"
"I'm not engaged!" Fluttershy practically shrieked with anguish. "I...I don't know where you heard this from but...but it's not true!" She crumpled to the floor, exhausted and upset, the tears that she refused to shed earlier now flowing freely.
The dance mistress continued to keep her calm cool manner, but a great weight was lifted off her shoulders at Fluttershy's declaration. "But...we all saw you leave with him; you took his arm and left in his carriage. Also, it is very well known, not just here, but throughout Maris, that you are staying in his guest apartment. With all the gossip that has been traveling around, an engagement can only be assumed; in some ways it puts you in a better light than before..."
Fluttershy wiped her eyes and looked up at Madame Luna with confusion. "Better light? What...what do you mean?"
Madame Luna sighed and reached out to help Fluttershy to her feet. "Come now Fluttershy...a mare of your station? An actress? Staying in a place that all society knows belongs to the Prince? What do you think people were thinking?"
She always knew that her association with Blueblood would hurt her more than help her...but she had assumed that the rumors would stay at the opera house and amongst the company...she never thought that they would spread further. But after last night, appearing with him at the restaurant, and leaving with him in his carriage...
"I can't believe how stupid I've become," Fluttershy groaned. "I always thought myself a good judge of character, and a person of sense...I...I thought that such rumors would be squashed since I was with my father, or...or...oh God above, help me," she sighed, her face falling upon Madame Luna's shoulder, her arms wrapping around the dance mistress as new tears sprang forth.
Madame Luna sighed and hugged Fluttershy back, whispering soothing words into her dark hair. "So he did not propose to you?" she asked, lifting Fluttershy's face and gazing into her eyes.
Fluttershy shook her head. "If he had, I'm sure he's the sort of person who would tell every last newspaper in all of France, paying them to put the story on the front page."
"Yes, you are right about that," Madame Luna murmured. "But...but Twilight said she saw you wearing a bracelet?"
Fluttershy's eyes widened with shock.
The bracelet Discord had given to her.
She remembered how Twilight demanded to look at her hoof when she burst into the room, quickly followed by several of dance mares all wanting a peak. Fluttershy had only worn it briefly the day before, after she came into the dressing room and tried for the first time to get through the mirror. But later, when she returned for rehearsals, she hid the Bracelet once more in her pocket and had not worn it since. She didn't think anyone had seen her wear it, she was sure of it!
Celestia.
Fluttershy let out a shaky breath as she remembered Celestia being with her at the time she was wearing it. And then she remembered Celestia's eyes, which were already glimmering with hatred, falling upon her hooves.
Celestia had seen the bracelet and must have started the rumors. And her leaving with Blueblood only added fuel to the prima donna's vengeful fire.
"Madame Luna, I need your help," Fluttershy whispered. "The only reason I left with Blueblood was because my father promised at the time, that I would have dinner with him. But my father now realizes that the Prince is not the sort of pony one can trust, and further, I tried to tell him that I could not be seen with him anymore, but...it didn't work..." she mumbled, remembering the disaster that was the night before.
Madame Luna's eyes narrowed at Fluttershy's words. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"Oh no!" Fluttershy quickly reassured. "But...I realize now that I will have to be extremely blunt when I next see him...and I know that when that time comes, my father and I can not be at that apartment. Please...can you help us find another place to stay?"
Madame Luna's eyes softened at the young mare's request. "Of course...and you know that you and your father are welcome to stay with Twilight and myself if need be?"
Fluttershy nodded her head, although she hated being a burden to the mare. "Thank you," she whispered. "And the sooner, the better."
Madame Luna nodded her head. "Start packing your things tonight. Tomorrow you can stay with us, and then we will go about finding you both your own place."
Fluttershy let out a great sigh of relief. Being away from Blueblood made her feel so much better; but there was still the matter of telling Discord the truth.
"Madame Luna...I...I know that...that you have connections with..." her eyes glanced towards the mirror, and Madame Luna's gaze quickly followed.
The dance mistress stiffened at Fluttershy's words, but softly nodded her head. After all, she had revealed to Fluttershy on that snowy night not so long ago that she was Discord's liaison with the outside world.
"Tell me how I can get down there, to his realm, please! I must speak with him, it's of urgent importance!"
Madame Luna was entirely caught off guard by Fluttershy's words. "S-s-speak to him?" she stammered, her calm collective appearance momentarily shaken.
Fluttershy nodded her head. "Yes, there's been a terrible misunderstanding, and I need to tell him the truth. Especially now with...with this horrid news circulating." What she wouldn't give to throw her hoof into Celestia's over-made face. "I've been trying for the last hour to get through the mirror, I know it's a door! But I can't find the mechanism to open it...please...do you know a way inside?"
Madame Luna couldn't believe what she was hearing. Somepony actually wanting to get into the Phantom's lair and find the Phantom himself! "Fluttershy...why...why would you..." she shook her head, so many different things running through her mind. "Fluttershy, he kidnapped your father! And he took you prisoner! I...I thought you despised him!" Had she been wrong? She knew Discord claimed to be in love with the mare...but was it possible that Fluttershy loved him as well?
Fluttershy took a deep breath and looked directly into the mare's eyes. "I did once...twice actually," she whispered, recalling what she first thought of him when he took her prisoner, as well as when he told her to leave. "But...in my heart, I...I feel, no, I know that he loves me...still, and...and I still love him."
Madame Luna's pale face only grew whiter at the words. In all her life, she never thought it was possible; Discord felt love, pure, selfless love for another mare. And perhaps even more miraculous was that someone else loved him just as fiercely.
"You and Discord...you...you..."
"Yes," Fluttershy whispered, nodding her head without shame or hesitation.
Madame Luna swallowed the lump in her throat and blinked back the tears she could feel stinging her eyes. "You love him?" she asked, her voice filled with surprise.
"Very much," Fluttershy whispered with great sincerity.
"But...but he is so much older..."
Fluttershy smiled softly. "He is practically 20 years older than me, but I would not label a pony of 38 as 'old'. Besides, I am nearly 21...in society's eyes I'm an old maid; not exactly a green mare from the schoolroom."
"Fine, but...but he..." Madame Luna hated herself for doing this. "His face my dear...have you seen it?"
Fluttershy locked her eyes with the dance mistress before nodding her head. "His face holds no horror for me. I will always see him as hoofsome, no matter what the world sees."
Madame Luna was in complete awe. "I never thought I would live to know a day where...where Discord felt love, as well as receive it."
Fluttershy grinned and blinked back the happy tears that shimmered in her eyes. "Nor I," she grinned. "I love him Madame Luna, I love him and he loves me, I just know it, I feel it!"
Madame Luna's brow furrowed at Fluttershy's words. "Has Discord not told you of his feelings?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "No, I mean...yes, he has told me that he loves me, but..." she closed her eyes and groaned sadly. "Before he released me, he...he told me that it had all been pretense, that he was only using me for his own carnal desires."
Madame Luna stiffened at the mare's words. "Did he hurt you?" she whispered.
"Oh no!" Fluttershy defended. "No, I...it made no sense, what he was saying. Because when we..." she blushed deeply and saw the knowing look in the dance mistress' eyes. "He was always gentle...and he took great care when he held me in his arms," she closed her eyes briefly at the beautiful memories. "And he would tell, as well as show, how deeply he loved me," she whispered. "But then, one night, he told me he was finished with me, that he no longer desired my 'services', and then..." she turned away from Madame Luna and wrapped her arms tightly around herself. "And then he told me that he knew where my father was being kept, that he had known all along-"
"That's not true!"
Fluttershy turned her head to look at the dance mistress, her eyes filled with confusion as well as growing hope. "W-w-what?"
Madame Luna reached out and took one of Fluttershy's hooves in hers. "That night, the night you were released from Discord's imprisonment, the night you came to me...was the same night he learned about where your father was."
Fluttershy's eyes widened with shock. "But...but...how do you-"
"I told him," she whispered. "He had sent Rainbow Dash in search of your father's whereabouts, and she and I crossed paths. I helped Rainbow Dash back to the opera house, and revealed the news to Discord," she looked down at her feet and felt a sudden wash of shame come over her. "I...I learned that night that Discord was keeping you with him. Why else would he send someone in search of your father? I confronted him, telling him that it wasn't right, keeping you there, believing that he...that he was being selfish, that he was keeping you as one keeps a caged bird, locked in a cage and being fed to sing for his pleasure. But I never knew that you both...that you both had grown such an attachment to one another..."
Fluttershy couldn't believe what she was hearing. She remembered how there was that tiny voice inside her that never truly believed the harsh words that he said, which told her constantly it was all a lie. "He said those things...to make me leave, so that I could find my father, and help him," she whispered with realization. A part of her always suspected it...but now she knew.
Madame Luna nodded her head. "I believe you are right," she smiled softly, but then a frown clouded her face. "But I have not spoken to him since that night. He will not see me; he will not have anything to do with me, or the outside world. Ever since the night you left, many of his passages have been-"
"Bolted, I know," Fluttershy murmured. "And the mirror?" she asked, hope flaring in her heart.
Madame Luna shook her head. "Discord doesn't think I know this, but yes, it is a door...but sadly, I do not know how it works. I would not be surprised if it can only be opened one way, from the inside. Many of his secret doors are like that," she explained.
"No," Fluttershy whispered, a fierce fire of determination rising within her. "I have felt his presence with me in this room. And just yesterday, I came in here and there were all these roses...I know there must be a way inside!" she looked down at the stool and quickly picked it up. "Perhaps by breaking the glass-"
Madame Luna's hooves took hold of the stool. "You shatter the glass, you find nothing but the wall itself. It is not the mirror, it is what's behind the mirror. The mirror is not the door; it is the cover of the door. It's complicated, I know, but...trust me on this. If you truly wish to get a message to him, but fear he will not see you, then...the only solution I have is to write him a letter."
Fluttershy stared blankly at the mare. "Write him a letter?"
"Yes," Madame Luna replied, as if it were obvious. "Write him a letter, seal it, and then leave it in Box 5."
Fluttershy's eyes widened. "But isn't that the Prince's box?"
"Yes, but Discord has lain claim to it for far longer," Madame Luna simply answered. "If he ever makes any requests, he always leaves instructions to leave a note in Box 5."
Fluttershy nodded her head, seeing the sense in that, but would Discord find the note if he were not expecting it? Or did he always check Box 5, no matter what? She had so many questions, and there was so much information for her to grasp. Her note would be simple, and she prayed he would answer it.
She needed to see him. She needed to hear from his own lips that all those things he had said were simply his way of getting her to leave to be with her father. She needed to hear him tell her what Madame Luna had revealed about the knowledge of her father, and more than anything, she needed to know if it was possible for him to still love her? And just as important...she needed to tell him that she still loved him with all her heart.
"I must go and deliver my message," she said with determination. "Thank you, Madame Luna, thank you for everything." She gave the dance mistress a grateful smile and turned to leave, but gasped when she felt the mare's cold hoof grip her arm.
"Just one more thing, my dear," Madame Luna murmured, releasing Fluttershy's arm. "How...how are you feeling?"
Fluttershy looked at her with confused eyes. "How am I feeling?"
"Yes," Madame Luna pressed. "I know that you have been feeling lightheaded and nauseous recently. I was simply curious to know if you have been feeling any better, or if your symptoms persist?"
"Oh," Fluttershy said, somewhat surprised by the question. "I am feeling much better, thank you, I think that day of rest has done me some good," she smiled, but felt it fade away at the stone expression on the mare's face. "I...I do now and then feel nauseous, but I have been able to keep my food down for the most part."
Madame Luna looked at the mare closely and then nodded her head. "Go write your letter. I will take it to Box 5 for you, as I'm sure you are wanted on stage by now."
Fluttershy nodded her head and quickly left the dressing room, hoping that she could manage to pen a few lines before Madam Octavia or the managers lost their patience. She passed several chorus members in the halls, many of whom were whispering at the sight of her. A few stepped forward to wish her congratulations, to which Fluttershy rolled her eyes and pushed past them. She caught Celestia's eye from backstage, and Fluttershy felt her blood boil with anger at the sight of the blonde soprano who was also sending her a similar deadly glare. She felt her fists tighten with anger, and more than anything, Fluttershy wanted to go over to the prima donna and tear out her hair.
But all vengeful thoughts, all urgent hastiness to write her letter to Discord, vanished as she overheard several stagehooves in conversation.
"Did you hear about what happened at Notre Mane?"
"No, what are you talking about?"
"Seems that the cathedral does have its own hunchback!"
"What are you saying?"
"Some poor friar was scared out of his wits early this mornin'. Went to go and ring the bells for morning vespers, and found a monster in the bell tower!"
"You're serious? There was an actual hunchback in the bell tower?"
"Go outside and hear for yourself! It's all anyone's talkin' about on the street!"
"What did they do with the creature?"
"What do you think they did? Arrested him of course! Can't let some monster run around Notre Mane, can you? What a stupid question," the stagehoof muttered.
"MADAMOISELLE FLUTTERSHY!" Madam Octavia's exasperated roar filled the auditorium and the far corners backstage.
Soon, grumbling with irritation, Flim and Flam emerged behind the curtains, their faces set with deep scowls. "Where is Fluttershy?" Flim demanded. "She was due on stage 15 minutes ago, and no one can find her! She's not in her dressing room-"
"You mean that pretty pink-haired mare who's been singing lead soprano?" a stagehoof asked.
The managers rolled their eyes in annoyance. "YES!"
"She was just standing here," the stagehoof calmly explained. "Then but a second later, she was off and running," he lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply. "Funny...never seen a mare run that fast. Wonder what caused her to leave?" |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Enlightenment | Enlightenment
Blueblood was in a good mood.
The night before, while it had some rocky moments, had been a success. True, he had not been able to seduce her, and his body was aching for release, but he simply continued to remind himself that the fortune that would be left entirely to Fluttershy when the Marquis Filthy Rich died, was practically in his grasp.
Blueblood smiled as the carriage came to a stop outside the police station. Today he would learn the whole truth about the infamous Phantom; he would find the records on the last case that the police investigated at the Maris Opera House, and finally have enough proof for Silverstar and his stallions to help him with setting a trap to catching the Opera Ghost.
Yes, everything was going so well.
"Monsters! Freaks! Creatures that you only thought existed in nightmares! Come see them all at the Ronaldi Carnival!"
Blueblood glanced at the colt who stood in front of the police station, passing out various flyers, a poster tied to his small shoulders as he shouted his advertisements up and down the streets.
"Mornin' monsieur!" the colt greeted, stuffing a flyer into Blueblood's hoof. "Come to the Ronaldi Carnival, only in Maris this week! Five franks is all you need to see all the ghouls and freaks you can imagine!"
Blueblood crumpled the flyer with disgust. "Five franks for a freak show? Highway robbery," he muttered, pushing past the colt. "Go sell your wares further down the street."
The colt glared up at the Prince and spat on the ground before him, before turning and running down the street before Blueblood decided to call the police after him.
"Stupid gypsies and their carnivals," he muttered to his coachcolt. "The sooner they leave Maris, the better." Without a second glance at where the colt had gone, Blueblood entered the police station, his eyes lit with satisfaction as the young officer to whom he had spoken to the day before, stood at the counter.
"Oh! Good morning, monsieur!" the officer greeted. "I searched the records as you requested, and I found three cases."
Blueblood cocked a golden brow at this. "Really?" he pulled his wallet out from his coat and began to count the money he had inside. "And what manner of investigations were these?"
The officer eyed the wallet and licked his lips. "Two murder, one kidnapping," he explained. "The first murder investigation took place about twenty years ago...I say murder because that was what they called it at the time, but it's long since been understood as a horrific accident."
"Really?" Blueblood asked, pretending to be surprised. "What happened?"
"Well, turns out that the stallion, a stagehoof, was so drunk, that he fell from the catwalk high above, during a performance, and got caught in the ropes, thus hanging himself-"
The conversation was lost when the door to the station burst open and Fluttershy came rushing in, her face red and her breathing coming in quick gasps. Blueblood stared at her, completely shocked to see her there, and without another word, grabbed the records that the officer had been explaining to him, and stuffed them inside his coat. "Fluttershy?"
She looked right past him at the officer standing by the counter. "Where is she?"
The officer stared at her blankly. "Beg your pardon, mademoiselle, but-"
"THE HUNCHBACK!" she practically shouted. "WHERE IS SHE?"
Both the officer and Blueblood jumped slightly at her tone. Blueblood took a deep breath and reached out to touch her shoulder. "Fluttershy, calm down, what are you talking about exactly-"
"Don't tell me to calm down!" she snapped, before pushing her way past the stunned Prince, her hooves pounding on top of the counter. "Take me to her!"
The officer was actually trembling before her. "Mademoiselle, I...I can't-hey! You can't go back there!" he shouted, but Fluttershy ignored him, dashing around the counter and going through the back door that she was sure led to the prison cells.
Blueblood stared in surprise as Fluttershy pushed the young officer away from her, actually causing him to fall over from the force, before disappearing through the door. Without a second thought, he quickly followed, curious to what had driven her to this point of madness.
On the other side of the door was a long hallway with various offices. At the end, Fluttershy saw a barred door. That was the door she needed.
There were few officers in the station; after all, it was early morning and many of them were no doubt on their first rounds for the day. The ones that she did see stared at her in stunned silence, before attempting to stop her from going further.
Fluttershy ignored their protests, and attempted to dart out of their grasp. Two officers grabbed hold of her shoulders and began pushing her back, away from the hall that would lead to the prison cells, but Blueblood's thunderous shout caused them to cease. "She's with me!" he barked, pushing the men away from her. He hoped to find her smiling up at him with gratitude, but instead, she continued on her journey, pushing through the door that led to the room where the prison cells were kept.
Fluttershy thought she would choke on the stench that filled the room.
Was this the sort of place her father had been dejected to for all those months? She couldn't believe how horrible it was!
The walls and floors were absolute filth, and everywhere, she saw creeping insects as well as a few fat rats dart in and out of the cells. It was very cold, and the blankets that the prisoners had been given looked to be made of the cheapest cotton. And no one could escape the stench of vomit and urine. She had to get Derpy out of here!
Several prisoners whistled at her as she past, but most of them stared in curious silence. The same men made comments as the Prince passed, whistling at his fancy boots and expensive coat. Blueblood growled at their crudeness, wishing he could ignore them as easily as Fluttershy had.
A small cluster of officers stood near a cell at the end of the hall. Fluttershy could hear them laughing and ridiculing the prisoner inside, throwing pieces of garbage at the poor creature, and then she heard one of the most painful, heartbreaking sounds in her life; Derpy's sob of fear and despair.
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" she shouted at the officers, running to the end of the hall and pushing her way past them.
The stallions were shocked at the sight of her standing there, and even more shocked that she was defending the monster inside the cell. "You should be ashamed of yourselves!" she snapped. "YOU'RE THE MONSTERS, YOU BASTARDS!" she saw a tin can on the ground, a remnant of the garbage they had been throwing, and picked it up and hurled it at them, shouting curses to their shocked faces.
"FLUTTERSHY!" Blueblood bellowed, rushing to her side and quickly grabbing hold of her. She was ready to launch herself at the officers and, if given half the chance, gouge their eyes out. "Calm down!" he hissed at her. "You won't be able to help your friend if you don't calm down!"
Fluttershy knew he was right, and Derpy was all that mattered at this point. She wriggled herself free from Blueblood's hold, and turned to face the poor hunchback, who was huddled in the corner, her massive body curled up into a ball.
"Derpy? Derpy, it's me...it's Fluttershy," she whispered, falling to her knees and tapping on the prison bars to get her attention.
Slowly, the hunchback turned her large head in the direction of her voice, and Fluttershy thought her heart would break into a thousand pieces at the pain and fear that she saw in Derpy's eyes.
One whole side of her face was bruised, and there was a deep cut on her brow, which still trickled blood. Rage fueled through her; what had those bastards done to her? "Derpy, it's me, it's Fluttershy," she murmured. "I'm here, I won't let any harm come to you."
Blueblood gasped in horror at the sight of the creature, especially as he turned to fully face them. This was what Fluttershy had come to rescue?
Derpy's soft eyes, which were red and puffy from crying, lit up at the sight of Fluttershy's face. "F-f-f-fluttershy?" she stammered.
"Get away from there, mademoiselle!" one of the officers shouted. "She's a dangerous monster!"
She ignored their words and smiled back at Derpy. "Yes, yes, it's me," she grinned. "I'm here to help you; I'm going to get you out of here." She held her hoof out to him, and Derpy crawled across the grime covered floor to where she stood, her own hooves outstretched to touch hers.
"Mademoiselle! Did you hear what I said? Get away-"
"She's not a threat to me or to anypony!" she shouted at the officer. She turned her attentions back to the hunchback and smiled as Derpy's large hooves tenderly grasped hers.
"I...I h-h-hoped you would come," she whispered softly, a smile spreading over her tear-stained face.
Blueblood couldn't get over the shock of the whole scene. She knew this creature? But even more surprising was the fact that...it knew her!
"Everything will be alright, I promise," Fluttershy reassured, giving her hooves a tender squeeze, before rising to her full height. "Get her out of this thing!" Fluttershy ordered, turning on her hooves to face the officer who was closest.
The stallion stared back at her, hardly believing what he was hearing. "W-w-what?"
"I said," Fluttershy began again, yet now she spoke through clenched teeth. "Get...her...out...of...this...thing."
Blueblood glanced once more at the creature inside the cage.It was a monster! "Fluttershy, I'm not sure that is wise," Blueblood protested. "Look at her! She'll crush you-"
"SHE'S NOT A DANGER!" Fluttershy shouted, before turning to the officers once more. "But I will be, if you don't release her NOW!"
"Mademoiselle," one officer sighed. "We can't just release her; prisoners must be paid for to be released, and who will pay for this-"
"I think over 300 franks in gold will be enough, don't you?" Fluttershy muttered, removing the bag of money that Discord had given her all those weeks ago from inside her coat.
All the stallion, including Blueblood, stared at the bag of money that Fluttershy produced.
"A-a-ample amount, mademoiselle," the officer murmured, before snatching the money from her hooves and producing a set of keys from his belt. "Now stand back, who knows how violent she'll become when we let her loose-"
Fluttershy ignored the officer's warnings, as well as Blueblood's protests, and held her hoof out to Derpy, who carefully and tentatively, exited the cell and took Fluttershy's hoof.
The officers watched him warily, but Fluttershy placed a reassuring hoof on her shoulder, which helped Derpy feel safer and calmer. "T-t-they t-threw things at me," she whispered to Fluttershy. "I...I was s-s-so s-s-s-scared."
"There's nothing to be afraid of anymore," Fluttershy soothed. "I won't let anyone ever harm you."
She led Derpy out of the prison, and down the hall, out to the lobby of the station. Fluttershy had taken the blanket from inside Derpy's cell, and threw it over her shoulders. "Hide your face in this," she whispered, knowing how self-conscious she was now that she was out in open daylight. "I will fetch us a carriage."
Blueblood, who had followed them out this whole while, and who was still shocked beyond all belief, finally found her tongue and spoke. "That won't be necessary," he announced. "You may travel in my carriage."
Fluttershy wanted nothing to do with Blueblood, she was sick of the sight of him. But right now, getting Derpy someplace safe, away from the prying eyes of others, was all that mattered. She couldn't afford to be proud right now.
"Thank you," she whispered, before following Blueblood's lead and guiding Derpy to the Prince's carriage. One quick glance from his master told the coachcolt to refrain from asking questions, as the large hunchback crawled inside the expensive carriage.
"Mademoiselle!" one of the officers hissed. "You have to sign papers when we release a prisoner!"
Blueblood glanced at the officer, and then back at the carriage. "I will see to the papers," he reassured Fluttershy, before turning and entering the station once more.
The officer looked extremely agitated. "How am I to explain this to Inspector Silverstar!" he practically wailed. "You have no idea how much trouble it was, bringing that beast in! And now, she's out once more, just like that! Silverstar will have my hide!"
Blueblood could care less what happened to the officer. "Just tell Silverstar the truth; bail was paid for the prisoner by somepony who...apparently knows her." That part distressed Blueblood the most. How did she know this creature? Where on earth could she have possibly met such a monster?
"I ain't never seen anything like that," the officer whispered, his eyes never leaving Derpy's hunched-over figure as Fluttershy drew the curtains in the carriage. "But she seemed to know it! How do you think-"
"I don't know," Blueblood growled. "But I will find out...and I will need your help with that."
The officer stared blankly at the Prince. "Help? How? What can we do?"
"Follow my carriage," Blueblood muttered, as he slid some money into the stallion's hoof. "I want you to keep close watch on Mademoiselle Fluttershy and this...this thing."
The officer stared at the money he had just received and mutely nodded his head. "And...for how long do you wish us to keep watch?"
Blueblood turned his gaze to the carriage and narrowed his eyes as a plan began to brew within him. "Send word to me at the slightest change in activity. If she goes anywhere with the creature, follow them. The second she and the creature are parted, tell me at once, and keep close watch as to where they go!"
The officer nodded his head and then shouted instructions at several men who stood gaping at the carriage. The stallions disappeared, and the officer bowed his head to the Prince. "Everything will be arranged. We'll have an unmarked coach follow you and stay wherever Mademoiselle Fluttershy and the beast go."
"Good stallion," Blueblood muttered, before turning on his heel and exiting the station. With a grimace, he climbed into the unusually cramped carriage and barked orders to the driver.
"I did not realize signing papers would take so long," Fluttershy mumbled, Derpy's shrouded head resting against her shoulder.
Blueblood glared at her from across the carriage, but forced a look of genuine concern on his face. "I had to convince them that you would be safe, and that...she...would not be harmful to the public."
Fluttershy did not trust him, but chose not to press the matter further. She whispered soothing words into Derpy's ear, as her hoof ran back and forth over her shoulder.
Nothing further was said during the rest of the journey. Blueblood was grateful that Fluttershy drew the curtains in the carriage; he did not want to be seen in Maris with this monster. Normally the drive to the apartment was short, but at this moment, it seemed to take agonizingly long.
Finally, at long last, the carriage reached their destination, and before the driver could climb down to open the door, Fluttershy was already half-way out, her hooves grasping Derpy's and helping her down. "Thank you, monsieur," she said quite simply, before turning and ushering Derpy towards the building.
Blueblood's brow furrowed at her tone. "Fluttershy, you can't possibly be serious! You're going to let that...that thing inside with you?"
She paid him no heed; he was not worth wasting her breath upon.
Blueblood couldn't believe this was happening. "Fluttershy, be sensible!" he climbed down from the carriage and followed close behind. "At least let me stay, to make sure you will be safe."
"I'm fine," Fluttershy muttered, fumbling with her door key. "I am in no more danger than I would be if I were taking in a stray kitten," she managed to unlock the door and help Derpy inside. "Thank you for your help, monsieur, I am very grateful for the use of your carriage." Blueblood opened his mouth to respond, but her next words cut him to the core. "However it shall be the last time I will impose upon you. As of this day, I am no longer in need of your charity. Good day to you."
Blueblood stared wide-eyed and open mouthed, as Fluttershy let the door shut behind her.
Had that just happened? What did she mean by that? His hooves ran through his blonde hair, a growl rising up inside his chest. Something was going on, something he did not care for. She knew that creature all too well, and it knew her. She was hiding something...and he intended to find out!
Blueblood turned to go back to his carriage, his eyes spying a smaller coach on the other side of the street. He saw the officers inside it just briefly, and he smiled with satisfaction, glad that they had followed his instructions.
He would deal with Silverstar later. Right now, he had his own research to do. He climbed back inside his carriage and looked at the records he had taken from the station. "Start saying your prayers, monsieur Phantom," he hissed.
"I'm s-s-s-sorry I s-scared your maid," Derpy mumbled.
Fluttershy couldn't help but grin just slightly. "It's not your fault Derpy, I had completely forgotten about Cherry Jubilee, but I'm sure she'll be alright."
The second she and Derpy had entered the apartment, the pretty red-headed maid gasped at the sight of the hunchback, before screaming and fainting right there in the parlor. With Derpy's help, they took her to her bedroom, and felt it wise to lock her in there.
Fluttershy then went to work with cleaning Derpy's cuts, washing her hair, and applying clean bandages to the sores on her body. She then cooked her some soup, and gave her a nice warm cup of tea. Poor Derpy was so hungry that she had five bowls in a row! After she had eaten, Fluttershy went to work tending to her tattered clothes. She mended several tears on her shirt, and was now making her a new one from one of the bed sheets in her room. Derpy happily sat on the floor beside her, playing with Carmen, Fluttershy's tiny black kitten. It was very obvious that both the kitten, and Derpy, had dearly missed one another.
"After it gets dark," Fluttershy explained. "I will take you back to the opera house. I'm afraid we'll have to walk, but we'll stay close to the shadows, and at night, few will notice your appearance."
Derpy's face lit up at her words. "Y-y-you are coming b-back?"
Fluttershy stopped her sewing and looked into Derpy's eyes, her heart breaking at the hope she saw. "Only to help you find your way home," she whispered.
Derpy's face fell at her words. "I...I understand..." she mumbled. "Y-y-you h-have to take care of y-your family, just as the Master t-takes care of us."
Fluttershy bit her lip. "How is your master?" she tentatively asked.
Derpy continued playing with Carmen. "He's sad," she answered. "He d-d-destroyed his chamber a-after you left."
Fluttershy gasped as she stabbed her hoof with the needle. However, it was Derpy's words that caused her more alarm. "He destroyed his chamber? W-w-what do you mean?"
Derpy looked at her strangely, thinking her answer had been obvious. "He k-knocked over e-e-everything. And the p-p-piano is broken. It w-won't play anymore."
Fluttershy paled at Derpy's description. She had witnessed Discord's wrathful anger in the past, and she knew he was capable of acting irrationally, but...going so far to destroy a beloved instrument? It was too horrible to comprehend.
"You say he is sad...is he...is he sick?" she asked, fear growing within her that perhaps Discord was now trying to harm himself.
Derpy shrugged his massive shoulders. "I d-don't know...he looks alright, but...Rarity says his heart won't work."
Fluttershy's eyes widened with horror. "What? What do you mean his heart won't work?"
Derpy looked at her once more with confusion. "Rarity s-says that it's broken, meaning h-h-his heart. And if s-s-something is broken, t-t-t-that means it doesn't work. R-r-right?"
Fluttershy didn't know whether to sigh with relief, or out of regret. "You're very perceptive Derpy," she whispered. "And...perhaps you can tell me why you were at Notre Mane?"
Derpy turned her face away to avoid catching her eyes. "I...I...I just w-wanted to see if it was true..." she whispered, a trace of personal shame in her voice. "I t-t-thought perhaps I w-w-would find the gypsy mare there. But...but Rarity w-was right..."
Fluttershy heard the deep regret and sadness in her voice. "Right about what?"
"The story," she mumbled, looking down at the floor. "Rarity t-told me everything; the hunchback a-a-and the gypsy mare...t-they don't live happily e-e-ever after."
Fluttershy paused, feeling her heart swell with sadness at Derpy's revelation. "And...you thought that by going to Notre Mane, you would find Esmeralda? And prove that both she and Quasimodo did fall in love and live happily ever after?"
She nodded her head, and she noticed the tears that were dripping onto the carpet. "It was s-s-stupid, I know," she grumbled, her hooves quickly moving to wipe her eyes.
Fluttershy's heart melted at his words, and she reached out to take one if her hooves in hers. "No Derpy...searching for love and happy endings is never stupid."
Just then, the door to the apartment burst open, and Time Turner came rushing inside, his face streaked with perspiration and worry. "Fluttershy? My God! Are you alright? You just left rehearsal! I've been looking everywhere for you! I-"
He paused when he finally noticed the large hunchback sitting on the floor next to his daughter.
Derpy recognized Time Turner from the last time she had seen him, but she recognized the look of horror that the old stallion wore even more. Derpy quickly rose to her hooves and covered her face with her overly-large hooves, before flying from the parlor into Fluttershy's bedchamber.
Fluttershy noticed the panic that spread across the hunchback's face. She tried to console her, but she was already on her hoovest and running. "Derpy? Derpy it's alright! It's only my father-"
The door slammed shut.
"WHAT THE DEVIL?" Time Turner cried, staring at his daughter in both confusion and dismay.
Fluttershy quickly rose to her feet and crossed the parlor to where her father stood. "Please, keep your voice down! I don't Derpy to be distressed any further than she is."
"DERPY!"
"Papa, please!" Fluttershy hissed. "She's not a threat, she's very gentle, like a filly...please, keep your voice down!" she took her father's hooves and led him to a chair where she forced him to sit down. "I'll make you some tea."
Time Turner reached out and grabbed his daughter's wrist. "No, you will tell me what is going on! You leave rehearsals without any warning; I am trying to reassure both the managers that you are alright, while at the same time, looking desperately for you! I searched every part of the opera house; in fact we had a whole search party looking for you! Oh! And on top of everything else, I hear rumors that you and the Prince are engaged!"
Fluttershy groaned and rolled her eyes. "No Papa, we are not engaged; you know that I do not care for the stallion."
"Well I figured that much was true!" he bellowed. "But how do you explain your disappearance?" he buried his head in his ands and let out a long weary groan. "Good Lord Fluttershy, I feared..." he turned his face away, the tears ready to spill forth. "I thought that perhaps he had taken you again!"
Fluttershy knew who her father was talking about, she didn't need to ask. "I'm alright," she murmured, sitting on the floor beside him, her hooves holding his tightly. "I'm sorry for frightening you, but it was matter of great importance. When I heard the news, I had to go at once!"
The old stallion looked down at his daughter with utter confusion. "What news? Fluttershy, what is that..." he paused and corrected himself. "WHO is that...that..."
"I told you, her name is Derpy," Fluttershy intervened. "And she's my friend."
Time Turner stared at Fluttershy with absolute shock. "F-f-friend? How...when..." his head was spinning from all the questions he had. Nothing was making sense!
Fluttershy took a deep breath, knowing that the time had finally come. "Papa, there is something you need to know. I...I didn't tell you before, because...well, at first it was because I didn't think you would believe me, and even now I'm having my doubts," she muttered. "But mainly it was because I was afraid...afraid of how you would think of me, and afraid of...of what this news would do to you...but, I love you with my whole heart, and I can't lie to you anymore," she sadly sighed, feeling the tears beginning to sting her eyes.
Time Turner looked at his daughter and felt his blood turn to ice. "Fluttershy...w-what is wrong? What are you trying to say?"
Fluttershy blinked back her tears and continued. "Do you remember when you asked me how I managed to escape the Phantom, and I told you that he let me go?"
Time Turner nodded his head slowly, recalling the conversation. "Yes...but what does that have to do with anything?"
"Very much, actually," Fluttershy murmured. "Papa, I wasn't lying; the Phantom did let me go...because of you."
Time Turner's brow furrowed. "Because of me? I don't understand...Fluttershy, none of this makes sense!"
"I love him!" she cried, surprising both herself and her father with her tone.
Time Turner stared at her with shock and alarm. "W-w-what do you mean?" he asked, his voice shaking. With a steadying breath, Fluttershy lifted her eyes to her father's, and one look in their blue depths spoke volumes to him. "Good God..." he whispered.
"Papa, please!" Fluttershy gripped his hooves tightly in hers, forcing him to look at her. "I know he was cruel once, what he did to you was horrible, but...he's changed Papa, he's not the same stallion that he was then."
Time Turner was shaking. "T-t-that horrible, monstrous madstallion...that beast-"
"No Papa! No...he's not a beast, he's not a madstallion...he was kind to me, good to me...he taught me to sing!" she was rambling on and knew that none of this was helping her father. Taking a deep breath, Fluttershy rose to her feet and called for Derpy. The door opened a tiny crack and the hunchback peeked out. "Derpy, come here for a moment, please," she pleaded. "I want you to meet my father."
With slow, tentative steps, Derpy emerged, carrying Carmen in hs\er hooves. Time Turner stared up at the giant hunchback and looked back at his daughter for an answer.
"This is Derpy," Fluttershy introduced.
"H-h-hello M-m-monsieur Time Turner," Derpy murmured, her feet shuffling nervously.
Time Turner swallowed the lump in his throat and glanced at his daughter, before looking back up at the hunchback. "H-h-hello Derpy," he nervously greeted.
"Derpy lives below the opera house," Fluttershy explained. "She and her friends, Rarity, Shortround, and Rainbow Dash, all live below, and Discord takes care of them."
Time Turner looked at his daughter then. "Discord?"
"Yes Papa, the Phantom; his name is Discord," Fluttershy explained. "Once upon a time, Derpy, and the others, were kept in a horrible place; a carnival that put their bodies on display for ridicule and money. They were kept in cages, starved, and beaten. And then one day, while the carnival was in Maris, Discord-the Phantom-broke free from his cage, and saved the others from their horrible fate. They escaped into the city under nightfall, and have been living under the opera house ever since."
Time Turner couldn't believe what he was hearing. "H-how...how do you know all this?"
"Because they told me," Fluttershy explained, turning her face to Derpy and smiling up at her. "They are my friends."
Time Turner glanced at the hunchback and then back at his daughter. The creature looked monstrous at first glance, but from the way she tenderly held the kitten in one hoof, and Fluttershy's hoof in the other, Time Turner could see that this creature would never harm another soul.
"I...I remember you," he whispered, gazing up at Derpy. "You wore a shroud then, but...I do remember you."
Derpy grinned at the old stallion's words. "Yes, w-w-we were helping you g-g-get a prop...a s-s-spinning wheel, I think."
Time Turner smiled and nodded his head. "Yes, that's right, and there was a mare with you...and others too."
"Rarity!" Derpy stated proudly. "That w-w-w-was Rarity! And w-was one of the others g-g-grumpy?"
Time Turner thought for a second. "Well, I recall somepony not exactly being thrilled that I was there and wished to see me leave at once."
"That w-w-would be Rainbow Dash," Derpy explained.
Fluttershy couldn't help but giggle at Derpy's words. "Why don't you go and play with Carmen in my chamber, Derpy," she encouraged gently. Derpy nodded her head and gave Time Turner one last smile, before turning and taking the kitten with her back into the room. Fluttershy turned once more to face her father, a sad smile spreading across her pretty face. "Now you can see why the Phantom forbids anyone from entering the cellars."
Time Turner silently nodded his head as he watched Derpy quietly shut the door behind him. "Yes...one look at those creatures and somepony would immediately lock them up."
Fluttershy nodded her head. "Sadly, that was what took me away from the opera house this morning. Some time last night, Derpy wandered outside and went to Notre Mane Cathedral," she sighed as she remembered the hunchback's sad tale. "She adores the story, The Hunchback of Notre Mane for obvious reasons; but she recently learned that the beautiful Esmeralda does not choose Quasimodo, and she had hoped that perhaps by going to the cathedral itself...she could change the story."
Time Turner's expression changed to one of sadness and pity. "Yes, I too overheard the stories today at the opera house, about a real hunchback being found in the bell tower of the cathedral. I can only imagine what the police must have done..."
"I went to the station as soon as I heard the news. Oh Papa, they were throwing things at her!" she hissed with rage. "And it sickens me to think of...of what you must have gone through in such a place."
Time Turner sighed and looked down at the floor. "Not one of my finest memories, I confess," he whispered. "But then again, they all thought me mad. The burdens I bore were nothing, I am assuming, to what your friend Derpy must have endured."
He paused and glanced up at his daughter, who was pacing slightly, trying to ease the rage that he could see clearly written across her face. There were still many questions that needed to be answered, and none as important as the one which dealt with her previous outburst. "Fluttershy...what happened down there, beneath the opera house?"
Fluttershy stopped her pacing and glanced at her father. She was grateful to see the understanding smile on his face, rather than one filled with harsh judgment. She went to him and took his hooves in hers, sitting once more on the floor beside him. "I was so afraid at first...thinking that I had made the most terrible mistake in my whole life. I was thankful, knowing that you were free, but I was terrified, wondering what would become of me, wondering if I would ever see you again..."
Time Turner nodded his head. "I too had similar fears," he whispered, leaning down to plant a kiss on the top of her head.
Fluttershy smiled up at him, but she squeezed his hooves harder, knowing that this would probably be hard for him to understand. "It started slowly at first. We couldn't stand each other," she smiled softly at the arguments she and Discord first had. "But little by little...things began to change. Slowly, we became friends," she whispered. "He heard me singing, and made a bargain with me; he would teach me to sing properly and I would perform in his opera, playing the role of Aminta-"
"You mean he had planned this all along? For you to sing the lead?" Time Turner gasped. Fluttershy nodded her head, and the old stallion sank further back into his chair, astounded by the revelation. "That's why you learned the music so quickly."
"Yes," Fluttershy whispered. "And in exchange for letting him teach me, he would grant me my freedom when the time to perform the opera had come." She looked down at the floor, pausing as the memories flashed before her like photographs. "It seemed like such a simple bargain then...so I agreed, thinking nothing of it," she sighed. "Little did either of us know, that keeping our word would become one of the hardest choices for us to make."
Time Turner reached down and cupped his daughter's chin, lifting her face up so he could see her eyes. "What do you mean Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy took a deep breath and held her father's hooves tightly. "I mean what I said earlier, Papa. I...I love him, and he loves me."
Time Turner stared at his daughter in shock. "That Phantom...you and the Phantom...?"
"Discord, Papa, his name is Discord...and yes, we...we fell in love," she couldn't help it; she was smiling through the tears because the memory was so wonderful. "He learned to trust me, showing me so many wonderful things, revealing all sorts of secrets to his labyrinth world...and I sang for him, not because I had made an agreement, but because I wanted to, and because I could see the pleasure in his eyes when he heard my voice. And...and he never forgave himself, for what he did to you..." she whispered.
Time Turner's eyes widened. "W-what do you mean?"
"He knew I missed you," Fluttershy explained, pausing now and then to wipe her eyes. "And because he did not wish to see me upset, he and his friends would go out into the city, late at night, and search for you. He had been doing this for some time, long before he told me about it. And...and then one night, not so long ago, he learned where you were..." Fluttershy could still hear Madame Luna's information echoing in her ears. The night Discord told Fluttershy to leave was the same night he learned about her father. He had done it all for her and her father...
"I don't understand," Time Turner muttered, his face contorted with puzzlement. "You're telling me, that he, the very stallion who separated us...was also trying to help us be reunited?"
Fluttershy's tears were flowing freely now. "Yes," she whispered. "And Papa, I...I am not a good filly, I do not deserve your love," she wailed, turning her face away. "I was being so selfish; I missed you dreadfully, but...but Discord was right; if he did not throw me out, if he did force me to go..." she couldn't finish her words, she was so ashamed.
Time Turner looked down upon his weeping daughter, his throat going dry at all the information she had just shared. "Fluttershy..." he murmured, before reaching down to gather her up in his arms. Fluttershy clung to him, sobbing against his shoulder, mumbling over and over again how sorry she was, and Time Turner simply whispered soothing words into her hair, his hoof running through her wild pink locks. "It's alright," he whispered. "You're not a bad child...and you're not selfish. You're in love," he explained to her. "And when you're in love, it's hard to think of anything else." He gently took her shoulders and eased her away from him so he could look into her eyes. "I honestly do not believe you would have left me in that prison, Fluttershy, if that is what you fear," he smiled. "But...I won't deny that I am grateful to your Phantom for letting you go to find me."
Fluttershy smiled slightly, but there was still so much more to tell. "Papa, it's true that without the Prince's help, I would not have been able to release you...but I want you to know that Discord did give me over 300 franks, in gold, to help pay for your release."
Time Turner's eyes widened with disbelief. "Over 300 franks?" he practically choked. "Fluttershy, that amount of money...that would have been well over the amount needed to free me!"
Fluttershy's brows rose at his words. "But...but the officers at the station...they said it wasn't enough?"
Time Turner felt his jaw clench. "They lied...they were trying to cheat you out of your money!"
Fluttershy shook her head. "But it was Blueblood they would have cheated; Blueblood who willingly paid the dept to have you released..."
Time Turner knew that the Prince had paid for his release, but he had never known the amount of money that had been spent on his behalf. If he and his daughter were having this conversation two days ago, Time Turner would have assumed that the poor Prince had been cheated from the police, and feel obliged to help the hoofsome noblecolt.
But now...he was beginning to see why his daughter distrusted the stallion. And he remembered the night he burst into the Prince's club, begging for Blueblood to help him free his daughter. The Prince called him a madstallion, insulted Fluttershy's honor, and then had him thrown out! And yes, later he came to the prison and apologized, but...how much of that apology had been true? He had been blinded by the Prince's promises to help him find Fluttershy...but the Prince knew very well where Fluttershy was, after all, he had told him!
Something wasn't making sense. And Time Turner had a cold suspicion that whatever it was...it was sinister.
"Papa? Are...are you alright?"
Time Turner glanced down at his daughter and saw the worry in her pretty blue eyes. "I'm fine my dear, I didn't mean to worry you...it's just so much news to take in!" he murmured, forcing a smile on his lips, although in truth, it was quite strained. "Have...have you been in contact with...with Discord?" he asked, testing the pony's name for the first time.
Fluttershy felt the heat rise in her cheeks as she recalled the night Discord had been in her bedroom. However, she was not ready to go into that much detail with her father. She quickly turned her head and muttered a "no", before her father could read her eyes.
Time Turner sighed, not sure how to respond. He was happy that his daughter had not been harmed while being the Phantom's prisoner...if one could call it that. And it filled him with joy to know that his daughter had experienced and felt love! But the colt...despite what Fluttershy said, the world still saw the Phantom of the Opera as a madcolt, and even if he had truly changed since Time Turner had encountered him, he still had that horrible past, a past that the world would use to judge him. And then, of course, there was the issue of his face...
And did the Phantom truly love Fluttershy as she said? Or was it all a trick? Perhaps he was planning to lure Fluttershy back, to take her once more and to never let her go?
He quickly squished that notion. Of course the stallion loved her! Would a stallion who was simply using her waste his time with trying to learn the whereabouts of her father? Would a stalliom who didn't love her sacrifice his own happiness so that she could be with her family?
No. Fluttershy had at long last found such a stallion worthy of her love, and who Time Turner could tell, by simply hearing his daughter's voice and looking into her eyes, that this stallion did indeed love her. The Phantom was not the monster he once was.
"You must go to him," her father murmured.
Fluttershy's eyes widened with shock at her father's words. "W-w-what?"
He took her hooves in his and helped her rise to her feet. "If you truly love him, Fluttershy, then you must go to him at once and tell him of your love," he pushed a stray wave away from her cheek. "I do not know the full details, and I understand if they are too painful to share...but I have the impression that the two of you did not part well. But I believe you when you say that you love him still...and that you believe he loves you just as fiercely. In fact...I have often felt a mysterious presence overseeing rehearsals," he murmured.
Fluttershy couldn't believe what her father was saying. Was he actually...giving her his blessing? "No doubt he saw you with the Prince the night before," Time Turner whispered. One look at his daughter's crestfallen face, and he knew it was true. "You must go to him at once and explain everything. Tell him that your father is an old fool, and that the Prince's mask was the one that fooled me, not his."
Fluttershy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. She didn't dare pinch herself, for fear of awaking and learning that this was all some sort of dream. "But Papa-"
"I trust you Fluttershy," he smiled, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "And oddly enough, I trust him. I...I do not think he will take you away from me...but I can not bear to know that I am keeping you from him."
Fluttershy didn't know what to say. She was crying once more, only this time it was out of pure happiness. "THANK YOU, PAPA!" she practically shouted, throwing her arms around her father's neck and hugging him fiercely.
Time Turner laughed and hugged his daughter back just as tightly. "Hurry," he whispered. "Night is falling. Take Derpy back to the opera house, but do not leave until you talk to him."
"Oh Papa," Fluttershy sniffled, wiping her eyes and grinning at her father. "I...I don't know what to say..."
Her father smiled. "Oh Fluttershy, seeing your happiness right now...that tells me more than all the words in the world ever could." He kissed her cheek once more, before giving her hooves a gentle squeeze. "Now go."
Discord stood on the roof of the opera house, watching the last of the sun's rays set over Maris. Night was closing in once more, and as soon as the shadows covered the streets, his search for Derpy would continue beyond the opera house's walls.
He and the others had spent the entire day, searching every crevice, every crack, every corner, leaving no stone unturned, looking in all the usual, and unusual places, that Derpy could have hidden. Discord even searched the depths of the catacombs, thinking that perhaps Derpy had somehow wandered into the twisting tunnels that stretched throughout the city.
None of them had had any luck.
"Where on earth can she be?" Discord muttered as the last of the sun's rays disappeared over the horizon. If anything had happened to Derpy, Discord would never be able to forgive himself. He had a responsibility to these ponies, he had promised with his own life to look after them, to care for them, to never let any danger ever come to them-
"Master?"
Discord turned to see Shortround's head poking through the trap door that led onto the roof. "Have you found her?" Discord asked somewhat anxiously. "Where was she? Where is she now?"
Shortround sadly shook his head. "No Master, we have not found her yet...but...we have just learned that earlier today, a hunchback was discovered at...at Notre Mane Cathedral."
Discord blinked several times until finally the news Shortround had delivered sunk in. "Notre Mane?" he practically shouted. He turned away and gripped the edge of roof, rage boiling in him at the horrors Derpy must have endured. "Of all the stupid..." he bit his lip, knowing that placing his rage on Derpy would do no good. "Where is she now?" he demanded, turning to face Shortround once more. "How did you learn this news?"
"Because I told them."
Discord stared at the face of Madame Luna, who was now emerging through the trap door. His eyes narrowed at the sight of the dance mistress who had recently become a thorn in his side. "What are you doing here?" he coldly hissed, the question coming out more like a demand.
Madame Luna sighed and climbed through the trap door and out onto the roof. "I know I am no longer welcome, but I thought you might make allowances for information on Derpy's welfare."
Discord's jaw tightened. "Speak then and be on your way," he growled.
Madame Luna nodded her head. "The news is true. The hunchback that was discovered at Notre Mane was Derpy; I do not know how or why she went to the cathedral, but she was discovered, and the police arrested her."
Discord grunted a curse. "Where is she?" he demanded.
"She is safe now," Madame Luna calmly explained.
Discord stared at the mare with dismay and surprise. "W-w-what? How? Who?"
"Fluttershy," Madame Luna murmured. "She paid for Derpy's release and she is with her. She sent a letter to me earlier this afternoon and wished for me to tell you, in case you were worrying."
Discord couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Fluttershy...Fluttershy rescued her?" he asked, his tone filled with both bewilderment and amazement.
Madame Luna couldn't help but smile. "Yes, I suppose you could call it that. She is quite safe and will be returning later tonight."
Discord stiffened at this news. "Alone?" he asked.
Madame Luna cocked her head to one side. "Why would you care to know?"
Discord rolled his eyes out of irritation, something Madame Luna couldn't help but notice, and couldn't help but grin at. "Do not toy with me, madam," Discord growled. "Just answer my question."
"She didn't say," Madame Luna responded truthfully. "But there are a few things I wish to discuss with you, if I may..." she glanced at Shortround who had been watching their conversation this whole time. "Alone."
Shortround didn't even wait for Discord to dismiss him; he quickly shut the door and left the two of them alone on the roof.
"I have nothing to say to you," Discord grumbled, turning his back to the dance mistress and looking back at the city. "Nor do I wish to hear anything you have to say. Your words and actions have long since haunted my lair that I've come to believe that this place truly is haunted."
"I come seeking your forgiveness."
The words took Discord entirely by surprise. He turned to face the mare, his brow furrowed with confusion. "What?"
"I wish to apologize," she stated once more. "For my accusations, that I now realize, were quite wrong."
Discord glared at her. "You mean your accusations about me raping Fluttershy and using her for whatever sick fantasies I craved at the moment?"
Madame Luna simply nodded her head. "Yes, and for calling you heartless, as well as denouncing your feelings for her. I realize I was in the wrong."
Discord muttered something under his breath and turned to look at the city once more. "If I accept your 'apology', will you leave me in peace?" he muttered.
Madame Luna sighed and softly approached Discord's side. "I can not make promises on that," she whispered. "But I am truly sorry for misjudging you Discord. I see now that your feelings for Fluttershy were genuine and pure."
"Nothing has changed," Discord murmured to the night air. "My feelings remain what they are."
Madame Luna smiled softly at this. "I am glad to hear it, for I know that Fluttershy's feelings remain unchanged as well."
Discord snorted at her words. "I think she has taken somepony else into her heart, somepony tall, blonde, hoofsome, and filthy rich."
Madame Luna shook her head. "Oh Discord, you are a master of illusion. I would have thought that you of all people would have learned to look at things twice before judging them."
She turned and began heading back towards the trap door. Discord turned to watch her go, questions now forming in his mind. "What caused you to finally see that my feelings were true? Divine revelation?" he mockingly joked.
Madame Luna turned and locked her eyes with his before opening the door. "You could call it that," she answered. "After all, everything I told you I learned from an 'angel of music'."
Discord's eyes widened at her words, and he flew to the trap door, stopping Madame Luna from disappearing. "What did you say?"
The dance mistress smiled. "Discord, do you truly believe that Fluttershy, who has shared so much of her heart with you, would turn away from you now, after weeks of pining for you?" She reached out and touched her hoof against his chest. "What does your heart tell you Discord? Trust your heart...sometimes it sees things so much more clearly than our eyes."
Discord stood in stunned silence as Madame Luna began her descent through the trap door. "Oh, and one more thing," she added, before going. "This is very important, and something you need to know."
Discord woke from his trance and looked at the mare with expectation. "Yes? What is it?"
Madame Luna took his hoof in hers and gave it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "I think Fluttershy is pregnant." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Pursuit | Pursuit
"What I wouldn't give for a salt lick."
"Shut up!"
"What?" protested the first police officer. "We've been sitting outside this stupid place for well over..." he dug his pocket watch out of his coat. "Nearly eight hours! How much longer do we have to stay here?"
"SHUT UP!" hissed his partner. "Look!"
The two officers peered out the window of their coach at the door of the apartment building. They noticed Fluttershy emerge first, followed by a large bent over figure, whose head seemed to be covered in some sort of shroud.
"That's them! Just as the Prince said!"
The first officer's brow furrowed. "So what are we supposed to do?"
"Well, the Prince wanted us to follow them, and send word to him at once when the mare and the creature part ways."
The first officer grimaced at this news. "Follow them? Won't that give us away?" he pointed to the interior of the coach they occupied. "Won't it look suspicious if a strange carriage is following them at a slow pace?"
The second officer opened the carriage door and stepped out slowly, keeping his eyes on both Fluttershy and Derpy as they kept to the shadows on the dark street. "We'll have to go on hoof."
"WHAT?"
"Be quiet!" the second officer hissed. "You want them to hear you?"
His partner's face contorted in displeasure. "We have no idea where they're going! Or how far! Besides, I'm sure I remember the Prince wanting us to send him word as soon as they left...why don't I go on and deliver the message, while you follow-"
"Will you just get out of that thing and help me track them?"
The first officer groaned and reluctantly climbed out of the carriage. "I should have joined the army," he grumbled.
"I l-like your father...he s-s-seems very nice," Derpy commented, as he and Fluttershy continued their long night journey back to the opera house.
Fluttershy smiled and gave Derpy's hoof a tender squeeze. "I think my father likes you too, Derpy."
Derpy grinned at her words. "H-h-he didn't look at m-me too s-s-strangely," she stuttered. "A-and he didn't s-scream." A hopeful smile began to spread across her face. "M-m-maybe your father c-c-can come a-and live with us! A-and you can come back?"
Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak...but paused at the thought. She didn't know what would transpire once she helped Derpy get back to the opera house safely. She prayed that Discord would see her, let her tell him the truth and hear her out, and she prayed that he too would reveal everything finally to her. She wanted to hear what he felt for her from his own lips, she wanted to look into his beautiful, haunting, amber eyes, and see the truth for herself.
And perhaps...just perhaps, it would be possible, for her world, and his, to join together.
Fluttershy decided it was best to change the subject; she didn't want to get Derpy's hopes up, nor her own just yet, although she could feel so many butterflies flying rapidly about in her stomach. "Tell me Derpy...what was it like? Notre Mane Cathedral?"
Derpy was silent for a moment, and Fluttershy began to fear that perhaps she had brought up unpleasant memories. But then she broke the silence, her voice filled with wonder, as she replied, "It was v-v-v-very beautiful."
Fluttershy smiled at her words. "How beautiful? Tell me everything."
Derpy grinned and began describing everything she remembered; the smell of incense still billowing in the air, the shimmering light of hundreds of prayer candles, and the glow that illuminated the magnificent Rose Window. But all these things paled in comparison to the description of the view of Maris from the bell tower.
"Oh Derpy," Fluttershy sighed. "You are very lucky. You have done something that so few ponies in this whole world have done."
Derpy couldn't help but blush at her words. "T-t-the Master h-has also b-b-been there."
Fluttershy remembered the first time she stood on the roof of the opera house with Discord by her side. That was the day that their friendship began to blossom into something more. "Yes," she whispered. "He told me he had been there. I was very envious," she chuckled.
Derpy smiled tenderly down at her. "Maybe t-t-the Master w-w-will take you there s-s-someday?"
Fluttershy looked up at Derpy and squeezed her hoof. "I would like that very much."
They walked the rest of the way in silence, and with every step that brought them closer, so did the butterflies in Fluttershy's stomach become more and more violent.
What would she say to him? There were thousands of things she knew she could say, but what would make him stop and listen to her? What if he refused to speak with her? What if he was angry? Oh God, what if he heard the news about her supposed engagement to the Prince?
Fluttershy fumbled in the pocket of her skirt and found the bracelet that Discord had given her. Without a second thought, she slipped the elegant band on her hoof, hoping that by wearing it she could show Discord that she indeed treasured the gift, and that her heart always would belong to him and him alone.
All too soon, the towering rotunda of the Maris Opera House was in sight, and they were standing but a few feet away from the magnificent structure.
Fluttershy took a deep breath, hoping to calm her nerves. Derpy noticed the stiff way Fluttershy stood, and tenderly took her hoof in hers. "This way," she whispered, leading her to a shadowed corner of a building that stood across the street from the opera house.
"Where?" Fluttershy asked.
"Y-you l-look nervous," Derpy said. "B-b-but don't worry...no one w-will see us this way."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed at Derpy's words, and she opened her mouth to ask her what he meant, but all words were stopped by the sound of iron scraping the pavement.
It was very dark, the place where they stood, but Fluttershy's eyes had learned to adapt to the darkness after all those months of living in Discord's lair, and she could tell that the sound had come from a heavy iron grate that Derpy had lifted off the ground and shoved to one side. She didn't need further explanation as the sound of running water could be heard below.
"The sewer?"
Derpy nodded her head as if somepony asking her this was an everyday occurrence. "It's t-t-the s-s-safest w-way in a-a-and out of the opera h-house," she explained. "If you w-w-w-want to avoid t-t-the usual entrances."
Fluttershy wanted to see Derpy home, safe and sound, and she desperately wanted to see Discord more than anything...but the idea of walking in raw sewage did turn her stomach somewhat. It was going to be difficult enough to make Discord listen to her; she didn't need the added difficulty of trying to talk to him while at the same time, smelling of dead fish and human waste.
"It's alright Fluttershy," Derpy reassured, holding out his hoof to her. "No one w-w-w-will see us if w-we go in t-this way."
Fluttershy swallowed her pride and nodded her head. She only prayed that Discord had strong nostrils.
Taking Derpy's large hoof, she followed him down the dark hole that led into the sewers, wishing her night vision was as good as Derpy's and that she could see where she was going, but at the same time slightly grateful that she couldn't. She bit her tongue as she heard the sound of rats scurrying by, and prayed that her hair didn't get tangled in any cobwebs.
Derpy reached the ground first and helped Fluttershy the rest of the way. "Just a m-moment," she whispered, climbing back up part way to take the iron grate and pull it once more over the sewer entrance.
"Have you traveled this way much?" Fluttershy asked nervously, determined not to shriek as she felt something tiny, with wet scraggly fur, brush past her ankle.
"N-n-not very much...Rainbow Dash s-s-showed this place to me once...and I've seen her a-a-and Shortround, and e-e-even the Master use it. W-while it is the s-safest way in a-and out of the opera house...it is also t-the least guarded."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed at her words. "What do you mean?"
Derpy sighed. "The Master h-has t-t-traps set all over the opera house, t-t-to keep trespassers out. B-b-but because this entrance is s-s-so obscure, not to m-mention very d-d-dark, the Master has n-never felt a need to guard it as w-well as the others. B-b-but he always s-says t-t-that w-we must be careful if we u-use it."
Fluttershy nodded her head with understanding. "Yes, in case somepony does see you use it, you don't want any unwanted visitors."
Derpy nodded her head back, and then, without any warning, turned and picked Fluttershy up. "H-here, d-don't w-w-want you ruining y-your dress."
Fluttershy had been startled by the sudden feeling of being lifted off the ground. "Oh! But Derpy, that is not necessary, I assure-"
"It w-w-wouldn't do," she interrupted. "F-f-for you to see the Master a-a-and have a s-soiled dress."
Fluttershy was moved by Derpy's sweet and simple gesture. "How did you know I wanted to see your master?"
Derpy grinned and let out a small chuckle. "Y-y-you began b-b-breathing m-more and more r-r-r-rapidly the c-closer we got to the opera house," she explained. "O-only ponies who are afraid...or in love, d-do that."
Fluttershy blushed, but couldn't help but smile in response. "Derpy, you may be the world's most perceptive, most wise mare, that ever lived."
"Did you see that?" hissed the second officer to his partner, who was trailing behind.
"No," the first officer grumbled, gasping for breath and leaning against a building for support. "T-t-they were moving too quickly," he panted.
The second officer rolled his eyes. "Perhaps if you drank less and exercised more, you wouldn't be as winded as you are now, and you would have seen them disappear, as I did...through that!"
The first officer peered to where his partner had pointed, but all he saw was a tall stone building covered in shadows. "They went into the building?"
"NO!" the second officer groaned in exasperation. "There's a hole in the ground...the big one picked something up and they both disappeared into the ground!"
The first officer threw his hoofs up in irritation. "Well what are we supposed to do about it?"
The second officer just gave him a look, before crossing the street to the place where Derpy and Fluttershy had been standing. His partner reluctantly followed, grumbling all the way, and snorting with disgust when the second officer asked for help with moving the iron grate.
After much straining and cursing, they finally managed to move the grate and peer into the place where Fluttershy and Derpy had disappeared. "You smell that?" the second officer asked, his eyes flying to his partner.
The first officer coughed, and sadly nodded his head. "Wish I couldn't," he muttered.
"It's the sewer!" the second officer gasped. "They're taking the sewer to...to somewhere!"
The first officer rolled his eyes. "And where do you suppose they are going?"
"Only one way to find out..."
The first officer stared at his partner with a blank expression, before his eyes finally widened with the realization at what the other man was suggesting. "No...no, you can not be serious!"
"Come on! We'll lose sight of them if we don't hurry up!"
"No!" the first officer hissed. "I am not going down there to simply follow some...some freak and idiot girl!"
"If you don't come with me now," the second officer warned, "I'll tell the Prince, myself, that you refused to help with this investigation...and not only will that mean that you don't get a cut of the money, but that you won't get any further assignments...because you'll be fired!"
The first officer glared at his partner. "Silverstar wouldn't order us to do anything like this."
"Well, Silverstar isn't running this investigation!" the second officer hissed.
The first officer let out a labored sigh and began to follow his partner who was already descending down the dark sewer entrance. "Seems that Silverstar isn't running much anymore, not since the Prince's been visiting the station..."
Fluttershy was extremely surprised to find where she and Derpy had ended up. She had assumed that the sewer led directly to the underground lake in Discord's lair, but rather, it flowed just away from the opera cellars, in fact, if she and Derpy and continued going straight, they would have traveled the sewer for miles, as Derpy informed her. But instead, they turned a corner at one point, and stopped momentarily, as Derpy wrestled with a large rock, finally pushing it away to reveal a crawl space hidden behind it.
The space was just large enough for Derpy to fit, and she led the way, Fluttershy close behind. It did not take them long to reach the other end of the crawl space, which opened itself up into a large round pipe. Derpy helped Fluttershy out of the pipe, and she gasped as she realized they were standing atop a small ravine that overlooked the chamber where Derpy and the others slept.
Fluttershy couldn't help but grin as she looked down at the place where her dear beloved friends lived, hoping to see there faces (even Rainbow Dash would be a welcomed sight), but her smile faded as she realized the chamber was empty.
"I w-w-wonder w-where they all are?" Derpy murmured out loud.
As if on cue, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Shortround, entered the chamber, each talking all at once, their voices filled with questions and excitement.
"Derpy is all right?" Rarity choked, tears of relief streaming down her face. "That is what she said?"
Shortround grinned and nodded his head. "Yes, she told me that Fluttershy had found him and would be returning him tonight!"
"Tonight?" Rainbow Dash gasped. "How? When?"
"Oh! Fluttershy will be here?" Rarity gasped, her face lighting up with excitement. "Oh how wonderful! I have missed her so dearly-"
"RARITY!"
The three who stood on the ground looked upward and let out a unified gasp as Fluttershy, who was also crying and grinning from ear to ear, waved at them happily.
"FLUTTERSHY!" they practically shouted in unison.
"And Derpy! She brought Derpy just as Madam Luna said!" Shortround gasped with delight, as the large hunchback carefully carried Fluttershy down the ravine.
As soon as Fluttershy's hooves touched the ground, she flew into the arms of her friends, falling to her knees to hug Rarity, reaching out to give Shortround a fierce hug, and even leaping on her feet to hug Rainbow Dash, much to her surprise. She stood stiff as she felt Fluttershy's arms go around her, but even she couldn't help it, and gave in somewhat, her good arm hugging her back.
Rarity was in Derpy's arms instantly after Fluttershy released her. She was weeping over her, and she was crying with her, murmuring how sorry she was for frightening her and the others, reassuring them all she would never do it again. Rarity was just too happy to have her back, that she didn't bother to scold her, she just wrapped her arms around Derpy's head and planted kisses all across her brow.
"Oh, Fluttershy," Shortround sighed, smiling so brightly at the sight of her. "It is so good to have you back! Oh this place has been a tomb since you left!"
Fluttershy blushed but smiled at his words and squeezed his hooves in hers. "Believe it or not, but the world above is not much better without any of you."
"And uh...your father?" Rainbow Dash tentatively asked, trying to keep her emotions under control and not reveal that she was as glad as the others to see her again.
"Oh, he is very well," Fluttershy grinned. "He is doing so much better now that he is free from that place," she reached out and touched Rainbow Dash's cheek, before leaning up on to kiss it. "Thank you Rainbow Dash, for finding him."
Rainbow Dash was blushing from ear to ear. "Y-you know?" she asked, somewhat surprised.
Fluttershy nodded her head and brushed the tears from her eyes. "Madam Luna told me how you found the prison where they were keeping him. Thank you so much," she whispered, trying hard to control her tears of joy at seeing her friends again once more.
"Oh Fluttershy, we have missed you so," Rarity sighed, happiness now replacing her melancholy. "And I am glad to hear that your father is safe and well...and thank you...thank you so much for helping Derpy."
Fluttershy smiled at the mare who was practically sitting on Derpy's shoulder. She opened her mouth to respond, but a chill swept through the air, and everyone turned to the entryway to see the tall, dark, and broad figure of Discord, standing and staring at Fluttershy, his chest rising and falling as if he had just run a marathon.
Fluttershy was frozen in place and felt her breath catch as his dark amber eyes captured hers, holding her gaze to him as a lover holds his beloved in the night. Her throat went dry, her voice disappeared, and Fluttershy was sure that even her breathing had stopped. The presence of the others seemed to have disappeared; all she could see was him...
Shortround looked back and forth between Fluttershy and the Master, and swallowed the lump in his throat before finally speaking. "Derpy is back, Master. Fluttershy...she brought him home, just...just as Madam Luna said."
Discord's eyes never left Fluttershy's when he finally spoke, his voice dark and calm. "I am glad you are safe, Derpy."
Fluttershy thought her knees would buckle at the sound of Discord's voice. It had been too long...
Derpy bit his lip, fearing the punishment he may receive. "I'm s-s-s-sorry I l-left Master-"
"It doesn't matter now," Discord interrupted, his eyes still focused on Fluttershy. "I'm just glad that you're safe."
The others glanced at one another awkwardly, unsure what to say or do. Finally, it was Fluttershy who found her voice and spoke up. "Discord...if...if I may...I wish to talk to you-"
"I'll meet you in your chamber," he simply said, turning on his heel and disappearing as suddenly as he had appeared, his black cape billowing behind him.
Fluttershy felt as if somepony had punched her in the stomach. His voice sounded so cold! So unfeeling! It was as she had feared; he must have heard the news of her false engagement.
But instead of giving way to tears, she lifted her chin high, determined to make him hear what she had to say, and determined to show him how deeply she still loved him. She ran her hoof across and said a silent prayer for God to give her courage and keep her emotions under control.
"It was good to see you all again," she murmured, turning to the others and smiling at all of them, biting her lip to hold back the tears.
"God bless you," Rarity whispered, climbing down from Derpy's shoulder, and reaching out for the young mare, who stooped to her knees to hug the tiny mare fiercely. "It will all be all right," Rarity whispered into Fluttershy's hair. "Have no fear, dear...keep your chin up."
Fluttershy smiled at Rarity's words, brushing away a few renegade tears that had escaped, and with her head lifted high and determination in her eyes, she turned and left the chamber.
"Ahh! What the hell was that?"
"Keep your voice down! Do you want them to hear us?" hissed the second officer at his partner, who was trailing behind him as they plunged further and further into the sewer.
"That better not have been a rat that just-"
"Shut up!"
"No, you shut up!" the first officer retorted. "This wasn't my idea! We should have just gone and told the Prince when we had the opportunity."
"We'll get the message to him soon enough. Right now, we just keep watch for this mare and...and that thing that's with her."
The first officer groaned and continued to trudge through the sludge and filth behind his partner. "How are we going to watch this mare when we can barely see anything down here? And furthermore, how far are we going to follow them? This place must go on for miles!"
The second officer ignored his partner's protests and continued trudging onward. "This is crazy," the first officer muttered, following close behind, and then cursed when he ran into the other man. "Ouch! Why did you stop?"
"Quiet..."
"No! Why did you stop-"
"BE QUIET!" the second officer hissed, turning and clutching the other man by the collar of his uniform and shaking him. "Look..."
The first officer followed the direction of his partner's hoof, noticing that he was pointing at the ground just off to the left of them. "Hoofprints."
There, on the dry stony ground just around a small turn, was a pair of muddy, filthy hoofprints that stopped at a large rock. "They went through there," the second officer murmured.
The first officer snorted. "I only see one pair...that couldn't be them."
"When have you ever seen a pair of hoofprints that large?" the second officer argued. He had a point; the muddy hoofprints were big enough for the average stallion to fit 2 of his hooves in.
"Well where did they go?"
"I don't know," the second officer whispered. "But I have a feeling that if we move this rock, we'll find out."
The first officer groaned and lifted his eyes heavenward. "Lifting...why did it have to be lifting?"
Fluttershy couldn't believe how after all these weeks of being away, her chamber looked untouched, as if she had been there all this time. A part of her was curious to see Discord's chamber; it was almost impossible to believe what Derpy had told her, that Discord had destroyed his beloved piano. The practical side of her, however, protested to the very thought of disobeying Discord right now, and deep down she knew that if she saw that horrific sight, her struggle to tell him the truth would be even more difficult.
She had been in the chamber for quite some time, and Fluttershy was beginning to worry that perhaps Discord was not going to see her after all. Perhaps he had intended to avoid her all along?
With a weary sigh, she peeled the lacy curtains back from her bed, and sat on its soft surface, gazing at the tiny waterfall that glimmered in the far corner of her room.
She didn't hear him when he entered.
"Is it true?"
Fluttershy gasped and leapt to her feet, turning at once to face him, feeling her legs shake at the hoofsome sight of him.
He was glorious; tall and dark, towering over her like a mountain, reminding Fluttershy how wonderful it felt to be caught in his arms, to be held and crushed in his arms.
His eyes were brilliant; dark and mysterious, and yet their amber color burned with so many different promises: danger, menace, destruction, and passion.
She knew Discord would not believe her if she told him, but she prayed that perhaps one day he would understand when she told him she thought him hoofsome. His features were not classically or fashionably hoofsome, not the same way Blueblood's was; but the rugged lines of his jaw, the sharp angles of his chin, and the unkemptness of his black hair; Fluttershy could not imagine a stallion who looked more desirable.
And yes, even his face and body was hoofsome to her. She gazed at the black mask that he wore which covered both sides of his face, wondering why he had stopped wearing the white-half mask that revealed his unscarred cheek. Truly, this mask was much more menacing, but Fluttershy held no fear for the creature that wore it...simply longing. Longing to touch him, longing to run her lips across his brow, and over his scars, to show him again how much she loved him, how much she desired him.
Discord watched her intently, his muscles twitching from the strain of his willpower. It was all he had, to keep himself from taking two long strides and grabbing her up in his arms. No, he had to stay focused; he needed to know if what Madam Luna had told him was true.
Discord remembered the scene not very long ago when he was on the roof of the opera house and Madam Luna had just informed him of her suspicions over Fluttershy's condition.
He didn't speak. He couldn't speak! His voice had literally been taken from him, in fact, he couldn't breathe!
Fluttershy was pregnant? Fluttershy...his Fluttershy...was with little one? His little one?
"The babe is yours, if that is what is worrying you," Madam Luna muttered when she noticed Discord's face pale at her revelation.
Discord stared at the dance mistress and finally let out a gasp, as if he had been under water. "How...how do you know this?"
"Discord, Fluttershy loves you! She would not, and she has not slept with the Prince-"
"STOP!" he roared, causing Madam Luna to actually tremble from his outburst. "How...do...you...know...that she is pregnant?" he said with short, clipped words.
Madam Luna sighed softly. "All the signs are there; she has been feeling nauseous almost every morning, and has as of late, been prone to light-headedness, even fainting spells."
"That can be a case of ill nerves!" Discord growled, throwing his arms up in the air. "It proves nothing."
Madam Luna shook her head. "Discord, I am no doctor, I do not know for certain, but...as a mare, and as a mother...I know what I see, and I believe that she is pregnant...and it is yours. And don't bother asking yourself how this could be...I think you know the answer to that all too well, even though I'll admit I never thought a creature such as yourself could breed with ponies. . ."
Discord was not one prone to blushing, but in that moment he did feel his face grow hot at the dance mistress' assumption. And she was right; even now, he felt his body tremble with desire as memories of his and Fluttershy's love making returned once more. How many nights since their first encounter had they spent in each other's arms? It was not impossible to believe that sometime during those many nights, they had created a babe together. Discord had never imagined of one day becoming a father...but then, he had never imagined he would find and know love, either.
He knew the second Fluttershy had reentered his world. He felt her presence from far away, and flew to the place where she was, gasping at the beautiful sight of her, her cheeks rosy from the cold night air, her blue eyes shimmering from happy tears, her pink locks, mussed and tangled, and her soft pink lips...curved into a joyous smile as she exchanged greetings with the others. And when she looked at him, as she was looking at him now...he felt as if time itself had stopped, allowing him to take in all the beauty of this moment.
And somewhere, perhaps deep within his imagination, he could hear music; beautiful, haunting music...a cantata playing, just for them.
"Discord..." Fluttershy breathed as she looked at him, standing in the entryway of her chamber.
"Answer my question, Fluttershy," he murmured, his voice soft, but very deep. "Is it true?"
Fluttershy took a deep breath and lifted her head high. "No Discord, it's not."
Discord felt as if somepony had punched him, hard, in the stomach, knocking all the oxygen out of his body. He had not realized, until Fluttershy's revelation, how much the thought of having a babe with her meant to him. He feared the sort of father he would be; he knew nothing about fillies or colts! What would he do? Where did one begin? But the thought of Fluttershy's belly, swelling as each month past, and then the thought of her holding their babe in her arms, nursing their son or daughter at her breast...he felt his throat tightened at the beauty of the image...and he felt his heart stop at the sudden loss of having that.
Fluttershy noticed Discord go still. He would not look into her eyes, and the black mask made it hard for her to read his features. But she could tell something was wrong, simply by the stiff way he held himself. Perhaps he did not believe her?
"Madam Luna was so sure..." he whispered.
Fluttershy shook her head. "No, I explained everything to Madam Luna, it was all a horrible mistake."
Discord looked up at Fluttershy, his eyes filled with confusion and pain. A horrible mistake? She being pregant...with his filly or colt...was a horrible mistake?
A cold feeling washed over him; could he blame her for thinking such things?
Fluttershy bit her lip. What was wrong? Why did Discord look so upset? She thought he would be glad to know that her engagement wasn't true? "Celestia started the whole thing," she explained.
"Celestia?" None of this made sense. "Why would Celestia start such rumors?" he demanded, rage beginning to boil within him.
Fluttershy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat, hearing the angry rise in his voice. "She...she is jealous that I have the lead," Fluttershy softly explained.
Discord began pacing, every muscle taught with building rage. "And naturally she assumed that in your condition, you would not be able to perform."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed at this. "I suppose," she murmured, although she didn't see why the announcement of her being engaged to Blueblood would prevent her from performing in Don Juan. "Perhaps she thought the scandal would cause me to retreat from performing?" After all, the announcement of the Prince being engaged to a chorus mare wasn't exactly the most flattering of news stories...especially for her.
Discord had stopped his pacing momentarily and looked at Fluttershy with burning fury. "Yes...it would create scandal wouldn't it?" he growled. If that harpy tried to take possession of his opera, and do it by means of harming Fluttershy in any way, shape, or form...
He reached out and gripped one of the posts of Fluttershy's bed, causing the whole thing to shake under the force of his paw.
Fluttershy trembled at the signs of his anger. She did not fear for herself, she truly believed that Discord would never harm her...it was him she was worried about. "But Discord, it doesn't matter now," Fluttershy whispered, reaching out for his hoof. "It isn't true, it was just a vicious rumor, I'm not-"
"DOESN'T MATTER?"
Fluttershy jumped at the sound of Discord's roar; the whole chamber seemed to shake from the sound.
He took a deep, calming, breath, not wishing to frighten her. "Fluttershy, forgive me, but...after everything I have witnessed recently, after...after seeing you with..." he couldn't finish the words; he hated that pony so much!
Fluttershy reached out and grasped his paw that held the bedpost. "I don't love him, I never have," she quickly explained, her voice trying to sound soothing and reassuring. "I can only imagine what you must be thinking, after seeing me stay at that place, and then seeing me leave with him only last night..."
"Indeed," Discord growled. "And then hearing this news on top of all that..."
Fluttershy felt the tears begin to slip down her cheeks, betraying her resolve not to cry. "I...I thought you would be happy," she choked, feeling the sobs grow in her throat. "I...I'm so sorry..." How he must despise her...
Discord caught her hoof. "Fluttershy," he whispered, his paw gently massaging her hoof, and his claw moving to lift her chin up to meet his eyes. "Oh my sweet angel," he breathed, before taking her in his arms and holding her close to his chest, feeling her tremble against him, feeling her tears soak his shirt. His arms tightened even more and he rested his cheek atop her head, whispering soothing words into her hair as she sobbed against him. "Do not apologize," he whispered. "I am sorry...I behaved horribly and shouldn't have."
Fluttershy said nothing, she just hugged him even tighter, relishing the feel of his arms around her once more, protecting her, comforting her, shielding her from all the evils that haunted them outside.
Discord ran his paw through her hair, his lips grazing the curs, and his breath warm upon her skin. "Forgive me," he murmured. "I just...I never realized how...how wonderful the thought was, until you told me it wasn't true..."
Fluttershy suddenly pushed herself away from him, her face contorted in confusion and horror. "W-w-what?" she gasped.
Discord stared at her in bewilderment, surprised by her sudden actions, and even more so by the look on her face. He opened his mouth, but her words cut him to the core.
"How...how can you say that?" she practically spat. "Is...is this some kind of trick? Some sort of...of sick revenge game that you are playing at?"
Discord stared at her, his eyes wide with shock. "Trick?" he breathed, before the anger clouded his eyes, nearly turning them black. "TRICK?" he roared. "YOU THINK I WOULD..." he was so disgusted, he couldn't finish his sentence. "OBVIOUSLY YOUR THOUGHTS IN REGARDS TO ME HAVE LESSONED GREATLY SINCE WE LAST WERE TOGETHER!"
Fluttershy felt her own rage boil up and over. "DON'T TALK TO ME ABOUT LESSONED THOUGHTS!" she shouted back. "I WAS NOT THE ONE WHO LIED ABOUT MY LOVE FOR YOU IN ORDER TO SEND ME AWAY!"
Discord couldn't believe this was happening. "Ah, so it's come to that, has it? I AM BEING PUNISHED, IS THAT IT? YOU'RE PUNISHING ME FOR GOING OUT OF MY WAY TO FIND YOUR FATHER, AND GIVE YOU BACK A LIFE IN THE WORLD ABOVE?"
"NO!" she screamed back at him. "BUT I WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT SOMEPONY LIKE YOU, WHO LIED ABOUT HIS FEELINGS TO ME TO MAKE ME LEAVE...AND WHO SAID SOME HORRIBLE THINGS TO COMPLETE THE ILLUSION," she shouted, "WOULD HAVE AT LEAST BEEN MORE UNDERSTANDING WHEN I ATTEMPTED TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH!"
Discord swore under his breath. "The truth? More understanding?" he growled, dangerously low.
Fluttershy's chest was heaving from their argument, but she glared right back at him. "Yes," she hissed.
"FINE!" Discord roared. "YOU WANT THE TRUTH? YES! YES, I LIED TO MAKE YOU LEAVE! I NEVER ONCE STOPPED LOVING YOU, THOUGH!" he shouted.
"GOOD!" Fluttershy shouted back. "BECAUSE I NEVER STOPPED LOVING YOU!"
They both stared at each other for a long moment, unsure what to say or do next.
"If you still love me," Discord murmured, "then why did I see you with the Prince the other night?"
Fluttershy groaned. "My father made the arrangements. He told the Prince I would have dinner with him, and the ONLY reason I accepted was so I could tell him to stop attempting to court me!"
Discord stared at Fluttershy with surprise. "Truly?"
"YES!" Fluttershy shouted in exasperation. "Haven't you been listening to what I have been saying? I never loved the Prince! NEVER! You..." she murmured, her eyes focused steadily on him. "You are the only creature I have ever loved...and will ever love."
Discord took a step towards her. "You mean that?" he whispered.
"Oh Discord, of course-"
"Then why did you...why did you say it didn't matter? Why did you tell me it was a horrible mistake?"
Fluttershy stared at Discord, her head reeling with confusion. "Discord...you're not making sense!"
"You said it didn't matter! You acted as though it was...it was something awful! You're the one who is not making sense Fluttershy!" he charged.
Fluttershy felt her throat tighten once more. "Am I wrong?" she spat. "You're telling me you think it's a good thing?"
"YES!" Discord shouted, advancing upon her and taking her hoofs in his. "Yes, I do...I...in all my life...I have never heard more wonderful news!"
"How can you say that?"
"Because it's the truth!"
Their voices were rising again and they began to talk over each other.
"YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU THINK-"
"YES FLUTTERSHY, I AM TELLING YOU THAT IT IS A GOOD THING-"
"THAT I'M ENGAGED TO THE PRINCE?"
"THAT YOU'RE PREGNANT!"
Silence, far louder than any of their screams, filled the chamber with an awful din that could only be interrupted by a unison, "WHAT?"
"You're...you're engaged to the Prince?"
"You t-t-thought I was pregnant?"
The questions had suddenly switched sides.
Fluttershy covered her mouth and tried to turn away, her face turning the brightest shade of red out of embarrassment and shamefulness for misunderstanding Discord's intentions, but Discord gripped her by her shoulders and forced her to look at him. "What do you mean Fluttershy? Tell me! What were you trying to explain?"
"I...I..." she was shaking all over. Discord thought she was pregnant! Why would he think...?
Oh God.
The nausea she had almost every morning; her sudden dizzy spells that left her feeling light-headed. She had assumed that they were all symptoms of nervousness! But how did bad nerves explain the fact that for nearly two months, she hadn't been menstruating...
"Discord..." she weakly cried, feeling her knees buckle as the realization of it all hit her like a brick wall.
He saw her face pale and her eyes widen with shock; she was assessing everything he had said...and it was then that he realized she had not known what Madam Luna had suspected...until now. Before his name left her lips, he was there, catching her before she crumpled to the ground.
Oh so gently, he laid her upon the bed, his arms never leaving her, never wanting to let her go ever again. And he couldn't if he tried; Fluttershy gripped his shirt like a vice, needing to feel him close to her.
"Ssshh, it's alright," he whispered, his lips moving to her forehead and kissing the skin tenderly. "I'm here...I'm here, my angel."
She began to cry again, but these were not sobs of pain and misery that she had been shedding before. No, this was something completely different; she was crying out of exhaustion, for the sudden weight of everything that was crashing around her. But Discord continued to hold her close, his arms never once loosening; he would be there to hold the weight up so it would not crush her.
"Discord..." she sobbed, her small hooves moving around his waist, her head burrowing further against his chest. "I...I'm so...I'm so sorry-"
"Hush," he soothed. "There is nothing for you to apologize for," he murmured into her hair.
"No, you must...you must know that I am not-"
"Engaged to the Prince?" he finished for her. She looked up at him, her eyes slightly pink from her crying, her cheeks moist from her tears. She was still radiant. "You said you were not, and I believe you," he murmured, his lips gently kissing her forehead once more. "I was listening to what you were telling me...I only now realize what you were trying to say."
Fluttershy snuggled closer to him, wanting to be wrapped further in his warmth. "Everyone assumed because I had left with him the other night, that there was something happening between us," she whispered.
Discord's arms tightened around her, but not out of jealousy. After all, he had her love, what was there to be jealous about? No, he held her tight because he knew that she had been going through hell up there, in the world above. His brave angel had endured much ridicule and scrutiny over the last few weeks since she had returned. Had he known what he would have been putting her through, he would never have made her go.
"A-and Celestia saw me wearing this," she murmured, holding up her hoof which bore the bracelet he had given her.
Discord felt his breath catch as he saw the candlelight glow off the gold. "You have been wearing it?" he whispered.
"Not all the time," Fluttershy whispered, feeling somewhat ashamed. "But I have been carrying it close to me," she looked up into his eyes and smiled softly. "It's very beautiful."
Discord reached out and brushed a stray wave from her cheek. "It pales in comparison to you," he murmured, his paw lightly playing over her skin.
A shiver went through Fluttershy's body at his touch, and she felt her heart begin to melt at the intense way he was looking at her.
"You are very brave, my angel," he murmured, smiling down at her. "You risked revealing our love to the world by wearing my ring, and you faced a predator like the Prince all by yourself. I am in awe of you, Fluttershy."
She looked into his eyes and saw the sincerity of his words. He truly thought her amazing; a strange warmth washed over her from the sweet understanding. She sighed and snuggled her head in the crook of his arm. "And...you believed I was pregnant?"
Discord's soft "yes" reverberated deep within his chest, and Fluttershy felt the sound wash over her, causing her body to tremble once more.
But she knew that they needed to talk about this. She took a deep breath and moved away from him to sit up, slowly turning to face him, a nervous look in her eyes. Discord sat up immediately, seeing the concern that had washed over her face. "Fluttershy? What's wrong?"
Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat and took Discord's paw in her hoof, bringing it to rest on her stomach. "I...I didn't think about it until you mentioned it, but..." she looked up into his eyes, surprised to see such tender understanding reflected in them. "I...I haven't been," she glanced down, slightly embarrassed to finish the sentence. "It's been nearly two months since...well..." she looked up at him and Discord softly smiled back, understanding what she was trying to say. "I think...I think it's true..."
Discord's eyes never left hers. And his paw never left her stomach. He didn't say anything at all, but his claw did rise to run across her cheek, before he slowly moved in, and brushed his lips across hers.
Fluttershy moaned and returned the kiss, her hooves rising to touch his masked face. It was not as passionate as some of their previous kisses had been...but it was one of the sweetest, one of the tenderest, and one of the most beautiful, that she had ever experienced.
"Then that is wonderful news," he breathed against her mouth. She opened her eyes and looked into his own to see him smiling. He meant it; he meant every word that he had said.
"Oh Discord," Fluttershy murmured, her smile radiant, her eyes shimmering with love and joy, her hoofs holding his face as she brought her mouth back up to his, moaning as she felt his lips cover hers and kiss her just as fiercely.
She was his; her heart belonged completely to him...as his heart belonged completely to her. Indeed, God had taken mercy on his miserable existence, bringing this beautiful angel into his life, returning her to him even after he forced her away. His arms wrapped around her body and he pulled her even closer, his tongue diving into the depths of her mouth as Fluttershy whimpered his name. She tasted so sweet, so pure, he couldn't get enough.
"Fluttershy..." he growled, his breath ragged as he leaned his forehead against hers, panting from the intense passion that was overtaking them.
Their passionate cries filled the chamber. Discord collapsed atop his beloved, his sweat mingling with her own, his chest heaving along with hers, his heart beating to her rhythm. "Oh Fluttershy," he panted, his lips moving across her flesh. She happily moaned his name and captured his lips with hers once more. They kissed deeply, their bodies still joined and their limbs tangled, both with each other and the sheets.
Nothing was going to part them now, not Celestia's rumors, not Bluebloods attempts, and not even their own foolish misunderstanding.
"I hate this."
"Will you be quiet?"
"No!" the first officer protested, extremely tempted to kick his partner. They had both managed to roll away the large rock that blocked the supposed entrance to the crawl space which now they were traveling. The first officer, much to his reluctance, had gone in first, and spent much of the time complaining about how sore his palms and knees were from the crawling. "Should have just gone to the Prince when we had the chance," he muttered.
"Will you stop complaining?" the second officer muttered. "And perhaps spend more of your time moving instead!"
The first officer was well prepared to turn and give in to the temptation of kicking his partner, when something caused him to pause.
Voices.
And he swore he could see a dim light up ahead.
Without any further word, he crawled towards the dim light, and he realized that the space opened up to what looked like a large pipe. Shadows played across the wall just beyond the pipe's exit, and the officer realized that the light was coming from a fire. His suspicions were confirmed as the smell of burning wood filled his nostrils.
"What are you doing?" the second officer groaned.
"Shut up!" the first officer hissed. "I hear something..."
Very carefully, the first officer crawled as silently as possible towards the end of the pipe. His ears were perked as he listened to various sentences he could make out from the voices below.
"-I hope that the Master and Fluttershy clear things up."
"-so nice to have her back! I have missed her so!"
"-I m-m-met Fluttershy's f-f-father...he's v-v-very nice."
"-how long do you think she'll stay this time?"
The officer held his breath as very slowly, very carefully, he poked his head around the pipe's exit just far enough so he could get a glimpse of who was talking.
He had to bite his tongue, quite literally, to keep from gasping at the sight of the freaks before him.
"What do you see?" the second officer whispered.
The first officer began to crawl backwards, and the second officer, instead of questioning what was going on, quickly moved backwards as well, and said nothing further until they reached the end of the tunnel, and were once more on the other side of the crawl space. "WHAT? What did you see?"
"Good Lord," the first officer gasped. "There are four of them!"
"Four of what?"
"Freaks! Monsters! Just like that big one we were following tonight!"
The second officer paled. "All just as big as her?"
"No, not literally like him...but..." he shuddered at the memory. "One was a dwarf, another had...well, her face was grotesque. And then there was this mare with a peg leg!"
The second officer eyed his partner with some disbelief. "You're joking..."
"Do I LOOK like I'm joking?"
The second officer saw by the horror in the other man's eyes, and knew that this was indeed no joke; somewhere, beneath the earth, lived monsters! "What about the mare?"
"Didn't see her," the first officer explained. "Maybe...maybe they killed her?"
The second officer shook his head. "Why would they kill her if she knew them?"
"I don't know!" the first officer protested. "They're monsters! Who knows what they would do?" He shook his head, the image of those creatures still flashing across his eyes. "What now?"
The second officer couldn't help but smile at his partner. "Now, we send word to the Prince." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Emotion | Emotion
For the first time in what felt like centuries...things were right.
Discord moaned as he felt something soft run across his leg. Without opening his eyes, he moved his paw to touch the object, and a content smile spread across his face as his paw wrapped around a shapely smooth thigh.
He moved his head, and found waves tickling his nose. He moaned again as he felt sweet lips kiss the muscles on his chest, before feeling her soft smooth cheek rest once more against him. His other claw rose to tangle in her hair, and his lips found her brow, brushing a gentle kiss across the skin.
Yes, for the first time in far too long, things were right.
"I've missed this," Fluttershy murmured, purring contentedly as she felt Discord's paw caress her arm, which lay across his chest.
"So have I," he whispered, his paw finding her hoof, and bringing it to his lips. "It has been far too long."
Fluttershy smiled and turned her head, so that her chin rested on his chest and she could look into his eyes. "Let's make a promise, here and now, to never let our own foolishness part us again...ever."
Discord smiled down at her and squeezed her hoof tenderly. "Agreed."
Fluttershy grinned and snuggled her head once more against him, her mass of pink waves blanketing his chest. "I must thank my father for his wisdom in telling me to come here."
Discord's paw stilled momentarily by her announcement. "Your father told you to come here?" Had he heard her correctly? The very stallion who had a right to despise him...encouraged his beautiful daughter to return to her beast? "You told your father about us?"
"Well...not everything," Fluttershy giggled with a slight blush. "But I did tell him how it was you who found him, who gave me the money to release him, and..." she smiled and reached up to run her hoof across his disfigured flesh, "...how you are the stallion I love with my whole heart."
Discord held his breath as Fluttershy revealed everything that had transpired between her and her father. "And...how did he react to this news?"
Fluttershy's smile was radiant, and she leaned up to brush her lips across his. "Very well, actually," she grinned. "My father was fooled by the Prince; he believed Blueblood to be an absolute gentlecolt, and that we owed our lives to him. But I have been able to make him see reason, as well as the truth, and today, when I told him about you...he could see how deeply my love was...and he believed me when I told him that you loved me," Fluttershy nestled her head over his chest so that she could hear his heart beating. "My father is a good stallion, Discord, and as any good father, he wants the best for me...and he knows that the best for me is to be with somepony whom I love and respect," she smiled as she looked up at him. "So he gave me his blessing, and encouraged me to come to you, and to not leave until you heard my feelings."
Discord couldn't help but smile down at her, his paw now tracing her cheek. "Now I understand where your power of amazement comes from," he murmured. "And in all honesty, it's still hard for me to fathom. Your father has a right to hate me, revile me, and distrust me, especially now that I have seduced his one and only daughter."
"My father believes me when I tell him that you are not the same stallion as you were that day you took me prisoner," Fluttershy soothed. "And he can see that for himself, especially after I explained that it was through you that I knew where to find you. He is thankful to you for reuniting us...but he said so himself, he could not bear the thought of keeping you and I apart. He has accepted my choice, Discord," Fluttershy whispered, bringing Discord's hoof to her lips. "He has accepted us."
Discord found himself wondering if this was all some elaborate dream; for the first time in his life, everything that was happening to him was good. After a childhood spent in a cage, and twenty years spent in the cold dark bowels of the Maris Opera House...he was finally receiving everything he could have ever hoped and dreamed for...but had been too cynical to try. He did not deserve God's mercy...but he would forever be thankful for it.
"I never truly doubted, you know," she murmured, her head once again settling on his chest. "There was always a part of me that believed that you were lying, when you sent me away..."
A frown shadowed Discord's face. "Fluttershy, I'm so sorry for that night, I don't deserve your forgiv-"
Her lips stopped him from apologizing further. Discord could not help but welcome the kiss, his paw and claw holding her lovely face to his, until his lungs burned for air. She smiled down at him, and let her lips trail across his scars. "It is forgotten," she whispered. "I know that you did it all because you wanted me to be with my father...and you thought you were doing the right thing, letting me return above-"
Discord's claw and paw lifted her face away so he could look directly into her eyes. "It does not change the fact that I hurt you, Fluttershy," he softly said, his eyes filled with shame and sadness. "And for that, I will never forgive myself. You have a right to hate me-"
"But I don't," Fluttershy reassured, her eyes shimmering with love for him. "We have hurt each other in ways we're not proud of...but despite all that, our love has never lessoned. It has led us back to this place, it has led us back to each other!" she smiled and bent her lips to kiss his once more. "Let us learn from our mistakes, but not let them rule us."
Discord knew that no matter how many years he lived, there would never be a day where Fluttershy wouldn't amaze him in some way. "I thought God had abandoned me," he whispered in awe as his paw traced the soft contours of her face. "But here you are, my angel...with me, here, now..."
"And my heart too," Fluttershy whispered back, feeling fresh tears of joy brim in her eyes. "But it has never left this place...it has always been with you."
Discord's paw tangled in her hair once more and he brought her lips down to his, drinking in her essence, her sweetness, yearning for his taste of heaven. Fluttershy giggled against his mouth as she felt him role her over onto her back, his body moving over hers once more. "Why, Monsieur Phantom," she whispered coyly, "I did not realize you were...up...to three performances a night."
"Amazing what the right audience will do to increase one's stamina, don't you think, mademoiselle?" he growled.
Emotion was welling up deep in his chest. "No...for the first time in my life...everything is so right." He had found love, and even more extraordinary, his angel loved him in return, despite the scars of his face and past. "Fluttershy...do you remember the night I came to you?"
Fluttershy blushed furiously at the memory. "That song was so haunting...so beautiful...I thought I must be dreaming," she whispered. It had perhaps been one of the most sensual and erotic experiences of her life. "But I wasn't," she murmured, gazing into his eyes, before looking down at the bracelet on her hoof. "You left me this, so that I would know of your presence."
Discord shook his head. "I left you that so you would know of my intentions," his large paw and claw enfolded both of hers. "Fluttershy, the song you heard...was a gift of mine, to you."
"A gift?"
"Yes, a song that I had been writing for...months really, a tune that would not leave my head," he explained. "A song that you inspired shortly after we began our lessons...and it continued to grow, until I could not hold it inside me any longer, and I had to write it down." He paused and looked down at her hoof, his paw, large and calloused, delicately tracing her much smaller and softer hooves. "On the night I sent you away...I had intended to sing you that song..." he looked into her eyes and almost lost his breath as he saw her love and understanding reflected back. "And I had also intended to give you this..." he whispered, his thumb running across the ring. "Even after you left...the song wouldn't die. I burned it, even destroyed the piano where I had composed it...and yet the music, the lyrics, everything...it refused to be forgotten."
Fluttershy thought she might choke on the emotion that was bubbling up in her throat. She was trembling, not from cold or fear, but from pure emotion...and anticipation.
"During those dark days that past, when my world of music had become a sarcophagus, I truly wanted to die," his gaze caught hers, and Fluttershy bit her lip to keep herself from protesting. She understood that he needed to finish this first. "And then, on that day when I heard your voice on stage, singing my music, I felt my strength return...and I realized that I did not want to die, I did not want to disappear...I wanted you, I needed you. And the song blazed through me, like wildfire," he lifted her hooves to his lips and gently kissed them. "I had to share my song with you. I could not wait another moment...I came to you that night, and when I held you, when I felt your kiss...my doubts, my fears, were squashed in that moment, and I felt hope come alive within me."
Fluttershy felt the tears trickle down her cheeks as his gaze captured hers once more, his paw and claw bringing her hooves to rest against his chest. She could feel his heart; it was beating rapidly, just as hers was.
"All my life, I have been called many things: murderer, monster, madcolt...and I all my life, I have believed I was nothing more. Until you trespassed into my world, showed me the depths of your love, of your passion, and awakened what little good I possessed with the beauty of your voice...Fluttershy, I would be lost without you. You are my angel, my muse, my savior, and my equal in so many ways." Fluttershy held her breath as his next words slipped past his lips. "Now I am asking you...will you also be my wife?"
She couldn't speak. Her voice had literally been robbed from her! And she couldn't move! It was as if the world around her had frozen and time itself had stopped.
Discord was holding his breath, awaiting his beloved's answer. It had not been the most romantic of proposals; he knew he should have gone down on one knee, despite the fact that he was naked-
"YES!"
The sudden outburst from the mare before him shocked Discord to the core, and before he could respond, Fluttershy had launched herself at him, throwing her arms around his neck and knocking him backwards on the bed. "Yes! Oh yes! If you wish to have me, a silly country mare practically twenty years younger, who is often stubborn, and-"
All other words were lost as Discord rolled her over onto her back and was kissing her deeply. "A simple 'yes' will suffice," he teased, laughing as she purposely pushed him off her, so that she could pin him down and tower over him.
Fluttershy couldn't help but share in his loving laughter. "I can't believe it," she giggled. "I had come here hoping that you would hear me out, hoping that you would believe me when I told you that my leaving with the Prince meant nothing...and now I find myself engaged!"
Discord smiled up at her and ran his paw along her cheek. "Oh my sweet angel...I promise to take care of you, to give you everything I have, so that you will want for nothing." He took her hooves in his once more. "My wealth does not match the Prince's by any capacity, but I do have enough to afford us a comfortable and some-what stylish house here in Maris."
Fluttershy's eyes widened at his words. "A...a house?"
"Of course," Discord chuckled. "I can't have my bride, and the new star of the Maris Opera House, living in a cave for the rest of her life now, can I?"
"But Discord," Fluttershy's eyes were filled with genuine concern. "What of the others?"
Discord's brow furrowed at her question. "They will come with us, of course," he answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "After all...they are the closest thing I have in this world to a family. And your father too, if you think he will not mind?"
Fluttershy's eyes were alight with hope. "Oh no, I do not think Papa will object, but Discord, you...you think the others will be alright with this idea?"
Discord sighed, foreseeing the hardships ahead. "It will take much convincing for Rainbow Dash...and we will not be able to keep a staff I'm afraid-"
"I don't mind," Fluttershy cut in. "My father and I have a maid, and while she is very sweet, I am not used to being waited on."
"Well you'll just have to get used to that," Discord growled seductively. "I intend to serve my mare in any way that I see fit..."
Fluttershy giggled and purred happily as Discord's arms wrapped around her back, pulling her down onto the bed, and rolling over until he was on top once more. He kissed her deeply, his tongue teasing hers, and his paw and claw already working their sensual spell on her flesh. "Oh Discord..." Fluttershy whimpered. "I'm so happy...I...I have never been more happy."
Discord paused his kisses and gazed into her tear filled eyes, enchanted by their innocence and beauty. One paw lay flat on her stomach, and he imagined the babe that was already growing inside. His babe he had created with Fluttershy. It frightened him, the responsibility and the expectation of such an event in his life...and yet he meant what he had said earlier when he held Fluttershy in his arms. It was truly, the most wonderful news he had ever been given.
"I know," Fluttershy whispered, her hoof coming to rest over his. "I'm scared too. But we shall have each other."
Discord felt his own tears sting the corners of his eyes. "Do...do you think that...that he or she will..." he couldn't finish the words. He only prayed that the babe would not look anything like him.
Fluttershy's hoof brushed over his scars, and her gaze caught and held Discord's tenderly. "He, or she, will be beautiful, no matter how they look. They will have their father's passion for music, and their mother's talent with needle and pin."
Discord found himself chuckling to Fluttershy's joke. "They will have their mother's beautiful voice," he corrected, "as well as her talent with needle and pin."
Fluttershy shared in his laughter. "And Lord help us, both our temperaments."
Both of them laughed together, before giving way at last to the passions they held inside. The candlelight flickered and washed their bodies in a warm orange glow as they made love once more. If this were a dream, they both prayed that their slumber would never end.
Blueblood sipped the brandy from his glass, his eyes focused on the flames that flickered in his fireplace. At the other end of the library, the clock chimed the late hour. It was nearly dawn.
He had not been awake this whole time, only for a few hours, really. His tired butler roused him out of bed, announcing that there were two police officers at the door demanding that they speak with the Prince at once. Blueblood said nothing to explain the late night interruption; he pulled on his dressing gown and went into the library where he awaited the two officers.
As he poured himself a glass of brandy, he listened to their tale of how they had followed Fluttershy and the mysterious hunchbacked monster all the way to the Maris Opera House. Blueblood's suspicions were heightened further as the officers told him that both Fluttershy and the beast disappeared down a sewer tunnel that ran directly beneath the opera house. They continued their pursuit, discovering a pair of muddy hoofprints that led to a secret underground passage, which fed into a large hollowed-out cavern.
"Four of them?" Blueblood asked in bewilderment, after one of the officers described everything he had seen and heard.
"Yes, monsieur, four of the ugliest, most hideous monsters you can imagine! A dwarf mare with a baggy face, a pony who moved by dragging his body by his hooves, the hunchback that we followed, and a mare with piercings-"
"-Don't forget the hook!"
"I was getting to that!" the officer growled at his partner. "And where one of her hooves should be, instead has a rusty hook!"
Blueblood's brow furrowed at this. "Did any of them wear a mask?"
The first officer shook his head. "No mask in all the world could help any of them."
They didn't see the Phantom, Blueblood concluded. None of those creatures sounded anything like the Phantom-freaks and monsters, yes, but not the Phantom. Yet somehow, he knew they were connected to that masked fiend.
"And Mademoiselle Fluttershy?" he inquired. "Where was she?"
The officers glanced at one another and the first one looked down at his boots nervously. "We...that is, I...did not see her with them, monsieur."
Something cold and dangerous flashed in Blueblood's eyes at the officer's revelation. "I see," he murmured, tapping his hoof along the arm of his chair. "And what were the instructions that I left for you, when I asked you to do this for me?"
The two officers glanced at one another. "You...you asked us to keep watch-"
"TO KEEP WATCH ON BOTH OF THEM!" Blueblood roared, throwing his brandy glass into the fireplace, the flames bursting to new life as the alcohol made contact. The two officers jumped at the Prince's actions, and began blubbering apologies.
"She disappeared, monsieur! We tried to keep watch on both of them, honest we tried, but-"
"Save me your excuses," Blueblood muttered with disgust, rising to pour himself a new glass of brandy. "It's obvious that these creatures are minions of some kind to that fiend," he growled. "And Fluttershy knew that one monster all too well."
"W-w-what do you think it means, monsieur?" one of the officers tentatively asked.
Blueblood downed his brandy in one swift gulp. "I don't know," he rasped, "but I'm beginning to form a picture...and it's not one I like." He turned to the two officers, who were slightly trembling under his menacing gaze. "Go and inform your chief inspector about everything you witnessed. Explain that the creature that was causing havoc at Notre Mane lives below the opera house with others like him. And tell Inspector Silverstar that these monsters are a danger to society...but, do not do anything until I give the word."
The two officers glanced at one another before looking back at Blueblood with hopes for more clarification to his plan. "What do you intend to do, monsieur?"
Blueblood turned his back on the officers and gazed into the fire. "Whatever it takes..." he growled, low and menacingly. A few minutes later, Blueblood was alone once more in the library. It would have been impossible to go back to bed; he couldn't sleep now, not with such thoughts running through his head.
She knew that monster; she had called it by name. And the monster knew her.
His pretty Fluttershy was keeping secrets from him, and Blueblood detested secrets.
Thoughts began to flash through his mind. Fluttershy's appearance at the masquerade ball, the lies she spun while in his presence, and how willingly she went into the arms of Red Death. And then her sudden reappearance at the police station only a few weeks ago; how did she know that her father was being kept there? Madame Luna didn't even know that Time Turner was being kept there, so how on earth did she learn the truth? And now this...her desperateness to free a monster, and her mysterious midnight stroll with the creature, which led all the way back to the Maris Opera House, revealing a hidden world that lay beneath the mighty structure.
Indeed, Blueblood recalled the stories that the stagehooves spun, as well as the inquiries of his private investigator; the Phantom lived somewhere beneath the opera house. And based on the information that he had received that evening, there was a way inside the madstallion's world that contained no booby traps to stop them.
Blueblood knew he should be ecstatic at the thought of finally knowing a way to infiltrate and capture the villain, but there was still something that bothered him, something that caused his stomach to twist, something that caused his face to burn...
Where had Fluttershy gone after delivering the monster to its home?
She couldn't have left, at least not the same way that she had gone. Perhaps she gone out a different way, a way through the opera house? That still didn't bring him comfort; it meant that she had-his blood chilled at this thought-it meant that she had been lying to him this whole time.
She never escaped the Phantom, because the Phantom had never been a danger to her!
What had gone on down there, beneath the Maris Opera House, during all those months she had been missing?
Blueblood stomach tightened at the sickening thought. He gripped the mantle above the fireplace and fought the bile that was rising in his throat.
"Monsieur?"
Blueblood turned at the sound of the feminine voice from behind him. A mare stood in the doorway of the library, a hooded cape covering her head.
"Ah, come in Cherry Jubilee," Blueblood greeted, as the maid removed her cape, her fiery red hair spilling over her shoulders. "Have a seat my dear, and tell me all the news that you bring from the Time Turner residence..." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Dangerous | Dangerous
A soft purr escaped Fluttershy's lips as she felt the sun's warm rays fall across her face. Her eyes slowly fluttered opened, and a content smile spread across her lips as she gazed at the pillow next to her.
Had this been yesterday, she may have awoken with a start, surprised to see her surroundings. Had this been yesterday, she may have felt tears sting her eyes as she realized that the beautiful passion she had experienced had only been a dream. Had this been yesterday, her melancholy would still be with her...
But this was not yesterday, it was today, a new day in her life, a day that marked the beginning of a new life altogether.
She was in her bed, back at the apartment, and she was very much alone. But lying on the pillow beside her lay a single red rose, and Fluttershy only smiled further as her hooves softly touched the flower's silken petals. She had no memory of him bringing her back; there was something mysterious and magical about Discord, and a part of her never wanted to discover how he was able to create the illusions he had become a master of. The rose was his promise; his promise of love, his promise of devotion, and his promise that they would soon, very soon, be together again once more.
"Fluttershy!"
The sound of her father's frantic voice startled the young mare, and she rose from her bed at once, wrapping her dressing gown around her just as her father opened the door. "Oh! Thank God, you are here," he sighed with relief as he entered her room. "I did not hear you come in last night," he hastily added.
Fluttershy flushed brightly at his words. "Neither did I, Papa," she softly murmured, a knowing smile stealing its way across her face. Her father didn't hear her, so she quickly concealed her smile and tried to look serious as she could tell her father was extremely troubled by something. "Is something the matter?"
"What?" he had been lost in his thoughts, his brow furrowed as he contemplated a piece of paper that he held in his hooves. "Oh! Oh no, I mean...well, that is to say..." he was extremely flustered. "Fluttershy, last night..." he looked at her and saw the blush in her cheeks. "I...I am assuming you took my advice?"
Fluttershy blushed even further, but her smile could no longer remain concealed and it broke forth, radiating such joyous light. "Yes," she simply said, not being able to hide her grin, even when her hoof rose to cover it.
Her father smiled softly, but his brow still remained furrowed with confusion. "Well...perhaps then you can help me make sense of this..." He handed his daughter the piece of paper that he had been holding and fussing over.
Fluttershy took the paper and began reading its contents to see what concerned him. "Dear monsieur," she began, "I am by no means knowledgeable in such customs, so I hope you shall forgive me if I come across as frank or too bold. Yet perhaps this is the best way when talking about such subjects," she paused, looking at her father with the same confusion.
"Go on," he murmured, pacing back and forth across the room.
"I know that you are a good and honorable stallion who has much love for his daughter," she continued. "And I also know that you have a right to despise me with your last breath, if you so wish it. What I did to you was unforgivable, and I would not blame you at all if you chose to hate me...and yet I find hope rising within me as I write this." Fluttershy paused again and looked at her father with curious eyes. "Papa?"
"Go on," he encouraged, his pacing coming to a stop and his eyes fixing on Fluttershy's face as she continued to read.
"I shall get to the point. I have asked your daughter, and she has given me her consent, and has told me of your blessing, but I wish to boldly ask of it myself...by seeking your permission to marry your beautiful daughter..." Fluttershy paused and held her breath, her eyes slowly rising from the letter to her father's face.
There were many emotions she expected to see reflected in his eyes; seeing the tears streaming down his face was not one of them.
"Oh Fluttershy," he sobbed, falling to his knees and grasping her hooves up in his. "I...I..." he couldn't finish his words, he was crying too hard.
Fluttershy bit her lip, unsure what to say. Was her father pleased? She remembered how he had told her only last night that he wanted her to follow her heart, to be with the creature she loved...but perhaps after she had gone, he had second thoughts? After all, her father's only memory of the Phantom had been a cold-blooded madcolt, not the creature she knew. "Papa..." she swallowed the lump in her throat. "Are...are you displeased?"
Her father looked up at her with wide eyes. "Displeased?" his hooves framed her face and Fluttershy's worries melted away as she saw the joyful smile spread across her father's old worn face. "Oh my dear, I...I confess, he is not exactly the stallion I always envisioned as my future son-in-law...but..." he looked into her eyes and brushed a stray curl from her brow. "I can see your love for him in your eyes...and I can also see his love for you reflected there, as well as in these words," he chuckled. "It goes on actually," he explained, picking up the letter. "He tells me about how he intends to take care of you, that he is willing to find a house in Maris so that you will not be shut away from sunlight, and he even offers that I may stay if I wish..." he smiled in awe and then looked at his daughter once more. "What did you do to him Fluttershy? How...how did you change that monstrous Phantom into...into this gentlecolt?"
Fluttershy blushed but smiled at her father with such happiness. "I think he was always a gentlecolt Papa, he just...didn't have many opportunities to practice."
They both found themselves chuckling, and Time Turner, smiling with such pride and happiness for his daughter, rose to his feet and helped Fluttershy up. "Come, we have a long day before us! And I dare say that you will want to get to the opera house early today...you have much explaining to do for the managers."
Fluttershy grimaced at the idea. Her sudden disappearance did not bode well for her, and she knew that if they were not following the Phantom's instructions, or opening in two days, they would easily dismiss her from the company.
And that was when a sudden realization struck Fluttershy. "Papa, I spoke with Madame Giry yesterday. She has offered to help us find a place to stay, and has offered that for tonight, we may stay at her home."
Time Turner looked at Fluttershy with utter confusion. "Stay with her? But why-"
"Because I told Blueblood we would no longer need his charity."
Time Turner paled slightly at his daughter's revelation. "But...but I thought you said that he did not understand your meaning when you spoke with him that night?"
Fluttershy let out a sigh of frustration, remembering how Blueblood attempted to kiss her, praising her for her what he thought was her "selfless concern for him" because she was poor. She remembered how she had punched Celestia that night her father disappeared, and how good it felt; she wanted to do nothing more than punch that arrogant grin off Blueblood's face.
"He was at the police station yesterday, when I went to free Derpy," she calmly explained.
Time Turner's eyes widened further at her revelation. Blueblood had been at the station? Whatever for? Time Turner did not care for the many secrets the Prince seemed to be keeping. "What happened?"
Fluttershy sighed again and rolled her eyes. "I was desperate to get Derpy out of there. So desperate that...that I accepted Blueblood's offer of bringing us here in his carriage."
Time Turner closed his eyes and softly groaned. He remembered how his daughter once said she believed that the Prince's charity did not come without a price; he could understand that now. "He didn't...he didn't hurt you or threaten you, did he?"
"No," Fluttershy quickly reassured. "But...oh Papa, if you had heard some of the things he had said yesterday, you would have realized how much of a gentlecolt he is not," she affirmed. "He said some horrible things about Derpy right in Derpy's presence! And I could not stand it further, I just...I told him that you and I would not be needing his charity any longer, and left," she softly explained.
Time Turner nodded his head at his daughter's words, but he was still troubled by this turn of events. He could not stop speculating what Blueblood had been doing at the police station. Ever since Fluttershy had told him about the amount of money the Phantom had given her, money that was well over the amount needed to release him, he had been having sneaking suspicions that Blueblood's involvement with his release from prison was not as "chivalrous" as it may have appeared.
"You are quite right, my dear," he murmured. "We must remove ourselves from this place immediately, it would not do for us to be here any longer than necessary."
Fluttershy nodded her head, seeing the growing concern in her father's eyes. "I feel horrible, taking advantage of Madame Luna's hospitality once more, but at the time, I did not know who to go to-"
"It will be alright, my dear," Time Turner reassured, taking her hoof in his and giving it a tender squeeze. "But right now, we must concentrate on two things: getting ready for today's rehearsal...and getting out of this place." He turned to the doorway and cried out Cherry Jubilee's name. Normally, the pretty maid would appear before the words had entirely left the caller's mouth, but today, she did not magically emerge. "That's funny," Time Turner murmured. "Cherry Jubilee!"
Suddenly, in a fluster of thunderous footsteps, her hair spilling out in wisps from her cap, Cherry Jubilee appeared, her cheeks rosier than normal. "I'm so sorry, monsieur! I did not hear you at first, I do apologize-"
"It's alright, dear mare," Time Turner reassured, his face showing a kind smile. "My daughter and I must hasten to the opera house, but in our absence, would you be so kind as to pack our things?"
Cherry Jubilee stared at Time Turner as if he had grown a third eye. "I b-b-beg your p-pardon?"
"Mademoiselle Time Turner and I will be leaving this place-"
"Leaving?" Cherry Jubilee gasped, her face paling at the old stallion's revelation.
Fluttershy took immediate notice of the mare's reaction, and felt something uneasy twist inside her.
Cherry Jubilee quickly regained her composure and forced a pretty smile. "Forgive me, monsieur...b-but have...have I upset or displeased either you or mademoiselle?"
"Oh no my dear!" Time Turner hastened to reassure the mare. "But we have trespassed on the good Prince's hospitality long enough. We would not wish to burden him further, so if you could please, pack up our few possessions for us and when we return later this evening, we shall fetch them and be on our way."
Cherry Jubilee's face was as white as a sheet. She numbly nodded her head and gave Fluttershy's father a polite curtsy, before turning and leaving to prepare packing their things at once. Within a few short minutes, the old pony and his daughter had left, and Cherry Jubilee silently watched them out of one of the windows as they disappeared from view. With a squeak of desperation, she flew to the parlor, and sat down at an elegant cherry wood desk that sat in one corner of the room. Inside the desk, the maid found paper, ink, and pen, and immediately went to work writing a hasty note. She folded the paper over, wrote the address on one side, and then quickly took some wax, melted it over the note, and sealed it with the Princes own seal. After quickly blowing on the wax to cool it, she flew down the stairs that led to the front door of the building.
"You there, colt!" she cried, spying a colt who looked to be eleven or twelve. The colt was an obvious messenger, he carried several letters in his hoof, and he paused reluctantly to look at the maid. "I need you to deliver this to the Prince," she explained, pointing to the address on the paper.
The colt's eyes widened as he looked at the address. It was in one of the most elegant parts of Maris! "Do it quickly," Cherry Jubilee ordered, placing a copper coin in the colt's hoof. The colt simply nodded and took off down the street as if someone were chasing him. The maid sighed, glad that she was able to get the message off to her master, but already dreading his reaction once he learned that the Time Turner's were leaving. When that moment came, she would only be too glad that she was not the pretty pink haired pony.
"You have some nerve," the older chief inspector growled, his eyes narrowed as he glared at the hoofsome blonde noblecolt who stood opposite of him in his tiny office.
"Somepony had to take charge," Blueblood calmly replied, exhaling a large cloud of smoke from his nostrils.
"I am the chief inspector here!" Silverstar practically shouted.
"Then start acting like one!" Blueblood retorted, his voice dripping with disgust.
Behind the Prince, sitting and blubbering in a corner, were the two officers that had given Blueblood the news about the Phantom's lair. Every now and then Silverstar would cast his eye at them, glaring with such fury. "I can't believe that the two of you went along with this!" he grumbled. "I should remove you from your duties for this insolence!"
"Oh leave them alone," Blueblood groaned, inhaling deeply from his cigar. "They were only doing their duty."
Silverstar's eyes widened at the Prince's words. "Their duty!?"
Blueblood nodded his head as if his statement were obvious. "Of course. They were following a monster, a madcolt who had broken into Notre Dame believing himself to be a fictional character."
"No thanks to you!" Silverstar grumbled, collapsing into his chair.
Blueblood put on a look of mocked hurt. "I had nothing to do with the monster's release. That was entirely the mare's doing; she paid over 300 franks for that creature."
Silverstar practically choked. "300 franks! Where on earth did she get such money!? I thought you said she was poor?"
"For the time being," Blueblood murmured.
"And why on earth would this Time Turner mare want to release such a monster!?"
One of the officers sitting in the corner piped up. "S-s-she did seem to know the beast, chief inspector."
"That's right!" the other added. "She called him by name! Um...Rudolph, I think."
Blueblood turned back to Silverstar whose expression was somewhere between confusion and annoyance at his officers. "It's obvious that Mademoiselle Time Turner has a sympathetic heart for lunatics," he calmly stated, sitting in a chair opposite of Silverstar. "And while we can praise her for her charities, let us not forget that this creature did attack several of your officers after he frightened a poor monk," he turned to one of the officers behind him. "Weren't you there when you took him in?"
The first officer stood up, eagerly nodding his head. "Yes! That's right, I was! And you're quite right, monsieur, she was a madstallion! She picked several stallions up and threw them across the tower! She had the strength of a bear! It took ten of us to bring her in!"
"That's right," Blueblood agreed, as if he had been there himself. "And you had no power to withhold Mademoiselle Fluttershy from purchasing the monster's freedom...but," he turned to look at Silverstar, "they did have power to make sure that the creature did not bring any further harm to anyone else."
Silverstar glared back at the Prince. "Perhaps you should simply tell me what it is that you are suggesting, monsieur," he grumbled.
Blueblood turned back to the two officers and nodded his head. The shorter and fatter officer stood up, swallowing the nervous lump in his throat, as he spoke to his chief inspector. "W-we followed the mare and the creature, until they stopped just across the street from the Maris Opera House..."
Silverstar groaned; he could tell where this was going.
"The two disappeared through a sewer vent in the street," the officer continued. "And despite my own reluctance...we followed."
"Tell your chief inspector what it is that you saw," Blueblood encouraged.
The officer nodded his head and quickly continued. "Well, we noticed a little ways further on, a pair of giant hoofprints that led off in a different direction. We followed them, believing they belonged to the monster...and discovered a secret tunnel."
"And what was beyond that tunnel?" Blueblood asked, leaning forward for the pony to finish his report.
"There was a boulder...we pushed it away a-a-and crawled down this dark tunnel...and...I...I saw..." the memories flashed before him once more, causing the pony to shudder.
"Tell him," Blueblood practically growled. "Tell him what you saw..."
"M-more monsters," the officer practically gasped. "There were more monsters, and the hunchback was with them!"
"Ah ha! See?" Blueblood shouted, his voice filled with triumph, before turning and facing Silverstar once more. "There are more of those things living below the Maris Opera House!"
Silverstar stared with wide-eyed disbelief at his officer. "You're quite certain?"
"Oh yes, chief inspector!" the officer nodded. "All different kinds too! There was one stallion...oh he was a horror to behold, covered in piercings...and he was missing a hoof! He had a peg leg instead!"
Silverstar's eyes narrowed at the information. "Are you sure you hadn't been drinking?"
Blueblood groaned and flicked his cigar on the chief inspector's desk. "They were perfectly sober, and do not disregard this!" he warned. "Think about it Silverstar! There are monsters...more of those mad creatures like that one you had imprisoned, living underneath the Maris Opera House!"
"It's true!" the officer agreed. "I...I saw blankets, a-a-and beds! They are living down there!"
Silverstar's brow furrowed. "Beds? These creatures actually sleep in beds?"
Blueblood rose and slammed his hoof down on the pony's desk. "You're missing the point! That thing you had imprisoned was a madstallion! Think of the damage it would have caused had it been aggravated last night? Now imagine more of those things! What if they chose to come above? Think of the havoc, of the terror they would cause!"
Silverstar could see the Prince's point. "But why is it that they haven't come above before?"
"Who knows?!?" Blueblood cried out, throwing his arms up in exasperation. "But do keep in mind that one of them has come above now...and who knows how long it will be before others follow..."
Silverstar felt a shiver go down his spine. "I do not understand how this concerns you, monsieur," he grumbled, looking up at Blueblood's pacing figure.
"It concerns me most greatly," Blueblood quietly replied, before drawing an item out from the inside of his coat's pocket and tossing it on the chief inspector's desk.
Silverstar looked down at the item the Prince had thrown and narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What the devil...?" he picked up the noose that Blueblood had shown. "You took evidence out of my station!?"
"That's not the one your men found around my neck," Blueblood clarified. "It comes from the Maris Opera House...and has a morbid tale to go with it."
Silverstar looked confused. "But...this looks just like-"
"Yes it does," Blueblood smiled softly. "Fascinating, isn't it? The noose that had been used to take my life looks exactly like the noose this one stagehoof possessed after a horrifying encounter with the murderous Phantom?"
Silverstar groaned, his suspicions earlier being confirmed. "Monsieur, please, you can not possibly-"
"Oh but I do!" Blueblood cheerfully interrupted, before drawing several papers out from his coat pocket. "Let me see...ah yes, here we are. 'April 19, 1860, the body of a stallion was found, hanging from the scaffolds above the stage, at the Maris Opera House. Several witnesses report seeing the pony being thrown by a dark figure, after he was strangled with a curious piece of rope.'" Blueblood paused and smiled at Silverstar, whose face had gone as white as a sheet. "Ah, here's another. 'October 23, 1864, body of a stallion was found locked in one of opera house coat closets. Body had rough red marks around the neck and throat, as if it had been strangled, while there was also a note attached to the stallion's coat that simply said: Heed My Warnings.'" Blueblood paused again and looked at the chief inspector. "There are a few more, shall I continue?"
"WHERE DID YOU GET THOSE?!?" Silverstar roared, reaching out and snatching up the papers Blueblood had been reading.
The Prince did not react, he allowed the stallion to take away the reports he had been reading. Instead, he drew a new cigar from his case and proceeded to light it. "As I said," he calmly explained. "Someone needs to act like the chief inspector around here...and if you will not be bothered to hold proper investigations, despite all the evidence," he growled, "then I shall be forced to carry them out myself."
Silverstar was furious. "These are police records that you took-"
"TO MAKE YOU SEE REASON!" Blueblood roared. He calmly ran a hoof through his hair, before leaning forward on the chief inspector's desk, looming over the other pony, his green eyes ablaze with vengeance. "The Phantom is real! I've encountered him, Monsieur Time Turner has encountered him...and now, Fluttershy has too! But last night, she led us to where he lives! And those things," he spat, "are his servants! They work for him! They do his bidding! They are his minions! And all of them...including the Phantom himself...MUST BE STOPPED!"
Silverstar was trembling. He glanced down at the records he had snatched out of Blueblood's hoof, and then at the noose that lay upon his desk. Was it possible? Did a masked madstallion actually live beneath the Maris Opera House?
"You have a duty to protect the people of Maris," Blueblood murmured, interrupting the chief inspector's thoughts. "Do not make the same mistake over and over again, assuming that the impossible can not be possible. Do not disregard this until it is too late and those monsters have killed another. We must crush him, completely, before he strikes again."
Silverstar sighed and glanced one more time at the noose, then at his officers, before turning his eyes back to the Prince's. "Tell me what you need me to do?"
"Ah! Mademoiselle Fluttershy! So glad you could grace us with your presence today," Madam Octavia grumbled, as Fluttershy hastily joined the rest of the company on stage. She gave the conductor a weak smile, and offered a quick apology that she immediately waved away with her hoof. "We have two days before opening night. See that it does not happen again!" Fluttershy nodded her head, and quickly moved back offstage so that Fancypants could sing the opening solo to Don Juan.
"What happened to you yesterday?" a small mareish voice hissed behind the Pink haired's back. Fluttershy turned to see Twilight Sparkle standing with several other ballet mares, all of who were looking at her with wide, expectant eyes.
"I received word from a dear friend...they were in trouble and I had to go at once to help them," she explained, hoping that they would be satisfied with her answer and not beg for details.
Some of the mares groaned with disappointment. Fluttershy looked confused, but Twilight quickly explained. "I told them that I was wrong about the engagement, that you and the Prince do not have an attachment, but some of them will not believe me and assumed you were with him," she grumbled, eyeing several of the mares who returned her look of annoyance.
Fluttershy's cheeks turned a bright shade of scarlet as she imagined the horrid gossip that was already being spread in regards to her and Blueblood. "How did you know it wasn't true?" She was indeed grateful, but had not had the opportunity to clarify the truth with anyone, other than Madame Luna.
"Mama told me," Twilight explained. "She went on to say how it was all a vicious rumor that Celestia was spreading because she is jealous that you are the star of this production...and also because I think she likes the Prince herself."
Fluttershy looked across the stage to see Celestia standing in the opposite wings, eyeing her with disdain. She returned the same look to the prima donna, wanting to shout that Celestia was more than welcome to take Blueblood for her own.
"If only you hadn't left..."
Fluttershy's attention went immediately back to Twilight, and she stared wide-eyed at the pretty dancer. "W-what? What do you mean?"
Twilight sighed and looked down at her feet. "The managers were in an absolute panic after your sudden disappearance. Some even began to claim that the Phantom himself took you prisoner!"
Fluttershy bit her lip to hide her smile, but any merry thoughts of her beloved quickly dissolved as she noticed Twilight's growing concern. "What happened?"
"Without you here to sing the part," Twilight continued, her eyes drifting to the wings on the opposite side of the stage, "the managers thought it best to have an understudy. And..." she looked at Fluttershy before looking once more at the opposite wings. "They cast Celestia."
Fluttershy felt her face pale at the ballerina's words. "Celestia?" she practically gasped.
Twilight sadly nodded her head. "She has been studying the score and knows all of your songs! Even all of your stage directions!" Twilight glanced once more at Celestia's over-made face, which was holding a wicked grin. It was more than obvious that she knew what the two younger mares were talking about. "Oh Fluttershy, if she has her way, she'll try to steal the part from you!"
Fluttershy shot Celestia a look that she hoped would chill the diva in her place. "Don't worry; nothing is going to keep me from playing Aminta. Nothing."
"A-a-are you sure about this, monsieur?"
Blueblood ignored the stuttering officer who sat opposite of him in his carriage. His eyes were fixed on the item he held in his hooves.
A glove.
A stallion's glove.
The glove that Cherry Jubilee had brought to him when she came to report on the happenings at his apartment where Fluttershy and her father were staying.
At first, he thought the glove as nothing; some insignificant piece of clothing that obviously belonged to the older pony. It was when Cherry Jubilee explained to him that she had found the glove in Fluttershy's room, and that it was kept under the mare's pillow...that Blueblood began to grow suspisious.
Under normal circumstances, he would simply have wondered why Fluttershy was keeping a single black leather glove under her pillow?
But these were not normal circumstances, not any longer. Fluttershy knew the hunchback creature, she helped him escape back to his secret lair, a lair that lay beneath the Maris Opera House, a lair that was reported to be the mysterious dwelling of the infamous Phantom, a monster who the old stallion, and who Blueblood himself, had come to believe had truly been keeping Fluttershy as his prisoner for months!
Or so he thought.
But after everything he had personally witnessed, and after the reports he had been given by the two officers, and now after Cherry Jubilee had brought him this glove...
Blueblood found that he was biting his own fist, fighting the urge to vomit and scream.
It was not possible! He refused to believe that Fluttershy...that Fluttershy...
"Monsieur, we seem to be rather far from the city's walls..." the officer opposite of him commented uneasily, gazing out the window of the carriage.
Blueblood was actually grateful for the interruption to his thoughts. He did not want to dwell on his worst fears. He looked out the carriage window and noticed that the officer had been right, they were rather far from Maris' boundaries.
He took his walking stick and banged it against the wall where his driver would hear him. "If that colt is lying, I want you to throw him off!"
Suddenly, a colt's head, with dark eyes and even darker disheveled hair, appeared before the window of the carriage, having leaned down from the driver's seat. "I ain't lying!" the colt protested angrily. "The carnival is just outside Maris and over this hill!"
"It better be," Blueblood growled. He settled back in his seat and continued to gaze out the window, his mind going back to the events that led to his sudden journey to the outskirts of Maris.
After Silverstar finally began to see the light of the matter, a loud voice interrupted their conversation, causing Silverstar to rise from his desk and go into the lobby of the station, where an officer was wrestling to keep hold of a young gypsy colt, who was struggling against him.
"What's the meaning of this?" Silverstar questioned.
"Ouch!" the officer grunted as the colt kicked at his shins. "Little beast! Caught him trying to pick pockets while he was passing out flyers for some carnival," the officer explained, before crying out in pain again as the colt bit down on the stallion's hoof.
Blueblood recognized the colt immediately. It was the same colt who had been standing outside the station the day before, passing out flyers about some carnival in Maris that displayed more freaks than one could imagine. At the time, Blueblood thought nothing of it, and pushed the colt out of his way. But now...now he saw an opportunity...
"Wait!" he intervened, grabbing the colt by the collar of his shirt and pulling him away from the officer he had been fighting. The colt immediately began to lash out at the Prince, but Blueblood quickly raised his walking stick in a threatening manner, and the colt immediately stilled. "Good lad," Blueblood grumbled. "Now, perhaps you can help me..."
"I ain't helpin' you!" the colt spat.
Blueblood smiled at Silverstar and the other officers. "We've met before," he explained before turning his attentions back to the colt. "What if I offered you 10 franks...would you help me then?"
The colt's eyes lit up at the mention of money. "Maybe...?"
Blueblood could not help but smile. "A wise answer, you've the makings of a true businesscolt," he grinned. "Now...I remember you telling me yesterday, when I saw you on the street, that this carnival has a vast collection of freaks?"
"Yeah, that's right," the colt said with a hint of pride. "My grandfather runs it, we have more freaks and monsters than you can imagine!"
"Interesting," Blueblood murmured. "I would very much like to meet your grandfather, would you take me to him?"
The colt eyed Blueblood warily. "What about my money?"
"Here," Blueblood hoofed 5 franks to the colt. "You'll get the rest after you take me to this carnival."
The colt seemed satisfied with this and nodded his head. Silverstar stared at Blueblood as if he had lost his mind. "Are you mad!?" he hissed. "You do realize that this carnival is run by gypsies? Gypsies who would gladly steal your money and leave you for dead!?"
Blueblood silently nodded his head. "Yes, and that is why I am not going alone." Before anyone could question what he meant exactly, Blueblood reached out and grasped the arm of the short, fat officer, who had seen everything the night before.
Despite the officer's protests, Blueblood pushed the pony inside his carriage, and ordered the colt to sit beside his driver and direct where the carriage should go. They had been traveling for practically an hour, and Blueblood was beginning to have serious doubts to this plan he had been concocting.
But suddenly, the hill they had been traveling up, dipped, and the sound of music and laughter could be heard just below. Blueblood quickly looked out the window and saw over a dozen wagons, circled together, as well as several tents, pitched nearby.
The carriage came to a stop, and the colt was the first to leap down and open the door. "Where's the rest of my money?" he demanded, holding his dirty hoof out in the Prince's face.
Blueblood pushed the colt aside as he climbed down from the carriage. "All in good time," he promised. "First, take me to your father." The colt groaned his irritation, but nodded his head, leading the way towards the circle of wagons that lay just ahead.
"Monsieur...I'm not sure about this..."
"Get out of there!" Blueblood barked at the trembling police officer that still sat in the dark confines of the carriage. "If you don't come with me right now, I'll fetch those gypsies over here to force you out!"
That did it. The officer gave a rather high-pitched squeak, a little too high for a stallion his size to make, and followed the Prince, uneasily, into the gypsy camp.
There were few "customers" viewing the sights of the carnival; some children and a few working class men and mares, but no one that the Prince would normally associate himself with. The freaks that that they did have were grotesque to be sure; Blueblood caught sight of a pair of Siamese twins, as well as a little dwarfish stallion with flesh so wrinkled it looked as if he wore his skin inside out. Blueblood pulled his scented hoofkerchief from his pocket and held it to his nose as he passed the various cages; too disgusted to look at the contents behind the iron bars, too nauseous from the smell of blood, vomit, and urine that polluted the air around them.
It was not long before others took notice of the Prince's presence; after all, he was clearly the wealthiest stallion to set hoof in the camp. The music, which had been coming from a small band of gypsies, came to a complete stop, and Blueblood could feel their eyes boring into him, especially on the sight of his fancy clothes. He barked a command at the officer, who quickly hurried to catch up.
The colt, who ran ahead of them, did not even have to call for his father, for a tall stallion, with long blond hair and a scruffy blue coat, burst out of a tent in front of them. The stallion had piercing eyes, eyes that seemed to bore into a person and threaten to burn their very soul out of them. Blueblood returned the stallion's cold gaze with one of his own, refusing to be intimidated, not when he could feel his reward so close.
"This is my father, the leader of the Master Carnival. Now give me my money!" the colt demanded.
Blueblood snorted at the colt's words, but dropped the remaining coins on the ground for the colt to snatch up. He then ran behind the tall stallion, whose gaze never left the Prince's. "Monsieur Master," Blueblood greeted with a slight bow of his head. The blubbering sounds of the officer behind him told Blueblood that the other gypsies were closing in. "I am the Prince Blueblood, and I come with a business proposition," he announced, holding his head high.
No one said anything. And then, a great burst of laughter erupted from the camp; that is, everyone but the stallion Blueblood had been speaking to.
"I don't like police on my property," the older pony finally spoke, his voice a deep wheeze.
"My companion is not here to cause you or your family trouble," Blueblood quickly reassured. "But he is necessary to describe to you what my business venture is."
"I ain't interested," the stallion barked, turning on his heel. "Never liked dealing with nobility," he muttered as he dipped his head into his tent.
Blueblood could not believe this was happening! "I have some freaks that may be of use to you!"
The stallion stopped, and slowly turned around. "Freaks?" he held his arms out, indicating the many cages that surrounded them. "Look around you! I have more monsters than any circus! I doubt your freaks can-"
"There are four of them...perhaps more!" he quickly elbowed the officer who was trembling next to him. "Tell him what you saw!" he hissed.
"Oh! W-w-well, I...I s-s-saw a large hunchback...a-a-and there was this d-dwarf mare...a-a-a-and-"
"I have hunchbacks, and dwarves are not the commodities they used to be," the old stallion grumbled.
"Wait!" the officer pleaded, seeing two burly gypsies with knives come close. "I saw a mare with piercings and peg leg for a hoof!"
The wicked laughter that had been on everypony's lips suddenly disappeared. And the tall stallion froze in place. "What did you say?" he whispered, turning to face the officer head on.
"You heard him," Blueblood interjected. "The question is...is he worth something to you?"
The stallion eyed Blueblood warily. "Where did you see this creature?"
"Underground," Blueblood reported, answering for the blubbering officer. "Underground, and beneath the Maris Opera House."
The gypsy glanced at the officer. "Who else did you see?"
"A hunchback, a dwarf stallion, the stallion with the leg...a-a-and an old mare with a grotesque face."
"Rarity!" gasped an old mare from the small crowd. "That sounds like Rarity...and the others!"
The older stallion turned to look at the mare who was his wife, astonishment in his eyes. "That's impossible," he murmured. "She would be dead by now, surely!"
"No, that's her, I'm sure of it! And the descriptions of the others!" the mare reached out and grasped her husband's hoof. "Remember how there was that blubbering hunchback she always cooed over? And that is surely our missing dwarf...and..." she turned to the officer then. "Which hoof was the peg leg on!?" she demanded.
The officer jumped at her harsh rasping voice. "T-t-the left, I think."
The mare smiled and turned back to her husband. "Surely you remember Rainbow Dash, the first of our collection? It was her left hoof that we burnt, his left hoof that we replaced with that wood! That has to be her!"
Blueblood was finding all this extremely fascinating. He had come to this carnival with hopes that these gypsies would be interested in removing the Phantom's minions, making it easier for him to remove the Phantom...but apparently, it seemed this particular band had a history with the freaks that lived beneath the opera house.
"So," Blueblood interrupted. "Are you interested?"
The old stallion eyed the Prince suspiciously. "How did you come upon them?"
"My friend here," he explained, indicating to the officer, "discovered them just last night, after he followed the hunchback all the way back to their lair, which, as I mentioned before, lies beneath the Maris Opera House."
The old stallion continued to look suspicious. "And...were there any others?"
"N-n-none that was seen," the officer shakily explained.
"But that doesn't mean there couldn't be," Blueblood corrected immediately.
The old stallion scratched his chin, glancing at several of the other gypsies before locking eyes once more with the Prince. "I have not been in Maris for nearly twenty years," he softly explained. "The reason being because I lost a good deal of my collection one night, therefore this city holds bad memories for me."
"Touching," Blueblood muttered.
The stallion continued, ignoring the Prince's sarcasm. "Those creatures you saw drew much money for me and my family, but none of them could match my most prized possession...The Half Stallion Draconequus."
Blueblood's ears perked up at this. "Draconequus?"
"Yes," the old mare rasped. "He was a colt then, but despite his youth, he still drew in the crowds. On one side of his face, he looked like anyone else...but the other side...oh on the other side, was the face of a demon with the body of a monster from hell!"
Blueblood thought surely time had stopped in that moment. He had never seen the infamous Phantom face to face...but the stories he had heard all mentioned something about a horrific face that lay beneath a mask...and on the night he had been attacked by the villain, he remembered how the monster ran away in rage after he had torn the creature's mask away. Was it possible? Did the Phantom actually, at one point, belong to the Master Carnival?
He could not believe his good fortune at finding this place.
"I have not seen your draconequus," Blueblood murmured, "but I can assure you...I know where you can find him."
The gypsies looked at one another with evil grins. It was a good day for them as well! "Name your price!" the old stallion announced. "After twenty years he will be worth more now than he was as a colt! Name your price and I will pay it gladly!"
Blueblood's smile disappeared at once. "Wait...you do not understand," he clarified. "I am not selling these creatures to you...I simply want you to remove them for me."
The smiles the gypsies had been wearing also disappeared. "What?" the stallion asked, his piercing eyes boring into the Prince's once more.
"I don't care what you do with the creatures," Blueblood explained, not liking the way the stallion and his family were looking at him. "But I need them removed and the Phantom killed."
"The Phantom?" the old mare asked, looking confused.
"Yes, the Phantom," Blueblood groaned. "Your draconequus is now known as the Phantom of the Opera. He lives with those other freaks beneath the Maris Opera House, and he haunts the blasted place! That is what he has been doing for twenty years-and I want him dead!"
"Don't shout at me," the stallion warned, and several gypsies unsheathed their knives, their expressions dark and dangerous. "And don't tell me what to do. That monster made me more money than any other freak I've ever owned. The draconequus belongs to me!"
"Monsieur Master-"
"No deal!" the stallion barked, turning on his heel. "I am done speaking with you, monsieur. I suggest you leave before my stallions force you to..." without another word or glance, he disappeared into the tent he had emerged.
Blueblood was furious! He wanted to march into that tent and force the old fool to see reason, but the glint that shimmered off the knives that several gypsies held, forced him to turn and stalk back to his carriage.
The police officer quickly followed, panting to keep up with the Prince's long angry strides. "Monsieur!" he gasped. "Monsieur! W-w-we are just going to l-leave like that?"
"Don't say another word to me," Blueblood hissed at the stout little pony. "And take me to the opera house at once!" he barked to his driver, before climbing inside his carriage. He was not going to let this sad turn of events ruin his day or his plans!
Fluttershy was grateful for the break in rehearsal when it was finally announced. This had perhaps been one of her hardest rehearsals, and she knew that the reason was because in two days time, Don Juan Triumphant would be premiering for the entire world to see.
Two days. She shuttered at the thought. In two days she would be singing before an audience, as the star in Discord's opera.
It was a shame that the opera would be performed with the original ending that Discord had written, with Don Juan murdering Aminta and her hoovesome young lover. She remembered how a few nights ago she had defended the opera before the Prince, telling him her version of the story, the version she had helped compose with Discord. She knew that it was impossible now...but perhaps, if Don Juan became a success, if other opera houses began to demand it...perhaps it could be changed once more? After all, things were finally better between herself and her Phantom lover; surely Discord would not mind.
A smile spread across her face as she thought of her beloved. Where he was, she did not know, but she knew he had been watching her rehearse, and she only prayed that she had made him proud. She owed so much to him when it came to her singing abilities. She may have always had a sweet voice, but Discord had helped her mold it, tone it, and turn it into a voice that could sing to great depths. She smiled even more as her hooves went to play with the chain that hung around her neck; the chain belonged to the locket that held her mother's picture, but around the chain hung another treasure, a secret treasure for the time being.
She let out a happy content sigh as her hooves brushed the bracelet. She was engaged to the stallion of her dreams...and soon, she prayed, they would be married.
With another happy sigh, Fluttershy practically skipped to her dressing room, knowing that the managers wanted the cast to wear costumes for the rest of rehearsals. She was eager to try on Aminta's costumes, the costumes that Discord himself had designed. She found herself wondering whether he had designed the costumes before they had met, or if perhaps after? Had he thought of her while designing such gowns? She couldn't wait to see! She burst into her dressing room, checked around quickly to see if Celestia or anyone else was hiding, and satisfied that she was alone, locked the door.
"You are a goddess..."
Fluttershy gasped as she heard his silky voice just behind her ear. She couldn't turn around, for she felt his large, warm hooves, wrap around her waist, pulling her against his solid frame. She purred as she felt his hot breath on her neck, and couldn't help but moan as she felt his lips leave the softest of kisses on her skin.
"For you, my angel," he whispered, producing a single red rose, with an elegant black ribbon, tied around the stem.
Fluttershy smiled at the gift, and reached out to take it, but Discord moved the flower away before she could wrap her small hooves around the stem. "Discord," she giggled, turning in his arms to smile up at him. "Are you playing games with me?"
Discord pretended to look hurt. "I would never dream of such a thing, mademoiselle."
"Good," she teased, attempting to take her flower again, but once more, he was too quick for her, and lifted it away. Fluttershy attempted to pout, but found the task too hard, as she couldn't stop smiling. "Fine, be dark and mysterious," she sighed, turning away from him to fetch her costume.
But Discord's gloved paw and claw wrapped grasped her wrist, and pulled her back into his embrace. "Discord," she blushed, trying to keep her voice low. "I need to change into my costume."
"And you will," he promised, taking the rose and slowly running the soft petals along her cheek. "But that also means that you need help out of your dress...a task that I am only too happy to help you with..." he growled seductively, his talented hooves already undoing the buttons along her back.
"Discord..." she moaned, feeling the heat rise between her legs. "They will be expecting me soon..."
"They can wait," he murmured, undoing the last of her buttons and slowly pulling the dress off her shoulders. "I am the one who makes the rules around here, not them...and I demand that my star receives only the best treatment when she is not rehearsing..."
Fluttershy could not argue with him, she didn't want to. She was too wrapped up in her lover's seductive spell. With hazy eyes, the color of a storm-filled sea, she stepped out of her dress, and moaned with pleasure as Discord continued to undress her, removing her corset, pantalets, chemise, and stockings, before finally leading her over to the chaise lounge, with only a blush to cover her body.
"Close your eyes," he softly commanded, and Fluttershy immediately obeyed. With tender care, he ran the rose over her skin, delighting in every purr and whimper that Fluttershy produced. The petals were so soft, reminding her of the silken sheets that covered the bed she and Discord had shared the night before. She gasped and trembled with need as she felt Discord run the petals across her breasts, taking extra care to roll over her budding nipples. "My beauty..." he growled. "My intoxicating bride..."
Outside the dressing room, in the auditorium, Blueblood burst through the doors, his eyes lit with rage from the earlier business with the gypsies. The only thing that could calm him was seeing Fluttershy...but even that did not prove to be a calming thought.
He demanded answers! Who was that creature that she burst into the police station to rescue? How did she know the monster? Why had she come with that thing to the opera house? Where had she gone after bringing the beast back? And most importantly...whose glove was she keeping under her pillow!?
Blueblood was furious, and if anyone got in his way, so help him-
"Ah! There you are!"
Blueblood groaned with annoyance at the sight of Celestia, who blocked his way from advancing upon the stage. "Not now, Celestia," he growled with warning.
The soprano would not be ordered away easily. "I can not believe it," she hissed with disgust. "After everything we have shared...I can not believe that you're actually...you're actually..." she struggled with finishing the words, she was just so angry at the thought of him marrying that stupid mare!
"My dear," Blueblood growled with exasperation. "You were a good buck that served its purposes...nothing more. I owe you nothing. Now get out of my way!"
Celestia's rage was so great that she shoved him with all the might she could muster. "You bastard!" she hissed. "Despite your reputation for bedding every dancer in this place, I never thought that you would go so far as to...as to propose marriage to some chorus wench!"
Blueblood, who was ready to shove the prima donna to one side, froze at the mare's words. "W-w-w-what?"
Celestia grinned evilly and lifted her head high. "Yes, I know all about it. I saw the bracelet she was wearing, and I must say...for a stallion like yourself, your gambling debts must be seriously high, if you think a little bauble like that would classify as a wedding bracelet!"
Blueblood stared at the mare, feeling the color drain from his face. What on earth was Celestia talking about!? What bracelet had she seen Fluttershy wearing!? So many thoughts were flying about in his head that he barely heard Celestia's next words.
"I hate myself for letting you use me like some cheap whore," she spat, "but I get pleasure out of knowing that it is you, who is now being played the fool!"
Blueblood looked at the mare, wanting nothing more than to backhoof the smirk that played across her over-made lips. "Fool!?" he nearly roared. No one ever made a fool out of him!
"Yes," Celestia continued, not backing down despite the rage she could see in his eyes. "You enter this place as if you own it, snapping your hooves at any mare who pleases your eye, thinking yourself a god in the bedroom...but the one mare you want more than any other, the one mare you've spent more time pursuing than any other...the one you have actually gone so far as to propose marriage, is the one who is playing you for a fool...and giving her body over to another!"
Celestia's grin quickly melted away when Blueblood grasped her by the shoulders and slammed her against the nearest wall. "WHAT?!?" he hissed. "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!?"
"DISCORD!" the diva practically shrieked. "I heard her say his name a few days ago!" she wailed, pushing at Blueblood's chest to release her. She gasped when he finally did, her shoulders aching with pain from where he had held her.
"Discord..." Blueblood repeated. A cold feeling was rising within his stomach.
Without another word or glance, Blueblood raced to Fluttershy's dressing room, not caring if he trespassed on her privacy, he was determined to get to the bottom of all this, determined to discover what Celestia meant by believing the two of them to be engaged, what this talk was about some kind of ring, and most importantly...who this "Discord" was.
Blueblood reached the dressing room, prepared to break the door down if necessary, and found...
...it was open?
"Fluttershy?"
Nothing. She wasn't there. She had already left.
But his nostrils caught a familiar scent in the air, one that made his stomach turn with horror. And on the dressing table, lay a single red rose, with a black ribbon tied around its stem. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Jealousy | Jealousy
He sat in his darkened library; his chin resting against his hooves, and his eyes staring off into the dark shadows across the room.
Outside, a storm was raging. The sound of thunder erupted the air, as if the earth itself were growling with fury. Now and then lightening would illuminate the darkened library, casting eerie shadows over his face.
He had left the opera house not long after he had arrived. One glance at Fluttershy's dressing room had been enough for him, and the rage had been building since...
Her clothes lay in a heap on the floor.
There was an imprint of two bodies on the chaise lounge.
The scent of lovemaking was in the air.
And the single red rose...
Blueblood could not help himself; he grasped the rose and took it with him, wanting to smash its delicate petals on the ground beneath his hoof..
But he didn't...at least, not yet.
It was all becoming too clear. The glove Cherry Jubilee had brought him, the rumor of Fluttershy's engagement bracelet, the rose, the obvious signs that Fluttershy had not been alone in her dressing room...and the name that Celestia had heard the young mare say: Discord.
These little pieces of evidence, combined with Fluttershy's mysterious return after months of disappearing, the 300 franks in gold she had mysteriously acquired, her knowledge of the creature from the prison, and even the mask worn by his attacker after leaving Fluttershy that one evening, created a picture that caused bile to rise in his throat.
It could not be possible! But the evidence was not lying...
He closed his eyes as he remembered the way she easily went into the arms of Red Death at the masquerade ball. He bit the inside of his cheek as he recalled the way she passionately defended the Phantom's opera, and he tasted blood as he recalled how she refused to allow him to kiss her, to touch her, to even accept his offer of help when she freed the monster.
He tried to create reasons, excuses really, to the way she had been behaving. After all, she had willingly danced in his arms at the masquerade, had she not? He was sure she had! And she graciously accepted his offers to help her, thanking him for all that he had done to free her father, to find them a place to stay...
...and she had also told him just the other day that she would not be needing his charity any longer.
Charity.
He hated that word, but he hated it with newfound passion ever since Fluttershy had said it to him. His actions had not been charitable! How dare she take them that way! And how dare she, a little nobody, refuse him and his kind actions!
He slammed his hoof down on the arm of his chair as the lightning illuminated the library once more. Damn her! Damn her beautiful eyes, her pretty face, her silken hair, and her sweet body! Damn her for having this hold on him!
She was a mare! And mares were meant to satisfy his cravings, nothing more! Why was it that she had been so difficult? No other mare had ever been this much of a headache for him, not even Celestia! He had done everything to win her over; he wooed her, he showered gifts upon her, he took her to the most fashionable places in Maris! He was willing to commit matrimony for her!
And yet she still refused him. HIM! He was hoofsome, wealthy, had high social connections, a great estate in the country, a fashionable town house in Paris! He had traveled across Europe, he could take her anywhere she longed to go, buy her whatever it was that she wanted! WHAT DID HE HAVE TO DO TO WIN HER OVER?!?
Blueblood was shaking with rage. No...it was not possible...
He closed his eyes and images of her with the Phantom invaded his mind. Her head thrown back, her hair falling down her shoulders, as the Phantom ran his disgusting lips across her creamy skin. Blueblood growled as he thought about Fluttershy spreading her legs willingly for that madcolt, rutting with the monster, allowing him to defile her flesh! NO!
"Monsieur?"
Blueblood snarled at the butler who had dared to open the door to the library. "I told you," he hissed in a dangerous voice. "I don't want any interruptions."
The butler swallowed the nervous lump in his throat. "I beg your pardon monsieur...but I thought it best that you should see this..." the stallion carefully approached the Prince and handed him a note. "Cherry Jubilee sent it here this morning..."
The name of the redheaded maid caused the Prince's head to spring upward, and he snatched the note out of the butler's hooves. Without another glance or word, he tore the paper open, and quickly read the letter's contents.
The butler recalled the look of fury buried in the green depths of his master's eyes, and did not think it possible for that fury to blaze even brighter.
He was wrong.
"Get my carriage," Blueblood ordered, his voice dark, cold, and menacing. The butler simply nodded his head, and quickly walked out of the library to fetch the Prince's coachcolt.
Blueblood slowly rose to his feet, his jaw cracking from the way he clenched his teeth. The news that Cherry Jubilee had sent him had been too much. It was time he confronted Mademoiselle Time Turner once and for all. He lifted his eyes to glance at the rose he had taken from her dressing room; it had been lying on the mantle above the empty fireplace.
Like a rose, his Fluttershy was beautiful and soft...but she was also very prickly, with sharp, deadly thorns, thorns that had scratched at him for too long. Without another thought, he grasped the rose by its petals, and crushed them with his fist. So would he also crush his beautiful brunette flower, should she attempt to prick him once more.
"I have informed my housekeeper that you and your father will be my guests once more," Madame Luna explained to Fluttershy as rehearsals were finally coming to a close for the evening. Fluttershy put on a weak smile, remembering how "well" she and Madame Luna's housekeeper got on the last time she had been there. But she reminded herself that this was only temporary and extremely necessary-she and her father couldn't stay in that fashionable apartment one more night.
"I thank you for doing all this," Fluttershy murmured, still feeling guilty for intruding on Madame Luna's hospitality once more.
"Nonsense," the dance mistress smiled. "It is a pleasure to help you...and the sooner you are away from the Prince, the better," she muttered.
Fluttershy couldn't help but agree. "Papa left almost an hour ago to fetch our things, but I should check to see if he needs any help, as well as make sure Cherry Jubilee didn't forget anything."
Madame Luna nodded her head with understanding. "Come, Twilight and I will be glad to take you to the apartment in our carriage."
Fluttershy smiled at the mare who was known to have an icy persona, but who truly had a heart of gold. "Thank you, but first..." she blushed as she revealed two envelopes to the dance mistress. "I need to leave these in Box 5."
One of the letters Fluttershy held had been written by her father. She had been glowing with happiness as her father wrote his blessing to Discord. The second letter was a brief note that Fluttershy had scribbled earlier that morning to inform Discord that she and her father would be staying with Madame Luna for the night. The last thing she wanted was for him to risk his life venturing out in the night to see her as he had done on other occasions.
"I understand," Madame Luna smiled tenderly. "Hurry and deliver your notes and we shall be on our way."
Fluttershy grinned and quickly took the stairs that would lead her to the Prince's box. Today had perhaps been one of the happiest days Fluttershy could remember. She felt such relief, knowing that things were right between herself and Discord, knowing that her father had given his approval, and knowing especially that she would not have to deal with Blueblood any more. However, she could not help but feel a little surprised for not seeing him since the other day. She knew she had startled him with her behavior, with her concern towards Derpy, and he made it abundantly clear that he thought her mad for taking the poor hunchback in. And while she had not told him outright that she wished to no longer see him again, she had made it rather clear that was her intention.
It puzzled her; Blueblood seemed to be the sort of stallion that did not take "no" very well, if at all. Yet he had not graced the opera house with his appearance; Fluttershy was grateful for this, but she could not suppress a feeling of apprehension.
She shook her head, not wanting worries that involved the Prince to spoil her good mood. Instead, she focused on her afternoon with Discord, which immediately caused a dark blush to color her cheeks.
Discord certainly had surprised her; she was hoping he would appear to her before the day was finished, but she had not expected him to seduce her in her own dressing room! She blushed even further as her mind began to imagine what "surprises" the intermission on opening night would hold for her. A smile spread across her lips as she remembered the wonderful feel of his arms holding her close, his lips tenderly kissing her glowing face after they both gave themselves up to one another's passion, and even the loving way he helped her with her costume, lacing her corset, pinning roses in her hair; with a tender kiss to her forehead, he disappeared once more through the mirror, while she quickly hurried back on stage-she would not allow Celestia another opportunity to play Aminta.
Fluttershy kissed both letters before laying them on the chair in Box 5. She clutched the ring that hung from her neck and smiled even further as she imagined marrying her Phantom. Soon, she prayed.
Without another look, she quickly descended the stairs and ran to her dressing room to gather her things. She frowned as she could not find the beautiful rose that Discord had given her earlier that day; she swore she had left it on the dressing table. She did not like the idea of leaving without it, but she could not wait another minute, she knew she was keeping both Madame Luna and Twilight. Determined to search for it anew tomorrow, Fluttershy quickly hurried outside to where a small black carriage waited. Twilight was smiling and had the door opened for Fluttershy. "I'm so glad that you'll be staying with us again!" she said cheerfully. Fluttershy smiled back at the pretty dancer, knowing that she had not revealed many of her secrets to the dance mistress' daughter, including her reasons for needing to stay with them. However, ever since Fluttershy had returned to the opera house, Twilight had been one of the few people who had treated her with any kindness. She wanted desperately to confide in the young mare, to reveal everything that had happened, to explain why she was not engaged to Blueblood, and who truly had given her that ring. But not yet, she thought sadly. While Twilight was very kind and thoughtful, Fluttershy was not sure how the pretty dancer would take to the news of her being engaged to the infamous Opera Ghost.
Within a few short minutes, Madame Luna's carriage stopped just outside the apartment both Fluttershy and her father had been occupying. "I shall be quick!" Fluttershy promised, climbing out of the carriage and dashing into the building.
"Papa! I'm here! Madame Luna and Twilight are waiting in their carriage outside," she called out, entering the flat. "Do you have all our things? Did you check both bedrooms-"
"He's not here, Fluttershy."
Fluttershy froze at the sound of Blueblood's voice. She slowly turned from the door she had been shutting to face the tall, hoovesome, blonde noblecolt who stood in the dark hallway that led to the bedchambers. An uneasy feeling began to rise in the pit of her stomach.
"Blueblood..." Fluttershy murmured. "W-what are you doing here?"
The Prince took a calm step towards her, and Fluttershy felt herself instinctively move back. The first time she had seen him, his hoofsome face, his charming smile, and his elegant manners had overwhelmed Fluttershy. She could easily understand why many of the mares in the dance found him dashing and irresistible-but tonight, she wondered if any of those same mares would think those things about him now, as a sinister cloud passed over his eyes, causing his hoofsome features to look twisted and grotesque. Funny, she thought; Discord could frighten anyone if he so willed it...except for her. When he stalked her, she felt excitement, not fear. When the Prince stalked her, she felt like a doe, about to be torn apart by a ravenous wolf.
"Do not worry about your father," Blueblood reassured, his voice calm and even, but with an icy edge to the tone. "I saw him leave just moments ago. He was carrying several large bags..."
Fluttershy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat and lifted her chin. She refused to allow him to believe he intimidated her.
Blueblood paused and glanced at several ornaments that decorated a shelf. "Had I been closer, I would have inquired where he was going, even offer my services to help him with those bags," he sighed, before lifting his eyes to hers once more. "I can't help but wonder where he was going...and with so many bags..."
Fluttershy's lips were a thin tight line, a result from having clenched her teeth. She was tired of Blueblood's "cat and mouse" games, tired of him believing he could bully anyone he wanted into doing whatever he wished. No more, she thought to herself. No more lies, no more games. "We are leaving," she simply said.
It took every ounce of will power that Blueblood possessed to not reach out and throttle the pretty brunette before him. He had been practicing this will power the second she had entered the apartment and called out for her absent father. He forced himself to be calm, to keep his emotions in check, to even sound light-hearted...
But he had not been expecting her blunt answer. Any amusement that he had in his eyes or in his voice disappeared.
"You're leaving?" he calmly asked, although anyone could tell that the calmness was strained.
"Yes," Fluttershy simply answered, and without another word, pushed past him to check the bedrooms to make sure her father had gathered all their supplies.
Blueblood stared at the mare's back, stunned by her bluntness and coldness. Despite all the puzzle pieces he had been putting together, despite the letter and evidence that Cherry Jubilee had given him...he still had difficulty believing that this mare...was blatantly refusing him!
"WHY?" he demanded, his voice a loud bark.
Fluttershy ignored his question, and the dangerous tone it held, and continued checking the rooms. She owed him nothing, not even an explanation. Yet she also knew that by attempting to answer his questions, she would be forced to stay in his presence longer...and the sooner she got of there, the better.
"Damn it, Fluttershy," Blueblood growled, slamming his fist against one of the walls. "You will answer me!"
Fluttershy remained silent, searching her bedchamber thoroughly while the Prince fumed. Blueblood watched with cold rage as she checked under her pillow, the muscles at the side of his neck throbbing and twitching.
The glove. She was searching for that blasted glove that Cherry Jubilee had brought to him.
Fluttershy was troubled that she could not find the glove that had belonged to Discord. Strange, both his glove and his rose were missing. If she were alone, she would take extra time to search for it, but she knew deep in her heart that she needed to get out of there immediately. She could only pray that her father had somehow retrieved it.
"Missing something?" Blueblood asked through clenched teeth.
Fluttershy lifted her chin, refusing to give him any sort of satisfaction, even an answer to his questions. She began to walk by, but he stood in front of her, blocking the hall from the bedroom. "Let me pass," she calmly ordered.
"No, I think not," Blueblood snarled. "Not until I have some questions answered. You owe me that much, I think."
Fluttershy's eyes locked with his, hatred seething from their blue depths. "I owe you nothing!" she spat.
"Oh really?" Blueblood retorted. "How foolish of me to misunderstand! After all, I only paid the fine to release your father, I only gave the two of you a place to stay, I only helped both you, and he, find work at the Paris Opera House, and I only convinced the managers to make you the star of this bloody opera, while keeping Celestia at bay!"
"You had nothing to do with me getting that part!" Fluttershy shouted. "That part was mine even before you went to the managers!"
Blueblood cocked a golden brow at her words. "Oh how silly of me to forget; that's right, you are the Phantom's favored singer..."
Fluttershy glared at him, despising the words he used. She didn't care if he slandered her name and hated her till the day he died; but she would not stand by while he insulted Discord. "You know what continues to amuse me? The fact that you continue to believe that you run that opera house."
"I DO RUN THAT OPERA HOUSE!" Blueblood roared in her face, causing her hair to blow backward.
"NO YOU DON'T!" Fluttershy shouted back, not backing down for one second. "You think you do, you think you run everything! You think that with a wave of your hoof, a hoofsome smile, and the promise of money, you can have anything you want. But you can't Blueblood, and you never will!"
Blueblood's eyes seemed to be glowing with rage. "Never?" he questioned, his voice a dangerous tone that Fluttershy had never heard before, a tone that caused a horrible tingle to rush down her spine. She held fast to her courage.
"The day you helped me release my father, I offered to pay you back-but you refused. You said I owed you nothing, and I foolishly believed you. But you don't mean that, do you?" she asked, squaring her shoulders despite the treacherous way he was looking at her. "Your promises are empty, and your charity is costly. You said I owed you nothing, but what you really meant was that you didn't want my money, or even my gratitude! Paying for my father's release, offering us this elegant place to stay, even your invitation to dinner! It was all a ruse, an elaborate scheme to make both myself and my father feel that we had to repay you somehow...but the payment you seek is something you will NEVER have!"
Fluttershy could not conceal the gasp that escaped her throat when Blueblood took a sudden thunderous step towards her. "Never?" he growled again, a shadow darkening his face and making him look even more sinister. He opened his mouth to speak further, but something caught his eye...something sparkling on her hoof. Without another word, he reached out and grasped the bracelet, tugging it from her hoof before she could react, let alone protest.
Fluttershy stared in horror, as Blueblood not only took the bracelet Discord had given her, but also her mother's locket which she had attached to it. She clawed at his hoof to give them back to her, but without even looking at her, he shoved her away, causing Fluttershy to fall backwards onto the bed. She quickly sat up, prepared to launch herself at the Prince to reclaim what was rightfully hers, but the cold anger in Blueblood's eyes froze her in place.
"So it's true..." he whispered, his eyes flying back and forth between her face and the bracelet. "It's all true," he whispered again, although this time more to himself than her. The glove, the rose, the bracelet, everything...
She was the Phantom's whore!
Fluttershy let out a scream as Blueblood suddenly seized her by the shoulders, forcing her off the bed, and shoving her, hard, against a nearby wall. Her head hurt from banging the wall's hard surface, and she whimpered with pain as his fingers dug into her flesh, practically lifting her off the floor so that she dangled helplessly. "YOU LITTLE BITCH!" he shouted, slamming her again against the wall. "YOU RUTTED WITH THAT MONSTER, DIDN'T YOU?" Fluttershy blinked back her frightened tears as Blueblood shoved her again against the wall. She turned her head away, wanting to retch as she felt his body pressing against hers.
"ADMIT IT FLUTTERSHY!" he shouted, shaking her like a rag doll. "YOU GAVE YOURSELF TO HIM! YOU BECAME HIS WHORE! HIS SLUT! HIS-"
"YES!" she screamed in his face, anger now replacing fear. "And I loved it!"
Blueblood's face paled, and for a brief moment, he was stunned speechless. But that moment quickly ended, and without blinking, he backhooved her, hard, across the face, causing her to crumple to the ground, blood seeping from her nose and lip.
Fluttershy coughed and tasted blood in her mouth. She knew she had only kindled his anger with her words, but she would never take them back, it had been worth it.
A howl of pain escaped Fluttershy's throat as she felt Blueblood grab her by the hair and hoist her up to her feet. "You filthy, disgusting, bitch," he snarled, slamming her once more against the wall. Fluttershy groaned in pain, her head throbbing from the abuse. She turned her face away as she suddenly felt his lips smother her neck with wet, slimy kisses, his teeth biting the flesh harshly, while his hooves were busy pushing up her skirt. "You're mine," Blueblood growled possessively. "MINE!"
Despite the light-headedness Fluttershy was feeling, despite the pain and shock from everything that had transpired, her strength and courage rose up once more, and in one great moment of vengeful anger, her knee shot out and made contact with his groin. Blueblood gasped in pain and fell to his knees, and without hesitating further, Fluttershy's knee slammed into the Prince's hoofsome face, praying that she broke his so-called perfect nose, and causing him to topple over onto the ground. While he lay on the ground, cursing her name and groaning in pain, she took her booted hoof and kicked him hard in the stomach, before stomping on his groin once more.
Blueblood howled with pain from Fluttershy's actions. Satisfied that he was in too much agony to do anything other than whimper and groan, she reached down and reclaimed the bracelet and locket he had taken from her, before quickly hurrying out of the apartment.
Madame Luna was pacing on the street below, looking anxious and worried. She let out a sigh of relief when Fluttershy emerged, but her relief quickly disappeared when she saw Fluttershy's cut lip and bloody nose. "What happened?" the dance mistress practically screeched in horror.
"I'm fine," Fluttershy reassured. "Please, I'll explain everything later, but we must go, now."
Madame Luna glanced up to the windows of the apartment and felt cold rage fill her veins. "The Prince?" she icily asked.
"Please..." Fluttershy pleaded. "I just want to leave this place."
Madame Luna knew that the mare was right. Staying here would only worsen things, and right now Fluttershy needed to be somewhere safe. She quickly helped the young mare into the carriage, and ordered the driver to be off. Twilight gasped at the sight of Fluttershy, but one look from her mother told her to hold her tongue. Answers would be given later, but right now, all that mattered was getting home.
Blueblood stumbled out of the building the second the carriage disappeared around a corner. He snarled as he held his hoofkerchief to his bleeding nose, pain still radiating between his legs. "So be it," he growled to the night air. "Let this be war upon the both of you!"
"Monsieur?" Blueblood turned and saw his coachcolt, hurrying towards him. "Are you alright?"
"DOES IT LOOK LIKE I'M ALRIGHT?"
The coachcolt jumped at his master's tone. His eyes flew to the place where Madame Luna's carriage had been. "Do you wish to follow them?" he asked, hoping to get back on the Prince's good graces.
Blueblood looked up once more in the direction that the carriage had gone. "No," he whispered. "But there is someone else I wish to see..."
Nearly an hour later, Blueblood emerged from his carriage, not even waiting for his coachcolt to climb down and open the door. He threw his bloody hoofkerchief down on the ground, and stalked towards his destination.
Music was playing, several people were dancing, and wine flowed from nearly a dozen pitchers. The gypsies laughed and sang to the music, dancing and shouting their revelry around a glowing bonfire, while behind them, their "collections" sat huddled in their cages, yearning for kindness and freedom.
They were so preoccupied with their revel making that they did not notice they had a visitor, until a child cried out, "look! It's that fancy stallion from this morning!"
The music stopped and silence fell over the camp as the gypsies gazed at Blueblood with suspicion, several going for the daggers that they kept at their boots. "I wish to speak with Monsieur Master," Blueblood said calmly, but with cold determination.
The tall stallion emerged from the cluster of ponies and approached the Prince, eyeing the noblecoltsuspiciously. "Good evening, monsieur," he greeted. "I did not realize that we would be honored by your presence once more."
"I want to make a deal with you."
A murmur went up around the camp, but Master lifted his hoof to silence them. "A deal?" he inquired. "I do hope it's a different proposition than the one you presented earlier today..."
"Indeed," Blueblood reassured. "Name your price, and I will pay it."
Master cocked a silver brow at the Prince's words. "My price?"
"Yes," Blueblood growled. "I want him dead."
"The Draconequus?"
"Draconequus, the Phantom, whatever his name is, yes," he snarled. "I want him dead...and I will pay you and your stallions whatever amount you wish to see that it's done."
Master stood for a long moment, eyeing the Prince carefully, while the rest of his clan stood in silent anticipation awaiting the response from their leader.
"Deal." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Tempest | Tempest
Blueblood sighed as he exhaled a long cloud of gray smoke. For the first time in months, he truly felt relaxed.
He sat in one of the gypsy's wagons, on a rather rickety old chair, but it made no difference, he could be sitting in a puddle of muddy water; what mattered was that Master had agreed to take care of his "phantom" problem.
Master sat across from Blueblood, at a small green desk. He too was smoking one of Blueblood's fine cigars, as well as drinking a glass of Merlot. "So the entrance to this place is in the sewer tunnels?"
Blueblood nodded his head. "I'm sure there are several entrances to where he lives, but this is the only one that I know of that isn't booby trapped."
Master let out a soft chuckle. "Discord was always resourceful."
Blueblood's head shot up at the mention of the Phantom's name. "Discord?"
Master smiled and sipped his wine. "All our creatures have names, monsieur...we're not so cruel," he chuckled.
Blueblood despised the Phantom more than anyone else on earth, but he found himself slightly curious at how the old gypsy came to know the masked devil. "When and where did you...acquire him?"
Master sighed, a cloud of smoke leaving his nostrils. "It was so long ago...seems like ages," he murmured. "We used to travel everywhere, and one day when we were near Constantinople, we encountered a Persian caravan."
"Persian?" Blueblood asked, his attention set on Master's story.
The old gypsy nodded his head. "He was already a colt...12, perhaps even 13...I can not recall. They had purchased him when he was a baby; there was this mare, young...a child really. When she gave birth, the babe was deformed, monstrous. Her husband wanted nothing to do with the colt-said his wife had laid with a demon and had marked him as a sign for disobedience and sin. I never questioned what this 'disobedience' was, but I got the impression that the husband wasn't the most faithful of stallions," Master winked. "Apparently the mare screamed, wanting to keep her baby," he chuckled softly. "Funny...it was one of the ugliest monsters I had ever seen, and yet I could from the way these travelers told me the tale, that this mare truly thought him beautiful," he shrugged his shoulders. "The husband more or less thrust the babe with the caravan, wanting to be rid of it more than anything. Apparently the colt did slave labor for them, but as he grew with age, he became too cocky, began to talk back, and eventually fight back. They would beat him into obedience...and the day before we came upon them, they had beaten him so badly, that they told me he had lost his memory."
Blueblood's brows arched at this. "You mean the Phantom has no memory of his life before being in your carnival?"
Master shrugged his shoulders. "I never truly cared enough to ask. I just knew that he would be a star attraction, and they were quite eager to sell him," he sighed, somewhat wistfully. "Now he didn't come cheap; I paid a hoofsome price to have him in my collection, but it was worth it; he made us more money than we had ever dreamed of making! We gave him the title of the 'Half Stallion', with his rarity and unbelievable look, we could show him as is, but with his face he became our star attraction," he sighed and shook his head. "But one night, he escaped; our watchstallion said he had gone in to Discord's cage to beat him, but Discord...ever resourceful Discord, knew exactly what he was doing. He kicked the stallion in the groin-"
Blueblood winced and carefully folded his legs; his groin still throbbed with pain.
"And took the watchstallion's keys, making his escape. He released the others too, but we were able to capture all of them again, except for the four that your police friend saw," he concluded, finishing his glass of wine. "But thanks to you, they will be ours once more."
"Just remember to kill the Phantom," Blueblood growled as he flicked the ashes from his cigar.
Master nodded his head, although he eyed his business partner with scrutiny. "A deal is a deal, monsieur...but tell me, why is it that you hate him so?"
Blueblood grunted at the old stallion's question. "Let's just say...he and I have a history."
Master couldn't help but chuckle at the Prince's answer. "As do both he and myself, but that tells me nothing! Come..." he rose from his desk to pour the Prince a glass of Merlot. "I wish to know why I am being asked to kill my most prized attraction."
Blueblood nearly gulped down the whole glass of Merlot once the stallion stopped pouring. "He's been a thorn in my side for too long," he hissed. "I am a patron of the Maris Opera House-what I say, goes! But he...he believes he runs the blasted place. And he makes demands all the time, ordering the management to follow his instructions to the line. And when we refuse, he causes some sort of scandal that takes weeks to clear up."
Master cocked a silver brow at Blueblood's revelation. "Sounds like a nuisance, indeed, but not a good enough reason for me and my stallions to kill him."
Blueblood's hooves squeezed the wine glass he held, and it instantly began to crack. "He's taken something from me," he growled, deep, low, and dangerous. "Something very valuable."
Master eyed the noblecolt, and glanced at the cracked wine glass which he held. Without saying anything, he reached over and took the glass. Nothing further needed to be said; only a mare could have that sort of effect on a stallion.
"We should discuss the subject of payment," the old gypsy murmured, walking back to his desk.
"Money is no object," Blueblood stated once more.
"Good," Master smiled, sitting back down and propping his feet up on the desk. "I want 5,000 franks."
Blueblood began choking on the smoke from his cigar. "5,000 FRANKS?" he coughed, his face paling at the old stallion's words. "You can't be serious-"
"10,000!" Master barked, his dark eyes unwavering and daring the Prince to challenge him further.
Blueblood groaned and knew it was worthless to argue. "Fine. 10,000 franks."
The old gypsy smiled and eased himself even further back into his chair. "Good. You can pay me the first 5,000 now, and the rest after we've done the deed."
"You're too generous," Blueblood muttered with irritation. This was going to set him back quite a bit. What he wouldn't give to have the money that the dying Marquis Filthy Rich had! Oh Fluttershy-the stupid mare had no idea that her grandfather was going to be leaving her his entire fortune.
"It would be best for my men and I to see this sewer entrance tonight, while under the cover of darkness. Tomorrow, we shall strike," Master explained.
"And how will you strike?" Blueblood asked curiously. "More importantly, how will you go about killing the Phantom?"
Master grinned. "Let me reassure you that my clan has a long history of getting out of tough situations, and disappearing without a shred of evidence," he reached out and patted a covered item with his hoof.
Blueblood rose from where he sat and walked over to the thing that Master had been patting. It was round, that much he could tell...and it was covered with a dirty sheet. A nod from the old pony's head told Blueblood he was welcome to lift the sheet and see what exactly the Master clan was hiding.
Gunpowder.
Barrels upon barrels of gunpowder.
"It's a shame you won't be able to join us, monsieur," Master sighed, covering the barrels once more. "It should be quite the display."
Fluttershy winced as the housekeeper rubbed a little alcohol across her lip. "Hold still," the mare muttered. "I know it stings, but it's for your own good."
Sitting across from her was her father, who looked more distressed than ever before. It had been less than twenty minutes since she had entered Madame Luna's home. Fluttershy was so grateful to see that her father had indeed made it there, safely. He smiled as she entered, but in one second, his smile disappeared. From that moment on, he had been in hysterics. "I'll kill him!" he angrily vowed, throwing on his coat and preparing to leave to challenge the Prince to a duel right then and there.
"You will do no such thing, Papa!" Fluttershy argued, grabbing her father's shoulder as he opened the door.
None of them noticed the black kitten escape between the old stallion's legs, out into the night.
"Your daughter is right," Madame Luna quickly agreed. "Come...I will have a pot of special spiced tea made."
"To think that I actually considered that stallion a gentlecolt..." Time Turner muttered with disgust.
"Please, monsieur," Madame Luna murmured, coaxing the old pony to sit down in her parlor. "Fluttershy has been through enough tonight. Do not make it worse by giving her cause to worry over your well being."
Knowing that the dance mistress was right, Time Turner sighed with defeat and collapsed into a chair across from his daughter. Madame Luna's housekeeper, Isabel, arrived moments later, after putting the kettle on, with her own small medical bag. She went to work tending to Fluttershy's bruises, and despite her usual grumbling, Fluttershy could tell that the housekeeper was truly sorry for what she had gone through tonight. "All men are bastards, if you ask me," she grumbled. "Especially the wealthy ones."
"Thank you," Madame Luna cut in, not needing the housekeeper's commentary to go any further than need be. "Perhaps our tea is ready?" The housekeeper curtsied for her mistress, before disappearing into the kitchens once more, grumbling as she went.
"I should have waited for you," Time Turner sadly mumbled, reaching out and grasping his daughter's hoof in his. "I'm so sorry Fluttershy."
"Papa, no, please, do not blame yourself," Fluttershy reassured. "I'm alright...bruises heal and fade, and hopefully Blueblood will think twice before cornering me again."
Twilight couldn't help but grin at her words. "I wish I had been there, I would love to have seen you kick him in the-"
"Twilight Luna!" Madame Luna gasped.
"Oh Mama, he deserved it! Besides, serves him right after years of manipulating mares at the opera house," the mirth in her voice slowly faded away. "I can't believe that I actually thought him hoofsome, that I actually desired-" she stopped her words short after the icy glare that her mother gave her.
The tea was brought, and a silence fell over the room as they sipped from their cups. Fluttershy was torn; a part of her wanted to go to Discord immediately, to feel the comfort and safety that his arms offered, but had he seen her as she looked now, who knows what spasm of rage would flow through him? Such feelings of rage were not always the most sensible, in fact, they often blocked sense, and his defenses may not have been as keen as they normally were. Fluttershy's hoof fell to her stomach, a gesture that Madame Luna had taken immediate notice. Both mares prayed that the babe growing inside Fluttershy was safe, that the child had not been hurt by Blueblood's hateful actions. Madame Luna shivered as she imagined Discord's wrath if anything had happened to the child.
"I think we should all get some rest," the dance mistress suggested, rising from her chair. "Tomorrow is a very busy day, of course. It is the final dress rehearsal, and we shall also begin our search for a proper house for you both."
Fluttershy smiled at the mare's words, remembering Discord's promise of finding them a house to live in after they were married. She murmured a thankful prayer for being able to retrieve her mother's locket and Discord'sbracelet. Despite everything that had happened, she was glad that Blueblood now knew the whole truth. Perhaps his interest in her would vanish, now knowing that Discord had beaten him to claiming her virginity. Perhaps the simple thought that she was entangled with the Phantom of the Opera would be enough to keep him away. She could only pray...
Time Turner kissed his daughter's cheek, a few of his tears falling against her skin. She hugged him close and whispered her goodnight to him, as he disappeared toward the servant's quarters. Twilight also gave Fluttershy a hug, insisting that the brunette take her room for the night, and she would share a bed with her mother. Fluttershy reluctantly agreed, but thanked the dancer most sincerely. Madame Luna smiled, happy that Fluttershy had found a friend with her daughter, and was ready to disappear into her bedroom, when she was stopped by a question.
"Madame Luna...may I...may I talk to you, just for a moment?"
The dance mistress silently nodded her head, and went back into the parlor where Fluttershy remained. "What is it my dear?"
Fluttershy sighed and pulled the bracelet that she had rescued from Blueblood, out of her pocket. "I...I wanted you to be one of the first to know," she whispered, revealing the bracelet to the dance mistress.
Madame Luna gasped as Fluttershy revealed the elegant jewel. She looked into the young mare's eyes, her vision blurred by happy tears. "You...you and Discord?" she whispered.
Fluttershy blushed, her own happy tears already beginning to drip down her cheeks. "Yes," she whispered, happily placing the bracelet on her hoof. "Last night, I went to see him. He knows everything; that I never loved or wished to marry Blueblood, that my heart has always been to him...and..." she smiled as her hoof fell to her stomach.
Madame Luna smiled and placed her own hoof over the mare's. "I'm so happy for you my dear...I'm happy for you both. Discord..." she found herself smiling at the memory. "Discord has had a hard life, and for many years has resolved himself to keeping his emotions and his heart locked away from others," she smiled at the mare and squeezed her hoofs. "I never thought I would live to see the day when Discord told me he was in love, and that someone returned his love...I never thought I would see the day when...when he would be married," she whispered in awe.
Fluttershy blushed and smiled despite her tears. "He has promised me that we shall have a house here in Maris. The others will come with us, of course, and he will compose music and I will sing..." the emotion was so great that Fluttershy could not continue.
Madame Luna smiled and touched the young mare's cheek tenderly. "Does your father know?"
Fluttershy blushed and looked down at her stomach. "I...I haven't told him about the baby...to be honest, I just found out myself, last night..." a soft smile spread across her face. "He does know about my feelings for Discord, and his feelings for me, and in fact, one of the letters that I left in Box 5 was written by my father..." her eyes sparkled from the memory. "He has given both of us his blessing, and...oh Madame Luna, I...I just can't believe my good fortune. Is it possible to die from happiness?"
The mare smiled tenderly at the mare before her. "Oh my dear child...I am very happy for you both..." her hoof had been softly caressing Fluttershy's cheek, but she frowned as her fingers gently passed over one of Fluttershy's bruises. "I always knew the Prince was a monster...no amount of hoofsome smiles or charming compliments could hide that." Fluttershy saw the sorrow in the older mare's eyes, and could tell that Madame Luna was recalling an old memory. "Just like his father...in too many ways."
"Madame Luna?"
The mare shook her head. "I'm sorry, my dear, I did not mean to startle you."
"Oh no, you didn't," Fluttershy reassured, but an old thought began to gnaw at her, a question that she was not sure she wanted to know the answer to, but was too curious to hold back. "Did...did you know a dancer named Pinkamena?" she whispered.
Madame Luna's eyes widened slightly, before sorrow filled them once more. "You know about Pinkamena?" she asked.
Fluttershy felt ashamed for even asking. "Only a little," she murmured. "I know that Discord was in love with her once, that he had sent her poems, flowers, and songs...but she believed them all to be gifts from Blueblood. And...and then one day, she disappeared."
"Yes," Madame Luna sighed sadly. "Discord was much younger then, only 19, but he was infatuated with the mare. Pinkamena was a stunning beauty to be sure, as well as a promising dancer for a mare of only 15. But not always the wisest of mares, and she too easily fell to young Blueblood's charms," she paused, her gaze drifting to the window. A light rain was falling. "Blueblood was 16, but had been educated by his father to treat mares like objects, rather than ponies. Blueblood took a keen interest in Pinkamena, and it wasn't long before he had lured her to his bed with promises of love and marriage."
Fluttershy felt her heart break, both for Madame Luna and for Discord. "Discord said she ran away with Blueblood...and she was never seen again."
Madame Luna shook her head. "That's not entirely true," she sighed. "I know this because she briefly kept a correspondence with some of the mares," Madame Luna shook her head, angry tears now filling her eyes. "Stupid mare. Her letters were boastful, and she bragged about how she had 'triumphed' at winning Blueblood's heart..." the older mare quickly wiped her eyes as if she were ashamed of her tears.
"I had just given birth to Twilight," she went on to explain, "and was too busy trying to be a mother instead of a dance mistress, and when I wasn't watching, Pinkamena agreed to run away with Blueblood, believing he loved her, that he wanted to marry her...when in truth, his only interest in her was what she could do for him in the bedroom," she muttered bitterly. "Pinkamena became Blueblood's mistress, and they ran away into the country. His father, who was the King at that time, was furious. He did not care if his son defiled my mares, but he refused to allow his son to keep one of them in his house, which was what Blueblood had been doing."
Madame Luna sighed and turned away from the window. "As you can imagine, it came as no great surprise that Pinkamena was pregnant. The Prince felt it best to have the mare removed to a cottage in the country, far from prying eyes and aristocratic gossip. Pinkamena simply thought she was being sent somewhere until her baby was born...but it soon became obvious that Blueblood had no intentions of ever marrying her, and after she gave birth to a colt, she chose to seek him out and demand that he acknowledge his son, the future Prince."
"Oh no," Fluttershy whispered, her hoof covering her mouth. She had a feeling she knew where this was going...and dreaded it.
"You can imagine the Prince's horror when Pinkamena arrived on the steps of the Maris Opera House, just after the opening gala of that season, demanding that he acknowledge his grandson, and let both her and Blueblood marry at once. I was there, I saw the entire scene being played out..." she sighed and looked down at her folded hoofs. "I never told Discord...he was so angry, both with her for running away with Blueblood, and with himself for allowing his emotions to get the better of him. I felt it best to keep it a secret from him."
Fluttershy could understand the mare's reasoning; after all, the truth would not do any good with helping the pain he was already feeling at the time. But there were still a few unanswered questions. "Do you know what became of Pinkamena and her child after that night?"
Madame Luna shook her head. "The Prince took both his son and the mare by the arm and led them to his carriage, before the scene that was developing could grow even further. After that moment...I don't know what happened, Pinkamena's letters stopped at that point," she sighed sadly. "I do know, however, that Blueblood's father was a ruthless stallion, and was capable of committing the most horrible crimes for his own personal gain."
Fluttershy shivered at the mare's words. She could understand how Blueblood had become so menacing. "That was the last time I saw either Pinkamena or the elder King. Two years past, and finally, Blueblood returned, this time bearing his father's title. I never questioned him about Pinkamena or the child...but I soon realized that he had, sadly, become just like his father-ruthless, arrogant, manipulative, and greedy. He's used his charms and good looks to lure many young foolish mares into his bed, and many of them were thrown out onto the streets as a result...losing their jobs for becoming pregnant, or losing their lives in giving birth or..." she bit back a sob, "...attempting to remove the babe themselves."
Fluttershy gasped and found her hoof moving to her stomach in a protective fashion. She had heard such stories, of mares who were put under the knife to rid themselves of the babies they were carrying. She always wondered what could drive a mare to make such a decision...but the reality of a young mare, with no husband or family, and with a meager job that supplied her with food and a place to stay as one's only option from being homeless, starving, and selling one's body for profit...
It was a horrible decision that a mare had to make. A decision Fluttershy prayed that she would never know. But she could not judge such mares, especially when she herself was not facing such horrors that they were.
"He has bastards strewn all across Prance. But he could care less," Madame Luna muttered with great bitterness. "Just like his father..."
Fluttershy looked at the older mare and saw deep pain in her eyes, as well as blinding hatred. "His father...did he...?"
"Yes," Madame Luna answered, her tone brittle and cold. "I was 14 when I came to the opera house, to live in the dance dormitories. I was flattered by his compliments...he thought me pretty," she spat with disgust. "I was such a fool...and I vowed to never allow that to happen to my daughter, or to my mares if I could help it," she sighed. "Some of them I have failed...but I know that I can not be their mother, no matter how much I wish to protect them...I simply continue to work hard to see that I do not fail them as their teacher and mentor, and help them make wise decisions instead of foolish ones," she murmured, a soft sad smile spreading across her face.
Fluttershy reached out and wrapped her arms around the dance mistress. "Twilight is a wonderful dancer, the best in the whole company...and you have done that. She is also kind, witty, and compassionate...as are many of the other mares. You have not failed them, Madame Luna, believe me, you have not."
The older mare smiled and hugged Fluttershy close. "I am sorry I was not there to protect you from the Prince-"
"I'm alright," Fluttershy reassured. "Truly. None of us could have known that he would be there, or to what lengths his jealousy would go."
Madame Luna shivered at Fluttershy's words. The problem was she did know the lengths that Blueblood's jealousy could go...and if he knew now that Fluttershy was the Phantom's lover, she could only imagine what plots he was concocting to seek his revenge.
"Come, we should both get some rest," Madame Luna insisted. Fluttershy nodded her head, although she could tell that something wasn't entirely right. However, she chose not to question it further, whispered her goodnight, before retreating to the room that Twilight had offered.
Outside, the rain grew harder and harder. Thunder resounded in the air, and lightning filled the sky. Madame Luna looked out the window, watching as the storm became more and more brutal. A cold, frightening feeling took hold of her. Something was wrong; she could feel it in her bones. Both Blueblood and Discord had horrible tempers and wrathful tendencies. She shivered as she imagined the two men, facing off in a heated battle, rage, jealousy, and hate fueling them as they fought. Such a battle seemed inevitable.
Madame Luna knew that sleep was impossible now, but with such a storm she dared not go out again. Tomorrow, as soon as she arrived at the opera house, she would find Discord and warn him. She could only pray that he would see sense; Blueblood was capable of committing the vilest acts of villainy, and he would use Discord's compassion towards his friends against him if he could. Yes, tomorrow she would seek Discord out and insist that they move Derpy and the others to someplace safe, somewhere hidden.
She only prayed that she was not too late...
Fluttershy had just blown out her candle and was pulling the blankets up to her chin to keep out the cold night air, when the sudden sound of the windowpane, banging against the wall, startled her.
She turned around to see the window open, and gasped as lightning illuminated the tall, dark figure, that stood just inside. "Don't be afraid Fluttershy, it's me," Discord murmured softly, his voice warm and soothing.
Fluttershy couldn't help but smile at the sound of his voice, and when lightning illuminated the room again, she could make out his face behind the black mask that he wore. "Discord, you're soaking!" Fluttershy gasped, immediately rising from the bed.
"Yes, rain has a tendency to do that," he muttered, removing his hat and giving it a shake.
"What are you doing here?" Fluttershy whispered, rushing to his side and helping him remove his soaking cloak.
Discord could not help but grin as he felt his beloved's nimble hooves unclasp his cloak and then begin to remove his jacket. "I received your letters, and I did not feel like waiting till tomorrow to see you again-"
His words stopped as the lightning once again illuminated the room, and for the first time, he saw Fluttershy's bruises and the cut on her lip.
Fluttershy realized this too, as she saw the horror fill Discord's hoofsome amber eyes, before turning into rage. "What happened?!?" he demanded, his voice beginning to rise with anger.
"I'm alright," Fluttershy murmured as calmly as possible, hoping to reassure him, but she could tell that would not be possible.
"WHO DID THIS TO YOU?!?"
"Discord, please, it's not as bad-"
"The Prince..." he growled, his voice so low it seemed to be rumbling from the earth itself. "I'll kill him!" He turned then, as if prepared to fly out the window, into the storm-filled night to seek his vengeance.
"Discord, please!" Fluttershy hissed, grasping his arm and using all her strength to pull him back into the room. "Please, stay with me."
"He HURT you, Fluttershy!" he nearly roared. Suddenly, his anger faded, and worry filled his eyes. "My God...he didn't-"
"No," Fluttershy quickly reassured, a small smile spreading across her lips. "You would have been proud; with any luck, I may have broken his nose as well as other things."
Discord let out a sigh of relief, taking one of her small hoofs in his and lifting it to his lips. His other hoof immediately fell to her stomach, and he softly caressed her there. "And the baby?"
"The baby is fine," Fluttershy murmured, feeling her heart overflow with love for the creature before her. He would be a wonderful father; she had no doubt about it.
Discord let out another shaky sigh of relief, but his anger had only melted away momentarily. Once again, rage filled his eyes. "When did this happen?" he snarled.
Fluttershy sighed, and quickly wrapped her arms around his waist, not caring that his clothes were soaking wet, just needing to feel him close to her once more. She purred happily as she felt his arms, strong and warm, wrap around her body in a tender and protective manner. "I had gone to the apartment, to make sure Papa had gathered all of our things...he...he was there, but I did not know it."
Discord growled, and his arms tightened even more. "He ambushed you, that bastard," he hissed.
Fluttershy tightened her own arms around him. She would hold him fast if it would keep him by her side and not venture out into the storm-filled night. "He knows everything, Discord," she whispered against his chest. "He knows that you and I are lovers...and...and he saw the ring."
Discord offered up a silent curse, although it was to himself and not the Prince. "I should never have given you that blasted ring-"
"No!" Fluttershy protested. "Don't say that!"
"That bracelet has caused you more trouble than I could have imagined," he muttered, taking her left hoof in his paw and bringing her hoof to his lips once more.
"Trouble that I would gladly face again and again," Fluttershy argued. "I have no regrets, Discord...none. I am proud to be engaged to you, and I eagerly await the day when I will be your wife! So please..." she carefully removed his mask, so happy that he had such trust to show his face to her without protest. "Don't regret this. We have hidden from the world for long enough...let us not hide our love any further."
Discord gazed down at his future bride with such awe. She would never stop amazing him. However, his heart filled with sorrow and rage as he gazed at the bruises on her beautiful skin. "I will make the Prince pay for his crimes," he vowed, his fingers tenderly touching the marks the bastard had left behind. He knew that they would fade, that nothing could truly damage the beauty that radiated from his Fluttershy...but he would forever be reminded that he was not able to fully protect her from the Prince's jealousy.
Fluttershy did not like the idea of him fighting Blueblood, especially when he was feeling such rage. If she could at least keep him from seeking his vengeance tonight...
"Stay with me?" she pleaded. "The storm is too strong for you to go back out now."
Discord eyed her suspiciously. "I know what you're trying to do Fluttershy..." he sighed. "And you are right. I can not promise you that I will not seek out my vengeance, but for tonight, I will stay."
It was enough. "Thank you, Discord," she murmured with relief, hugging him tight. With strong, loving arms, he gently picked her up and carried her back to the bed. He removed his own wet clothes, smiling at her blush when he approached the bed, fully naked, and slid under the blankets, gathering her close to his body.
"Discord-"
"Ssshh," he whispered, his lips planting a soft kiss to her brow. "Sleep, my love. I will stay with you until dawn..."
Fluttershy smiled and felt her eyelids grow heavy, as Discord softly began singing that song he had composed for her.
"Softly...deftly, music shall caress you..."
With her head pillowed upon her beloved's chest, she drifted into a sweet, peaceful slumber, knowing that her Phantom would keep her safe.
Blueblood watched from the window of his carriage as Master and several of his men examined the sewage entrance. Blueblood had to admit he was impressed by the gypsies work ethic; despite the storm that raged around them, they were determined to plot out their move of attack.
Several gypsies had disappeared into the sewer, and a short time later, reemerged. Master listened closely to the descriptions of his men, nodding his head in approval to their news. Blueblood watched with curious eyes as the old silver-haired gypsy approached his carriage.
"Everything to your satisfaction?" Blueblood asked.
"These few stallions will stay here and keep watch for any...activity," Master calmly explained. "Wouldn't do to have any of them escape on us, would it?"
Blueblood shook his head, although he was anxious to hear about their plan. "And?"
"I will travel back to my camp and fetch more men...it is good to have numbers for this sort of thing," he explained.
Blueblood simply nodded his head, despite the fact that he knew nothing about kidnapping and burglary.
"Sometime before dawn...we will attack," he whispered, his eyes locking with the sewage entrance.
"And...what about the...'display'...you have in mind for our masked friend?"
Master smiled. "Do not worry, monsieur. When the time comes for our 'display', you will know when."
Blueblood smiled faintly to the older gypsy's laughter, but he was beginning to doubt the reliability that the pony's plan would truly rid him of the Phantom.
"I suggest you go home and get some rest, monsieur," Master said, patting the door of the Prince's carriage. "No doubt you will need to think of some explanation as to why the opera house will be trembling tomorrow morning."
Blueblood frowned at this. "I don't want any harm to come to the opera house! Is that understood? I just want the Phantom killed!"
"Not to worry," Master reassured. "Your precious opera house will be fine. But providing an explanation to what goes on is entirely your responsibility...and don't even think about mentioning my name," he threatened, the lightning illuminating the black depths of his eyes.
Blueblood nodded his head in agreement and urged His coachcolt to drive the carriage home. A plan was already forming on how he could explain the ruckus that Master and his clan would be providing early tomorrow. He just hoped that this whole scheme worked, that the Phantom would no longer be a bloody thorn in his side. And as for the fair Fluttershy...despite everything that had taken place that night, and despite the knowledge he had now acquired, he was more determined than ever to get her to marry him.
And he knew exactly how to go about doing it. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Dread | Dread
"Meow!"
Derpy heard the sound and her eyes immediately flew open. She sat up in her bed, and looked around the chamber. The others were sound asleep, and the embers from the fire were slowly dying.
"Meow!"
She heard it again! "Carmen?" Derpy whispered. Carefully, quietly, she rose from her bed so as not to wake the others, and followed the sound, which seemed to be coming from one of the northwest tunnels...
As if on instinct, Discord awoke. It was still dark outside, but the rain had stopped, and he could sense the coming dawn.
He looked down at the angel who lay snuggled against him, her face pressed against his side, her head nuzzled in the crook of his arm. His paw gently ran over her shoulder, marveling in the softness of her coat. She looked so peaceful that he did not wish to wake her. Yet he knew he had to leave before dawn's gentle rays fell upon the streets of Maris.
A smile crept across his disfigured face as he imagined a future when he would not have sneak in and out of windows to be with his beloved. When he could stay with her and wake with her when the sun rose. Soon, he reminded himself. Very soon.
With a gentle kiss to her shoulder, he rose from the bed, pulling the covers up around her, snuggly tucking her in so that she would not be cold.
His clothes were semi-dry; he quickly dressed himself and placed the mask once more upon his face. He had no gift to leave her this time, but he knew she would understand. With one last look of longing at the mare who was so many things to him, he opened the window and quickly disappeared into the shadows that still hovered the streets.
Derpy followed the plaintive mews down the dark passage. She knew it was Carmen, for they were the same mews she had heard the day she found her freezing in the snow. Carmen sounded as if she were in pain! Derpy quickened her steps, wondering how she had gotten away from Fluttershy, and if Fluttershy was aware that Carmen had somehow escaped?
"I'm c-c-c-coming, C-c-Carmen!"she cried out into the tunnel, paying no heed to the cold air that whirled around her.
Discord was a master of illusions and mystery. If he didn't want to be seen, he knew very well how to stay hidden.
The dark shadowy allys that so many ponies feared...as they should...were friends to him; welcoming sanctuaries of darkness that helped him move about with ease in this city.
Discord wondered what it would be like to live above ground once more. He was no stranger to the world above, when he so wished it, he could easily move about in it. However, he always moved about as a thief, or a stalker, staying hidden in the shadows, avoiding others at all costs. Instinct, he reminded himself. After spending his entire childhood and part of his young adult life in a cage, being spat upon and screamed at, being called a freak of nature and other horrible things...it was a wonder he dared to venture above ground at all.
He had not yet told the others of his engagement. They had to know by now that he and Fluttershy were lovers, but he needed to tell them the plans and promises he had made to her.
She meant everything to him, and he would do whatever was necessary to make her happy and see that she lived comfortably. While Fluttershy had adapted to his world so well during all those long months, he knew he could not deny her fresh air, sunlight, and pony interaction. So he promised her a house, a home above ground, a place there in Maris, where the others could easily live with them without fear of being discovered or captured.
Or so he hoped.
Discord realized that he had not thought this plan through very well. He had convinced himself that by living in a house, they would have more safety, more privacy. After all, in their own house, that the law would rightfully recognize as their own personal and private property, the likelihood of someone breaking in, of someone trespassing, was not as high or as risky as living beneath the opera house...yes?
Discord frowned. Houses meant windows, and it would not be fair to keep the curtains drawn the entire time, blocking out the sun's warmth. How would it be any different than living below? But Discord could not deny that he was not entirely comfortable with the idea of moving about with open windows, and he knew the others would be less comfortable.
What more, a house in Maris meant...well...Maris!
Discord had never once considered composing to be a paid profession for himself; he had always viewed it as a passionate art that he lived and breathed for. But selling his compositions (and he had many already written) would not only help provide for the family he had coming, and the family that already existed, but would also show the world his genius. And Fluttershy, his beautiful Fluttershy, would perform in them, breathing life into his music as she was doing for Don Juan. No doubt fame would come her way...and perhaps his, and that was where the problem with Maris lay.
Maris was a city where it was impossible to stay hidden, especially from gossip. Discord never cared for the gossip he overheard at the opera house amongst the city's elite families, but he perhaps knew more than the newspapers did. Ponies would begin to talk about Fluttershy; who was her husband? Where did she live? What if she were invited to balls and parties? The thought of her traveling to such places alone sickened him, but what could he do? And what if the gossip became nasty once more? His poor angel had endured much already at the opera house, must she be subjected to more by the city's aristocrats?
Discord groaned, his heart growing heavy with worry. He wanted to be with her, he wanted to be her husband in every way possible, and he wanted to be a good father to their child. But he also wanted to do what was right for Rarity and the others! He leaned against a building to catch his breath, a puddle on the ground catching his masked reflection.
"Damn this face and body!" he growled to himself. It was the thing that kept him separated from the world around him! He stomped on the puddle, splattering the image across the ground. A momentary sense of satisfaction filled him.
And then...a new emotion filled him. A strange emotion, one filled with confusion and...apprehension.
Discord's brow furrowed; something wasn't right, he could sense it...
The sky turned an ashen gray, telling Discord that the sun was beginning to rise. Quickly, he continued his way back to the opera house, staying close to the shadows, praying that this strange, anxious feeling, was nothing more than pre-wedding jitters.
"Meow!"
Derpy gave a sigh of relief as she finally found the tiny black kitten, mewing ever louder as she approached. She was stuck on a tall rock, unsure exactly how to get down, near a crack that she knew led outside. Derpy knew that the entrance she was near had an elaborate booby trap, which would cut the heels and ankles of any intruder, crippling them from going further. Carmen was so small, that she had easily slipped through the entrance without triggering the trap.
"W-w-what are you d-doing here?" Derpy scolded, easily reaching up to rescue the kitten. "Y-you should be with Fluttershy...s-s-she'll be so w-w-worried for you!"
The kitten began playing with Derpy's hooves, but stopped instantly, and let out a high-pitched hiss in the direction she had just been coming from.
Derpy looked puzzled and turned her gaze to where the kitten was hissing. She couldn't see anything, but a strange chill went down her spine.
Something wasn't right.
"C-c-come on Carmen," Derpy murmured, putting the hissing kitten inside her shirt pocket. With heavy limped steps, she began to hurry back to where the others were sleeping.
"Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy yawned and opened her eyes to see Twilight's pretty head peeking inside. "Good morning!" she cheerily greeted.
Fluttershy smiled back at the dancer, blushing as she could still feel the warmth from Discord's body under the sheets. "Already?" she moaned, slowly sitting up and gazing out the window.
The sun was rising, and the birds were singing happily. It seemed as if the storm had brought spring to Maris.
"Mama seems quite anxious, and wants to leave early," Twilight explained, fetching a pair of dance slippers from a drawer at the other end of the room. "Probably because Madam Octavia will no doubt wish to begin rehearsals as soon as possible...after all, tomorrow is the big day!" she grinned.
Fluttershy smiled back, a strange feeling of peacefulness settling over her. Tomorrow was not only opening night of Don Juan Triumphant, but also the opening night of her career as a singer. She should be nervous beyond belief! But instead, she felt a sense of tranquility and calmness...
"How are you feeling today?" Twilight asked.
Fluttershy slowly lifted her hooves to her cheek. "A little sore, but not too bad."
Twilight nodded her head. "There is a little discoloration, but I think Isabel's remedies have helped keep the swelling down," she happily explained. "And the rest can easily be covered with stage make-up."
Fluttershy smiled and nodded her head, before finally rising from the bed to get dressed. Twilight turned to leave so that she could give Fluttershy some privacy, but found herself pausing at the doorway. "Fluttershy? I heard...singing last night."
Fluttershy paled at first, and then felt a hot blush rise to her cheeks. Her back was to the dancer, and she was unsure exactly what to say. If Twilight could see her face right now, her questions would never end!
"Ah well," Twilight sighed, shrugging her shoulders. "My imagination, I guess. See you downstairs!" and with that, she shut the door.
Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief. She wanted to tell Twilight everything, to confide in her all that was happening. She had grown such a close bond with the mare in such a short amount of time, but she just had no idea how to begin explaining. With a shake of her head, Fluttershy quickly got dressed before leaving with the others to the opera house.
Rainbow Dash sensed it immediately.
Danger...
She could smell it.
Something wasn't right, something strange, and alien, had just entered their world...and yet, there was something sinister and familiar about it as well.
"Shortround," she muttered, rising from her pile of rags and mattresses. "Shortround, wake up!"
The dwarf practically fell out of his hammock when Rainbow Dash reached out and shook him from his sleep. "W-w-what?" he gasped, regaining his balance. "Rainbow Dash, what is the meaning-"
"Shut up!" Rainbow Dash hissed, putting a hoof to her lips to indicate that silence was necessary.
Shortround looked at his friend with confusion, but a frown creased his features. Rainbow Dash could tell that Shortround was feeling it too, that same feeling of apprehension.
Shortround quickly climbed out of his hammock and swung herself down, easily and quietly, to where Rarity lay sleeping. "Rarity," he murmured. "Rarity, wake up."
The mare opened her eyes and looked up at the stallion with confusion. "Shortround? What-"
"Sshh," Shortround whispered. "Something's wrong."
Rarity sat up straight at her friend's words. She knew from the looks that both Shortround and Rainbow Dash wore that whatever was causing them worry, was serious. She turned towards Derpy's bed, and let out a gasp as she realized it was empty.
"Where's Derpy!?" she practically squealed, clutching at Shortround's shirt.
Shortround shook his head helplessly, turning to Rainbow Dash with hopes that the mare would have an answer, but he too, looked just as puzzled.
"We have to find her, we have to-"
"GET THEM!"
The three turned their faces to where the battle cry had erupted, and suddenly, a hoard of gypsies burst through the entrance that lay just above their cavern.
"NO!" Rainbow Dash screamed in terror. Her worst nightmare was coming true!
Rarity scrambled from her bed and started screaming Derpy's name, moving as fast as her legs could carry her. With a cry, she felt herself toppling to the ground, as something heavy landed on top of her.
"Bag her and get her in the sewer!"
Before she could cry out again, she felt the harsh fabric of burlap surround and trap her, and she was being hauled off the ground to some unknown and unseen place.
"RARITY!" Shortround shouted with rage, charging at the gypsy who had captured her. The sound of gunfire filled the cavern, and Shortround gasped as he felt a severe pain burst through his body.
Rainbow Dash stared in horror as her friend fell to his knees, groaning in pain. "You idiot!" shouted an all too familiar voice to Rainbow Dash's ears. "I said if you have to shoot, shoot them in the arm or leg! HE'S NO GOOD TO ME DEAD!"
Rainbow Dash's face paled at the sight of Master, who was pushing the gypsy who had fired at Shortround, off to the side. "Quickly," he ordered to several stallions. "Drag him up into the sewer and get him in the wagon! And use whatever means you can to stop his bleeding! Because if he dies, I'm going to put YOU in his cage!" Master turned then to see Rainbow Dash, cowering in a corner.
"Rainbow Dash..." Master greeted with a smile. "It's been so long..."
Rainbow Dash began blubbering and curling herself up into a tighter ball, as if hoping to shrink away against the rock.
Master sighed and shook his head. "I see that you haven't changed one bit," he muttered, clapping his hooves. Several stallions appeared at that moment and immediately threw a burlap sack over her head, as well as tie both her arms behind his body. "Ever the sniveling coward," Master muttered with disgust. "Take him away."
"Sir!" Master turned to see two of his stallion emerging from one of the many dark tunnels that led out of the cavern. One of them was groaning and limping. "We can't find the hunchback anywhere!"
"Well I'm sure she's here somewhere," Master muttered. "Form a search party and tear this place apart! Who knows, there might be some spoils worth taking."
The two stallions looked at one another nervously. "I don't think that's a good idea..."
Master cocked a brow at their words. "What did you say? That sounded as if you were questioning my authority..."
The stallions paled. "No, it's just...well...those traps that the Prince mentioned, they're not just at the entrances; they're all over this place!"
"It's true!" the other stallion, who had been limping, cut in. "Some sort of wire lashed out at me leg!" he groaned, showing the blood that was flowing from his calf muscle.
"And besides...what if we run into the creature?" the other asked.
Master rolled his eyes. "I'm surrounded by idiots," he muttered. "Fine! Get the gunpowder and lace it around this place...I don't need another hunchback anyway."
High in the caverns above, Derpy watched in fear as the gypsies went to work. She watched them drag her friends away, she watched them go through their things, taking what they wanted, and she watched them pour endless amounts of gunpowder throughout the cavern and the tunnels beyond.
She quickly swallowed the sob that threatened to erupt in her throat, and backed away from the cavern. She had to find the Master...
"Good morning everyone!" Monsieur Flim greeted as the cast filed out onto the stage. "Well, I'm certainly glad to see all of you here, bright and early, on this fine morning!"
There were a few smiles returned to Flim's warm, happy greeting, but most of the company simply grumbled.
The older manager continued without notice. "Well, as you all know, tomorrow is our opening night of this...splendid..." anyone could tell he was forcing his words. "...work of music..." his words had disappeared into a mumble. "Anyway! This will be our final dress rehearsal, so please, full costumes and make-up, sets, props, and no breaks at any period other than when intermission shall be taking place!"
Several members of the company groaned, but nodded their heads. Fluttershy was already dressed in the first costume she would be wearing, and she began to feel the nervous butterflies in her stomach. She looked around at the faces on stage. So many of the ponies around her were veterans of the stage, and were probably immune to the nervous feelings she was experiencing. She even glanced at Celestia, who looked cool and collected...and somewhat cocky. As if she knew an incredibly big secret...
"Thank you for your...enthusiastic words, Monsieur Flim," Madam Octavia mumbled, tapping her baton on her music stand. "Right, let us begin with the overture."
The stage quickly emptied and Fluttershy went to sit in the chair that was designated for her off in the wings. She smiled as her father led the orchestra in its traditional warm-up, feeling so happy that his dreams were finally coming true as well. She turned her head to glance at Twilight and the other dance mares who stood nearby, stretching and preparing for their first scene. Fluttershy frowned as she noticed Madame Luna was not amongst them. In fact, she did not recall seeing Madame Luna on stage during Flim's speech.
On the carriage ride to the opera house that morning, the dance mistress seemed tense and nervous. She said very little, and simply kept her gaze locked to the view outside. Fluttershy didn't question the mare's behavior; she simply thought perhaps that she was feeling nervous for tomorrow's performance. But now she found herself wondering if perhaps Madame Luna's tenseness had anything to do with the story she had shared the previous evening.
"So...tomorrow you shall be performing before hundreds of ponies, some of which are the finest in all of France! Are you nervous?"
Fluttershy didn't even have to turn her head to know that it was Celestia who was speaking to her. "A little..." she murmured, knowing that if she lied, Celestia would catch it instantly.
Celestia grinned wickedly at the younger mare's revelation. "When I was a filly, I too was often nervous," she sighed, taking a seat next to Fluttershy.
Fluttershy could not help but glare at the beautiful blonde soprano. "I'm twenty," she whispered.
Celestia turned her head as if surprised that Fluttershy had even spoken. "What was that?"
"I said, I'm twenty," Fluttershy repeated. "That hardly makes me a filly."
Celestia's dazzling wicked smile spread even further. "Perhaps not in terms of actual age, my dear...but in terms of stage experience, I think you will find that it does."
Fluttershy said nothing, she simply kept her gaze locked onto the stage while Fancypants went forward to sing the first song from Don Juan.
"You know, I have always been curious," Celestia sighed, turning her attention back to Fluttershy. "Why did the Phantom choose you? I mean, I know he hates me," she said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Which is fine, for I despise him, the masked devil." Fluttershy felt her teeth clench at the diva's cruel words. "But he could have chosen any mare in the company, and there are many...many who would kill to be your shoes right now," she sighed, eyeing the young brunette, as if searching for faults. "So many mares with so much more stage experience..." she continued. "I wonder why he chose you?"
Fluttershy turned her face to the prima donna, a fire burning in her blue eyes. "Perhaps he saw talent that no one else believed could exist in a young country mare without any stage experience?"
Celestia grinned, happy that she was aggravating the young singer. "Perhaps," she sighed. "Or perhaps there is more to it than that..."
Fluttershy rose to her feet, refusing to speak further on the subject. Besides, she would soon be entering the stage for her first song.
"Perhaps the Phantom favors you for different reasons..." Celestia continued taunting. "Or should I say...Discord?"
Fluttershy gasped and her eyes widened as she turned to stare at Celestia. But before she could say anything, several members of the chorus were practically pushing her out onto the stage for her entrance.
Celestia smiled smugly as the nervous mare began to sing her first song, her voice broken and shaky, causing the conductor to frown. This may be easier than she thought! With any luck, she'd convince the managers and the whole company to give her the part before the day was out.
Discord let out a curse as that horrible sense of foreboding continued to plague him.
He had entered his underground world through a way that he normally did not use: the ancient Marisian catacombs. It was darker than any of his other tunnels, and had more twists and turns, but it was one of the faster ways to his underground realm. There was an old mausoleum in a churchyard that led to the catacombs; the sun seemed to be rising faster than normal on this day, and Discord chose to take that entrance rather than continuing to keep to the shadows of Maris' ally ways. The only problem with the catacombs was that he could not run through them, as he could with his other tunnels. With so many twists and turns, one had to walk carefully and count how many steps they were taking, so as not to go down the wrong tunnel.
He continued to count his steps as he marched onward, muttering curses here and there, trying to understand what could be causing him this worry.
There was a strange smell in the air...and the smell that only increased his apprehension. "I should never have left," he muttered to himself. "I should have stayed here and waited to see Fluttershy in the morning."
Discord tried to quicken his steps, praying that he would soon come to the end of this blasted tunnel so that he could finally break out into a run.
Madame Luna cursed as she once again, found another of Discord's secret entrances barred and locked from the other side. Damn him! She remembered how not long after Fluttershy had returned to the world above, that all of the Phantom's secret passages, at least all of the ones she knew, were barricaded from the other side to keep trespassers out.
There were a few more passages that she had not tried, the problem was that they were in plain sight of the performing company at the moment, and she did not wish to cause further suspicion. Perhaps she could figure out how to open the mirror in Fluttershy's dressing room? And what of the vent in the chapel? They were worth a try, surely.
She picked up her skirts and hurried along, determined to find Discord and warn him. While she had not seen any sign of the Prince, she could not shake the horrible sense that he was plotting something terrible...
"Flim!" Flam hissed. The older manager groaned and turned his head to his partner who had just entered the auditorium. "I need to speak with you at once!" the younger stallion pleaded.
Flim rolled his eyes. "Can it not wait?" he whispered, glancing to the stage where Mademoiselle Fluttershy was attempting to sing her first song, and in his opinion, rather poorly.
"No!" Flam hissed again. "This is extremely important!"
Flim groaned and nodded his head, rising from the chair he had been occupying, and following the younger manager out of room. "This had better be good," he grumbled once they were in the foyer.
"He sent us another letter," Flam finally informed, his voice shaking with concern.
"What!?" Flim snatched the note out of Flam's hooves and began reading it carefully. "'If things do not go according to my plans...a disaster beyond your imaginations will occur'," he read. "What the bloody hell does he mean by that!?"
"I don't know!" Flam cried, his voice sounding somewhat hysterical. "This is the first note we've received ever since that Time Turner mare took the lead role! What could he possibly be complaining about!? We've followed his instructions to the line, we've cast who he's wanted-"
"Get a hold of yourself, Flam!" Flim grumbled, examining the letter further. "Strange..."
"W-w-what?" Flam stuttered, attempting to keep himself calm.
"Well...it's different from the other letters," Flim explained.
"What? How do you mean?"
Flim continued to examine it closely, re-reading it several times. "Well...in the past, his letters have always been so...well, detailed," he explained. "And this one is rather...ambiguous."
Flam rolled his eyes. "What are you talking about?! He says that if we do not follow his plans, he will do something terrible! What can be more detailed than that!?"
"Yes, but why!?" Flim practically shouted, his patience waning. "The Phantom has always explained what his plans are...and you said so yourself, we are following his instructions...so why on earth would he threaten us?"
"Because he's a murdering madstallion!" Flam shouted, throwing his hooves up in irritation. "We're ruined...this opera is going to ruin us!"
"Shut up," Flim grumbled. "We'll just do as the letter says, we'll continue following his instructions, and prepare for tomorrow evening."
Flam reached out and gripped Flim's shoulder. "Do you...do you suppose it's because he has learned-"
"No," Flim hissed, looking all around the foyer nervously. "He can't possibly know that...so don't start acting hysterical and giving anything away!"
The younger manager mutely nodded, and followed his partner back inside the auditorium, determined to remain calm and focus on tomorrow's performance. He tucked the Phantom's note inside his jacket, a sense of worry washing over him as he could not help but imagine what disasters the Phantom would bring their way if they angered him.
However, Flim's question in regards to the letter's details did arise one question in Flam's mind. The letter had been left in their office, as all of the Phantom's notes had been left in the past. But unlike those other notes, this one lacked the Phantom's unique and menacing red seal...
Madame Luna pushed a strand of her hair that had fallen from its pins, out of her face. She was making progress with the vent in the chapel, nearly prying the rough iron open. She knew this entrance well, but whenever Discord had summoned for her in the past, he had been the one to open it, not she.
She had taken a stagehooves hammer and had spent the last fifteen minutes prying at the vent's iron edges, working against the opening mechanism to the passage. "Finally," she muttered, praying that no one would enter the chapel at that moment to see what she was doing.
She had just managed to pull enough of the vent away for her to slip through. Holding the hammer up as a weapon against any intruders that she would find, she entered the passage, praying that she was not too late.
"That's the last of it!" a stallion shouted to Master.
Satisfied, the older gypsy nodded his head. "Do it," he simply commanded, before turning to exit out the way they had come.
With an evil grin, a small group of stallion threw their empty barrels of gunpowder to the side, before lighting a match, and throwing it down on the small trail of black dust. Without a moment's hesitation, they turned and ran towards the secret sewage entrance that had gained them access to the Phantom's realm.
Discord flew through his tunnels, finally free from the blasted catacombs. The smell was everywhere! It was an odd combination of scents; sweat, blood, smoke, alcohol, and something else...something that he could not describe, but that filled him with dread.
"RARITY!" he roared, his voice filling the tunnels and the caverns beyond. "RAINBOW DASH! SHORTROUND! DERPY!"
He ran faster, and faster, in the direction of their chamber. He continued screaming their names; dread filling him to the core when they would not answer. It occurred to him then that the foreign scents that were invading his nostrils belonged to men...a hoard of stallions, stallions who should not be there, stallions who had gotten past his traps, stallions who had somehow managed to get inside!
He screamed their names once more as he turned a corner, before closing his mouth and freezing in horror at the sight before him...
Madame Luna gasped, ignoring the pain that throbbed in her side as she continued to make her way down towards Discord's hidden world. "Discord!" she cried. "Discord!" She did not think she was so far away that he could not hear her, but she continued to hurry, hoping that she would find him and warn him before anything happened.
And then a strange smell hit her, as if she had run right into a wall.
Madame Luna coughed as the smoke filled her lungs...and then her eyes widened with horror as she realized what exactly was happening...
"Recall those times, look back on those years, think of the things we'll never do..."
Fluttershy continued singing her song, a sweet pleasant smile plastered across her face, despite the fact that inside, she was frowning with displeasure.
She was singing horribly! She could hear the constant breaks in her voice, the way it trembled, and while she hoped she at least looked professional, standing tall, looking calm, she was even beginning to doubt her acting capabilities. The more Madam Octavia, and the two managers frowned, the more her doubts spread.
She could not help but throw a glance towards Celestia, who was grinning evilly off to the side. She had said those things in order to make Fluttershy look like a fool...and Fluttershy knew she was a fool for allowing the witch's words to get the better of her.
She lifted her chin, determined to not let Celestia win this battle, determined to prove to anyone that she was capable of singing this role, of being the lead. "There will never be a day when, I won't think of-"
Fluttershy's singing stopped and a scream escaped her lips as the ground beneath her feet shook violently.
Others quickly joined Fluttershy's scream, adding their own to the growing chorus. Celestia let out an ear-piercing shriek, rushing towards Fancypants who was crying out in Italian. The dance mares were squealing and clinging to one another as the ground continued to tremble ferociously. The orchestra began coughing as smoke filled their pit from the vents just beneath them, and several stagehooves rushed onto the stage, screaming "fire!"
"Good God! What is this, an earthquake!?" Flam cried.
Flim didn't answer, but a horrible feeling filled the pit of his stomach. "Everyone outside!" he ordered.
No one needed to be told twice; the whole company was running towards the exit, screaming and crying as they went. Several stagehooves stayed behind, rushing to get buckets of water to put the fire that had suddenly and mysteriously erupted back stage, from beneath one of the trap doors. Time Turner rushed onto the stage to help bring his daughter to safety, while Twilight was searching frantically for her mother.
"I can't find Mama!" she shouted over the screams.
Fluttershy looked about frantically, wanting to help her friend. But her eyes fell on the trap door, the same trap door that she had disappeared through all those months ago when she entered the Phantom's world for the first time. She saw the flames raging from within, and watched as the stagehooves desperately threw buckets of water onto the roaring fire.
"FLUTTERSHY!" her father cried as she bolted towards her dressing room. She did not hear the screams all around her; she did not hear her father and Twilight shout out her name, she had only one thought on her mind...
Discord.
She needed to get through that mirror, to run down and see if he and the others were alright! She remembered how Madame Luna had told her that breaking the glass would do no good, but she didn't care, she was desperate, she had to find him! She had to find Derpy, Rarity, and the others! She had-
"Not that way my dear!"
Fluttershy came crashing into Madame Luna, who was covered with smoke and ash, and who was coughing violently. Fluttershy's eyes widened in disbelief, realizing that the mare had just emerged from the opera house chapel, which lay only a few feet away from her dressing room. She looked into the chapel and gasped at the smoke that was billowing in from the vent at the far end of the room. She began to move toward it, but the dance mistress held her fast.
"No Fluttershy! There's nothing down there but flames and falling stone!"
Fluttershy froze at the mare's words. She looked up into Madame Luna's dark eyes, her own brimming with frightened tears. She saw the truth in their black depths, a sad, horrifying truth that chilled her blood.
At that moment, Fluttershy's father and Twilight entered the chapel. "Mama!" Twilight gasped, running to her mother and throwing her arms around the older mare. Madame Luna let out a thankful prayer as she hugged her daughter tightly. "Where were you?" the mare demanded, her own frightened tears falling down her cheeks. "I was so scared!"
"I'm alright," Madame Luna reassured, continuing to hug her daughter tightly. "But we must leave this place, now, before the fire rages out of control."
"F-f-fire?" Time Turner gasped, his hooves grasping Fluttershy's shoulders. She looked ready to faint any second.
"Yes...I don't know what happened...some sort of...explosion it seems!"
Fluttershy felt her legs suddenly go weak and the color drain completely from her face. She took one trembling step towards the vent, needing to find him, needing to know he and the others were safe, that they were not harmed, but both Time Turner and Madame Luna pulled her away.
"We must get outside, now," Madame Luna ordered sternly, hoping that her tone would hurry them. With his arm wrapped around his daughter's waist, Time Turner helped lead Fluttershy out of the opera house, while Twilight helped her mother, who was coughing and gasping for air.
Once outside, the whole company stood huddled on the steps that led up to the grand Maris Opera House, staring at the building which stood tall and beautiful, but where strange flames licked the bottom levels, and smoke billowed from sewer vents that ran beneath it.
A bell sounded, and suddenly a large horse-drawn wagon came crashing around the corner, stopping right in front of the opera house, while dozens of firemen leapt from the wagon and quickly climbed the steps to enter the still magnificent looking building.
Fluttershy clutched at her father's coat weakly, feeling the world spin around her. While others gazed up at the opera house, her gaze fell to the sewer vent that she had traveled through only a few nights ago.
She felt her stomach twist and churn as she watched black ominous clouds rise from within. She did not know what had happened, but she found herself questioning if a person could survive such an atrocity. Were Derpy and his friends down there? Had they made it to safety? Was Discord with them? She swallowed the lump in her throat, the sickened feeling churning more and more.
Their world was vast! Surely they had managed to escape, taken one of the many dark passages that she had not even begun to explore while she had been there. Surely they were alright...surely...
She couldn't hold it back any further; she bent over and began retching whatever was in her stomach.
Her father pulled her hair away, his hoof running soothing circles over her back. He knew exactly what was troubling his daughter; he could feel her heart breaking...it was the same feeling he had experienced when her beautiful mother had died.
"Papa!" she wailed, throwing her arms around his neck and letting out an anguished cry.
"I know," he whispered into her hair, "I know."
She sobbed against him, burying her face against his shoulder, crying for the loss of her friends, for the loss of their home, and for the loss of her beloved. She prayed that they had made it to safety, that perhaps they weren't even there when the disaster struck.
But one look into Madame Luna's sad eyes, and Fluttershy knew that all hope was gone.
No one could survive such an event...not even the legendary Opera Ghost. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Sorrow | Sorrow
"It was like an earthquake! The ground just...shook! Like nothing I've ever felt before!"
Inspector Silverstar nodded his head to Flam's explanation of what had occurred at the Maris Opera House, although his brow was creased with confusion. Not long after the fire brigade had been called out, he also received the news that some sort of "explosion" had occurred at the legendary theater. However, when he had arrived, the building still seemed to be intact. It wasn't until he began questioning the two managers that he had learned that the explosion had taken place beneath the opera house.
"Do you have any idea as to what may have caused it?" Silverstar asked, carefully examining the stage, taking note of several chard floorboards.
"None whatsoever," Flim sighed. "We never ordered any sort of construction, and were not told that the city would be doing any sort work...it came as a complete shock to all of us!"
Silverstar silently nodded his head. "Is there anything beneath the opera house that could perhaps trigger such a violent reaction?"
Both managers glanced at one another. The chief inspector turned around to face them, immediately taking note of their wary expressions. "Well?"
"All that's down there are...old props and costumes..." Flim mumbled.
"In fact...we never use the items down there," Flam added.
Silverstar looked even more confused. "I don't understand...are you saying that this simply...occurred by itself?"
"No, they're saying that the bloody Phantom was behind it."
The two managers and the chief inspector turned to see the Prince enter the auditorium, his hoofsome features marred by a dark expression.
"Monsieur!" both managers cried, rushing towards him.
"Oh thank God you're here!"
"You won't believe the madness we've endured!"
"Explosions, threats, hysterical actors-"
"We could have lost our lives!"
"Calm down," Blueblood softly ordered, to which the two stallions immediately ceased their speech. The Prince kept his eyes locked on Silverstar, whose face was turning a bright shade of red, knowing exactly what the hoofsome noblecolt was thinking. Blueblood then began to look over the stage, noticing, thankfully, that any damage that had been done was at a bare minimum. Still...it was too close to call, in his opinion.
"Are you satisfied, Silverstar?" Blueblood questioned.
Silverstar paled at the Prince's words. "S-s-satisfied? Whatever do you mean?"
"I mean your insistence that I, and everyone else at this theater, were completely mad for believing that a masked lunatic and his army of freaks, lived beneath this place and was capable of anything!"
Everyone shrank at the sound of the Prince's roar. Silverstar attempted to show some courage; after all, he felt it somewhat unfair to blame this whole incident on him. "Now s-s-see here," he stammered. "I told you that I was now starting to see what you were talking about-"
"Ah yes, that's right," Blueblood muttered with great sarcasm. "Better late than never, eh?"
Silverstar was at a loss for words by the Prince's accusation. "N-now s-see here!" he stammered with embarrassment, glancing briefly at the two managers who were now sharing the Prince's same glares of disdain.
"It doesn't matter," Blueblood grumbled with a wave of his hoof. "The damage has been done. Let us at least be thankful that it wasn't the entire opera house that he chose to blow up!"
When Blueblood had received word about the explosion, it had sounded far worse than how Master had explained it would be. He cursed the gypsy as his carriage carried him to the opera house, only to let out a sigh of relief when he arrived to find that the building remained standing. However, now as he surveyed the damage, which was not great from what anyone could see on the ground level, and as he heard the stories that were flying around from the various chorus members that he had passed on his way into the auditorium, as well as from the two managers, Blueblood began to see how this whole incident may, in fact, play in his favor.
The truth of the matter was that Blueblood was not entirely convinced that the explosion had truly killed his nemesis. He listened in great detail to the reports of how the ground shook, to the flames that had burst through the trap doors, thinking that it was unlikely anyone could survive such a thing...but still, his paranoia remained.
"I just don't understand it..." Flam murmured. "Why would he do such a thing?"
Blueblood opened his mouth to reply with the usual retort, that the Phantom was a devil and a madstallion, but suddenly, a new plan was forming...
"May I see this note that he left?" he inquired. Silverstar had been holding the letter, and reluctantly hoofed it over to the Prince. "A disaster beyond your imagination will occur..." he read out loud. "I think, gentlecolts, that he was sending us a warning."
"A warning?" both managers said together, looking confused.
Blueblood nodded his head. "Absolutely, it's the only thing that makes sense! He must have learned of our plans to capture him; that we were simply putting on this whole opera as a means to take him prisoner...and so he chose to frighten us by showing how vast his madness is, as a means to intimidate, even dare us to follow through with our plan."
"Worked for me," Flam muttered to his partner.
Silverstar scratched his mustache. "You're suggesting that the Phantom destroyed his own underground lair as a means to create a diversion so that he could escape before your plan was put into motion?"
"No," Blueblood said with a shake of his head. "I'm suggesting that he learned of our plans...and chose to send us a message." He could not help but grin as he noticed he had the three stallion's attention. "Think about it gentlecolts...what reasons can you grasp by him destroying his own home?"
Silverstar immediately had the answer. "Lack of evidence."
"Exactly!" Blueblood exclaimed. "He destroys all proof that he once lived beneath the opera house so that none of it can be used against him. And, by willingly destroying his secret underground world, he is sending us a message...a message of warning..."
"Indeed," Silverstar added, catching on to the Prince's theory. "He's telling us 'if I'm willing to destroy my own home...just think what I will do to your theater.'"
Both Flim and Flam paled at the chief inspector's words.
"But he made a vital mistake..." Blueblood continued.
"He did?" Flim asked.
Blueblood nodded his head. "He assumed we were going to storm his fortress, attempt to overtake him on his own territory..."
Flim and Flam exchanged confused glances. "We weren't?"
"Of course not!" Blueblood groaned in annoyance. "Why go hunting, when you can lure your prey to you?"
The two managers exchanged glances at one another, before slowly beginning to smile with revelation to what their dear patron was saying.
"Wait," Silverstar interrupted. "You actually believe that...that he's still alive?"
I hope not, Blueblood thought to himself. In truth, he did not know, but he wasn't prepared to take any chances. "What point is there in killing himself?" Blueblood questioned. "Where would be his triumph then? It is a possibility that he was unable to escape his elaborate explosion," he sighed. "But perhaps that is exactly what he wants us to believe? Perhaps he assumes that we will not be expecting him, or that we will cancel his opera?"
"Oh God," Flim groaned. "What are we going to do about the opera? Tomorrow is opening night! The papers will be filled with news about the explosion, it will ruin-"
"Calm down, Flim," Blueblood interrupted, his hoof gripping the older manager's shoulder tightly. "What have I told you about scandal? No matter what, it always sells tickets."
Flam looked just as shocked as his partner. "Are you suggesting that we go on with it?"
"Absolutely," Blueblood confirmed. "Why, I just learned yesterday that we've sold practically every seat! When was the last time you can remember a full house? Everyone is talking about this opera...even at my own clubs, all anyone can talk about is Don Juan Triumphant and who the new star is." He could not help but grin as he imagined all the money they would make from both the Phantom's opera, and his "disaster". "Celestia herself could not bring us such publicity. This explosion will surely help us sell out, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if we had people lined up just hoping to stand in the foyer tomorrow!"
Both managers were grinning from ear to ear as they too began to imagine all the money that would be pouring in.
"And as for our dear chief inspector," Blueblood continued, smiling at Silverstar. "This will be your opportunity to redeem yourself."
Silverstar frowned at the Prince's words. "Now see here, you can not blame me or my men for-"
"Think of the heroism that will fall upon you and your office if you capture the Phantom?" Blueblood murmured, attempting to make his plan sound as intriguing as possible. "You and your men stand guard at every entrance and backstage with your guns loaded and waiting...and we know he will make an appearance with Mademoiselle Fluttershy performing."
"That's right!" Flim cut in. "She's the bait that will lure him!"
Blueblood continued smiling, despite the fact that he could feel his neck muscles twitching at the thought Fluttershy bedding that monster. "As soon as we spot him, we take him down!"
Silverstar smiled faintly, still showing that he was not entirely sure about this plot, and doubting very much that the creature could still be alive. But one thing the Prince had mentioned was right, even if Silverstar did not wish to admit it. He knew about the creature, he knew that it existed, that the Prince had been correct with all the evidence he had shown...and now a disaster had taken place, which thankfully had not taken any known lives. But who knows what would happen should he continue to ignore the existence or the threat of the supposed "Phantom of the Opera".
"Very well," Silverstar agreed. "My men and I will be here tomorrow evening, standing guard and standing prepared should the fiend arrive."
Blueblood could not help but smile smugly. "Excellent. Now, Flim, Flam," he said turning to the two managers. "I think it's best that you bring in the rest of the company and explain to them that we shall be continuing as planned, for tomorrow night."
Both men nodded their heads, and immediately went out into the foyer where the company was waiting to hear word on what was going on. Twilight Luna, who had been standing and talking with several other dance mares, took immediate notice that Fluttershy was nowhere in sight. She left her small group of friends to search for the brunette, having a sneaking suspicion of where she may have gone.
To no surprise, Twilight was right as to where Fluttershy was. She found the young mare in her dressing room, crumpled on the ground, sobbing, and desperately trying to pry the hinges from her mirror off with a hammer. "Fluttershy?" Twilight asked in a tentative voice. She knew Fluttershy had been upset when the explosion had occurred, but she was still unsure as to why.
"I have...I have to get down there," Fluttershy mumbled through her sobs, still trying to pry the mirror open.
Twilight slowly approached the crying mare, unsure exactly what to say or do. "Get down there?"
"Yes," Fluttershy choked, "I...I need...I need to know..."
Twilight was very confused, but felt her heart swell with sadness for her friend. "Need to know what, Fluttershy?"
"I...I...I need to know..." she sobbed, her efforts with the hammer slowing. "I need to know if...if he's alright...if...if...I..." she dropped the hammer and crumpled completely, her head falling against the mirror's smooth surface, as the tears overwhelmed her. "Oh Twilight..." she wailed in utter despair.
The ballerina quickly fell to her knees and gathered Fluttershy's sobbing form in her arms, hugging her friend tightly. "It's alright Fluttershy...it will be alright," she attempted to soothe, although she had a hard time believing her own words. How could she expect Fluttershy to believe them?
Fluttershy clung to the small dance mare, her body weak and tired from crying, her heart overflowing with sorrow. After the fire brigade had finished dousing the flames and given the all clear, she was one of the first to hurry back inside. She flew to the chapel where Madame Luna had emerged earlier, but much to her despair, found the small passageway blocked by several large rocks that had caved in. The police arrived shortly after, and were keeping the rest of the company in the foyer while the chief inspector examined the auditorium along with the managers. Fluttershy's only other choice was the mirror in her dressing room. Had she thought about it, she would have asked Discord when they were together the other day how he opened the mirror. She had been tempted to break the glass, hoping still that somehow she'd find a door on the other side. But a part of her couldn't bear to break it; what if she ruined any chance at him returning to her? Perhaps it was the only way out for him now? Of course...that all depended whether he was still alive...and her doubts were growing more and more.
"Twilight? Fluttershy?"
Both mares looked up to see another dancer standing in the doorway of the dressing room.
"Is...is everything alright?"
Twilight nodded her head. "We're fine, Carrot Top."
The mare gave a faint smile, but still looked worried. "You both best come into the auditorium. The Prince is here-"
Fluttershy's head snapped up. "The...the Prince is here?"
Carrot Top smiled a little more and nodded her head. "Yes, and he wishes to address all of us."
Fluttershy felt her blood begin to boil. She didn't know how exactly...but deep inside she knew that Blueblood was to blame for all this.
Twilight immediately noticed the change in her friend. "Thank you, Carrot Top," she quickly replied, hoping that the mare would take her leave. Fluttershy rose to her feet, and Twilight quickly followed. "Fluttershy, you don't have to go out there," she intervened. "I will tell you everything, but you don't need to leave, you don't have to face him."
"Yes, I do," Fluttershy murmured, her tone somewhat harsher than normal. She walked out of the dressing room, and immediately took one of the side doors that led directly into the auditorium. The whole company was sitting, facing the stage...and there he stood, tall, proud, and extremely arrogant, addressing them as a dictator addresses his troops.
"I know that this harrowing experience was traumatic for many of you," he spoke with rehearsed sympathy. "And like you, I too have many questions: why did this happen? What was the meaning behind it? And perhaps the most important question, how exactly should we respond?"
A soft murmur went up around the auditorium; that was exactly what many of the company's members were thinking.
"Well, after careful consideration, and much discussion with our fine managers, we have decided to continue things as planned."
The murmur suddenly erupted into a great din of voices, many of which were gasping with surprise and protesting to the Prince's announcement. Even Fluttershy was shocked. They wanted the opera to go on?
"Tomorrow is opening night, and Don Juan Triumphant will go on as planned," Flim stated quite firmly.
"Here! Here!" Flam heartily replied, although he was one of the few voices to respond positively.
"This is crazy!" Fancypants cried. "We could have been killed! And you want us to carry on?"
"It's a necessity, signor," Blueblood muttered.
Celestia lifted a brow at Blueblood's words. "A necessity? How do you mean?"
Blueblood groaned, although inside he couldn't stop grinning. "If you must know," he sighed, pulling a letter from the inside of his jacket, "we owe our thanks for this underground display of fireworks to none other, than the Phantom of the Opera."
A great gasp went up from around the auditorium, including Fluttershy. However, unlike the others, she was fuming with anger as Blueblood waved the letter like a flag.
"Our dear Phantom sent us a warning..." Blueblood continued to explain. "He says that unless things go according to his plans, a disaster beyond our imaginations will occur."
Another murmur went up around the auditorium. No one could understand it! Why would the Phantom threaten them? Weren't they doing everything he had asked?
Fluttershy was gripping the armrests of her chair, her anger raging. Were they actually blaming Discord for this? Were they actually suggesting that he would destroy his entire world and commit suicide...just to frighten them?
"Well, he tried to frighten us, showing us the evil he is capable of committing. And I, for one, am tired of being bullied by some masked fiend!"
Several people in the auditorium began to grumble with agreement, while the others continued to look around warily, as if not convinced that the Opera Ghost was not watching.
"So we shall continue with our plans and show him once and for all that this is our theater!"
A rumble of applause went up from the auditorium, many people nodding their heads to the Prince's words. Fluttershy on the other hoof, couldn't stand it any longer. "He would never do such a thing!"
Blueblood's victorious smile faded instantly at the sound of Fluttershy's voice. Everyone turned to stare at the young mare who had spoken in the Phantom's defense.
Fluttershy lifted her chin and held her head high. "Do you honestly think that the Phantom would destroy his underground realm simply to frighten us?"
Blueblood felt his jaw tighten. "He's a lunatic," he growled. "He's capable of anything."
"He's a genius!" Fluttershy retorted, causing several people to gasp in surprise. "And it makes no sense!"
"It's right here!" Blueblood bellowed, throwing the letter up into the air. "Written in his own hoof, plain as the eye can see!"
"From what I have heard, the Phantom's letters have always been detailed with clear and concise instructions. Why would he be so ambiguous now?"
"Well forgive me, mademoiselle, but you have not been dealing with this villain for as long as we have!" Blueblood spat back. "He is capable of committing the most vile crime! He is mad enough to take his own life in the process of taking ours!"
"He would never do such a thing!" Fluttershy shouted back.
"He's a demon! A monster! A-"
"HE'S NOT A MONSTER! YOU ARE! AND I KNOW YOU ARE THE ONE BEHIND THIS!"
Everypony gasped and stared in shock and horror as Fluttershy screamed her accusation upon the Prince. Yet no one was as shocked as Blueblood himself. "She's hysterical," he muttered to the managers. "Get her out of here before she further causes a scene."
Flim and Flam had been frozen to their places the whole time, but quickly broke from their trance at Blueblood's words. "Yes, of course," Flim muttered, signaling to several stagehooves to come forward. "Take Mademoiselle Fluttershy to her dressing room...she is clearly upset from today's trauma."
"What?" Fluttershy gasped, and then she began to struggle against the strong grip of the stagehooves as they held her by the shoulders and began to pull her away. "GET YOUR HOOVES OFF ME! LET ME GO! DAMN YOU BLUEBLOOD!"
Blueblood turned his back on her shrieking, his face dark with rage and jealousy. Even now, she defended that creature. How he despised that monster, more than anything else in this world.
"Monsieur? Do you think it's wise for Mademoiselle Fluttershyto continue performing as planned?" Flam whispered. "Perhaps we should have Celestia-"
"No," Blueblood growled, deep and low. "Fluttershy will perform, that's who the people want to see anyway...they've heard too much about this chorus mare-turned opera star. But take control!" he hissed. "Don't let them even think about this morning...have them rehearse for as long as it takes...but do not let them dwell on today's events."
Both managers quickly nodded their heads, too intimidated to contradict their patron. A slow breath escaped their chests as they watched the Prince turn on his heel and exit the auditorium, causing the doors to bang loudly behind him.
"Well!" Flim coughed, looking stern. "Come now Madam Octavia! We have an opera to perform!"
The conductor groaned and rolled her eyes as he rose from her chair. "Come along everyone," she grumbled.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy continued to struggle against her "prison guards". "Let her go!" Madame Luna hissed, appearing around a corner, surprising them. They didn't have to be told twice, and quickly dropped her arms. Madame Luna wrapped a protective arm around Fluttershy's shoulders, glaring at each of the stagehooves until they all turned and quickly retreated the way they had come. Madame Luna turned then to Fluttershy, her voice a gentle whisper. "Are you alright my dear?"
"NO!" Fluttershy shouted, her anger and sorrow brimming over. "You know Discord would never do such a thing!"
"I know, my dear, I know," Madame Luna murmured, leading Fluttershy towards her dressing room.
"I'm not crazy, Madame Luna, you know that!"
"Of course I do!" the dance mistress replied, squeezing Fluttershy's hoof. "And like you, I too believe that Discord would never do such a thing, let alone write such a letter."
"The letter..." Fluttershy whispered. "Where did they get that letter?"
Madame Luna sighed and shook her head. "I don't know...but I find it hard to believe that it was written by Discord's hoof."
Fluttershy turned and gripped the older mare by the shoulders. "You have to take me to him," she implored. "Please Madame Luna, you must show me how I can get down there, and-"
"Fluttershy..." Madame Luna felt her own heart breaking with having to tell the young mare the sad news, but it couldn't wait another moment. "Fluttershy...I...I saw it happen. I heard the explosion, I smelled the gunpowder...and I saw his world go up in flames and cave in." She bit her lip, knowing this was going to be hard for the mare to understand, and extremely hard to tell her, especially when Madame Luna could see the hope dying in the mare's blue eyes. "No one...no one could survive such a-"
"No!" Fluttershy cried. "Don't...don't say that!"
"My dear, it would be a miracle if Discord, or the others, survived. The damage that was done was great indeed; it wasn't just fire or falling stone that threatened their lives...but the smoke was so great, how could anyone not choke on it?"
Fluttershy felt her head spin. She couldn't believe it, she just couldn't! Or was it that she didn't want to believe it?
Madame Luna hated herself for smashing the mare's hopes...but would it have been worse allowing her to hope when it was not possible? She carefully led Fluttershy to the chaise lounge in her dressing room, and helped her to lie down. "Get some rest," she murmured, smoothing a few stray curls from her brow. "I will check on you later."
Fluttershy said nothing; she didn't even nod her head. The tears that flowed down her cheeks were cold and silent, for that was exactly how she felt...hollow. Just like the ruined realm that lay beneath the Maris Opera House.
Blueblood was fuming.
Fluttershy's words continued to echo in his ears during the whole ride home.
Monster. She had called him a monster!
And she continued to defend that villain!
No...he would not be defeated, even if that masked fiend was dead! She was going to be his! He would possess her body, her soul, and especially the fortune that the Marquis Filthy Rich was planning on leaving her. He would have that mare no matter what!
Blueblood pushed his coachcolt out of the way as he climbed down the carriage himself. His butler, who had been standing ready by the door, quickly opened it upon noticing his master's temper. "Monsieur?"
"What?" he barked at the butler, wanting nothing more than a stiff glass of whisky to ease the ache in his head.
"T-t-there is a...well...a 'gentlecolt'...of sorts, to see you, in the library," the butler stammered slightly.
Blueblood's brow furrowed at the information, but then clarity washed over him as he realized whom the servant was talking about. "Thank you," he grumbled, pushing past the butler and going straight into the library. He would have to make sure that nothing was missing before dismissing his unwanted guest.
"Master," Blueblood muttered, seeing the tall graying gypsy examining one of Blueblood's many elegant book shelves.
"Ah, monsieur," Master greeted, smiling and giving a slight bow to the noblecolt. Blueblood simply grunted and shut the door behind him. "I was admiring your fine collection," Master continued, as if nothing were amiss.
Blueblood looked at the books on the shelf. "Can you read?"
Master chuckled. "Barely. But a stallion doesn't need to be a great reader to not know the great value of such books."
Blueblood rolled his eyes, taking a mental note to inspect the shelf closely before the gypsy left. "What are you doing here?"
The old gypsy's smile faded at the hostility in the Prince's voice. "I've come to collect the other 5,000 you owe me."
Blueblood said nothing, he simply walked over to a small table where a bottle of whisky lay and proceeded to pour himself a glass. The gypsy frowned at the lack of response. "Did you hear what I said?"
"Quite clearly," Blueblood muttered, taking a large gulp from his glass. "And you said I could pay you the other 5,000 once the Phantom was killed."
"That's right," Master muttered, his impatience growing. "And that's what I did!"
Blueblood took another drink. "We don't know that."
"WHAT?" Master was fuming. "What do you mean? Of course he is! No one could survive that! We had over thirty barrels of gunpowder! A cockroach wouldn't even survive such a-"
"You nearly destroyed my opera house!" Blueblood retorted, his eyes flaring up with anger. "And that was NOT part of our deal!"
"Please," Master grumbled. "Last I saw it, it was still standing...and besides, you wanted us to take care of your 'problem' without leaving any evidence behind...and I think we did just that! So pay me my 5,000!"
It was no use arguing with the stallion. He was convinced that the job had been done right, but Blueblood could not shake off that disturbing feeling, that everything had not gone according to plan...
And that was when Blueblood saw the opportunity rise.
"Were you able to get those creatures?"
Master was still fuming. "Don't change the subject," he snapped. "I got my freaks, but I want my-"
"I'll pay you your 5,000...plus extra, if you do me a little favor..."
Master stared at the noblecolt as if he had two heads. "You must be out of your mind! You expect me to do more favors for you before I receive my full payment? No, I'm finished making deals with you!"
"It will be worth your while..." Blueblood attempted to reason.
"No deal! Pay me my 5,000!"
"I could pay you another 10,000!"
Master stared at the Prince in surprise, his mouth falling open at the hoofsome pony's words. Even Blueblood was shocked by what he said...but he quickly brushed the surprise away, needing to make this deal desperately. "There is a mare...she...she..." he couldn't finish the sentence. "The Phantom took her prisoner, and she grew...close...with those monsters. They mean much to her, in fact, it was only two days ago when she rescued one of them from the police."
Master wanted to pretend that he didn't care, but he found himself intrigued by the Prince's story. "I'm listening," he softly urged.
"This mare is an heiress...she is to receive the whole fortune of the Marquis Filthy Rich upon the time of his death, which could be any day now. If I am able to marry her, I could give you another 10,000 on top of the 10,000 franks I'm already paying you."
"You've only paid me 5,000 franks so far."
Blueblood rolled his eyes and bit his lip to keep from shouting at the stubborn gypsy.
Master ran his hooves through his long silver beard. "Does she hold feelings for you?"
Blueblood tasted blood on the inside of his mouth. He realized then that Master's question had caused him to bite his cheek in anger. "She has feelings for those...those things that you took," he carefully explained. "And with your help, we can convince her to...accept...my proposal."
Master could not help but grin at Blueblood's words. "That is truly loathsome," he murmured. "I love it."
Fluttershy awoke with a start, sitting up abruptly and looking at her surroundings wildly. She had just had the most horrible dream; there was a great fire at the opera house, and Discord and his friends were trapped, and she could not reach them...
It wasn't a dream, she realized with a heavy heart.
She remembered everything now; the ground shaking, the smoke billowing from the air vents, giant orange flames bursting from the trap doors, and Madame Luna, telling her that there was no hope.
Discord was dead. Derpy and all the others were dead. Nothing could survive such an explosion...
Fluttershy felt cold and hollow. She wrapped her arms around her body, her every muscle aching with grief. Her hooves slowly fell to her belly, and new tears brimmed at the corners of her eyes.
Their son or daughter would never know his or her father.
Was it possible to die from a broken heart? Yes...for Fluttershy felt as if she were dying inside.
"Fluttershy?"
She turned her head to the doorway, seeing her father standing there, attempting to smile, but failing miserably. He said nothing else; he simply went to her side and wrapped his arms around her. Fluttershy let out a sad but grateful sigh, and hugged him back just as fiercely. "Oh Papa," she moaned, burying her face against his shoulder as she wept.
Time Turner ran his old hooves through his daughter's hair, whispering soothing words into her ear, yet knowing they would do little to relieve her sorrow. "When your mother died, I...I thought it was the end of the world..." he began. "I didn't want to go on living...I didn't want to face another day without seeing her beautiful face, or hearing her lovely voice..." his arms held Fluttershy even tighter as he could feel her trembling against him. "And I think...I would have let the sorrow eat me away, until there was nothing left...had it not been for you..."
Fluttershy looked up at him, her brow slightly furrowed at his words. "Me?" she sniffled.
Time Turner smiled softly and nodded his head as his hoof brushed a fallen curl away from her face. "I realized that I had my daughter to take care of, that you needed me, and if I gave in to my sorrow, you would be mourning two parents, not one," he sighed and kissed her forehead. "Fluttershy...I'm not saying that the pain will ever go away, or that things will get easier. I still grieve for your mother after all this time...but I know that she would want me to continue living, for her...for you."
Fluttershy opened her mouth to speak, but her father put his hoof to her lips. "I know, my dear."
Fluttershy's brow contorted even more. What did he mean? What did he know? And then it dawned on her...
"How...how long?" she whispered, unsure how he would react. Would he be disappointed? Upset? Angry?
Time Turner smiled softly. "After you had fainted on stage, I began to put the puzzle pieces together. You weren't eating very much, and yet you seemed to be ill much of the time. I remember your mother having similar dizzy spells and moments of sickness...and at first, I was worried; worried that perhaps the Phantom had..." he didn't finish his thoughts; no father ever wanted to finish such thoughts. "But when you told me how much you loved him, and how deeply he returned your love...I realized then that it hadn't been my worst fear."
Fluttershy smiled faintly to her father's words. "I'm sorry, Papa-"
"Oh no, my dear!" Time Turner shook his head, holding her face in his hooves. "You misunderstand, I am not upset, and I am not disappointed. I...I cannot condemn you, my child. When I met your mother, I..." he blushed slightly. "We were much younger, and our passion for one another could not be contained, at least not before our marriage. And I know that Discord had every intention of marrying you..." his words faded as he noticed the sorrow rise once more in his daughter's eyes. "What I am trying to say is...the pain you are feeling is great indeed, and it will be hard...but you must go on living, Fluttershy. Think of Discord...and think of your child..."
Fluttershy let out a long shaky breath as her hoof fell once more to her stomach. It pained her to think that Discord would never see their child...but she knew her father was right. She wanted to die, but she couldn't, and she wouldn't. She needed to go on living for Discord, for their son or daughter. She would tell the child all about his or her father; how he was a great musician, how he ran an opera house, how he wrote a great opera...how she and him met. She would tell the child about Discord's past, about the friends he looked after, about the cruelty that ponies can inflict upon others, and yet how despite all that, the two of them had found love. Discord would live on her heart, always and forever, in her memory, and in their child.
"Thank you, Papa," she murmured, hugging him tightly.
Time Turner smiled and hugged his daughter back. They held each other for a long time, giving one another strength, before finally letting go, as the sounds from the orchestra sailed into the dressing room. Time Turner sighed with annoyance. "I can't believe they actually want to go on with this performance."
Fluttershy was frowning too, but for different reasons. She rose from the chaise lounge and began walking towards the door. "Come," she said to her father. "There is something of great importance I wish to say."
Time Turner's eyes narrowed with confusion. "To whom?"
"Everyone." Without another word, she began walking towards the stage, her father following directly behind.
Flim and Flam were sitting in the auditorium, looking absolutely miserable, while Fancypants continued singing Don Juan's title song. Celestia was having a fit because no one was letting her sing Aminta's songs, and the dance that danced behind Don Juan, looked extremely tired. However, everyone fell silent, as Fluttershy walked out onto the stage.
"Mademoiselle!" both managers cried at once.
Fancypants looked horrified that his solo had been interrupted. Madam Octavia looked both thankful, and annoyed, that Fluttershy had finally chosen to join the rehearsals. There were several other chorus members who were also sharing the conductor's sentiments, thankful she had interrupted the rehearsal, grumbling that she had some nerve to come in late. "I'm glad our little ingenue chose to join us," Celestia scoffed with bitterness.
Fluttershy ignored the mare and looked directly at the managers. Both Flim and Flam were unsure exactly what to say. "Well..." Flam began. "Good to see that you are feeling better, mademoiselle."
"Indeed," Flim added. "Now that you are here, we can truly rehearse. Madam Octavia, if you please-"
"No."
Everyone stared in wide-eyed confusion and shock at the words that had escaped Fluttershy's mouth. Her voice had not been loud, but it had been extremely clear.
"No?" Flam, Flim, and Octavia said together.
"That's right," Fluttershy continued. "No...as in no, I will not rehearse."
Octavia groaned and threw her baton up into the air. Another prima donna in the making...
"What do you mean 'no'?" Flim asked, his annoyance growing.
"In case you didn't realize, mademoiselle," Flam muttered, not hiding his own annoyance. "We have a performance tomorrow evening! And we need-"
"Why are you doing this?" Fluttershy questioned, although she was asking the question to everyone, not just the managers. "Why are you performing this opera? None of you like it, I've heard you all complain about it. Why do it then?"
"The Phantom, of course!" Fancypants defended, shaking his hoof to the catwalks overhead. "He has ordered us to perform his opera, or-"
"You never paid attention to his instructions before!" Fluttershy accused, her voice rising slightly. "You took some things to heart, but you never followed them to the line as you're doing now...why this opera? Why this performance? And why now, exactly? The Phantom is dead!"
Fluttershy gasped as the words escaped her lips. Had she really said that? Did she believe it? "The Phantom is dead..." she repeated again, this time her words nothing more than mere whisper.
Flim and Flam glanced at one another warily. "We...we don't know that, for sure," Flam retorted. "This could all be a ruse! A plan to trick us! Besides, why would he commit suicide-"
"He didn't commit suicide, he was murdered!" Fluttershy shouted, causing the younger manager to tremble and stutter.
"That's a heavy accusation," Flim murmured.
"And how could it be murder?" Celestia grumbled. "No one cares about that villain anyway...you ask me, it was justice!"
Fluttershy rounded on the mare, and the diva gave a shriek before shielding herself behind Fancypants. She still remembered the day Fluttershy had punched her right in the eye.
"I care!" Fluttershy shouted. "And for too long I have been silent...but not anymore. I love him!" a gasp went out from around the stage, but Fluttershy carried on, not letting her courage fade. "Why did the Phantom choose me, you ask? Where was I all these months? I was with him! He took me prisoner, but in exchange for my freedom, he taught me to sing...and he crafted my voice, helped me become great...and I am great!" she shouted, lifting her chin with pride. "Think what you will, but I am a good singer, and you know that," her eyes fell on Celestia, who was attempting to look away. "And while I was there, locked away in his underground realm, a world that exists no more...I fell in love with him," another gasp went up from everyone, although now, some of the company looked sympathetic...and ashamed. "Those were the happiest months of my life..." Fluttershy whispered, before her eyes fell once more on the managers. "He is not the monster you make him out to be! He is a genius! And you...you are nothing but a hoard of greedy, frightened, cowards!"
Flim and Flam both began to cough in surprise at Fluttershy's words. "Now...now see here!" Flim shouted in defense. "That's going too far-"
"No, monsieur, it's the truth. You perform his opera, doing so in the name of fear, but what have you to fear now? He's dead! No...you carry on, because while you hate the music and you hate the composer...you will gladly take the money his genius has created!" she spat with bitterness.
The managers opened their mouths to reply, but found they had been robbed of their voices.
"Hypocrites," Fluttershy muttered. "Cowardly hypocrites."
She turned then, and began walking towards Celestia. The blonde soprano gave a high-pitched squeak, and pushed Fancypants in front of her. "Stay away from me!"
"It's yours."
Celestia stopped squeaking, and carefully looked over Fancypants's shoulder. "W-w-what?"
Everyone held their breath, wondering what Fluttershy was going to do. "I said, it's yours," Fluttershy repeated. "The part, the role of Aminta...take it."
"WHAT?" gasped the managers, along with half of the chorus. Twilight glanced at her mother, who was also looking shocked by Fluttershy's offer. Yet no one looked as shocked as Celestia herself.
"You...you w-want me to take the part of Aminta?" Celestia asked slowly.
Fluttershy nodded her head. "Yes. You've wanted it for so long, although I know that was more because you wanted to play the lead. You cared nothing for the character, or the story, or the music...all you care about is having the lead."
Her words stung, but that was the point. Celestia knew deep in her bones that it was true. "What game are you playing at?" she asked, eyeing Fluttershy suspiciously.
"No game," Fluttershy confirmed. "I'm giving you the role of Aminta. I don't want it anymore." Her words were short and everyone could hear the emotion behind them, but Fluttershy continued to hold her head high, her eyes focused on Celestia's.
"Mademoiselle!" Flam gasped finally. "What are you doing?"
"It's been advertised in the papers that you will be playing the lead!" Flim explained, his voice pleading. "You must play Aminta! You can not do this!"
"I am," Fluttershy murmured, looking around the stage at all the faces that were gazing at her with confusion, sadness, and shock. Her eyes lingered momentarily on Twilight and Madame Luna, before turning to look at her father. He gave her a soft smile, one filled with understanding. "I quit."
"YOU QUIT?!?" they shouted together in disbelief.
"As do I," Time Turner murmured.
"WHAT?" Flam gasped, looking as if he were going to faint dead away.
"No! Time Turner, you can't do this to us! Not a second time!" Flim cried.
Neither Fluttershy nor her father said anything further. Hoof in hoof, they walked off the stage, and out the auditorium, leaving a stunned company, and two wailing managers, behind.
Derpy groaned as pain ripped through her arms. She had been pushing at rocks and pulling at boulders for hours, trying to get to the Master who had been trapped in the cave-in from the explosion.
Carmen mewed behind him, leaping over the rocks Derpy had removed and sniffing the air around her, as if trying to find a weak spot in the wall of stone that barricaded the hunchback from the Phantom.
"Master?" Derpy cried. "H-h-hold on! I'm c-c-coming!" she grunted as she pulled more rocks away, watching carefully to make sure that she did not cause further damage to the already ravaged labyrinth.
Derpy shuddered as the memories of what had occurred earlier once more replayed before his eyes. She and the tiny kitten had fled from the sight where Master and his stallions were dispensing the gunpowder. She went immediately to the Master's chambers, shocked at seeing that the Master was not there. Where had he gone? She went to Fluttershy's old chambers, but found nothing their either. She began searching all the tunnels and hidden chambers, hoping to find some sign of the Master...and then, she smelled the smoke.
Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
It was a horrible smell, a smell mixed with hate and fear. Derpy knew she had to get away from it, as far as possible. Gathering Carmen close, she hurried down the tunnels, away from the foul smoky stench, as fast as her legs could carry him.
And then she spotted the Master.
He was flying down an opposite tunnel, his black cape billowing behind him like a bat's silken wings, heading towards the smell, heading towards the danger.
Derpy gave a cry of dismay and horror, and desperately tried to reach the Master before it was too late. She carefully crossed the divide between the two tunnels, calling out the Master's name, hoping he would hear her voice and at least pause, if not stop.
The Master was very fast, and Derpy knew she would not be able to keep up. "Master!" he shouted. "MASTER!" Derpy reached the other tunnel and began to hurry after Discord. She was panting, her side aching, her head swimming from the smoke that was now beginning to fill the tunnel, and her stomach churning with growing dread. Even Carmen was burrowing deeper inside her pocket, mewing out of fear. "MASTER!"
And then, the Master had stopped. He had just gone around a corner and paused. And Derpy saw why.
A flame, extremely small, was chasing a trail of gunpowder. And the trail came to an end where a pile of barrels lay clumped together. The flame had reached its destination...
Derpy said nothing, she simply acted. She grabbed the Master by the hem of his cape and hurled him with all her strength, back down the tunnel which they had been running. Derpy, her large hooves clutching her pocket protectively, dove under a large piece of rock, praying for safety, as behind her she heard a great blast.
Derpy knew that she should have been dead; she was far too close to where the explosion had occurred, and even the large rock that she had taken shelter under should have collapsed with all the weight that had fallen on it. But no...the rock, her shelter, remained steadfast, shielding her large body from the explosion and the stone that caved in all around her. Truly, she had witnessed a miracle.
And now, she only prayed that she could witness another miracle. After the dust settled, Derpy emerged from her shelter and noticed the large wall of stone that had collapsed all around her, barricading himself from where she had flung the Master. She immediately went to work, hauling, pulling, and pushing stone away, coughing from the dust and smoke that still filled the ruined tunnel.
"Meow!"
Derpy glanced up to see Carmen pawing at a particular rock. She was sniffing it with much interest, and Derpy noticed that her tiny nose was examining a crack between the rocks. When she moved her dark furry head, a tiny splinter of dim light pierced through.
"Master!" Derpy cried, immediately attempting to pull the boulder away. "M-master! I'm c-c-coming! H-h-hang on!" Carmen continued mewing, as if in encouragement. Derpy grunted as she pulled at the boulder, sweat dripping down her brow, her hooves blistered and bleeding, every muscle in her body aching, but she continued her struggle, she continued pulling...
And then, with a great thud, the boulder, fell away, and along with it, so did other rocks, crumbling around it, the entire wall rolling away and giving him access into the tunnel. Snatching up Carmen, Derpy placed the kitten once more inside her pocket and began to desperately search for the Master.
It was so dark.
Nothing was familiar anymore; the elaborate tunnels that stretched in the Phantom's underground labyrinth had been reduced to piles of rubble. The sliver of light that Derpy had seen through the crack belonged to a small, dying flame, which glowed from what looked like a piece of fabric.
Derpy's stomach tightened. "MASTER!" she cried, rushing towards the glow. The hunchback's suspicions had been correct; the fire had been eating away at Discord's cape. She quickly doused the flames, and bit her lip as she looked down at her Master, lying deathly still.
He lay on his side, his black mask somewhat askew, his clothes tattered and covered with dust, and there were several large, horrid looking cuts on his brow, lip, arms, and legs. "M-m-master?" Derpy whispered, fear swelling in her chest. He looked lifeless...lying there. Was his chest even moving? "Master...please...p-p-please w-wake up..."
Derpy felt the tears begin to fall, and her throat tightened as she touched the Master's hoof, gasping at how cool it felt. It didn't look like he was breathing. The Master...he was-
Derpy practically jumped from the great hollow gasp that escaped Discord's lips, his chest rising suddenly from the great gulp of air he was taking in. And then, he was coughing; coughing, sputtering, and vomiting.
"Master!" Derpy cried with relief, quickly brushing her tears away. "Master y-y-you're a-alive!"
Discord groaned, pain filling his body. He had never felt worse. "Derpy?" he whispered, his voice raspy. He could barely see the hunchback that was looming over him; his head ached so much. "What...w-w-what happened...?" he coughed, gasping for another gulp of air.
"T-t-there w-was t-this burst of f-fire...a-a-and then, the rocks started t-t-to fall! I grabbed you...and t-threw you d-down the tunnel," Derpy carefully explained, biting her lip with worry, wondering if she had caused the Master further injury.
"Y-you s-saved my life, Derpy," Discord murmured, offering a weak smile of gratitude; it hurt his mouth to move it.
"Y-you have s-s-saved us s-so many times," Derpy murmured humbly, glad that she had been able to help her master.
Discord groaned as he attempted to sit up, and found that it was far too painful. "The air..." he mumbled, coughing once more. "It's...it's not right in here...w-w-we must get to f-fresh air..."
Derpy bit her lip. He did not know how to exactly get to the world above from there, and knew especially that it wasn't safe. "The catacombs," Discord murmured, reading the hunchback's thoughts. "Take me to the catacombs, Derpy...the air will be fresher there..." he coughed as he explained.
Derpy nodded her head, and carefully, picked the Master up and hauled him over her shoulders, wincing as she heard Discord moan in agony from the pain that wracked his body. He too was coughing as he realized that the air was poisoned from the smoke. With a grunt, Derpy carried Discord towards the dark catacombs, praying that the Master would stay awake to guide her through the long twisting tunnels. She would tell him about the others once she knew the Master was going to be all right. Right now, all that mattered was that the Master was alive. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Villainy | Villainy
"Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. It has been quite some time since my last confession..."
A soft, elderly voice, responded through the screen to the mare who was confessing. "Speak my child, what are these sins that trouble you?"
The mare sighed, fighting back the tears that threatened to fall. "I have interfered with God's plan."
The priest's brow furrowed at the mare's words. "Interfered?"
"Yes," the mare went on. "While my faith in God is strong, my faith in ponies is lacking."
"Ponies are imperfect," the priest quietly explained. "It is easy to lack faith in others, even when we try not to. But God can give us strength...tell me, my child, is it this lack of faith in others that has caused you to believe you have interfered?"
"Yes," the mare replied, her voice filled with emotion. "I...I have..." she paused and felt a terrible shiver course through her body. "I mean, I...had...a friend, a stallion who I have known for many years, a stallion who lived his life locked away in shadow, a stallion who despised the light, a stallion who, despite his cold temper, was truly good to those who depended upon him, and I knew this...I had witnessed the good he had done...and yet, I doubted him."
The priest was troubled by the mare's words. "Please continue," he whispered.
The mare sighed, swallowing the lump in her throat. "There was a mare...she was young, pretty, and full of life..." she felt the tears slip down her cheeks. "She met this stallion..."
"And you feared for her?" the priest asked, beginning to understand the mare's troubles.
There was a long pause; the only sound the priest could hear was the mare's soft weeping. "Yes..." she sniffled, finally. "I did...I...I assumed the worst of him, forgetting the kindness he was capable of showing, and judging him no differently than others...and I was wrong, I was so wrong..."
The priest felt such pity as he listened to the mare cry. "How were you wrong, my child?"
The mare sniffled here and there, trying to control her tears. "He and this mare...they fell in love. He truly loved her with all his heart, and she loved him. But...but I drove them away, I forced them to be parted, thinking that what I was doing was for the best...and now...now he's no more."
The priest could not hold back his gasp from the mare's words. "He is dead?"
A soft wail escaped her lips, before finally murmuring a strangled, "yes." The priest sat in silence as the mare cried, wishing with all his heart that he could ease her pain. After several deep breaths, the mare finally began to speak again. "He is dead...and she is dying with grief," the mare whispered. "She is also leaving, traveling far away from this place, and I blame myself for all of this...had I not interfered, had I attempted to understand-"
"My child," the priest quietly interrupted. "You were not interfering; you were acting as many frightened parents act, seeing what was in front of them, seeing what they fear. Pray for this stallion who has left this world, pray for his soul, and pray for the mare who grieves him."
"Pray for him, my child," the priest again murmured, soothingly. "Pray and tell him of your grief, your sorrow, and your love."
The mare nodded her head and slowly rose from the confessional. "Thank you, Father."
The priest whispered a blessing, before murmuring, "Go in peace."
Slowly, Madame Luna exited the confessional, and with her head bowed low, prayed that wherever Discord was, he could hear her.
"Fluttershy..."
Derpy's eyes fluttered open at the sound of the Master's voice. The Master was very strong, and had been a bit of a challenge for Derpy to carry, but he had managed to bring him to the catacombs, just as the Master had suggested. Upon arriving there, both of them began to breathe more easily, the air fresher and cleaner, despite the endless tunnels of bones that surrounded them. Derpy had gotten right to work, tearing pieces of cloth to help stop the bleeding for several of the Master's wounds. She was extremely grateful for all that Rarity had taught her. After binding the wounds, Derpy fetched them both some water, and looked for any other supplies that may be helpful.
Discord could barely stay awake. He had so many questions, but his body was so weak from the explosion. He was grateful to Derpy, but yearned to know what had become of the others. Where were they? Had they made it to safety? Were they trapped somewhere? He yearned to rise up and go in search for them, to stand on his own two feet, but sitting up on his own proved difficult; he hated to think how it would be to stand.
One of his legs pained him greatly, and Discord cursed whenever he or Derpy tried to move it. He needed help, this much he knew...if only he weren't so tired...
Both Discord and Derpy were completely exhausted from the ordeal. Derpy never meant to fall asleep, she had planned on staying awake and making sure the Master would be alright, but sleep overcame her, just as it took the Master. How long she had slept, she did not know, but Derpy awoke when she began to hear the Master call out for Fluttershy.
"Master?" she whispered, coming to Discord's side. "Master, is t-t-there something y-you need?"
"Fluttershy..." Discord murmured weakly.
Derpy bit her lip. If she could bring Fluttershy to him, she would. She remembered how well Fluttershy had helped the Master when he had been injured by the gunshot. But she did know how to get to the place where she stayed, or how to get word to her.
"I'm s-s-sorry Master...I...I d-don't know how to g-g-get Fluttershy," Derpy murmured sadly.
Discord's eyes drifted open then, realizing that Derpy was talking to him. His sleep had been littered with fevered dreams; nightmares where the Prince attacked Fluttershy and he was unable to help her. He glanced up at Derpy, who was leaning over him and looking concerned. The hunchback had been a great help, but he needed more, both of them did.
"Master?" Derpy asked again. "I said I'm s-s-sorry...b-but I don't know h-h-how to g-g-get Fluttershy."
Discord slowly nodded her head with understanding. "Madame Luna," he coughed. "Get Madame Luna...she will know what to do..."
"Madame Luna?" Derpy thought for a second and remembered that she lived in the house with the stable that had the very nice horses. Of course she would be able to help! "I will g-g-go a-and b-bring her to you!" Derpy promised, rising to her feet.
"Take the catacombs," Discord whispered. "They will be the quickest way."
Derpy's confident smile quickly vanished. "But the catacombs a-a-are d-d-dark! Darker t-t-than all the other t-tunnels...a-and I don't know t-t-them very well-"
"Derpy," Discord interrupted, his eyes focusing on the hunchback. "You can do this...I know you can. I showed all of you the way down the tunnel once...do you remember?"
Derpy slowly nodded her head, although she never thought she would ever have to use it. "I d-do," she whispered, trying to sound brave, but failing.
"Take the tunnel...count to 40, then turn to your right...count to 80, then turn to your left. Count to 20 and then turn left again...count to 70, and then turn right. You'll be near the entrance at that point. Just go another 20 paces and you'll come to some stairs. There are 14 of them. Go up the stairs and you will find yourself inside a mausoleum. There is an old rusted key that hides on a stone ledge above the gate. Use it to unlock the gate, and be sure to lock the gate once you've left. Take the key with you, and find Madame Luna."
Derpy slowly nodded her head, not liking the idea very much, but knowing that the Master was depending on her. "I w-will be q-q-quick," she promised. "I w-will find her a-a-and bring her back."
"I know you will," Discord whispered, leaning back against the wall of stone, and feeling his eyes grow heavy once more. "I know you can do this."
Derpy nodded her head and took a deep breath. Carmen mewed from inside her pocket, and Derpy smiled down at the kitten. At least she would not be taking this darkened journey alone.
She glanced at the Master one last time, before entering the darkness of the old Marisian catacombs.
"I can't believe it...and yet...it doesn't surprise me."
Fluttershy glanced up at the pretty dancer who sat across from her in Madame Luna's parlor. It was early morning, the day after Fluttershy had announced that she was quitting the Maris Opera House. Had she still been a member of the company, today would be her opening night, the day she would take her first step out on stage as an opera singer before all of Maris. But that day would never come for her, and it was her choice.
After Fluttershy and her father had left, both Madame Luna and Twilight had rushed home, bursting into the house, talking at the same time, their eyes wide, their faces pale, and looking shocked beyond all belief. Together, both Fluttershy and her father stood facing them, calmly explaining their decisions, how they felt this was truly better for them both, and that was the end of it.
Madame Luna looked horrified, and had to excuse herself from the parlor before bursting into tears. Twilight was still stunned by Fluttershy's news that she and the Phantom were lovers. It made perfect sense, of course, looking back on everything. Fluttershy's hysterical behavior after the explosion, her desperateness to get below the opera house, even the way she defended the Phantom's name in front of the Prince! It all made sense, and yet Twilight had never once suspected.
Little sleep was had that night.
Both Fluttershy and her father seemed unsure what to do next. Madame Luna could not stop crying and worrying, and Twilight had just too many questions. Finally, before the dawn's light rose, the four of them gathered together once more in Madame Luna's parlor. Time Turner had been talking with Fluttershy late into the night, and the two decided that the best thing for them both was to travel back to Time Turner's homeland of Sweden, and start a new life there. Madame Luna's tears flowed even more, and she excused herself again, saying she needed to go somewhere urgently, and left the house. Time Turner also excused himself, believing it best to go and arrange the tickets that they would need for their journey. Twilight and Fluttershy were left alone in the parlor, sipping tea and watching the dawn's gray light illuminate the streets of Maris from the parlor window.
"All those months..." Twilight murmured. "All those months you had been missing, you were only just below."
Fluttershy nodded her head and took a sip from her teacup. She was unsure how Twilight would react after learning the truth about her and the Phantom, but she realized that she should have known better; Twilight was truly the only pony in the whole company that had not judged Fluttershy. And still, even after everything she had learned, Twilight's kindness and sweet understanding remained steadfast.
"It's amazing," Twilight murmured again. "Just...I have never seen the Phantom myself, but I believed the stories. And he was always portrayed as this masked villainous monster..."
"I know," Fluttershy whispered. "And I thought the same when I first met him. I will not lie, he was not always kind; he had a fierce temper and his words could be most cruel...but something changed. Or perhaps, I changed, and saw the good in him. But the Phantom I knew then is practically forgotten; Discord...the Phantom I know now...he is the stallion I love...the stallion I will always love."
Twilight smiled at her friend's words, but felt the same pangs of sadness for her loss. "And the ring...the ring that Celestia saw you wearing and had assumed was from the Prince? That was from the Phan-I mean, from Discord?"
Fluttershy simply nodded her head, her hooves reaching up to brush her tears away. She felt so cold, so hollow since yesterday. She also felt so much older, as if Discord's death had aged her twenty years. Her heart, and her innocence died in that explosion, along with the creature she loved. She had become a widow, before becoming a bride.
Twilight reached out and took Fluttershy's hoof in her own. Fluttershy squeezed the dancer's hoof, grateful for the comfort. "You don't have to go, Fluttershy," Twilight whispered, looking into her friends' eyes. "You don't have to do this."
Fluttershy sadly shook her head. "No Twilight, I can't stay here...Papa is right. There is nothing for us here anymore. Nothing for us in Maris, and nothing for us back in the country. He has a sister in Sweden who he has corresponded with through the years, and after the death of my mother, wrote to us, telling us that we could come and stay with her if need be."
"Yes, but it's so far away!" Twilight sighed unhappily. "I'm going to miss you."
Fluttershy looked up at the mare who sat across from her and reached out to hug her tightly. "Oh Twilight, I'm going to miss you too, so very much. Both you and your mother are going to be my only regrets when leaving Maris."
Twilight put her hooves on Fluttershy's shoulders and looked deeply into the brunette's eyes. "Your only regret? Fluttershy...think about what you're giving up! I understand your feelings, and I respect them, but...giving the part to Celestia? Fluttershy, that's Discord's opera...don't you want to sing the part that he wrote for you?"
Fluttershy felt her heart swell with sorrow and shame at Twilight's words. She knew that Discord would be disappointed in her decision, but the truth of the matter was, she could not stand to be a part of something that cared so little for the genius that composed the great work they would be performing. It was all a lie, a mask in a sense, hiding the ugly resentment by taking the money.
"Twilight...a part of me wants to sing that part more than anything. But..." she looked away as the tears began to fall. "Ever since I came back, ever since I stepped foot on stage at rehearsals, I have always felt his presence. As if he were watching over me, guiding me through the music." She smiled at this thought, but it quickly faded. "Yesterday, when I stepped out on that stage, after everything that had happened...something didn't feel right. Something felt cold, harsh, and different. And then I realized...I couldn't feel him anymore. It was as if his very presence was taken away in that horrible explosion..." Fluttershy couldn't hold back anymore, the tears began flowing and she covered her mouth with her hoof to control her sobs.
Twilight quickly hugged her friend tightly as Fluttershy released herself to her sorrow. For a long time, the two of them sat like that, hugging one another and crying together until their eyes stung from all the tears that had been shed. Fluttershy finally lifted her head and wiped her eyes. "I can't do it Twilight..." she murmured sadly. "I...I know you're right, I know that I should sing...but I can't do it. I can't go out there, feeling that emptiness, the lack of his presence. I'm sorry..."
"Oh Fluttershy, no," Twilight shushed, shaking her head. "You don't need to apologize, and I'm sorry for making you feel pressured to sing. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to sing something somepony you loved created for you...and then know that...well, that they won't be seeing it." She paused, her hooves gripping Fluttershy's. "I wish I could quit too."
Fluttershy's head jerked up at Twilight's words. "Oh no Twilight, you mustn't wish that. There are so many wonderful dance scenes in the opera, and several solos for you. You must go on and perform them so that all of Maris can see the star that you are!"
"But Fluttershy, you are a star too!" Twilight argued.
"No," Fluttershy shook her head. "No Twilight, I'm nobody. At least in the world of opera, I'm nobody. But you have been dancing since you could walk-you deserve this moment to shine."
Twilight wanted to argue further, but at that moment, the door opened and Time Turner emerged. "I have our tickets," he announced. "We shall be leaving tonight, on the six o'clock train to the coast. Tomorrow, a ship shall take us to Sweden."
Both mares gasped. "So soon?" Fluttershy realized it was she who had said those words. She felt it best that both she and her father leave Maris, but she had not fully comprehended how quickly they would be going...or how much she would miss the city.
"It was the only train that still had seats," her father explained. "There was nothing else available until next week."
Fluttershy nodded her head with understanding, but she felt sadness wash over her. She touched her stomach and thought of the baby, thought of the city where her child had been conceived, and how perhaps one day, after the child was born, she would bring her son or daughter back to show them Maris.
"You must come and visit, both of you," Twilight insisted, forcing a smile, although it was quite strained.
"We shall," Time Turner promised, leaning down and taking Fluttershy's hooves in his. Fluttershy quickly smiled up at her father, and tried to smile at Twilight's words, yet hers was strained as well.
"Well," Twilight murmured. "I had best be getting to the opera house. Monsieur Flim announced that we need to have one more rehearsal this morning, due to yesterday's..." her voice trailed off, and she quickly looked away from both Fluttershy and her father.
"Good luck," Fluttershy whispered, rising from her chair to give Twilight a hug. It felt very much like a sad farewell. "I shall write as soon as we reach Sweetlen."
Twilight nodded her head, fighting back her own tears, before quickly turning to leave the house. Time Turner rested a hoof on his daughter's shoulder, offering as much comfort as he could. "We shall visit again soon, I promise."
Fluttershy said nothing, she simply reached up to give her father's hoof a squeeze, before turning to go and help with packing their things.
Madame Luna exited the small church with a heavy sigh. Clouds were brewing overhead; fitting, she thought. The sun's beautiful golden rays were quickly disappearing, as thunder could be heard in the distance. Yes, quite fitting; this is not a day for sunshine and warmth.
She knew she was late. She should be at the opera house, helping the mares prepare for the evening's opera, but it was a task that she was not looking forward to.
How could she go there, knowing that Discord was dead and Fluttershy was leaving? How could she enjoy watching her daughter dance, knowing that the genius that had designed and choreographed Twilight's solos was no longer present? How could she stand by, cold with grief, and watch the managers greedily boast about ticket sales? If Twilight and the other mares did not need her support, she would quit herself.
A creaking sound to her right caused the dance mistress to rapidly turn her head. She stood in the cold churchyard, surrounded by ancient gravestones, her eyes falling on a lonely, cracked mausoleum. She could have sworn she had heard the sound come from there! She took a tentative step towards the mausoleum, and froze as she heard a soft grunt escape its darkened confines.
Were the dead rising from their graves?
She took another step towards the mausoleum, and gasped as she saw the iron gate of enlarged tomb, creak open.
The sight that greeted her after that was never more beautiful.
"D-d-d-derpy?" she choked, as the hunchback and slowly, and carefully, emerged from her hiding place.
Derpy froze at the sound of her name, however she recognized the voice and turned quickly, gasping at the sight of the mare she had come above to fetch. She opened his mouth to greet her, but was stunned speechless when the dance mistress gave a shriek of joy, before rushing forward and throwing her arms around her.
"You're alive!" Madame Luna happily cried. "Oh thank the Lord above, you're alive!"
Derpy was still stunned by Madame Luna's burst of emotion. The few times she had conversed with the dance mistress, she always gave off an air of cold aloofness. Now, she was crying against her chest and hugging her as tightly as her two thin arms could.
However, it wasn't just Madame Luna's emotional outburst that had her frozen in his place. She still couldn't believe that she had managed to find her way out of the catacombs. She had almost burst into tears with worry, thinking that she had gotten herself lost, until Carmen's sweet meow brought her attention to the tunnel that led to the mausoleum's steps. Now she just needed to find Madame Luna; and before she had even shut the tomb's gate, there she was! The very pony she needed, standing right there as if she had heard the Master's prayer.
Madame Luna finally got control of her emotions, and quickly took the hunchback's arm, bringing her more securely into the shadows of the mausoleum. She was so happy that Derpy had made it, that she was indeed alive, which could also mean that the others were alive as well! But she needed to let her speak first and learn everything that she could about the situation. "Derpy, how did you get out of there?" she asked in a hushed voice.
The hunchback smiled with pride. "T-t-the Master t-told me about the c-c-catacombs, a-a-and h-helped me find the way outside," she explained.
Madame Luna froze at the mention of Discord. Was it possible? Could he still be alive?
"Derpy...you must tell me everything," she whispered, carefully and calmly, despite the anxiousness she was feeling inside.
The hunchback nodded her head, but pushed the gate of the mausoleum open. "I p-promise to t-t-t-tell you everything o-on the way...b-b-but we must g-go, the Master needs y-your h-help."
She couldn't contain her questions any longer. "Discord is alive?"
Derpy smiled and began to nod hwe head, but then hwe smile quickly faded. "H-he is badly h-hurt...a-and told me to come a-and get you," zhe explained.
Madame Luna could not believe it. Discord was alive...he was alive! But Derpy's words were slowly sinking in; he was alive...now, but he was in need of help, and if she did not go to him quickly...
"Lead the way," she murmured, picking up her skirts and entering the mausoleum.
Derpy grinned and nodded his head, feeling his hope rising. Everything was going to be all right; Madame Luna would help them as she always had before.
As Derpy bravely led the way back into the dark catacombs, Madame Luna found herself thanking God for answering her prayer, but also praying that by the time she reached Discord, she was not too late.
"Where is she!?!"
Twilight groaned and once more, attempted to calm the angry manager down. "She will be here shortly, Monsieur Flam, she simply wanted to go to church this morning before coming to the opera house."
"Church!" Flam practically spat. "On a Friday?"
Twilight took a deep breath so as not to lose her temper at the odious pony. "She wanted to go to confession," she simply explained. "After yesterday's tragedy, it should not be surprising that everyone is a little...shaken."
Flam looked down at the pretty dancer, his face twisting with disgust; how dare she, a mere child, lecture him! He opened his mouth to reply, but a sudden grip on his shoulder caused the younger manager to whirl around.
"Is there a problem, monsieur?" Blueblood casually asked.
Flam's eyes widened and quickly shook his head. "No monsieur, not at all! Simply, I was asking Mademoiselle Luna here, if she knew where her mother was. Madame Luna is late for rehearsals," he explained, hoping to not upset the Prince, while also wanting to tattle on the dance mistress.
Blueblood had been reluctant to come to the opera house that morning. Partly, because he got little sleep the night before, due to worries involving his loss of finances, and his plans involving Fluttershy. Even if the Phantom were dead, it still did not help the matter of his debts. Due to the scandals and lack of ticket sales prior to Don Juan, on top of his gambling debts, and the money he owed to both Silverstar and Master, Blueblood needed the Marquis Filthy Rich's fortune more than ever, which meant he needed Fluttershy as his wife, now, more than ever.
Which was the cause for his other reason to being reluctant for coming to the opera house that morning. Fluttershy's words to him the night before, on top of everything else she had revealed, were still whirling about in his head. She called him a monster; she confessed to rutting with that beast; she defended that creature even as she was being dragged away! The second he had her alone, after they were married, he would teach her a lesson, a lesson he was looking quite forward to inflicting.
Blueblood ignored any other words that were leaving Flam's mouth, and found himself smiling with interest at Twilight. She was quite pretty...and she did seem to have blossomed overnight, since last he had paid any heed to her. Perhaps he could persuade Twilight to cure the ache in his loins that Fluttershy had caused?
"I'm sure she will be here shortly," he murmured to the manager, offering a charming smile in Twilight's direction.
Once upon a time, Twilight would have found herself giggling and smiling back, but now, she only wrapped her arms around her body and immediately began to back away from Blueblood's hoofsome gaze. "Good day to you," she whispered, before quickly turning and rushing back to where the other dance mares stood.
Blueblood frowned, cursing Madame Luna for influencing the mare. He turned away then and pushed past Flam, practically causing the younger manager to fall backward. "Tonight's a big night," he muttered. "Is everything understood about what is to happen?"
"Oh yes!" Flam answered, quickly recovering from his near loss of balance. He followed Blueblood into the auditorium, and now stood beside Monsieur Flim, who was gazing up at the stage while Fancypants sang one of his many songs. "The police will be here promptly at six, before any patrons arrive, and they shall be stationed at every entrance, and backstage-"
"What's this?" Blueblood asked, his voice filled with both surprise and disgust.
Flam turned to look up at the stage to see Celestia, strutting across, singing "Think of Me", far too dramatically. "Celestia is Mademoiselle Fluttershy's understudy, so she is-"
"I know she is Fluttershy's understudy," Blueblood growled, his temper beginning to kindle. "But what is she doing on stage? This is pointless! It is a waste of valuable time, having the understudies rehearse when they will not be performing!"
Flam glanced at Flim, who was now beginning to turn pale with realization. "You haven't told him?" the older manager practically hissed.
"He just arrived! Besides, you should be the one to tell him!" Flam hissed back.
Blueblood's eyes narrowed at the two managers. "Tell me what?" he growled.
Both men looked up at the Prince, swallowing the nervous lumps in their throats, feeling their palms grow sweaty. "Well...monsieur, a-after you left..." Flim began, his courage quickly leaving along with his voice.
"T-things were quite tense," Flam offered, trying to help, but also feeling his own courage drift away.
"If one of you does not explain in the next few seconds," he growled, dragging the two men out of the auditorium and into the foyer where they would cause less of scene, "you will both be wishing that you had never even heard of the opera business!" Blueblood threatened, his eyes flashing with irritation.
Funnily enough, the two stallions were already wishing that.
The managers glanced at each other, took a deep breath, and together, said, "Mademoiselle Fluttershy quit."
There was a long pause, as if time itself had come to a stand still.
And then...
"WHAT?!?"
Before the two managers could say or do anything, Blueblood had grabbed them both by the collars of their suits, and had practically bashed the two of them together. "WHY DIDN'T DID YOU TELL ME THIS YESTERDAY?"
"W-w-we did not wish to worry you f-further!" Flam quickly explained, in a pathetic blubbering voice.
"W-w-we thought l-letting Celestia play the lead-" Flim attempted to reason, but was quickly shaken, violently, for doing so.
"DO YOU TWO IDIOTS UNDERSTAND ANYTHING?" Blueblood shouted, pushing them away from him, causing them both to stumble backwards. "WE NEED FLUTTERSHY! SHE'S THE BAIT! IF THAT BLASTED PHANTOM IS STILL ALIVE, HE WILL COME TONIGHT BECAUSE OF HER!" he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself, if at least to calm his voice. "She..." he began, his tone slightly softer, but still quite threatening, "...is the key to our plans. She is the thing that will lure him into our trap. Also, she's the one that the BUCKING PUBLIC IS PAYING TO SEE!" he roared again.
Both stallion shrunk at the Prince's tone, lifting their arms up as if to shield themselves.
"Do you WANT to live through more scandals? Do you WANT this place to remain haunted by that madcolt? IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT?"
"NO!" both stallions pathetically shouted in unison.
Blueblood cursed under his breath, before smoothing his jacket and running his hooves through his blonde hair. It looked as if his plot would have to begin earlier than he had planned. "Get Celestia off stage," he growled. "And have everything ready tonight for Mademoiselle Fluttershy."
Flim knew he was playing with fire by asking this question, but it needed to be asked. "A-a-are you g-going to bring her back?"
Blueblood wanted to shout, but instead he clenched his teeth and nodded his head. "She will perform, I promise you that," he muttered, before turning on his heel and exiting the opera house. "And I know just how to persuade her..."
Time Turner watched as his daughter gently placed their meager belongings in the two carpetbags they possessed. She had insisted on doing the task by herself, telling him that he had already done his part by rising early to purchase their tickets. Time Turner finally gave in, yet it pained him so to see his daughter's face, pale and hopeless, the life that once sparkled in her eyes gone...
Sweden was their only choice. There was nothing for them in Prance; no farm to tend, and now after making the dramatic move to quit the opera house, they truly had no other options. Time Turner knew his sister would welcome them with open arms, but still, he despised having to rely on others when for so many years, he had provided for his family.
And while he knew it was not his fault, he blamed himself for the sorrow his daughter was feeling.
Fluttershy had found love; a creature who once upon a time had seemed like a horrible monstrous beast...but in the end, had learned to love, had adored his daughter, and who wanted to marry her. And the two of them, like so many couples, lost themselves in their passions, and now Fluttershy was with child...and the stallion who would have married her and helped her raise that child was no more.
He knew it wasn't his fault, but Time Turner blamed himself entirely for not somehow being a better help for his daughter.
"When will our boat be leaving?"
Time Turner glanced up at his daughter, realizing she was asking him a question. "Tomorrow morning," he murmured. "Around eight."
Fluttershy nodded her head. "And our train that will take us to the coast leaves at six," she confirmed.
Time Turner nodded his head to her question. "I was informed that there will be several inns in the area that will provide us with both a hot meal, and a warm bed for the night."
Fluttershy tried to smile, but found it difficult. The hours had been ticking by far faster than she had liked. She could not believe it was the afternoon already! Prior to packing their things, Fluttershy had insisted on helping Shores, Madame Luna's housekeeper, with several of the household chores, as repayment for the dance mistress' kindness. Several times during her work, Fluttershy had thought that perhaps instead of traveling to Sweden, she could find work in the city as a seamstress; after all, she was rather smart with needle and pin. If not that, then at least as a maid, she was not a stranger to hard work. But she knew her father wouldn't stand for it, if he could help it, and she personally was not sure how she could handle staying in Maris after everything. And yet, she also was not sure how she could handle leaving it as well. All that mattered now was helping her father, and looking after her baby.
"My dear," Time Turner murmured, interrupting her thoughts. "Let me finish, you have done more than enough today."
"I'm fine, Papa," she mumbled, not meeting his eyes, as she folded a dress into her bag.
Time Turner sighed and rose from his chair, gently placing his old hooves on his daughter's shoulders. They were trembling with the resolve not to cry.
"Fluttershy, let me finish this, and why don't you go visit Twilight?"
Fluttershy froze at his words and she turned to face him. "What?"
"Go to the opera house," he gently explained. "Say goodbye to Twilight and the others, it will do you some good."
"But Papa-"
"Fluttershy," he whispered, pushing a fallen wave away from her brow. "I know from experience; you will regret it if you do not do this. Go say your goodbyes..."
He did not say it, but Fluttershy knew what he meant. Yes, he was telling her to go and say her final goodbyes to Twilight and others of the company...but he was also telling her to say goodbye to the opera house itself...and to its ghost.
Time Turner smiled as he noticed her hesitation melt away. "Go on, I will finish this and wait for you."
Fluttershy nodded her head, a soft smile spreading across her face. "I shall be back before five."
"Take as long as you need," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her close.
Fluttershy hugged her father back just as tightly, murmuring her thanks, before turning and leaving the town house to pay her last respects to the magnificent Maris Opera House...and the memory of the stallion who had called it his home for the last twenty years.
"Master!" Derpy cried, as he and Madame Luna finally came to the end of their tunnel. "M-m-master! I f-f-found her! I h-have her!"
Madame Luna gasped at the sight of the destruction that lay around them. She had seen little when she had taken the passage from the chapel, and yet she had not imagined how horrible the damage was. It was amazing that either Derpy or Discord had survived this disaster.
Much to Derpy's surprise, Discord was awake, and had been ever since he had heard their hoofsteps far down the dark tunnel. "Master!" Derpy grinned proudly and happily at seeing him conscious. "H-h-here s-she is!" she happily stuttered, taking Madame Luna's arm and gently pulling her towards Discord.
"Discord!" she gasped with relief at seeing him, although her relief was quickly squashed at the sight of the dried blood that caked his shirt and skin. "Oh God, Discord..."
"Don't faint on me," he grunted with discomfort, as he attempted to sit up. "You're the most level-headed pony I know, and if you lose your senses, I don't know what I'll do."
At least the explosion hadn't knocked away his dry humor. Madame Luna knelt down beside her friend and carefully began to examine the blood on his shirt. "Where do you feel the most pain?" she asked, taking note of the cuts on his chest.
"My leg," Discord groaned, wincing with pain as he moved it. "The left one."
Madame Luna leaned down to examine his leg, while Derpy hovered near by. "Is t-t-there a-a-anything I c-can do?" he softly asked.
Discord looked up at Derpy and felt his chest swell with pride. "You have done more than enough, my friend," he murmured most sincerely. "Thank you."
Derpy grinned, but knew now was not the time to be feeling proud; she needed to help the Master so they could save the others. "I f-f-found s-some of Rarity's m-medicines," she explained to Madame Luna, reaching over to show her the small bag that the little mare had kept whenever they were injured. "I g-gathered it a-after b-bringing the Master here."
Madame Luna smiled up at the hunchback. "You're quite resourceful, Derpy," she complimented. "And a good thing too, we need to put some of those herbs she uses on these cuts, as well as some clean bandages. And we'll need some wood...two thin slabs to make a splint."
"A splint?" Discord asked.
Madame Luna nodded. "It's not as bad as I feared; your leg isn't broken, but the ankle is sprained. A splint will help give your ankle the support it will need to heal. Derpy? Can you go and fetch me some clean strips of cloth, as well as two lean wooden slabs?"
"No," Discord interrupted before the hunchback could answer.
Madame Luna lifted an eyebrow at his words. "Discord, you need this splint if you want to be able to stand on your own, let alone walk-"
"Forget about me!" he growled. "I am fine, I will be alright, just help the others."
Madame Luna leaned away. "The others?" she asked, slowly realizing that he did not know what Derpy had told her.
"Yes, they are trapped somewhere, most likely in their chamber. Derpy, go and help them, I'm sure they are-"
"They're not here," Madame Luna calmly explained.
Discord stared at the mare before him, confused and irritated that nothing was being done. "What are you talking about? I told you, they're trapped on the other side-"
"T-t-the g-g-gypsies took t-them," Derpy interrupted, her voice filled with sadness and fear.
Discord's eyes widened with shock and disbelief. "W-w-what?"
"Master," Madame Luna whispered. "The same stallion that kept you imprisoned all those years...he has them."
Silence fell over the tunnel as the shock from Madame Luna's words settled over Discord. And then, suddenly, with a mighty roar of anger, Discord gripped the slab of stone he had been leaning against, and forced himself up onto his feet.
"Discord!" Madame Luna gasped as he attempted to walk on his own. "What are you doing?"
"What...does...it...look...like?" he growled through clenched teeth, groaning at the pain that was shooting through his body with each step.
His leg was not broken, but a sprained ankle still made it difficult for an ordinary stallion to walk on. But Discord was no ordinary stallion, the dance mistress had to remind herself. He could be the most unbelievably stubborn pony on the planet...and that was probably the only thing that kept him living this long.
"Discord, you are in no condition-"
"IT'S MASTER!" he shouted. "That...that...that BASTARD kept me in a cage! He tortured me, as well as the others! And I PROMISED them I would NEVER allow this to ever happen to them AGAIN!" he turned and slammed his fist, hard, into the wall behind him, leaving a dent in the stone. "I promised them," he whispered this time, ignoring the pain that pierced his ankle, as well as his bloody knuckles. "I promised them this would never happen again..."
Madame Luna felt Discord's pain, knowing how it felt to believe one had failed another. "We will save them, I promise," Madame Luna murmured, slowly coaxing Discord to sit back down. "But you are in no condition to go and fight them, at least not yet," she argued, hoping Discord would see reason.
With a groan of defeat, Discord sat down once more, and Madame Luna sent Derpy to fetch her the supplies she needed. She opened Rarity's small medical bag, and began to go through her tiny collection of healing herbs. "You need a doctor," Madame Luna sighed, as she took a small brush from the bag and dipped it into one of the herb jars.
"I need to get my hooves around Master's neck," Discord growled, wincing at the sting of the herbs on his open cuts.
"All in good time," the dance mistress grumbled as she applied the herbal paste to his cuts, before bandaging them.
"How did he find this place?" Discord asked hypothetically. "How did he get in?"
"Derpy said she saw them enter through the sewer entrance above their chamber," Madame Luna informed.
"The sewer entrance?" Discord thought about the passage that led down the sewer into the chamber his friends occupied. It was the most unguarded of the chamber entrances, but that was for the simple reason that Discord thought no one in their right mind would willingly walk through raw sewage to get to them. And even then, there was the boulder that covered the tunnel entrance into the chamber...
"He didn't just stumble upon that tunnel," Discord growled. "Somepony told him. Somepony found out and passed the information on..." A low snarl escaped his throat. "The Prince."
Madame Luna suspected the Prince as well, but it still made little sense. "How did the Prince discover this place? He hates you, yes, but he's the last pony who would walk through raw sewage to learn of your whereabouts."
At that moment, Derpy reappeared with several strips of cloth and two wooden slabs, just as Madame Luna had requested. Discord looked up at his friend and realized how the trap had been set. "They followed Derpy and Fluttershy," he whispered. "The night she brought him back, the Prince must have had somepony follow them...for she told me Derpy got them inside through the sewer."
Derpy had only just arrived, but already she was paling at her Master's words. "Does...does t-t-that mean it's m-m-my f-fault?"
"No," Madame Luna quickly intervened, taking the two wooden slabs and binding them to Discord's leg. "If anyone is to blame it is the Prince, if he is behind all this."
Discord grunted in pain as she tightened the splint. "He is, I know it."
Madame Luna shook her head. She suspected Blueblood of being behind this, but it made no sense! Just as she believed Blueblood would never walk through a sewer, she could not believe he would go out of his way to associate with gypsies. "How did the Prince come to know Master? Why would he want to know the stallion?"
"I don't know," Discord sighed with frustration. "But you can not tell me that this is all coincidence! That my greatest enemy who is more than determined to see me dead, and who covets Fluttershy, had nothing to do with the pony who kept me a prisoner in his freak show, finding my home and invading it to take the others?"
Madame Luna sighed, knowing that while it made no sense, she could not see it as pure coincidence either. And then she gasped with realization. "Discord, there is something else you need to know. Fluttershy-"
Discord paled at the mare's words. "Good God, is she alright? He didn't lay another hoof on her, did he?" he would skin the Prince alive if he had tried to force himself on Fluttershy again. Discord had every intention of the killing the stallion, but now it all came down to how much torture he would inflict.
"She is fine," the dance mistress quickly intervened. "But...she thinks you're dead!"
Discord's brow furrowed at the mare's words. "Dead?"
"Yes, the explosion, we all felt it...and few ponies believe that you are still alive, I even thought you were dead!" Madame Luna confessed. "And Fluttershy...she...she quit the opera-"
"What?" Discord gasped, groaning as he moved his leg too quickly. "What do you mean?" he demanded.
"The managers insist that the opera go on," Madame Luna explained. "They have too much money invested, but Fluttershy accused their hypocrisy, and thinking you were dead...quit the opera."
Had this been any other circumstance, Discord would be raging at the thought of somepony other than Fluttershy singing in his opera. But the opera was the last thing he needed to worry about.
"There's more," Madame Luna murmured. "She and her father are leaving Maris, tonight."
"WHAT?" Discord roared. "WHERE?"
"Sweetlan," Madame Luna quickly answered. "Her father has family there. Discord, please understand, Fluttershy believed she had nothing left here-"
"It's alright," he muttered, attempting to stand with his new splint. "I can not blame her, and it's the damn Prince's fault for arranging all this!" he cursed as pain shot through his leg as he attempted to put some weight on it. What was he going to do? He needed to save his friends, and stop Fluttershy from leaving Maris! He needed to get word to her that he was alive, that he was alright, and he feared for her too. If the Prince had mastered this whole plot to kill him...there was no end to the hoofsome noblecolt's villainy.
"Where is she now?" he asked, groaning at the pain in his leg.
"At my home, with her father. Time Turner went to get train tickets; I believe they will try to leave Maris tonight."
Discord nodded. He had no idea what the time was now, but he needed to get word to her as soon as possible. "Tell her I'm alright, and have both her and Time Turner stay where they are and lock the doors. Unless it is either you or your daughter, do not let anyone else inside."
Madame Luna felt a cold chill run down her spine at the serious tone of Discord's words. "What do you suspect?"
"I don't know," he groaned, attempting to put some weight on his leg once more. "But knowing she is safe is all that matters. Just tell her that I am alright and I will come to her later, but do not let her leave that house for anything!"
Madame Luna nodded her head in agreement. "I shall leave at once and get word to her right away...and what are you going to do?"
Discord took several deep breaths, fighting the pain that was in his leg as he stood away from the wall, his weight balancing back and forth between his legs. "Derpy and I are going to pay a visit to Monsieur Master."
"Discord! That is not wise-"
"WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME DO?" he roared in anger. "I am not exactly the sort of stallion who can rely on the police for help!"
"Discord you can not fight him! He has a hoards of stallions, and you...you can barely walk!" Discord had nearly lost his life; she did not want him to go looking for an opportunity to put it at stake.
"We shall take the black carriage," Discord explained, ignoring her concern. "Do you think you can help me?" he asked, looking at Derpy who had been watching the whole scene with a trembling lip.
The hunchback was unsure. She tried to avoid any kind of fighting; besides, the Master was always there to protect them. But now, it was the Master who was in need of her strength , and then she thought of Rainbow Dash, Shortround, and Rarity...being held in cages, being beaten with whips and rocks...
A great storm of rage filled her eyes. "Y-yes Master," she growled, in a way similar to Discord's. "I w-w-will f-fetch the carriage."
Madame Luna threw her hooves up into the air. "This is crazy! Discord, you can't expect Derpy-"
"She's not a filly, madam, but a mare. A mare who has proven several times today to be capable of looking after herself, as well as others. And I will not sit here another second, knowing that my...my family...are being held in cages!" he spat bitterly.
It was a pointless battle. Nothing she said would stop him, and she knew how important it was to help Rarity and the others. "I remember hearing news about a gypsy carnival just outside of Maris," she murmured, "to the north."
Discord nodded his head and limped in the direction Derpy had gone, his back straight, his broad shoulders square, and his head lifted high. "Go and send word to Fluttershy. And tell her...tell her I love her, and that I will see her again, very soon." he paused, turning and looking back at the mare who had been a guardian angel to all of them throughout the years. "Thank you...for everything"
Madame Luna nodded her head, a tearful smile spreading across her face. "You're welcome...and be careful," she whispered.
"I promise," Discord vowed.
Time Turner sighed and glanced at the clock in Madame Luna's parlor. He could not believe how quickly the day had flown. It was after four and he knew that within the hour, Fluttershy would be back and the two of them would leave to catch their train.
He set down the cup of tea he had been sipping, and tried to think of the positive things that awaited them in Sweden. It had been years since he had visited his home country, and while a part of him longed to see his sister and the land of his birth...he knew, like Fluttershy, he would miss Maris immensely.
A knock on the door interrupted Time Turner's thoughts. Fluttershy had returned earlier than he had expected. He rose from his chair and opened the door, ready to embrace his daughter who he expected to find in tears...but his blood turned cold at the sight that greeted him.
"Ah, good afternoon, Monsieur Time Turner," Blueblood greeted, as thunder softly growled overhead. "I do hope I am not intruding?"
Blueblood's hoof slammed against the door, stopping it from closing when Time Turner attempted to shut it in the noblecolt's face. "Now that is rude," Blueblood sighed, pushing his way in. "A proper gentlecolt would have at least invited me in for tea."
Time Turner glared at the stallion before him, the pony who only a few weeks ago he had thought was the epitome of good manners and gentility. "You, monsieur, need a lesson in how to be gentlecolt," Time Turner spat. "Get out of this house!"
Blueblood ignored the old pony and pushed his way past him, taking a seat in the chair Time Turner had occupied, and helping himself to a cup of tea. "It is not your house to be throwing orders," Blueblood murmured, as he added sugar to his cup. "And I'm not here to see you, but your charming daughter."
Time Turner had gone from a hot red to a deep shade of purple. "YOU STAY AWAY FROM HER!" he shouted. "YOU ARE PURE FILTH! I KNOW WHAT YOU TRIED TO DO-"
"Must you shout? It can hurt one's head."
Time Turner could not believe the arrogance of this pony! The conceitedness! The way he assumed authority wherever he went! He opened his mouth to shout other, more crude, obscenities at the noblecolt, but was robbed from all speech when he felt two strong arms grip his own, pulling them behind his back, causing him to flail helplessly. Who was his unseen attacker?
"Thank you," Blueblood complimented his coachcolt, as he sipped the tea from his cup. "Now, Monsieur Time Turner, perhaps you can answer a few questions for me?"
"Go to hell!" Time Turner spat, struggling against the coachcolt's strong grip.
Blueblood sighed and rose from his chair. Without pausing or blinking, his fist made contact with the old pony's stomach, causing Time Turner to crumple and groan in pain. "Now..." Blueblood murmured, grasping the old stallionst head and lifting it up to look at him. "Let's try this again," he said with a devilish smile. "I understand that you and Fluttershy have quit the opera house...and judging by your bags," Blueblood noted, "I'd say you're planning on going on a long trip. But why on earth would you be doing that? And once more...where would you be going?"
"I'll tell you nothing!" Time Turner coughed in agony as Blueblood's walking stick made contact with his gut.
"Are you that stubborn?" Blueblood grumbled. "Best let me know now; I'd hate to be doing this all night."
Time Turner simply spat at the Prince's feet, although he felt horribly sick in his stomach from the beating.
Blueblood sighed, realizing there was no reasoning with the old stallion, and knew he would be forced to use different tactics. "Monsieur Time Turner, I have been more than patient with you and your daughter, but my patience is growing extremely thin. If you do not begin answering my questions..." with a simple snap of his fingers, two burly gypsies entered the foyer, each dragging the bound and gagged housekeeper, "then I shall be forced to take out my anger on this innocent mare."
Time Turner stared wide eyed at the Prince. Surely he was not capable of committing such villainy! But Time Turner knew he was a pony who looked like a gentlecolt, and could pass off as one in society, and yet who was capable of nearly committing rape on his daughter, not to mention beat a helpless stallion. Time Turner gasped in horror as Blueblood lifted his arm to backhoof Madame Luna's housekeeper, the poor mare's eyes lit with terror. "No! I'll tell you whatever you wish! Just please, don't hurt her!"
Blueblood lowered his arm and a satisfied smile spread across his hoofsome features. "Good Colt."
It was quiet in the chapel; peaceful and calm. Fluttershy wished she had visited this place more often when she had been a member of the company. It was nice to be away from the chatter and noise of the opera house, preparing for its opening night of Don Juan Triumphant.
Fluttershy had seen very little when she had entered the majestic building. She was still in shock at how hard it had been to enter; it seemed as if her own feet refused to carry her up the stone steps that led into the grand foyer. Yet she pushed herself to do it, and once inside, quickly discovered that everyone was on stage, going over the last bits of the opera before its inaugural performance.
Fluttershy gazed from a crack in the door and felt her heart swell with sadness as she watched Celestia sing Aminta's songs. Yes, it had been her choice to quit, but she would be lying if she admitted she truly didn't want to play the part. The truth of the matter was that she did...but not without Discord. It wouldn't be the same without his presence haunting the stage from overhead.
Twilight and the other dance mares were extremely busy, dancing from one scene to the next. Fluttershy wanted to say goodbye to her new friend, but realized it would be impossible, and inconsiderate to interrupt the rehearsal. Also, she did not wish to draw any attention to herself, especially from the managers who were talking with one another as they watched the rehearsal.
With a heavy heart, Fluttershy went to the chapel, grateful to find it empty. It was a simple room; a single stained glass window with a beautiful picture of an angel illuminated the room with color, and beside a cross that hung from one wall, laid a small row of candles, some looking ancient and worn, many covered with dust. A box of matches lay on the ground beside the candles, and Fluttershy quickly lit one. She knelt beside the cross, and gazed at the broken vent that Madame Luna had pried open, that now only resembled burnt wood and crumpled stone. With her hooves folded, Fluttershy closed her eyes and began to pray, allowing the tears to flow freely down her cheeks.
"Discord..." she whispered. "If you can hear me...please know how much I love you. I...I miss you terribly..." she gasped as a sob escaped her throat. "I...I wish..." she paused to gather her senses. "I know you thought little of yourself...but I know your heart...and I know that you are with God, composing beautiful music for the choirs of angels..." she smiled slightly at this comforting thought. "I only pray that...that you can forgive me for quitting," she continued, feeling her eyes sting from the tears. "Please know that, no matter what, I shall always be your Aminta..." she bit her lip to keep from sobbing, although her body was violently shaking with the need. "I will be going far away...but I have already vowed to bring our child back, when he or she is old enough to understand. I will tell them about you, how their father was a great composer...and I will show them the Maris Opera House...you will live on in our child...and forever, in my heart."
She couldn't go on anymore, the sorrow had become too much. Her folded hooves rose to cradle her face as she sobbed into them, moaning softly, shaking and trembling with grief. After a long moment, she finally lifted her head, and sat in silence while she listened to the orchestra play Discord's music. Her red, puffy eyes, lifted to the image of the angel on the window, which would brighten now and then as lightning illuminated the late afternoon sky.
"Angel of Music, guide and guardian..." she found herself softly singing. "Grant to me your glory..." her words were faint, and it pained her to sing them, but it was truly, the only way she could say goodbye to her beloved.
"Angel of Music, hide no longer...
Come to me, strange angel..."
Her voice died away, but for a moment, her eyes locked with the vent, hoping, praying, knowing it was impossible, but still wishing that any second...Discord would emerge from the entrance.
In the distance, she heard a clock chime the hour. It was time for her to hurry back so she and her father could catch their train.
With a sad sigh, she silently rose to her feet, and carefully, removed the beautiful red rose Discord had given to her the night he had visited her bedroom, from the inside of her cloak. Oh so gently, she laid the fragile flower at the dusty entrance of the secret passage. "Goodbye..." she whispered, before turning and hurrying away before anyone caught sight of her.
It was quicker to take a coach back to Madame Luna's town house; she had enough coins in her purse to afford one. It didn't take long for Fluttershy to hail one and receive the ride she needed to the home of the dance mistress. It was a smart choice, as the clouds opened up over head and began to pour.
She leaned back and continued to stare out the window, as ponies covered their heads and quickly rushed indoors to escape the rain. In her head, a slow, haunting melody began to play over and over.
"In sleep he sang to me...in dreams he came...
that voice which calls to me, and speaks my name...
And do I dream again? For now, I find
The Phantom of the Opera is there-
inside my mind."
The coach came to a sudden jerk. They were there already? She thanked the driver and quickly paid him, before rushing up the steps of the town house to get out of the rain as quickly as possible.
"Papa!" Fluttershy gasped, when she finally managed to get inside. "We had best think of taking a coach to the station, it is pouring outside-"
"I don't think a coach will be necessary, my dear."
Fluttershy froze as the all too familiar voice from her nightmares filled her ears. With painful agony, she slowly turned to face the pony she despised with all her heart.
"So nice to see you, my dear mademoiselle!" Blueblood greeted all too warmly. He was sitting, comfortably, in a chair in Madame Luna's parlor, holding his arms out in a gesture of welcome, while the smoke from one of his cigars polluted the air. "I have missed you, dearly."
Without a second glance, Fluttershy turned to quickly escape, but gasped in shock as a large gypsy blocked her exit from the other side of the door.
"Ah, we shall have none of that now," Blueblood casually sighed, rising from his chair.
Fluttershy turned away from the gypsy, and bit back a scream as she realized several large, burly, dark-haired men were closing in on her from all different angles of the room. She turned and faced Blueblood, anger seething in her eyes. "WHAT DO YOU WANT?" she screamed at him, feeling the hysteria begin to rise within her.
"You know the answer to that, Fluttershy."
She shook her head. She couldn't believe this was happening! "WHY?" she demanded. "Why me? I'm nothing! Even you can admit that!"
"I could, once upon a time," Blueblood murmured, inhaling from his cigar as he examined her. His little rose did indeed have vicious thorns, but he had learned the proper way to plunk and destroy such delicate petals. "But you have become much more than 'nothing', my dear."
Fluttershy lifted her chin, trying to remain brave, but finding it difficult. The more the men closed in around her, the more hysterical she became. Was this his revenge? Would he let these men defile her body, and happily watch as they did so, over and over again? Her hooves went to her stomach in a protective fashion, feeling the bile rise in her throat. She had to remain calm, she had to be strong!
"Where is my father!" she demanded, lifting her chin and refusing to show him her fear.
"He's fine," Blueblood murmured simply. "And you shall see him, quite soon, but first...I have a business matter to settle with you."
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed with confusion from his choice of words. "Business matter?"
"Yes," Blueblood sighed, exhaling another cloud of smoke from his nostrils, before putting the cigar out on the chair's arm. "I have a great deal of money invested in this opera...and the public is expecting a little nobody named Fluttershy Time Turner, to be playing the part...not Celestia. So, I need you in that opera."
That was it? He had come to bully and frighten her to simply sing in Discord's opera? She opened her mouth to speak, but Blueblood immediately carried on.
"Second," he continued. "As soon as the performance is over and you have taken your bow, you leave the opera house, with me..."
Fluttershy swallowed the lump in her throat, knowing there was something she was going to despise about this. "And?"
Blueblood couldn't help but grin. "Well...I might as well do this properly." She stared with wide eyes as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a dazzling diamond and gold ring, before falling to one knee in front of her. "Fluttershy Time Turner, will you marry me?"
He had to be joking.
There could be no other explanation!
She wanted to kick him on the chin and remove that smug smile with her boot.
"Now, before you lose your delicate feminine senses and are overcome by tears of joy," he muttered with sarcasm, rising to his feet. "Allow me to explain what I mean about this being a 'business venture'." He nodded to two of the gypsies, and with a knowing smile, the two men disappeared through the kitchen entrance. "I know you don't like me, and I've accepted that...but I am giving you a choice, my dear," he said with a charming smile. "A choice to accept my proposal, or to decline it. However, before you make your decision, allow me to offer you an early wedding gift."
Suddenly, one of the gypsies that had left moments ago, returned, hauling her father into the room by his bound wrists.
"PAPA!" Fluttershy gasped with horror at seeing his black and blue face. There were bruises all over his face, his lip was bleeding, and he was groaning in pain. "You...you monster!" she shouted at Blueblood, but several strong arms reached out and grabbed her before she could launch herself at the blonde noblecolt.
"Wait...it gets better," Blueblood grinned, before snapping his fingers once more. The other gypsy, who had disappeared, emerged again, this time hauling a burlap sack over his shoulder. He didn't even bother to place the sack on the ground, before opening it to pour out the sack's contents.
A bound, gagged, and badly bruised Rarity, tumbled out in front of Fluttershy's feet.
"RARITY!" she gasped, fighting against the arms that held her, wanting to fall to her knees and embrace the tiny mare. She was alive! But how in the world had Blueblood gotten his hooves on her? "LET HER GO!" Fluttershy shouted. "SHE'S DONE NOTHING TO YOU, LET HER GO!"
"Now wait, my dear," Blueblood reasoned, his tone extremely patronizing. "Before we make any rash decisions, I want you to fully understand the gift I am offering you...so, please...look out the window."
One of the gypsies grasped the curtains and yanked them back, and Fluttershy felt the color drain from her face, as she took in the sight of two wagons, each containing a cage, and inside those two cages, lay the crumpled figures of Rainbow Dash and Shortround.
The tears that ran down her face were cold as a sick realization washed over her.
"My good business partner, Monsieur Master, has a most extraordinary carnival," Blueblood softly explained. "He collects all kinds of monsters, and so when I told him about your hunchback friend, his interest was, shall we say, aroused."
Fluttershy slowly turned to face the Prince, her voice straining from the horror of the situation. "What do you want?"
All traces of humor and sarcasm faded from Blueblood's green gaze. "You, Fluttershy. You as my wife. After tonight's performance, you will leave the opera house with me, and we shall immediately be married. That is the choice I am giving you...and they," he pointed to Rainbow Dash, Shortround, and Rarity, "are my wedding present to you. Should you accept my proposal, I will pay Monsieur Master quite hoofsomely, and have your friends released. However, should you refuse, not only will Monsieur Master be adding three new additions to his freak show, but I will ponyally see to it that your dear, devoted, and insane father...be taken immediately to the nearest asylum. After all, we can't have a madmen like him, who raves about masked fiends, be walking the streets now, can we?"
Fluttershy stared at the stallion before her with cold, horrifying, disbelief. Was it possible for a pony to be so cruel? "You call that a choice?" she whispered.
"Indeed, I do," Blueblood murmured. "An unfair choice, perhaps, but...such is life." He retrieved the bracelet once more and held it out to her. "So my dear, what is your decision?" |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Triumphant | Triumphant
He had heard her. In the depths of his ruined home, he had heard her sweet angelic voice, singing through the tears, calling out for her Angel of Music.
Once upon a time, Discord would not have imagined a sweet angel, like her, weeping over him. He would not have imagined that God could be merciful, and show him acceptance, belonging, and love. But Discord was not the stallion he once was; he was a stallion who knew such things now, who felt such things. And when he heard her call out for him, he moved as quickly as his injured leg would allow, struggling over jagged rocks, pushing fallen boulders away, desperate to reach his angel, desperate to ease her sadness and offer her comfort.
But it was too late.
By the time he had reached the place where he had heard her singing, she was already gone. All that remained was a lit candle, and a drying rose, lying in the dust.
Carefully, he picked up the flower, and softly blew the dust from its petals. He immediately took notice how several of those petals, including the flower's leaves, contained small beads of moisture; his angel had left her tears with her gift.
Discord was not a stallion who felt pity, at least not easily, but he pitied his angel now, and his chest tightened with emotion as he imagined the pain she was feeling. She thought him dead; she had come to this place to say goodbye.
"No," Discord growled, deep and low, his chest rumbling like thunder. He would not let her pain and sorrow consume her further. He would not lose her to grief, and he would stop her before she left.
He cursed Master over and over, as he slowly made his way back into the ruined labyrinth. Enough time had already been wasted, he had to hurry and rescue his friends before any further horrors could be inflicted upon them. But he longed to seek Fluttershy out, to take her in his arms and hold her tight, to feel her tears against his flesh, and hear her voice in his ear. He would go to her now, if it had not been for Master.
He only prayed that Madame Luna would reach her before she left...
Fluttershy carefully dabbed at her father's bruises with a warm cloth, casting an angry, hateful glare, every now and then to the hoofsome stallion who stood several feet away from her, and who was having a hushed conversation with one of the gypsies; an older stallion with long blond hair and a blue coat.
"Fluttershy..."
"Hush Papa, it's alright," Fluttershy whispered, gently dabbing at the cut on his lip.
"No," Time Turner gasped, his stomach throbbing with pain from the many times he had been punched. "No...y-you can not do this!"
Fluttershy's heart broke at the pain in her father's words. "I have no choice, Papa," she whispered, fighting back the tears that stung the corner of her eyes. "I must."
"Fluttershy, I am an old stallion-"
"I believe my fiancee has already made her decision," Blueblood interrupted, an arrogant grin spreading across his hoofsome face. "After all, she could not condemn those poor creatures to such a life...even if there is no other life for them," he grumbled.
Fluttershy wanted to spit on him. She did not think it was possible for her own hatred towards the Prince to grow any further, but he always had a knack for proving her wrong when it came to that particular subject. "How will I know you will keep your end of our 'business venture'?" she asked, not trusting him one bit.
"Now don't go and worry your pretty head over such matters; a mare's mind is far too delicate to comprehend such things," he cooed in his most patronizing tone.
It took every ounce of willpower for Fluttershy not to leap forward and scratch out his eyes. "I have made my choice!" Fluttershy shouted with disgust. "I am your fiancee, and I demand that you treat me with respect, and that you honor my wishes and your wedding present to me!"
The mirth in Blueblood's eyes quickly vanished. Fluttershy gasped when in one simple stride, he was in front of her, his hoof painfully holding up her chin, forcing her to look up at him. "Let us get one thing clear, my dear. I am the master of my own home...and when you are my wife, you will do as a wife is required: love, honor, and OBEY!" he released her chin with a hurtful jerk, causing Fluttershy to cry out. She lifted her hooves to rub her skin, her body trembling from Blueblood's sudden explosion. What had she condemned herself to? Truly, she had made a deal with the devil himself...
"As for your 'present'," Blueblood sneered, ignoring the fear and pain in Fluttershy's eyes. "Monsieur Master and I have an understanding. He will keep them during the opera's performance, as well as your dear father," he grinned at the old man. "After you have finished, I shall come to your dressing room, and you and I shall quickly take our leave, where we shall travel to my country château, where a priest will be waiting. Master and his men will follow us, and once there, your father can give you away, while your freakish friends can sit as witnesses, on the bride's side of course," he casually explained, "and after you say those two simple words, and the priest pronounces the blessing...Monsieur Master will release them."
Fluttershy glared up at him with disgust. "Just like that? He'll just open their cages and let them go?"
Blueblood cocked one golden brow at Fluttershy's question. "Is there something you dislike, my dear?"
"Yes, but I'm not talking about you just now," she snapped. Blueblood couldn't help but smirk at her attempts to wound him. "I want them taken someplace safe, a place where they will not have to fear about being taken and caged ever again."
Blueblood folded his arms across his chest. "And do you have any suggestions on such a place?" This ought to be interesting, he thought.
Fluttershy lifted her chin, knowing it was dangerous to attempt to even suggest such a thing, but needing to try at the very least. "Yes...I want them to stay with me."
Blueblood paled at the young mare's words. "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?"
"No!" Fluttershy shouted, rising to her feet and squaring her shoulders in defiance. "They are my friends! I will look after them! I will-"
"You will shut up and do as you are told!" Blueblood growled, shoving her back down onto the couch. "And I will not have a trio of freaks parading around my home, even as servants!"
Fluttershy's glare was venomous. "You call yourself a stallion, but you are nothing but a sniveling, wretched, disgusting-"
"FLUTTERSHY!" her father cried, when Blueblood whirled around and backhooved her across the jaw.
"You'd be wise to educate your daughter, monsieur, on how a wife should properly address her future husband," the Prince snarled, sending a threatening glance to both Fluttershy and her father. "And I have made my deal," Blueblood hissed at the pretty pink haired mare, who was rubbing her jaw from where he had struck her. Fluttershy met his gaze and glared back at him, refusing to show him one tear. "You are mine; your mind, your body, and your soul belong to me now."
Fluttershy bravely shook her head. "You're wrong," she whispered. "You may force me into this marriage...but you will never truly possess me."
Blueblood clenched his teeth, fighting the urge to beat her senseless. As tempting as it was, he knew he could not have tonight's Aminta looking black and blue. "We shall see about that," he growled, reaching out and yanking her arm forward, twisting her wrist in a hurtful grasp. "And we shall start with this!"
"NO!" Fluttershy struggled, but the more she attempted to pull away, the harder Blueblood twisted her wrist.
He pulled the gold bracelet that Discord had given her off her hoof, and flung it over his shoulder, before forcing the new bracelet that he had presented, on her hoof. "No bride of mine will be wearing anything that once belonged to a madstallion."
Fluttershy bit her lip to keep from crying as she felt Blueblood's hurtful grip squeeze her wrist, while he shoved the new bracelet on. She hated it; it was gaudy, it was extravagant, it wasn't Discord's! Oh God above, was her child to be raised by such a monster? Did she dare say anything about the child? No, Blueblood would surely find some way to destroy the babe; were she not with Discord's child, she would willingly take her life, but she had to survive for the child's sake. She vowed, then and there, that as soon as the babe was born, she would flee her tyrannical husband. She didn't care if she lived the rest of her life as a beggar on the streets, she would not allow her son or daughter to be raised by such a man.
"Somepony's here..." Master grumbled, staring out the window.
Blueblood said nothing; he immediately moved to the window and cursed as his eyes focused on the figure of Madame Luna. "What is she doing here?" he growled with annoyance.
Fluttershy couldn't see who he was talking about, but she had a good suspicion. "HELP! PLEASE! HELP US!" she screamed, before one of the burly gypsies covered her mouth with his sweaty hoof.
Blueblood glared at his future wife, but shut his mouth from saying anything when the door suddenly burst open. "Fluttershy? I heard screaming! I-"
Madame Luna gasped as she felt somepony come up from behind her and hold her fast, quickly covering her mouth before she could scream.
Blueblood had to admit it; Master's stallions were quite nice to have. "Good evening, Madame," he greeted, once the gypsy turned Madame Luna around to face him. "I'm surprised to see you here, I thought you would be helping your dear little dance troop prepare for tonight's performance."
Madame Luna glared at the Prince with pure hatred. If a dirty and horrible smelling hoof weren't covering her mouth, she would tell him exactly what she was thinking.
"I do hope the adorable Mademoiselle Twilight will not be disturbing us tonight, I don't know if I will have enough room in my carriage."
A yowl of pain escaped from the gypsy who had been covering Fluttershy's mouth. "She bit me! She bit me!"
"Oh stop your whining," Master muttered, rolling his eyes.
"Let her go!" Fluttershy spat, now free to speak. "She has done nothing to you, release her! I have already promised you that I will be your wife!"
Madame Luna's eyes widened with horror. The gypsy who had been covering her mouth quickly released it, after his friend started yowling. "Fluttershy..." the older mare gasped. "Oh Fluttershy, no, you can't..."
"Indeed, she can," Blueblood muttered. "And she made the choice by her own free will, is that not right, my dear?"
Madame Luna's eyes narrowed into cold black slits. "You bastard...you forced her to make that choice!" the dance mistress accused.
"Please Blueblood, please let her go!" Fluttershy pleaded once more. "Please...give Rarity and the others over to her, she will take care of them for me, I promise, I will not press the issue further, please..."
Blueblood tilted his head, as if considering Fluttershy's words, but she could immediately tell that he was only mocking her. "I already told you of my deal...and that is the final word on the matter. And as for our dear dance mistress, I think it would be best that we take her with us. After all, we are all going to the same place," he offered with a charming smile, fooling no one.
Madame Luna looked at Fluttershy with confusion. "What do you mean about giving Rarity and the others over to me?" she whirled her head back towards the Prince. "You have them?" she gasped.
"They're my 'wedding present'," Fluttershy spat with as much hate as she could muster. "If I marry him, he will set them free."
Madame Luna could not believe it. Discord had been right in his suspicions; the Prince was behind the explosion! She looked over at the silver-haired gypsy who had been observing this whole scene, and immediately remembered him when she had gone to the carnival with the other dance mares so long ago. Blueblood had helped Master find the others, and was using them as a means to blackmail Fluttershy into marrying him.
How despicable could a pony be?
Suddenly, Fluttershy's mind cleared, and a horrifying question burst through her head. Why was it that she had seen Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Shortround...but not Derpy? "Where's Derpy?" she gasped, her mind reeling with desperation. "Why haven't I seen her?"
"The hunchback?" Master asked. "Didn't find her...but then, I have no need for one, so it doesn't matter."
Fluttershy stared at this stallion who had said very little since he had entered the room, wondering what sort of pony could happily make money by showing off other ponies? She had her answer now, especially after the way he dismissed Derpy's gentle, caring life: a villain.
"Well," Blueblood sighed, looking at his pocket watch. "It's ten minutes after six, so there's no need to worry about your train," he said to Time Turner. "And the curtain goes up at eight, so we had best be on our way to the opera house to prepare."
Fluttershy felt so hollow. In the last 24 hours, all of her worst nightmares seemed to be coming to life. How on earth was she going to be able to sing?
"Throw the old stallion into one of the cages with the freaks," Blueblood muttered, despite the protests that came from Fluttershy and her father. "Come, my dear," he said, while yanking her up from where she sat. "We must get you to the opera house...your public awaits."
Discord cursed the Prince. He cursed Master. He even cursed himself, for his own bad luck.
He stood in the opera house stables, staring at the black carriage that had normally been his saving grace, when needing to move about the city during the daylight, but for the first time, the carriage was no good.
Any carriage was no good, when one did not have horses to pull it. It seemed that the Prince and his gypsy partners had thought of everything, even robbing the stable of its horses
He hated feeling this way: helpless. Normally, he would attempt to "borrow" somepony else's horses and carriage, however, a storm was raging outside, making his normal aloofness near impossible. He would be noticed right away, and due to the injury with his ankle, the possibility of attempting to go on foot was out of the question.
Discord leaned against one of the wooden walls of the stall, taking some weight off his leg. He always considered himself a fast healer, and was grateful that it was getting easier for him to stand and walk, despite the pain that throbbed in his ankle. Perhaps as soon as the rain let up, he could sneak out into the shadows, and take one of the carriages that belonged to one of the many fancy-dressed opera patrons-
"Master?"
Discord turned to Derpy's voice. The mare had been searching throughout the opera house stables, looking to see if the horses were somewhere else. Discord had little hope, but perhaps Derpy had some surprising news to share? However, the expression on her face froze Discord's blood, and in her hoof, he noticed that the hunchback carried a piece of paper.
"I f-f-found a n-note," Derpy explained, hoofing the paper over to Discord. From the look on Derpy's face, Discord could tell that his friend had already read it. Without any question, he opened it immediately, recognizing Madame Luna's hoofwriting.
Discord-
I hope you can read this, I had to write as quickly as I could, so I apologize if it is difficult. I was on my way home, to stop Fluttershy from leaving, when I noticed two wagons suspiciously moving down the ally from the front of my house. I carefully followed them and learned my worst fear. Master is here, in Maris, and he has the others. But what's worse, your suspicions were correct; he is working with the Prince! I can only imagine what villainy the two of them are concocting, but I beg you, do not attempt to come to my home...I do not think that will be necessary. I believe, deep in my bones, that Blueblood has every intention of bringing Fluttershy here. I am going to go back now, and pretend as if I know nothing; hopefully Blueblood will keep me close to Fluttershy. Stand ready by the mirror in her dressing room. I hope to get the Prince to reveal his whole plan, if I can.
The note crumpled into his fists. He would make the Prince pay dearly for this...
"Master?" Derpy asked, noticing Discord's angry reaction to the letter. "D-d-do you t-think t-they will b-bring Rarity a-and the others h-here too?"
"I don't know," Discord growled, his voice a dangerously low depth. "We can only hope."
Derpy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. "W-w-what a-are we going to do?"
"We're going to follow Madame Luna's instructions and wait by the mirror," he growled once more. "And I vow Derpy, I vow to you and to God...it will all end...tonight."
Fluttershy felt sick. Sick for several reasons.
She was sick with worry for her friends; she did not trust Blueblood to keep his word. The way he and Master spoke in hushed whispers earlier, the way the gypsy seemed so cool and confident, as Blueblood explained how he would release Shortround, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity if she married him; everything about the situation. She just could not trust him.
She was also feeling quite nervous, which caused her stomach to unpleasantly churn. She remembered seeing the many elegant carriages pulling up in front of the Maris Opera House, which had never looked more beautiful. Blueblood, never letting go of her arm, dragged her down a side hallway towards her dressing room, while his coachcolt dragged Madame Luna.
She didn't see much of the grand foyer, but what she did see caused Fluttershy's stomach to flip flop.
So many ponies! Men and mares elegantly dressed, laughing and greeting one another, despite the storm that raged outside, all talking at once, murmuring their questions as to who the new star was, what the opera was about, why the performance dates had been changed; she could only imagine how the auditorium would look once all those ponies entered its majestic doors.
But the excitement she wanted to feel for such a night had died in that explosion, when Discord's world had collapsed beneath her feet.
The final reason to why she felt sick, and the reason that ruled over all others, was due to the horrid, lecherous smile, that Blueblood was giving her, as she got dressed for the evening's performance.
"It's bad luck, to see the bride before the wedding," Madame Luna grumbled, as she pulled at the laces on Fluttershy's corset.
"It would be even worse luck leaving you two alone to plot against me," Blueblood muttered back, his eyes moving over Fluttershy's luscious skin.
Once Blueblood had made it clear that he would be going into the dressing room along with Fluttershy, Madame Luna insisted that she help the young mare dress, trying her best to shield Fluttershy's body with her own.
Fluttershy was grateful for Madame Luna's presence, but chose to try and ignore the arrogant Prince, keeping her back to him, pretending she didn't care if he caught sight of her in her undergarments.
"I must say, Fluttershy," he murmured, "from what I have seen so far...I must confess I am looking forward to our wedding night."
Fluttershy paled at the thought of Blueblood touching her, of his body covering hers, of him forcing himself inside her...
Madame Luna thrust a glass of cool water into Fluttershy's hoof. "Drink this, my dear," she murmured, her eyes focusing on the Prince's. "It will ease your stomach."
Blueblood only grinned, catching every meaning behind the dance mistress' words. "You know, my dear madam, I happened upon your charming daughter earlier today..."
Madame Luna froze at the pony's words. Her black eyes captured his, and a deep, venomous hiss, escaped her lips. "You stay away from Twilight."
Blueblood feigned disappointment. "You do not approve? Surely, I would have thought that you would be overjoyed, upon learning that I wished to make the darling dancer my mistress."
"Stop it!" Fluttershy snapped, her eyes locked with Blueblood's and her hooves gripping the older mare's shoulders; she looked ready to scratch the noblecolt's eyes out, if she had the chance. And Fluttershy knew there was no other reason for Blueblood's cruel words other than to goad Madame Luna.
"Do you not approve?" Blueblood asked, flashing a charming smile in Fluttershy's direction.
She returned his smile with a cold glare. "A pony should not talk about such things in front of his wife," she muttered, turning her attention back to the dressing table mirror to finish applying her make-up.
Madame Luna took a deep breath and felt her calmness return. She knew he had only done that to annoy her, but she also knew he was capable of making it happen, if he so wished.
The older mare's eyes drifted over to the mirror at the other side of the room. As far as she was aware, Blueblood did not know the mirror's secrets. She only prayed that Discord had received her message. "How did you do it?" she casually asked, finishing the laces on Fluttershy's corset.
Blueblood was surprised she was actually talking to him. "Do what?"
"Arrange all this," she explained, taking the first costume Fluttershy would be wearing, and helping the young mare put it on. "How did you know about the others? How did you learn where to find them?"
Fluttershy froze momentarily after hearing Madame Luna's questions. She too, was quite curious how this had all come to be.
Blueblood couldn't help but smile, quite smugly. "Much of the credit goes to Fluttershy, herself," he explained. "After her gallant rescue of the hunchback, I realized that there was only one place where she could have met such a monster...and so I had some men follow her on the night she brought him back-"
"You had ponies follow me?" Fluttershy gasped, whirling her head around to stare at the pony she was going to be marrying, unfortunately.
"You brought it upon yourself, my dear," he defended, waving his hoof as if he were done with her. Fluttershy was fuming, but Madame Luna's gentle, reassuring hoof on her back, helped her to stay calm.
"So through these stallions, you discovered a way inside. Quite clever, I must say," she added, feeding his over-sized ego even more. "But how did you meet Master? How did you learn that he was connected to all this?"
"Learning that Master had a history with the Phantom was pure coincidence. But I remembered hearing about a gypsy carnival just outside Paris that displayed a variety of monsters. I thought that Monsieur Master would be interested in what I had discovered, and perhaps with his help, my 'Phantom' problem, could be solved."
Fluttershy gripped the edge of her dressing table, feeling the anger fuel her body. "You bastard," she hissed. "YOU ORGANIZED THAT EXPLOSION! I KNEW YOU HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT!"
"Fluttershy!" Madame Luna hushed, gripping the young mare's shoulders, forcing her to stay where she was. She understood the mare's anger very well, but now was not the time to lose one's head. "Hush my dear, hush," she soothed, her hooves holding the mare's arms, feeling the muscles tremble with rage. "It will all be alright, I promise," she whispered, continuing her work with lacing up the costume.
Blueblood's smirk only continued to grow at Fluttershy's outburst. "I see no reason why I should hide the truth...and even if you did try to accuse me in public, it wouldn't stand; there's no evidence you can hold against me, and who would believe you? I am the Prince, after all. Why would I risk sabotaging a theater that I have invested so much money in?
Fluttershy hated him. She hated him so passionately, and she hated him even more because she knew he was right.
"Every pony has his price, as does Master. Once he and his men were inside, they took the monsters they could find, and went about lacing the tunnels with gun powder."
Fluttershy was trembling, trying to keep control of her emotions. "Why?" she gasped through the sobs that threatened to break forth. "Why?"
The amusement that had lit Blueblood's eyes earlier, faded away, and without another thought or word, his hoof reached inside the pocket of his suit jacket, and pulled out the leather glove that Marguerite had revealed to him several days ago. "Perhaps you can explain why you keep this under your pillow at night!" he spat with anger, throwing the glove onto the dressing table before her.
Fluttershy stared in horror at the glove he had revealed, the glove that she had taken from Discord's realm the night he forced her to leave. "How...where...?"
"I have many loyal servants," Blueblood answered. "And you have already confirmed my suspicions about you and that monster," he grumbled with disgust.
"Yes, which asks the question, why you're still marrying her?"
Both Fluttershy and Blueblood turned to Madame Luna, confusion lit in both their eyes. "I beg your pardon?" Blueblood asked, trying to hold back his irritation.
"What is your reasoning for wishing to marry Fluttershy?" the dance mistress asked, adjusting the final lace on Fluttershy's costume. "After all, she is 'used goods' so to speak, and even if you have killed your enemy, you still have to live with the knowledge that you are not the first pony to bed her."
Fluttershy couldn't believe what Madame Luna was saying! She was turning beet red as she listened to the mare's crude words. But one look at Blueblood, and Fluttershy quickly realized what the older mare was doing.
Blueblood was gripping his walking stick so tightly, that his knuckles were turning a ghostly shade of white. His jaw was clenched so tightly that both mares could hear his teeth grinding together. But he closed his eyes, counted to five, before opening them and taking a deep breath. "I have been with countless mares, madam, and many of them were not virgins when I bedded them. It shall make no difference."
Madame Luna cocked a dark brow at the noblecolt's words. "True, but those other mares never bedded a creature who hid his disfigured features beneath a mask."
Blueblood's calm smile disappeared and a low, dangerous growl, erupted from his chest.
"After all, Fluttershy gave herself to the Phantom freely; you had to blackmail her into even accepting your marriage proposal. Surely that must sting one's ego," she sighed, running a comb through Fluttershy's hair. "And isn't she the first mare to truly 'reject' your advances?"
Fluttershy watched Blueblood closely from her dressing table mirror. She bit her lip nervously, wondering if the dance mistress truly knew what she was doing.
"Oh! And we mustn't forget her pregnancy," Madame Luna added, after placing a crimson rose in Fluttershy's waves
Fluttershy paled at the mare's words, and her eyes quickly darted to Blueblood's face, fearing his reaction. Her hooves instantly fell to her stomach, as if that alone would protect her unborn child.
Blueblood had been fuming as Madame Luna spoke, but her final words took him completely off guard.
He was speechless!
He opened his mouth, wanting to shout, wanting to roar...and couldn't!
His face turned such a dark shade of red that it looked purple!
"You're...you're pregnant?" he hissed, forcing himself to keep his voice down so no one outside would hear.
"Are you surprised?" Madame Luna answered for Fluttershy. "That is often the result when a stallion and mare couple together. Surely you are an expert with such things," she muttered, turning and facing the Prince with her head held high.
Blueblood had never felt such outrage. Damn the Phantom! Would he ever find peace? Would that masked fiend forever haunt him, even after he was dead?
He glared at Fluttershy with demon-like eyes; the thought of that creature's spawn, growing in the belly of his soon-to-be-wife-
"Ten minutes to curtain, Mademoiselle Fluttershy!" shouted a voice on the other side of the dressing room door.
Fluttershy let out a gasp from the sudden knock on her door. "I'll be r-r-right out!" she answered back, her voice trembling slightly.
Blueblood continued to glare at her, his anger only kindling the more and more he looked at her. "I'll be in my box," he growled, before picking up his walking stick and stomping towards the door, yanking it open so harshly, that his coachcolt, who was standing on the other side, practically fell in. "Escort my bride to the stage!" he barked at the trembling coachcolt. "And you!" he growled, turning and facing Madame Luna. "Don't try anything...there are police everywhere, and one nod from me, and I will see to it that you are arrested!"
Madame Luna said nothing; she simply curtsied in a mocking fashion.
Blueblood clenched his jaw and turned his focus on Fluttershy. "Master and his stallions are just outside, with your father and those freaks, so keep that in mind during the performance," he growled. "And remember...I will be watching...closely," he warned, before turning on his heel and leaving them there.
"Oh God..." Fluttershy gasped, letting out a worried sigh. "What have I done? What kind of life have I condemned myself to?"
Madame Luna was too busy trying to look busy, so as to fool the coachcolt. "I just need to put in a few more pins!" she informed the wary looking stallions who stood in the doorway, before going to work with Fluttershy's hair.
"Why did you say that?" the younger mare whispered, her eyes looking to the dance mistress from the mirror. "Why did you tell him about the child?"
Madame Luna watched the coachcolt out of the corner of her eye, and continued looking busy. "Every stallion has his weakness," she whispered into Fluttershy's ear. "The Prince's happens to be his ego. And what I needed was to get him angry enough that he would leave."
Fluttershy understood what the older mare was saying, and with trembling hooves, applied a dark shade of scarlet to her lips, hoping to also look busy in front of the suspicious coachcolt. "Yes, but...what about after the performance? What if he tries-"
"Hush, child," Madame Luna whispered, her eyes quickly darting to the mirror on the other wall. "All will be well; I wish I could give you more details, but do not lose faith, my dear...do not lose faith."
"She's ready, come on!" the coachcolt grumbled, coming forward and grabbing Fluttershy by the elbow.
Fluttershy glared at the pony and jerked her arm away. "I am not a child! I can take myself to the stage!" she spat, before rising, giving herself one last look, and exiting the dressing room on her own.
The coachcolt tried to protest, but Fluttershy pushed right past him. So instead, he turned to Madame Luna, and tried to look tougher than he was, when in truth, the mare dressed in black frightened him more than the Prince, himself. "C-c-come on, now," he ordered, trying to suppress the nervous stammer in his voice.
Madame Luna cocked a brow at the coachcolt's words, and the stallion immediately began to shrink beneath her cold gaze. "As you wish," she sighed, surprising the coachcolt with her obedience. She glanced one last time at the mirror, before turning and leaving the dressing room.
It was in his hooves now.
"Master?"
Discord was growling, his whole body trembling with fury from everything that he had witnessed and heard.
Both he and Derpy had been hiding behind the mirror, just as Madame Luna's letter had instructed, and never...never in his whole wretched life, had Discord felt such rage.
Derpy had to literally hold him back when the Prince stood there, leering at Fluttershy, while she undressed. He wanted to burst through the glass, he wanted to take something and ram it down the stallion's throat!
But all in good time.
The element of surprise was extremely important, and thanks to Madame Luna's clever foresight, he now knew most, if not all, of the Prince's plans.
Blueblood was responsible for Master stealing his friends. Blueblood was responsible for the explosion beneath the opera house. And Blueblood had used villainous means to coax Fluttershy into marrying him. But what Blueblood didn't know was that the Phantom was very much alive...and was going to ruin everything he had worked so hard to claim.
"Come," Discord murmured to Derpy, before turning and stalking down the tunnel.
Derpy quickly followed, taking notice of how Discord moved with more and more ease, barely limping at all. The hunchback knew his master all too well; it was the rage that gave him strength to overcome his weaknesses. "W-w-what a-are we going to do?" she asked, wanting to help more than anything.
Discord paused, and turned down another tunnel, the one that led to the opera house's carriage stalls and horse stables, where they had been earlier that day. "Keep quiet, now," Discord whispered, slowing his steps as they got closer and closer to the stables. They kept close to the shadows, and peeked over a stone ledge that overlooked the stables below.
Just as he had suspected; Master and his stallions stood, huddled around two wagons, each holding an iron cage, and each cage, holding two prisoners.
"Rarity!" Derpy gasped.
"Quiet!" Discord hissed, ducking low as one of the gypsies glanced their way. As soon as the gypsy turned his back, Discord glanced once more at the cages. In one sat Rarity and Rainbow Dash, in the other, lay Shortround and Fluttershy's father. Several gypsies were taunting them, calling them names and rattling sticks against the bars. Horrible memories flooded Discord's brain as he took in the terrible scene before him. He had promised to never allow such things to ever happen again, to any of them. And while he had failed this much, he would see to it that they would never be put on display for an audience.
"Master?"
"I'm trying to think of a plan, Derpy," Discord softly hushed.
"And I h-h-have one."
Discord froze and turned to gaze at the hunchback beside him. Derpy's words had surprised him, but he quickly felt shame for even having a moment's doubt, for the determined look in Derpy's eyes spoke more than words ever could.
"What is your plan?" he softly asked, admiring the bravery of his friend.
"I w-will s-s-s-stay here, and h-help the others," she explained. "And y-you g-g-go and s-s-save Fluttershy."
Discord frowned at Derpy's plan. It wasn't the most detailed plan he had ever heard, but he did not question it. He saw the determination, the courage, and the stubbornness in the mare's eyes. And Discord knew, without a doubt, that Derpy could do this.
"You have proven yourself in more ways than one," Discord murmured with awe. "Be careful."
Derpy grinned and nodded her head. "I w-w-will...and y-you b-be careful t-to."
Discord nodded, his hoof rubbing Derpy's shoulder with pride, before carefully slipping back through the shadows and down the tunnel that had led him to the stables.
However, instead of going back towards Fluttershy's dressing room, he chose a different route, one that led him backstage, one that led him to the catwalks.
Even with a sprained ankle, Discord could move with ease through the many ropes that hung overhead. He listened to the orchestra's overture, and had to pause for a moment, his chest swelling with pride and wonder, as he realized that it was his music, being performed before an audience.
Right on cue, he heard Fancypants burst into song, the audience clapping for the Italian as he walked out onto the stage. Discord finally reached the catwalk that overlooked the entire stage, and felt his breath catch in his throat as he took in the sight of the packed auditorium.
This was his opera, his masterpiece! After years of struggle, it was finally being performed.
And then...he heard her sweet voice fill the room.
"Think of me...think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye..."
A gasp escaped the audience as Fluttershy's bell-like tone echoed off the walls. He could not help but smile with love and pride, knowing that they too had fallen in love with her voice, just as he had.
He watched Fluttershy from the catwalk, entranced at the sight of her, standing in the beautiful costume he had designed, her hair sparkling in the candlelight, her face glowing as she sung. A long, shaky breath, escaped his lungs; never, had he seen or heard anything so beautiful...
He would have been lost in her performance, had he not noticed her sudden flinch.
It was not overly noticeable; indeed most of the audience seemed enraptured by her voice that they had not seen anything out of the ordinary. But Discord had seen it, and his eyes traveled to what may have caused the sudden motion.
His jaw clenched as he took in the sight of the Prince, sitting in Box 5, looking smug and at ease. Every now and then, he would blow kisses at Fluttershy, and Discord immediately noticed her flinch once more. No, he would not let this stallion ruin his opera, or his life any longer!
He turned on his heel and disappeared down the catwalk, his black cape billowing behind. He had taken notice of the many police that littered the auditorium, each holding a loaded gun, but he cared not.
A plan was forming, a plan that would not only surprise Fluttershy, but also give the audience a performance they would never forget!
"She is extraordinary!" Flam whispered to Flim as the audience burst into applause after the beginning of the Act III. "The ponies love her!"
Flim only grinned. "I knew we could rely on the Prince," he whispered back. "Just look at this place! Full house! Imagine the reviews tomorrow!"
"Imagine the money!" Flam added, causing both managers to chuckle. They grinned across the auditorium at Blueblood, who simply nodded his head politely, although he too shared a knowing grin.
Indeed, everything was going to plan. So what if Fluttershy was pregnant with the Phantom's child. He'd get rid of the monster somehow; he could do anything once they were married! A satisfied sigh escaped his lips as he took in the sight of the crowded auditorium below. Celestia could never fill an opera house like this. Perhaps he would continue to have Fluttershy perform even after they were married? After all, he was a patron of the arts, and that way he could be closer to Madame Luna's charming little dancer.
He grinned as he imagined all the money the opera house would receive after tonight...and his grin only spread further as he imagined all the money he would inherit from his bride's dying grandfather.
Down on stage, off in the wings, Fluttershy fought the urge to cry, despite how painful her heart ached with every note the chorus sung.
The audience was laughing as Celestia emerged with the chorus, singing a simple chorus number, nothing grand, nothing outstanding, nothing worthy of her name. Celestia barked the notes, hatred boiling in her veins from the audience's laughter. Every now and then she would send deadly glares up towards the managers, knowing it was their fault for forcing her out of the lead, and putting Fluttershy back in.
Much of the company had been shocked at seeing Fluttershy return that evening. The managers had already mentioned, on Blueblood's behalf, that she had had a "change of heart", and would be performing that evening. Twilight was extremely happy at seeing Fluttershy once more, but realized something was amiss, when a strange looking pony continued to follow her everywhere backstage, keeping her away from others, especially Madame Luna.
Fluttershy lifted her eyes to the wings on the other side of the stage, watching as Madame Luna whispered some last instructions to her dancers. She could not get over how calm the older mare seemed! Did the dance mistress know something that she did not?
"Passarino, faithful friend! Once again, recite the plan."
Fluttershy's thoughts were interrupted by Fancypants's voice. She knew her entrance was coming up, and she squared her shoulders, trying to be brave despite the dread that filled her at the thought of singing the opera's most seductive song without her beloved.
She glanced one last time at the opposite wings, and caught Madame Luna's gaze. The mare softly smiled at her, a smile that possessed hope and anticipation. Fluttershy wanted to question the mare's smile, but heard her cue from the orchestra, and with a deep breath, stepped back out onto the stage.
"No thoughts within her head, but thoughts of joy!
No dreams within her heart, but dreams of love!"
She settled herself down on the stage as rehearsed, and pulled a thin rose out from the prop basket she had been carrying. This was the scene when Don Juan fools Aminta, disguising himself as another, and seducing her into his bed, before killing her for her betrayal.
Indeed, she felt as if she were betraying Discord for accepting Blueblood's proposal.
"Passarino-go away! For the trap is set...and waits for its prey..."
Fluttershy's brow furrowed slightly as she listened to Fancypants singing behind her. Strange-it sounded as if something had happened to his voice!
"You have come here...
in pursuit of your deepest urge,
in pursuit of that wish, which till now has been silent..."
Fluttershy froze as the voice grew clearer and clearer behind her.
No...it wasn't possible!
She turned her head, her eyes wide and her face pale as the impact of the reality overcame her.
Discord?
At least, she thought it was Discord, his voice was the same, but his body, his body was that of a pony!
Discords same golden eyes peered at her from behind his mask and held hers for a long moment, before he continued singing, lifting a hoof to his lips. "...silent..."
Fluttershy quickly turned her head away, realizing exactly what he was trying to convey. She may not recognize his disguise, but she knew it was her Discord. She was overjoyed at seeing him there, learning he was alive and had come to her...but he depended upon her now not to lose her senses, to maintain a professional air, to continue staying in character...and to not cause any suspicion.
"I have brought you,
that our passions may fuse and merge-"
A soft rumble went up from around the audience as it suddenly dawned on them that Signor Fancypants was not singing the lead anymore. It seemed that when he had disappeared behind that curtain, Don Juan had truly changed form.
Up in his box, Blueblood was frowning. What was going on? Who was this stallion? He had not been aware that Fancypants had an understudy! He glanced across the auditorium at the box the managers occupied, but they looked just as puzzled.
"In your mind, you've already succumbed to me,
dropped all defenses, completely succumbed to me-"
Fluttershy could not help it, the power of Discord's voice caused her insides to melt as he sang of promised passion.
Indeed, she was not the only mare in the opera house who was affected. Several mares began to suddenly fan themselves as the new Don Juan continued to sing.
"Now you are here with me:
no second thoughts,
you've decided,
decided..."
Fluttershy looked up at him once more, a warm, loving hope, filling her being for the first time since she last felt Discord holding her.
"Past the point of no return-
no backward glances:
the games we've played till now, are at an end..."
Fluttershy slowly rose to her feet and gazed at him with longing, but kept it all in her eyes, not wanting to arouse any suspicions from Blueblood or the managers.
"Past all thought of 'if' or 'when'-
no use resisting:
abandon thought, and let the dream descend..."
The audience gasped when Don Juan moved in quickly, behind Aminta, his large hooves gripping her neck, as if to strangle her, but gently moving over her skin in a lover's seductive caress.
"What raging fire shall flood the soul?
What rich desire unlocks its door?
What sweet seduction lies before us...?"
Several mares began to swoon; a great flapping sound could be heard as many ladies fans began to move more and more rapidly.
Discord himself could not deny how caught up he was becoming in the song. He knew his movements and motions had shocked Fluttershy, but he could not help but groan inwardly as he felt her respond to his caress, to his song.
Taking her arm, he ran his hooves down her skin, all the way to her hoof, before planting a kiss upon the knuckles, his eyes holding hers, their amber depths twinkling with promise.
"Past the point of no return,
the final threshold-
what warm, unspoken secrets will we learn?"
He released her hoof and stepped away from her, his eyes never leaving hers as he finished his song.
"Beyond the point of no return..."
Blueblood's hooves were pressing down on the arms of his chair, fury filling his eyes as the mysterious Don Juan practically made love to his fiancee on the stage. Who was that stallion? He leaned forward and scanned the wings as best he could from where he was sitting. Where was Madame Luna? Where was his coachcolt who was supposed to be watching everything? What the hell was going on?
"You have brought me..."
Fluttershy's voice interrupted his search and drew his attention back to the stage. She was facing the audience once more, singing out to them while she shyly kept her back on her seducer.
"...to that moment where words runs dry,
to that moment where speech disappears into silence..."
She briefly, only briefly, lifted her eyes up to Blueblood's box, to see how he was reacting to all this.
"...silence..."
Did he know that it was Discord?
"I have come here,
hardly knowing the reason why..."
Like her, Discord also lifted his eyes up to Box 5, however his gaze was not brief, nor did he intend it to be. He wanted to catch the Prince's gaze, to confirm his suspicions.
He wanted Blueblood to know that he had failed at killing him.
"In my mind,
I've already imagined
our bodies entwining,
defenseless and silent-"
Discord's eyes were drawn once more to the mare who was singing to him, the mare who was now becoming the seducer to his Don Juan.
"Now I am here with you:
no second thoughts,
I've decided..."
She smiled, and nodded her head, her eyes reflecting unending love for the masked pony before her.
"...decided..."
For the longest time, Blueblood had been frozen in his seat.
No, it was not possible...it could NOT be possible!
And yet he knew it was, the second his eyes clashed with that dark amber gaze.
With one quick nod of his head in the direction of the managers, Blueblood motioned for them to get one of the policecolts in their box and be ready to shoot on his signal.
Below, Fluttershy continued singing, and the audience remained enraptured, watching as both she and Don Juan began to climb their individual spiral staircases, leading up to a small, wooden bridge.
"Past the point of no return-
no going back now:
our passion play has now, at last, begun..."
Blueblood clenched his teeth as he watched the way Fluttershy sang to the Phantom.
"Past all thought of right or wrong-
one final question:
how long should we two wait, before we're one...?"
Something startled the Prince. Something wet against his cheek. He reached up to touch the wetness that he felt...and to his horror, realized it was his own tears!
"When will the blood begin to race?
The sleeping bud burst into bloom?
When will the flames at last, consume us...?"
Discord felt his chest swell with such pride for his angel as she sang with all her passion, and boldly faced him as the two of them reached the top of their staircases, and began to walk towards one another across the wooden bridge, their voices joining together in song.
"Past the point of no return,
the final threshold-"
The audience, and much of the company that watched from the wings, gasped as Don Juan passionately took Aminta into his arms, and twirled her around, until she was pressed tightly against him, his hooves, covering hers, running across her body in a most arousing and erotic display.
"The bridge is crossed,
so stand and watch it burn..."
Blueblood swallowed the lump in his throat, and tried to look away, his eyes stinging with hateful tears at the sight before him, but found that he could not tear himself away from the passionate display on stage.
Softly, so softly, Discord and Fluttershy sang their last few notes, still holding each other passionately.
"We've past the point of no return..."
The orchestra continued its playing, although Madam Octavia remained looking just as stunned as everyone else. The music slowly faded, and everyone held their breath, lost in the passion of the couple before them.
Blueblood's hoof shook as he brought it to his face, finally turning away, and letting his angry tears flow freely as the Phantom mocked him from on stage, holding the mare Blueblood had longed to possess, against his somehow changed body, running his filthy hooves across her coat, over her curves, and into her hair. And Fluttershy...she leaned against the broad body of the masked fiend, a content smile spread across her face as she felt the Phantom's hooves caress her neck and move into her hair.
Damn them both!
A soft gasp went out from the audience, as suddenly, without the aid of music, Don Juan began to sing, oh so softly, but quite clearly, into Aminta's ear.
"Say you'll share with me one love...one lifetime..."
Fluttershy was lost in the trance of Discord's voice, her eyes closed, her lips curved into a happy smile, a contented purr escaping her throat as she felt his strong fingers run across her chin, her cheeks, her neck...
"Lead me, save me from my solitude..."
Her eyes suddenly fluttered open as she realized the words he was singing.
Don Juan's love song to Aminta! The song that both she and Discord had composed together, the song that marked the different ending to the opera. He was singing it to her, stating his love, asking for her hoof, once more, before all these ponies...
"Say you'll want me with you, here beside you..."
He took her hoof in his and gently turned her to face him, as the passion in his voice erupted into a full crescendo. He was no longer Don Juan, but himself...singing to her.
"Anywhere you go, let me go too!"
Blueblood watched in horror as the audience leaned forward just as Fluttershy was leaning up, on the tips of her toes, her hooves rising to hold the Phantom's masked face, her lips parted, awaiting his kiss...
He couldn't take this anymore!
"Fluttershy, that's all I ask of-"
Without a second thought, Blueblood reached for the pistol in the holster of the policecolt that occupied his box, leapt to his feet, and fired at the couple. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Crescendo | Crescendo
A scream went up from the auditorium as the sound of the gunshot echoed off the opera house walls.
The bullet had just missed them, but it had been too close to call.
Fluttershy screamed and fell against Discord's chest, as he pushed her down and away from where the bullet had flown. Her hooves had been on his face, and in her sudden panic, she clung to him, unsure of what was happening, not realizing that as he pushed her, she had ripped his mask off.
Another scream erupted from the auditorium, only this time it was in reaction to Discord's disfigured features being revealed.
It had only been mere seconds ago, when those same mares who were now screaming in terror at seeing his mangled flesh, had been fanning themselves with desire to be seduced by his Don Juan.
How quickly ponies changed when masks were removed.
The police officer who had been standing in Box 5 was stunned by the whole display. He only just realized that it was his gun that the Prince had fired! He attempted to take the pistol back, but Blueblood punched the stallion in the jaw, hard, causing him to stumble backwards. Satisfied that he would not be stopped further, Blueblood leapt on top of his chair, prepared to fire again.
Only now, he got a good look at his enemy.
Both Blueblood and Discord locked eyes once more, and for the first time in his life, Blueblood felt nothing but genuine terror.
Discord glared back up at the Prince, despite the screams that echoed all around him. He held his arms out, wanting to give the terrified noblecolt a good look at the creature who was his greatest adversary, the creature who Fluttershy had given her love to.
And that was exactly what Blueblood was doing.
He couldn't believe it! Never, never had he seen anything more grotesque! Never had he imagined such a sight, such a face!
And this...this monster...was the thing Fluttershy had willingly given her body to?!? Over him?!? What could this creature offer her that he couldn't!?
The terror disappeared, replaced by blind hatred and rage. With another vengeful cry, Blueblood lifted the pistol and clumsily fired the gun again, one shot after another.
Fluttershy screamed as she felt the wooden bridge shake violently. One of Blueblood's bullets had made contact with the ropes that held the bridge together. "Discord!" she cried, fear gripping her as the Prince continued to blindly fire the pistol.
Discord looked around him, his eyes falling onto a rope that hung near by, a rope that he knew connected to the opera house's grand chandelier. He looked at the crowds of ponies, some of them already rising from their chairs and moving away quickly due to Blueblood's wild shooting. Off to his side, he saw several police officers point their firearms at him, shouting for him to stand down, to give himself up.
There was no other way.
Fluttershy gasped as she felt Discord's strong grip grab hold of her, and pull her tightly against him. "Hold tight to me!" he shouted over the screams and the Prince's gunshots, and with a swish of his cloak, revealed his sword that hung from his belt.
Fluttershy's eyes widened as she realized what he intended to do. She bit her lip and buried her face against his chest as her arms wrapped tightly around his neck and shoulders, the scream dying in her throat as she felt the bridge give way beneath her.
With one swipe, Discord's sword cut through the chandelier's rope, which not only caused the giant crystal jewel to tremble dangerously over the auditorium, but also revealed a hidden trap door beneath the stage and within the bridge itself. Gripping the now cut rope, the Phantom and his bride plummeted through the broken bridge, falling down through the hidden trap door.
Blueblood's eyes were wild. He continued firing the pistol as they fell, cursing every time he missed.
Fancypants suddenly stumbled out on stage, a large bruise purpling on the top of his head, his expression one of dazed confusion. "T-t-the Phantom!" he cried. "T-t-the Phantom is here! He struck me! The Phantom-"
A sickening gasp escaped Fancypants's lungs as a sharp pain blasted through his chest. He looked down, and another scream filled the air as everypony realized that the tenor had been shot!
"The Prince shot Signor Fancypants!" shouted someone from the wings of the stage.
Flim and Flam had been staring at the whole scene, frozen in place out of fear and confusion. Their wide eyes flew to the noblecolt, their mouths open with shock at what had just happened.
Blueblood on the other hoof didn't look phased one bit. He cursed the tenor for getting in the way of his bullet, especially since it was his last one, and threw the gun out of the box before leaping down onto the stage.
Fancypants gurgled a plea for help, before stumbling forward, falling to his knees, and collapsing in a pool of his own blood.
More ponies screamed, and Celestia suddenly rushed out onto the stage, screaming and crying words in Italian as she fell before Fancypants's body, weeping over the pony who was perhaps her greatest admirer.
She turned and screamed obscenities at the Prince as he leapt onto the stage, but Blueblood paid no attention, he simply leapt towards the trap door that the Phantom had produced, and dived inside before it could close.
With another violent shake, the chandelier plummeted towards the stage, and everypony screamed and stumbled over one another to get out of the way.
In the grand foyer, it was mass chaos. Ponies everywhere were running, falling, and screaming as they pushed their way outside. Both Flim and Flam watched in horror as the chandelier smashed right in front of the orchestra pit, Monsieur Gerard leaping away in mere seconds. "We're ruined..." Flim gasped, as the chandelier's candles spilt over onto the oil lamps that aligned the stage, causing the entire surface to erupt in flames. "We're ruined Flam! RUINED!"
The fire quickly began to spread, and everypony was taking cover, running outdoors as fast as they could. Backstage, Madame Luna quickly began to shepherd the dance mares out of the theater, stopping her daughter from attempting to pursue Discord and Fluttershy. In the foyer, Silverstar gathered his men together, ordering several of them to help get the crowds of ponies to safety, while ordering the others to follow him. Flim and Flam stumbled out into the foyer, both blubbering about how this scandal would be impossible to recover from.
"You there!" Silverstar shouted, his hooves gripping the managers' shoulders. "Where would they possibly go!?"
"G-g-go?" Flam stammered, looking confused. All he could think about was the money that was slipping through their hooves. "W-w-what are you talking about?"
Silverstar groaned in irritation. "The Phantom!" he shouted. "Where do you think I could possibly find him!?"
Both men looked at one another and shook their heads helplessly, not knowing how or where to capture the masked fiend. However, Flim caught sight of the dance mistress, who was busy hurrying her charges outside. "Her!" he shouted, pointing at Madame Luna. "She knows where to find the Phantom! She is connected to him somehow!"
Madame Luna's head snapped up when she realized that Flim was shouting at her. Suddenly, several officers had her by the elbows, and were dragging her forward, towards Inspector Silverstar. "Release me, you vermin!" she shouted, struggling against their grip.
"Madame Luna," Silverstar greeted, although it was much more of a groan. "Tell us the whereabouts of the Phantom."
It wasn't a question, but Madame Luna refused to be intimidated. "I don't know what you are talking about."
"She's lying!" Flam accused. "You know she is! She's always one step ahead of us when it comes to the Phantom! She always knows his next move, she always knows whether he's delivered a message, and she certainly knows where to find him!"
Madame Luna glared at the younger manager, who immediately shrank from her cold stare. "Even if I did know where they had gone...which I don't," she emphasized icily, "it is not the Phantom you need to worry about! From what I saw, the true madcolt is the Prince! The way he fired that pistol without any regard for the lives of others, and you all saw him kill Fancypants!"
Silverstar groaned, knowing she was right. The Prince's jealousy and anger had erupted into madness, and he had to stop the noblecolt before he took more lives with his unstable rage. "If you can at least guess as to where the Phantom may have gone, we will at least know where to find the Prince," he attempted to reason. "Please Madame Luna, there's an innocent mare caught up in all this!"
Madame Luna sighed, knowing that the police could at least stop Blueblood before he attempted to cause further damage. "I am telling you the truth when I say I do not know where they could have gone. Were it not for that explosion yesterday, he would have retreated back down into his realm, but there is nothing down there now but fallen rock and the lagoon."
Silverstar's ears perked up at these words. "A lagoon?"
"Yes," Madame Luna confirmed...and then began to realize what the Chief Inspector was indicating. "A lagoon that feeds into the Seine..." she gasped.
"Come on," Silverstar ordered to his men. "With any luck, we'll reach them before they come to the river."
Madame Luna's eyes widened with fear. "Wait! You can't go back down there! All the ways are blocked! Believe me, I've tried!" But her cries were in vain, as the officers abandoned her there, in search of the infamous Opera Ghost.
Had she truly helped Discord and Fluttershy? Or had she simply sealed their fate?
Rarity sat huddled in her cage; her small arms attempting to keep the storm's chill off her body.
"I can't go back there..." murmured a voice from one shadowy corner of the cage. Rarity glanced up to see Rainbow Dash, groaning and rocking herself back and forth, her eyes glazed over in some sort of hypnotic state. "I can't go back there..."
"Rainbow Dash, we will be alright," Rarity attempted to soothe, rising from her place and going over to where the peg-hoofed mare sat. "Look where we are! At the opera house! Surely the Master will save us."
Rainbow Dash continued rocking back and forth, as if she hadn't heard a word Rarity had said. However, in the cage next to hers, both Shortround and Time Turner had heard everything, but their faces were not as hopeful as that of the little mare's.
"I felt that explosion," Time Turner sighed to Shortround. "It would take a miracle for anyone to survive it."
Shortround knew Time Turner was right; he remembered the gunpowder barrels that the gypsies were pouring through the tunnels before they dragged him away. But if his faith had taught him anything, it was to always believe in the possibility of miracles.
"What the hell!?"
The four of them turned their attention from their cages as several of the gypsies who were guarding them, began to curse and gasp as suddenly, one of the windows of the opera house over head, burst open, the glass shattering like rain, before flames billowed forth.
A great gasp escaped the four caged prisoners as they watched window after window burst into flame, and suddenly, the night sky was interrupted with the sounds of screams, as patrons wildly fled the burning building.
"What's going on!?" a gypsy demanded, looking to Master for an answer.
Master said nothing, only kept his eyes locked on the fire that burned in the windows above. As far as he was aware, this was not part of the Prince's elaborate plan.
"I don't like this," one gypsy grumbled. "Let's leave this place, now, we got what we wanted, why should we stay?"
Time Turner's face paled at the pony's words. "No! No, you promised Fluttershy that you would-"
"We ain't promised her anything!" the gypsy spat, before taking a stick and ramming it against the cages bars, just missing the old pony's hooves. "And did you really think we would be giving up these monsters? Ha! That would be like throwing money away!"
Time Turner's eyes widened at the gypsy's words. "This...this was all a ruse...this was your plan all along!"
"Shut up," Master grumbled.
The old stallion became indignant. "No! I am tired of being told what to do by the likes of criminals like you!" he spat. "And was I a part of this ruse as well? After the wedding, was I going to be shipped off the asylum while you take your carnival someplace else!?"
"I SAID SHUT-" Master's roar was lost in his throat, as a strangled cry went up from one of his stallions.
"W-w-what was that!?"
"It came from over there!"
"Did you hear it?!"
"Yes," Master growled, removing his dagger from his bootstrap. "And I have a good feeling as to whom-"
Another strangled cry broke the night air, and the whole of Master's men were looking about frantically, wondering where the mysterious threat was coming from.
"Master," Rarity breathed with relief. "It's the Master!"
"We shall see about that," Master growled, throwing open the door to Rarity's cage and grabbing the tiny mare from inside. "I AM YOUR MASTER NOW!" he bellowed at the mare, before gripping her by the neck and lifting her off the ground, her hooves dangling and her body struggling as the golden-haired gypsy choked her.
"RARITY!" Shortround gasped, his small hooves kicking the cage's bars. "LET HER GO! PUT HER DOWN!"
Master ignored Shortround, and shouted into the storm-filled air. "SHOW YOURSELF, YOU MASKED FREAK! SHOW YOURSELF OR I'LL COUNT TO THREE..." he pulled the choking mare against his chest and thrust his dagger under her chin. "...AND I'LL SPILL HER BLOOD RIGHT HERE!"
Silence.
"ONE!"
Still, nothing, except the sounds of Shortround's protests.
"TWO!"
All the stallions, including Master, held their breath, waiting...waiting for the Phantom, the draconequus, to make his appearance.
"YOU KILLED HER, NOT I!" Master shouted, before pressing the blade against Rarity's throat. "THR-"
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
The mighty roar came from over head, and before Master or any of the others knew what was happening, a giant figure landed on top of the older gypsy, knocking him down and causing him to release Rarity from her captivity.
"DERPY!" Shortround shouted in dismay and gladness.
Time Turner gasped and pressed his cold, wet face, against the iron bars to see the hunchback throwing endless punches at the leader of the gypsy clan. "It is Derpy! She's alive!"
"D-d-derpy?" Rainbow Dash gasped, as if the name of the hunchback was enough to wake her from her trance.
Rarity was coughing and gasping for air after being released from Master's vice-like grip. She looked up from her hooves and knees, and gasped with surprise and joy at the sight of Derpy, her heroic rescuer. "DERPY!" she cried in happiness, causing the hunchback to stop his punches on the groaning Master.
Rarity gave a glad cry, and Derpy leapt off the gypsy to lift the mare up off the ground, and hug her fiercely. "Oh Derpy, that's twice I thought I had lost you!" she cried, her joyful tears covering the hunchback's face.
The other gypsies stood there in stunned silence, not believing what they were seeing.
Master rolled over onto his stomach, and gasped for air, coughing and sputtering as the pain coursed through his body from the attack. "Don't just stand there you idiots!" he shouted. "KILL THEM!"
Derpy whirled around, quickly putting Rarity back down on the ground, ready to fight her attackers as they charged at her.
"Let's get her stallion! Come on!" shouted one of the larger gypsies, but his words quickly disappeared into a groan of pain, after Rainbow Dash grabbed hold of the stallion's shirt collar, and slammed his head against the cage's bars, knocking the gypsy out cold.
"Nicely done," Time Turner grinned, being quick to grab the keys from the pony's belt.
"Idiots!" Master groaned as he noticed Time Turner taking the keys and attempting to unlock the cage. "STOP HIM!"
Three of Master's stallions were fighting Derpy, who was proving to be more of a torrential force than the storm itself! A stallion who had been standing near Rainbow Dash's cage, ran toward the other, his knife glimmering in the lightning light, threatening to slice at the old pony's hooves, when he suddenly felt a wave of pain shoot through his lower back, and then at his thigh.
"It's time for you to learn some manners!" Rarity shouted, using the stick her captor had used to beat against her cage, as her own weapon to beat on him. "First lesson," she growled, "is don't poke at others!" Without warning, she slammed the stick against the stallion's groin, causing him to fall to his knees as a blubbering, painful cry, escaped his lips. "Second lesson," she hissed, before taking the stick and whacking the stallion against the side of his head, causing him to fall over, "is never underestimate a mare."
"Well done, Rarity!" Shortround congratulated, as Time Turner finally got their cage door open. The old stallion quickly ran to Rainbow Dash's cage, while Shortround charged at the three gypsies who were fighting Derpy. "Three against one is not the fairest of odds!" he roared, before attacking.
Master couldn't believe it. What the hell was happening!? The monsters were revolting, the opera house was going up in flames, and the Prince was nowhere in sight! This could not be happening!
Shortround growled as he fought off one of the gypsies that had been fighting Derpy. He could not run the way they could, but his size made it easy to tackle them. "It's time you learn manners!" he spat, before jumping onto another gypsy's back.
Rarity managed to use her stick to force one of Derpy's attackers off her, and Time Turner took another stick, and hit the stallion hard over the head, causing him to crumple on the ground.
Derpy growled as she struggled with the largest of Master's stallion, a burly stallion who tried to swipe at the hunchback's face with his dagger. "I'm gonna cut you like a fish, monster!" the stallion snarled with evil glee. "I'm going to skin you alive and mount your head on my wagon!"
Derpy continued to struggle, her large hooves gripping the stallion's wrist to keep him from using the dagger, but the stallion now had his other hoof around the hunchback's neck, and was squeezing so tightly that Derpy felt her skin begin to turn blue!
And then, moving so quickly that she only looked like a tiny black blur, the pony let out a yowl of pain, as the kitten sank her teeth and claws into the skin of his hoof, causing him to loosen his grip on Derpy's throat, giving Derpy enough time to slam her fist into the stallion's jaw, knocking him out cold.
"T-t-t-thanks Carmen," Derpy panted down at the little kitten, which only responded with an affectionate purr.
The men that had recovered from the onslaught, quickly scrambled to their hooves and rushed towards one of the wagons. "To hell with the Prince!" one of them cried. "Let's get out of here!"
Master stared in horror, shock, and most of all, anger, as his men abandoned him there, hurrying away like frightened children. "COWARDS!" the old gypsy shouted. "COME BACK HERE, YOU COWARDS!"
"It's over, Master," Rarity sighed, her small arms folding across her chest, as Derpy, Time Turner, and Shortround stood around her, each glaring with anger at the silver-haired pony. "Give yourself up."
Master stared at the little mare, his face blank. "Did I hear you correctly?" he asked, his voice containing a dangerous tone. "Were you giving me orders?"
"You've lost!" Shortround retorted. "Drop your dagger, now."
Master eyed his small mob of freaks, remembering how much trouble it had taken for him to reclaim them once more. "Alright," he sighed, letting go of the dagger. "But if you don't mind..." he quickly drew a pistol from the back of his belt. "I think I'll hold onto to this."
The others froze at the sight of the gun, their faces pale and their eyes focused entirely on the weapon.
"Now...you were saying?" Master asked Shortround once more. "Who is it that has lost?" A deep, menacing laugh, escaped his chest, as Master continued to keep the gun aimed at them. "It is truly a pity that it had to come to this," he sighed, after his laughter had died down. "I really believe that you all would have made me a great deal of money. But I can't afford rebellion," he cocked the pistol and turned it on Derpy. "I think I'll start with the rebel rouser here."
"NO!" Rarity shouted, but instead of a gunshot being fired, a sick, gurgling sound could be heard coming from the old gypsy.
The others stared, as Master's trembling hoof let go of the pistol, and watched in horror as blood trickled down from his mouth. "I...I...I u-u-underestimated...y-y-you..." the old stallion gasped to his unseen attacker.
"That you did," Rainbow Dash growled, pulling her bloody peg leg out from behind the stallion's back, before the old gypsy crumbled to the ground, dead.
A shaky sigh went up from the group, and Shortround, Derpy, and Rarity, rushed forward to embrace Rainbow Dash, who happily welcomed the affection.
Time Turner smiled as he took in the small family, seeing no deformity, only love. But his own heart throbbed with worry as he turned his eyes back to the burning building overhead; what had become of Fluttershy?
"Umph!" Fluttershy gasped as she landed on top of Discord, after their sudden plummet through the stage.
Discord groaned and transformed back to normal, knowing that the landing had not been good for his ankle, and he felt a painful throbbing in his right shoulder. But all thoughts on pain disappeared, the second he felt Fluttershy's lips rain joyous kisses all over his face. He couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, and opened his mouth to speak, but hers quickly covered it, and she kissed him with such intensity that it took his breath away.
"Fluttershy-" he gasped between kisses. "Angel, we-"
"YOU'RE ALIVE!" Fluttershy cried, her hooves running over his face, her lips tracing the scars. "Oh Discord..." she wailed, her tears flowing over his skin. "How did you - I...I thought...I thought you were..."
"Sshh," he whispered, before holding her face tenderly to his, and drawing her mouth back down over his own. A blissful sigh escaped her throat as she kissed Discord back, so relieved, so happy, so-
Discord's hooves gripped Fluttershy's shoulders and he gently pushed her away, as he heard heavy footsteps in the distance. "Now is not the time for sweet reunions, my love," he whispered as he helped her to his hooves.
The mirth that had been in Fluttershy's eyes quickly vanished as she too heard the sounds of a small mob, only a short distance away. It was then that Fluttershy truly took in the sight around her.
Both she and Discord had fallen into a mysterious looking chamber, like one of the many caverns that filled the underground labyrinth. Yet this one was smaller...and not made out of stone.
"Where are we?" she asked, looking at the blackened ground, her foot brushing over a strange sort of dust.
"A fire chamber," Discord murmured, his eyes scanning their surroundings, seeking out the trap door that lay hidden in the walls.
Fluttershy's eyes went wide at his words. "Fire chamber!?" she gasped. "Why on earth would the opera house need such a thing?"
"Some operas require a bonfire scene," he murmured as if it were common knowledge. "I had them install the chamber about fifteen years ago."
Fluttershy did not like the idea of the two of them being trapped in some sort of giant cooking pan. The sooner they got out of there, the better.
"Here it is!" Discord cried out triumphantly. He immediately began to push his weight against a section of the chamber's wall, a section that began to move slowly on its own, revealing a small door.
Discord hissed as the pain shot through this arm, and he paused, clutching his shoulder while cursing the Prince's name.
"Discord? Discord what's wrong?" Fluttershy asked, concern filling her eyes at the way his hoof clutched his shoulder.
"Nothing," he growled, turning away from her and attempting to push at the door again.
"Discord, something's wrong with your shoulder, I can tell, I-" Discord cursed as Fluttershy reached out to touch his shoulder, and she gasped in horror at the sight that greeted her. "Oh God! You're bleeding!"
"It's nothing," he grumbled, trying to brush her hooves away.
"That is not nothing!" she retorted, biting her lip at the growing blood stain on his shirt. "Discord, you've been shot!"
"No," he shook his head. "The bullet grazed me, that is all. It's just scratch, really." He couldn't help but find himself smiling at the tender way Fluttershy fussed over him. "I'm just lucky that the Prince is a lousy shot."
"Ah, but will you be lucky now?"
Fluttershy's head snapped up from where she had been examining Discord's injury, her eyes widening with horror as Blueblood emerged from the chamber's shadows, a sword glistening in the dim light that surrounded them.
Discord growled low and deep, and moved Fluttershy behind him in a protective fashion.
"I must thank you...Discord, is it?" Blueblood asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm as he approached them. "Your elaborate trap doors are quite clever, separating those that follow, causing them to fall into different rooms. Luckily for me, I landed in an old prop room," Blueblood grinned, brandishing the sword towards them.
Discord said nothing; he only kept his eyes locked on that of his enemy, while one of his arms held Fluttershy behind him, prepared to protect her at all costs.
Blueblood found himself chuckling at the way Discord stared him down, and his eyes flew to Fluttershy's pale pretty face, that hid behind the monster's shoulders. "And to think...this was my competition?"
Discord tilted his head to one side, studying his adversary carefully. "Insults have never helped stallion win battles," he murmured, low and even, his voice so calm and collected. "You know how to use that thing?" he asked, indicating the sword that Blueblood was wielding.
Blueblood felt his jaw clench at the Phantom's question. "I was the top of my class," he snarled, making a lunging motion towards his opponent, but Discord easily moved out of the way, pushing Fluttershy with him.
Fluttershy gasped at Blueblood's sudden move, and bit her lip with apprehension. She had just found Discord...she could not lose him again!
Blueblood grinned, and then lunged once more towards the Phantom, but once again, Discord easily moved away, his arms wrapping around Fluttershy and twirling her, as if they were caught up in a dance. "Clever," Blueblood murmured, shrugging his shoulders, before making another lunge. Fluttershy shrieked at how close Blueblood's sword had been, but felt Discord's strong, protective arms, once more move her out of harm's way.
By now the Prince's amusement was vanishing. "Are you going to be doing this all night?" he grumbled with irritation. "Put up your sword and fight!"
"Only when the time is necessary," Discord growled.
"Necessary?" Blueblood asked, madness filling his eyes. "Is NOW a necessary time!?" he cried, leaping forward and throwing his blade out towards the Phantom's chest, but Discord was prepared, and pushed Fluttershy down to one side, before swirling around and countering Blueblood's sword with his own blade.
Fluttershy shrieked again as both stallions engaged in a heated sword fight; Blueblood looking like a lunatic, flinging his sword madly at the Phantom, while Discord continued to counter each lunge, only furthering the Prince's rage.
"You see, unlike you, my dear monsieur," Discord hissed, as their blades met once more, sparks flying from their steel, "I was my own teacher, and never took one class my whole life." Blueblood roared with anger as he attacked once more, aiming for Discord's throat, but Discord's sword caught the blade before making contact. Blueblood's teeth were clenched as he pressed the sword against Discord's, his eyes wild with jealousy and hate. "Tell me," Discord asked. "How does it feel, knowing that you are being bested by someone with no formal training?"
"DAMN YOU!" Blueblood shouted in the Phantom's face, but Discord's boot shot up and kicked the noblecolt hard in the stomach, sending him backwards and hitting the wall on the other side of the chamber with a loud thud.
"Down here! I hear them down here!"
Fluttershy's eyes flew to a far tunnel straight ahead, and in the distance, she could see the orange glow of torches, and hear those same heavy footsteps that she had heard only moments ago.
The mob was coming, and had found them!
She rushed to Discord's side, and gasped when she realized he was sloping against the wall, breathing heavily and hissing in pain. "Discord!?" she gasped, her eyes widening with worry. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?" She had watched their sword fight so carefully; Blueblood's blade never once made contact!
"My ankle," Discord groaned. "It was hurt in the explosion...and this," he indicated to the sword in his hoof, "hasn't helped it."
"THERE THEY ARE!" shouted the voice of Monsieur Flam. Fluttershy's eyes widened with horror as she saw the two managers and several police officers, carrying torches and loaded guns, heading right towards them.
"STAY WHERE YOU ARE!" one of officers shouted, before calling over his shoulder, "INSPECTOR SILVERSTAR! I FOUND THE PHANTOM! I FOUND HIM!"
"GO!" Discord hissed at Fluttershy, pushing her through the opening of the secret door he had found. There was no time to close it, he simply grabbed her hoof and fled down a dark corridor, being careful to avoid stumbling over fallen debris from the other day's explosion.
"AFTER THEM!" Flim shouted. "DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY!"
Discord cursed as he heard the police follow, their voices and footsteps sounding far too close for his own liking.
Fluttershy was worried too, although slightly more worried that Blueblood could possibly be following them as well. Yes, Discord had kicked him away, causing the Prince to hit the wall, but she hadn't paid close enough attention to see whether he was conscious.
She had never seen a pony look demonic in her entire life! The way his eyes flashed, the way he spoke, everything! Before he engaged in the sword fight, back when she and Discord were on stage, before Blueblood started shooting at them; Fluttershy remembered the frightening way he looked at her when she glanced up at him while Discord sang to her. Blueblood's jealousy had completely driven him to madness.
"STAND DOWN! STAND DOWN I SAY!" shouted a voice behind them. Fluttershy's scream filled the tunnel when the sound of a gun firing filled the void behind her. Discord roared a curse as the bullet flew just past them, and swirled his cloak around to envelope Fluttershy, as if the fabric itself would shield her.
"STOP SHOOTING!" Silverstar's voice barked. "You'll hit the mare! And I don't want any bullets ricocheting back at us!"
Discord pulled Fluttershy to his left, and led her down another tunnel, cursing Master further for destroying all traps in the explosion. He was like a blind pony, stumbling in a place that was unfamiliar. This wasn't his home anymore; the tunnels beneath the Maris Opera House had betrayed him, blocking off old exits, leaving him little choice as to where to turn next. "Discord?" Fluttershy's voice was filled with fear and anxiety. She was looking to him to help them, depending on him to get them out of this...and he was completely lost.
"This way," he grunted, taking her arm and leading her once more down a different tunnel. "We can take the boat and escape out the river!" Fluttershy nodded her head, and held her skirts tightly as the two of them broke into a run.
Derpy had surveyed the area earlier, and told Discord that one of the boats had remained intact, even after the explosion. It was not the quickest way out of the opera house, but Discord had little choice. His home was now his prison, and he had to get them both out of there.
The tunnel grew wider and wider, and within seconds, they had finally reached the underground lagoon. Discord wasted no time with helping Fluttershy down the small rocky cliff, and Fluttershy gasped with horror as she finally saw the destruction that the explosion had caused to Discord's underground world.
Fallen rocks were everywhere, but also, she could see charred pieces of furniture, some floating in the lagoon. She caught sight of other items, each burnt or damaged beyond repair, such as Rarity's spinning wheel and Derpy's books. "Hurry," Discord hissed, waking Fluttershy from her trance. She quickly followed him to the boat and climbed in while he released its tether and picked up the oar to push them away from the shore.
"STOP!" shouted a voice overhead.
Both Discord and Fluttershy looked up to see the same police officer who had shot at them earlier, now standing on the cliff overhead, his gun aimed at the boat. "YOU'RE UNDER ARREST!"
Flim and Flam also appeared, each panting and gasping for breath, but each looking just as wild as Blueblood. It was not jealousy that filled their eyes, but a need to extract vengeance from the Phantom's many threats. "Hurry!" Flim cried. "You have a clear shot! Shoot him before he gets away!"
The officer looked at Flim as if he were crazy. "Inspector Silverstar said-"
"Oh HANG Inspector Silverstar!" Flam muttered, grabbing the gun out of the officer's hooves and firing at the boat.
Fluttershy screamed as the sound of gunfire echoed throughout the cavern. Discord leapt down just in time; his body covering Fluttershy's to shield her from the gun's bullets. His actions caused him to drop the oar into the water, but the lagoon's current was already pushing them towards the river.
"ARE YOU MAD!?" the officer shouted, staring at Flam as if he were a madcolt.
"They're getting away!" Flam cried, aiming the gun once more.
The officer leapt at the gun, and soon the two stallions were wrestling for control. More officers arrived, and each looked confused at the strange fight between one of their colleagues and the younger opera house manager.
Flim, who was still stunned by Flam's actions, quickly snapped out of it in order to throw orders at the newly arrived officers. "Don't just stand there gawking!" he shouted. "The Phantom! He's getting away! He's kidnapped Mademoiselle Fluttershy! GET HIM!"
"How!?" one of the men asked. "There aren't any more boats!"
"And if we shoot at him, we could risk hitting the mare!"
Flim rolled his eyes. "Then jump in after them!"
"WHAT!?" several shouted. "ARE YOU MAD!?"
One of the younger officers, who was a little haughtier than the others, and who had a dire longing to prove himself brave, ran to the cliff's edge without a second thought, and leapt into the icy waters of the lagoon below.
Discord's head shot up at the splashing sound, and saw the young officer swimming towards them. As soon as the officer noticed that Discord was in sight, he paused his swimming and attempted to aim his gun at the Phantom's head.
Discord could not risk having the boat shot at. It was their only means of escape, and all that mattered was getting Fluttershy to safety. They wouldn't shoot at her, they were only after him. Without another thought, Discord threw his cloak off, and dove over the boat's edge into the water.
"DISCORD!" Fluttershy shrieked, her hooves clutching the edge of the boat. What was he doing!? Had he gone mad!? He was swimming out to meet the officer, who was looking stunned by the Phantom's actions.
"You want to shoot me now!?" he roared at the officer, whose face had paled to a ghostly shade of white. The pony lifted his gun, and Fluttershy screamed, but before he could even pull the trigger, Discord dove under the water, only to come up right in the pony's face, knocking the gun out his hooves, and gripping the frightened, blubbering officer around the neck. "You want to see the Angel of Death?" he snarled, before dunking the frightened officer's head under the water.
Fluttershy stared in horror at the scene before her, and screamed when she heard more gunshots. The officers who still remained on the cliff opened fire, shouting for Discord to release their friend. There was a great splashing sound, as two more officers dove into the lagoon's waters, and swam out to meet the Phantom.
Fluttershy leaned over the boat and attempted to use her own hooves to paddle back towards him, but the current was too strong, and was already carrying the boat further and further away. Discord released the stallionwho he was originally fighting, and met his two new adversaries head on. They leapt atop him, and he threw them off, roaring and throwing punches, gulping air as they pushed him down, splashing and sputtering water everywhere.
The boat continued to drift. She couldn't see them! "DISCORD!" she cried. "DISCORD!"
He turned his head, and realized Fluttershy was disappearing into the darkness of the tunnel. He cursed as he felt one of the men leap onto his shoulders in another attempt to push him under the water. "GO ON!" he shouted, before disappearing under the water. He growled and used all his strength to push his attacker off. "GET OUT OF HERE! LEAVE ME!" he shouted once his head resurfaced. All that mattered was that she would be safe; they would not pursue her, and the current would carry her safely out of the opera house.
"DISCORD!?" Fluttershy couldn't see him anymore, the boat had drifted down a dark tunnel and he had completely disappeared from sight. Her hooves were still in the water, and she was still leaning over the edge of the boat, trying to paddle back, knowing that it was a lost cause.
Was he going to be all right? He was fighting three stallions in the water! They could drown him! He could drown them! And then Fluttershy went numb as the sound of gunshots echoed down the tunnel...
"DISCORD!" she screamed, fully prepared to leap into the water at that second and swim back to him, not caring what he said, only caring about him, only-
"HALT!"
Fluttershy whirled her head around to the sound of the voice, and gasped when a torch's light was shoved close to her face.
"It's just the mare, Inspector," an officer announced, moving the torch away. Fluttershy's eyes adjusted to the dim light in the darkness, and realized there was another small band of police officers, standing on a small embankment just inside the tunnel's entrance.
Silverstar peered down at her while two officers moved into the water to bring the boat ashore. "I heard gunshots," he murmured with puzzlement. "Where is the Phantom?"
"Fluttershy!"
Fluttershy's eyes flew to the embankment and gasped when she saw Madame Luna push her way through the crowd of officers, not caring if her petticoats got wet, and meeting Fluttershy halfway in the water, embracing the mare who broke down against her. "Get me a blanket!" she barked at the chief inspector, before tightening her hold around Fluttershy's shivering form. "There, there, my dear. It's alright, you're safe now, you're safe."
Fluttershy trembled and shook her head frantically from side to side. "No!" she wailed through the worried tears that covered her face. "Discord is back there! He was fighting three stallions, and...I...I heard gunshots!"
"We'll find him, I promise," Madame Luna murmured, running her hooves through the young mare's hair, whispering soothing words into her ear.
Silverstar sighed and hoofed the dance mistress the blanket she had requested. "Mademoiselle," he began, his tone soft, but quite desperate for answers. "I need to know where he is."
Madame Luna growled at the chief inspector, her eyes cold, narrow slits of rage. "Can't you see the child is freezing?" she hissed. "Hasn't she been through enough this evening? Please!" she wrapped an arm around Fluttershy's shoulders and began to lead her away from Silverstar and his band of officers.
Silverstar groaned, running his hooves through his thinning hair; the mare could be damned irritable! "Mademoiselle, I saw everything!"
Fluttershy paused her steps, and slowly turned her head to the chief inspector. "W-what do you mean?" she asked, wary of what this stallion was attempting to learn from her.
Silverstar ignored the dance mistress' cold stare and quietly approached Fluttershy, keeping his voice low. "I came here tonight, because I feared a madcolt would attempt to sabotage the evening," he looked back in the direction Fluttershy's boat had come. "And I was right...but not about the pony."
Fluttershy's eyes widened at the pony's words; even Madame Luna seemed at a loss.
"Please...you must tell me where you saw him last; if I don't find him, more ponies may end up dead!"
Fluttershy understood the chief inspector's concern, it would be the concern of any good policecolt, but he and his men did not understand anything about Discord. All they saw was a stallion with a strange body who wore mask to hide his scarred face, and that alone seemed to be enough to condemn him. She shook her head, feeling angry for the accusation that more ponies would die by his hooves if she did not reveal where he was; both she and Discord had been shot at multiple times that night! "You can give that lecture to your own men," Fluttershy hissed. "I can't believe you would even ask me such a thing; I know the evils that your men are capable of performing on men who look different. How do I know that you will not also treat Discord the same?"
Silverstar's brow furrowed at Fluttershy's words. "Discord?"
"Yes! Discord! That is his name," she grumbled, pulling the blanket up even tighter around her shoulders.
Now he understood. "No! No, mademoiselle, you misunderstand! I was not inquiring as to where you last saw the Phantom, I meant the Prince."
Fluttershy froze at Silverstar's question. "Blueblood?"
"Yes," he sighed. "In his attempts to shoot at you, he killed Signor Fancypants."
Fluttershy gasped, and her hoof flew to cover her mouth. She had not known Fancypants very long, and knew that the tenor despised her for taking the lead from Celestia, but no stallion deserved to be shot in cold blood.
"Please," Silverstar asked again. "The last I saw, the Prince dove in after both you and the Phantom. I had assumed that the two of you had encountered him."
Fluttershy could almost laugh at the words Silverstar used. Yes, indeed, they did "encounter" him. "He and Discord were fighting," she murmured. "The Prince had a sword, but Discord managed to kick him away...I...I don't know what became of him after that point..."
"Inspector! Inspector!"
All heads turned in the direction of the tunnel, where several officers emerged, a few of them soaked to the bone. "He's gone!" one shouted. "The Phantom is gone!"
Fluttershy gasped and looked at Madame Luna. Discord was still alive? "What happened to him!?" she frantically asked, pushing her way towards the men, desperate to know what had become of Discord.
"Well...we don't know, exactly," one admitted. "You see...he dove under the water...and never emerged."
Fluttershy froze at the officer's words, and felt her knees suddenly go limp. Madame Luna quickly reached out for the mare to lean on, wrapping her arm around Fluttershy's waist to keep her upright. "What do you mean he never emerged?" she demanded, desperate to learn the truth just as much as Fluttershy...yet also dreading what it could be.
"We mean exactly that, Madame," one officer tried to explain. "He dove beneath the water, and when he hadn't emerged, we too dove down, but saw nothing...no body, no evidence of his presence...nothing! It was as if he had completely disappeared."
Fluttershy swallowed the nervous lump in her throat, gripping the blanket that she wore around her shoulders all the tighter. He was alive, she knew he was alive, he had to be; after everything they had gone through, both tonight and in the last few days: Discord was alive, she would not lose him again!
"I'm sure he's alright," Madame Luna murmured, leading Fluttershy away from Silverstar and his men. "Come, there is something you need to see..."
Fluttershy mutely nodded her head, although she could not shake that sense of impending doom, nor the question that Silverstar had asked her: what had happened to Blueblood after they had fled that chamber? Was he still in there, hunting his enemy? Was Discord truly alright? His ankle was sprained, a bullet had grazed his shoulder, and after hearing all those other gunshots...
"FLUTTERSHY!"
Fluttershy's head snapped up at the sound of the familiar voice, a voice that she had not heard in what felt like ages...
"Derpy?" she gasped, seeing the hunchback waving to her from a wagon in the distance. "DERPY!" she shouted, throwing the blanket off her shoulders and running towards her friend, throwing her arms out and hugging Derpy tight as she met her halfway. "Oh Derpy!" she cried, "I thought...I thought..."
"We all did," Rarity answered, smiling at the happy reunion between Derpy and Fluttershy. "But as you can see, she is very much alive."
Fluttershy gasped at the sight of Rarity, free from her chains, and then saw her father approach, while both Shortround and Rainbow Dash smiled from the wagon. "Y-y-you're free!" she stammered in surprise, happiness overwhelming her. "But...but how...?"
"Master is dead," Time Turner sighed. "Derpy is the one who saved us," he explained with a smile. "She freed us, and frightened Master's stallions away."
"A-a-and Rainbow Dash s-s-saved me," Derpy grinned. "M-m-m-master w-was going to s-shoot me...but Rainbow Dash s-s-saved me!"
Fluttershy couldn't believe it; it was only yesterday that she had feared they were all dead, and yet, here they all were, safe and free! Master was no more, they would not to be taken prisoner and put on display, Discord could rest with ease from that...
But where was he?
"Fluttershy?" Derpy asked, looking at her with large nervous eyes. "W-w-where is the Master?"
"Yes!" Rarity gasped. "Derpy explained that he is alive! That he went to save you...but where is he now?"
Fluttershy bit her lip and glanced at Madame Luna nervously. Discord had to be alive, he just had to be! He knew the opera house better than anyone; he must have known what he was doing when he dove under the water. She kept reminding herself that the police never found a body, that it seemed that he had disappeared entirely. He must have escaped...but where to?
Discord burst out through the opening of the roof, gasping and coughing from the smoke that he had fought through. It was even worse that swimming through that dark water pipe which had been his only escape after the police had cornered him. The pipe emptied out into a sewage tunnel, which Discord took to lead him back towards the opera house, undetected.
The place was ablaze; all around him he could hear men shouting for more water as they fought the fire that raged on. The smoke was overwhelming, and Discord knew he needed to get out of there, but he also knew the police...or worse...would be waiting for him.
He needed to get out of the smoke, away from the flames, but he needed to be someplace where he could see, where he could understand what would be his next best chance for escape. He needed to know if Fluttershy had made it safely outside, and whether Derpy had been successful with freeing the others from Master and his stallions. The roof was the only possibility.
Overhead, a storm raged, helping to douse the flames that had burst through the windows. He let out a long shaky sigh and breathed in the cool clean air, feeling its freshness replenish and heal his lungs.
Despite the fact that he was already soaking, he lifted his head to the rain and ran his paw and claw over his unmasked face, feeling the drops cleanse his body and soul from the evening's ordeal.
He leaned against one of the many stone pony's that adorned the roof, wincing at the pain in his leg, his shoulder, everywhere; his whole body ached. How he longed to be lying in a warm, dry bed, with Fluttershy's smooth arms wrapped around him. He groaned and shifted his body so that he could continue to lean against the stone pony, but also look out over the roof's ledge.
Below, he saw the fire brigade, working hard to put out what was left the opera house fire. Around them stood hundreds of ponies; company members, patrons, onlookers, and of course, police. He scanned the police carefully; they would most likely have been anticipating his escape by boat, and have Fluttershy in their group.
His eyes found one of Master's wagons, but the gypsies were nowhere to be seen. He did however see Madame Luna, standing and talking with some unseen figures, who appeared to be hiding inside the wagon. The figure of Rarity emerged then, and Discord felt a great weight lift off his shoulders; Derpy had been successful!
"Your hunchback is clever," a voice dryly murmured behind him. Discord lifted his head, but kept his back to his enemy. "Perhaps you should have sent her to fight in your stead?"
Discord turned slowly as the lightning illuminated the sky, causing the scars on his face to look even more horrific than normal. "I do my own fighting," he growled.
"Good," Blueblood replied. "THEN YOU CAN SHOW ME!" Without any warning, he lunged forward, his sword scraping stone has Discord moved away just in time.
Discord growled and drew his own sword forth, lunging towards the Prince, taking Blueblood completely by surprise. "Come now, boy," Discord mocked as their swords clashed together. "Prove to me that you're more than a fop."
Blueblood roared and lunged back at Discord, who continued to parry his every attack. Thunder shook the sky as their fight continued, swords clashing, fists flying, as the rain beat down upon them.
Down below, Inspector Silverstar was reprimanding Flim and Flam for the danger they could have inflicted upon his stallions, while a short distance away, Fluttershy, with the help of Madame Luna and Twlight, was tending to the wounds of her friends.
"So...you've known about these..." Twlight glanced up at Derpy, who was blushing as she dabbed at a bruise on her arm. "These...ponies...all along?" she questioned her mother.
Madame Luna sighed and simply nodded her head. "Why didn't you tell me?" Twlight asked, a hurt look filling her eyes.
"Twlight, it wasn't that I didn't trust you, I just believed that the fewer ponies who knew, the better-"
"LOOK!" shouted Flam, who was pointing up to the rooftops.
Everypony squinted as they looked up, not seeing anything through the rain and shadows, until a bolt of lightning illuminated the sky...and revealed two figures, fighting with one another.
"It's the Master!" Rarity gasped. Fluttershy's hoof flew to her mouth as she recognized Discord's figure.
"Good God!" Flim gasped. "The Prince! He's fighting the Phantom!"
For the longest moment, Fluttershy sat there, frozen with fear, as she watched the stallion she loved passionately fight his greatest enemy. Sparks flew as their swords clashed, and despite the thunder overhead, a person could hear the curses they were throwing at one another.
Blueblood continued attacking, his rage fueling his sword as he endlessly lunged forward. Discord would meet each of Blueblood's attacks, countering them before lunging back. "It won't change anything," Discord growled, as their swords crossed, his face getting into Blueblood's. "No matter how hard you fight...it won't change the fact that she rejected you."
Blueblood roared and threw his fist out to catch Discord's jaw; Discord leaned away just in time to miss Blueblood's fist, but was not fast enough to miss Blueblood's boot, which had made contact with his torso and caused him to fall backward. Fluttershy screamed as she saw Blueblood lift his sword over his head to plunge into Discord's chest. But Discord was faster still, and kicked both his legs up, making contact with Blueblood's stomach and knocking the Prince backwards.
"You do fight well, I will give you that," Discord grunted as he lifted himself up. "But you should have left when I spared you earlier.
Blueblood coughed and wiped the blood from his lip, his green eyes blazing with hatred and fury. "I've bested you before," he growled, rising to his feet. "Or have you forgotten?" An evil grin spread across Blueblood's hoofsome, bloody face, as he removed Discord's white half mask from the pocket of his jacket. "Here is my trophy to prove it."
A muscle twitched in Discord's neck as Blueblood revealed his mask, the mask that he had lost the night he had attacked the Prince. It was a symbol of his shame for allowing the noblecolt to get the best of him, to allowing his anger and foolishness to blind him. Blueblood took immediate notice of Discord's reaction upon seeing the mask, and chuckled as he returned it to his pocket. "You want it?" he asked, opening his arms out in a welcoming fashion. "Come and take it then!"
Discord roared as he lunged forward, his sword clashing with Blueblood's, sending a shower of sparks over the roof.
Fluttershy couldn't take it anymore, she had to stop this! She picked up her skirts and bolted towards the opera house entrance, pushing her way past the crowd of ponies that stood, gaping at the scene upon the roof.
"FLUTTERSHY!" her father shouted as he realized what she was doing.
His cries were joined by Twlight and Madame Luna, catching the attention of Inspector Silverstar. "STOP THAT MARE!" he shouted to several of his men.
Fluttershy's elbow shot up and hit one of the officers in the chin, causing the pony to curse and spit blood all over the ground. Another officer moved to grab her, but Fluttershy was faster, moving her hooves in such a way that he only caught air, and then reaching out to grab the pistol from his holster. "STAY BACK!" she shouted, cocking the gun and aiming it directly at the small group of police that had moved in to stop her.
The officers froze as her shaky hooves clutched the gun, each of them fearing that she may accidentally open fire. Silverstar was stunned speechless, and the managers couldn't close their mouths. "Mademoiselle..." Silverstar carefully murmured, taking a slow step towards her.
"STAY BACK!" Fluttershy warned, aiming the pistol at the chief inspector while she slowly began to back her way towards the opera house.
"M-m-m-mademoiselle, w-w-what are you doing!?" Flim stammered.
"P-p-p-put t-the gun d-down," Flam whispered shakily, taking a step towards her.
Fluttershy fired the gun at the ground in front of the younger manager, surprising herself, as well as everypony around her. Flam sank to his hooves in a dead faint, and Flim felt an uncomfortable wetness in his trousers.
"KEEP AWAY!" Fluttershy shouted, the gun now aimed at Silverstar, as she continued her assent up the stone steps.
Silverstar and his stallions stood perfectly still, not moving one muscle as Fluttershy finally turned and bolted up the steps, into the smoke filled opera house. "Follow her, carefully..." Silverstar ordered once Fluttershy was out of sight.
Discord had heard a gun firing down below, and then to his horror, had heard Time Turner shout his daughter's name. Had something happened to Fluttershy?
Blueblood grinned as he noticed Discord's sudden distraction, and without warning, lunged forward, burying his sword into the shoulder of his unsuspecting opponent.
Discord let out a roar of pain as he felt the sword's sting, especially after Blueblood cruelly pulled the blade back. A great red stain began to spread under Discord's white shirt, and Discord limped away, clutching at his shoulder and muttering curses under his breath, while Blueblood threw his head back and laughed. "So the ghost does bleed!" he chuckled, his eyes wild with evil amusement.
Discord growled and released his shoulder, both his hooves clutching the hilt of his sword as he let out a battle cry and charged at the Prince. But now it was Blueblood who parried Discord's every move, his laughter never ceasing, causing Discord's fury to blind him, and making him clumsy as he attacked.
Fluttershy coughed as the smoke filled her lungs, but her pace never lessoned as she ran towards her dressing room. Once there, she fell to her knees, and immediately began to pry at every knob around the giant mirror's frame, pushing, pulling, twisting, whatever she could do, working her hooves raw in her attempts. "Come on, come on!" she hissed as she pried at the mirror.
Suddenly, she heard a click, as she pulled at the golden wing of one of the many cherubs that decorated the mirror's frame. She held onto the cherub's wing and pulled with all her might, causing the mirror to suddenly open, revealing to her an unknown tunnel to Discord's realm. She only prayed that she could find her way to the roof from it.
Meanwhile, the sword fight grew more and more intense, as Discord continued to attack with more and more fury. Blueblood was not as quick as Discord was when it came to leaping away, but his arms remained strong and steady as he met each one of Discord's attacks, countering and parrying every movement of the Phantom's sword. "I'm going to see to it that all of your freakish friends are locked away in cages for the rest of their miserable lives!" he threatened. "Who knows? They may make a good profit! Perhaps I'll keep them on my estate and offer free admission for children?" he grinned as Discord growled, before countering his attack. "Yes, I like that idea...free admission for every child that throws a rock at that disfigured mare."
"BURN IN HELL!" Discord roared, lunging forward, his sword ready to be buried in the Prince's stomach, but Blueblood's sword was faster, and slashed out at Discord's unscarred cheek, just missing his eye.
Discord stumbled back, his hoof flying to where the sword had made contact. "Oh dear," Blueblood sighed, mockingly. "It appears I have added another scar, and to your good side too...ah well, perhaps it is best that I finish where God left off."
Discord growled and lifted his sword, ready to attack, but Blueblood's boot shot out, kicking Discord's injured leg and causing him to fall backwards, losing his grip on the sword. Before he could reach for it, Blueblood's boot stomped on Discord's bad ankle, causing the Phantom to cry out in pain, and giving Blueblood the opportunity to take Discord's sword.
"Oh dear, oh dear," Blueblood sighed as he gazed down at his injured enemy. "Perhaps it was you, Monsieur Phantom, who should have left when you had the chance, hmm?" Discord snarled as he slowly sat up, very much aware that Blueblood was holding both swords at his throat. "And as for that invitation to burn in hell, well...after you," he grinned, before lifting the swords to plummet them into the Phantom's chest.
This is going to hurt, Discord thought regretfully, but without a moment's hesitation, threw his injured leg into the Prince's groin, causing Blueblood to cry out in pain and stumble backwards, giving Discord enough time to roll away.
"DAMN YOU!" Blueblood hissed, falling to his knees and biting curses to the wind, but never once releasing the two swords he held. He lifted his eyes then to glare at the Phantom...but gasped when the lightning revealed no trace of the pony.
He quickly got to his hooves and looked around wildly, trying to see where Discord had gone. The rain was falling even harder, washing away any traces of blood that may have given Blueblood a clue as to where he could find his opponent. "COME OUT AND FIGHT!" Blueblood shouted to the sky, but only the thunder responded.
"Come now..." he continued to jeer. "I promise to make your death quick and as painless as possible."
No response.
Blueblood's amusement quickly faded, and he gripped the two swords even tighter as he began to search his surroundings. Where could the devil have gone!? "You surprise me, Discord," he growled, using the Phantom's name as he slowly searched the stone ponys that loomed all around. "I thought you many things...murderer, madcolt...but never once, did I think you a coward!"
Still, nothing.
Blueblood grinded his teeth as the fury began to take hold. "Did you love her?" he shouted against the wind's howl. "How sweet; a real-life 'beauty and the beast' fairytale," he taunted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Amazing; you truly believed that she would love a thing like you...when she could have a pony like me!"
He whirled around when he heard a movement behind his shoulder. Blueblood jumped when he realized he was only face to face with a hideous stone pony. "Was she good in bed?" he snarled, knowing that his words would eventually bring the fiend out. "Tell me, Discord...how was she?" he grinned as he heard a growl off to his right. "Is she responsive? Does she mew when you touch her?" he moved ever more closely to the stone pony where he heard the growl. "I do hope she likes it rough," he hissed, before leaping around the stone pony and slashing his sword at...
...nothing.
Blueblood let out a curse as he drew his sword back, his anger only kindling. "You're making this worse!" he shouted. "Let's finish this, now! I'll even throw down my sword!"
The clang of the sword's steel seemed to echo louder than thunder, as Blueblood dropped the blade.
He waited, holding his breath, half expecting the disfigured fiend to leap down and pummel him, before taking the sword and slicing his throat.
But nothing happened. Only the sounds of the storm responded to Blueblood's actions.
"YOU BRING THIS UPON YOURSELF!" Blueblood shouted, his head turning in all directions. Something was moving in the shadows...
"I know all about your child!" the Prince taunted, his eyes following the shadow's movements. "You want to know what I was going to do, Discord?" he grinned. "I planned on destroying your seed-forcing Fluttershy to get rid of the babe, if necessary...after all, I can't have a monster living in my house and bearing my name!"
The movement stopped, and Blueblood's grin spread further. "But I've changed my mind," he hissed. "I've decided to raise the child as my own..." Blueblood carefully gripped his other sword, prepared to defend any attack the Phantom may throw at him. "After all, isn't that the best way to triumph over one's enemy? Just imagine it Discord...if you have a son, I'll gladly raise him as my own..." he took several tentative steps towards the shadows, every muscle in his body tense and prepared. "Wouldn't you love to see that? Myself, raising your own son...to become just like me?"
The gunshot echoed in the night and Blueblood threw a curse to the air when he felt the bullet just graze his ear. His wild green eyes flew to where the gun had been fired, and widened at the surprising sight of the small pink haired mare, her hair clinging to her face, her arms shaking as they gripped the pistol, aimed directly at him.
"You will NEVER touch my child!" Fluttershy swore, cocking the pistol once more, her eyes never leaving the Prince's face. "Now drop your sword!"
Blueblood glared back at the young mare, but instead of following her orders, an evil grin spread across his demonically hoofsome features. "How sweet," he mocked. "The beauty comes to save her beast."
"DROP YOUR SWORD, BLUEBLOOD!" Fluttershy screamed, her hooves gripping the pistol even tighter, fury raging in the blue depths of her eyes.
"Or you'll what, Fluttershy?" he murmured, taking a step towards her. "Shoot me? Oh no...you do that, you'll be locked away for murder...and your precious demon spawn will be born inside a jail. And then you'll never see your Phantom-he'll be locked away in a cage, put on display once more. Is that what you want?"
Fluttershy aimed the gun at Blueblood's head, the fire of hatred blazing ever brighter in her eyes. "I'm warning you, Blueblood..."
"Then what are you waiting for?" he growled, coming ever closer to her. "Do it then! Shoot me! Kill me! That's what you want, isn't it? PROVE IT TO ME THEN!"
Fluttershy hated this stallion, and tried to keep her aim steady, despite the trembling in her arms. But his words were beginning to have their effect; would she be condemning both Discord and her child if she killed this horrible stallion? They were two innocents who depended upon her!
"I knew you couldn't do it," Blueblood hissed, his body practically upon her.
Fluttershy's anger flared, and not caring any further about anything other than saving Discord's life, and wiping Blueblood's arrogant grin off his face, pulled the trigger back on the pistol...
Nothing.
Panic suddenly gripped Fluttershy, and she pulled the trigger again, and again, and again!
Blueblood reached out and grabbed her wrist, twisting it in such a manner that Fluttershy let out a painful whimper, and dropped the pistol to the ground. "It helps when one has bullets," he growled, before grabbing her against his body, and lifting the sword to her throat.
Fluttershy let out a shriek as the cold steel touched her skin, and her eyes searched desperately in the shadows for Discord's face, or at least his silhouette.
"Now...if you're not out by the time I count to five...I'll cut her throat right here!" Blueblood shouted to the sky, his eyes flying around the darkness. "One-"
"Five," Discord finished, his fist slamming hard into Blueblood's jaw as he came up from behind the Prince. The punch not only broke Blueblood from his hold on Fluttershy, but it also caused the Prince to drop his sword. "NOW we finish this!" Discord snarled, before pummeling his fists into his enemy's face.
Fluttershy covered her mouth as she watched the two men fight, each spitting blood with every punch. Discord grabbed hold of Blueblood's body and bent the stallion so he could slam his knee into the Prince's stomach. Blueblood gasped in pain, but only wrapped his arms around Discord's legs, wrestling the Phantom to the ground, before continuing to throw bloody punches upon his enemy.
Fluttershy grabbed the sword that Blueblood had dropped, prepared to use it to defend Discord's life, or at least to throw it to him should he need it. But right now, tossing Discord his sword was the least of her worries; the two stallions were fighting dangerously close to the edge of the building.
Silverstar and his men were just emerging through the roof's entrance, their eyes locked on the fighting pair. One of the officers raised his gun, but Silverstar's hoof reached out to halt the officer. "No one fire unless I give the order!" the chief inspector barked.
Blueblood and Discord were unaware of their audience; all they cared about was killing the other with their own bare hooves!
Discord felt the stone crack under one of his hooves, and he knew he was getting too close to the roof's ledge. One small gasp from Fluttershy confirmed his suspicions, but he kept his focus entirely on the Prince; no doubt Blueblood was all too aware that Discord was mere inches away from falling over the edge.
Blueblood threw another punch, making contact with Discord's jaw, before throwing his foot out to trip his enemy. Fluttershy let out a blood curdling scream, as did several ponies far below, as Discord almost lost his balance. The only thing that kept him from falling was Blueblood's grip of Discord's shirt. "It's over, Phantom!" he spat in Discord's face. "Fluttershy is MINE!"
Discord only roared, and grabbed hold of Blueblood's own shirt collar, surprising the Prince greatly as he felt something slip around his neck, and his confident smile fading as he felt his own hooves give way.
Fluttershy's scream was deafening as the two men fell over the edge, and she quickly rushed forward, Silverstar and his officers close behind.
Fluttershy gripped the ledge of the roof as she stared in horror at the sight before her. Discord, dangling by one arm, was holding fast to a smaller stone stone pony, while in his other arm, he held Blueblood, who was coughing and choking, his hooves scraping at his neck, his face pale with fear as he looked up at Discord with pleading eyes. It was then that Fluttershy realized that Blueblood wore a strange looking noose, and Discord held the other end.
"P-p-please!" Blueblood gasped, one of his arms reaching up and gripping at the arm to which Discord held him. "P-p-please! P-p-please d-d-don't d-do this!"
Discord growled at the Prince, and hissed as he felt the pain throb in his own muscles. He could feel his grip beginning to loosen from the stone pony...
"Please!" Blueblood choked out, feeling blood rising in his throat. "D-d-d-don't h-hurt me! P-p-please let me go! I d-d-don't w-want to die! Please!" he begged, his voice sounding so different from before. It wasn't the noose that had caused the difference; it was the true nature of the stallion.
He was, and had always been, a coward.
Blueblood choked, sputtering blood all over his arms, as he released his hold on the noose, and only concentrated and pulling himself up from Discord's arm.
Despite the pain in both his arms, Discord continued to glare at the stallion who now dangled beneath him, the stallion who had attempted to rape Fluttershy, who had locked away his family, who had threatened the life of his unborn child! This stallion was the cause of so much misery, not just for him, but for many all around! He deserved death, nothing simpler. And Discord deserved to be the one to end his life.
But now, as he looked down at this pathetic excuse for a pony, Discord felt all his years of thirsting for vengeance drift away. He couldn't see her face, but he could hear her sobs, and Discord knew that despite his hatred for the noblecolt, who now dangled at his mercy, Blueblood's death no longer mattered.
He, the Phantom, the dark deformed villain of so many stories, had won.
And Blueblood knew it.
What better vengeance could there be than Blueblood having to live the rest of his days in shame, knowing that he had begged for mercy from the Phantom?
Blueblood gasped in shock and frightened relief, as he felt Discord's grip tighten around the noose, and swing his blubbering form towards a tiny stone ledge, just on the other side of the small stone pony that Discord grasped. With wide eyes, Blueblood sat frozen as he felt Discord release the noose. "Get out of my opera house," the Phantom growled.
"Discord!" Fluttershy finally cried, after holding her breath during the tense scene.
Discord lifted his eyes towards the sound of his beloved, and felt a smile spread across his face as her beauty filled his senses. Fluttershy smiled despite her tears, and lowered her hooves towards him, eager to pull him back over the roof's edge.
Discord nodded his head, now having two arms to lift himself back up, and one hoof moving into one of Fluttershy's outstretched arms and then-
Fluttershy's blood ran cold as the horrible the sound of Discord's yell filled the air, along with the sight of Blueblood removing a dagger from Discord's side, filled her senses.
Blueblood laughed evilly as blood sprayed from the wound he had created. He lifted the knife again, prepared to drive into Discord's back, but his laughter, and his smile, quickly faded, as suddenly, he felt his balance slip from the wet ledge. Discord would have lost his grip as well, had not Fluttershy reached out and grabbed him about the shoulders, and with the aid of several of Silverstar's stallions, was able to pull him back safely.
The same could not be said for Blueblood.
Blueblood's terrified scream filled the night air as his hooves slipped away entirely. Several screams erupted from the crowd down below, as Blueblood's body fell through the air, before landing with a sickening thud, smashed on the opera house steps.
"Step back," Silverstar commanded, as Fluttershy pulled Discord's limp body away the roof's ledge, cradling him in her arms, her tears mixing with the rain as they fell upon his face.
His breathing was erratic, and his skin felt cold to her touch. She quickly laid him down on the roof, and ripped the hem off her costume, before moving it to cover the wound that Blueblood's knife had left.
"F-f-fluttershy..."
"Sshh," Fluttershy whispered, fighting back the sobs that were trapped in her throat. She had to remain calm; she had to concentrate on helping Discord. "It's alright, I'm here," she whispered, biting her lip as he winced with pain from her applying pressure over the wound. "You're going to be alright," she promised.
"F-f-f-f-f-Fluttershy..." his voice was even more broken than before.
"Don't try to talk, Discord," she murmured, her hooves curling under his neck to lift his head off the wet stone. "Save your strength. I'll get you to a doctor, and then into a soft, warm bed, and-"
"I..." he gasped, coughing, feeling blood filling his throat. "F-f-fluttershy...I...I..." lifted his paw then to push away a wet strand of pink hair from her face. Fluttershy held her breath as she felt Discord's soft, yet urgent touch, draw her mouth down to his, before softly, brushing his lips against hers. "I love you..." he finally rasped.
And then he went still.
Fluttershy's eyes widened at the sudden stiff feeling of his body in her arms. Silverstar and his stallions removed their caps, each sharing a sad and knowing expression.
Fluttershy stared down at the stallion she held, his amber eyes closed, his skin growing paler by the second...
"Discord," she finally murmured, her hooves softly shaking his shoulders. "Discord, open your eyes," she commanded, trying to hold back the rising panic. "Discord, open your eyes!" she demanded with more force.
He felt so cold, so...so lifeless...
"DISCORD!" she shouted into his ear, the sobs escaping as she clung to his still body. "DISCORD, PLEASE!" she buried her face against his shirt, crying hot tears over his cold body. "Please...please don't leave me," she sobbed. "Please...please come back, please stay with me, please...please...PLEASE!"
She wasn't even aware of the hooves that were gently pulling her away from him. "Please Discord...don't go...stay with me, with our child..." she begged through the tears. "I love you..." |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Finale | Finale
Stars.
There were stars falling, softly, all around him.
He was encased in this thick black void, but despite its constraints, he did not feel smothered. Instead, he stared in awe at the beauty that shimmered all around him. In the distance, he could hear music...the sweetest, most beautiful music ever composed, playing in time with the falling stars. It was as if he were lost in a dream, a strange, but beautiful dream: heaven, performing a concert just for him.
"Discord..."
He heard her call his name out of the darkness. It was faint, but her bell-like quality still rang clear over all the rising cords of the heavenly music.
The stars began to fade; it was only right, for they could not compare to his Fluttershy.
"Discord...come back to me..."
There was a sadness in her voice, a longing despair, that he yearned to soothe. She sounded so faint, so distant, and yet, if he just reached out...he was sure he would be able to touch her.
The stars disappeared completely, but instead, soft, pink locks fell, tickling his face, smelling of sweet perfume, reminding him of silk.
He wanted to run his paw through those waves, to feel them on his skin, against his chest, against his face, to see the playful, radiant blue eyes, that sparkled in their shadow.
He wanted to see her face, her sweet, young, beautiful face, that still possessed so much innocence, despite everything that she had been through. She was one of the strongest ponies he had ever known; a heroine out of a storybook. And she filled him with strength, making him feel more like a hero, than a villain. Helping him to believe that he could be so much more than just a beast that hid behind a mask...
The concert that heaven was giving him could wait. He needed his angel, he wanted her desperately, and he felt, deep in his heart, that she wanted and needed him too.
No, it was deeper than want or need; she loved him. And he loved her with his entire being; more than music itself.
"D-d-d-discord?" Fluttershy stammered with surprise and joy as her beloved slowly began to open his eyes. A hoof flew to her mouth to keep from sobbing, as joyous tears streamed down her cheeks at the wonderful sight of his amber eyes, focusing upon her face. "DISCORD!" she cried, not being able to contain herself anymore, throwing her arms around him, hugging him fiercely, murmuring a never-ending prayer of thankfulness to God for bringing her love back to the world.
Discord groaned as a sharp pain throbbed in his side. He ached all over, every muscle, every joint, everything a person could imagine. But despite the pain that wracked his body, the feel of Fluttershy's arms and her sweet tears, baptizing his skin with her love, made the pain wash away.
"I k-k-knew it...I k-knew it..." she sobbed against his chest, and Discord, wincing as he lifted his arm, let out a grateful sigh, as his hooves finally made contact with her silken pink strands.
"W-what did you know?" he murmured, despite the pain in his chest.
Fluttershy lifted her tear-filled eyes, her smile brighter than anything he had ever seen. "I...I knew that..." she swallowed the emotional lump in her throat. "I knew that you would come back to me," she finally gasped, grinning and crying all at once.
Discord felt his heart swell at Fluttershy's words, and he longed more than anything to have the strength to pull her into his embrace, and crush her against his body. "Fluttershy..."
"Hush," she whispered, sitting up and wiping the tears from her face. "Don't talk, just rest...I will get the doctor."
Discord's brow furrowed at Fluttershy's words, and it was then that he realized his surroundings. He was lying in a bed, one that was slightly warmer and softer than he had ever experienced. He also realized that under all the thick blankets that covered him, he was naked. There was a bulky bandage on his side, and his ankle felt even stiffer than before, but that was due to a heavy, and somewhat larger, split that he was wearing. There was a bandage over the arm where he had been stabbed, as well as shot at, and he felt a soft sting on his unscarred cheek, remembering how Blueblood had slashed at his skin.
Blueblood. The last thing he remembered was that villain stabbing him, quite literally in the back, after he chose to be merciful to the coward. The moments that followed that were hazy at best.
"W-w-wait," he gasped, reaching out for Fluttershy.
Fluttershy paused and returned to Discord, her hooves entwining with his paw. "I'm here," she whispered, squeezing his paw with affection as she knelt by his bedside.
"W-w-where...?"
"Madame Luna's," Fluttershy confirmed. "Do you...do you remember anything?"
Discord shook his head, but his eyes told her he was desperate to understand.
"Blueblood...he stabbed you," Fluttershy explained, her hoof squeezing his paw even tighter. She had come so close to losing him again. "But in his attempts to kill you, he lost his footing on the ledge...and fell to his death."
Blueblood was dead? Discord could hardly believe it! His enemy of so many years...dead, just like that. But he did not feel any remorse, or regret for the fallen stallion; it was a fitting death for such a person, lacking all traces of honor.
"They...they found this on him..." Fluttershy whispered, reaching over to the nightstand beside the bed, and placing Discord's white half-mask in his paw and claw.
Discord looked down at the mask, the so-called trophy that the Prince had been keeping. It was his once more, and with a shaky paw and claw, he carefully placed it back over his face, hiding his scars once more from the world around him.
Fluttershy smiled down at him, knowing that it was important to Discord to wear his mask, even though she loved him and found him handsome. It had been so long since she had seen him wear the half-mask, and she had often wondered what had become of it. She would ask Discord later, but right now, all that mattered was that he healed properly.
"I...I t-thought you had died," she whispered, so softly, that Discord had to strain his ears to hear. "You looked...you looked so pale, a-and you were lying so still...a-and you felt so cold..." she bit her lip to control her emotions. "Inspector Silverstar helped me carry you down, and we immediately took you here, to Madame Luna's, and summoned a doctor," she explained. "You were not dead, merely unconscious due to how much blood you had lost. But...had the doctor not arrived when he did-"
"Hush," Discord murmured, a hoof sliding up over her lips. "I am alright...I had my angel to guide me back."
Fluttershy let out a shaky sigh, fresh tears falling down her face, as she leaned forward to let her forehead rest against Discord's. "That's twice in one day that I believed you were dead," she gasped through the tears. "I never want to feel that pain again."
Discord lifted his claw to hold Fluttershy's face, and his eyes bore deeply into hers. No words were spoken; none needed to be. He regretted causing her that pain, he regretted all the pain that she had felt, from kidnapping her father, to forcing her to leave, to the prejudice she received at the opera house, and to this. She had a right to hate him, and yet, when he looked into her eyes, he saw nothing but the most sincere love reflected in her blue depths.
Fluttershy exhaled a long, shaky sigh, as Discord gently pulled her face down to his, and felt his lips softly, brush against hers. Little encouragement was needed, Fluttershy instantly responded to the kiss.
A gasp from the doorway caused the couple to break the kiss, and Fluttershy whirled around to see Rarity standing there, her cheeks flushed, but her eyes filling with happy tears as she stared at Discord with surprise. "M-m-master?" she gasped, her voice trembling. Then, before anything else was said, Rarity turned her head over her shoulder and shouted, "THE MASTER IS AWAKE! HE LIVES! THE MASTER IS AWAKE!"
A great trampling sound could be heard from all over the house, and suddenly, several heads were pushing inside the doorway, gasping and smiling at the sight of Discord, awake and sitting up.
"M-m-m-master!" Derpy happily stammered. Shortround lifted his hooves in thankful prayer, and even Rainbow Dash appeared to be smiling broadly, something Fluttershy was not used to seeing.
Both Twilight and Madame Luna were standing in the doorway as well, hugging one another and smiling happily at Fluttershy, and Fluttershy's smile only brightened as her father grinned back at her, feeling such joy for his daughter.
"Ahem!" the many bodies and faces suddenly moved apart as a small red haired mare, pushed her way inside the bedroom. "If you will excuse me, I have a patient to tend to," the nurse barked.
Fluttershy planted a kiss to Discord's brow, before rising and giving his paw one last squeeze. "I shall be back soon," she promised, smiling from the doorway, feeling such relief fill her as Discord's eyes continued to hold hers, even after she shut the door.
He's alive! He will be fine!
Never, never had she felt such joy, such pure happiness in all her life. She immediately flew down the stairs from the bedroom, fully prepared to throw herself into cooking a pot of hot soup for Discord, when Madame Luna's cold voice interrupted her merriment.
"Fluttershy, you should come here," the dance mistress icily murmured from the parlor.
Fluttershy immediately went to where the mare stood, and felt her insides freeze at the sight in front of her.
It was Inspector Silverstar, with both Monsieur Flim and Monsieur Flam on either side. "Mademoiselle," the chief inspector greeted in a cold voice. "I am sorry to inform you of this...but I have come to arrest the creature you call Discord; the Phantom of the Opera."
Derpy bit her lip as she watched the scene before her from the safety of the keyhole in the room she was hiding in .
"What are they saying?" Rainbow Dash hissed, trying very hard to control her anxiety. She was not used to being around all these other ponies, and it was treading thinly on her nerves.
"Keep calm," Shortround whispered, as he put his ear to the door, trying very hard to listen.
"YOU'RE INSANE!" Madame Luna shouted at the chief inspector and the two opera managers.
"Madame, please," Silverstar sighed. "I must arrest him-"
"ON WHAT GROUNDS!?" the dance mistress fumed.
"W-w-what grounds!?" Flam sputtered in disbelief. "Murder, kidnapping, stealing, harassment, arson-"
Fluttershy's eyes widened at Flam's words. "Are you blaming Discord for that fire?"
"He started it!" Flim accused. "While you were falling through the stage, your Phantom cut the rope of the chandelier, nearly killing everypony in that room!"
"But he didn't," Madame Luna hissed.
"IT'S THE PRINCIPLE OF THE THING!" Flim roared at the mare. "Had he not cut that rope, the chandelier wouldn't have fallen, and the opera house would not have gone up in flames!"
"So you're saying that Fluttershy and Discord should have just stayed where they were and risked being shot by the Prince!?"
Flam glared at the dance mistress. "You should have a little more respect for the dead, madam. That stallion was a genius! He helped make the Maris Opera House one of the finest in all of Europe!"
"No, Discord was the one that made the Maris Opera House great! And the stallion you speak so highly about, was a murderer!" Madame Luna retorted. "Or was I wrong in seeing him shoot Signor Fancypants?"
Flam paled at the mare's words. "It was an accident! The Prince did not mean to shoot Signor Fancypants, he simply...well, that is to say-"
"So if the Prince begins to madly shoot at someone, and 'accidentally' kills someone else, it's alright...but if Discord cuts the chandelier to escape, and 'accidentally' starts a fire...it's arson?"
"YOU ARE TWISTING MY WORDS, MADAME!" Flam shouted.
"AND YOU ARE AN IDIOT!" Madame Luna retorted.
"PLEASE!" Silverstar barked, bringing all attention back to him. "I am well aware of the damage that the Prince has committed. And were he still alive today...I would be arresting him as well," he added, his eyes boring into those of the dance mistress. "The point, however, is that the Phantom, who we now know exists and is indeed normal, has committed many crimes over the last few decades! Several ponies have gone missing, and several bodies have been discovered, each with a mysterious rope wrapped around their necks-"
"He was not killing them in cold blood!" Fluttershy defended, lifting her chin high. "Discord never killed unless he had no other choice."
Silverstar cocked a gray brow at Fluttershy's words. "Truly? So if he sent a note to Madam Octavia," he indicated to an old piece of parchment in his hoof, "that stated if he didn't replace the third trombone, the stallion would wish he were dead, you would say that this was a murder of...necessity?"
Fluttershy paled slightly, but Madame Luna was quick to answer. "That stallion was not murdered," she groaned. "Discord frightened him, that is all, forcing him to quit. Ask Octavia, she will tell you the truth! The day after he received that note, the stallion announced his leaving, and was never seen from again. But he certainly was not murdered by the Phantom."
Both Flam and Flim paled slightly, trying to think of another accusation. "The truth is," Madame Luna continued. "Discord has only killed three or four stallions since he has come to live at the opera house."
"B-b-but the stories said-"
"Those are ghost stories spread by stagehooves and dancers, Monsieur Flim," Madame Luna groaned. "A ghost story would not be as frightening if not exaggerated."
Silverstar narrowed his eyes with suspicion. "So he only killed three or four stallions; it wouldn't matter if he had killed twenty, it's still murder, Madame Luna!"
"N-n-no!"
Everypony in the room gasped when Derpy suddenly burst into the parlor from the side room she and the others had been hiding. Rainbow Dash was cursing and sputtering at being revealed, and Shortround and Rarity looked both frantic, as well as cautious, as they peeked out from their hiding place.
"Good God!" Flim gasped at the sight of the hunchback. Flam simply whimpered and hid behind his partner.
"T-t-t-the Master o-only k-killed t-t-those men t-to protect us!" Derpy defended. "T-t-t-those men invaded o-our home...a-a-a-and t-the Master c-c-couldn't risk h-having them t-tell others...s-s-s-so, h-he did w-what he had to...f-f-for us!"
Fluttershy stepped forward and took Derpy's hoof in hers. "These are living beings, just like you and I, Inspector. And yet for much of their lives, they were put in cages and treated worse than animals! Discord vowed to them all to never allow that to happen to them again."
Derpy smiled down at Fluttershy and then turned her eyes back to Silverstar. "I know t-t-that m-murder is w-wrong," she murmured. "B-but h-he d-did it for us...to k-keep us safe...s-s-so if you're going to a-a-arrest him...t-t-then you n-need to arrest me, too."
"No!" gasped Twilight, who was standing off to the side with Time Turner.
Silverstar sighed and shook his head. "I will not be arresting..." he looked at Derpy and swallowed the nervous lump in his throat, "you," he murmured. "But what you say is true...murder is wrong, and for that, as well as for many other crimes that the Phantom has committed, I must arrest him!"
"Why?"
Everypony turned to the voice that spoke up from the other side of the room. "Papa?" Fluttershy whispered, confusion filling her eyes from her father's question.
"Monsieur Time Turner, I must say, you of all ponies surprise me. After raving about your daughter being kidnapped by the Phantom, I would think you would wish to see justice done more than anyone!"
Time Turner lifted his chin, his eyes staying focused on Silverstar's. "You are right, inspector, I do wish to see justice done...and I want you to look into my daughter's eyes, and tell her how long you had me prisoner."
Silverstar suddenly went stiff at the old man's words. A deftly silence fell over the room, and even Flam and Flim looked confused. "Yes..." Madame Luna murmured, turning towards Silverstar. "Do tell us all, how long was Monsieur Time Turner your prisoner?"
"I...I...that is..." he swallowed the growing lump in his throat and did his best to keep his eyes adverted from all the ponies around him, especially those of Fluttershy's. "I have a duty to this city! A stallion raving about a monster would naturally be considered a threat to society. What I did is no different than what others would have done!"
"Perhaps, but if I was considered a madstallion, then why was I kept in jail?" Time Turner inquired, his eyes never leaving Silverstar's.
"Well, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for that..." Silverstar muttered, although he seemed to be delaying with giving it.
"You never told my daughter how long I was kept in prison," Time Turner reminded.
"I don't have to tell your daughter anything!" the chief inspector barked. "And I am not here to answer your silly questions; I am here to arrest-"
"Nearly six months, Fluttershy," her father answered. "From the night we were parted, to the night you found me, I was kept in that jail."
Fluttershy stared at her father, and then at the chief inspector. She knew from what Madame Luna had told her, that Discord had learned of her father's whereabouts the same night she had; but she had no idea her father had been in jail for so long.
"After I realized the Prince was no gentlecolt..." Time Turner continued, "I began to question why he was always seen at the police station. Madame Luna saw him there, my daughter saw him there, it seemed he was spending more and more time there, than at the opera house itself."
The managers turned to Silverstar, waiting for an explanation from everypony. The chief inspector looked more and more uncomfortable under all the stares.
"Then my daughter told me how she offered to pay well over 300 franks in gold for my release." A large gasp went up from the two managers, and Silverstar's face paled even further. "In the end, it was the Prince who paid for my release, but not because he wished to do so out of the goodness of his heart, but because your station refused to accept the money she offered, telling her it wasn't enough."
"That's right," Fluttershy added, remembering the day very clearly. "I remember being shocked by the news, thinking it was more than enough...and later, my father told me that indeed it was! That I had been cheated out of my money."
"Of course, Fluttershy hadn't been cheated, the Prince had. Yet why would he continue to do so much business with you, unless of course, he hadn't been cheated...and it was simply a ruse to fool my daughter..."
Silverstar stomped his foot, tired of all this second guessing. "Why don't you just say what you're trying to say, Time Turner," he growled in exasperation.
The old stallion smiled and softly nodded his head. "I think that if you believed I was as much of a madman as you claim, that I had to be taken off the streets, then I should have been thrown into an asylum. However, I wasn't; and I know that it can be costly, keeping a prisoner for as long as you did, in that place." Time Turner lifted his own blue eyes to meet Silverstar's, which were blinking rapidly out of nervousness. "I think that you were doing business with the Prince...and that you were accepting bribes from him in order to keep me there."
Silverstar let out a sudden, wild laugh, as if trying to make everypony doubt what Time Turner was saying. "C-c-can you believe the words coming out of his mouth?" he gasped between laughs, looking at all the faces around him. Sadly, no one else was seeing the humor of the situation.
"I can believe it," Madame Luna stepped forward. "Whenever I entered that place, I was always met with disdain from your officers, as if they were desperately trying to keep something from me."
"Oh come now!" Silverstar defended. "Why would I want to keep a harmless old stallion-"
"But I thought you said I was a 'madstallion that needed to be kept off the streets'?"
"Shut up, Time Turner!" the chief inspector barked.
Derpy stepped forward, growling at Silverstar. "Y-y-you d-d-don't talk to Fluttershy's f-f-father t-that way," she warned.
Silverstar eyed the hunchback warily. "Y-you're lucky I don't arrest you, mademoiselle," he murmured to Fluttershy. "Harboring criminals-"
"Harboring criminals?" Fluttershy spat in outrage. "I followed the law and paid for Derpy's release! And the only crime she is guilty of is defending herself when your stallions attempted to beat her like a dog!"
Silverstar opened his mouth to respond, but found that there was nothing he could say in his defense. "You are avoiding the topic, Inspector," Time Turner commented. "Look me in the eyes and tell me that you were not taking bribes from the Prince."
"Good God," Flim gasped, a sudden realization coming to him.
"What?" Flam asked, his head spinning from all the secrets.
The older manager looked at Silverstar in horror, before turning to his partner. "I think it's best that we leave-"
"You are going nowhere, my dear messieurs," Madame Luna hissed, coming to stand between the managers and the doorway. "At least, not until you share with us your startling revelation."
Derpy took a menacing step towards the two trembling stallions, and in a matter of seconds, their stone-cold resolve vanished.
"The Prince mentioned he could bring Fluttershy back to the opera house!"
"He said he knew how to draw her out!"
"He kept referring to Fluttershy as the bait for his trap!"
"We didn't know he was using Time Turner, we swear!"
Madame Luna groaned and began rubbing her temples as the two stallions continued talking at once. Yet it was enough for everypony; Blueblood's evil plans had been revealed at last.
"Mama, are you implying that the Prince knew Monsieur Time Turner was in prison, and bribed Inspector Silverstar to keep him there, until Fluttershy made another appearance?" Twilight asked, trying to put all the puzzle pieces together.
"I think that is exactly what Monsieur Time Turner and I are thinking...and I think that is exactly what happened, am I wrong Inspector?" Madame Luna asked, lifting a dark brow in question.
The chief inspector shifted his weight uncomfortably and found himself staring at the ground, unable to look at the others around him.
"I think the chief inspector's silence is more than enough proof," Time Turner muttered with disgust.
"B-b-but the explosion!" Flam gasped. "The Phantom sent us a note, promising a disaster! Surely that gives us grounds to arrest him-"
"Blueblood was behind that explosion, not Discord!" Fluttershy defended, glaring at the younger manager for even suggesting such a thing.
Flam glared back. "I have his note, right here," he retorted, waving the piece of paper in the air.
However, Silverstar snatched the letter right out of the younger manager's hooves, and began to read it. "This is the Prince's writing," he murmured with surprise.
"WHAT?!?" Flim and Flam gasped together.
"He's right," Madame Luna added, while looking over the chief inspector's shoulder. "This is not Discord's writing...and the seal is not his either."
"Exactly," Fluttershy confirmed. "The gypsies from that carnival kidnapped Discord's friends, and then poured gun powder everywhere. They revealed it all to me the night I was brought back to the opera house."
Time Turner nodded his head. "So the Prince staged that explosion, blaming it on the Phantom, while at the same time, plotting with both the managers, and the police, all an extremely elaborate way to kill Discord...and defile my daughter." His eyes bore into those of the chief inspector, growing bright with anger. "And you helped him!"
"Now see here!" Silverstar argued, although his voice was extremely weak. "None of that changes the fact that the Phantom is under arrest-"
"Oh it changes everything very much," Time Turner muttered. "You wish to arrest a stallion that you didn't believe existed for past crimes that your stallions didn't even bother to investigate properly. And after all that you've done to me, to my family," he wrapped a protective arm around Fluttershy's shoulders, "you come here, talking about justice?"
Silverstar was speechless. And Time Turner, was right.
"I think what would be best is that we forget these incidents," Madame Luna sighed. "We will not say anything to the papers about your corruption...if you do not arrest Discord."
Silverstar was stunned speechless. He glanced at the two managers, whose mouths were hanging open with surprise. They had been defeated, and the only way to escape this scandal with any sort of dignity was to agree. "Very well," he muttered. "He is free."
A joyous gasp escaped from the side room where the others remained, and even Rainbow Dash looked happily amazed. Fluttershy grinned and hugged Derpy close, before turning and hugging her father. Twilight happily hugged her mother, and Madame Luna politely opened the door. "I trust that you gentlecolts can see yourselves out?"
The managers grumbled, and Inspector Silverstar quickly followed, not looking back once.
It was over. Truly, Discord, and his friends, had nothing more to fear. The danger had past.
"Ahem!"
All heads turned to see the doctor coming down the steps, still looking quite gruff, but also slightly more relaxed. "He is healing faster than most stallions I have treated, especially for someone with wounds such as his. I would not suggest that he get out of bed for at least a few more days; the stitches are still quite delicate, and no doubt he will have a fever before fully recovering. I suggest a week of bed rest, just to be safe."
Madame Luna nodded her head and thanked the doctor before showing him out. Fluttershy, however, was already climbing the steps, taking two at a time, eager to once more see Discord and be by his side.
There was so much to talk about; so much to plan! But first, she just wanted to take comfort with him by her side, to tend him and care for him. The danger had past; the shadows could finally lift for good.
"A week!?" he gasped, when Fluttershy told him the news.
Fluttershy was kneeling by the side of his bed, her small hooves curled up inside his larger paw and claw. Every now and then, she'd run her cheek across his knuckles, an action that squeezed at Discord's heart, although right now, the only emotion he was feeling was annoyance from the doctor's instructions.
"I can't stay in bed for a whole week!" he grumbled.
"It will do you some good," Fluttershy murmured, placing a kiss on his hoof. "The rest will help you regain your strength, and your ankle will heal so much better with you being off it."
Discord made a face, reminding Fluttershy of a spoiled child, and she bit her lip so as not to laugh. However, Discord saw the amusement in her eyes and glared back. "Is something funny?"
Try as she might, Fluttershy could not help it, and a giggle escaped her lips. Discord fumed and pouted, while her giggles grew more and more. "I'm glad my injuries amuse you so much," he muttered.
"Oh Discord..." she gasped between giggles. "Y-you know t-t-that's not true," she took several deep breaths to calm herself. "It's just...we've done this before," she grinned. "And I think...that was when we began to fall in love."
Discord's annoyance melted at Fluttershy's words, and her amused grin melted into a tender smile, before leaning her cheek forward, once more, to rest against Discord's paw. It seemed so long ago, but they both remembered the time she had brought him back to the opera house, and how they fought while she stitched up his wounds.
Yes, Discord smiled to himself. Perhaps that was the moment when things between them began to change for the better?
"I will need something to do," Discord sighed, his body leaning back against the pillows in defeat. "I simply can not just...lie here, all day and all night."
Fluttershy grinned and kissed his hoof once more before rising to her feet. "I shall fetch you some parchment, some ink, and a pen, and when you run out from your composing, I will gladly get you some more." However, the second the words had left her lips, Fluttershy's grin faded. "Discord? What's wrong?"
Discord looked away, and Fluttershy saw the way his jaw was clenched, as if fighting some overwhelming emotion. "Discord?" she whispered, a sense of worry coming over her. "Discord, what is it? What's wrong-"
"EVERYTHING!" he roared, his amber eyes glowing with rage. "I'M IN CONSTANT PAIN, I CAN'T GET OUT OF BED, I HAVE NO HOME, MY MUSIC IS GONE, I HAVE NOTHING LEFT!" He collapsed back against his pillows, groaning as the pain throbbed throughout his body, and then lifted his eyes up to Fluttershy, who was trembling from his shouts. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I...I did not mean to yell at you, I'm sorry Fluttershy."
Fluttershy knew his anger was not directed at her, but she felt his sorrow and his anger for losing the world he had spent so much of his life building.
"Twenty years," he whispered. "Nearly twenty years of music...gone."
Fluttershy took a step towards the bed. "The paper may be gone Discord, but the music still lives," she reached out and placed a gentle hoof on his chest. "In here, and in your mind."
Discord shook his head. "It's more than the music Fluttershy, it's everything! All my possessions, all of Derpy's books, Rarity's dresses, everything! I have nothing left."
Fluttershy shook her head and knelt down once more beside him. "You have me," she whispered, before moving his hoof to her belly. "You have our baby, and you have Shortround, Rarity, Derpy, Rainbow Dash-"
"But I have nothing to provide for you!" he interrupted, his eyes filled with a sadness that pained him even more than his wounds. "Don't you understand Fluttershy? I have nothing to give you...nothing to help raise our child, nothing to help my friends. All the money I once had, the money I was going to use to buy us a home...it's gone." He released a sigh of defeat before turning his head away from her. "Blueblood may be dead...but he has still managed to proclaim some small victory over me."
Fluttershy shook her head, feeling cold tears trickle down her cheeks. Discord could not give up! Not now! He needed to have hope; he needed to believe that everything would be all right. She opened her mouth to speak, but a sudden knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.
"I beg your pardon..." Time Turner whispered, poking his head inside the door. "But...Fluttershy, there is a matter of great importance that I need to speak with you about."
Fluttershy turned to look at Discord, but he continued to gaze out the window, as if he hadn't even acknowledged the fact that her father had just spoken to them. Reluctantly, she released his hoof, and followed her father out into the hall.
The look at her father's face caused Fluttershy's heart to skip a beat. "Papa...what's wrong?" Her mind began to run wild with horrible images. Silverstar has returned; he has found some way to arrest Discord!
"A messenger just arrived," he began, taking his daughter's hooves in his.
Not Inspector Silverstar, but a messenger who has come on his behalf to warn them!
"He had been traveling for several days, trying to find us...or, rather, trying to find you."
Oh God, is this another trick of Blueblood's? Has the stallion created a back-up plan, in case he failed?
"The messenger brought greetings from the house of the late Marquis Filthy Rich."
All of Fluttershy's suspicions flew away at her father's words. "The Marquis Filthy Rich?" Why did that name sound familiar? Why would anyone from a noble household be looking for her? "I don't understand..."
Time Turner sighed and brought Fluttershy over to a set of chairs, urging her to sit down before he continued. "The Marquis Filthy Rich was your grandfather, Fluttershy. He was your mother's father."
Fluttershy gasped, the realization suddenly dawning on her. That was why the name was so familiar! Yet why would the pony who was responsible for taking away the Time Turner farm, bother with sending a messenger to find her? "What was the message he had come to bring me?" After all these years of rejecting her existence, Fluttershy had no intention of reconciling with the old noblecolt.
"The Marquis Filthy Rich died, two days ago," Time Turner murmured, his eyes watching Fluttershy's intently.
Fluttershy bit her lip, feeling a small stab of guilt for thinking ill of the pony. She nodded her head, asking her father to continue.
"And...it appears, he was the last of the Filthy Rich's. His wife had died a few years ago, and all of his children were dead. Yet the Marquis never changed his will..."
Fluttershy's eyes narrowed at her father's words. "Papa...?"
Time Turner sighed and gripped his daughter's hooves tightly. "Fluttershy...you are the Marquis Filthy Rich's only living descendent. And because he never changed his will...you inherit everything."
Fluttershy blinked several times before the weight of her father's words finally sank over her. "W-w-what?"
Her father's eyes were lighting up with happiness. "Fluttershy, you're an heiress! You have inherited the entire Filthy Rich fortune, and their country estate!"
It was a good thing she was sitting down, for Fluttershy did not think her legs would be able to hold her. Her mother's snobbish, uncaring family, who had done so much to make her and her father's life miserable, had somehow left their entire fortune...to her.
"Fluttershy?" she realized that her father had been saying her name and turned to him, her surprise still evident. "Well?" he grinned. "What do you think?"
"I...I..." Fluttershy took a deep breath. "I...I don't know if...if I want it."
Time Turner's face sank slightly at her words. "Not want it? Fluttershy...this is more money than...than either of us can imagine! You will never want for anything again! You can live comfortably, just as I have always wished for you," his hoof lifted to caress her cheek. "You can have the life I have always wished I could give to you."
Fluttershy shook her head. "Papa, that money, that house, those things belonged to the ponies that treated us horribly!" she slowly stood up and turned her back on her father. "I don't know if I want to have anything to do with it."
Time Turner sighed and rose to gently touch his daughter's shoulders. "Fluttershy, I know what you are saying. And I won't deny that a part of me is proud to hear you say those things. But my dear," he slowly turned her to face him. "There is a thin line between stubbornness...and foolishness. Do not allow your pride to push you in the wrong direction."
He released her shoulders then and walked away, leaving Fluttershy alone with her thoughts.
Some time later, she gently knocked on Discord's door, her hooves full with parchment, ink, and several quill pens that Madame Luna kept. She heard no sound, and slowly opened the door. Perhaps he was sleeping? Instead, she found him exactly as how she had left him, staring out the window, his jaw set, and his face grim. Quietly, she shut the door behind her and softly approached the bed. "I brought you some parchment, should you wish to compose," she whispered.
Nothing.
She sighed with a slight hint of annoyance. This attitude was going to get old very quickly. "Discord-"
"Thank you, Fluttershy," he whispered. "But I do not feel like composing now. In fact, I wish to be left alone, if you don't mind."
Fluttershy folded her arms across her chest and stood her ground. "I do mind, actually."
Discord finally turned and shifted his gaze upon her. "I am not in the mood for jokes or games, Fluttershy-"
"Nor I!" Fluttershy replied, before settling herself down on a nearby chair. "And trust me, this is no joke or game."
Discord groaned as he attempted to sit up more, his eyes never leaving hers. "Something on your mind, my dear?" he asked, his words cut short.
"Several things, actually," she replied. "I know that you've lost so much...and for that, I truly pity you-"
"I don't want your pity!" he barked.
"Too bad!" she retorted, feeling the fire in her spirit rise again. "I know how it feels to lose everything! After my mother died...I felt so lost. And then her family took our farm out from under my father and me, without any warning, and suddenly...our entire world, was gone, just like that."
She took a deep breath, and reached for his paw, grateful that he did not pull away. "Discord...I am trying to say that I understand how it feels. Yes, it is a hopeless, horrible feeling. And it is different for everypony...but it can be better! You simply have to want it to be-"
"You're right, it is different," Discord interrupted, his eyes gazing at their entwined hooves. "Fluttershy...I want to provide you a home, a comfortable living, for both you and our child! I have promised to take care of the others, and I will continue to do that, but...with what? I can't do any of those things! I have no music to sell, no possessions to pawn, I have nothing!"
"But we have each other," she implored, leaving the chair and kneeling beside the bed. "And together, we can help one another."
Discord gazed deeply into her blue eyes and saw such love, such dedication, more than he possibly deserved. She was right, he knew that, and he knew he should be thanking God from the bottom of his heart for bringing them together, but it hurt, knowing that he could not take proper care of her, of their baby, the way he had wanted to.
"Discord..." Fluttershy softly murmured, realization suddenly coming upon her. "There is a way for us to live comfortably...giving us the time we need for you to be able compose again, and to provide for the others..."
Discord's eyes narrowed with confusion. What did she mean exactly?
"I have just received word, that my mother's father, the Marquis Filthy Rich...has died. And has left me his fortune, as well as his country estate."
Discord's eyes widened at the revelation of her words. Fluttershy was now a rich mare!
"Don't you see?" she continued. "The estate will be ours! We can move in immediately, and there will be plenty of room for the others! They will not have to live in fear of being suspected or detected, the estate is remote, and-"
"You are a rich mare, Fluttershy," he whispered.
Fluttershy frowned slightly; it felt so odd, saying that. Her father had called her an heiress, but Discord's words were more to the point. Yes, she was a rich mare now-but it was money that did not just belong to her. It also belonged to her father, to Discord, to their friends, to their child-
"And you can do much better than a disfigured, homeless, composer."
Fluttershy blinked at the words that Discord had just whispered. Had she heard him correctly? "W-w-what?"
Discord sighed and turned his head away from her once more. "I am happy for you, and for your father. You deserve this, truly..." he softly murmured. "But a mare with such a fortune deserves a stallion who can-OW!" he cursed as a great wave of pain shook his chest. He turned his head then to see Fluttershy, glaring at him, her eyes filled with tears and anger, and before he could prepare himself, she hit him across the chest again.
"HOW DARE YOU!" she hissed at him, before hitting him again. "HOW DARE YOU SAY SUCH THINGS TO ME!"
Discord caught her before she could hit him again, to which she struggled against his grip, before crumpling in a crying heap against him.
Discord felt a new pain in his chest, although he knew what it was. Fluttershy did not protest as she felt Discord's injured, yet strong arms, wrap around her, and pull her up completely onto the bed. She curled herself against him, her head nestled in the crook of his shoulder, her face buried against his body, as the tears ran over his skin. "Please..." he whispered, running his hooves over her cheek. "Please, angel...please don't cry."
"Discord...Discord you promised..." she sobbed against him. "You p-p-promised to n-never f-f-force me away again!" She rose up then, and hit his chest again, although this time, Discord was prepared...and felt it was rightly deserved.
"You are right," he groaned, after her recent attack. "You are right...and I am an idiot for even thinking such things, let alone saying them," he reached to hold her face, marveling at the strength and spirit this mare possessed. Truly, this, and her sweet nature, was what made her beautiful. "Forgive me, Fluttershy? Forgive your foolish Phantom?"
Fluttershy felt a smile slowly break forth across her tear-stained face. "Only if...if you can f-forgive me, for...for hitting you," she murmured, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"It was rightly deserved," he whispered, smiling up at her before coaxing her body to lie back down against him. Fluttershy snuggled against his warmth and wrapped her arms around his waist, smiling as she felt Discord's warm arms hold her close, and his hooves run through her hair. "An estate, you say?" he asked.
Fluttershy nodded. "Yes, I am not sure where exactly, but Papa seems to know. From what he has briefly told me, it is remote..."
"Good," Discord whispered. "That will make it easier for the others, I think."
Fluttershy shifted slightly, so that she could look into Discord's eyes. "What are you saying, Discord?"
"I'm saying," he sighed, "that there is a thin line between stubbornness and foolishness...and sometimes, one's pride can lead a pony down the wrong path."
Fluttershy froze as her father's words tumbled out of her beloved's mouth. And then a grin began to spread across her face, before laughter bubbled up and out of her throat. "Indeed..." she giggled, grinning all the more as Discord stared at her with wonder. "Indeed...it can."
"You will never cease to amaze me," he murmured in awe, feeling a grin begin to spread on his own face as he watched her laugh. He then reached for her left hoof, and brought it to his lips, before holding it over his heart. The laughter in Fluttershy's throat died away and her eyes locked with Discord's.
"Fluttershy...this is twice now when I cannot kneel before you as I ask this...but I hope you will still accept, despite the lack of romantic formality-"
Any other words were cut off as Fluttershy's mouth covered his in a passionate, loving kiss, her hooves tenderly holding his masked face, as her joyful tears ran from her cheeks down onto his.
"Yes," she murmured against his lips, grinning as she felt his arms wrap around her, and slowly, roll her over onto her back. "Careful," she giggled. "The doctor advised that you do not do any 'rigorous' activity, for fear of breaking your stitches."
Discord growled and stopped her from giggling as he kissed her. "I have always considered myself a fast healer," he growled, before kissing her throat. "And I have every intention of being fully healed before the week is over."
Fluttershy giggled as she caught her breath at last. "What happens then?"
"Then," Discord growled, leaning his head against hers, and lifting his eyebrows suggestively. "Then, I shall take my angel as my wife."
Fluttershy grinned and offered her mouth once more to her Angel of Music. "I eagerly look forward to it."
Exactly four days later, as promised, Discord was out of bed, and walking perfectly well on his own two feet. His wounds had remarkably healed, so remarkably that even the doctor could not explain it.
Madame Luna was wary at first of letting Discord out, but after encouragement from the doctor, and after seeing Discord's own eagerness to break free from his "sheeted cage", she agreed, and helped the couple begin their plans.
Just as night had fallen over Maris, Madame Luna's carriage, as well as the black carriage from the opera house, carried the large group to the château that once belonged to the Marquis Filthy Rich, and had now been passed down to Fluttershy.
The ride, while long, was on a good road, and by the time darkness had enveloped the earth, they reached the stately country manor.
The house was indeed large, with more rooms than Fluttershy would know what to do with. The land that surrounded the château was even larger, with fields to work, as well as vast forests, beautiful gardens, and even a hedge maze! A tiny stone chapel lay at one end of the property, and a small white barn lay at the other.
There were few servants; many of had left after the Marquis's death, and those that had stayed seemed calm and quiet, and did not say anything once seeing Rarity, Derpy, Shortround, and a very reluctant Rainbow Dash. They were shocked, that could not be denied, but they kept their surprise entirely in their eyes, something that Discord found most agreeable, especially after they looked away from him, after noticing his mask, and his looks. So long as they offered loyal service, and did not question their new Master's mask, he saw no reason as to why they could not stay.
The house was entirely furnished, and much to Discord's happy surprise, there was a beautiful music room just down the hall from the master bedroom. A beautiful pianoforte sat in one corner, and Discord smiled as he ran his paw and claw across the keys to find that the instrument was still in tune.
Indeed, it seemed truly perfect.
The next day was a very busy day. Time Turner, with the help of Rainbow Dash and Derpy, moved what little possessions he and Fluttershy had into the château. Fluttershy spent the day with Twilight, Madame Luna, and Rarity, blushing and pacing with anxiety while the three mares attempted to fit a beautiful white gown on her, giggling as she nervously fussed.
Discord spent the day in solitude, feeling rather grateful for it. He explained to Fluttershy how he had looked like a pony while at the opera house, old magic he remembered from childhood, she was impressed but he told her he could only do it for short periods, and that he could never be the stallion she deserved. She had hugged him and said that she didn't care and that the creature she loved stood before her and she would never want him to change. He and Fluttershy had agreed he should hide his looks for the service, no need to scare the priest. He was happy, his life had already changed in so many ways, but tonight...tonight it would change forever.
Finally, dusk came to the château, and Fluttershy, with the aid of Rarity, set out for the tiny stone chapel, taking in deep breaths with every step, clutching the bouquet of spring flowers that Twilight had picked for her, to her breast.
The chapel doors opened, and soft organ music began to play. The servants were gathered inside, and quickly rose to their feet as Fluttershy entered the chapel. Her father, standing proudly, smiling and crying at the same time, led her down the aisle, as Rarity walked behind her train. Rainbow Dash, Shortround, and Derpy, stood on one side, while Twilight and Madame Luna stood on the other. In the center, an old monk stood, smiling as Fluttershy approached...and next to him, dressed handsomely in black trousers, a crisp, white linen shirt, a red and gold vest, and a black waistcoat and cravat, stood her future husband.
Discord's breath caught in his throat as Fluttershy descended the aisle. The white gown she wore was simple in decoration, but perhaps the most beautiful gown he had ever seen. It truly surpassed both the ivory gown and the gold gown she wore to the masquerade ball. Small bits of lace lined the hem and the bodice, and a soft, lacy veil covered her face. Fluttershy smiled as she reached the alter, and let out her own shaky breath, as she felt Discord's arm take hers.
The priest began the wedding vows. Fluttershy swallowed the emotional lump in her throat as Discord held her gloved hoof in his, looking deeply into her eyes, as he recited his vows to her...and Discord felt his heart skip a beat while he listened to Fluttershy's sweet vows to him.
The priest took the bracelet that Discord had provided, and urged the masked stallion to place it on Fluttershy's hoof after reciting a blessing over it.
Fluttershy felt a few tears slip down her cheeks as she felt Discord's hoof slip the bracelet down her hoof, and she sighed a thankful prayer as the priest murmured a blessing upon them both.
Fluttershy squeezed Discord's hoof lovingly, as the priest murmured the final blessing, before announcing them as husband and wife.
Discord wasted no time with lifting Fluttershy's veil, and to the applause of their friends and family, took his bride's face and kissed her deeply, telling her with all his heart how deeply he loved her, and how lost he would have been had she not stumbled into his life.
Although he may be disguised as a pony on the outside, inside his face and body remained unchanged and deformed. Discord with the knowledge she loved him as he truly looked felt like a prince; one of Fluttershy's dark, gothic, romantic heroes. Indeed, her love had broken the icy spell that had fallen over his heart, and had turned this masked monster into a stallion. |
The Opera Phantom Discord | Encore, an epilogue | Encore
an epilogue
Fluttershy's Diary, Summer, 1882
It has been five months since our marriage. And so much has happened...
Everything is well with the baby; the doctor recently examined me, and says that I am in excellent health, and should deliver a healthy child in the Fall. I must admit, while I am nervous, I am also very excited. I have been thinking of names recently, writing down those that I like, and sometimes crossing them out later after more careful thought. I still have a few months before I need to come to a decision, which I am most grateful for.
We have all settled here very well, I am happy to say. During our first months here, I feared that Inspector Silverstar would go back on his word, and attempt to arrest Discord. But thankfully, we have not seen nor heard from the chief inspector or any of his stallions.
I now understand why Blueblood was so persistent on pursuing my hoof in marriage. The papers made his death sound more tragic than it was, and his actions far more heroic than he deserved, but they also revealed that he had many outstanding gambling debts, as well as many unpaid loans that his own estate would barely cover. Apparently he knew about my relationship to the Marquis Filthy Rich, and had planned on using the money passed down to me to pay off his debts, and live in the lap of luxury.
Well, he would have been sorely upset then. While we are living quite comfortably, more comfortably than I have ever dreamed, the money is not as great as Blueblood would have liked. Papa quickly learned that the Marquis and his family had many unpaid debts and loans as well, especially to poor farming tenants that shared the land. I am happy to say, that we have quickly set things to right.
As for my dear friends, they seem happier than ever before. Rarity has taken to her role as housekeeper like a fish to water; it is easy to see who truly rules this manor. None of the other servants dare cross her path or question her decisions, at least not without careful consideration as to what may happen if they do. Truly, I always knew she was a queen, and now, she has made it a reality.
Rainbow Dash continues to fascinate me. Out of all of Discord's friends, she is still the one I know the least about, and I remember how once I feared she and I would never get along. I would not say that we are close friends, but we do have a mutual respect, and I never doubt her loyalty. Her fear of the world beyond the labyrinth of the opera house has almost disappeared. She is still wary, especially if an unknown carriage approaches the château, but she no longer feels the need to hide. She seems to be finally accepting that this is a safe haven, that the dreaded carnival will not snatch her away. I truly hope that she and I will get to know one another better.
And Derpy, dear Derpy; she perhaps loves this place more than anypony else.
While she has her own bedroom here in the house, it is not uncommon to discover that she has spent the entire night in the barn, despite the many reprimands she receives from Rarity. She loves being with the animals, and has made it her own responsibility to take care of them, as well as work with them to tend the fields. I think Papa sees Derpy as a daughter, and takes great pleasure in teaching her farming techniques.
As for the other servants, I am proud that they have grown accustomed to our little family. Not once do I see them staring or gawking, and they never, never, ask questions in regards to Discord's mask. It is a silent understanding that he seems to keep with the household. I understand his feelings and do not push him on the subject; he wears the mask wherever he goes, except for our bedroom. He will at least agree with me on that.
Madame Luna and Twilight often come to visit, something that I am very grateful for. My friendship with Twilight has continued to grow, and I often find myself thinking of her as a dear sister. I know my mother would have adored her, as well as find a kindred friend in Madame Luna.
When Madame Luna and Twilight arrive, we find ourselves spending long hours in the gardens, laughing and talking...and I am not proud when I say that it seems I have taken a taste for Marisian gossip. Naturally, I know very little about aristocracy of Maris, but the gossip they bring comes from opera house itself, and what gossip they brought today!
Celestia has decided to leave Maris, believing there is nothing here left for her. I would have assumed she'd travel back to Venice, or go to those other opera houses that she always bragged about, but no, she has gone somewhere else entirely!
It seems, that Celestia has had her fill with Equestria, and will be traveling overseas, to become the new diva at an opera house in...Manehattan.
Apparently they have been in demand for Equestrian singers, and once word reached them about her fame, they were more than happy to accept her to their company. I only hope they are prepared for the tempest they are about to receive.
Indeed, many changes have been going on at the opera house. It was only a month ago that Monsieur Flam and Monsieur Flim announced that they were quitting their positions, and leaving the opera business for good. You cannot imagine Discord's good humor when he heard this. Apparently, the two stallions were in, what Madame Luna calls, the 'junk business', and have decided to go back. Little else was said, but I think it is safe to say that after the ordeal at the opera house involving 'Don Juan Triumphant', the two stallions had had enough.
Speaking of Don Juan, that reminds me! Madame Luna told me how despite the fire and the pandemonium caused by Blueblood's shooting rampage, the opera was well received! Many critics, who chose to continue writing reviews after that chaotic night, found the music to be extremely modern...perhaps too modern for their liking, but found the story riveting, and many commented on the amazing 'transformation' of Don Juan, at the end of the Act III. The opera has received so much acclaim, that once the Maris Opera House is restored, critics are begging that it be performed again! And already, several letters have been sent to the opera house from other theaters across Equestria, begging for the opportunity to have it performed on their stages as well. It appears Blueblood was right about something; scandals do sell tickets.
The damage done to the opera house was indeed great, but not as horrid as it could have been. There are hopes that its repairs will be completed before the year is over. Yet even though the opera house is currently closed for repair, this does not mean that business has come to a stand still. Indeed, there has been much discussion as to what shall be done once its doors open again.
After Monsieur Flim and Monsieur Flam announced their retirement, the first question on everyone's lips was 'who will take over the managers' positions?'
That was the night Papa surprised me.
At dinner, he tapped his glass and rose to his feet, a proud, broad smile spreading across his face. After much thought, consideration, and discussion with Discord, he has chosen to join Madam Octavia, the conductor, as the Maris Opera House's new managers.
I was shocked by this news. My father, who had come to Maris nearly a year ago, with hopes to simply play in their orchestra, is now one of its managers. I couldn't be happier for him.
Discord is very happy too; he now truly believes that his opera house will be left in good hooves, and Papa respects Discord's thoughts on music, and often, after dinner, the two of them disappear into the library to discuss music, the opera schedule, and share their insights on how certain works should be performed. I am glad at how both Papa and Discord have grown to respect and understand each other. Papa truly sees that Discord is not the same stallion he met almost a year ago, and Discord is now much more open to listening to other people's opinions.
Oh, Discord.
It amazes me with how my life has changed. It wasn't very long ago that I felt my life was reserved for country living, that my dreams of singing would never come true. And then, I was in Maris, and shortly after arriving...I met the stallion who is now my husband.
I almost laugh when I think about how much we despised one another when we first met. But little by little...I came to realize that Discord was no heartless beast, but truly, the stallion of my dreams. I often find myself calling him my 'Angel of Music', but he constantly says that I am his angel, saving him from eternal darkness, and bringing light, and love, into his life.
Discord spends much of his day locked away in his music room, composing whatever comes to mind. Many of the works that were lost in the explosion have been rewritten, including 'Don Juan Triumphant'. I am happy to say that Discord has now, permanently, included the ending that both he and I composed together.
Papa has gone over many of Discord's compositions, and has shown them to Madam Octavia. Both he and Papa wish to perform several of Discord's works, and Discord has also sent several other copies of music to other opera houses and symphony halls across Equestria. I am so happy for him.
He often says that I will never cease to amaze him; well, he always amazes me. Despite the many hours of work he puts into his music, Discord still insists on instructing me to sing. We spend much of the morning rehearsing, and at least an hour composing music together. I am no musical genius, but I dearly love how Discord values my thoughts and opinions.
At first, I wondered why he wished to continue teaching me. I did not mind it, in fact, I love it, it has become a favorite part of my day. But then Discord told me, one night before going to bed, how he was working on a new opera...and would love to see me perform the lead.
I was stunned. I am still stunned! It is my decision of course, and he understands that, but he does believe, and encourages, that I consider returning to the stage after the baby is born. Well...I confess, while I am anticipating the birth of our child, I am also eager for the day when I can return to Maris, and sing upon that stage once more! Amazing really; I hated being there when I thought Discord was dead, but remembering how it felt, knowing he was watching, singing my heart to him, wanting to please him...
I can't help it; I am greedy for that feeling again! And I anticipate the opportunity to sing once more.
"Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy paused the writing in her journal and turned from her small writing desk to where her husband lay, smiling at the look he was giving her as he stretched himself out, a thin sheet covering the lower half of his body, while his broad, muscled chest, lay exposed, leaving little to the imagination.
"Come to bed," he softly commanded, his voice deep and seductive, sending chills down her spine.
"In a minute," she promised, grinning as he let out a frustrated growl.
Indeed, Discord never ceases to amaze me. And I find myself thanking God every night, and every morning, for bringing him into my life. My dark Phantom-my masked prince.
Fluttershy gasped as the journal was pulled out from under her hooves. "Discord!" she squeaked, her face turning a bright shade of pink. "Give that back!"
"Your masked prince, hmm?"
"DISCORD!"
His grin was wide, and his laughter rich, as she pounded her small fists against his chest, before he put the journal back down on the desk, and wrapped his arms around his wife, dipping her into a passionate kiss.
"Now my dear...will you come to bed?"
Fluttershy blushed. He was completely naked, while she still wore her robe.
"I look and feel like a heifer," she sighed, glancing at her large reflection in the mirror across the room.
Discord wrapped his arms around her from behind, his paw and claw falling across her belly. "You have never looked more beautiful," he whispered in her ear, before his lips began to play with the lobe.
Fluttershy purred and leaned in to his touch, and gasped as she felt his paw climbing inside her robe. "You are incorrigible," she whimpered, arching her body to his touch.
"And you, my sweet wife, are extremely desirable," he growled, before swooping her up into his arms and carrying her to the bed. Fluttershy snuggled her head against his shoulder, still amazed that after all the weight she had gained from her pregnancy, he was still able to make her feel as light and as delicate as a princess from a fairytale.
Discord happily opened her robe completely, growling with satisfaction as he gazed at his wife's beautiful full body. He lowered his head then, to plant a soft, gentle kiss, on her swollen belly, before placing a loving paw over it. "Good night, my son."
Fluttershy swatted his shoulder. "You always say that, you never say 'goodnight my daughter'."
Discord grinned, before lowering his mouth over hers. "True, because I love your reactions."
Fluttershy's giggle quickly became a sigh, as she surrendered her mouth to Discord's loving, passionate kiss, her body melting as his paw and claw began their gentle caress.
The future contained many possibilities for them. Yes, things were looking well and positive, but Fluttershy was not foolish enough to believe it would always be that way. However, no matter what the future held, she truly felt blessed to know that she would be facing it with this wonderful creature by her side. Her dark phantom-her masked prince.
FINIS |
Lie of Omission | pre | Angel stalked, and grumbled. Despite his best attempts to suddenly develop the ability to talk, he still could not make the strange mouth-noises that his faithful servant preferred to use as communication. And this was the most important news he ever had for his servant - even more important than the time there was a burr in an embarassing place in the fur under his tail. Because if he could break the news that there was a secret alicorn in Ponyville, he was going to be rich. And that meant no more common Ponyville carrots for him!
I just have to convince her to look at that silly orange horse and ...oh... some pony magic thing. Note to self: Poke that orange pony thing with a stick to see if it changes back.
Angel was just about to start the game of charades again, when there came a knock on the door. Fluttershy ignored how important his news was and flitted over to the door to allow one of her friends in.
"That's some storm we're having," said the purple pony thing. "Rainbow Dash must really be working out."
Angel's servant agreed, and two of them began sitting at the couch. The purple one seemed hesitant, but Fluttershy was, as ever, kind and gentle in her tone, and the purple one's wild rants was soon replaced by simple questions.
Ugh. Talking talking talking. That's all those hoofed things do. Then again, since they don't have proper paws like us higher lifeforms, it only makes sense that they use their mouths all day. They shouldn't be called 'ponies', they should be called 'talkies.'
Angel got back to the matter at hand. At first, he tried acting out the scene, holding his small lapine form in the same awkward pose Applejack had gotten into. Then, he rose his tiny body all the way up into the air, ears held together in imitation of a unicorn's horn, before making the wavy paws right at where he had been 'holding' the 'fence'.
There is no possible way to interpret this other than an earth pony suddenly developing telekinesis!
The purple pony thing quirked an eyebrow at Angel, and made some sort of concerned noise. Fluttershy shooed Angel off with a wing before rudely continuing her conversation without him.
Seriously? Why would a rabbit ever make taffy, Fluttershy? That's what ponies are here for, silly!
Simple charades were getting him nowhere. He was going to have to bring out the big guns: props. Luckily, he had just the things he needed, in his food dish and somewhere in Fluttershy's old toy box....
Luna's face scrunched up. "Thy magic is... powerful. But no magic is insurmountable. But there must be some sort of- trick to it..."
"I've already explained this," Applejack sighed. "The best trick - is no trick at all. I look like an alicorn because I am one. Have been all my life, just like you. Now - could you please let me down? If your magic hasn't 'broken the spell' yet, you could at least let me stand right-side-up for a spell."
"I-" Luna shook her head, and sighed. "...very well." Luna resisted the temptation to unceremoniously drop her accuser to the floor, and broke her hold on Applejack one hoof at a time.
"Whew! Thank ye kindly," Applejack said, with only a hint of resentment in her voice, bringing herself up to sit. "Now, I-"
"I will ask the questions." Luna was still stern, but not overtly hostile. "First... if thou art an alicorn, whyfor dost thou not act the part? Why speak'st thou... so?"
"I've never held court or nothing." Applejack struck at the earth with a hoof in irritation. "I've got enough troubles in my life just trying to help my family. Never did learn my thee's and thou's - talking all fancy was before my time."
"Before your time," Luna mused. "So, where dost- erm, where do you fall in the royal line?"
Applejack pondered. "Well... I'd say twenty-eighth? Somewhere like that."
"But the twenty-eighth in the line is young Nephra."
"No, I was 'bout ten years old when she was born. The hospital about threw a parade to celebrate her birth. Me - mom and dad brought me into this world in the old pony way. They never made no fuss about it, so I didn't either."
"And your realm?"
Applejack tilted her head. "Realm?"
"Your sphere of influence."
"Well... I was born to earth ponies, so I guess that makes my realm the earth, doesn't it?"
"No. I mean... Astral? Elemental? Telluric? What are thy- your primaries and secondaries?"
Applejack raised her head, as if she had been asked why can't an apple talk. "Do... say what now?"
"You don't know." Applejack frowned to see Luna's lips begin to turn upwards. "You honestly don't know the first thing about the divine cycles?"
"Divine whats?"
"The ten incarnate charges? The Path of Apotheosis?"
Applejack frowned, and started to sweat. "...say what now?"
Luna frowned. "You know nothing about what an alicorn truly is, do you?"
"Like I said, I was born to earth ponies." Applejack shook her head. "Ma and Pa didn't know and I didn't ask."
Luna sighed. "Yes, you said that..." She shook her mane out, and Applejack finally noticed that Luna's wings had come down to rest against her flanks once more. "Now, the real question; how have you kept this a secret?"
"It's... it's not really a secret. I just don't tell anyone. If all they see is an earth pony, all they expect is an earth pony, and I don't have to cheat or use this... this curse."
"That's half an answer," Luna acquiesced. "But I asked you to speak plain. You know what I was asking you. How, in a world which loves its busybodies, did you escape sight of the queen busybody herself - Celestia?"
"Well... I didn't, really. She found me when I was young." Applejack grinned softly at the memory. "She offered to train me herself, but... I turned her down."
"The crown princess appears before you... and you turn her down?"
"Well, yeah. I didn't want to leave my Mom and Dad to see Canterlot and learn all that fancy magic and flying. I was born into the most loving family a girl could ever ask for, and we built one of the finest little towns anypony could be proud to be part of. I told Celestia I couldn't leave that."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that. Well... she caught me selling apple pies by the side of the road. She taught me the spells I use to hide myself today, and she bought a pie off of me. I still have the bits," Applejack smiled with pride. "My first-ever real sale. I'm still mighty-"
Being lost in memory, she never saw Luna charging towards her. Nor did she have any chance to understand - as Luna had her forehooves wrapped tight about Applejack, trapped in a tight hug. "Oh, sister- it is so good to meet you!"
"Bwah?"
Luna nuzzled up Applejack's neck affectionately, before leaning back to give a broad grin. "That memory - Celestia remembers that day well. She and I spoke about it many times, as I ... went through a second childhood." Luna swallowed, as if embarased. "Oh, forgive me, but... there are so few alicorns, and most of them so zealously guard their 'immortality' that they waste it in their ivory towers and crystal palaces. And I am - I am reborn," Luna said meekly, "Separated from my own time that I might as well have been born again. There was a time when I was not like this-"
"-you went evil and tried to take over Equestria. Then your sister banished you to the moon and you did it again when you came back."
Luna drew back. "You-knew? B-but..."
"Well, of course I knew, sugarcube," Applejack smiled, as she cast the spells that made her shrink. No hat on her head - this time it was safely at home - but a simple earth mare grinned up to Luna. "I was there - if you remember it."
The night princess backed up, gasping as she finally recognized her. "An alicorn is bearer of the Element of Honesty?"
"Well... I don't make much of either, but yeah, I am," Applejack smirked, as she resumed her usual form. "And, since we've not made formal introductions - my name's Applejack."
"Well, Applejack ... if that is case, I have some news you will not like. But first..." Luna drew a hoof backwards. "I do apologize for the... unnecessary roughness I showed towards you. There have been many to question me, and I can afford to back down to none of the accusations leveled against me."
"Shoot, I forgive ya," Applejack said, waving it off. "It's why I've gone through the trouble of hiding it for so long myself. I couldn't live my life like that."
Luna nodded. "Is that so."
"And... I apologize for being so crude and all. You didn't deserve an inch of what I said. About... about being a traitor."
Luna seemed to wilt softly, some of the twinkle in her hair and fur fading. "Thank you. Well... back to the matter before us. The other piece of news I have for you will be even worse, but not for you. But, first; you are plagued with dreams."
Applejack nodded.
"Well... I am no great mage, and dream magic is the realm of Oneiro, not myself. But from what I see... I can see no magic affecting your mind." Luna frowned. "Alicorn, or otherwise."
Applejack shook her head. "But... that just can't be..."
"True? Many things which are terrible are true, Applejack," Luna said, looking up to the skies. With an absent thought, she began to dismiss the thunderstorm arena, bringing the stars back into view. "And what you said true is earlier, Applejack: I have learned a thing or two about guilt. It is a disease of the soul, darkening and weakening everything it touches. It is what prompted my... rebellion. These dreams are vivid because the guilt is fresh and acute - but even when it is old and dull, that does not mean it has been cured; only allowed to fester." Luna turned to face Applejack again, her voice hard and serious. "Applejack, you will carry the weight of what you do for a long, long time. You must promise me that you will be honest in your choices, or the dreams you have now will only be the first of a great many to come."
"Yes, ma'am," Applejack agreed, a tint of worry to her voice.
Luna allowed herself to smile softly. "And as to the other news - I'm afraid I must ask you to close your eyes. For this I ... I cannot reveal to you with your eyes open."
Applejack tilted her head. "Say what now?"
"Please, Applejack. I only need a moment."
Applejack nodded. "Oh... well, alright, Princess."
The elder alicorn laughed as Applejack closed her eyes. "No, please - call me Luna. You are as much of a princess as I am, in every way that counts." She looked over Applejack, over the form of one of her saviors, of one of the youngest alicorns in Equestria who hid in the guise of a simple farmer. "Are you ready?"
"I-I am. But what's this abou-"
Applejack found one of Luna's hooves pulling her up tightly- the strength in Luna's limbs equally the equal of her own - and felt something against her lips. Her eyes flew open - and there, the mare she had accused had pressed her lips to hers. It wasn't a polite peck on the lips, but a lover's kiss, the kiss a new couple would share. Applejack didn't pull away in her shock, but broke away from Luna with a sputter. "What... wait... WHAT?"
Luna's smile was forlorn. "As I said... you cannot allow yourself to live with guilt. Or regret. If I had not at least confessed my feelings, Applejack - that would have been a dark seed in my heart."
Applejack frowned in confusion. "C-confess? Luna... what's going on?"
Luna looked back towards the distant glow of Canterlot on the horizon. "The House of Luna has been empty for many generations, now. Abandoned and lonely, with not even myself to fill its walls." Luna's smile waned. "I have had few companions save Celestia, even before my rebellion. So I have begun to search Equestria for those who I could... trust, heart and soul. In short, people who I would make part of my House and my life."
"You mean... marriage?"
"That is is one aspect, I suppose," Luna mused. "This past Nightmare Night, I found four kind souls who treated me as an equal and a friend, despite my station." Luna drew her hoof back in the sand. "But the wise, indefatigable unicorn is already being groomed for an invitation to House Celestia, unbeknownst to her. The pegasus who loves innocently and openly - I cannot make her bear the responsibility of my name on her lonesome; she already flies under a heavy enough load from her daughter. The earth male is hardly a colt - although I might extend the invitation if he matures into a stallion as noble as he showed me in the forest. And the earth mare, whose smile can make anyone feel like they are part of her family, like they have come home..." Luna's voice was almost a croak. "... it now seems she has her own House to tend to. And her own family to help her. All those I hoped to trust my heart to are denied to me."
Applejack stammered. Her heart went out to Luna, but a confession of love? "Now, listen, Luna, I..."
"Please... don't." Luna took a step back. "I... think I went too far. But thank you." Luna spread her wings wide. "We will speak again, of this I am certain... but please do not summon me again, lest it be dire. I... I need time to mourn what might have been."
Applejack shouted, but the moon princess was already above the dissipating clouds.
"So to sum it up, 'trust' is not a thing in and of itself, but an intangible quantity created by consistency, openness, and honesty. It's almost as abstract a concept as 'harmony', really, and there are many elements to trust as well." Fluttershy blushed. "Well, not Element elements, naturally."
"No, of course," Twilight Sparkle said, her pen working dutifully over a scroll. On her scroll, she had consolidated Fluttershy's speech into a terse outline, complete with an octagram in the center illustrating relations between the distinct points Fluttershy had made. "But this is fantastic, Fluttershy! You've really helped me study tonight." She grinned, and rolled up her scroll tightly, sliding it back into a metal case. "I'd like to talk more about this with you sometime. Have you studied philosophy?"
"Oh, no," Fluttershy flushed, her smile soft as she sipped at her tea. "I just find that working with animals gives me a certain perspective that many ponies lack. Many things are universal, even among animals, and it's easy to think of things in these terms. Helping animals is very rewarding."
Twilight Sparkle grinned. "Well, then. Maybe some days when the library's closed, I can come over and-"
The two were interrupted by the sound of a rabbit's foot stomping repeatedly. Both looked to see a frustrated Angel posting rampant with some foodstuffs. Between his ears, a carrot pointed perpendicular from his forehead; from his back, two leaves of lettuce were held so that each leaf sprung wide; and he pointed to an apple in front of him with a paw.
"Oh, how thoughtful!" Fluttershy leaned down and grabbed the carrot and lettuce with her lips.
"Thank you, Angel," Twilight Sparkle smiled, as she levitated the apple - "Huh. How did this jack get in here?" Twilight shrugged and plucked the toy from the apple, tossing it aside and taking a bite.
Angel looked as the two ponies ate his sure-fire alicorn disguise. Not even a guess! He groused wordlessly and turned, hiking his tiny cotton tail in the air as he stomped off. Unfortunately, a rabbit taking great care to slam every foot as hard as they can as they walk away is more comical than intimidating.
"... it can be weird, too, sometimes," Fluttershy admitted.
Rainbow Dash didn't like to be woken in the middle of the night. But some jobs never truly let you off the clock.
"Rainbow Dash! Rainbow!" Derpy's voice rang out, her hooves pounding against the door. The pounds kept coming as Rainbow sleepily glided down the stairwell (not even bothering to do much course correction, letting her hooves brush the banister on her way down). "It's an emergency!"
Rainbow Dash looked worse for wear, with her mane a disheveled mess and her tail little better. With a disgruntled sigh, Rainbow Dash groused, "What is it, Derpy..."
Derpy didn't give Rainbow Dash the chance to close the door. Quickly, she tugged on Rainbow's neck and pulled her out the door, facing her towards the darkened storm cloud on the horizon. "This popped up in just the last ten minutes..."
As soon as she saw the cloud, Rainbow Dash stopped struggling. Somehow, she wasn't tired anymore. "Ten minutes? With circular movement like that?" Rainbow Dash looked at Derpy. She wasn't weather patrol, but she was a public servant too. "That storm's bad enough that - that I might not be able to stop it. Maybe not even redirect it. You have to get every pegasi out of the sky and everyone into their storm cellars, fast."
"Can do, Rainbow Dash!" There was hardly even time to see Derpy leaving, kicking up some of the cloud that formed Rainbow Dash's home in her wake. At least Derpy had one thing going for her as mail mare: she knew the town like nobody's business. She'd probably already have a plan for getting the news out to everyone as fast as possible.
But now it was time for Rainbow Dash to fly into a hurricane, unprepared.
Even as she flew towards the storm cell, the clouds had begun to dissipate. Rainbow Dash breathed a deep sigh of relief, and throttled back to a more guarded glide, so she wouldn't build up as much static. Finally, she breached the eye of the storm itself-
just in time to see Luna lovingly kissing Rainbow Dash's golden alicorn.
Rainbow Dash couldn't breathe. She couldn't think. She could barely fly, and it was only instinct that landed her on one of the dense, dark clouds that made up the hurricane.
She wasn't flying with me. She was flying from me.
Danger and duty completely forgotten, Rainbow Dash collapsed, crying herself to sleep on the stormcloud. |
Lie of Omission | Chapter 5 | Luna resented sleep.
What had been her realm alone, once, was hardly recognizable; too many hooves had laid their mark on what was once a land of shadows. Celestia herself had been the night's guardian for many centuries, bringing even the sleeping world to brilliant light. When the alicorn Oneiro, the great somniomancer, was born, Celestia had gladly bequeathed the duties of guarding the dream world to him. Between them, the world of dreams was neat and orderly, an endless expanse; each dreamer had their own tiny bubble within that expanse, and these tiny pocket realms rarely crossed. Dreams had beginnings and middles and ends, and rarely roused anything more than pleasant confusion in the morning. They were not the fantastic tapestries Luna had merried herself with, the epics tragedies and comedies that had inspired poets and playwrights. But that was long before the bad times had started.
Then again, that was how the bad times had started, wasn't it? Luna could recall the great solemnity she took in guarding the night, protecting Equestria from the creatures that wandered in dreams and the monsters that came when the stars shone. She saw to it that the moon was free of monsters, that the skies were clear and full of stars, and that the dreams of her protected people were vivid, if not always joyful. She did not merely keep the night, she curated it, and it would be perfect for her little ponies.
If it meant changing ponies with magic to have the ears of bats and the wings and claws of dragons, creating a corps to guard the night? Although they struck fear into the hearts of mundane ponies, the Night Guard she created were no monsters, but had mortal hearts and free will. They all swore allegiance to her before, during, and after their transformations; it was a feeling akin to love. They willingly pledged their lives to her, her nation, and her night; how could she say no to their devotion?
If that meant her guard taking ever more clandestine 'intelligence' activities as Celestia's world slept, investigating rumors and bringing them to the light of the moon? Eyes could be carefully cast aside. The rumors and tremors that these activities created were worth it - as she and Celestia well knew - for the monsters of the world did not always come wearing a monstrous mask. She knew what she needed to know, and she trusted absolutely those she gave the necessary power; what more could anypony ask of her?
If it meant that she herself forsake sleep, ever wandering the dream world as a stranger, forever a step aside from it? No matter. Another day gone without sleep meant nothing compared to keeping Equestria safe from the monsters that crept into the world from the land of dreams; even a thousand years later, she recalled vividly all the times she failed. She would be better. The world deserved her to be better.
If it meant defying her sister's decisions, pushing for ever stricter laws and ever harsher punishments for benign infractions? The ends required the means. The world of Equestria was as much hers as it was her sister's, and it would be good enough for all her little ponies, from the oldest nag to the newborn foal. If Celestia could not see the need, then she would prove the need with facts as clear as moonlight.
If it meant the night grew longer and longer, creeping in on the day from both sides? Well, what of it? Celestia was concerned with grace and reconciliation, where Luna was concerned with duty. How could Celestia not see the risks of rampant chaos in the world, when they had fought together to forge the first peace in this wilderness? Luna could bear the weight of the worlds on her wings, and keep them steady in their flight; if Celestia could not see that, she would have to be made to see.
And if it meant openly attempting to tear down an empire based on a forgiving sovereign, replacing it with a republic based on absolute law, did it matter that her sister's blood would spill?
Celestia, in her ever gentle grace, did not correct ponies when they spoke of the demon that plagued Luna. Historians and metaphysicists alike suspected some sort of monster from the unknowable land of dreams. It was unthinkable, the idea that a pony so noble and gentle, seemingly so open and pure of heart, could become terrible of her own free will. A millennium later, the descendants of these historians accepted at face value the solar princess's explanation of the Elements of Harmony purifying her. It was, as Celestia herself liked to say, a "flattering depiction of the truth."
In truth, the Elements of Harmony had nearly no effect, their colorful energies easily deflected by Nightmare Moon's dark power. As the ancient artifacts' power swirled around Luna, always threatening but never managing to pierce her armor, they had proven nearly effortless. For all the storm and fury that had raged through that old castle, the Elements had only been able to plant one thought into Nightmare Moon's head: that her sister, after all their wars, was still willing to forgive her.
But that thought was enough.
Breaking Luna's heart was an important step towards redemption. But there were many to follow.
Compared to the dreamscape of her time, Luna regarded sleep almost with disdain. Ponies in this time painted their own dreams, filling the land of sleep with all the colors of the rainbow and others besides. Many were nonsensical. Many were just downright obscene. But Oneiro merely was a custodian of the land of dreams, not its sovereign. He did not make demands of those who entered it; rather, he merely made sure it was safe to enter. He, himself, had suggested Luna sleep like mortal ponies did; ever gentle, Oneiro suggested it would help with her reconciliation.
With her nightmares, he had said without thinking. But then again, he had been born after her banishment. The young could be forgiven such impropriety.
As Luna sprawled out in her bed, she cast one eye on the moon. It was high in the sky, and would stay there until she woke to guide it to its resting place once more. All she had to do was rest her bones, for long enough, and her mind would come following along. Just close her eyes, and allow sleep to overtake her. Any minute now.
Mortal ponies made it look so easy...
The only thing that alerted Luna to the fact that she was, in fact, dreaming, was the fact that she could not control her focus. Details that didn't matter became extremely important, like the pattern of stitchwork on her quilt. Things that should have mattered, she couldn't recall, like why part of her bedroom was an armory. But save for that wall of weapons off to a side, Luna found her dreamscape looked exactly like the room she had fallen asleep in.
"Well. My dreams are certainly... mundane. Still, I suppose that given a proper medium, even the real world has its charms." Luna looked around, and sprawled out on here bed, giving a very un-royal stretch and yawn, forelegs spread far in front of her and tail hiked high into the air. Both swiftly found themselves properly brought back under her, however, as there came an unfamiliar knocking at the door.
"Yes, do come in," Luna groused. Not even in her dreams could she escape the drudgery of ruling a kingdom, it seemed.
The door creaked open hesitantly. "Hello, Princess Luna..."
Luna's ears perked forwards in surprise. "Is that you, Twilight Sparkle?"
"None other," the unicorn said, giving an awkward grin as she stepped in. The last time they had spoken, she had been wearing a silly Nightmare Night costume; but outside of it, the librarian had a sort of trim, demure stature. The sight of her made Luna's heart flutter just a little faster. After having shown the proper respect due her station, Twilight had dropped the formalities, almost prancing in. "I haven't been in Canterlot in a while, and it's been a while since we last wrote - how have you been, Luna?"
Luna laughed wryly. "Eternally busy, as my crown requires." But as soon as Twilight was within leaping distance, the princess's wings spread wide, and a single powerful push of her wings launched her out of bed to land immediately in front of the smaller unicorn. Her visitor reeled back at the sudden pounce, and Luna had to laugh. "Oh, forgive my excitement. It's been some time since I've had company that wasn't concerned with paperwork and these games we call a government. Please, tell me," Luna smiled, giving the unicorn a soft nuzzle, which was returned in kind. "You have come a long way - how have you been?"
"She's been doing marvelously."
From the hallway, Luna's sister stepped into the room. She looked down to Twilight Sparkle and nodded politely, which reminded Twilight Sparkle of just why she was here.
"Oh! Soon, I'm going to be moving to Canterlot to resume my studies! Well, not 'soon' for me, considering I'm still going to live in Ponyville for a few more years, but I'm sure that's relatively soon for you," Twilight giggled. "I'll be able to see everypony here a lot more. Even - even you, Luna," she beamed.
And so the stars grace the moon!
"Why... that is wonderful news!" Luna had to smile. Surely, living in the same city as the night princess would make a few moonlit trysts much easier to organize. "What do we owe the pleasure to?"
"I'm going to continue my studies in magic - old, powerful magic. Princess Celestia thinks I can find ways to make old magic new again," she giggled, trotting in place. "Bringing back old magic so a new generation can appreciate it! Isn't this great?"
"It's amazing," Luna smiled. However, she shot her sister a quizzical stare. Celestia stepped into the room carefully, standing next to her sister and whispering conspiratorially.
"I do have... ulterior motives."
Luna looked to Celestia, who was not returning the look. Rather, Celestia's eyes were watching Twilight as she bounced around the room like a schoolfilly. She was smiling but her lips were taut, and there were tears at the corner of her eyes. Luna answered sotto voce.
"Thoughts of filling these empty halls, I am sure?"
"Mmm." Celestia's smile warmed just a little, as she finally turned to meet her sister's gaze. "To start. She would be the delight of House Celestine, to be sure." Her eyes locked with Luna's, conspiratorially. "But for her, I'm thinking of something a little more... special." It didn't take the eyes of a princess to see Celestia's wings flutter at the thought.
"Oh sister -" Luna started, blushing. "You are in love?"
For as much as she loved keeping her façades, there was a certain level of trust Celestia shared with her sister. As Celestia's eyes met Luna's, her tears flowed just a little stronger, and Celestia nodded curtly.
Luna could feel her heart tearing apart, but she forced herself to smile. "Well, then..." She lifted her voice up high again, speaking with far more joy than she felt. "We wish you well in your studies, Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight smiled, and bowed down to Luna curtly. "I hope I can see you again soon, Princess."
"It will be-" and I'll know just which chambers of the castle you came from! "- nice to see you, too."
Celestia laid a wing over Twilight, the featherlight touch guiding her protege out and into the hallway once more. Luna waited until she was sure her sister and her student were out of earshot, then let loose a deep sigh.
Well. A mare of her talents and values, despite any faults, was sure to be fought over by the nobility, Luna mused wryly. Destiny does seem to follow her around.
Luna rolled onto her back and sighed. Perhaps another dream would-
thunk
Luna immediately jumped out of bed, searching for the sound of the wet impact. Again, the surprisingly curious stitchwork drew her attention, and it took an effort of will as great as that of lifting the moon to pull her gaze away and head - outside, to the balcony?
An old grey mare rested on the balcony, tumbled in a heap. "M-Mail's here..."
Luna stepped up to her. She vaguely recognized her, beyond the fact that she was a mailmare...
"I can see that, but... are you well?"
The mailmare gave a little giggle and an upside down grin, her smile becoming bashful. "Oh, I'm just fine!" She groaned as she rolled back onto her hooves, looking into her saddlebags. "But as to your mail, I'm afraid it's a little banged up..."
"No, do not worry! I am just glad that you are alright." Luna offered her hoof to the mare as she magicked away the daily communiques and letters. "Equestria would be at a loss without her most diligent mailmare, Derpy Hooves."
Surprised, Derpy blinked, looking at Luna through narrowed eyes. "I've never ever told you my name before...." Her wings flew up in shock, and she tried to meet the royal gaze. "I-I'm not in trouble, am I, Princess?"
"Oh, no, quite the opposite," Luna smiled, doing her best to simply step closer and not prance around Derpy like a giddy filly. "As a matter of fact, we have met before. Do you remember the last Nightmare Night..."
Derpy looked at Luna, her eyes becoming distant and unfocused as she tried to remember. Then, she gasped. "You were that mare who found me and helped me!" Her smile grew at the memories. "You told me about how you endured so many hateful words, and helped me feel better about... well... everything that happened that night. I never knew it was... well..." Derpy giggled. "...you!"
"I remember it differently," Luna said, her wings resting at ease at her side, remembering the way she had landed on that cloud and found the mare there, sobbing into her paper bags. "I remember a pegasi who helped me find peace with myself, by telling me how she had found her own peace."
"Oh, no, no no," Derpy shook a hoof, drawing it back demurely and with and embarassed blush. "You definately were the one helping me, Princess."
Luna quirked an eyebrow. "And if you like, Miss Hooves, I can make it a royal decree that you were the most wonderful aide this past Nightmare Night."
The two looked each other in the eyes, both determined to be the one who had been helped the most, neither willing to back down. But after a minute, they began to crack. Seeing the other start to smile, they tried to hold back; but not even that lasted long, and they both burst out laughing together, like old friends. Luna had to lean against the doorframe to her balcony, and Derpy had to lean against Luna...
oh, that feels nicer than I thought it would
Luna look down, and gave a smile when Derpy Hooves looked back up. It was nice to have a subject treat her as an equal, and not as a subject of awe or terror. She didn't know how Celestia managed it so effortlessly.
Celestia...
An idea itched at the back of her brain. A terrible idea. A wonderful idea. An idea that would shock all the royals - but then again, was she not bound by her station and her history? Any move to reclaim her House would scandalize a nation, but it eventually would need to be rebuilt. But Derpy was a silly mundane pegasus, with no royal connections, no political aspirations, and no rational gain to bring to a relationship. Except... friendship.
"Miss Hooves... I have a favor to ask of you."
"Well, I'm glad to serve," Derpy grinned, and stood up straight. "How can the Equestrian Postal Service be of service, Princess?"
Luna smirked. "Well, if this was a job, I'd be glad to take your service. No, Miss Hooves; this I ask of you."
The little grey pegasus perked her ears, curious. "Me? But... I'm just a silly pony..."
"No, Miss Hooves. You are a very silly pony," Luna pointed out, gently nudging a shoulder with a hoof. "But... I think that's why I'm extending you this invitation." Luna's breath caught in her throat, and it almost came out as a whisper: "... will you come to the Spring Ball with me?"
Luna didn't think that Derpy's eyes could grow any wider. A smile began to lift her lips, and her wings started to splay out in excitement. But before the acceptance could leave her tongue, the grey mare wilted. The shine left her eyes, and her wings fell to her back, halfheartedly clasped to her sides in an attempt to be demure. "... I can't."
"You... you cannot?" Luna blinked, not understanding. "Whyever not? I am the Princess! Whatever would hold you from attending such a simple thing as a ball, my attendants would be more than capable of-"
"It's Dinky!"
Derpy started to tear up, but she had to keep talking or she would start crying even louder. "She's... she's my only daughter, and I have to take care of her. And even if I found someone to take care of her for a night and left her to her own devices, she..." Derpy's voice cracked, and she had to breathe deeply to catch enough breath to make the next few words come out. "...she's still afraid every time I come home late that I'll disappear like her father. I just couldn't do that to her, Princess."
Derpy splayed her wings, and halfheartedly took off, hovering at eye level with the Princess. "I really appreciate it, really I do, but... I can't..." It looked like she was having to consciously control each wing, bouncing up and down in awkward flaps. "And Ponyville's a long way away..." Finally, she broke eye contact, and let her head hang. "I should just go, shouldn't I."
Luna wanted to reach out to her, but it felt like her hooves were made of lead as the mailmare made her way back to Ponyville. She stayed there, watching as long as she could as she became a little grey speck on the horizon, flitting about like a bubble on the breeze, before she was gone. With a sigh, Luna plodded back inside, grousing. Once again, her attention fell to the needlework on her sheets, and even though she knew it to be the product of dream logic, she was grateful for anything that distracted her from thinking.
After a while - Luna wasn't certain if it was the same dream, or if she had drifted into another - there came a knocking at her door. Luna didn't move, and regarded the door with a baleful eye, as if her pure hate of whomever was knocking would keep it closed. I am a princess of Equestria. If I want to lie in bed all day, then that is my decree. After a moment, the knocking stopped, and Luna gave a wry smile. As well you should obey me, accursed portal!
After a few moments, the door opened anyways. "Luna? Are y'all alright in here...?"
At the sound of her accent, Luna's eyes flew open wide in surprise, and she did her best to sit up straight in her bed and look like she hadn't just spent the last few minutes moping like a heartbroken filly. "I - oh, yes, please, come in, come in!"
Applejack entered hesitantly, an awkward glance to her eyes to see Luna sprawled out over her own bed. "I don't mean to intrude if this's a bad time..."
"It is not a bad time, no. In fact... I think I could rather use the company. Please, make yourself at home, Applejack."
She nodded, and smiled, doffing her hat and resting it at a table by the entryway. "Thank ya kindly." Applejack looked about the airy bedroom suspiciously. "Although... just how 'at home' are we talking, here?"
Luna shared a conspiratorial smile. "This room is as private as can be had in this castle. Which sometimes feels like not much at all, but..."
"... but I s'pose for my purposes, it'll do." Luna, who never disguised herself as a mortal pony, watched Applejack's transformation with some interest; what seemed to be a heavyset mare was revealed to be one who was, quite literally, carrying more than a normal pony's mass in her. Bones stretched to a more natural length, her body flowing along them; the poise of her true nature becoming more evident with every moment, taking on the proportions of one of nature's chosen. Her horn and wings came into view almost casually - not as if they had been hidden, but as if one had simply never noticed them. And when Applejack reached back to untie her hair and tail, far more hair spilled out than seemed to have been tied up.
Applejack sighed happily, and gave a little stretch before she walked up to Luna. "You ought to try it someday," Applejack said casually, giving a grin; she might have become a golden alicorn, but the saunter and relaxed tone in her voice was pure farmgirl. "Hide the stick an' feathers, shrink a little, tie up your hair, an' pretty sure nopony will know it's you under there."
"I have considered as much," Luna smiled back. "And it does help when I plan... shenanigans. But I treasure being myself all the more."
Applejack seemed to wince at Luna's words. "Myself... yeah." Applejack shook her head. "That might work for you, but for me that's the entire problem..." Applejack looked to Luna. "Luna, I got a question for ya." She didn't wait for Luna to give her leave, as she sighed. "Just... how do you make a path? From who you are, to who you could be?"
Luna's eyebrow arched. "I am afraid I don't quite follow."
Applejack sighed, and let her head and wings hang limply down. "I've been keeping this secret so long. Used to think that... that it'd just go away. But it's going all wrong. I used to think about all the time with my family I'd miss. About abandoning the farm. Abandoning my family." Applejack looked out the window, at passing clouds. "But isn't it the other way, too? Ain't I abandoning the good I could be doing?"
Luna smiled gently, and impulsively leaned off the bed, her muzzle reaching down to quickly peck Applejack on the cheek. Applejack's head shot up with a blush, but she didn't look away.
Luna had to grin. "I can see you are taking my lesson to heart, my little pony." She looked out the window, as well. "You've acknowledged your guilt. You've articulated it. And you've already started to defuse it, just by naming it."
Applejack snorted in disbelief. "I've done what now?"
"You worry about doing the right thing. About telling the truth. All this weight on your head, I am surprised that you have not discovered the long-hidden Element of Remose." Applejack had to laugh at that joke, making Luna smile. "Yet - you are not that pony any more, are you? That moment is gone. You cannot call back the die once thrown-"
"Uhm... m'pretty sure I can, sugarcube." Applejack said, her horn glowing golden for a moment.
Luna stuck her tongue out. "Well, perhaps Applejack the Wag might. But Applejack, she who wields Honesty, would not." Applejack had to give a little grin.
"But... to finish the old quote. 'You cannot call back the die, once thrown. But you can take them up and cast again.' Everything changes us, Applejack. You need not feel guilt about what you have not done or could not have done or chose not to do. Mistakes were made. But they taught you. That mare is fixed in the past, and has done her job in teaching the mare I see before me."
Applejack nodded slowly, and went to speak, but closed her mouth. Luna smirked. "Yes - this is one lesson I have learned personally."
"Well... huh." Applejack sighed, and rested her head against the bed, leaning against it. "It doesn't make it any easier..."
Luna reached out with one hoof, tenatively, and stroked Applejack's mane affectionately. She was several centuries out of practice, but she was glad to see Applejack close her eyes.
"Those moments are gone, sister... But there are more moments to come."
Applejack leaned her head back against Luna's hoof, and nodded. "And I can make these moments my own..." She smiled to her self, the friendly grin she was known for returning to her face. "Just 'bout anything I want..." Standing up, she let her wings splay to either side. "And to hay with the past!" She reared up and shook her mane out, letting it blow in an ethereal breeze; when her hooves came down again, her demeanor was once more renewed, free of doubt and daring the world. "And I reckon I know just how to start it off..."
Luna looked up just in time to see her step forwards onto the her bed. It had been so long since anyone had even lain a hoof on her that she was completely frozen by shock when the earthborn alicorn's strong hooves tugged her up in a tight embrace - although her wings, at least, spread wide in surprise once Applejack's kiss met hers. Luna's heart raced; even if only in the land of dreams, it had been very long time since she had felt a gentle hoof on her.
"Applejack... are you sure...?" Her blush was almost as warm as sunlight, and Applejack nuzzled against it firmly before leaning back, giving Luna her trademark casual grin.
"Sure as I'm an Apple," Applejack nickered. "Thanks to you, Luna... I reckon I know just what I want." One hoof stroked Luna's mane affectionately.
"I... oh... I accept, Applejack," Luna sighed. "But I do admit, Applejack, it has been so long since I have known another, I am out of..."
She trailed off, as she looked at Applejack, staring out the balcony. She hadn't heard a word Luna had said. Stepping off the bed, Luna came to stand beside her, looking at her with concern.
"I missed all o' this," Applejack said quietly. "All this beauty laid out for me, everything good in Equestria... and I hid from it." She frowned.... and, gently, lifted into the air. "Well, no more.... no more hiding, ever. I'm done. I'll make it official, here and now:" Unsteadily, the golden alicorn flew out the window a short way, splaying her wings as drew in her breath; when she shouted, her voice shook the mountains:
"HEAR ME, EQUESTRIA! I, APPLEJACK, CLAIM MY BIRTHRIGHT AND PLACE IN THE SUCCESSION AS HEAD OF HOUSE APPLE!"
The echoes came back from the countryside and beyond - there would be no mistaking that sound was that of an alicorn. Applejack heaved from the effort, but despite the sheen of sweat on her brow, her grin was there. Luna stammered in shock, "I - but - you didn't have a House - what?"
"Nah. Never claimed it. Never thought I was going to. But I guess that was just foalish of me." Applejack hovered in midair - a bit unsteadily, both from being far out of practice and from holding back the urge to do a loop-de-loop. "It's funny. Spent near to a century paralyzed in fear of it... but now all o' Equestria knows, and I've never felt this free!"
"And only now do you claim it? No preparation, no legal support -" no asking if there's anypony in love with you- "- nothing at all? This is... this is madness!"
"Yeah. But what can I say?" Applejack sniggered. "You gotta be at least a little crazy if you get in line for the throne."
Luna blinked. It was crazy. Then again, if Luna was going to have her heart broken a third time this evening, she deserved to go crazy, too. The night princess brought herself up to her full height, and splayed her wings wide. "Well. Then, there's only one thing I can do..."
WIth that, Luna splayed her wings wide and submissively. "Applejack, of House Apple. I relinquish my House, and beg of you-" sliding her hooves forwards and burying her head between her legs, her nose almost touching the ground. "I humbly beg entrance into your house... as your consort."
Please, Applejack! You must know what I'm asking! I can't say just that I - that I am in l...!
Applejack looked down to Luna, and clucked her tongue softly. "I'm sorry you thought I meant to show you up, sugarcube," Applejack shook her head dismissively. "But I never meant to take your House from you - this weren't no usurpation," Applejack blinked, then giggled. "Did I just say 'usurpation'? Heh! Not a royal for five minutes and I'm already speaking all in fancy!"
Applejack turned in midair, but looked back. "I guess I should go. Got about a thousand noble titles to sort out. Gotta hunt down every last Apple and tell them they're now barons or duchesses or grandees or what have you." Applejack paused for a moment. "I've got to tell Granny Smith she's legally a princess now. She became a princess before Rarity did. That'll be interesting."
Luna reached out to Applejack, but the gold mare was already kicking off to fly away. "Thank ya kindly, Luna - I needed that to see clearly." Luna gasped weakly as that warm smile - the one she had fallen in love with - turned away from her, the third pony she loved to abandon her bedchamber in as many hours.
Luna wasn't cold. She wasn't ill. Yet as she climbed back into her bed, pulling her quilt up, she couldn't keep herself from shaking. A thousand years ago, she was the scourge of the world. A century ago, she was a horror story. A year ago, she was the belle of the ball. Now, she couldn't even admit she fancied somepony.
To her credit, she almost got the quilt over her head before she started screaming. Applejack had turned her down! Her! Luna had hoped to have found someone who could help her shoulder the weight of eternity - and instead had seen Applejack disappear into politics the same as any other alicorn. In the end, she was no different from any of the other alicorns; simple plotters and schemers and policy-makers. Luna let her dream logic run wild, her eyes tracing the patterns in the stitchwork and hating every single moment of it.
Outside, there was a sudden clopping - the thundering of tiny hooves powering on stubby legs.
"Pwincess?"
From outside her quilt, something prodded at her. "I heard scweaming, and I thought you were-"
"Oh, didst thou think to console me? There was an unnatural edge to her voice, and Luna brought the quilt up in her magic, revealing her body curled under the quilt - not coiled for sleep, but as if prepared to strike, her dark fur blending in with the darkening room.. "Didst though imagine that my heart would not be prepared for thy spite?" As she rose, her eyes flashed, first paler, then pulling back into slits; when she sneered, it revealed vicious fangs. "I will not be threatened by those who deck themselves in the images of those who have shown me - care-" Luna's voice cracked one last time, but that crack was joined by several others as her moon-forged armor surrounded her once more, her night coming to her aid. She reared up and looked down on the terrified colt.
"I AM PRINCESS LUNA - HEIR TO THE THRONE OF EQUESTRIA - AND YOU WILL NOT THREATEN ME! BEGONE, FOUL APPARITION!"
"Aaah! Nightmare Moon!" The terrified pinto colt immediately bolted, his hooves not quite gripping perfectly as he skidded back through the door her came in, down the hallway, and quite possibly all the way out of the castle.
Luna's chest heaved from the declaration, shielding her heart with hate and rage. She was in the mood to fight. She was in the mood to kill. And then she looked to the side, at the mirror in the center of her armory, and saw her old persona looking back. Wrathful, Luna reared back and bucked the mirror, shattering it into a thousand pieces -
With a start, Luna woke. Luna quickly took mental stock of her situation, just to be certain she had actually woken. The merger of armory and bedquarters was gone. There were no hooves rapping at her door. She could focus anywhere she wanted - and the stitchwork on her quilting had absolutely no interest to her. With a grumble, she kicked off the sheets and rolled out of the bed.
Passing a mirror (which was not the centerpiece of an armory), she looked absolutely nothing like an Heir to Equestria. Her lips were torn from where she had bit into her pillows, biting back screams. Her hair was a mess, looking less like it was floating in an ethereal breeze and more like it had had a run-in with an ethereal blender. Even her coat was mussed, arched in random peaks where she had struggled against her sheets. She looked herself in the eye, noting they had been crying, and sighed sourly. "So, this is the look of 'dream therapy.'"
Luna snorted, and shook her head. "Celestia can keep it. I'll keep to my own sort of therapy..." With that, her eyes grew dark as she gathered her magic, thinking of where she best worked out her stress, the world disappearing in a flash of moonlight.
"SUBJECT!"
The tiny pegasus squeaked, hardly a colt himself, as the Moon Princess appeared before her in an explosion of light and midnight air. All around her, ponies were stunned into silence, disbelieving that she would just appear like that...
"I DEMAND YOUR LARGEST TUB OF CHOCOLATE CONCRETE!" Luna groused, as she slid into her usual seat. "AND MAY THE COOKIES BE DOUBLED!"
"The usual, coming right up," the head waitress sighed, filling out the ticket. Luna may have been a regular, but she tended to scare the customers...
Apple Bloom sighed, regretting the experimentation of the day before. Cream cheese is a wonderful ingredient, but there are places it is just not meant to go, and the apple-pepper mix that she and the girls had mixed up together had been at least three of them.
Doing her best to ignore the gurgle in her gut, the stomach-ill filly climbed into bed. Another glass of water had done nothing to well her upset stomach, and she felt warmer than she had in a while. Her hindlegs scrabbled at the bed, and failed. That was odd; normally, she could catch the edge of the bed there, and she could just slide up into bed. The filly was hot enough, however, that just having her forelegs hooked up onto the edge of the bed felt comfortable enough, and she rest her head against the sheets.
Apple Bloom closed her eyes. It was comfortable enough, propped up over the edge of the bed. Why, even in the middle of the night, she was almost as warm as a summer's day...
She really had no business being there. The old riverbed wasn't particularly cool, so it wasn't good for relaxing; it didn't have any orchards near it, so it there wasn't any work to do. It was on the far side of the farm from the clubhouse, so her Crusader friends wouldn't look for her. Really, about the only thing that the old riverbed was good for was for being alone. But it was that sort of day, the kind of day where you just wandered and explored until you found something interesting; some time to herself just felt right.
The grounds here weren't tended or even plowed, just grazed upon occasionally by the Apple family's resident herd, leaving the wild grass shoulder-height to her sister - almost head-height to the young filly. As she wandered through the field by the old riverbed, her head bounced in and out of sight; up high when she stretched on the edge of her hooves to see where she was, then out of sight as she crawled forwards on her hooves, investigating the dirt and rocks and small critters that filled any field.
One particular one - a green anole that was notably older and larger than the other small field lizards - was particularly daring. The old lizard darted up to her and bared his fangless mouth, occasionally bouncing forwards on his tiny little legs, but bounded away when the little filly chased after him. Apple Bloom dived under the grass, doing her best to chase after the old lizard, keeping her head low to the ground to stay near him. When she lost him, she froze, listening to the whistling in the wind and the rustling of crickets in the grass. After a moment, the old lizard would pop his head out and bare his bare jaws back at her, and they would resume their chase.
The ground was starting to slope down now; she had to slide more than run in order to keep her hooves stable, having to bend down low. At this level she had to be aware of every tree, every rock. She could only barely make out the old lizard's tail whipping back and forth now; she had to put on a little more speed to catch up. Just a little more....
When her back knees hit the branch, she instinctively curled up, landing in a tumble. The grass cushioned her roll, the long stalks flattened as she rolled on her side; keeping her head covered with her hooves kept her from getting hurt too much. It didn't stop her from screaming, rising and falling as she rolled and landed in the middle of the old stream bed.
Before he disappeared for good, she swore she could see that old lizard laughing on the far bank.
The stream was shallow but clear, too fast to stagnate; the spring water smelled of sulfur and frogs and old rocks. It was warm from the sun, but Apple Bloom couldn't help but lie back; the stream's flow felt good against her slightly battered body, the warmth helping to heal bruises. Looking up at the canopy, Apple Bloom smiled. "I didn't know we had a place like this on the farm..."
"It's a favorite of mine, too."
With an undignified flop, Apple Bloom twisted about, trying to face the voice. Standing in the riverbank stood a tall earth mare, yellow and gold. She was facing away from Apple Bloom, settling down into the stream with a sigh.
"We used to go here all the time," the older pony sighed wistfully. She didn't look away from the stream, but sank her head almost into the water. "Just the three of us, wasting all afternoon when the chores were done... those were better days."
Apple Bloom looked up to the golden mare, straining to place her voice.
"Those days... ended, though. I wonder if you even remember. You were so little then..."
Apple Bloom blinked. This mare knew her, and looked so familiar, she couldn't help. And she spoke with that low slow drawl, like every word was important, the way everyone else in her family did. She gasped. "...mom?"
Downstream, the mare gave a small nod, and a content little sigh. Apple Bloom recognized the sound, from her earliest memories, of when her mother was watching over her. Even though she still was bruised up from her tumble downhill, she did her best to stand up. The old earth mare held up a hoof, and shook her head.
"I know you miss me, Apple Bloom... but that's what family is for. Your brother is strong. Your grandmother is smart. And Applejack..." The mare gave a little chuckle as she stood. "You could say I made her promise to take care of you until you were big and strong..."
"Mom..." Apple Bloom tried to walk towards her. "I haven't seen you in ages. Why are you all of a sudden comin' back now?"
The older mare didn't respond immediately. "I guess I've been here too long. I'm not supposed to peek into your dreams, but... I just had to. Just once." She began to walk upstream. "Forgive me, Apple Bloom. I just wanted to see if you were happy."
"Happy? Well, of course I'm happy," Apple Bloom stated in disbelief. "I've got Granny and Big Macintosh, and Miss Cherilee and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle and Twist and my big sister Applejack! How could I not be happy?"
Pausing for a moment, the older mare nodded. "I certainly hope so." She resumed walking away, but her heart wasn't in it.
Apple Bloom's voice cracked. "Wait up! You can't leave yet - you just came back!" She didn't even notice the water starting to rise in the riverbank.
The mare stopped, as if stunned, and shook her head. "I've never left you, Apple Bloom; you know better than that, that family stays together. I've always been there to watch over you... and I always will." She tossed her head, and smiled, beginning to walk away.
"Wait!" Apple Boom gasped. "Turn around - please!" It seemed like the stream was a river now, and she was having to swim while her mother stood still. "I - I hardly remember what you look like..."
The golden mare sighed. It wasn't an annoyed sound; rather, it was resigned, perhaps a bit amused. "Well... I reckon I owe ya that much. Heh. So stubborn." There was a smile on her mother's lips as she turned her head; Apple Bloom fought against the current as she tried to make out details. "You remind me so much of your poppa..."
Apple Bloom came to on the floor, groaning. Down the hallway, the sound of Granny Smith's walker creaking down as fast as she could hobble, but Apple Bloom just rest her head on the floorboards. It was still really warm.
"Land sakes, girl!" Granny cried out, stopping her walker and gingerly setting herself down next to Apple Bloom. "You look like you just saw a ghost!"
Apple Bloom rubbed her head at where she had hit the ground; it was sore and didn't feel any different than the dream. "I - I think I did..."
The old nag's hoof rested atop her granddaughter's damp forehead, and she clucked softly. "Well, I don't know about ghosts, but I do know you're burning up. C'mere, young'n."
Granny Smith might be ten times her age, but she felt as strong as a foal compared to Apple Bloom. The old green mare lifted her granddaughter up into bed. When Granny pressed a cup up to her, she drank gingerly, blinking away some of the heat and heat.. "Now, you lie right there, and we'll get you taken care of, quick as a wink."
Apple Bloom wasn't sure how long she was gone. It felt like it was only moments later when Granny was there, a cold sponge pressed to her forehead and the window open to the cool night air. She coughed a little, but took the offered medicine. "Granny Smith... do you remember momma?"
The old mare paused, and looked to her. "Were you dreaming about that again...?"
Apple Bloom nodded, and sighed. "I almost saw her face this time." She sighed, and lay back, letting the sponge soak up the dampness on her head.
Granny Smith smiled. "Well, I'm sure you'll see her face soon." She gave a sly little grin as she sponged off a bit more of her granddaughter's forehead. "Why, I reckon you can ask Applejack about her. I think she remembers a lot more about her than little ol' me..."
Apple Bloom looked up, and gave a grin. "I think I'll do just that," the little filly giggled, before coughing. Granny Smith laid a gentle hoof on her back and rubbed as Apple Bloom cleared herself, kneading it loose. The rolling motion was soothing, and already being sore and warm from the fever, Apple Bloom was soon kneaded back to a warm sleep.
"She know more than you'd think," Granny Smith smiled... then sighed, sourly. "I just hope she finally gets 'round to telling you this time..."
It wasn't the first time Rainbow Dash had woken up in a tree. Not even the first time this week. But when Rainbow Dash woke up in a tree, she generally remembered doing it on purpose.
Beneath, the ground was still soggy from the unexpected rainstorm. The storm had been sudden and heavy, but not particularly powerful, which to an experienced weathermare just didn't make sense. Clouds of that size shouldn't have had the energy to storm, especially not in formation; there had to be something really powerful gathering all those clouds together. Something like a dragon, or Nightmare Moon, or something really close to that. Rainbow Dash wasn't quite sure; she was still really tired, and the moon was still high in the sky, so she couldn't have gotten much sleep at all.
And her eyes were sore. Reaching up a hoof, Rainbow Dash rubbed at the socket; they were still tender.
"Crying? Why was I crying..."
The branch was too gnarled to be a comfy bed but her wings fit too well astride it to feel like moving, so Rainbow Dash just wriggled, letting her wings flop limp to either side of the branch. As she lay there, tried to remember just how she had fallen asleep. She vaguely remembered her hooves full of dark, dry cloud, buried inside it; there was the sensation of the cloud falling under her weight. She hadn't felt too sleepy, though. The feeling of shock was still fairly fresh, and she frowned for a moment in thought.
"Wait a second..."
As the memory came out, Rainbow Dash shouted, sitting bolt upright on the tree branch.
"Aaaw, yeah! I SAW her!"
Rainbow Dash pumped her hooves into the air, one flap of her wings making her follow. "Take that, Rarity! I knew she was real!"
As she pedaled into the air, excitedly, Rainbow Dash looked around, vaguely recalling the old cherry field she had flown to. It had looked a lot nicer before the spiral clouds had formed, of course, but as she flew in, she saw the clear part in the middle of a low hill - there were still fairly fresh hoofprints. In her mostly-but-not-quite-awake state, she could almost see her gold alicorn standing there - and that alicorn was looking right at her.
It was the first time she had actually seen the alicorn's face! Rainbow Dash gasped and almost squealed as she recalled the mare of her dreams - it had been from far away, yes, but she actually saw her face! It took some concentration, but she was able to pull up the memory from before she fell asleep - and once she had the image in her head, she wouldn't let it go. She was, as any alicorn, beautiful; tall, strong, stately. Her face was noble, and stronger than any alicorn she had ever seen but Celestia. And her eyes were bright blue - and really beautiful when surprised, like when she was kissing...
... Luna.
Rainbow Dash blinked, and came to a stop in midair. She knew, somewhere in the back of her mind, they weren't actually standing there...
"Well... looks like this one has an interest in you," Luna smirked, looking over her shoulder at the hovering Rainbow Dash.
"Is that so?" The gold alicorn broke the kiss to look at Rainbow Dash, and gave a small smirk. For some reason, a posh Manehattan accent seemed to suit her. "I suppose fans are to be expected. Well then, my little fan," the gold alicorn smirked, stepping forwards to stand next to Luna. "Just what do you want?"
"I... I want to...?"
"Come on now. Out with it," Luna ordered impatiently. The golden alicorn snickered, and Rainbow Dash faltered in midair.
"I-I'd like..."
"Oh, how cute. She's tongue-tied," the golden alicorn smirked. With cold eyes still fixed on Rainbow Dash, she leaned in against Luna, giving an affectionate little nuzzle. "I think we might be too much for the poor dear."
"No, that's not it at all," Rainbow floundered. "I-"
"Are you going to start speaking sometime soon? Because I'm starting to get very bored of talking to you," the golden alicorn said, looking down at a hoof.
The pegasus ground her teeth, her wings stiff. "If you'd just let me finish already, all I'm asking is-"
Luna smirked. "A mad mare, shouting at the clouds, thinking she's good enough for a princess." Luna lofted her wings, and the golden alicorn matched her. "Let us leave her to her madness..."
"Oh don't you DARE!"
Rainbow darted into the dream-Luna's face, hitting her hooves together. "I - you - just be quiet. And you - Rainbow whirled. The golden alicorn quirked an eyebrow critically.
"I just - I just - aargh!" She threw her hooves up in frustration. "I'm just trying to ask you out, here! Now listen you-"
"Uhm... Dashie, who were you talking to?"
Rainbow Dash whirled and looked down to see Pinkie Pie, looking up with concern. Quickly, Rainbow Dash hid her hooves behind herself.
"I am totally awake. Yeppers, just a normal night. I'm just... practicing. Yeah," Rainbow Dash smirked, throwing a few punches out into the air in front of her. "Just gotta - just gotta work on my game, is all!"
Pinkie tilted her head at Rainbow's broad grin. If any pony in Ponyville knew a smile, it would be her - and that wasn't a smile at all. In fact, despite her grin, her friend seemed downright frowny.
"And does that normally involve flailing around and getting all muddy?"
Rainbow Dash looked over herself. It only now seemed to click that she had never actually taken off, or that her wings were caked with mud and sticks.
"Eheh- yeah, all the time! Because it's mud! And... it's hard to fly though, so it resists you... you know, resistance training," Rainbow shrugged. "You know, trying to fly through mud, it's hard to do and makes your wings... strong..."
Pinkie laid a hoof on Rainbow Dash, and gave a little frown. With just that look, Rainbow Dash sighed, and looked down. "Yeah, I'm not okay. I don't even know... am I awake right now?"
"Sorta, kinda, maybe." Pinkie shrugged. "But you're talking to me, so at least that's something! Have you sleeping okay, Dashie?"
"I don't know," Rainbow Dash signed. "There was the hurricane... and then there was Princess Luna, and her, and..." Rainbow Dash screwed up her face, then looked disgusted. "I guess... I had a nightmare. While awake. Can that even happen?"
Pinkie clucked her tongue sympathetically. "Oh, I've had those before, and they can be a real doozy." With her best 'I'm here for you' smile (not her favorite smile, only like her eighth or ninth best, but she was good at it), Pinkie wrapped a hoof around Rainbow Dash, helping her stand up on her own four hooves. "Let's get you somewhere warm and dry, Dashie. You can tell your Aunt Pinkie all about it."
Big Macintosh's hooves were propped up on the stove, watching carefully as oatmeal and apples bubbled away in a small pot. When he heard footsteps behind him, he gave a little smile. "'Morning, AJ."
Applejack froze in her footsteps, then sighed in frustration. She had stayed out so late it had turned into very early, instead; soon, everypony in the Apple household would be waking. "Morning," she groused, as she half-heartedly pulled herself into the Apple family kitchen. If she was about to get the third degree from her overprotective "big brother," she might as well enjoy some breakfast along with it.
Big Macintosh took the cinnamon shaker and gave a generous sprinkle over the oatmeal, trying to get it to taste. "Early start?"
"More like I had a late finish." Applejack said, and went about setting the four places at the breakfast table. She looked at Apple Bloom's usual place, and sighed. "Had a lot on my mind."
"Looks like it." The stallion took another stir of the oatmeal. His voice was kind, but there was a twinkle in his eye. "Out 'stretching' again?"
"Something like that." By reflex, Applejack bit back her words, but shook back her usual closed-lipped stance. The full truth - not only that she had summoned the heir to the throne of Equestria, but that she did so just to throw a tantrum over her bad dreams - was too silly to be credible. The believable parts of the truth would suffice. "You could say I was... getting some help with my nightmares."
Big Macintosh nodded, and gave breakfast one last stir. "Did it do ya any good?"
"I'm telling Apple Bloom this morning."
Not the answer to the question he asked, but maybe it was the answer she needed to give. His eyes met hers with concern as he brought the oatmeal over to the table. He rested the pot down on the tablecloth a moment, then asked. "About your wings?"
She gave a thankful little mutter as he poured her share, then shook her head. "About her father."
He paused, and gave a little snort. "Sure you're up to it, AJ...?"
"No. I'm 'bout as nervous as a chicken in a wolf's den," she laughed, then gave a little sigh. "But... I promised her I'd explain it, so I'll be okay."
"You know," Big Macintosh smiled, "You don't have to do it alone..."
"No. But I reckon I better," she smiled. "I mean... I've got to tell everyone, soon." Applejack gave Big Macintosh a thankful smile. "I know you miss him, too."
"Eeyup." His was quiet as he poured the three other bowls, knowing the scent would soon bring Granny Smith and Apple Bloom grumbling down the stairs. Applejack finished the rest of her breakfast in silence, mechanically lifting each spoonful; it was too hot and not sweet enough, but just going through the motions was comforting. One bite. Two. Another. She almost had the entire bowl eaten before she accidentally dug the spoon underneath the bowl, lifting it up and off the table, spilling onto the floor. She looked upon the mess and gave a disdainful snort.
"Look upon your royalty, Equestria, for here she is. Princess Applejack. Head of House Apple. Heir to the throne. Outsmarted by the common bowl of oatmeal."
Applejack heaved in order to give a deep sigh, but the sigh twisted in her mouth and became a deep throaty yawn that'd put a timberwolf's howl to shame.
"Land's sake, AJ - have you had any sleep tonight?"
"Well, I tried to. I got a little, before I woke up and went-"
The larger stallion's heavy muzzle insistently nudged into her side.
"Go to sleep, AJ. There will be oatmeal in the morning."
"But I still have to clean up after this mess-"
Big Mac looked at her, stern. He was almost a fifth her age, so she had no idea how he could so effortlessly stare her down.
"-yes, sir."
Applejack let herself stumble off the bench. She didn't have much time to fall, though, before her "brother" was holding her tight, both a supporting hoof and a tight hug. He gave a rare, warm smile down to her.
"Don't worry about things today, AJ. I'll take care of them. You just go on up and get some sleep, and get yourself square with Apple Bloom. I reckon gettin' life sorted is plenty enough work for one pony to handle."
Applejack looked up at Big Macintosh, and gave a nod. "Thanks." She gave a little smirk. "But even after I've told everypony, you better not start treating me all fancy."
He rolled his eyes. "I'll do my best." He smirked, and lowered himself to kowtow. "Now up to bed, your highness. Even a princess needs her forty winks."
"Don't push it, mister," Applejack sniggered, giving Big Macintosh a little push with her hoof. He snorted, but rose up, giving another insistent nudge against her flank until she had to take the first few steps out of the kitchen.
"I'm going, I'm going." She gave a little mutter as she eased up the stairs. "And... thank you."
"Good night," he called after her.
"'Night..."
Applejack looked to her bed. Then to the door. Then to the bed. She was as sore as a dog, yes, but a busy mare's biggest enemy is a cunning idea.
"Wonder if..."
She closed her eyes, and let her spells drop just enough to bring her horn back into view. It had been some time since she had lifted anything this heavy, but when her golden glow enveloped her dresser, it lifted as easily as the nails had just a few days ago. With concentration, she was able to move her dresser in front of the door and set it down, the boards underneath squeaking as soft as a churchmouse. Applejack nodded in satisfaction at her blocked door, and faced her bed, giving a broad yawn and falling limply into bed. With the door barricaded, she felt safe enough to let herself relax completely... including her horn.
With her form-concealing disguises instantly disrupted by the complete lack of will to maintain the spells, she did not so much land as she splashed onto the bed. Her longer, lither longer alicorn form stretched out along the sheets, and she gave a sigh. Rather than tightly hidden to her body, her wings were about as limp as the quilts she was lying atop. Not constantly watching over the horizon or casting spells to detect possible visitors; not wondering when she'd be able to next catch an hour to herself. Just... sleeping.
Maybe I'm just thinking about tellin' everypony 'cause I'm getting used to feeling this relaxed.
Applejack turned a nearly-closed eye to face the window. Through it, she could see the moon, large and full, and gave it a small smile. She wondered if the moon's princess was watching. If so, she'd be sure that Luna could see just how soundly, and she put on her widest smile.
"Thank ye kindly, Luna..."
She had planned to say more, just in case the moon princess was listening, but Applejack was already fast asleep.
It was cooler than summer, but the old riverbed still looked as clean as ever. This time, Applejack didn't bother to take into the air - she just rest along the bank and lay flat. She stretched her wings out to try to cover more of herself under them, and wriggled down into the earth, sighing.
Now this is how I should have been spending my spare time, Applejack cooed to herself. Maybe Rainbow wasn't wrong after all...
"Yoo-hoo!"
Applejack sat up with a start, turning around her. "That couldn't have been..."
A shadow passed over her, and Applejack looked up. Between her and the sun, Celestia was backpedaling with her wings, coming into a controlled landing.
"I hope you don't mind my intrusion," Celestia smiled. "But I'd like to talk to you, and this seemed like the most private way to get in touch."
"Out here in the back forty?" Applejack snorted. "A nice idea, but I'm pretty sure all the newspapers are now writing about how the Princess Herself flew from Canterlot to Ponyville unannounced..."
Celestia giggled quietly behind a hoof. "Oh, Applejack - if I had done that, I'm sure they'd be speculating for days," she laughed. "But no - I'm pretty sure they have no reporters in the land of dreams."
Celestia's smile only broadened as Applejack's face fell in realization; she did love the look on a dreamer's face in the moment they realize they're dreaming. Applejack looked up to Celestia, and tilted her head. "So... you're in my head?"
"By your leave only, of course," Celestia said curtly. With a stretch, the older mare came to kneel herself, sitting beside Applejack in the ruddy soil of the old riverbank.
"So... I take it this isn't Element business. Or the apple business, neither."
"No. And perhaps," Celestia nodded. "If you don't mind..."
"Naw. Fire away."
"Thank you." She gave a smile, and Applejack gawked. Celestia just might be the only pony in Equestria that can lie down in the mud and make it look like she's hosting a tea party.
"First, a little bird told me you are considering revealing your secret to your friends?"
"Eeyup," Applejack nodded. "Apple Bloom, first, though. But as soon as I find the time, all my friends will know. I'm sure they'll be discreet, but..." She shrugged. "It's been a long time in coming." Applejack fixed Celestia with a stare. "You tryin' to tell me not to?"
"Not at all, Applejack. In fact, I'm looking forwards to it. I think the idea of an alicorn, bucking the nobility and doing what is right just for herself will be... healthy." She gave a little grin. "It will be a little chaotic for a while, to be sure, but it's the sort of shake-up that I think Equestria could use."
"Well..." Applejack grinned awkwardly, and reached up to nervously fiddle with her hat; when she realized she wasn't wearing it, she rubbed at her neck. "I didn't mean to start a revolution..."
"Most revolutions that needed it didn't mean it. And most that were started but aren't needed don't last." Celestia reached out a hoof. "Just do what your heart tells you is right, dear. No matter what you decide, your family will love you, your friends will support you... and my offer of tutelage, as ever, remains open."
Applejack nodded. "I'll think about it. I reckon I might need to learn some of this, being a 'goddess' and all."
Celestia nodded. "I'm glad to hear that. However..." She sighed, and there was a harder edge to her voice. "While I do support you, Applejack... that's not why I came into your dreams tonight."
"Oh?" Applejack tilted her head. "Well... what is it, Celestia?"
"Please do not call me that."
Celestia's hoof was no longer resting atop Applejack's. The sun goddess's face turned just a little bit colder, and while she was still polite, she did nothing to hide the frown on her face.
"Applejack... I'd like to understand why you made my sister cry." |
Lie of Omission | Chapter 6 | It had been years since Applejack had last slept in this late; where normally she raced the sun to the horizon, this day the sun had not only beat her to rising, but had left her behind entirely, impatiently racing to its noontime perch. Although she felt guilty for not having helped with the morning chores, it couldn't be helped at this point, and she took her time, stretching out as she woke, resting her head in her hooves. Applejack gave a warm little sigh as she stretched her wings -
Wings!
Applejack quickly panicked, jumping out of bed with a very undignified squeak, landing on all fours and ready to run. She whipped her head around suspiciously, looking about to see if anypony had been watching her sleep. Finding nopony right away, she regarded the window suspiciously - if the sun could have been seen, so too could just any pegasus have seen. Why, just regular weather patrols could have peeked in...
She gave a wry smile, and relaxed a little. Well, no time to worry about that. If they saw, then they saw. Heck, it might be better that way. That way they all can gossip and I can get back to...
Despite how well-rested she felt, Applejack's other secret weighed on her heart still, and she sighed.
Well... it's back to comin' clean to Apple Bloom, I guess.
Applejack sat at the edge of her bed, donning her usual disguise as she thought about it. The conversations from the last two nights had bolstered her heart; it had changed from a possibility to an inevitability thanks to Luna's caution, and from there to a necessity thanks to Celestia's help.
Still strange to think of myself being anything like them two, Applejack thought, as she lifted a brush automatically to brush her hair out. Tying it up, and putting on her old hat, she looked at herself in the mirror - an image of Applejack as her parents remembered her, back when Ponyville was just an inkling in their eye, a quiet town with a quiet farm on the edge.
Applejack looked at the mare in the mirror and on her bravest smile, doing her best to reassure herself. "Well... guess it can't be put off any longer. No reason to get all worked up, then.."
"I didn't mean to make her cry, Princess - honest. I didn't even know she... she had an interest. But... then she admitted to liking me, and before I could say two words in edgewise, she'd already flown off."
"I see." Celestia closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "Her side of the story was much less... rational." She chuckled wryly. "What little I could get out of her, that is, whenever she was not throwing pillows at me and demanding I get out of her room."
"But I don't understand. She hardly even knew me, and she was askin' for my hoof..."
Celestia nodded slowly. "Luna's always been... capricious. She doesn't give in to doubt, and lives by her whims. Living in the present - such is her way with coping with immortality. But-" She smiled wistfully. "It's an improvement over duty and shame, at least..."
Rainbow Dash sighed, her breath making the water dimple as she watched. It was hard to focus on anything but what was right in front of her, but she put her all into it, and she was able to follow the
The pegasus was vaguely aware of a pink blur, especially when it pressed in against her with a brush or with hoofffulls of a lavender-y shampoo or a song bouncing forth from the blur's vicinity. However, the voice had stopped.
"Come on, Dashie. I can't help a frowny face if you're not trying! Now, I'll brush your tail out again, so go ahead! Have some fun!"
"I am, Pinkie, really," Rainbow Dash said, lifting a hoof and letting it fall into the water limply. "See? I'm splashing. Splash, splash, splash," the pegasus said, lifting her hoof up and letting it swirl the water. "I'm good at that."
Pinkie looked at Rainbow Dash, then her hoof, then back at Rainbow Dash. "Hmm..."
Rainbow Dash looked at Pinkie, disinterested; Pinkie looked at Rainbow Dash, hopefully. Then, Rainbow Dash shrugged and fell back down to her hooves, sinking into the water up to her nose. Pinkie shrugged and brushed the shampoo out through Rainbow Dash's mane, the undifferentiated rainbow mop breaking back into streaks of color as she brushed.
This is.. this is going all wrong. She should be feeling better. A nice hot bath should make everything better! And yet here she is being so mopey-dopey!
"Thanks, Pinks," Rainbow Dash sighed as she rose out of the tub. Pinkie was there in just a moment (with the extra super dooper floofy towels with the pompoms!), drying her out, but not. "Really, I appreciate it, but..."
"Buuut?" To Pinkie's sensibilities, that kind of 'but' should have been followed by "I'm done being a mopey Maurice now." Except, you know, as said by Rainbow Dash, so more awesome.
"... but I just want to go back to bed," Rainbow Dash sighed, giving Pinkie Pie a hopeful look. "Do you mind if I crash here tonight?"
"Ah, sure, Dashie," Pinkie quickly agreed. "But are you sure you don't want some dinner? Or some cupcakes? Or to talk about what's bugging you? Or some talks over some dinner cupcakes?"
"... nah, I'm fine, Pinks," Rainbow Dash said, as she climed up onto a nearby couch. "I just need to... rest my head..."
And with that, Rainbow Dash was out like a light. Pinkie Pie looked at Rainbow Dash, who was already snoring gently, and huffed.
That was not how it's supposed to go at all! I'm supposed to get her cleaned up, and she's supposed to start smiling and say 'Thank you, Pinkie,' and she's supposed to admit all that frowny stuff and I'm supposed to help her and she's supposed to start smiling again!
Of course, the first thing that came to Pinkie's mind was Maybe I should throw her a party. After all, there were few things in life that could not be solved by a sufficient amount of parties! But she quickly decided against that course of action as she imagined Rainbow Dash feebly gesturing towards a snack table while saying, "See? I'm partying. Party, party, party. I'm good at partying."
No... this called for for something bigger, more powerful, than a party. She needed to be able to focus Rainbow Dash like a laser and make her pay attention. Not a party - although maybe a small snack table would help - she needed to give Rainbow Dash an intervention until everything bad didn't seem bad anymore, and to fill her heart back up with joy so Rainbow Dash could go back to her usual awesome self.
Decided, Pinkie Pie slipped into her best supply-procuring trenchcoat (with pockets bigger on the inside) and slipped off into the night. Pinkie Pie was going to give her best friend Rainbow Dash the best joy-tervention ever. But even for a party expert like Pinkie, it would be a huge task. And she'd need the help of all her friends to do so.
"You get some rest, Dashie. I'm going to need get some help. And some great, big hats."
"Then - and I hope you don't mind me askin', princess - how do you deal with immortality?"
"Oh, that is simple," Celestia smiled. "I play pranks. A little mischief goes a long way in surviving hot summer days, or cold winter nights."
"...what."
"To be sure, that is not the only way. Reading. Plays. High cuisine. Touring Equestria. The occasional companion."
"Wait a minute - companion?" Applejack tilted her head. "Occasional?"
"Only the noblest and most discrete, I assure you," Celestia nodded, a smile playing on her lips.
"But - that's just... weird."
"I doubt you have any illusions, but I advise you, Applejack; the traditions of mortal relationships do not quite align with the realities of immortality," Celestia said. "After all, there will always be a day when they realize that you will outlive them. The noblest of them will be honest, and you can still make it work afterwards, but they will always come to resent you..."
The polite term the professors used was 'determined'. Yes, that's it; Twilight Sparkle was a very determined student. Circumspect was another word that was used; detail-oriented sometimes was voiced. Frustrating? Obsessive? Not words they would state out loud, outside the private company.
And yet, here she was. The development of Ponyville from an undeveloped field into a vibrant community was one that had never been written down formally, and Lyra's inquiry only rekindled her interest. Checking her checklist, she sorted the cards that would form the index, creating titles for each section in different colors of ink. The socialeconomic status of southwestern midland pre-Lunarian Equestria each in red. The Canterlot diaspora in orange. The founding of Ponyville in yellow, outlined in black because yellow ink is hard to read on white index cards. The expansion of the rail system in green. The Main Street Expansion in blue. And present day Ponyville in purple.
"There we go. Sorted chronologically and chromatically," Twilight grinned, as she moved onto the next entry in her checklist, "Create subheadings for each heading." Under the subheading checkbox, was a checkbox for each heading, to check once she had each subheading exactly right. To create subheadings, of course, required a review of the primary sources, which would require creating entirely new, independent subchecklists. After creating enough index cards for each checkbox, she'd have to check that she created enough index cards, and then tally up the total as she finally returned to the main checklist.
Twilight giggled in glee, and rubbed her hooves together. This was going to be exciting!
First things first, though: She had to reorganize all her sources. (Organization!) They were in complete disarray ever since Lyra had come to her with that crazy theory, and she had to put everything back. Almanacs were floated to the almanac shelf, minutes of meetings were slid back into dusty old crates, and postal records were neatly slid back into their binders. All her loose materials were sorted and checked, and checked in reverse order for accuracy. She was just about ready to continue with her preparations when she looked over one oversight - the impromptu binder she had thrown together when confronting (er, verifying research with) Applejack.
However, there was something odd when she looked at the documents. As she went to resort each note out, she started to see a trend in the pictures.
Huh. I don't recall seeing that pegasus before...
As she looked, she started to notice another trend - group shots of the Apple family with a pale-coated unicorn or pegasus, generally wearing a hat similar to Applejacks'. In the descriptions of the images, where available, the unicorn or pegasus was credited as an "out-of-town relative of the Apple family." The images spanned nearly a century of Ponyville history, but save for the wings and horn, the appearance was generally the same - especially the three-apple cutie mark.
Twilight believed in simple facts. She believed in science, in testing, in verifiability. But as she looked from ninety-year old agricultural records to sixty-year-old yearbooks to thirty-year-old newspaper clippings to ten-year-old photographs, Occam's Razor failed her, as what it left in its wake was too far-fetched to believe.
"Family is not the word I would use."
Hearing Celestia speak so coolly about the nobility was, to be frank, upsetting to Applejack. Granted, living her life subject to them, she had about as much love for the nobility as she had for the apple worm, but they were more than a tradition - they were an institution in Equestrian society. And even as much as she resented the nobility, she respected Celestia, the head of the nobility, as the pillar all Equestria drew strength from.
"Isn't that cold?"
"Perhaps. But distance is healthy. There are many out there who will not see you as Applejack, the honest, the farmer - but as Applejack, the twenty-eighth house. Their gifts will come with a ribbon attached, each designed to give you guilt if not outright obligate you to action."
Celestia shook her mane out softly, and opened her eyes again, looking Applejack in the eyes. "Then again, you have a unique perspective in this matter, don't you? Not only have you disguised yourself as a mortal, you have lived as one. And... it has been many millennia since I have seen my own parents. Perhaps, in this, you are wiser than I am."
"Sure's been a while since we last came out here..."
Applejack had to laugh as Apple Bloom ran over the path, the smaller filly almost rolling over the gravel path. It was still clear after all the years, but it hadn't been tended to, potholes dipping into it and tree roots rising above it. Eventually, everything else in this clear
"You said you were going to tell me the truth about Mom and Dad today."
"That's true," Applejack nodded slowly.
"Well, first, I've got some questions, Applejack," the little filly said. "The first thing is... whut were they like? I hardly remember 'em... at all..."
Applejack sighed. This was the hardest part. "Well, your dad... he was real strong, biggest stallion anyone's ever seen, and with a heart ten times that size," she smiled. "Apples are my job, but they were his passion... everything I ever learned about apples, your pa taught me."
"I know that much," Apple Bloom said, with only a bit of irritation. "Granny Smith's done told me all that. But what was he like?"
"Huh. Well, he was... well, I'd say he was real dour. Never liked to speak unless it was important, and when he did, he only said enough to make sure the important bits were out first - he didn't like wasting time, his or anyone else's."
"Doesn't sound like he was a lotta fun."
Applejack considered. "Not really. But he liked his puns, and he'd take his time settin' them up. When he had a good line, he'd take his time setting you up for it, days or even weeks - and then bam! Lay you out so hard you'd get a case of quiplash."
Apple Bloom giggled softly. "Doesn't seem all bad, then."
"He was a pretty good cook, too - insisted on making fresh bread every Sunday, and he loved making pies. We used to sell pies at the market, you know, he could keep a dozen pies goin' at once and pop them into the iron cart they'd all still be hot and fresh by the time he an' Big Mac had carted 'em down."
"Huh. Sounds nice," Apple Bloom agreed. "How come we don't sell pies no more?"
"Huh... well, we still do now and again, but never quite as many. Your pa was the best pieman any Apple did see. Without him, we just weren't as good, so we started makin' fritters and caramel apples instead."
"Aw. That's too bad. I bet they were good."
"That they were," Applejack grinned, rubbing Apple Bloom's hair. "But you were real little. Even a fritter would have been a challenge for ya."
Apple Bloom bushed away Applejack's hoof and smiled. "And momma? What do you remember about her?"
Applejack froze for just a moment - but it was long enough for the filly to notice. "What is it, AJ...?"
"Well... let's start this way," Applejack said, smiling softly. "Why don't you start with everythin' you remember about her, first, Blooms."
Apple Bloom smiled, and sighed. "I remember, she was... real pretty. Pretty big, too, not big like Big Macintosh big, but... real strong. Like nothing could ever stop her."
"That sounds about right," Applejack conceded with a little grin.
"I had a dream 'bout her... just last night, actually," Apple Bloom continued. "I saw her for a little bit, then..." Apple Bloom looked towards the top of the hill, and sighed. "... then she jus' left. She looked a lot like you, AJ, 'cept bigger. And more like gold than orange." Apple Bloom looked over her shoulder. "Do you remember momma at all?"
The older mare smiled softly, and gave a nod. "A little. You were the light of her life, you know - she used to say every day with you was a blessing."
Apple Bloom tilted her head, curious. "Yeah, moms do that... but what she was like?"
"Right to the point, heh?" Applejack smirked. "Well... if I had to describe your mom in one word... it was 'worried.'"
"Worried?"
"Eeyup. Worried about herself, worried about her husband, worried about the farm, worried about the future. Oh, she was pleasant, and she worked hard, but she was always paranoid all the time. I guess.. I guess you could say she kept a lot close to her chest."
"Ah." Apple Bloom giggled. "So he was boring, and she was crazy."
Applejack squinted at the smaller filly. "Hey. That's your ma and pa you're talking about there, Blooms. Show some respect."
Apple Bloom giggled a little, and shook it off. "Nah, I'm just jokin'. It's easier to remember them, a little." The smaller filly sighed. "But... that doesn't answer why they're gone."
"Well... it all started here, really," Applejack said as they rounded the crest of the hill. "Take a look at this..."
Apple Bloom climbed to look down the hill - and her eyes flew open wide. "Oh, wow..."
Before them, the forest opened up into a magnificent river valley, easily the size of Ponyville and Sweet Apple Acres together. It was a light forest, not as old and dense as the Everfree, but almost as untouched; there were only two signs of habitation. First, an abandoned gazebo set beside the river, having long since been bleached from the sun. Above the valley, an old railroad trestle crossed the valley, flowering vines having long since displaced much of the old wood, turning the rail bridge into a trellis.
"Oh my gosh! That's just-" Apple Bloom gaped, then grinned, jumping. "That's awesome! Oh, how long ago did they make this?"
"Near to a hundred years ago, now," Applejack smiled. She paused to carefully consider her phrasing - "And it was abandoned back when I was a filly," she said, watching as Apple Bloom almost bounced, heading down the path eagerly. Applejack had to pick up the pace to keep up with the younger filly.
"I can't believe that it's still standing, after all this time," Apple Bloom beamed, grinning like she had just won the six-legged race. "Oh wow - I don't see a bolt anywhere. Did they just slot everything together? Like a giant set of Linking Logs? That's amazing!" However, after a moment, Apple Bloom frowned, narrowing her eyes and turning back to face Applejack. "Now, wait just a minute. This is cool and all, but what's this got to do with Mom and Dad?"
Applejack smiled. "We used to go out here all the time, you see. That's basically how it all started."
"How whut all started?"
"I'm getting to that," Applejack stated with some frustration. "This is real tough, okay? So let me get 'round to it on my own time."
Apple Bloom cringed softly. "O-okay."
Although Applejack relented, she still stayed defensive. "I don't mean to snap, but... I've never told anypony about this..." She hung her head, and sighed. For a few minutes more, the two of them walked along the path in silence, coming closer to the center of the valley. As they came into the shadow of the train bridge and the path started upwards, Applejack finally spoke up again.
"It was peaceful and quiet that day, and we didn't have nothin' left to do, so we decided - just the three of us - we'd have a picnic right there, in the ol' right-of-way up there." Applejack pointed out the old bridge, right as it came to round the crest that opened out over the valley. It was all gravelly for draining the rain, so it never got overgrown, and there was always a nice breeze comin' up the valley so the train tracks made the perfect spot to dine."
Apple Bloom smiled gently. "Sounds just about perfect..." Then, her face fell, her eyes averted with a soft sigh. "I wish I could have been there."
Applejack chuckled. "You weren't no bigger than three apples in a blanket at that time. We left you with Big Mac and Granny Smith, although-" Applejack's voice cracked - "we had planned on taking you 'fore too long."
Apple Bloom nodded, and lifted her head, still somewhat subdued.
"Anyhow... this started like any other picnic, just the three of us. It had rained the day before so everything was clean still had a bit of dew to it, but our picnic spot was nice and dry." Applejack smiled. "I remember your father had baked some bread that day, so we had fresh bread to go with fresh apple butter. Just walking there smelled delicious."
"That sounds awesome," Apple Bloom agreed, finally giving herself a small grin.
Applejack nodded, taking a look up. She stopped moving - but she took a deep breath, and started talking again. "Well, your mother was in a particularly good mood that day. And - to be honest, your mom needed a break from bein' 'momma.' So she was bein' the silliest you ever did see, bouncin' around and goofing off. She decided to make that old bridge her 'stage' and started showin' off for us..."
Apple Bloom's eyes went wide, curious, bouncing on her hooves impatient. "And then whut, AJ?"
"And then, in the middle of one of her spins... her hoof hit a rail. And it must have been slick, because she... kept spinning with it, over the edge and off the-"
Applejack froze. She hadn't thought about it for years, but now, looking up to the rail bridge, she could see the moment again in almost perfect detail - including the surprised look on her face as she went over.
"Did... Did she..."
Applejack looked down at the river, then to Apple Bloom, and nodded shallowly.
"I... I figured as much." Apple Bloom looked up at the bridge - the dropoff was quick. Even a filly her age could do the math. "Did she scream? Did... Did it hurt?"
Applejack's mouth hung open. Of all the questions she was expecting, that wasn't on the list. "I... no. She just had this confused look, like she had only stumbled, then..." Applejack winced. "... no. It was fast. But... she was scared."
Apple Bloom nodded, finding herself back into the emotionless place she had found herself just the day before. She came over and wrapped her hooves around Applejack, and squeezed tight; the older mare leaned back against Apple Bloom and tried her best to keep the sniffles under control.
"I... I should have been there... I should have done somethin'. I shouldha... But I didn't..."
"I... I don't know, 'cause I wasn't there. But I think..." Apple Bloom gave another tight squeeze. "I think you did all you could."
"That's just it. I didn't," Applejack said. "I shoulda told her to stop goofin' around! And when she went close, I could have... I could have run to her, or ... I could have ..."
For a moment, they just rested there, in memoriam; neither was completely dry. "I was too scared to move," Applejack finally admitted.
"It's okay, Applejack. She forgives you. She's mighty proud of you, where she is, I just know it," Apple Bloom reassured, squeezing.
Applejack nodded, and sighed. "And... well, that was when your pa just... broke. He stayed around a few weeks more, but he was a broken stallion. Barely did any work, barely said anything, and he'd look at any random thing in the farm and just... close up. Near as we figure, he couldn't stop thinking of her. One day, we woke up and he was just gone..."
"He... he just left?"
"Near as we can figure," Applejack nodded, opening her eyes. "Don't know where he went... don't know if he's coming back. But we can only hope," she smiled, squeezing. "And, even after alla this time... I'd be grateful to see 'im again."
"Now, that doesn't seem right. He was family! He had no right to run an' just... leave us..."
Applejack turned, and gave the smaller filly a soft squeeze. "Well, Blooms, you gotta remember... Mac and I were quite a bit older. And he..." After a soft sigh, she continued. "Your pa was only related to us by marriage... he had his own blood to tend to him, over in Neighbraska. They could help him more'n... more than we could."
Apple Bloom sighed in defeat. "I s'pose that's true. But..." Suddenly, Apple Bloom squinted, and looked sideways to Applejack. "Waaaaait a minute..."
Applejack tilted her head in confusion as Apple Bloom cautiously pulled away from Applejack's hug. "What's up, Blooms?"
"Something just doesn't add up here..." The little filly got angrier. "You're not speaking right. You keep- You keep qualifying it. You're sayin', your ma. Your pa. That doesn't make any sense... unless..."
Applejack stood up, unready. "Now, listen, Blooms, I-"
"Hold it!" Apple Bloom shouted. "Don't... don't go another step. You're not my sister, are you?"
For a brief moment, Applejack hesitated. Simply dropping her disguises - showing Apple Bloom the full truth, without any warning - crossed her mind. But instead, she sighed. Another later of half-lies peeled back, but more remained - more would always remain.
"I'm sorry I haven't been... completely honest with ya," Applejack started. "But I can promise ya, it was for good reason."
"Why? So you can trick me?" Apple Bloom rose back, taking a step up the hill and away from Applejack. "Was that story you told even real?"
"Of course it's real! Why would I make something like that up?"
"I dunno! Maybe you want... I dunno, maybe you want to steal Granny Smith's inheritance!"
Applejack paused, and tilted her head. "Seriously, Blooms?"
However, the Crusader spirit had risen in Apple Bloom, and she flailed. "Or-or maybe you're some evil impostor trying to steal the deed to Sweet Apple Acres land so you can bulldoze it all and build a series of strip malls an' chariot stadiums..."
"Apple Bloom, that is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard..."
"Oh, is it?" Apple Bloom took another step back, raising her voice. "Because you just told me my momma just... that she just danced off a bridge! I don't know what's more ridiculous! And 'sides," Apple Bloom said crossly, sticking out her tongue. "She was my momma, not yours. You're not even blood..."
"I am blood. Just not... quite so close," Applejack said, exasperated. "Technically, I'm..." Applejack paused to do some linguistic calculus. "Erm... I'm your great-aunt, I think..."
"My aunt? What a likely story," Apple Bloom sneered. "And I don't care how great you are..."
Applejack facehoofed at the misunderstanding, but didn't bother to correct it. "Well, so what, Blooms? Let's say I am some complete stranger from - from Prance. What changes?"
"What changes? Why, everything changes!"
"I don't think so," Applejack smirked, taking a step forwards. "I'll sleep in the bed close to the stairs, and you'll sleep in the room far from the stairs. I'll work the fields, you'll man the press. Granny will tend to the house, Big Mac will tend to the machinery, I'll sell apples, and you'll study in school. Just like always. Just like our family always has."
"I..." Apple Blooms' mouth hung open, and she paused for a moment - Applejack hanging on, hoping her 'sister' wasn't going to overreact any more. She tried not to sigh visible as Apple Bloom's face softened, and something approaching a smile lit on her features. "... I guess nothin'll change, really."
"There you go," Applejack smiled. "So... you not mad at me?"
"Not really, I guess," Apple Bloom said, sighing. She looked down to Applejack, and stepped down, carefully. "Sorry I got all mad about all that..."
"Nah, it's okay." She smiled, and gave a little grin. "I guess you don't have anything else world-shattering to tell me..."
Applejack's face froze.
"... AJ? Whut's up?"
Applejack laughed nervously, before shaking it off. "Well, I guess you can say I do have a secret or two," she admitted. "And one of 'em directly affects you, so... I'm gonna come clear with ya on that one, too."
"Huh?" Apple Bloom tilted her head. "Whatcha talkin' 'bout, Applejack?"
"Well... I promised your mother something, long ago."
"Whut kinda promise?"
"Well..." She smiled softly, and shook her head. "Really, I promised your mom and dad that, should ever something terrible happened... I'd stick around and take care of ya."
"Well, sure you'd do that. You're my sis-" Apple Bloom's eyes dawned in realization. "Wait. Then that means..."
Applejack chuckled quietly . "That makes me a bit more than a sister, sugarcube." She relaxed, and gave a smile. "Apple Bloom... I'm your godmother."
Apple Bloom's eyes flew open wide in surprise. "Godmother? That means..."
"That just means I made your mom 'n dad, a promise, and I'll try to live up to it."
Apple Bloom squeaked in surprise. "You mean you're my.... mom?"
Applejack shook her head quickly, although she couldn't quite hide her blush. "Naw - I'm just here for her," Applejack said quickly. "I wouldn't ever try to-"
A blur of red and yellow collided with Applejack, knocking the wind out of her, and they both went rolling down the hill. When they finally stopped, the filly was wrapped tight, her voice caught somewhere between laughing and crying and her heart not caring where.
"... Momma..."
With a smile, Applejack stroked down Apple Bloom's mane, and gave her goddaughter a tight hug. "Well... I reckon so, if you wanna get technical about it."
"The problem with the truth, Applejack, is that it is weak - at first. Ponies will think nothing of it when it is fresh, because it seems evident from that which came before - no matter how sudden. Yet as time goes on, the truth gains power - for good or ill."
Rarity generally took her sweet time getting out of bed in the morning - opening after noon was not unusual. But there is something about having a wide-eyed pronking pink pony in your bed looking into your eyes that inspires you to rapid waking. A little screaming, too, if truth be told. The pink pony screamed back, which certainly made certain she would not be getting back to sleep tonight.
"Pinkie Pie, whatever could be so important that you can't wait until... I don't know... after breakfast?"
"Rarity, you have to come quick - you're the only one that can help."
"Me?" Rarity waited a moment and caught her breath - hyperventilating wouldn't help her pronunciation at all. "Of course I'll help, dear, but whatever could I help you with?"
"This is a hat emergency!" |
If You Had To Choose | pre | "Choose." The voice demanded coldly. "Your Kingdom or Your Life!"
The beam pushed back, the ache in Celestia's horn increased to agonizing as one eye winced closed as the battle began to turn. She slid an inch or two further and then the glide came to a awfully slow stop as Nightmare Moon screamed: "CHOOSE!"
Barrel hitching, eyes burning, throat clenching, Celestia found she couldn't breath. The light became blinding as her beam was pushed back effortlessly now and she found that if this was her choice, she would choose death.
"CHOOOSEEE!" Nightmare Moon's voice bellowed in the royal voice and the whole room shook and trembled as the air vibrated and wasps of heat wafted in the air with every second the beams pushed against each other.
"Fine..." Nightmare Moon said in humbled, cold tones. "If you won't choose, I will choose for you."
Closing her eyes, tears slowly trickling, Princess Celestia felt the pain grow as the beam closed in. She couldn't teleport, she couldn't dodge this, she couldn't raise a shield quick enough to block it. If she lost it was over. Whatever Luna had become would win, and if it won...her subjects would suffer.
If she could just reach the elements, if she could just stretch her concentration out to the one she needed most, she could turn the tide and stop the madness.
But wish all she wanted, they did not come flying from their closed constraints. Useless, lifeless, un-moving the Elements sat there. Doing nothing to provide the only window she could find.
"Goodbye, Celestia." The chilling whisper touched her ears as the searing heat began to burn with blinding light into her closed eyes.
"Goodbye, Luna."
With a pained cry of emotion, Celestia's eyes blazed white, and in a searing explosion of blinding light, everything went white. |
If You Had To Choose | Epilogue: The Spear of The Stars | Princess Celestia moved slowly, a careful trot as she limped forward in the daylight of her Sun.
It had been six weeks since it all came to an end and not a day went by did she not go without regret on how things had come to their conclusion. So many lives lost. So much to work through since she had announced Princess Luna's appearance and the sacrifice she made in defeating the Alicorn known as Nightmare Moon.
A ceremony had been held in honor of Princess Luna and a statue had been made and commissioned in her honor to be hosted in Canterlot at some unknown point in time. Rumors would have it one day, the lost Princess would return while others claimed she had already long since been gone the day that monster had appeared.
Celestia had decided to let the pieces fall where they may be while she held kept herself busy.
The dead were still being accounted for. So many lives had been lost and simply thinking about it made Princess Celestia shiver with revolution and shame as well as fill with sadness at how much of an impact this would have on the country. The day the sun had returned was the same day many had cursed the name Nightmare Moon and even now Celestia wished she could do so also, but not if it meant cursing her sister as well.
Turning to the guards that escorted her to the bridge Princess Celestia offered her little soldiers a comforting smile, and gently touched the two unicorn guards that had joined her from one free wing.
"Thank you for coming Sergeant Twist." She smiled as her wing moved away.
The bruised stallion offered a smile and said nothing as he nodded. The gash across his throat would make certain he'd never talk again but at least he still knew how to smile during these tough times.
"Princess?"
Rising to her full height Princess Celestia looked at the pale blue pegasus with lime green eyes. "Yes, Specialist Cartwheel?"
Rubbing the back of his neck with a hoof the former First Class blushed then coughed into a hoof as he looked back at the Princess with a more serious expression. "Will you um, really be alright?"
The look of surprise on Celestia's face did not go unnoticed and almost instantly Specialist Cartwheel Drag got nudged roughly in the ribs by Sergeant Twist for talking out of turn. With a grunt he stomped his hoof and raised a withering glare at the former private.
"Wha-- OW!" He jumped, "Sir?"
Unable to speak but certainly able to gesture Sergeant Twist tapped with his hoof on the ground to get his point across, a feat that only confused the pegasus even more as he clearly had no idea what was being said.
Lemon Twist realizing this decided to try using a stick to get his point across in the mud with writing. Picking one up, he began to write, till the stick broke.
Frustrated he tossed it aside and threw a hoof at Specialist Cartwheel, pointing at him then Celestia.
Commander Flake, the co-driver of the chariot that brought the unicorns here moved from his mount and raised a brow at what was happening, saying nothing.
Lemon Twist scowled and seemed to grab another stick in an attempt to try again, only for it to break also after the first stroke.
He huffed, now realizing that this was going to be far tougher than he thought.
Cartwheel looked at one of Sergeant Twist's officers, a stallion just a few years older than him. Somehow hoping this unicorn would understand what was going on-- aaaaaand the unicorn behind the older stallion merely shook his head with a equally confused shrug.
Suddenly exploding into laughter Princess Celestia's sudden laugh caught all the guards off guard as they watched their divine monarch smile in a way they hadn't in a long while even after Nightmare Moon's defeat. And in some way, it put them all at ease. She'd been preoccupying herself with nothing but work since the system had suddenly switched from diarchy to monarchy and many of the nobles had whispered word to some of the officers that there was concern Celestia might fall under too much stress.
"Uhhh, P-Princess?" Before he could say much more Specialist Cartwheel Drag found himself dragged into a tight embrace, one that made him freeze instantly for touching his all powerful monarch in such a rare display of affection and no sooner had the contact started did it end almost as quickly.
"Thank you, all of you." Princess Celestia said with a warm smile as she looked at her silly officers. "I think after this, I feel a bit better about coming back here. Don't worry Specialist" a wing gently brushed the younger officer. "I think I'll be fine now."
An ear twitched at a distant sound as Celestia stared up at the massive tower that seemed to go past the clouds and into the stars.
The tower was thin, long, black like ink and carried numerous numerical patterns across its surface. The surface of it was smooth, and it glinted like a blade in the warm daylight giving it a polished and clean finish that reflected nothing back save for oddly the light. As Celestia stared at these patterns she noticed how some had a similar resemblance to the alchemical patterns the Chamber of Harmony had once held on its floor.
"Its beautiful, isn't it?" came a deep yet warm voice.
Celestia's ears raised and her tail flicked casually. Not at all alarmed or surprised at the sound of this familiar voice.
"...It is", she smiled sadly without looking at her companion. "You did a fine job Weyland."
The minotaur smiled a sincere smile. "Thank you Ilios." Soon though, his smile turned somber as he looked back to the tower before them.
"I...I must say, I doubted you."
"Oh?" The minotaur responded as he rubbed his silver beard.
Smiling sheepishly, Celestia looked at the minotaur that towered her by a full foot and she couldn't help but look away as the gold brown minotaur stared at her with a raised silver brow. "I suppose it was impolite of me to not trust you all after you'd found Magic so quickly for me. I also never got to thank Cria for her help finding the rest of the Elements. Nor you for helping me with the Chamber or the others with their aide in all of..." she trailed off, eyes wide almost at a loss of what to say.
Waving a hand in dismissal, Weyland's smile returned. "Bah, it is nothing Ilios. Think nothing of it. We do what must be done for the good of all. Be wary though, there are only so many times we can intervene like this again. From what Taurin says, father was busy on the other side of the world during the time your Sun was absent. You know as well as Star Swirl--"
"Yes", Celestia's ears splayed and her posture slightly slumped with her sigh. "There are rules. And if we are to keep things stabilized we must be more careful."
"I couldn't have said it better, my friend." Weyland responded.
Birds chirped happily in the distance and Weyland could not help but look around. "Tell me, what do you plan to call it?" He finally asked.
"What?" Celestia asked in surprise, something Weyland did not take notice of immediately.
"The tower, surely you plan to name it after your sister, yes?"
Mouth opening to respond Princess Celestia found she couldn't. Looking back at the tower she looked back at Weyland once, a wing twitched as she looked back to the distant Everfree Castle, then turning without a word, Princess Celestia headed to her old castle, limping as she moved..
"Ilios?" The minotaur called from the ground. "Where are you going?" He asked louder the further she got.
Celestia did not reply. In fact half way up the slope her horn glowed and she teleported.
Getting comfortable in the demolished throne room, Princess Celestia looked at the ever stretching tower.
"Ilios?" Celestia did not respond.
"Was...was it something I said Ilios?" The minotaur asked, now concerned. But what should've been more concerning was a minotaur who could ride atop clouds of unnatural glowing light that was in the form of some chariot, tethered to a strange winged creature. A creature that licked its chops with a thin tongue and bathed Celestia in warm air as it breathed on her before the energy based entity disappeared with the chariot as the minotaur patted its side and moved towards the Princess.
"No", Celestia replied as she stared at the distant, pencil thin tower that continued to stretch upwards for miles, almost as if it was an illusion of its own. Then after a second she sighed and conceded with, "...maybe." Only because she herself wasn't quite certain if it was completely his fault.
"I apologize", Weyland tried. Celestia could only offer a sad smile to her companion, knowing it wasn't his intention.
"I really did not mean to offend you Ilios, surely you understand? I was just excited is all. It's... it's been awhile since anyone has commissioned anything from me-- even if this wasn't a commission so much as your plea and my offer to help-- I suppose I just got too excited to see the final result. My apologies, I spoke out of turn to you..." shimmering gold eyes looked to the tower, "and to your sister."
Leaning in nuzzling the oaf, Celestia sighed. Sitting in the demolished space that was once her throne room, a castle that was going to be quarantined from the public with a new one in Canterlot that had been completed three weeks ago, yet of all the places she was at this moment it was up in a cloud with an enigmatic minotaur who could perform feats of magical craftsmanship not even Star Swirl could perform with all his transmutation skill.
Then again, Star Swirl never really was one for labor work unless it meant studying magic theory and application.
"I forgive you", she smiled. Both at the thought of her old friend and mentor, and the apology offered.
"I thank you Ilios." The minotaur said in turn as he offered a returning hug, careful of the Princess' injuries. The two watched over the collapsed wall of the throne room, looking towards the tower that stretched for miles and miles, never ending, always going. Almost like the world had grown a horn and this was its way of showing it.
"Is it natural for it to do what it does at night?" Celestia inquired.
"You mean...the mark? The one after you defeated Nightmare Moon?"
The princess nodded although her eyes never moved from the tower.
"It will happen every night I'm afraid. Whenever the moon is full, it will appear. When I designed that trap for you, it was a last resort method." Celestia nodded, so he continued. "I designed it specifically based around what I understood of your sister's magic from what your element had told me. I will not fault you however, your sister is perfectly contained. Magic was required to activate the trap but to make it work properly you needed powerful magic. I'm glad you followed our advice."
"I would've done so without hesitation. It's better this way than the alternative."
Frowning at those words Weyland reached out and gently scratched behind Celestia's ear. An action that made her whicker, which simply made the minotaur chuckle as she leaned into his touch. "I do apologize for your loss though Ilios. I wish there was a way my brothers and sisters could help you with this. I know our elders, especially father will not be so willing but..."
Reaching out with her wingtip Celestia prodded the minotaur's side. "You and the others have done enough, thank you for everything."
Weyland smiled. "We do what we can. We are not omnipotent but we try to do what must be done....has Accord?"
Celestia frowned. "No, I haven't seen him in awhile since his visit a decade prior. I hope nothing terrible has happened but", she turned back to the tower. "I suppose I will have my plate full for quite some time also."
"Mmm", the minotaur hummed in agreement. "I would advise you keep an eye out for those followers of Frengari."
"Oh I shall, don't worry."
The two turned back to the tower. Watching it in pleasant silence for a time till Celestia's ears perked as something came to mind.
"Star Spear."
"Hm?" Weyland inquired more with his expression than with his words.
"We'll call the tower Star Spear." Celestia said with a smile.
Rubbing his chin the Minotaur chewed on it. It wasn't a bad name but, "Why Star Spear?"
"Look at it." Celestia gestured with a wise smile and gentle nod. "At night you can barely see it stretch out into the clouds and disappear into the sky. And it always seems to shed something close to my sister's mark no matter where I put the moon. In the day like now, it reaches out clearly and if you wanted, you might think it could reach for the sun. The spear to touch the stars."
"The spear that touches the stars", Weyland mumbled as his face scrunched in thought. He grinned, "I love it!"
Celestia smiled as she looked at the tower where her sister lay. Banished and exiled she may be, but she hoped at least in the tower she would be safe from harm till the time was right and the right bearers were found. Till then, she'd have to do her job and try to manage things till Luna returned.
"Star Spear", Weyland said the words again. "Brilliant!"
Smiling as a feather brushed a tear away Princess Celestia nodded. "Thank you, I think so to." |
Race to the Finish | pre | Fluttershy also mumbled softly, "I also need to be up by 5 in the morning... I hate time zone differences"
No one heard the timid girl.
Applejack glared at her sister, who shuffled forward. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo's pale faces grew even more pale. Apple Bloom mumbled audibly, "Ah need to confess something... I'm Anon-A-Miss."
There was dead silence for a few seconds, and then Rainbow Dash snorted, "Pfft! Yeah... Good joke! Everyone knows that Anon-A-Miss is Sunslut Shimmer!"
Rarity gave Rainbow the stink-eye, "Rainbow Dash! Watch your language! As much as I don't like her, she doesn't deserve such name-calling! But I agree. It has to be her!"
Pinkie was silent and Fluttershy whispered, "I knew it already"
Once again, she went unheard.
Applejack deadpanned, "She ain't lying... I caught her red-handed on the Anon-A-Miss admin page."
Suddenly, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo ran up to their friend and blurted, "We're Anon-A-Miss too!"
The shock from Rainbow and Rarity was visible and everyone except for Applejack were frozen. Then Rainbow snarled and lunged towards the three of them. Only to be restrained by Applejack, while the youngsters cowered.
Rainbow Dash struggled under the country girl's iron grip, "Let me go, AJ! They're gonna pay for making our lives miserable for four months!"
Applejack snapped, "Oh no you don't! You're not going to juvie for murder! Not on my watch, as much as they deserve a good hidin'"
Rarity breathed in and out and then spoke calmly, "Girls... I want to know one thing. Why did you do this and incriminate Sunset?"
They shared a look and then launched into a tale of how they were jealous that Sunset was spending so much time with them. So they wanted to make her look bad. But soon, people started to send them secrets and it got out of control, and the girls were too caught up in the thrill of it.
When they were done, Fluttershy shot them a very disappointed look, "Girls... Why didn't you just talk to us? This has to be the weakest excuse to ruin someone's life."
Apple Bloom protested, "We didn't mean for it to get this far!"
Pinkie spoke for the first time, "But it did... Were you three ever planning to confess?"
Scootaloo meekly said, "We... started considering it since last week. Especially once some messages became really personal. I think someone even sent a file that read 'Uncensored pictures of Pixel Pizzaz'. I think it was Hoops who sent it, right Bloom? We refused to open that one."
Rarity looked relieved, "Thank goodness for that! Some things are best left unseen. Though we should expose that disgusting pervert"
Then Pinkie had a thought, "I was thinking. Maybe we can go through all the messages and see who all sent them. After all, You girls haven't actively gone seeking for secrets."
The three girls stared at their feet, shame-faced, "We're sorry. We didn't mean for this to go this far."
Fluttershy shot them a disappointed look, and that made them feel even worse. She said, "Girls... You shouldn't be apologising to us. You should apologise to Sunset. We all need to apologise to her, as because of us, she is the school pariah."
Applejack let out a bitter chuckle, "Apologise? Apologising ain't enough. We're better off getting on our hands and knees and begging for forgiveness."
Rainbow jumped to her feet, "Well, come on! Let's go find her! Pinkie, you've got her address, right?"
The hyperactive girl reached into her poofy pink hair and pulled out a slip of paper as they all left the house. She said, "If I'm not mistaken, she's renting out an apartment a few blocks south of here."
Fluttershy mumbled, "I don't think it'll work."
She thought that she would be ignored as usual, but Applejack heard her, "What makes you think that, sugarcube?"
Fluttershy eeped a little before stammering, "I-I-I mean... four months ago, we all kind of blew up at her publicly. D-d-do you really think she'll forgive us, just like that?"
The group of girls paused their walking and thought about it. Applejack whistled, "Shoot! You're right! It is kind of our fault and we've kind of driven her away."
Rainbow mused, "Come to think of it... I haven't seen her at all, since that day. I mean, she's not even turned up to school at all!"
Pinkie gasped dramatically, "You don't think... She could have transferred out! To Crystal Prep!"
Rarity shuddered, "Heavens! I hope not! I've heard horror stories about that place!"
Flashback End
Sunset texted, "It's okay, Shy. At least my name is finally going to be cleared. So what's the bad news and the other good news."
The girl texted back, "After your landlady Petunia Petals revealed that you vacated the house four months ago, the girls were in a bit of a rut. Also, you know I sometimes have a habit of mumbling to myself? I... Might have let slip that I knew where you were. Obviously, the girls started grilling me for information."
Sunset's shoulders slumped as she texted, "*Sigh* I guess I'm gonna have to face them eventually. But what's the other good news."
She replied, "I panicked and yelled that I Pinkie-Promised not to reveal your whereabouts to anyone. That was enough for Pinkie to get the girls to drop the matter."
Just then, Sunset checked her watch, "Hey Shy, I've got to go. I'm going bowling with some of the other riders. Talk later. Oh, and get some sleep if you REALLY want to watch the race tomorrow."
Sunday soon dawned and Sunset joined Zipp and Hitch for a jog to the track. Fortunately, the weather was nice and sunny, and no threat of rain in sight. The time ticked by, as did the two support races, and then it was time for Sunset to take to the track. She rode onto the grid and looked over their data. As for tire choice, she opted for a medium front and medium rear end.
After the warmup lap, she settled on the grid and focused on the lights. Sunset got a decent start, but others around her got a better one. By the time they reached the first turn, she was down in 17th. She soon slipped down to 18th and Slipstream gnashed his teeth in frustration. He muttered, "Come on kiddo. It's just the first lap. Calm down and we can make our way up steadily."
To his left, he heard exclamations of shock from the Ducati team. He checked the replays and his eyes nearly popped out of their skull. Slick Shifter had somehow pulled off the mother of all overtakes, passing three riders in one go. Back with Sunset, she tried a move on 17th place, but they collided and she almost got unseated off the bike. After three laps, she managed to make some slow progress up to 15th and the final point-scoring position.
She got re-overtaken. again, but got a stroke of luck when two riders ahead of her, collided and crashed out. Then, at the front, there was drama as race leader Apex crashed out, promoting her up to 13th. A few laps later, she was up to 12th and then clawed her way into the Top 10. Unfortunately, P9 was too far ahead, so she just settled down and maintained her pace until the finish line. Slick Shifter went on to win, ahead of Dynamo, prompting cheers from his team.
Sunset simply smiled under her helmet and congratulated her friend before riding back to the garage. The first person to greet her was team principal Slipstream. He grinned slightly, "You know... All things considered, this was a good day in the office, kid. At least we salvaged some points."
Just then, Sunset had a thought, "Hey Slipstream, I need to talk to you about something... Alone... It's important."
> French Connection
"Wait... So you're telling me that you're from another world that is full of magical talking ponies? And you're a unicorn? The one with a horn?"
Sunset nervously smiled and nodded, "Uh... Yes..."
Slipstream stopped wheeling back and forth and massaged his temples. She gulped and asked, "You believe me... Don't you?"
He snorted, "Kid... I believe you, alright. Trust me when I say, no one can come up with THAT elaborate a lie. I've had people lie to me before, and your story is not even the most fantastical. The last person who lied was a prick called Sprout. Kid was talented and he was my former teammate, but we later found out that he was selling some of MY data to his old team, who happened to be our biggest rivals, and lied about it for six months. My boss found out and sacked him on the spot and got him a lifetime ban from racing. The cherry on top was me giving him a massive knuckle sandwich to the nose. I just have a couple of questions though... Firstly, if I existed in that world, what species would I be?"
Sunset tapped her chin thoughtfully, "I'd probably say that you'd be a pegasus. The pony with wings."
Slipstream grinned, "Cool! Anyway, thanks for the heads up. Better I find out now than for this to be exposed in a more awkward way, that would definitely end with me checking myself into a loony bin."
The teenager rolled her cyan eyes, "Jeez! Melodramatic much? What was the other question?"
"Oh yeah... If your world is a parallel world, then does a Sunset Shimmer exist in this world? If you do happen to bump into her, are you gonna have to explain it like a long lost twin theory?"
She shrugged, "When I first arrived in this world, I didn't find any records of her at all. Maybe she lives elsewhere, maybe she doesn't exist. I'll probably cross that bridge when I get there."
A few days later, Slipstream found her frowning at a circuit map. He wheeled up and raised an eyebrow, "You okay, amigo?"
She continued frowning, "This map is really confusing. Track seems insanely long."
Something clicked in his head and he took a peek over her shoulder. The puzzle pieces fell in place in his mind and he let out a guffaw, "Y-you're looking at the wrong map, kid! One sec!"
He rushed to the computer, booted it up and began typing. Then he saved one image and printed it out before handing it to her. Sunset glanced at it, "Yeah this looks a lot different."
Slipstream grinned, "The one that you were looking at, is the Circuit de la Sarthe, where the endurance racers compete. We're running on the Bugatti Circuit, which is a shortened version of the same track."
She tilted her head curiously, "Endurance racing? What's that? And how long is the original circuit?"
He winced a little, "About 8.5 miles, or 13.6 kilometers."
Her eyes widened, "And the shorter track?"
"2.6 miles or 4.1 kilometers, approximately. Now for your other question, endurance races are a LOT longer. These races last between eight hours minimum, or 12 hours or 24 hours, maximum."
Sunset yelped, "Seriously! How the heck can only person ride or drive for 8 hours, let alone 12 or freaking 24!"
He retorted, "Don't be silly! You have three or four people sharing one bike or one car and they all take it in turns to race. And unlike what we do, there is mid-race refuelling. We normally top up the tank at the start and that tides you over for the rest of the race. I know for a fact, that Sunny, Hitch, Zipp, Izzy and Pipp's friend, Misty Brightdawn, is an endurance racer. She's part of my academy, and she's pretty good. Anyway, you don't have to worry about that, just focus on this track. But if you really want to, we can fly in early and cycle around the track, so that you can really get the scale."
Some days later, the group flew over to France for the race weekend. On Tuesday, they all drove to the track in a rental car, before bringing out their bicycles. As Slipstream hand-pedalled down the front straight, he explained, "So this start-finish straight is universal and the first turn is the fast Dunlop curve and feeds right into the Dunlop chicane."
They all followed him, as he took the optimal lines. He pointed to his right and continued, "Now normally, we take a right into the hairpin at Chapelle. However, we're going straight on to the next left-right sequence at the Forest Esses. Next up we have a right hand turn into Tetre Rouge. This feeds us onto the really long Mulsanne Straight."
After a while, there was a right-left-right sequence of corners, which Slipstream called the Daytona Chicane. According to him, "The Mulsanne Straight was normally a six km long straight, but underwent modifications because of some fatal high speed accidents."
Soon, he guided the group through the left-right-left Michelin chicane. By the time they reached the Mulsanne corner, Sunset was already puffing. They took a short break to munch on some sandwiches, before continuing. Everyone steadily pedalled until they braked for the left-handed Indianapolis corner, followed by the right-handed Arnage corner. After a short straight, they all gentle turned right, then a slight double left and then right again and then left before straightening out. The group continued cycling until the left-right Ford chicane sequence, and then the final left-right sequence that fed them onto the front stretch.
Sunset slowed down and wheezed, "Whoa! That was a long lap! How long does it take to complete a lap on a motorbike and in a car."
Sunny replied, "Well, according to Misty, the bikes don't run on the full track, only the cars do, and the lap record is three minutes and 17.297 seconds."
Sunset Shimmer could only utter, "Wow!"
They took the next couple of days to explore the city of Le Mans and sample the food. Then Friday arrived and practice began. Before the session, Sunset, Zipp and Hitch cycled around the shortened layout that she would be racing. Then Zipp dropped some news, "So in a couple of weeks' time at Mugello, I'll be making my debut as your teammate, my first of two wildcards I've chose Mugello and Austria. Hitch is going to have his wildcard races at Australia and Malaysia."
Just then Pipp exclaimed, "Guys! Did you hear the news? I believe India's been taken off the calendar for this season. There are plans to let that be the season-opener next season because the anticipated weather was not suitable."
Hitch moaned, "Shame... I liked that track. Was fun to ride on. But I can understand why. Last year it was held in late September and it was crazy hot! If I'm not mistaken, Apex nearly fainted after the race. I heard from a friend that the month of March should be a bit cooler in India."
After a while, it was time for the bikes to have a go on the Bugatti Circuit. Right off the bat, Sunset Shimmer was up among the leaders, eventually finishing the opening session in 2nd place. Practice 2 saw her struggle with different conditions and she ended the session in 11th place, but qualifying saw a slight improvement with 7th place.
Finally, it was time for the race and Sunset was raring to go. Back in Canterlot, Fluttershy had woken up, thanks to her alarm. She quickly glanced around her, because the girls were at her house for a sleepover and the five of them were all sprawled out in the living room. She turned the TV on and lowered the volume, to not disturb the girls. However, a sleepy voice drawled, "Flutters? What are you doing up do early? It's five in the morning?"
She squeaked and turned to see Rainbow Dash rubbing her eyes. She saw the TV as the starting grid was shown and smirked, "Didn't take you for a racing fan, Shy. Who are you taking up- Wait... WHAT THE F**K?"
Rainbow's startled exclamation woke the other girls and they were indignant. Rarity snapped, "Rainbow Dash! Watch your language! A girl needs her beauty sleep-"
Rainbow exclaimed, "We found Sunset!"
That had the other three girls fully alert. Applejack's eyes widened, "What the hay! What in tarnation is she doing, all the way in France? And is this live?"
Fluttershy's shoulders slumped, knowing that the jig was up, "Yes, its live... Round 5 in France. I found out about her during the second round in Portugal. Two weeks later, she was racing in Texas. I begged Flash Sentry to buy me a ticket, because he was also going to watch."
Pinkie perked up, "Wait... So he knew that she wasn't Anon-A-Miss? Why didn't he tell us?"
Applejack deadpanned, "Would we have believed him? Anywho, simmer down, I want to see how Sunset does."
As the lights turned green, Sunset got a decent start and maintained her position. In Fluttershy's house, the girls cheered as she slipped into 6th place. Two laps later, she was up to fifth and sniffing out a potential podium. However, at the double right-hander at Turn 6, it went horribly wrong. Sunset dove down the inside for fourth, but suddenly the front of the bike washed out from under her. A collective groan erupted from the Countess Racing Team, and back in Canterlot, the girls also exclaimed in dismay.
Sunset tried to pick up her bike and check for damage, and sure enough there was too much. Her first DNF of the season. She numbly allowed herself to be led away and given a ride back to the Countess Racing garage. Upon reaching, Slipstream was the first to hug her and comfort the girl.
Rarity pointed, "Who's that in the wheelchair."
Fluttershy answered, "Her boss. His name is Slipstream and he's a former world champion. Won the title at the age of 17, the youngest champion. However, he suffered a crash in the following year, that left him paralysed from waist down. Since then, he's been recruited as the team principal of Countess Racing."
Rarity's ears perked up at the name, "Countess? Any connection to Countess Coloratura?"
"Mhm! Countess Coloratura owns the team, and she hired Slipstream to be the team principal. I guess one thing led to another and Sunset was recruited."
Back at Le Mans, Sunset elected to stick around and watch the race, but she was miserable. Once it was over and everyone had cleared out, Countess Racing was among the last to leave, Slipstream rolled his wheelchair up, "Hey kiddo. Walk with me?"
They were soon driving out of the circuit and towards a large cathedral. After parking the rental car, Slipstream led her to a large graveyard, with a number of gravestones. He knelt next to a couple of tombstones and placed a few flowers on them. The 22-year-old spoke softly, "I wanted to show you this. Back in 1955, during the 24 Hours of Le Mans, one of the worst accidents took place. Reports say that around 84 were killed, mostly spectators. My granddaddy was a spectator, along with my grandma. They were racing fanatics and it was their 25th anniversary present. Dad was so devastated that he quit racing. When I was young I kind of got bit by the racing bug. Dad tried to dissuade me for a couple of years before giving in. So he and mom decided to finance my career instead."
He turned to see Sunset nearly frozen in front of two tombstones. He wheeled over and she said, "Those are the names of my parents! I-I-it says here that she was pregnant with a girl and wanted to name her Sunset Shimmer..."
Her voice cracked and he hugged her tight. Slipstream gently rubbed her back, "There, there, amiga. You feel better?"
She took a deep sniff and wiped her nose, "Y-yeah... I'll be okay... I just realised that she would have been much older than me, if she was alive... Shall we go?"
The two of them shuffled away and left the cemetery after paying their respects.
> Catalan Comeback
Sunset Shimmer was suddenly awoken by some buzzing on her cell phone. She looked around bleary-eyed and then grabbed her phone by rubbing her eyes. Apparently, Fluttershy was texting her, and she replied back immediately.
SS: Shy, it's 8 in the morning! I was just having a lie in.
FS: Eep! I'm so sorry, Sunset. I wanted to know if you were okay with the girls contacting you again. I still haven't given them your new number, despite Pinkie constantly shooting me puppy-dog eyes.
Sunset sighed and texted back: Fine, you can tell them my new number. I've got to face them eventually. Can't keep running away from my problems.
FS: Also, I thought you should know, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo publicly confessed in front of the whole school. Of course, there was a massive outrage, but Principal Celestia and Luna warned everyone that they would be expelled if they resorted to violence. As it is, the girls have a six month suspension from school, will be strictly monitored at home and at school, and mandatory detention for the next two years.
SS: Tell Applejack that I'm sorry, but they are getting no sympathy from me. If they just talked to us, this whole crap could have easily been avoided. Heck! I would have been open to them hanging out with us. Now that they pulled this crap, I'm not ready to forgive them for a long time.
FS: I understand... Oh... Umm... Rainbow's just texted me. She and the girls want to see you and apologise face-to-face. So...
SS: I'll ask Slipstream to book five tickets for Catalunya this weekend. Just like last time, someone will be there to pick you up.
SS: Listen, I gotta go. The boss is here and he's taking me to his motorcross track.
With that, she set her phone aside and freshened up before letting Slipstream enter her room. They were all residing in Slipstream's cozy villa in Andorra la Vella. After a light breakfast of scrambled eggs, they headed out for some motorcross.
After a few days, they took a train to Catalunya, while their equipment was brought to the the track by freight truck. They reached on Wednesday and took time to rest up before going sight-seeing. Then on Friday, Slipstream left the hotel, early morning and headed to the airport to pick up the girls. As it turned out, they had booked a different hotel to the one that the team were staying in.
It only took half an hour of waiting, but he finally spotted Fluttershy. She was with a group of four other girls, a blonde wearing a Stetson hat, an athletic-looking girl with prismatic hair, a girl with wild curly pink hair, wearing the biggest smile he had ever seen, and posh-looking girl with purple hair. The last one was looking very grumpy and he observed that she had the most bags.
The blonde was the last one to enter his rented and modified minivan, because she had to stuff 16 suitcases inside the car. Safe to say, she was also looking pretty annoyed. Slipstream asked, "How long were you kids planning on staying here?"
The blonde replied with a Southern twang, "Just for these three days."
He pulled out of the driveway and gestured to the luggage, "You girls sure didn't pack like it."
She grumbled from the shotgun seat, "Consarn it Rarity! Ah told ya we were only gonna be here for three days. How many darn outfits did ya pack?"
The purple-haired girl, who he presumed was Rarity, sputtered, "Well I never! A girl always has to look her best! And I do need various choices of clothes!"
The lone male gaped, "Did you pack your entire wardrobe! How the hell did you manage to get through the check-in counter with all of them!"
Blondie massaged her temples, "She actually had to leave behind 30 more suitcases."
His eyes shrank, "Th-th- 30! Are you moving house?! Jeez kid! Either you've got issues or you're a serious hoarder!"
The girl with the prism hair sniggered, earning a glare from Rarity. Finally, he addressed his passenger, "So Blondie-"
"The name's Applejack.", she then pointed to the girls in turn, "You've met Fluttershy, ah assume. That one's Rainbow Dash, that's Pinkie Pie and that's Rarity. Pleasure ta meet ya."
He introduced himself, "Call me Slipstream. I'm the team principal of Sunset's team, so I'm basically her boss."
Rainbow raised an eyebrow, "You seem pretty young. I figured you'd be a lot older. Most coaches and team bosses I've seen in Soccer or American Football or Baseball are usually in their 50s or 60s."
He paused, "I... am going to take that as a compliment... To be frank, had things played out differently, I'd still be riding and competing for more championships. As you can tell by the wheelchair, I had an accident when I was in the prime of my career. Was competing to try and win my second title. Broke my spine and ended my career prematurely at the age of 18. Now, I'm 22 and thankful to still be involved in racing."
Rainbow asked, "So, how did the crash happen?"
Rarity snapped, "Rainbow Dash! That is rude and insensitive!"
He chuckled, "It's okay, kid. I'm not offended. Frankly, most of the crash was pretty fuzzy for me. I only saw videos of it afterwards. Golly! I was lucky to be alive!"
Fluttershy dug out her phone and surfed the Internet, "I found the video!"
She handed the phone to Applejack, who placed it on the dashboard. In the video, they saw Slipstream riding, relatively alone on the track. Heading into a downhill right-hander, his bike bucked him off and he skidded to a stop on the track, where he lay winded.
Applejack winced, "Gosh! That looked nasty!"
He just spoke, "That's actually pretty tame for a rider. It gets worse from here on out."
They watched as he slowly picked himself up, then Fluttershy screamed as she saw another bike ram into Slipstream's body from the side. The impact, sent him flying in the air like a rag doll and he slammed into the catchfence, back first.
Rainbow Dash sucked in a breath, "Yeesh! You're lucky to be alive!"
He nodded, "Aye, and I thank whoever's my guardian angel, for that."
Pinkie spoke up for the first time, "So when can we go meet Sunset?"
"Whoa! Hang on there, kid. I got to take you to your hotel first. I'd suggest you sleep off the jet lag. It's 2:45 in the morning, and the practice sessions start by 8:30 with the junior categories. Sunset will be hitting the track at 10:45AM."
He eventually pulled up to a decent-looking hotel and the girls disembarked. He waved over a nearby bellhop and spoke to him in rapid Spanish. The bellhop's eyes widened when he saw the mountain of luggage. Slipstream slipped a 100 euro note in the bellhop's front pocket and murmured in Spanish, "My condolences."
The next morning, he woke up after getting barely a few hours of sleep. As he he passed Sunset, who was eating cornflakes, he murmured, "That girl Rarity's going to be a nightmare for any vacation. She had around 12 suitcases, all full of clothes. She also had to leave another 30 suitcases back in Canterlot."
Sunset nearly snorted milk out of her nose, "Pfft! That sounds like Rarity, alright. Knowing her, all her clothes will be insanely expensive. Remind me to tell her to keep a close eye on her things, so that they don't get stolen."
On the way to the track at around 8AM, Sunset drove so that Slipstream could catch up on his sleep. At around 10 in the morning, Slipstream went to pick up the girls. As he drove, he handed a package to Fluttershy, who was riding shotgun, "You remember the drill, right? Got your tickets, VIP passes, ear plugs, everything."
Rainbow drawled, "Why would we need earplugs? The bikes sounded fine on TV."
He snorted, "Kid, on TV you have control of the volume. On the race track, these bikes are Loud, with a capital L. I'd prefer it if you five didn't rupture your eardrums. Now, first things first, I'll take you to our motorhome, so that Sunset can speak to you in private. Can't have your little teenage drama play out in front of the cameras, or it'll ruin her reputation."
Rarity hummed, "I do hope she forgives us. We hurt her really terribly, with little to no evidence."
After a half an hour drive, they pulled up to the track, and Slipstream guided them through the crowds. Eventually, he took them to their motorhome and asked them to wait there. Eventually, the door opened and Sunset Shimmer walked inside. She spotted the girls, and in an instant, her posture became guarded.
She neutrally spoke, "Girls..."
The atmosphere was very awkward. Then Applejack stepped forward, taking off her hat and holding it to her chest. She said, "Sunset... I'm mighty sorry for all that we put you through. Ah'll admit, it was our fault for blindly accusing ya, especially when we had no proof-"
Sunset suddenly snapped, "That day when you confronted me, I was so depressed and hurt that I was even feeling suicidal! If Slipstream and his team hadn't got to me..."
None of the girls had anything to say to that. Then Sunset spoke, "Tell me this, if you hadn't caught Apple Bloom red-handed, would you have continued believing that I was Anon-a-Miss? Fluttershy already told me that it took her a week after school started, to figure out that I was innocent."
Pinkie quipped in a small voice, "It took me two-three weeks to figure it out as well. I mean, how can you keep posting secrets when you're not even showing up to school. Sunset, I am so, so, so sorry for being a big meanie meanie-pants"
Rainbow gaped at the two girls, "Pinkie! Flutters! Why didn't you say anything!"
Applejack deadpanned, "Would you, me or Rarity have believed them?"
Rarity's eyes were also downcast, "She's right... We were downright cruel to Sunset. I know this may mean little to you, but for what its worth, I am truly, terribly sorry. I should have been a better friend."
Rainbow also looked ashamed, "Yeah, same. Sunset, I was probably the worst one. I was a total b*tch. I'll completely understand if you never forgive me or want to be friends ever again."
Sunset was quiet for a very long time, and then she finally spoke, "Girls? I've been doing a lot of thinking during our time apart. Six months ago, I would have probably cussed you out and slammed the door in your faces. But now, I understand why I was the primary suspect. I've got a lot of anger issues and I've been working on that with my psychiatrist. I will admit, our relationship is never going to be the same again, but I'm willing to give it a second chance."
She spread her arms out and looked at them expectantly. Pinkie was the first to react, leaping into the hug and bawling away. One by one, the girls made it one giant group hug. After a while, there was a knock on the door of the motorhome, "Hey kid! You finished making up with your friends? We've got 15 minutes until practice begins!"
Suddenly, as if a switch had been flipped, she adopted a different and more cheerful persona. She gave the girls a nice tour of the paddock before taking them to her garage. Sunset even introduced them to Sunny, Izzy, Zipp, Pipp and Hitch, and they all got along very well. Pipp and Rarity were exchanging fashion tips and gossip, Zipp and Rainbow were talking about general sports. Izzy and Pinkie were having a small prank war, while Fluttershy and Applejack were talking to Sunny and Hitch.
Right off the bat, Sunset Shimmer was in excellent form. Initially she made a few mistakes, accidentally going onto the closed off sections of the track. However, she soon recovered to deliver a strong ride, running 2nd with five minutes remaining. She came back in for a final setup adjustment, and was back on her way. However, faster times soon dropped her down the order and she ended the session in fourth.
Returning back to the garage, she had a big smile on her face, it was a good day in the office. In the second practice session though, she was able to finish 5th fastest, and that was still satisfactory. When she returned, the girls wrapped her in a group hug. Then, Saturday arrived, and it was time for qualifying. Sunset Shimmer was again looking in excellent form, sitting in 2nd place with five minutes to go. However, lap times began to tumble and she was eventually classified in 5th place.
Then came Sunday, race day and Sunset was looking pumped. Hitch managed to sneak onto the podium, but Zipp's race ended when her bike chain snapped. Just then, the girls spotted Sunny Starscout taking Sunset Shimmer to the rear of the garage. Out of curious interest, they followed the pair, noticing a pair of tennis balls. Applejack and Rainbow asked,"What's up with that?"
Fetlock, who was doing his bodyguard duty, answered, "This is a reflexes exercise. It's a bit of a tradition that we do here. Helps keep the skills sharp."
Rainbow mused as she watched Sunset catch a ball without even looking at it, "That looks awesome, but pretty tough!"
Fetlock smirked, "If you think that's tough, you should see Sunset's BATAK board?"
"What's that?"
"I'll explain later."
Soon afterwards, Sunset ventured out for her sighting lap and then settled on the grid. She went over her data and then uttered a short prayer on the grid. Finally, the riders all completed their formation lap and were waiting for the lights to go green. Sure enough, the red lights went out and Sunset got a great launch. In the garage, the girls all cheered as she went-five-wide for the lead, heading into the first corner.
Unfortunately, she did not brake late enough, and had to settle for 2nd, behind Slick Shifter. All through the lap, Sunset was all over Slick Shifter's tail, with the soft tyres really working wonders. They stayed like that for three laps, before Sunset finally struck. She dived down the inside at Turn 10, but was forced to sit up at the exit and was overtaken back. On the next lap though, she dropped to third place behind a charging Apex, to the dismay of her friends.
However, with 19 laps to go, they had a reason to cheer again, as Sunset had bagged 2nd place again. She then began harrowing Apex for the next few laps, but then disaster struck. At Turn 10, she suddenly lost the front end, with 14 laps remaining, and a big groan erupted from the stands and in the garage. Rainbow Dash moaned, "Gah! She was so close!"
Slipstream took a few deep breaths, "It's not over yet! Look! She's picking the bike up! Sunset can still salvage points!"
Sure enough, the redhead picked the bike up and checked it for damage, before rejoining the race. The girl was all the way down in 20th place when she got back on the tarmac. There were now 13 laps remaining, so there was plenty of time to salvage points. The laps ticked by as Sunset closed the gap to 19th place and eventually overtook her opponent. Then with six laps remaining, she found herself in 17th place, two places away from the points. Sure enough, she hopped up another place. Two laps later, she finally managed to sneak into 15th for a single point, and then followed that up with 14th. There was a cause for worry, when she got a track limits warning, but she eventually crossed the finish line in 13th place.
As she rode back to the garage, she was consoled by her friends and her team. Slipstream softly spoke, "You did good, kid. The soft tyre was a risk, but it was worth it. Accidents happen, but as least you managed to pick it up and salvage points. Like I told you before, we're still a young team, so there is no expectation to try and win. Don't force the issue. if we win, all well and good. If we don't, then maybe it wasn't meant to be. We're still learning and taking things a step at a time. Next weekend is going to be a fun one, because we're off to Mugello. Now, come on, let's go say goodbye to your friends and we'll pack it up and go home."
> The Temple of Speed
After the Catalan GP, there was just a week until the next race at Mugello in Italy. On Tuesday morning, Sunset was waiting for her daily lessons with Slipstream. Soon enough, he wheeled in, with a few books piled on his lap. He cheerfully called out, "Hey Sunset, have you been taught about aerodynamics, yet?"
She frowned a little, "After my last test, Miss Cheerilee confirmed that that lecture is going to be next week. Why do you ask?"
He grinned, "Want a head start? This topic's gonna be important for this weekend. Ever wonder why I was named Slipstream?"
Sunset nodded, "Yeah, the thought did cross my mind, once or twice."
"Right! So, remember I told you my folks were all racers? Grandmother and grandfather were racers, so was my dad and mom. Mama in particular, was an absolute beast behind the wheel. She was well-known as the queen of draft battles, so when I was born, she named me Slipstream. Now, let me tell you what the slipstream effect is. Give me your hand for a sec."
Curious, she obeyed him and he instructed, "Now, join the tips of your little finger and thumb, that's it, kid. Now join your index and ring fingers as well. Make sure your hand is facing me."
When she did so, he gently blew on her hand. After he was done, he explained, "You felt the air right? Can you describe it?"
She screwed up her face in thought, "I felt it go over my middle finger, and a bit of air between the index and ring fingers. Also felt a small draft under my fingertips."
He smiled, "See, when you're riding, the wind is trying to push your body and the bike back, creating some resistance. Now, can you join your fingers again. This time, I want both hands to do it, then place one behind the other."
She obeyed and he blew on her fingers again, "You felt it again, right? Did the other hand also feel the air."
Sunset shook her head and he grinned, "That is the slipstream effect. The lead bike is effectively punching a hole in the air, so the bike behind has lesser wind resistance, allowing them to go faster. Now, Mugello has an extremely long straight that is 1.1 kilometers long. This is perfect for drafting battles, especially since the finish line is a bit further down the road. The bottom line is that, even if you exit the last corner in first place, there's no guarantee that you'll win, unless you have a giant gap to the leaders."
Now that he got her to understand the basics, they continued with their lesson.
Friday dawned and it was time for Sunset and Zipp to head out onto track for the first time. During the track walk, Sunset was marvelling at how long the straight was. In the opening practice session, the two teammates practiced giving each other a tow to set faster lap times. As the clock wound down to zero, Sunset's time was good enough for third, but on the next go around, she gave Zipp a tow, which was enough to see her in third and Sunset down to 4th.
Then came practice number two and she was fifth fastest, while Zipp was third. Both riders were pretty pleased with their performances and were gathering decent data. When qualifying arrived, Sunset was in sixth place with five minutes remaining, but Zipp Storm was right on her tail in 7th. Just then, yellow flags flew after Dynamo lost the front end of his bike at Turn 12. As the clock ticked down, Zipp nudged ahead in 6th, while Sunset had her latest lap time deleted for exceeding track limits. In the end, she wound up in seventh place, heading the third row.
The next morning, she and Zipp woke up and jogged to the race track. Along the way, the girl casually spoke, "Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention. In August, when we're at Silverstone, it's going to be a big weekend. That weekend marks our sport's 75th anniversary, so all teams are going to come out with special retro liveries."
Sunset puffed, "I'll talk to Rarity and ask her to look up retro liveries. She's our resident fashionista. So, you excited for today's race?"
Zipp grinned, "You bet! Hey! Tell you what, whoever finishes behind the other, buys dinner for the team. Deal?"
They shook on it, "Deal!"
The time ticked by like a blur, they did their media duties, warm up session, final adjustments to their setups. Finally, Sunset, Zipp and the other riders completed their final sighting lap before the start of the race. As always, Sunset eyed the lights carefully and got ready. When they went out, she gunned it straight away.
Sunset got a great launch and slotted into fifth place, while Zipp didn't get a good launch and dropped to 7th. Sunset began hounding Dynamo, while Zipp was attacking Velocity for the entire opening lap. Dynamo then lunged down the inside of Bullet, but went wide. Sunset sensed an opportunity and snuck down the inside, but Dynamo managed to muscle his way past again. Meanwhile, Zipp Storm eventually overtook Velocity and settled behind Sunset.
However, as the race dragged on, the Top 4 were already stretching away from her. Zipp's and her Aprilia bikes were clearly not as quick as the Top 4 Ducatis. As a result, the duo just settled on duelling each other and waiting for someone ahead to do something stupid.
Sadly, it never came, and Sunset ended the race in fifth place, ahead of Zipp Storm on her debut. They congratulated Slick Shifter for his win, with Bullet, Apex and Dynamo completing the Top 4.
When they rode back into their garages, they were pretty happy with their double points haul. Of course, as promised, Zipp Storm treated everyone in the team to some classic Italian pizzas. Sunset took a bite and her eyes nearly rolled out of her skull, "Oh my gosh! This is sooo Good! Miles better that the pizzas we get back home in Canterlot! So where are we off to, next?"
Slipstream scrolled through his phone, "We got nearly a month until the next race at Assen, in Netherlands. Originally we were supposed to head to Kazakhstan for its debut, but the country's been experiencing heavy floods. I dunno about you, but I'm gonna go and relax for a few days."
> The Cathedral
About a week after Mugello, Sunset Shimmer found herself outside Slipstream's office. She knocked and opened the door to find him poring over several sheets. He looked up, "Hey Sunset, what's up?"
She shuffled on her feet, "I... I wanted to ask a favour. Is it okay if I go back to Canterlot High and get some closure? I really didn't want to put it off any longer."
He put down his pen, "Kid, you do know that you're under contract, right? You read all the terms and conditions. You break the contract early, there'll be a financial penalty. I like you, kid and I really do NOT want to take you to court, but I will."
Sunset frantically waved her arms, "No! No! No! I'm not quitting the team! I was just thinking of making a short trip back to Canterlot and face my school mates. We have a month until the next race, right? I just want to get this thing out of the way. Plus, I'm starting to miss my friends. Don't worry, I will be back soon, I promise."
He nodded, "I can respect that, you can go. Just make sure to be back, no later than two weeks before the race weekend. Sorry about the questioning, but I had to be sure that you were coming back and honoring the contract. I know we've had a bit of a slump lately, but then the season is long."
She shook her head firmly, "I'm not afraid! I would never break such a contract! Heck, this is as bad as breaking one of Pinkie Pie's Pinkie Promises."
He smiled, "Good! Glad we're both on the same page. Do you need me to come with or you're okay on your own?"
"I'll be fine. See you in two weeks."
About a week after she left, Sunset called him up, "Hey Slipstream, my friends wanted to ask a favour."
"Hola! Fire away!"
"Right, so... Applejack's family run an apple farm called Sweet Apple Acres and they market all sorts of products-"
"So you want our team to take Sweet Apple Acres as a sponsor?"
"Yeah, Pinkie's work place, Sweet Shoppe and Rarity's Boutique as well."
He stroked his eyebrows, "Well... I'm gonna have to talk to Coloratura for that. Since she owns the team. I'll ask her to talk to Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rarity. They'll have to sign a sponsorship contract up until the end of the season. Heh... You know something? In a way I'm glad you called up with this. We've been having some issues with funding, since Rara's been paying out of her own pocket. She's a nice girl and it doesn't sit right with me, to take advantage of her generosity so much."
"Sounds fair. I'll let the girls know. By the way, the school reunion thing went way better than I expected. Got a massive public apology from the school, AJ's grandmother, Granny Smith also told me that she had been considering disowning me as an honorary Apple, before the confession from Apple Bloom. Those three are still too ashamed to look at me."
Finally, with a week until the race at Assen, Sunset flew back and met with the team at Assen. However, she wasn't alone as she brought her friends with her to the Netherlands. Slipstream picked them up at around seven in the morning and grinned, "Hola! You're just in time! I wanted to introduce to some of the local cuisine!"
Pinkie leaned forward, her baby blue eyes glinting, "OOO! What've you got for us!"
Slipstream pulled his modified van into a fairly out-of-the-way breakfast joint. He spoke, "I've been to this place a few times. I like to call this a hidden gem, because not many visit this place, but the stroopwafel is to die for."
"What's that?"
He explained, "Well... it's just a thin, round cookie made from two layers of sweet baked dough held together by syrup filling. Everyone in the Netherlands loves this stuff, and I can see why!"
Pinkie's mouth began watering, and when the food finally arrived, she closed her eyes and took a bite. Immediately, her eyes popped open and she had an odd look on her face. She moaned, "Soooo! Gooood! Any chance that they can give me the recipe? This thing is gonna sell like crazy!"
The next moment, there was a Pinkie-shaped dust cloud, followed by said girl racing into the kitchen. Several minutes later, she tottered out, looking as if Christmas came early.
For the rest of the week, the girls went sight-seeing in Assen. Though there was one incident when Rainbow Dash wandered off and returned afterwards, a little traumatised. She just gasped, "I saw things that I can never unsee."
He took one look at her and had to guffaw, "Oh man! You accidentally wandered into a red light district, didn't you? Sorry, that was my fault. I hoped to never expose you lot to this kind of thing, but Netherlands is notorious for red light districts and narcotics hubs."
Finally, it was Friday and practice had begun. Sunset rode off for some exploratory laps while Slipstream and analyst Feedback had their faces glued to a laptop, looking at data. Just then, Slipstream spotted Rarity sitting in a corner and sketching. Occasionally, she would glance up at one of Sunset's spare suits, and go back to sketching. He wheeled over, "Hola, what are you up to nina?"
She replied, "To be honest, I was just going over some ideas to improve the look of Sunset's racing suit. The colour scheme is nice, but I'd love for it to stand out even more and make her look gorgeous!"
He raised an eyebrow, "What do you have in mind?"
She tilted the sketchpad and he had a look. His eyes widened and his pupils shrank, "OH HELL NO! Nuh-uh!"
Rarity recoiled, absolutely affronted. Her outraged voice gasped, "I do beg your pardon!?"
He snapped, "Jewels and gems adorning the suit is a HORRIBLE idea, and I'll give you three reasons. First of all, this isn't a fashion show! In any case, she's going to be riding and the suit's going to get dirty. Also, do you have any idea how goddamn expensive this is going to be?."
Slipstream raised a second finger, "Second of all, the bike weighs around 157 kg or 346 pounds. We're talking about a 15-year-old kid lugging a near 350-pound bike, and the jewel-encrusted suit only adds extra weight. Third, the last time some idiot used jewellery, it ended really badly. A couple of decades ago in Formula One, the Jaguar Racing team was promoting a heist movie at the Monaco Grand Prix. They embedded a diamond worth $250,000 on the nose cone, to promote the movie. Sometime during the race, one of the cars crashed and the diamond got dislodged and got lost. Till date, no one knows what the hell happened to it, whether it got lost in a sewer or some lucky cabrón pinched it and got rich. Look, there is a high chance that Sunset could crash at some point, and the jewels could get lost. In the worst case scenario, bits of it can break off and possibly injure her. Do you want that on your conscience?"
The girl was rendered speechless for a minuted. She composed herself and stammered, "I-I never thought about it like that... I'm sorry, sometimes I let my creative muse just run wild at times. I need to remember to take in customer preferences. Thank you for knocking some sense into me, Slipstream."
He doffed his cap in her direction, "Any time, kiddo."
When practice one ended, Sunset was struggling to get to grips with the track and ended up 14th. Fortunately, they tweaked the set-up for second practice and she finished that session in 3rd, behind Slick Shifter and Velocity. Then came qualifying and Sunset was looking a little off the pace. With about five minutes to go, her best time was 1.7 seconds off of provisional pole, putting her in 12th place.
Feedback and Gearwrench made some final adjustments before sending her on her way. Unfortunately, she went out in a massive group, so there wasn't much space out on the track. It only only worse when Dynamo attempted to muscle his way through, only to crash out. Fortunately, Sunset's penultimate lap was able to see her move up to 11th before her final run. Finally, the girl moved up to 9th briefly, before a late improvement from another rider saw her drop to 10th, and that was her final starting position.
Sunday arrived and it was raceday. A late grid penalty for a rival promoted her up a spot, on the outside of the third row. As soon as the lights went out, Sunset got a great start and dove down the inside of several riders. The move worked a little, as she moved up to seventh. With 25 laps to go, she made a move for 6th place, despite a slight wobble. Two laps later, she broke into the Top 5. On the very next lap, she was re-overtaken but tried to fight back with little success, so Sunset settled for 6th for the moment. The laps ticked by and she was trailing P5 by 0.7 seconds. Fortunately, it just seemed like she was taking a breather and saving tires, because she steadily closed back up and was on the attack.
Try as she might, she was unable to make an impression on the riders ahead of her. What made things worse, was that the riders behind were beginning to catch up. Eventually, she was relegated to seventh place, but still in a massive battle for the final podium spot. At some point, Bullet and Dynamo got their elbows out and amped up the aggression, while Velocity was trying his hardest to escape.
With six laps to go, a recovering Dynamo barged past another rider called Drift, and Sunset wasn't about to decline an open invitation. Eventually, Drift managed to sail past her again, as his Ducati was much faster than her Aprilia. Eventually, her pace began dropping and Sunset lost touch with the group. In desperation, she accelerated and tried to push harder to catch up. However on the last lap, it cost her dearly. She leaned a little too far and lost the front end of the bike, crashing out of the race.
A big groan of disappointment erupted from the Countess Racing garage. Sunset Shimmer was on her hands and knees, as she gingerly tried to get up from the gravel. She checked the bike, but it was now unrideable, so her race was done. Sunset hitched a ride on a marshal's scooter, who dropped her off near her garage. Entering, she was surrounded by the girls in a group hug. Slipstream gently pat her on top of her helmet, "You did okay, kid. Mistakes happen. I guess the pressure got to you, eh?"
She nodded, "Sorry about the bike."
He waved her off, "It's okay, nothing we can't fix. As long as you're okay. Do you want to see the rest of the race, or should we pack up?"
She mumbled, "Let's pack it up. Where are we off to next?"
Slipstream checked his calendar and froze, "Oh crap! We're off to Germany next week."
Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow, "What's so bad about Germany."
He wearily said, "The Sachsenring track and I have some history. That's the same track that ended my career as a rider. This is going to be the first time I'm heading to that track, since my accident."
> Going Through the SachsenRinger
As the days passed by, Coloratura managed to sign a deal with Sweet Apple Acres with Granny Smith. Meanwhile, she also spoke to Rarity and inked another sponsorship deal with Rarity's Boutique. She was more than happy to model a few outfits in exchange for promoting the boutique. Meanwhile, the girls themselves revealed that they were going to visit her at every track.
Upon hearing that, Sliptream was a bit hesitant. He warned, "Are you girls sure about this? I'm going to assume that these trips won't affect your schooling. However, my big concern is that tickets are not going to be cheap. Several tracks have different price ranges, not to mention that there is air fare, transport fare and the cost of hotels."
That was when Applejack informed him that her grandmother was more than happy to foot the bills for their travels. Apparently, the Apple family farm usually raked in a decent amount of income from their produce, and the matriarch assured him that it was no trouble.
As race weekend came closer, Sunset noticed that Slipstream was looking increasingly nervous. She looked up his accident and winced, as it was pretty grizzly. Eventually, she convinced him to join her in her sessions with their psychiatrist. On Thursday, Slipstream went to pick up the girls from Nuremberg Airport. As he drove in his modified car, he explained, "Sorry kids, Sunset really wanted to be there to pick you up, but she has a session with our mental health expert."
Rainbow Dash tilted her head in confusion, "Mental health? What's that got to do with racing?"
He explained, "A lot, actually. Do you chicas have any idea how mentally draining it is? Since all teams are travelling a lot, many of us don't get a lot of time to spend with our families. As it is, this sport is so dangerous that the riders don't even know if they will live long enough to see their families. Also, there is the stress of the championship, and that takes a toll on anyone. A bunch of friendships even got broken, and some rivalries turned ugly."
Pinkie piped up, "How bad was it?"
He smiled wryly, "Let's just say, in the worst case scenario, one team even erected a dividing wall between two teammates who were battling each other for the championship."
He dropped them off at their hotel before re-joining the team at the track. As Gearwrench toggled with the setups and prepped the #19 bike, Slipstream sat down with Sunset with a folder full of data. He opened it up to reveal the track map and pointed to certain sections, "Okay, so the first corner is pretty tricky, because it's going downhill. Very easy to lose grip at this section, so be careful. The next sequence can be challenging, so if you make a mistake in one corner, you're going to be off the racing line for the next set of corners, and you lose time. With me, so far?"
She nodded vigorously and he continued, "However, the real challenge begins from Turn 4 onwards. As you can see here, you're just going left, then left again and again. It gets pretty tight at Turns 5 and 6, before you open the throttle for Turns 7, 8, 9 and 10. Then you got to flick the bike right for Turn 11. Trust me, this corner catches a lot of riders out. Heck! That's the corner that ended my career. The fact that it's a steep downhill drop, only make things worse. The last two corners are also tight, and they are some of the best overtaking hotspots."
Few minutes later, Sunset was out on the track, and was setting a good pace. In the opening session, she finished fifth fastest and was 10th in the second session. Admittedly, one of her lap times got ruined by yellow flags, thanks to a crash from Bullet. That incident happened with five minutes on the clock, and she was 13th at the time. When the yellow flags were taken away, she was back on the pace and slotted into P7, but soon slipped down to 10th.
When they turned up for qualifying, there was a new face waiting for them in the garage. Slipstream had a big smile on his face when he spotted the newcomer, "Well... This is a surprise!"
He was cut off when a pale opal blur tackled him with a squeal. When Slipstream finally got his focus, he registered a pair of lips smashed against his own, and a pair of arms around him. He melted into the kiss for a few minutes, when the woman pulled away. He finally broke the kiss, brushed back her two-tone pink hair with one hand and spoke in a soft husky voice, "Hey Fuffie..."
The woman snuggled into him and he addressed Sunset and her friends, "Girls? I'd like you to meet Kerfuffle, my fiancee. We met about three years ago in physiotherapy."
He gestured down towards a prosthetic right leg, "Turns out, she was a rising footballer, but lost her leg when a jerk of a drunk driver crashed into her."
Kerfuffle spoke up in a cute raspy drawl, "Yeah, well Streamy and I met in therapy and hit it off straight away. We began dating after about 6 months, and we only just got engaged, last year."
Rarity swooned, "How romantic!"
Kerfuffle leaned against him, still curled up on his lap in the wheelchair, "I happened to be in town and thought I'd drop by to say hello. I also wanted to meet this Shimmer girl, you've been going nuts about. If she were any older, I'd probably start getting jealous,"
She winked playfully as she said those words. He rolled his eyes and then poked her in the back, "Fuffie, as much as I'd love to cuddle, we do need to get back to work."
Kerfuffle whined, "Do I have to.....? Your lap is too comfy!"
He shot her an exasperated look, and then she relented, "Okay fiiiiiine."
Sunset snorted as she got kitted up and mounted her bike. Gear Wrench made some adjustments to the Aprilia before she set off. When the session drew to a close, she ultimately lined up in 10th place. Finally, it was race day, and Sunset was pumped. Much like everyone else, she opted for hard front and medium rear tyres because she wasn't taking any chances.
The girl rode out for her warm-up lap and then watched the lights. When they went out, she got a decent launch, but went a bit too quick into the first corner. This resulted in her losing three places, and it only got worse when she lost another. IN the garage, Slipstream was clutching his dark brown hair, "Gah! She didn't get enough heat into those tyres!"
The laps ticked by and then the fight back began. Sunset Shimmer eventually swept past one girl called Snowstorm and slotted into 13th. A lap later, she was up to 12th and Slipstream clapped, "Yes! That's it! Full gas! Come on!"
Sure enough, she was up to 11th by the start-finish line to start the next lap. Things got even better when Velocity went wide and took a trip across the gravel, and Sunset was up into the Top 10. With 20 laps to go, Sunset crept up to P9, and began chipping away at the gap to the rider ahead. Soon enough, she was in eighth place and hunting down P7. Slipstream, Sunny and Izzy then got out a big pit board, put some letters and numbers on it, and handed the board to Applejack, "Hey, do me a solid? Go out to the pit wall and show it to Sunset as she's passing by. This is the gap to the rider ahead."
Applejack tipped her hat, "You got it!"
She did so and Sunset pushed her bike harder. However, with about five laps to go, she was back down to 9th place. Then, disaster struck for Apex, as he crashed out from the lead. This promoted Sunset Shimmer back up to 8th. Then on the final lap, she dived down the inside of Powerslide and snatched 7th place, and that was where she ultimately finished.
As she rode in, she explained to him, "Sorry about that. Something got a bit screwed up at the start. That's why I got a bit bogged down."
Gear Wrench was already inspecting the #19 bike. He called out, "Ahh! So that's what happened! There was an issue with the ride height device!"
A bewildered Applejack exclaimed, "A who-in-the-what now?"
Slipstream waved the girls over, "Right... How do I put this, as simply as possible? So this device lowers the bike's centre of gravity, so that they can accelerate faster without popping a wheelie. Sure, the wheelie looks cool for the cameras, but the rider has to go slower so that they don't lose control of the bike and crash."
Fluttershy nodded, "I see... That makes sense. So because of the problem with the device, she could not accelerate fast enough?"
He grinned, "Got it in one! Anywho! I'm excited for Silverstone! Rarity, how goes the planned livery?"
"It's coming along. I'll email it to Sunset when we go home. I just need to put some finishing touches. And don't worry, no jewels have been used."
Slipstream shot her a thumbs up as they all began packing up. Meanwhile, the girls also decided to start making their leave. |
Under Free Flag | pre | Celestia looks after her sister, listening to the receding hoofsteps, and smiles. Luna's blush had been almost too quick to notice. Almost. * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 4 | CHAPTER IV
Quivis beatus, versa rota fortunæ, ante vesperum potest esse miserrimus.
Anyone who is prosperous may by the turn of fortune's wheel become most wretched before evening.
--Ammianus Marcellinus, Historia
I dream of a blue horse looking at me through a safety glass.
What the fuck, subconscious mind? ...
"--ris. Eris!"
Nngh, just let me sleep for five more--ow!
"Can you hear me? Wake up!"
Yeah, yeah, I can he--augh! Goddamnit!
"Hey! Wake-"
"Slap me one more time and I'll strangle you with my bare hands," I snarl.
There's a long, relieved exhalation.
"Thank the Gods. You okay?"
I grunt an affirmative and release the offending wrist. The bridge is outlined in a weak red glow; seems the emergency lights have kicked in.
Ugh, I feel as if I'd had a few drinks too many yesterday.
Right, let's see. Lying on floor, nothing hurts too bad and no shiny red tissue damage indicators, that's good. That's Ace's ugly mug hovering above me. Also good, in a way.
It's dead quiet.
Bad, bad, bad. With a start I realize I can't even hear the drone of the adjustment thrusters, nor the singing of the hull as the sails shift in the wind. It's dead quiet, and that unnerves me indescribably much more than any target lock alarm. I compress my mounting panic into a tiny knot in my stomach and turn to Ace.
"What happened?"
He looks haggard--even more than I remember--but he seems less tense. The lock-jawed attack dog posture has softened into his usual ornery naval officer imitation, and even with the worried scowl there are the embers of a smile touching his eyes.
"We blew the Wall."
"What?"
"Just as the geckos were about to get into proper direct-fire distance we caught a huge mass signature, so we took a gamble and jumped the Streamwall." That annoying eye-twinkle is trying its best to evolve into an annoying smirk. My head still feels like someone's just grabbed my ears and shaken my cranium like a drink mixer, so my thought processes aren't exactly snappy, but that smirk always did get on my nerves. After a heroic mental effort and a few seconds of booting my sluggish brain back to work it's still annoying, but damn it, it's contagious. I feel the corners of my mouth twitching.
"And we pulled it off?"
"Almost flawlessly."
"Almost fl... We're in offstream orbit?"
"Planetside, actually."
The smirk is now a huge, shit-eating grin.
"...and the G's didn't follow?"
"No time to react. Probably the last thing they were expecting."
Oh, this is just too much. I burst out laughing, collapsing back against my command chair. Three days. Three fucking days and nights of pursuit and panic, and just as they're about to hit us with a warhead we luck out on the most improbable damn escape in the universe? Oh Christ, this is great. That was probably all my good karma right there, for this life and the next. I'll be reborn as a cockroach.
Oh God, it feels good to laugh again. Laugh until my sides hurt, which isn't very long, by the way. I quickly realize how utterly exhausted I am. I wipe the tears from my eyes with my sleeve and lean back to take in the scene.
The bridge is pretty okay, all things considered. The Trickster was built for both grav and zero-G operation, so all the stations are fitted with every kind of strap and holster imaginable to keep stuff from flying about. I spy the lumbering form of faithful old Xavier, the first mate, applying a bandage to the head of the newest radar operator--Devi or Dewi something--other bridge crew similarly paired up and checking each other or stations for damage. The relief in the room is palpable, it's like all the tension and fear went out the window with the sound of the engines.
"How bad is it?"
"What, the Trickster? Or the crew?"
"All of it."
"Could be worse. Nothing we can't fix, given time."
Uh-oh.
"Did we lose anyone?"
"One."
"Fuck."
I have to close my eyes for a second.
"...who?"
"Darnell, Stephanie. The new girl on the engineering crew. She wasn't strapped in when we impacted."
"...God damn it."
"Yeah."
Well, that certainly killed the mood. I remember Stephanie, vaguely. I try to get at least acquainted with everyone in my crew, but her I met only once or twice. Still, new girl or no, she is... was still one of us. I sigh deeply, and when I look up Ace is looking me over with an assessing stare. He tiredly waves his arm in the general direction of the quarters.
"Go get some sleep, Eri. I'll handle the immediate procedures."
The familiar sting of sibling rivalry makes its presence known in the back of my mind.
"Why don't you go? I can handle it just as well as you, and you know it."
He smiles at me in that really knowing manner which pisses me off to no end, and I'm sure he can tell exactly what's going on in my head.
"Yeah, I'm sure you can, sis. But you were awake just as long as me, and I didn't have to keep the crew going with my mind-magic."
"Don't call it 'mind-magic', you fucking superstitious luddite."
Okay, that was arguably weak, but it's the best snark I could come up with at the moment.
"Okay. But seriously, just go."
I try to stifle a yawn, fail miserably, and decide that maybe he's right. This time.
"...all right then. But just a few hours. You come wake me, okay?"
"Sure. Sleep tight."
I wearily push myself to my feet and shuffle off the bridge and towards the sweet siren call of my bunk. *
I squint at the time projection on the side of the bed. The little red numbers politely inform me that i've been asleep for seven hours. Seven damned hours. To hell with it all, he promised he'd wake me 'after a few hours', the bastard. I roll out of my bunk, wiggle out of whatever disgusting clothes I'm still wearing and stomp into the tiny shower cubicle in the tiny bathroom. Hey, being the captain has some perks.
As the tickly combination of ultrasonics and fine mist blast the sweat and grime off my body, I'm slowly starting to feel alive again. Also less mad. It's hard to be angry at someone for long when they're doing nice things for you. I jump out of the cubicle before the drying program has finished, kick the dirty clothes littering the floor into a corner and rummage through the dull green storage compartments for a clean uniform and something to eat. Munching on the vaguely chocolate-flavoured chunk of calories that is a compressed nutrition bar I briskly make my way back to the bridge.
The lights are back on, and Xavier is sitting down in the command seat, as I enter licking the final stains of 'natural chocolate aromas' off my fingers. You'd think that in the hundreds of years we've been making this stuff we'd be able to make it taste like real chocolate instead of sweetened cardboard, but hey, can't have all the good things, I guess. It's either spaceflight or realistic fake chocolate.
They should've gone with the chocolate.
Xavier, stickler that he is, gets out of the chair and salutes me as I enter.
"Captain."
I wince, as I always do.
"Please, Xavier, you carried me on your back when I was barely old enough to walk, can't you just call me by my name, like everyone else?"
Hey look, a whole sentence without curse words! I guess being clean, rested and full does make a difference after all. He smiles warmly at me, but still stands at attention, back rigid as if he's just had an aerial shoved up his arse.
"Not while on duty, ma'am. This is how I served your parents, and this is how l serve you."
I try to stare him down--a trick which hasn't worked for the past twenty-five years or so, I might add--give up and collapse into my chair with an audible sigh. Old Xav seats himself next to me and resumes his vigil over the flickering projections suspended in the air in front of him. Taking quick stock of the wealth of data flitting around the room, I notice to my satisfaction that, as Ace said, almost nothing seems to be irreparably broken on the ship, although there's some obvious hull damage and the keel thruster is well beyond saving. I click my tongue in annoyance when I glance at the status readings on the sails. The headsail is busted all to hell, that'll limit mobility once we're back on windpower. Other than that it's really mostly scrambled electronics.
"Give me a quick overview of the last hours, if you would."
"Yes ma'am. As you probably heard, we're planetside after making an emergency drop from the stream. As far as we can tell, we're situated in some kind of mudflat with mangrove-like vegetation. A stroke of luck, that, the landing could've gone a lot worse if we'd been forced to land on rock. The atmosphere is breathable, and the environment seems to be surprisingly earthlike."
I raise my eyebrows at that. Curiouser and curiouser.
"Terraformed?"
"No clear indication, but it's possible. The engineers are working in closed suits, to be on the safe side."
Prudent. I scan the footage from outside cameras, noticing several work crews, cutting and welding stuff around the crushed thruster, looking like large insects scurrying around in the twilight with their reflective bubble helmes and auxiliary appendages. It's lighter out than before--dawn must be approaching.
"We've propped the ship up on the starboard side to keep it level, there's solid ground to port. We've had plenty of indication of wildlife, but..."
He trails off. Not good. Though his face betrays nothing, I can sense the uncertainty in his emotions, and cold shivers run up my spine. Old Xavier has served on the Trickster since... well, since before either me or my brother were born. Well past sixty, he's tough as iron and has more experience under his belt than most merchant crews have between them, and when he hesitates it's never a good thing. I eye him warily.
"But?"
"It's strange. If I had to take a guess, I'd say the planet has been deliberately terraformed to sustain life as we're used to it, but there isn't really any indication of human habitation. No radio transmissions, no light pollution, no comms lasers, no nothing."
That chill I felt earlier decides to make an encore to raise the hairs on my neck and then gleefully skip down my spine again. No radio? I know that new colonies often 'form areas far larger than strictly necessary and then just let the forests spread freely, but far enough to cross the radio horizon? Without new settlers dropping in to build new outposts, broadcasters and airways? Less than bloody likely, as Elizabeth would say.
"We have some... interesting readings, though."
I perk up as Xavier makes a languid hand wave at one of the screens, which promptly explodes into a riot of colours representing temperature readings. Clearly visible against the cold black and navy hues of the sky is a... pattern? A... formation, maybe five or six, of small, yellow-and-orange dots that quickly weave back and forth over the canopy before disappearing behind the treetops. I realise it's a recording, the time stamp indicating that the footage is a few hours old by now.
"That didn't look like an animal."
"No, ma'am. Their heat signature is somewhat higher than human body heat, and they seem to move in formations and precise patterns. Too precise to be animals, at least to my eye."
"Any visual sightings? Higher resolution thermal images?"
"No, ma'am. They appear intermittently and then disappear. The closest we've seen them at is two clicks. The thermal cam took a beating in the landing, so we haven't been able to get a clear picture. Hell, we didn't get the whole camera array unjammed until a couple of hours ago."
I lean back in the seat, absentmindedly running my hand through my still-damp hair. Spy drones? No, even encrypted, those would receive a control signal which we could measure, and there's no point in flying them in groups. Interceptors...? No, not hot enough. Semi-sentients? ...possible. Maybe some kind of smartboosted large bird. Genetic engineering, but no people, though...?
Eh, no use mulling over so little data. I push the thoughts from my mind.
"Okay, just keep an eye on them for now. We'll put the Sparrow out immediately after sunrise."
"Aye, captain."
"And stop calling me captain."
"Aye, ma'am."
I glare at him.
"I'm going on an inspection rounds. Keep the ship running."
"Aye."
I clap him on the shoulder and leave. *
Bright orange wall-mounted handles flit by as I stride alongside the thick, red guideline painted on the floor. Blood-red letters spell out "SICK BAY" at every intersection.
For all the damn colours you'd think that the place would feel less desolate, but unfortunately even a ship as... socially vibrant as the Trickster is cursed with that nuclear bunker aesthetic of spacecraft everywhere.
Ah well, it's the crew that makes the ship, Dad always used to say. I smile at the memory as I turn the final corner before the medical quarters, where some would-be comedian or another has put a completely superfluous amount of effort into calligraphing a single sentence onto the bulkhead. 'Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'entrate'.
"All hope abandon, ye who enter in," I murmur under my breath.
"The Divine Comedy, if I'm not mistaken," a curt, male voice calls out.
"Ah, Julian. Good morning," I smile at the surgeon, receiving a noncommittal grunt in response. Oh well, you can't fault the doctor on his manners. He doesn't have any to fault.
I glance around the white walls of the room while Julian washes his hands in the zero-G sink by the wall. The main area is a mess, with some kind of foul-smelling colourless chemical bleeding out onto the floor from a container full of punctured plastic bottles, and there's a bunch of empty forms strewn all over the waiting area. A pair of nurses in their distinctive white jumpsuits are taking inventory of a badly battered box of medical supplies, while a third is ticking off a list. They barely spare me a glance, fully immersed in their work.
Julian turns to me and eyes me with a scowl--I swear he trims his beard like that just to frame that grimace--while folding his work spectacles into the front pocket of his laboratory coat.
"You're here about the girl."
Straight to the point, as always.
"Yes."
"Come."
With that, he turns and strides through an automatic side door with the text 'NO SURGERY' hovering a millimeter off the door's surface in bold, green letters.
The room is cold, the space dominated by the bulk of the operating table. Eerily reminiscent of a huge arachnid, its curled-up legs are bristling with extension-mounted scalpel arrays, clamps, tubes and beam lights. I suppress a shudder as I walk up to the table, looking at the human-shaped object under the white sheet. Without ado Julian pulls the sheet down, revealing the young engineer underneath. A thousand worn-out phrases about peaceful sleep flit through my mind as I sadly regard the dead body. Shoulder-length sandy hair, dimples. Thick eyebrows. Nothing especially remarkable.
Seeing people--your people--dead isn't pleasant, even if you weren't there to see it happen. I've stood here before, and I'm not sure if I'll ever get used to it. Don't sure if I want to. And even if you know it wasn't your fault, it still smarts: I'm the fucking captain, It's my responsibility to keep my crew as safe as they can be.
After a while I nod to Julian, turn, and leave. *
"Oi, Eris!"
Another familiar voice. All right, girl, enough gloomy thoughts. I shoot a fairly genuine smile back at the grinning imp bearing down on me, her angular face suspended over a rough black collar adorned by a single red stripe.
"Spitfire, good to see you."
Still grinning, the infantrywoman stomps up to me and claps my shoulder with enough force to dislocate any one of my joints. I really wish she'd realise that just because I'm a head taller than her doesn't mean I have her ridiculous toughness. Okay, nevermind, smile, ignore the pain. I notice her glance towards the sick bay before turning back to me, a more serious expression on her face.
"To spot the girl that got 'er loaf of bread caved in, yeah?"
I wince at the choice of words, but nod nonetheless. Elizabeth was never one for subtlety and tact. Come to think of it, I seem to be running into all the delicacy-challenged crewmembers one after the other, today.
"Yeah. In a way I'm happy that we got off with so little casualties, but... you know," I trail off.
"Eyup, it were a tight spot we got out of. Son't flog yorself over it."
"Yeah, I know. What're the platoons doing?"
"We're puttin' togeffer a scoutin' patrol, right, I'm supposed ta pull a briefin' for the girls and fellas in ten."
"Right, well, I won't keep you any longer, then."
"Awright. Oh yeah, yor bruvver's been 'ave a lookin' for yer. He should be on the observation deck."
"Okay, thanks."
"Take care of yorself now!"
Ow! Crap! Why does she do that shoulder thing? I watch her scamper away down the corridor and begin walking to the nearest ladder, rubbing my arm as I go. *
"Hey, Archie."
In his favour, he barely raises an eyebrow at the nickname.
"'Archie'? You haven't called me Archie since you were twelve."
"Nevermind that, Archie. What's going on?"
"This is revenge for letting you sleep in, isn't it?"
I smirk at his long-suffering sigh.
"Okay, fine. Have your petty vengeance, you petulant child."
He turns back to the armour-plated window and zooms the image with a few hand gestures. There's a short moment of vertigo as the faraway forest suddenly rushes in and then tilts, pans and finally focuses on the sought-after target on the forest floor. All right, let's see. Fully enclosed suits, rifles, light body armor, blue stripe. One of Abebe's ground teams. I realize how light it's getting outside, the troops are setting up what I now recognise to be a drone crash landing pad, and doing it without the help of searchlights. Sunrise must be mere minutes away.
"Setting up the pad for the Sparrow?"
"Yes. Did you speak with Xavier?"
"Yeah. What do you think those fliers are?"
"I don't know. I guess we'll find out soon enough."
We stand in silence for a few minutes, watching the black-clad people on the ground mill around the bulky equipment. I glance over at my brother, who seems to be lost in his thoughts. He's shaved the stubble, showered, and found a fresh doublet, so he looks slightly more human now, and now that we're just the two of us he isn't pulling that ridiculous military act anymore. I pull him into a one-armed hug and rest my head against his shoulder.
"It was a good call, getting us out. Thanks, Archie."
He says nothing, but squeezes me back. We stand like that for a while, briefly allowing ourselves to forget that we're responsible for well more than a hundred people stranded on unknown ground and with probable pursuers hot on our tails. Over the horizon, the first golden rays of a G-class star burst over the treetops and rush to embrace the forested landscape.
Of course, it doesn't last. A demure electronic chime heralds the hairless head of Xavier, the projection popping up at eye height in front of the observation window. I release Ace who straightens up and addresses the disembodied face on the glass.
"Is everything ready?"
"Yes, sir. The Sparrow is loaded in the catapult, and ready for overflight."
"Good. Launch at your discretion, and sweep the forested hills southwest of here. Focus on the last reported locations of the unknown fliers."
"Roger: scouting Bogeys, launching when ready."
The picture winks out of existence, and a few seconds later a deep metallic clang accompanied by the faint static noise of high-yield atmospheric thrusters signal the ascent of the unmanned spy craft. Ace cycles through a few curt hand signals, and the image of the ground crew returns to a regular one-to-one panoramic view of the outside, peripherally obscured by the fair dozen of feeds flowing in from the airborne drone.
"And now, we play the waiting game."
Leveling at an even height of three hundred meters, the Sparrow quickly reaches the place I recognise from the morning's thermal camera feed. Executing a lazy horizontal loop over the area, the drone angles out to the left and begins weaving in a languid pattern in the general direction of the highest visible hill, a few kilometers distant.
A minute passes with nothing showing on the display feeds besides forest, interspaced by the occasional clearing or large, overgrown boulder. Then another. The silence is becoming rather anticlimactic when an angry metallic buzz jars the tranquil stream of nature photography, and a monochrome thermal feed automatically slides into the center of the viewscreen. I squint at the image, trying to see what triggered the alarm.
"I don't see anything."
"There."
Once he points it out it's pretty obvious. Although hard to spot from the angle of the drone, a noticeable white trace of heat mars the cold grey shade of a flat slab of rock, laying on the edge of a clearing. Ace holds up a finger above his ear. A small speaker icon winks to life on the screen.
"Xavier?"
"I see it, sir," assures the disembodied voice.
"Take us closer."
The image is growing now, not in the smooth, even rush of shifting lenses, but in the lazy gliding jumps of the drone changing direction and gunning its thrusters to close the distance to the clearing. It takes but half a minute for the Sparrow to descend to a hundred and fifty meters and close in on the clearing, sensors meticulously examining the rock and surrounding ground for movement, heat, radiation and sound.
For several seconds, nothing happens.
"There's something warm in that tree. Maybe it's just an anim--what the fuck?"
Ace doesn't get to finish his first sentence before the fliers burst out of the foliage, automated cam servos dispassionately locking onto and tracking the moving objects, now rendered in beautiful high resolution, well-lighted images being streamed back to the ship in real-time. Which doesn't make the images any easier to process. At all.
Instead of just constructively skipping a gear and fitting new facts into its worldview, my mind promptly spits out the whole cogwheel and then collapses the whole machinery in on itself. Out of the wreckage, the single question my brain has deemed most relevant to the situation excavates itself to the surface.
"Is that horse holding a fucking sword?" * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 5 | CHAPTER V
Leave a way of escape to a surrounded enemy, and do not press a desperate enemy too hard. Such is the art of employing troops.
--Sun Tzu, The Art of War
The rays of Celestia's sun have just started warming the clearing as the break for the team comes to an end. Wing sergeant Mountain Gale finishes the last scraps of his sorry field breakfast and stretches his white wings with a series of loud cracks and pops. By Luna, but this night has felt long!
Pegasi weren't meant for ground stationing, he decides as he tries to shake the kinks out of his body.
Pegasi were meant to fly, to observe from the air: to use their natural advantages! Not that he would have had a better idea of what in Tartarus they were observing, but at least he wouldn't have to wake up with his body aching all over. Grumbling, he starts stalking around the edge of the clearing, taking stock of his flight team.
"All right, break's over, up an' at 'em! You've time to feel sorry for yourselves once our shift is over."
A grumpy chorus of affirmatives floats from the team as they get up from under their assorted shrubs and trees, checking pieces of equipment and stowing away whatever scraps they have left from their respective meals. Sergeant Gale quickly inspects all four present members of his wing, turning to the final and further removed member of the group after concluding the round to his satisfaction.
"Chaser! Any movement on the target?"
Outside the edge of the woods, perched on top of a large boulder lies a lone winged mare, pressed as flat as possible against the rocky slab with a pair of matte-painted binoculars in her hooves. She clears her throat before answering, voice raspy from hours of hugging cold rock.
"Same as before, sarge. Some kind of tall creatures bumbling about the object; doing what, I can't tell. They seem hesitant to leave the immediate vicinity of it."
Mountain Gale nods to himself before casting an apprehensive glance towards the slowly rising orb of the sun on the horizon.
"Good work. Start getting down from there, sun's being raised in a few minutes."
"Got it."
The mare starts scooting backwards, careful not to damage her equipment, but comes to a sudden stop before reaching the lip of the stone.
"Hang on... Sarge! Something's going on."
Chaser quickly shimmies back to her original position, aiming the binoculars over the treetops. The pegasus team, now alert to the new situation, spread out flexing wings and neck muscles. Sergeant Gale trots closer, taking care to stay within the cover offered by the trees.
"What do you see? Report."
"I'm not sure. It looks like... some kind of hatch? A hatch just opened on the object."
"What, like the one the creatures disembarked from?"
"No, bigger. And on top. Something's... Whoa! Single airborne, just popped out of there!"
Mountain Gale feels his heartbeat quicken--so far the interlopers have shown no capacity of flight. Had they seen them? No, Chaser is good, she would've noticed. Tense, he listens as the mare on the rock continues her rapidly spoken report.
"No visible wings, flier seems to use some kind of magic. Rapidly ascending, estimated altitude two thousand wingspan and counting. I think it's... shit! Heads up! It's coming this way!"
Sergeant Gale turns in place as Chaser unceremoniously slides over the edge of the boulder, catching her fall with her wings and making a mad dash for the woodline with a few powerful flaps. Trusting his subordinate to manage herself, Gale begins barking orders, the assembled guardspegasi leaping to action with trained ease.
"Cover, now! Weapons out! Make sure that you can clear the canopy if you have to!"
Tasting dusty jute cord in his mouth, the sergeant draws his short scimitar out of the saddle scabbard secured to his barding. Vocal orders are unnecessary at this point. A Guard wing trains together for years before being eligible for field operations: every pony in the group knows their own role and that of their wingmates by heart. Glancing to his left to make sure Chaser has gotten safely out of the open, Mountain Gale flutters up into a gnarled tree, finding a solid branch to stand on and brushing leafy foliage to the side in an attempt to keep his view of the sky clear.
Agonizingly long seconds tick by, marked only by the occasional scrape of armour on wood or rustle of wing.
His ear twitches at an unfamiliar sound.
Far away, from the general direction of the strange object comes an insistent droning noise, like the rush of a distant river and growing steadily louder. The guardspony finally catches a glimpse of its source as the strange flier banks into view, flying fairly low. He warily follows the flying magical contraption with his gaze, its turns unhurried and wide, not unlike the careening motions of a bird of prey.
Keeping a watchful eye on the dark shape silhouetted against the brightening sky, the sergeant grabs the dull back of his blade with a hoof to free his jaws.
"It's a scout," he remarks at conversational volume, confident that the distance will mask his voice from the flying object but carry to his nearby subordinates.
"Think it's looking for us, specifically?" A quiet voice comes from the tree to his right. Blitz, maybe?
"No idea. If it gets too close, we pounce it and rally at the command post. Clean retreat, no heroics. Everyone get that?"
A chorus of affirmatory grunts and 'yes sir's muffled by mouth-held objects stem from nearby trees.
"Good. Now shut up and stay sharp," the sergeant growls and hefts his scimitar anew.
For a few seconds the strange flying object seems to just weave around, swinging back and forth in an aimless searching pattern, before suddenly decelerating to a hovering halt. The sergeant squints his eyes against the sky, trying to make out the way the object is facing, when it suddenly emits a series of short, angry pulses of blue-white light and jerks into rapid movement.
Mountain Gale feels his mouth go dry around the handle of the sword as he realized the flier is rapidly dropping altitude, now clearly headed towards the clearing where his wing had been camped during the night. Forcibly keeping his breathing level, he plays through the standard E&E drill in his mind.
Just like training. Fly-by, strike the target, hard loop. Then go low and sprint for the rally point. Pass, whack, loop and sprint.
All the while, a treacherous voice of doubt whispers away at the back of his mind. Although well trained, neither Mountain Gale nor his wing have seen any seriously dangerous duty. Sure, there've been some minor criminal incidents and some patrols in bad storms, but that has all been familiar ground, it's normal. This is a completely unknown opponent, with unknown intentions, and using strange magic to boot.
This will be the real test.
Swallowing, sergeant Gale shifts the grip in his mouth and tenses himself for kick-off, his face screwing up in determination. The flying... thing is now getting close enough to make out in more detail, and Mountain Gale takes an involuntary breath when he let his eyes pass over the... carapace of the strange creature.
A flat, rounded square, it mostly resembles a giant insect, with four glowing legs on each corner turning and jerking to balance the beast, whatever it is.
No, not a beast, the pegasus realises with a touch of wonder, a machine of some kind.
Lensed tubes resembling large, black telescopes and smaller, sleeker camera-like devices rotate and pan on a number of multi-jointed limbs, scanning a dozen directions at once. Coloured with mottled greens and greys on top, the opposite side of the boxy shape exactly mirrors the hue of the sky. The rushing sound is now accompanied by a loud, high-pitched whine, and Mountain Gale instinctively flattens his ears against his skull in discomfort. He observes the floating shape hovering some three hundred wingspan in the air, his heart hammering in his chest.
The flying thing seems to pay particular interest to the boulder in the clearing, training several of the eye-like appendages on the rocky outcropping, as well as waving several antennae-like stalks at it, the purpose of which elude the observing pegasus pony.
Carefully not to disturb the tree he is perched in, Mountain Gale slowly shifts his gaze to the boulder, and feels his breath stick in his throat.
Celestia damn it, that fool!
There, in the tall grass at the base of the rock, glints the metal clasp of a Royal Guard issue saddlebag.
The binocular bag! It must have fallen when she rolled off the boulder! Sun and moon, Chaser, such a rookie mistake!
He continues cursing silently under his breath. Quickly weighing the options of him and his squad, Mountain Gale comes to a decision. Tensing into a low crouch, breathing fast but controlled, the Guard sergeant blinks a drop of sweat out of his left eye, bites down hard on the handle of his sword and leaps into the air with an inarticulate cry of challenge. *
I'm still staring at the monitors in disbelief as the first of the flying horses-- no, pegasi? Isn't that what flying horses are called? ...anyway, as the first pegasus, the sword-bearing one, tackles the Sparrow. The cameras jolt as the controller takes evasive action with equipment arms retracting as fast as possible to protect the valuable optics.
Several of the other winged creatures pass the Sparrow by, flitting past at enough of a distance to be out of reach for simple melee weapons. I'm transfixed, fascinated by the creatures in their quaint little armour, cameras barely swiveling fast enough to track the impressive aerial maneuvers. The first attacker--the one with the sword--disappears into the forest in a blur before the next one has even reached the drone. As a not-too-shabby pilot myself, I have to admit: that was some damn snazzy flying.
While I'm standing there staring at the unfolding spectacle, however, the controller of the drone is not. Must be Meifen, I swear that woman is a wizard behind the stick. No dirty pun intended. With a deft horizontal flip, she foils the next two would-be optics vandals, unfortunately bringing the machine right into the path of the final winged menace bursting out of the foliage.
"Fuck!" I comment in a totally calm and collected manner as a camera feed explodes into a fair simulacrum of a carnival, four-digit sums for optical repairs flashing in front of my mind's eye.
Well, at least I'm not alone with my anguish.
At roughly the same moment that the hideously expensive hardware gets busted all to hell, Meifen triggers the Sparrow's automated proximity defenses.
Lucky for the winged equine, the APD is designed to keep big birds from getting too curious about the shiny flying things, so it has non-lethal loadout. Unlucky for the winged equine, the birds it was designed for have a wingspan of five meters, give or take.
I wince in sympathy--that's regular old sympathy, not the 'mind-magic' kind--as the hyper-viscous slugs of cellulose pelt the poor bastard. Taking a clean hit to the base of the skull, it drops like a rock and disappears into the trees. Aw, fuck, I hope it's alive.
Visualising a sheet of stark blue followed by the bold, white numeral '1', I lightly pinch my left ear.
"Abebe, go," a heavily accented voice answers.
"It's Eris. You've got ground teams out, correct?"
"Affirmative."
"Scramble a team on skimmers, the drone took down a hostile flier about two clicks southwest of your position. I'd like you to check it out."
"Your word is law. Abebe, out."
I smirk at the antics of my second platoon leader as I go through the motions for a bridge connection.
"Drone control here."
"Meifen, it's Eris. Can you see the rest of the fliers?"
"Negative, I could see them weave away between the trees. Those horse-birds fly like nobody's business."
"Roger. Try to spot the one that fell, and stay on site. Abebe is putting out a ground team."
"Míngbái, chuánzhǎng. Anything else?"
"Nah, I'm good. And don't call me captain. Eris, out."
Back to the feeds, lessee. I think I'll need a few... how the hell was that done again?
"Ace, could you pull up head cams for the skimmer team?"
"Done... and done."
"Thanks."
I watch the forest roll on by as the small, open-topped hovercraft steadily approach the radio beacon of the Sparrow. The projections of the drone's optics now showcase the immobile body of the fallen pegasus, and I breathe a sigh of relief as I see the telltale signs of both lungs working and a pulse on the psychedelic colour-sprayed image of the motion highlight display. The more I look at the creature, the more intrigued I become. It's really magnificent, a perfect hybrid of bird and... well, it's not really large enough to be called a horse. A pony, perhaps? I wonder how those wings are constructed...
Okay, I need to get down there and see this myself, hostile environment or no.
"I'm going there."
"I don't think that's the best possible idea..." Ace begins, then sighs deeply and rubs the bridge of his nose with a resigned expression.
"--but you don't care a figs toss about what I think, do you?"
"Captain's privilege!" I trill at him, happily skipping out the door of the observation deck. *
These new quick-lock environmental suits are really handy. The click-clack of a few magnetic latches later, I'm running start-up checks through the interface of a skimmer, feeling the powerful omnidirectional turbine hum inside its stiff carbon-weave chassis. I let the skimmer buck and swerve a few times, revving the engine as I hover into one of the the claustrophobic single-vehicle airlocks, the hiss of the pressure seals almost inaudible as the room adjusts to the near-identical atmospheric conditions on the outside of the ship. Orange attention lights flash as the outer doors open, revealing the narrow ramp pressed into the trampled earth below.
Adjusting my hands inside the clumsy suit--one size fits all, my ass--I pull the handles to my shoulders and kick the accelerators back. The skimmer responds with a satisfying roar, rearing as the thruster catapults the whole vehicle into a high arc, blasting rotting leaves and charred swamp grass to the sides with a splash of displaced air as it comes down to a hover above the forest floor. Grinning, I let the machine dance in a skittish circle as I take stock of the scene.
Crash pad and technical crew, check. Engineers stalking about the hull, freaky, living bundles of cables and universal joints caressing twisted metal. The picket line of black armour, moving about in pairs and small groups or reclining on standby in the seats of idling vehicles. And, of course, the science teams flitting around with scanners, collecting water samples from nearby sinkholes, animatedly gesturing at some plant or another and just generally behaving like little children suddenly thrust into a cake buffet. Well, seems we have a fairly representative sample of the whole family out today.
As I finish my parade turn, I come face to face with two sleek skimmers not unlike the one I'm riding. Well, except for the colours. Normally the active optical camouflage automatically tries to mimic the general hues of the surrounding terrain, gathering data over time to refine its ability to blend into the background. That's 'normally', as in 'not manually overridden because you like flashy colours'.
Sasha and Kolya are lounging on their skimmers, one leaning back against the canary yellow seat with his hands clasped behind his head, the other leaning over the electric blue-and-green front hood, arms crossed. They grin at me through transparent full-face visors.
"Privet, Eris. We heard you need babysitter, da?"
Sasha's baryton sounds tinny and flat through the helmet speaker, but the bemusement is clear in his voice.
Spinning around in my seat, my visor automatically magnifies the view in response to my squinting eyes and craned neck. Ace waves at me with a smirk from the observation window. I empathically give him the finger before turning back to the horror of primary colours that simultaneously constitute some of my dearest friends and the cause of nine out of ten headaches during port stay.
"Why he would give the responsibility to you, I have no idea."
Kolya chuckles.
"Maybe he want you dead so he can be kapitan, eh?"
"Sure looks like it. Come on then, you oafs, let's get going before it's night again."
Without further comment, I flex my fingers--damn these gloves to hell--and gun the skimmer in the direction of the turquoise half-circle dancing in my visor, rear view camera showing flashing colours falling in behind me. *
"How the bloody hell does it fly with that body-to-wing ratio?"
"Faith?"
"Hot air?"
"Hidden engine?"
"Har har, very fucking funny. How's the damage look?"
"Not bad, as far as I can tell. I'd say the hind leg is the worst off, broken at worst, and I don't think that wing's meant to bend that way, but superficially it seems fine. I'm not a vet, though, so the best I can do is straighten it out and splint the leg. It was lucky to fall into a tree."
"Just do what you can, okay?"
"Will do."
I turn the pegasus' metal helmet around in my hands.
It's really very nice, ornate but light, and with a wide field of vision. Perfect for a flying creature.
"Eris."
"Yeah?"
"Check this out."
Are those... broken binoculars?
"Jesus, someone really put down a whole shitload of money on these things."
"You think it's gen-engineered?"
"Well, what the hell else would they be? Heavily smartboosted, too, if they can be trusted to carry such delicate equipment."
"Carry... or use?"
I cast a skeptical eye at my escort, leaning against the engine block of his grounded skimmer.
"You mean that they'd be smart enough to deliver a report? I highly doubt it, there are only a handful of enhanced animals that can talk enough to do that, and those cost several fortunes to have made."
"So you mean it was just carrying the optics?"
"Well, it's the only reasonable explanation I can--"
"Chuánzhǎng, you've got four fliers incoming," Meifen's cool voice breaks into my ear. Abebe's team immediately fans out, barrels rising to cover overlapping firing sectors. Sasha and Kolya smoothly vault onto their skimmers, gun racks swiveling towards the clear sky. I touch the helmet over my ear, focusing on the comlink to the bridge.
"Understood. Get some distance and mark them as they come in. Keep me posted on their movements."
"Roger. They're on low approach now, ETA to you one hundred and twenty seconds or less."
Four fliers. They're missing a number, if I remember the feed right. If this was a military opponent, I'd say they sent one to report and get backup, but that's stupid.
Right?
And why are they coming back? I guess they realized that a member of the... pack? swarm? flock? Whatever, that one of them is missing. Fairly unusual herd behaviour, that, usually animals just leave the fallen behind.
Eh, I guess we'll see what's up in a minute.
I'd say Meifen was right within a margin of ten seconds. The group of four expertly lands on the other side of the clearing in a loose diamond formation. And I say formation, because that's exactly what it is. Weapons out, scanning different directions and moving carefully to stay close to ground cover at all times. I look into the enormous eyes of the one in the lead and, incredulously but undeniably, come to a highly disturbing conclusion:
"Well, fuck me and call me captain. These things are intelligent." *
Well fuck me and call me princess. Those things are big up close.
Pulse hammering, Mountain Gale looks at the strange bipedal creatures across the clearing. Carefully scanning the interlopers, he counts at least five identical googly-eyed creatures spread out into the shadows of the forest, poorly trying to hide behind trunks and rocks.
No, not hide. They're looking for cover.
"I fhink lhey are shome kinge of foldiersh," he slurs quietly around the handle in his mouth.
"What about the ones in the middle?" asks Blitz, equally quiet but speech far clearer, mouth unobstructed by his saddle-mounted spear.
"Dungno. Lheagher?"
"Look, it's Chaser!"
Mountain Gale tenses up as he spots the prone form of his squad member behind the garishly painted yellow-and-red machine, idling at a hover with the same grating high-frequency whine as the earlier flying box. Carefully closing some distance to the silent creatures, he lifts a foreleg and points at Chaser. The tall alien with a large, bubble-shaped and glass-like head steps forward, holding up both front legs, hooves terminating in thick, stubby tentacles like blunt claws. *
"Be advised, tiny pegasus is okhuitelno adorable, over," notes the voice over the crisp comlink.
"Shut the fuck up, Sasha."
He's right, though. With those huge eyes and tiny little scowl, the winged, white leader--I'm going to call it Grumpy--is almost ridiculously saccharine. The only way it would look more like a stuffed toy would be if it was pink. Grumpy very carefully stalks forward, making noises too quiet to be properly heard. I surreptitiously glance at the small fork-and-oval icon on my visor, press my pinkie to my palm and rub my thumb and index finger together as if turning a volume knob. The helmet microphones instantly amplify the surrounding soundscape, and I listen in as one of the other pegasi opens its mouth. It's gibberish to me, of course, but the structural patterns of language are clearly there. The pattern analyser of the ship's translation software pulls its straw to the stack by informing me that, yes, it is indeed nonsense to us.
Well, I take back everything my stupid mouth said about them being animals.
"Orders, ma'am?" queries a rough female voice in my ear.
"Hold for now, let's see what they want."
Suddenly one of the quadrupeds spots something, and loudly exclaims it's surprise. Ow, my ears. I key back the volume as I follow the gaze of the group, now focused behind us. Right, there's the little issue of the one we shot down. Grumpy points at the shape on the ground.
Hm. This is certainly going to be a hard one to explain. How do you pronounce 'self-defense' in Pegasish? I turn to the men behind me.
"Sasha, Kolya: back off, slowly. They only want the one behind us. And take those cannons off them."
"I am not certain is very--"
"They have spears, Kolya, for God's sake. Abebe's team's got high-powered rifles trained on them. Back off. And get out your stretcher."
"All right, all right, lyuboi. But is own stretcher, you compensate for this later, yes?"
"Yes, sure, just get on with it," I reply absentmindedly before stepping forward and showing the equines my empty hands, fervently hoping that my Sympathy will be efficient across species.
Small, luminous letters spell out 'ARMED' in the center of my vision. Hey, I prefer a peaceful solution, but I'm not stupid. *
The bubble-headed one briefly turns to the two creatures on the active flying contraptions, and though it's body language looks as if it is talking, no sounds emerge. As it turns back to face the pegasus team, still displaying its empty appendages, the slender tubes on top of the colourful chariots turn back to the front with a hum and partially lower out of sight. With a gust of wind and a slight increase of noise the flashy devices float back, leaving only the creature extending its front legs towards the pegasi.
It's trying to show us it's not hostile, Mountain Gale realises.
Slowly, not taking his eyes off the still interloper, he sheathes his scimitar.
"Sarge?"
"Stay alert. I think it wants to communicate."
He takes a tentative step towards the creature, gaze flicking between the stranger and Chaser all the while.
She's breathing. Thank Celestia.
With deliberately slow movements, the bipedal alien brings one of its appendages to its head, touches the shiny surface of the glass bubble and draws upwards. The sergeant tenses involuntarily as the opaque surface of the bubble turns entirely translucent in the wake of the multi-digited hoof, revealing a strangely distorted face underneath. Two small, amber eyes stare back at Mountain Gale, set over a strangely compressed muzzle, leaving the face rather flat in the eyes of the pony.
Several seconds pass with the representatives of the two species simply looking at each other.
Keying the fabric at its throat, the taller of the odd pair coughs loudly, before stepping to the side and gesturing towards the pegasus on the ground. Backing towards one of the flying contraptions, the biped receives a tall object of metal and cloth, and gestures at the wounded pegasus again, making sounds which remind Gale of a scratched gramophone record being reversed.
Eagerly, the pegasi trot to their comrade, still maintaining rough formation but slightly less on edge now that the situation seems stable, fear of the unknown making way for worry about their wounded friend.
"Blitz? How bad is it?" asks the sergeant, stubbornly keeping his eyes on the strangers.
"Bad bruising, wing's sprained but whole. She'll fly."
Mountain Gale lets out a breath he didn't realise he had been holding.
"...leg's worse, though. I gather it's broken. It's been splinted."
"Splinted?" the sergeant risks a glance at the kneeling Blitz.
"By these... creatures?"
"I'd guess so. It's made in a highly unusual manner, and it's not something Chaser would've managed on her own."
"Will it hold?"
"Yeah, at least for now. It'll be a right load o' trouble carrying her, though."
"Well, horseshit."
"Sarge, I think that one wants something."
The glass-helmeted alien is waving its front leg at the pegasi surrounding the unconscious Chaser. When it has ascertained that Gale has given it his attention, it lowers the long bundle of metal onto the ground and locks it open with a quick snap, then nudges the now flat object towards the ponies and steps back into a waiting position.
Mountain Gale looks up curiously as he realises what the thing is that's been presented to the squad.
"Blitz."
"Yeah?"
"Would a stretcher help?"
"Sure, but where did you plan to find a-- oh."
The pegasi glance at each other uncertainly, before Mountain Gale resolutely steps forward, grabs one of the handles in his teeth and hauls the stretcher up alongside Chaser.
"Strap her in and let's get out of here."
"Right you are, sarge."
The process is quick, once the guardsponies get to it, the large latches on the holding straps making securing the unconscious pony to the carrying device an easy task, even lacking magic and opposable thumbs. While half the squad takes off from the clearing, stretcher held fast between saddle straps and teeth, Mountain Gale takes a long, final look at the foremost alien, trying to scry the emotions behind that inexpressive face. Finally he sighs, and nods towards the strange group and their strange equipment.
"Thank you."
Then he turns and flies away, Chaser's helmet held in his mouth. *
"Well, that could've gone a lot worse," I venture as the group leader disappears over the trees.
I conduct a short and wordless dialogue with Abebe's squad leader, primarily involving the hand signals for 'saddle up' and 'understood', as I walk back to my vehicle.
"Was very good first contact, very little casualties," Sasha nods sagely.
"Da, and is refreshing to meet species that does not try to shoot us on sight," supplies Kolya.
The two idiots keep their poker face for several seconds before bursting into raucous laughter, slapping each other on their backs. I can't help a wry smile as I get on my skimmer and visualise a circle of golden yellow.
"Tell me I didn't just hallucinate that whole episode."
"It's you and me both, if that's the case," Ace answers from the bridge.
"What do you think?"
"I don't know what to think, though I can say with certainty that I'll need a few stiff drinks to cope with it."
"You and me both, brother," I reply as I rev the engine and angle my hovercraft back towards the ship. *
Legal disclaimer: I obviously don't own My Little Pony (trademark of Hasbro) or this would be canon. All likeness to real people or characters created by other authors is entirely unintentional. |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 6 | CHAPTER VI
If we have learned one thing from the history of invention and discovery, it is that, in the long run -- and often in the short one -- the most daring prophecies seem laughably conservative.
--Arthur C. Clarke, The Exploration of Space
"Is everypony here? Is everypony ready?"
Affirmations of varying degrees of wakefulness sound into the early morning, courtesy of a small group of six friends with saddlebags loaded for a day's trip into the Everfree.
Going over a lengthy list of preparations, Spike is ticking off items at the dictation of his lavender caretaker.
"Inform Mayor Mare about the general outline of the situation?"
"Check."
"The Sprechen Sie Drakonisch?--The Definitive Guide To Meaningful Dialogue With Foreigners?"
"Check."
"Check the double-checked checklist for discrepancies?"
"Aaaand that's a check. Everything's a-ok, Twilight," assures the little dragon, deftly rolling together the long parchment and stuffing it inside one of Twilight's saddlebag alongside the quill.
"Excellent! Oh, this is so exciting! Who knows what kind of magical knowledge we can learn from those travellers!"
"I'm sure it'll be really cool. And interesting. So interesting, in fact, that maybe you'll want to sent the princess a letter immediately!"
Twilight eyes the baby dragon with a smile.
"Spike, you know we talked about this. We can't take you along without having any idea what we're going to meet."
The hopeful face of the dragon falls at the gentle rejection of his unspoken question.
"But--"
"Oh Spike, It's so gentlecoltly of you to stay and help guard Sweetie Belle and her friends!" Rarity suddenly interjects, cupping the cheek of the dragon with a hoof.
"I dread to think what would happen without someone dependable here to take care of them!"
Indignation immediately forgotten, the small dragon puffs out his little chest with pride.
"You think I'm dependable?"
"Absolutely, darling, why else would I leave my beloved sister in your hooves-- I mean, claws?"
"Well, I guess it is pretty important that someone stays back and keeps things in order..."
"Great!" Twilight jumps at the opened opportunity, nuzzling the small dragon and gently giving him a push towards the library tree, "Big Mac will be here in a minute with the Crusaders. Make sure you keep the library in order while I'm gone, okay?"
"Of course, who's your number one assistant?"
Twilight giggles as she turns away, mouthing a silent 'thank you' to Rarity.
"You, of course!"
Preparations complete, the six friends begin their trot towards the faraway tree line, leaving behind the library and the purple baby dragon waving a handkerchief. *
"...it'd be nice if they'd like animals, too."
"I'm actually surprised you didn't put up more of a fight, Fluttershy. I would've thought you'd want to stay in your cottage."
"Well, um, the princesses especially asked us to, so I thought it would be important. And, um, there aren't any dragons there. Right?"
Sounding a little less sure towards the end of the sentence, the pink-maned pegasus nervously glances around, alternating between a low flutter and a calm trot.
"Nopony has mentioned dragons, Fluttershy."
"Oh, good, I don't know if I could handle a dragon."
"You handled that last one pretty handily, if I don't recall mistakenly," smiles Rarity, eliciting an embarrassed mumble from the yellow pegasus who promptly proceeds to hide behind her mane.
In a light-hearted manner the beginning of the trek into the Everfree forest proceeds without event, punctuated only by cheerful banter and the occasional theory of what awaits them inside. The closer the group gets to their destination, however, the more somber the mood grows. This far along the path the forest itself is darker and more overgrown, filled with rustling shadows and strange sounds even in the clear light of day. As the first moss-grown trunks of the wetlands begin appearing on the wayside, the travellers are stopped by a pair of armoured and armed ponies standing sentry in a bend of the road.
"Halt! This area is off-limits to civilians, under royal orders!"
"Good thing we're on royal business, then," Twilight begins before the larger of the stallions cuts her off.
"I'm sure you are. However, I'm under orders not to let anyone pass. Please return the way you came, miss."
"No, but you see, I have a--"
"I don't like to repeat myself."
In a blur of colour, Rainbow Dash flits down from the air, pressing her face up to the scowling guardspony.
"Hey, mister! Do you even know who you're talking to?"
"Civilians," scoffs the white pony with disdain, refusing to budge an inch.
"Look, I'm sure if you'll just look at this--"
"I said no."
"Solid," suddenly interjects the other, considerably more nervous-looking stallion, "I think we might have to let them go."
"What? But we were specifically ordered to--"
The smaller stallion leans in to urgently whisper into the ear of his colleague, the latter's face registering an amusing progression of emotion beginning from the displeased scowl, passing through confusion and ending in a flicker of recognition as he takes a closer look at the six mares.
He clears his throat in a very self-conscious manner.
"Hrm. You wouldn't happen to be a miss Twilight Sparkle, would you?"
"That's me."
"And I assume your friends are the..."
"The Elements of Harmony, yes."
Suddenly very awkward about the whole situation, the stallion vaguely gestures down the road.
"In that case, I... apologize for my rude behaviour. The command post is just down the road--"
"No, no, no!"
The stallion takes a surprised step back at Twilight's annoyed outburst.
"I won't have any of this 'special treatment' nonsense, there's protocol and procedure for this kind of thing! We could be anypony!"
Emphasising her words with a stomping hoof, the unicorn yanks the writ of passage from her saddlebag and shoves it into the face of the startled guardspony. What follows is a rather amusing episode involving a smirking pegasus, an increasingly uncomfortable royal guard and a terrifyingly in-depth quiz about the detection of counterfeit documents. A few minutes of intense questioning later, a satisfied lavender unicorn skips away, carefully rolling the valuable parchment back into her saddlebags, leaving behind a slumped-down and sobbing earth pony being awkwardly comforted by his partner.
"Whoa nelly, ya really put him on the spot back there."
"The rules are there for a reason, and all members of the Guard have to be able to recognise at the very least the eight basic indicators of a genuine royal writ. What if the princess would be in incompetent hooves?"
"How the hay do you know what goes into Guard training?"
"I memorised the Royal Guard Organisational Training Manual and Regulations I-XII in school, back when I was still living in Canterlot."
"Totally called it."
"Wow, Twilight, so you're like, super-duper good at survival and jousting and stuff?"
"Well, no. All that's in the field operation manuals, and those were restricted. But I do know the seven acceptable shades of grey for the coat of a guardspony--that's book IV, section eight--and the maximum regulation-compatible length of a guardspony's mane and tail," Twilight answers proudly, "I'm sure I could still recite all ten volumes from memory."
A pregnant silence hangs over the group.
"So Fluttershy, are we still... on for our spa... trip?" Rarity begins, rather loudly.
"Oh, yes, um... our... weekly trip. That we do, um, every week..."
The discussion quickly moves on to other topics, nicely filling out the time before the arrival at the first tents of the encampment. *
"Halt! This area is off-limits by royal decree!"
"Look--"
"I said 'off-limits', ma'am!" *
"Captain Diamond Hoof?"
"Who's asking?"
"Hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and the girls in the doorway are the--"
"The Elements of Harmony, yes, yes, yes. Is there something in particular you need me for right now? I'm trying to lead an operation here," the charcoal grey stallion brusquely interrupts her, glaring across the cluttered map table with poorly hidden annoyance.
"Well- that is... I mean, it's not--"
"Then please leave me to do my job. No, belay that. I don't want you lot running around in my camp without supervision. Wait outside the tent, I will have someone to oversee you shortly."
Twilight opens her mouth to reply, then closes it again. With a huff she turns from the grey commander staring at his grey maps and trots out of the grey tent, only to be nearly bowled over by a grey guardspony rushing past her. Indignantly she sits down with her friends outside the command post.
"Well, that was a complete waste of time. Augh! And why is everything so grey in this camp?"
"Oh, I completely understand your pain, darling. Just look at these dreadful tents, nothing but shades of grey everywhere! It's a veritable crime against design to have somepony live and work in such a drab environment."
"Maybe it's, um, for hiding better. Many small animals do that to evade predators..."
"Oh, I know it's for a reason, Fluttershy, but it's still terrible. Terrible, I say! it's as if every piece of it was designed with nothing but a ruler for a tool!"
"Captain, sir," a crisp, young voice snaps from inside the tent, "Mountain Gale's wing has unloaded and the sergeant is ready for debriefing. Private Windchaser is receiving medical care for her wounds, sir."
The friends perk their ears at the loud report being made inside the tent at the mention of a wounded pony.
"Very well. Send him to me post-haste."
"Sir!"
The grey mare gallops out through the flap, disappearing around a tent corner. Before any of the friends have a chance to think too much about the short exchange, the commander harks loudly.
"I assume you heard that."
Twilight and Applejack both flush slightly at being caught. Rarity pointedly looks at something interesting in the clouds, with Fluttershy hiding behind her, while the remaining members of the group seem untouched by their unintentional eavesdropping. Diamond Hoof sighs deeply.
"Well, you might as well come in. If you're going to try to contact the aliens, you might as well know as much as we do."
Their accidental misbehaviour quickly forgotten, the group files back into the roomy tent, the commander glaring at the parchments in front of him and muttering to himself, words like 'personal student' and 'probably banished to the moon' audible in his litany.
"Alright," he growls, looking up from his maps, "here's the situation:"
"We've been patrolling the inner perimeter of the cordon since we were deployed, approximately ten hours ago. So far we've stayed out of sight from the Googlies--that's the common term we've been using for the interlopers--who are moored at the very edge of Froggy Bottom Bog, on the west side of this valley here."
He indicates a section of a topographical map before continuing.
"So far the Googlies have stayed close to their vessel. We haven't really been able to surmise much about their transport itself--it seems to have taken the colour of the background, magically or otherwise--and is therefore exceedingly hard to observe. First contact was a few hours ago, when a pegasus wing was spotted and forced to make a hasty retreat: one of them was wounded under unclear circumstances, and had to be evacuated by her team. As I understand, they flew her back on a stretcher which according to the team leader was gifted upon them by the inhabitants of the strange craft... Like I said, the situation is murky, to say the least. I hope we'll get some clarity once sergeant Gale gets here to report. That's all I know for now. Ask your questions."
Sitting back on his haunches Diamond Hoof rubs his temples, eyes closed, before levitating a cold-looking cup of coffee from the table and grimacing at the contents. Twilight looks up from a parchment floating in front of her face, quill momentarily ceasing its fevered movement.
"Why 'Googlies'?"
"Because they have big, glassy eyes. Next."
"Has anyone gone closer to the... Googlies than the team with the wounded pegasus?"
"No. Next."
"Do you have any further word from the princess?"
"Only to keep her and her sister up to date, and to assist you as best we can."
"What measures have--"
"Is this a bad moment, sir?"
"Oh, thank Celestia. Enter, sergeant."
"Sir."
The sergeant looks tired but moves with purpose, tucking his helmet under a foreleg and coming to attention in front of the older guardspony.
"Sir, wing sergeant Mountain Gale, reporting--"
"Yes, yes, yes, we've both had a long day, sergeant. Stand at ease and deliver the Luna-damned report."
"Very well, sir. At sunrise this morning, after staking the target since deployment..."
The guardspony quickly runs through the events of the previous night, the captain and his six guests intently listening to every word, with Twilight furiously scribbling notes onto her overflowing piece of parchment.
"...and we just got here a while ago. The docs say Chaser is going to be fine. A mild concussion, bruising, a sprained wing. The leg's broken but it'll heal all right thanks to the splint."
The sergeant lapses into silence. The captain is the first one to break out of his reverie.
"Thank you, sergeant. So to clarify, your personal assessment is that the interlopers are not here with hostile intentions?"
"That was my impression, sir. They seemed as wary of us as we were of them, but..."
"But what? Spit it out, man."
"It's just... sir, may I break regulations for a demonstration?"
The captain lifts an eyebrow.
"If it'll make my work easier, you can break all the regulations you want."
Without a word, the sergeant turns his head and draws his scimitar in a wide arc. Twilight's quill stabs through the parchment with a pop as the group of friends take a surprised step back from the sharp-edged weapon.
"Hey! What in tarnation' are ya doing!"
"That's dangerous!"
"My notes!"
Mountain Gale holds up a calming hoof, while carefully returning his sword to its scabbard.
"I am truly terribly sorry for startling you, ladies, but it goes a long way towards what I'm trying to prove."
"Very amusing, but I'm still waiting for that point, sergeant."
"I apologise, sir. But allow me to ask you why you didn't flinch when I presented my weapon?"
The captain's scowl takes on an even sourer shade as his brain quickly connects the dots.
"Because I live with weapons every day. You're saying that the interlopers are part of a military unit?"
"I can't say for sure, sir, but the one I understood to be the leader shooed back the others and approached my team, unarmed, without the slightest hesitation. Any civilised being, especially one with powerful enough magic to create flying machines like the ones we saw, knows a sword or a spear at sight, making the interlopers either very, very stupid..."
"...or dangerous enough not to care," finishes Diamond Hoof.
The brooding silence is broken by Twilight, now working on a fresh sheet of notes.
"Sergeant, I'm not a soldier, but... you said their leader was 'unarmed', implying you could tell it didn't carry anything dangerous, yet you also mentioned that the others 'didn't carry any swords or spears' of any kind. What kind of equipment did they carry, then?"
For the first time since his entry, the sergeant's expression falters from the inexpressive mask idiomatic of the Guard, instead now tinted by a slightly embarrassed blush.
"Well... it is correct that I didn't see a single tool that I could unambiguously identify as a weapon. However, the way the Googlies moving in the forest placed themselves was identical to a unicorn spellcaster unit. Furthermore, the medical staff, while unable to tell us how Chaser got hurt, agree that some of her damage could not have been caused by the fall."
"Are you saying she was attacked?"
"Likely, yes but" he quickly continues, "it could be construed as self-defense. We did attack their flying contraption first."
"Oh, right! Tell me about the flying thing! Was it a balloon of some kind? How fast did it move? What kind of magic did it use?"
The sergeant casts a pleading look towards his superior officer as the excited unicorn closes in on him, hefting her quill like a dagger.
"Miss Sparkle. The sergeant has had a long shift, and a member of his squad was recently wounded in action. He needs a few moments of rest," interjects the captain, "thank you for the report, sergeant. You are dismissed."
"Thank you, sir!"
Plopping his helmet on his head, the winged stallion flees the command tent without looking back. Twilight dejectedly looks after the disappearing font of knowledge.
"Don't fret, miss Sparkle. You'll get your chance to learn from our visitors firsthoof soon enough. Now, if that's all--"
"You're right! We need to get going as soon as we can! When can we get going?"
"Yeah, all this talking and waiting is making me go nuts."
"Fer apples sake, Rainbow, we've been here for all of half an hour, at most."
"That's, like, half an hour too much."
"Maybe if you'd have more patience than one of Fluttershy's bunnies, you'd sit the hay down and listen to what's happenin'."
"But it's so boooring!"
"Darling, it's like a plot from one of those Daring Do novels you read all the time, how could you not be interested?"
"That's exactly the problem! How can you just sit here and listen to somepony else's adventure?"
"So, captain, when can we leave?"
"Soon! Very soon! Within moments! Just please leave me alone! This operation is already giving me an ulcer, and the very last thing I need are some of the most important ponies in all of Equestria romping around in the Everfree under my watch and responsibility! The sooner I get you out of my mane, the better," the captain wails, his attempts to herd the unwanted guests out of his tent thwarted by a pink foreleg draping over his shoulders.
"Now looksie here, Diamond, my pal. You need to unwind! You're totally overworking yourself, and the only way to fix that on the fly is the patented, traditional, guaranteed-to-work, grandma Pie all-natural, herbal cupc--"
"By Celestia get out of my command tent before I buck you to the Goddesses-damned moon!" *
As promised, a detachment of monochrome guardsponies appears within the hour, easily locating the colourful group of the element-bearers. Forming two staggered columns by the entrance of the low palisade, a near-black earth pony with white rank insignia adorning his helmet trots up to the six friends.
"You are the diplomatic mission we were sent to escort, I presume?"
"Yes, hello, my name is Twilight Sparkle and the girls are Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and Rarity."
"Sergeant-at-hooves Plate Mail, at your service. And we have met before, miss Sparkle, although I doubt that you remember me: I used to work at the palace."
"Oh! Sorry, I can't really..."
"It's fine, we only met briefly and weren't introduced. Now, I presume you've made all your preparations?"
"Yes, we're ready. Is there something we're waiting for?"
"We'll start as soon as-- ah, he's here."
Flapping to slow his descent, Mountain Gale swoops over the encampment and lands in the middle of the two columns, nodding towards the black earth pony.
"Hello, Plate."
"Gale. Shouldn't you be resting?"
"I got a few moments' nap and a cup of coffee in. Captain thinks that it'd be good to have somepony with you who's been in contact with the Googlies before, so here I am."
"Orders are orders, eh?"
"'Duty calls, get out of bed; Guards can sleep when they are dead'," the white pegasus recites in the call-and-answer of a marching cadence, and the two guards grin at some shared memory or private in-joke. Plate Mail gestures into the forest.
"Well, that's everypony present. Shall we?" *
This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder. I'm morosely cradling a plastic cup of tea in my hands, looking over a parallax-enhanced feed from one of the Sparrow's telescope objective pairs and feeling a headache coming on again. The feed now covers half of the curved window, turning the observation deck slash briefing room into a giant movie theater. The surface of the long table is covered with a large, white, three-dimensional smart plastic model of the image on-screen, looking strangely hollow on the side that the Sparrow hasn't scanned with its sensors.
"Well, I guess that leaves no doubt to the question of whether they are intelligent or not," Abebe quips, his entirely redundant comment breaking the silence in the room.
"Bloody 'ell," Elizabeth mutters, eyes flitting over rows of grey canvas constructs.
"So what the devil are we looking at? The space-faring descendants of ancient Roman horses?"
The smooth, rolling voice belongs to Tito Arroyo, the chief engineer, idly poking the malleable plastic hovering over the briefing table and watching it re-shape itself into tents and palisades in the weak electronic suspension field.
That's a surprisingly viable theory for the impromptu village of square, grey tents, arranged in neat rows inside a shallow palisade of wooden poles. On the other half of the window is the silhouette of a large, spired city precariously perched on the side of a large mountain, the highly magnified image tinted blue by the intervening distance.
Don't look at me that way, Tito, how the hell should I know?
"If I knew, I'd tell you," I begin slowly, "but as it would appear we've stumbled on something entirely uncharted. Or, if not, at least a very well-kept secret."
"Are you saying we've crash-landed onto an entirely new sentient species? That's loco!"
"I know. That's why, at the moment, I'm highly skeptical towards that theory. This whole place is too... earth-like, in all senses of the word. But the fact still stands that we've run across a whole society of something that's way beyond common gen-engineering, and as such we're going to have to tread very carefully on this one. To that effect, it is with utmost displeasure that I'm issuing a ship-wide order."
Heads turn to me, expressions serious. A look around proves that everyone present understands the gravity of the situation, as well as the implications of a fully restrictive captain's order.
"As of this moment, nobody moves around outside without explicit authorization from their group, unit, platoon or team superiors. Outside activities ranging further than visible distance from the ship will be conducted in groups no smaller than four, and only with permission from me, Ace or Xavier. Contact with natives is to be kept to a minimum. If they approach you, retreat to the ship. Use of force is strictly prohibited unless self-defense can be unquestionably proven."
I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. This kind of shit always leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
"You know as much as I do how I hate to have to do this. Please make sure the rest of the crew knows as well, and that we'll try to better the situation as soon as humanly possible."
Nods and murmurs of assent come from around the room, present crew leaders forwarding recordings of the order or jotting down messages on terminal pads, and I know it will be done even though it sucks for everyone involved. Bless this crew and all the people in it.
"Ma'am, I think there's something going on in the camp," notes Xavier, facing the large view screen. I look over his shoulder at the group of twenty or thirty quadrupeds, the black-and-white armoured ones badly clashing with the pastel colours of the central group of six.
"What the hell is this, then?"
"Seems they're taking off in our general direction, ma'am."
"Looks like an escort formation..."
I turn around to look at Abebe, Elizabeth silently nodding her assent.
"...or at least that's how I'd arrange my troops if I only had access to primitive weapons like those."
An escort? The six in the middle must be someone important, then, and the only reason you'd send someone with a protective detail to meet with space aliens is...
"Julianne, Spitfire, Xavier, get your asses in gear. I think they want to talk." *
Legal disclaimer: I obviously don't own My Little Pony (trademark of Hasbro) or this would be canon. All likeness to real people or characters created by other authors is entirely unintentional. |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 7 | CHAPTER VII
All things I thought I knew; but now confess
The more I know, I know, I know the less.
--John Owen, The Works of John Owen
"This is it, ladies. The edge of the bog is right ahead, after that we'll be crossing open ground to reach our goal."
"Sergeant Gale, you mentioned earlier that the hurt pony was wounded when the aliens were startled. Should we send somepony ahead, so we won't seem hostile to them?"
"Good thinking, miss Sparkle, but I'm rather sure they already know we're coming."
"Why would you think that?"
"Remember my description of the flying machine? I think it's meant for observation, for gathering information in uncertain areas without having to put anypony in harm's way."
"Like a scrying spell?"
"Something to that effect, yes. That flying thing has been spotted several times since the incident with Chaser, high in the sky. I think they've been observing us just as we've been observing them."
"Oh."
"Eyes front, we're here," calls Plate Mail.
Trees thinning out, the group reaches the edge of Froggy Bottom Bog and stops, blinking in the sunlight. The sergeants quickly walk through the two columns of guardsponies, calmly inspecting equipment and dealing out reminders on behaviour and maneuvers. The six diplomatic envoys and several of the guardsponies openly stare in wonder at the strange colossus now visible across the small, muddy bay that they've paused at, dwarfing the surrounding trees with its dark bulk. True to the sergeant's report, the huge construct is painted with a facsimile of the bog's vegetation, patterns and shadows mimicking the greens, browns and yellows of the surrounding forest, down to branches slowly moving in the wind. This close the overall shape of the strange craft is more readily visible, however, and the assembled ponies' eyes track a long, knife-shaped silhouette, broken here and there by bulky protrusions the size of small houses, the monstrous construction topped by a huge, curved window, staring into the horizon like a giant cyclopean eye.
"Celestia, that thing is enormous!"
"That thing was flying last night?"
"It doesn't look like a balloon of any kind..."
"Wow, they must have a huge kitchen in there!"
Ignoring Pinkie, the detachment starts off anew, trudging trough the soft earth on the edge of the bog, dense forest finally giving way to the lone, heavy-rooted Everfree mangroves. Soon enough they reach the first of the fallen trees.
"What in tarnation's happened here?"
"Whoa, all the trees have been pulled out of the ground!"
"Not pulled... pushed. Remember that big boom we heard last night? That huge thing crashing into the ground must've caused quite a shock wave... Look, the ground is all charred closer to it."
"Sergeant! Look over there!"
"Seems you were right, Gale," mutters Plate Mail.
The ponies fall silent as they begin the approach of the craft. In front of a gigantic ramp leading into the innards of the hulking vessel's hull stands a group of the strange interlopers, huge glassy eyes and bubble helmets glittering in the sunlight. Around the group, unicorns look around the gargantuan object curiously, heads and horns twitching like dowsing rods looking for an elusive source of water.
"There's... some sort of scrying magic being cast on us. It's of a strange kind, though," Twilight whispers.
The guardsponies fan out into a protective wall around the six friends in the middle before stopping a careful distance away.
All of the group, however, does not stop.
"Shove the sun up my-- stop, for Celestia's sake," hisses sergeant Plate Mail, too late in making a grab for the pink tail that disappears between two armoured guardsponies in front. *
We're waiting at the bottom end of the port side loading ramp. Julianne is wearing her hostile environment field research suit, the bizarre lovechild of a steampunk art installation and a physics lab, while Xavier has donned his worn and battered standard issue light armour. Having rid myself of the bulky and uncomfortable quick-lock suit, I flex my hands in the skin-tight datalink gloves, enjoying the high-accuracy simulation of the outside air on my skin. Cost me a fortune to have tailored on New Alexandria, but damn was it worth it. I thoughtfully stroke the protruding chin of the helmet, watching the group of guards similar to the ones we met earlier form up around the pastel group in the middle. Hey look, Grumpy's here, too! Makes sense, that they'd send someone who's seen us before. None of us is carrying any weapons--well, visible ones--but though the outside of the ship looks monolithic, I know that a lot of firepower is thrumming under the hull, ready to be released on less than a seconds notice.
So no, I'm not particularly nervous. Honestly I'm really rather curious about the equines, and if I have a healthy interest in new discoveries, I know that Julianne is about to blow a fuse right next to me. Quickly flipping over to the internal channel of the science team, I wince and quickly cut the transmission at the onslaught of insane radio chatter and data streams spewing over my visor.
"Average body heat is thirty-five degrees centigrade, give or take a few tenths..."
"A fair bit below the human baseline."
"Yeah, except for the winged ones, those are a bit higher, instead."
"Higher metabolism, flying is probably energy-consuming. FLIR shows almost double values around the wings."
"Those horns read strangely, they get all fuzzy on the NEFSCAN readings."
"Maybe they're hard-neuron tissue. Like the rats on Argos?"
"Can't be, biomass resonance scans come up negative on that--"
Holy shit, the girls are about to explode with all the Science. Leaving the lab rats to do their job without my arguably worthless input, I focus instead on the six envoys.
Okay, now we're firmly in 'plush toy' territory, there's even a pink one! Apparently they do come in other colours than grey and white. I wonder if those colours denote some kind of rank or station in society...? Huh, now that I look at it, not all of those have wings. Actually, most of the military types don't, either. Some of the pegasi have... horns? No, wait, that's called a... an unicorn. Some have neither horn nor wings, like the bouncy pink one. I'm going to call those 'normal ponies'.
The detachment slowly approaches the Trickster over the scorched earth left in the wake of our decidedly suboptimal landing, taking in the huge size of the streamship. I grin under my helmet at their expressions as the group comes to a halt some distance away.
Well, most of it.
Without preamble, the bouncing pink plush toy clears the ring of armoured guards, heading straight towards me in a completely relaxed albeit alarmingly fast manner. I catch a glimpse of the others craning to grab the swinging tail of the colourful normal pony and missing with a hair's breadth.
They look surprised, and fucking terrified.
I feel a familiar buzzing sensation at the back of my head at the same second that my visor comes alive with red target markers, everything from the snipers in the dark of the open airlock at the top of the ramp to high-energy particle beams drawing a bead on the approaching equine.
Cold, clammy fear grips my innards as I simultaneously realise what the buzzing means, and what is going to happen in exactly five seconds to the happily oblivious pony if I don't act fast as hell.
"Hold you fire," I bark into the comm net, simultaneously pressing my palm against my cheek to broadcast on all channels, gesturing with my free hand to keep both Xavier and the ship in general from doing anything stupid, and furiously overriding ship systems with my own access codes, "if any one of you fuckers opens fire I will string you from the fucking ship myself!"
For two very tense seconds, It's just me yelling obscenities on all tactical channels, and then, to the angelic honks of the weapons systems dropping a lock, the red diamonds blink out of existence one by one. Releasing a long breath, I feel the jitters of adrenaline surging in my blood stream, the pink creature miraculously still alive.
"Okay, everybody listen. That thing is not hostile, I can sense it strong," I carefully enunciate into my mic.
I refocus on the pony now neatly coming to a stop in front of me, feeling the buzzing of happy, expectant emotions tingle across my consciousness.
"...it's a Sympath. I want everyone to stand down unless the damn thing explodes."
Releasing the global broadcast, I turn my attention back to the fluffy creature at my feet, looking up at me with those sickeningly cute puppy eyes.
Uh, damn, I suddenly feel very self-conscious. What do I do now, give it a treat?
Okay, I'm going to wave. That's what they do in the movies, right?
"Hello there, little pink... thing?"
It lets out an adorable squeal at the sound of my voice, before launching into a rampant exposition in the same gibberish that Grumpy spoke earlier, although in frequencies about two octaves higher. I stare at the hyperactive envoy in amusement for a few seconds, until it apparently realises that I can't understand a word it's saying. Shutting up, it tilts its head at me curiously before reaching into its backpack in an impressive show of flexibility, pulling something out and offering it to me. I stare at the colourful wrapper and its contents, jarred by the sheer absurdity of the situation.
"Is that a... cupcake?" Xavier leans in to see the object in my hand better. One of Julianne's sensor shafts snakes over my left shoulder, bathing the frosting of the cake in flickering red light.
I nod, since I can't think of a damn thing to say.
"Seems perfectly edible, too," decides Julianne, her voice as confused as I feel.
The pony that just offered me a perfectly ordinary dessert looks at me expectantly--they really do share a lot of our body language, I realise with a start--and I give her a tiny bow in thanks.
"I can't eat this, I'm afraid... but thank you, oh pink envoy of your insane species."
I can't help but chuckle, this whole situation is just going so far off the rails that I don't know what to do but laugh anymore. The deranged pink one squeals again with ridiculously huge smile, suddenly jumping into the air and biting a small handle on its chest strap.
Then it explodes. *
Preoccupied with trying to make sense of the strange spells radiating from the alien vessel, Twilight doesn't realise that Pinkie is gone before the panicky tones of the sergeant reach her conscious mind.
"--oh dear Luna and Celestia that crazy pony is going to get hurt or worse!"
Eyes snapping to the front, Twilight realises in horror that Pinkie has almost crossed the distance to the group of bipeds, the apparent leader of which is gesticulating behind it with urgency. In panic, Twilight concentrates, about to lash out with her magic, when Pinkie stops in front of the foremost creature. With nothing terrible immediately occurring, Twilight gives a seconds pause in her casting.
Pinkie and the large alien stare at each other for a few seconds. Then the latter tentatively raises a foreleg, giving a small wave and voicing what is unmistakeably a greeting. The rogue pony diplomat draws a breath, as if surprised and delighted that the thing can speak, immediately launching into one of her rampant stream-of-consciousness rants about meeting new friends and arranging welcome parties for them, quickly branching off into apparently rhetorical queries about the alien's favourite foods. Twilight feels a headache coming on as the possibly mad pony stops, reaches into her saddlebag and offers the opposing party a cupcake.
"Did she just--" begins Mountain Gale.
"Yup, that's Pinkie for ya'," quips Rainbow Dash, hovering in the air. Twilight turns to her friend with disbelief.
"Rainbow, how can you be so calm? Those things could hurt Pinkie!"
The colourful pegasus casts a sceptical eye on her nervously moving friend before returning her attention to the exchange taking place in front of the ramp.
"Nah, there isn't anypony that Pinkie hasn't been able to befriend, ever. She'll pull through."
Leaving Twilight sputtering with a number of conflicting emotions fighting to get out of her mouth, Rainbow lazily flips around in place, striking a pose in the air.
"--and besides, if there's trouble I'll get her out of there faster than you can say 'Loyalty'."
Giving up on her apparently also crazy friend, Twilight returns to the earlier exchange just as the visitor, delicately holding the baked good in one hand, gives a small bow and expresses another impossible-to-understand sentence.
"Yes! She likes it! Then I Pinkie-wish you--"
Her brain no longer co-operating, Twilight watches in numb horror as the pink party pony bites down on the handle attached to her saddlebags, which promptly cover the three aliens and Pinkie in confetti and streamers with a loud bang.
"--Welcome to Equestria!"
Sergeant Plate Mail lets out a strangled sound, somewhere between food lodging in a throat and an imploding bagpipe, as the leader of the opposing group staggers backwards from the explosion, dropping the cupcake onto the ground.
For a few seconds, the air is very still. The biped in the bizarre suit decked with little boxes, lenses, wires and other trinkets cowers back, halfway into a crouch with its forelegs shielding its head. The black-clad one, most similar to the ones described by Mountain Gale, has fallen into a hunched stance, looking ready to pounce at the slightest provocation. Finally, the central alien, having taken the brunt of the streamer-based assault, very slowly moves its stare from the pink attacker to its arms, taking in the glittering bits of paper covering it like decorations on a cake.
A breeze blows through the clearing, the colourful streamers fluttering in the wind.
Then there's a chortle, which quickly grows into a hacking chuckle. Then a full laugh.
The ponies watch, frozen, as the sitting creature throws its head back, roaring with laughter. With it's whole body shaking the tall biped holds its midsection with both free appendages, Pinkie maniacally bouncing around and matching if not surpassing the mirth of the confetti-covered alien. A tangible wave of relief passes through the rest of the pony detachment, as the two beings from universes apart collapse on the burnt ground, leaning on each other for support as they howl with glee. *
Legal disclaimer: I obviously don't own My Little Pony (trademark of Hasbro) or this would be canon. All likeness to real people or characters created by other authors is entirely unintentional. |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 8 | CHAPTER VIII
If people never did silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done.
--Ludwig Wittgenstein
Oh my God this pink thing is fucking brilliant. Alien species with superior technology lands in your back yard? Give them a cupcake, then suicide glitter bomb them. I'm still chuckling as I get up and start brushing the worst of the colourful paper crap off my suit, flicking through open radio channels currently on fire with the chatter of spectating crew members commenting on the live video feeds of the first meeting. The general intra-crew channel is useless for any meaningful communication, courtesy of a certain two idiots cackling so hard they can hardly speak.
"--and then, and then... It bite handle--" Kolya bursts into screaming laughter again, never finishing his sentence.
"Ka-boom!" Sasha roars into the net before breaking down into incoherence.
Click. 'CREW2'
"--either mad as a scavenger, or it has pink cojones the size of a--"
Click. 'SCI1'
"--psychology, gift-giving seems to serve a similar societal function, but they can't have any natural predators or how else can you rationally explain--"
Click. 'TAC1'
"--I swear to God, I had my finger on the trigger, cross hairs on that suicidal pink thing--"
Click. 'OBSRV'
"Ace."
"Yeah?"
"Send someone down with a holo-projection table. I think we're ready to negotiate." *
"Sun and moon, I thought I'd seen every crazy stunt possible in basic training."
"I'm still not sure that my heart didn't stop when she bit that trigger."
The sergeants shake their heads in unison, Plate Mail removing his helmet and running a hoof through his sweaty mane.
"Eh, what'd I say? Pinkie'll pull through."
"Okay, girls. Nothing to do but get in there. Come on."
"Yes, too late for a proper introduction now, I guess. Let's hope we can show them that some of us can behave with class."
"Don't be such a stick in th' mud, Rarity. Ah think Pinkie made a plenty good first impression, judgin' by the reaction' of that important-lookin' one."
"But something terrible could've happened!"
"But it didn't, and now we don't have ta break the ice."
"Well, that may be, but--"
"Girls, focus! This is no time to be bickering."
"Ladies."
"Yes, sergeant?"
"...good luck."
"Thank you."
Resolutely leaving the formation of guardsponies, five remaining element-bearers trot across the intervening distance, the bipeds turning to observe the newcomers. Twilight steps up to the leader, peering into its flat face through the transparent visor. A small pair of amber eyes looks back. She nervously clears her throat.
"Hello. I don't presume you'll understand me, but... my name is Twilight Sparkle."
She points at herself, carefully repeating her name, before fully extending a foreleg. The tall alien seems to understand her intention, trying to emulate the unicorn's self-introduction and doing a horrible mess of mimicking it, but catching the basic rhythm of the name. Pointing at itself, the visitor lets out a short barking sound, before grabbing the extended forelimb with it's dexterous fingers. The movement appears oddly familiar, although the weird way of grabbing the extended foreleg feels strange to Twilight. The creature lets go of her hoof after a brief squeeze, straightening up and partially turning back towards the ship.
"Hey look, they're bringing something down," exclaims Rainbow Dash, bringing the group's attention to two bipeds ponderously lugging a large piece of furniture between them.
"It's... a table?"
"My, I guess they do have some manners, after all."
"That looks awful heavy..."
Thoughtfully rubbing her chin with a hoof, Twilight grounds herself and concentrates, a light glow enveloping her horn, the luminescence quickly spreading to the table. To a yelp of surprise from the two carriers, the heavy table levitates into the air and smoothly glides to land between the two negotiating parties. With an accomplished look, Twilight turns back to the leader.
Said leader is staring at her with an expression which the unicorn would almost call astonished. Feeling her smile wane she turns to her friends for support, finding only similar confusion.
"They seem a little... surprised," Rarity offers.
"How could they be? They obviously have powerful magic at their disposal! The sergeant said they utilized levitating transports earlier!"
"Ah guess we'll just have to wait and see." *
"Did I just-- did that horse just generate a flux pin field? Or did someone spike my coffee with acid?"
"How the fuck? It doesn't have any equipment! Are you telling me that horn the size of a flashlight can create quantum levitation at a distance of over ten meters? Fuck you, it'd have to run on fusion power for that."
"Stop mewling, bitches, this is amazing! Get me sensors on that creature! We're all going to be rich and famous!"
"Way ahead of you, sister."
I'd say the scientists are pretty excited, considering how their language only veers into the vulgar when they get their hands on something really juicy. Julianne is almost climbing over the table in her hurry to get to the horned creature, wildly gesturing with a pen she pulled out of some god-forgotten pocket or another. The unicorn backpedals in obvious distress, apparently never having stood on the receiving end of a rampant scientist on the hunt for new knowledge.
"Ma'am, if I may, I think it's about time to get to the business at hand," Xavier remarks through a private line. I nod in agreement. This has been fun, but we have a lot of work to do, and the first step is to establish a line of communication to the natives. I loudly clear my throat over the speakers.
"Julianne. You'll get to study the ponies all you want later, but right now you're just slowing proceedings down."
With a guilty start, the head of science on board turns back to our side of the table with a sheepish smile. Wistfully tearing herself away from the levitating pen, having finally gotten the unicorn to understand her wishes, she trudges back to her original position with a sigh and contents herself with casting longing stares at the other party.
The six ponies--decided, I'm going to call them ponies, they're too small to be horses--gather on the opposite side of the table, heads barely reaching over the rim. Right, tiny quadrupeds. How rude.
I key two spots on the table, legs whirring softly as they contract, lowering the top of the piece of furniture to a more miniature equine-friendly height. The ponies sit down, except for the lavender one. She levitates a book out of its bags--damn, that is a cool power--rifling through the pages and flipping the book around on the table after finding the page it's looking for. I lean over.
It's a picture of a highly stylized unicorn and a... gryphon. You know, half eagle, half lion, all fairytale.
Hey, no formal education doesn't mean I can't be well-read.
On the page the two creatures of myth are apparently talking, illegible but clearly different lettering flowing out of their mouths--or beaks, in one case--interweaving in the middle of the page and continuing to the other party in the script they're using. The whole picture looks like a holo-animation artist trying to emulate ancient heraldic designs, but the intent is clear. I glance at Xavier.
"Bypassing the fact that there we've stumbled upon a whole plethora of non-existent mythological creatures--"
I stop to rub my forehead, quickly realising the damn helmet is hindering my efforts.
"--right, negotiating with an unicorn, never mind. Anyway, bypassing the gryphon for a second, this looks like translation to me. What do you think?"
"Ma'am, if I hadn't just seen that purple thing just do what it did, I wouldn't hesitate a second. As it is, I request permission to be the test subject."
"Your dedication to duty is admirable, you stuffy old man, but you'd have me put another of my crew in harm's way to protect myself? Fuck you."
Expression mostly hidden by the face mask, he smiles at me with his eyes, a rare gesture of warmth from the severe old man.
"...and that attitude is why this crew would follow you through the fires of hell and back. But no. First mates are expendable. Captains are not."
I try to stare him down for a long while. It doesn't work.
Never does.
"Fine. But carefully."
"Of course, captain."
"Don't-- just get on with it."
Xavier steps forward, gesturing at the unicorn. *
"Ah think they understood wha'cha want, Twi'," Applejack comments as the black-clad one points at first itself, then Twilight's horn.
"Um, I'm not sure they really know what you're going to do," pipes a quiet voice from behind the group.
"What makes you say that, Fluttershy?"
The timid pegasus peeks out from behind the assembled group, gaze flickering over the glassy-eyed alien before skittering to the ground.
"Um, it's the... body language of the large black one. It looked a little like a bear... with a cub. I think it's unsure of what's going on, but doesn't want the other one to be in danger, um, or so I think..."
"But it's just a translation geas," Twilight huffs in exasperation, "how can they understand divination and world-walking magic but be amazed by the simplest of unicorn spells?"
"Well, the princess said it herself, Twi, they're not from around these parts. Now Ah know precious li'l of unicorn magic, but maybe them's just got other kinds'a spells back home?"
"I know," sighs Twilight, "but it's just so... Augh! Okay, let's just do this."
Turning to the tall volunteer on the side of the table, Twilight's horn lights up as the dull glow of the magic spell appears in mid-air and moves to envelop the tensed alien. After completely surrounding the nervously waiting bipedal creature, the purple light gently flows in to touch it.
The translucent immediately mist freezes in the air, like a movie reel stopping in the space of one frame. Twilight's eyes widen as invisible spikes of power forcibly deform the spell, the colour of the cloud violently flickering into blue as the light on her horn flickers like a candle flame.
With the sound of glass cracking, the magic winks out of reality, both spellcaster and target stumbling back from each other with a yelp, as if pushed apart by a great wind.
"Twilight! What happened? Are you all right?"
"Let me see," commands Fluttershy sharply, pushing herself to the front of the group and rapidly inspecting Twilight for any obvious wounds. The lavender unicorn is taking short, shallow breaths, still wide-eyed in the aftermath the sudden magical surge.
"I... I don't know. There was some kind of violent counter-magic..."
"Hey! You! What did you do to her!"
Rainbow Dash defiantly interposes herself between the two groups, wings flared in an aggressive crouch. By the side, the guardsponies are moving restlessly. Sergeant Gale glides over to the group, coming down next to Twilight.
"Miss Sparkle? Were you attacked?"
With a start, Twilight sits up, pushing away the ponies milling around her and grabbing a hold of Rainbow's tail with her magic.
"Stop, everypony! It wasn't on purpose!"
"What? But darling--"
"Look! They're just as confused as we are."
The other ponies turn their heads towards the opposing group, the intended recipient of the translation spell unsteadily leaning against the low table in an awkward crouch, the other two going it over with worried movements.
The two groups look at each other, apparently coming to the same conclusions.
"If it wasn't intentional, then what in Equestria...?"
"I think it was a war ward."
"A ward?"
"Yes, a very powerful automatic defence against offensive magic."
"But you weren't attacking them!"
"I know, but the translation spell still requires a certain attunement to the recipient's thoughts. The ward was probably designed to hurt anyone attempting a distraction or brainwashing spell."
Twilight shakes her head again, both in frustration and to clear the final vestiges of vertigo from her mind.
"Dangerous defences like those haven't been used in Equestria for... at least centuries! Princess Celestia won't allow wards which could hurt anypony who would stumble across them, so I've only seen them in theory. I was careless."
"So it was a mistake. What now?"
"I don't know. Let's see if they have any ideas." *
"Oi, Xavier! What the fuck happened?"
"I... don't know. There was something... strange, like a pressure in my head, then my visuals went all distorted to hell. I though I was going to faint."
"Maybe I can answer that, Eris," a familiar voice pops unto our semi-private channel.
"Tito? Talk to me."
"Well, just as that... gas touched senor d'Havillande, every electronic warfare countermeasure alarm in engineering went apeshit. Ol' Methuselah's ECM scripts kicked in and blasted every I/O port in his suit, hence the distortions of visuals."
"So he's going to be okay?"
"Sure, just some nausea from random electric overspill to his brain."
Yeah, sounds healthy.
I stand in thought for a second, looking at the visibly bewildered ponies. One of them is looking ready to fight me hand-to-hand. Hand-to-hoof? But hey, protecting your friend from an alien twice your size, and unarmed? I like the style of these equines more and more for every minute.
Okay, easy there, little pony. I'm not dangerous, see? I don't want to fight you.
"So... what you're saying--and do correct me if I'm wrong--if I'm not totally ignorant of the finer nuances of condensed matter physics... is that the purple pony with a magical horn on it just interfaced with the data cloud of the Trickster. With her head."
"Eh, seems to be the only reasonable explanation," Tito answers, without a care in the world. I can almost see him shrug and reach for the volume slider of his faux-antique music player.
"Tito."
"Mm-h?"
"Get your ass down here."
"...I knew I shouldn't have called it in."
I kick him off the channel, quickly blocking off a couple of other feeds as well. The thought of what must be going on in the science team's channel makes me shudder.
Xavier recovers quickly--tough as old leather, that one--and we hang back waiting for Tito to get down. Julianne is facing the craft, hands imperceptibly twitching as she sifts through hundreds of screens of raw data, filtering and sorting. Our counterparts are deep in animated discussion, the rainbow-haired one still casting sour glances in my direction.
Maybe they're mates or something.
Now that I'm on that train of thought, even the winged ones seem a bit scrawnier than the ones I saw earlier. Since Grumpy is still hanging around after Xavier's little wireless connection with the unicorn, I can get a good comparison, and yep: Grumpy's bigger. That makes the colourful ones male, right? No, wait, that usually doesn't apply to most mammals. Are they mammals? Female it is. Are all the males monochrome, I wonder?
There's an easy way to find out, really, but my scientific curiosity doesn't carry me far enough to ogle other species. Besides, there's an even easier method available.
"Julianne."
"What is it n-- I mean, yes, er... sorry, what is it?"
"What gender are they?"
She blinks at me a few times.
"The six with crazy colouring are female, mister centurion back there is male. The soldiers are a mixed group."
"Right, and you found this out by...?"
Julianne grins at me in a way I most certainly do not want to explore any further.
"Want to see the bioscans?"
"Thanks, I'm fine."
Two genders, then, like us. My idle musings on the role of gender in pony society is interrupted by a flash of orange escaping the airlock, followed by our fourth human sauntering down the exit ramp. Tito waves at me as he approaches and gives a formal nod to Xavier.
"Hey, Eris. Senor d'Havillande. Juliette... who is not listening at all, I see. Ah well. What did you need me for?"
"Plug me in, we're setting up a separate, unprotected data space to see if we can use that as an interface."
"And you couldn't do with me on the ship, because...?"
"You're faster than me--"
"That is true."
"--and you need to get out more," I finish with a grin. Tito groans as he conjures a shared data manipulation interface from thin air.
"You are an evil, evil woman, Eris."
"I know. Get on with it."
I wouldn't admit it, but I also like to watch Tito do his magic. He's worked with the Trickster a long time, and he knows the computer systems on the ship inside and out, so his manipulation of the oceans of data stored on the data banks comes close to true artistry. He learned from the best, of course, but since Old Methuselah went into semi-retirement Tito's been the head authority of engineering, and he does his job well.
The fact that he's got a great ass doesn't bother me at all, either. Only two things keeping me from laying my grubby hands on him are: a, that we grew up together, so we're practically siblings, which makes the whole prospect kind of icky; and b, that he's gayer than a shipful of refugees from the Holy Will Enclave.
Oh well, I can at least have an aesthetic appreciation, can't I?
Looking to all the world as a fairytale sorcerer weaving his spells, sans pointy hat and cape, my chief engineer begins his work. Waving his hands in precise gestures and muttering barely voiced commands, I stand back and enjoy the show of coloured grids, flitting swarms of information infrastructure and network modules appearing, disappearing or mutating in bright flashes, the whole process displayed on my visor with laser precision. It's like watching a house form out of nothing, walls and subsections of wildly increasing complexity bursting over wire-frame partitions and spheres. The whole process takes but a few minutes, testament to Tito's incredible skill with the medium.
I mean, wow. I would've worked on that for hours.
I notice the two unicorns opposite tilting their heads to Tito, as if listening to a barely audible sound, their friend's eyes flitting between the madly dancing human and their friends. Except for the crazy pink one. She's groovin' with Tito. Really well, too.
The horned ones can sense him work! That's good, maybe this plan will bear fruit yet. I notice Xavier standing next to me, also observing the creative process.
"You'll try to form a safe environment to communicate in? Clever."
"Let's hope it works. And I don't know how much good it will do if she got too scared to try again."
"She?"
"I asked Jo. They're female."
"Right. Well, let's hope for the best."
"Yeah." *
"What the hay is that one doing?"
"Dancing, Ah think. Or, at least Pinkie seems ta think so."
The five ponies by the table watch the strange weaving and bobbing movements of the biped in silence for a while, the odd, sweeping gestures combining surprisingly well with Pinkie's soundless disco moves.
"It's... casting a spell, I think," Twilight comments after a while.
"Yes, I can feel it as well," notes Rarity.
"Tha's a mighty strange way ta be about it."
"Actually, Zecora told me that some Zebrican magicians do a kind of casting through dance."
"But what is it doing, exactly?"
"I don't know, but it's fairly powerful. Maybe it's trying their version of a translation spell?"
"Seems it's done."
Offering a polite bow to Pinkie, the new human turns to gesture to something invisible while talking to the leader, who nods and turns to face the low table. In response to a gesture over the tabletop, the central flower-like pattern splits into separate pieces disappearing quietly to the sides, revealing two multi-faceted spheres of dark glass. The spinning objects glimmer in the sunlight as they glide up from the table with a hum.
Lights flickers as the glass globes emit multiple, intersecting beams of light, the barely visible lines fanning out into a prismatic spray and quickly dimming into obscurity in the sharp glare of the sun. As the individual beams grow invisible, however, images coalesce from thin air, two large, red circles forming out of multi-hued static and flashing to hover over both the dancing magician and the leader. Both bipeds tilt their heads to see the circles, before bringing both front appendages together in a twisting gesture, as if turning keys against the flat palms of their hands. The circles flash to green.
Two empty, red circles similarly fizz into being between the two groups. The dancing magician expectantly gesticulates at both Rarity and Twilight, before pointing to the floating rings.
Rainbow Dash hovers up to the nearest circle, suspiciously poking it with a hoof. Her hoof slips through the image without resistance, cutting through the projection where her shadow blocks the beams of the glass spheres.
"This is some weeeird magic, Twilight. Are you sure about this?" the pegasus mutters.
Twilight hesitates for a moment, then steels herself and steps up to the closest ring.
"I think you have to be an unicorn for it to work. And there's only one way to find out if it works."
Squeezing her eyes together, Twilight carefully extends her magic towards the glowing red circle, staring down at the unicorn like a large, baleful eye. Carefully probing, she at first feels nothing.
A light pressure washes against her extended senses, like a warm mist wafting over her face. The mist seems to coil around her magic, then abruptly stop and reverse a tiny fraction, adjusting itself to her wavelength. There's a wholesome feeling of matching components latching together: a tiny mental 'click'.
HELLO
The sudden sensation startles Twilight. It's not a language, not even a proper sound, but the intent is clear: a greeting. The series of non-speech continues with a series of clear concepts.
GUEST
IDENTIFY
[TWILIGHT SPARKLE]
The last bit isn't even her name, just a kind of image of her own magic fed back to her horn. Through closed eyelids she sees the red ambiance switch to a light green.
The process seemingly over, Twilight breathes out a sigh of relief and opens her eyes. She recoils with a gasp, her friends immediately swarming around her.
"Twilight!"
"Twi, is it another ward?"
Twilight waves the other ponies away, her eyes darting about, focused on something beyond the green circle of light.
"No, no. It's okay, girls. It's not a ward. Rarity... you might want to see this. My goodness."
Looks mixed with relief and curiosity now turn to Rarity, the white unicorn looking at the final red icon and swallowing nervously.
"Well, if you're absolutely certain it's safe..."
With a sky blue glow, Rarity gingerly touches the immaterial symbol with her magic. With a slight wince as the connection identifies her horn and adjusts itself, she watches the fourth hologram flick into a matching colour with the other ones.
Rarity raises a hoof to her mouth as the link opens and data begins pouring through.
"Oh, my." * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 9 | CHAPTER IX
Today, most software exists, not to solve a problem, but to interface with other software.
--IO Angell
I smirk.
"I think they like it."
"Who wouldn't? I'm an artistic genius, remember?"
"You're an insufferable, arrogant bastard, I remember. What about them?"
I jerk a thumb towards the hornless ponies.
"Projector that size can't draw the whole thing in this sunlight. How about goggles?"
"Are you carrying extra visors?"
Tito looks at me with the indignation of a slighted artist, opening a satchel attached to his suit.
"I'm an engineer, Eri. Of course I carry extra goggles." *
Twilight slowly turns in place, taking in the enormous torus-shaped constructs built of thousands upon hundreds of thousands of paper-thin shapes hovering close enough to each other to seem solid at the slightest distance. Around the huge, slowly revolving wheels extend dozens of smaller cubes, spheres and shifting abstract tangles of lines and curves; everything outside the warm amber glow of the central structure hypnotically shifting colours in slow, pulsating patterns. The two unicorns gasp at the huge structure, heads swiveling to take in every detail at once.
"It's... beautiful!"
"What kind of spell is this?"
Twilight carefully approaches one of the revolving tori, extending a hoof to touch the luminous surface. As her foreleg closes on the ring it slows to a halt, the mushroom-like lamellae spreading silently apart. As the unicorn gently touches one of the golden gills, noting the odd sensation of touching thick jelly, the four-cornered slice turns a pure white, a similarly rectangular page materialising above it with a slight rustle. It's blank but angled for easy reading. She quickly pulls her hoof back, and the page blinks away.
"It's like... a library," she whispers, "...a blank library."
"That's what they did that big magic dance for? Lame."
Realising their friends are standing just outside the circle, Twilight and Rarity turn towards the sound of Rainbow's voice, before looking a each other and smiling.
"You're only saying that because you can't see what we see, dear," Rarity says.
"Well in case you didn't notice, I'm not a unico-- huh?"
"What's going on, Dash?"
"The dancing one is trying to give us something. Looks like... eyeglasses?"
Twilight quickly trots in the direction of the others, the lowest of the golden shapes smoothly flowing around her as she passes through it, closing the gap as soon as her tail flicks through. Outside, the dancer is holding a bunch of curved spectacles in one hand, gesturing between the pair of glasses now in Rainbow's hooves and the large, magical construct behind Twilight. Understanding what the devices are for, Twilight excitedly canters up to her friend, grabs the lenses from her hoof and promptly shoves them onto her face.
"Hey! What's the big deal!"
The dancing magician smiles and turns his hand against the frames of the glass as if turning a key. Rainbow looks up, annoyed over the invasion of her personal space, and stops dead, comment dying on her lips as the vision of light flickers to life on the detachable visor.
"That's a library?"
Twilight giggles as the pegasus shoots into the air, diving through floating geometrical shapes and doing laps around the central structure.
"Oh my gosh, this is so cool!"
Courage bolstered by the positive reaction of their three friends, the other ponies quickly don visors of their own and allow the magician to turn them on in turn.
"It's like a huge cake of gold! Can't eat it if it's gold, though, that'll hurt your tummy."
"Well, Ah'll say. Tha's mighty impressive."
"Oh, oh my..."
As the six friends move about, admiring the invisible structure, the magician finally offers a pair of the few remaining visors to Mountain Gale, who peers at the offered piece of equipment with suspicion. Casting a look at Chain Mail and receiving a curt but encouraging nod, the pegasus sergeant hesitantly places the lenses over his eyes, uncomfortably flicking his ears at the tight fit of the optics designed for a quite different shape of head, before submitting to the activation sequence.
The guardspony raises his eyebrows as the cheery ping of a chime plays in the cavalcade of colours and shapes flooding into sight. As he tilts his head, Gale notes the lenses actively darken the skies to highlight the glowing lines of the... library, the fact confirmed by a quick glance over lowered lenses. Steeling himself, the sergeant trots into the shimmering light, entering the central space just as the magician and the alien leader step through on the other side.
With a dramatic flourish, the magician takes a deep bow and retreats to the very edge of the circle, making room for the other figure to take center stage.
The assembled ponies turn to look to the leader as it looks around, as if to ascertain the whole audience is present, before extending a foreleg with a snappy gesture.
The leader continues it's gesturing, flexible digits taking precise formations with a purpose and grace clearly stemming from years of experience. With a flicker, the glass-headed figure disappears, in it's place standing a slightly slimmer creature in the same general shape but clad in flowing red cloth instead of the tight black suit of before. Amber eyes smile at the equines.
"It's the leader," Twilight realises, "it's showing us an image of itself."
"So that's what they look like underneath. Are those suits for protection?"
"I'd think so, yes."
With a beckoning gesture from the first biped, the magician steps forward and a similar image flickers to life over it as well. Small, round glasses, similar in construction if not in shape to the ones the ponies are wearing, hang on the end of a short, triangular muzzle underlining dark green eyes and olive skin topped by an unruly black mane. Eschewing the loose attire of the other, the magician wears instead a more tight-fitting blue jacket, double rows of golden buttons running down the front, the garment terminating well below the hip. Both creature's hind appendages are covered in black cloth, the ends encased in high boots.
The ponies observe the pair for a while, the strangers standing at ease, turning around to allow observation from different angles.
"It's amazing they can stand upright with just two legs," notes sergeant Gale with interest, "one'd think that they'd fall down with that kind of height."
Fluttershy suddenly squeaks, backpedalling into safety behind the closest of her friends available.
"Wha's the matter, sugarcube?"
"Uhm, you didn't... notice? Their teeth?"
The buttery yellow pegasus points with a shaky hoof, the other ponies following the line of her indication, eyes settling on the smiles of the two strangers. Smiles flanked by sharp canines.
"They're carnivores," breathes Twilight. *
Uh, what the hell happened now? One second everything's hunky-dory and now they're all scared and nervous. And why is that yellow-and-pink one hiding and pointing at my... face? Oh.
Oh, come on!
"Jo?" I begin, voice sweet as honey.
"Yes?"
"Julianne, darling, are the ponies herbivores?"
"Uh, yes?"
"And you were planning on telling me this...?"
"What? I thought you knew."
I wish I had one of Tito's ancient mechanical headpieces, so I could slam a physical phone into its receiver to cut the call. As it is, I'm restricted to using my neural interface to kill the connection before I say something untoward, the line abruptly terminating in a millisecond-long click of static.
All right, deep breaths, count to five. Smile. Without teeth!
"Tito, pull up some imagery of healthy meals with no meat. Also, draw a pony not being eaten by a human."
I get a long stare in response.
"Well, get to it!"
"Working for you is a waste of my considerable talents," he grumbles, before getting to it.
It takes almost a quarter hour of carrots, coconuts, rice and holos of zero-G hydroponic farms to make the panicky toy horses calm down enough to move on to other topics. Surprisingly, the pink-haired ball of fear seems to come to terms with our dental equipment the fastest. You can never tell with the quiet ones.
Look, it's not like I enjoy lying to the adorable things, but, like every good fabrication, this one has a grain of truth in it. I mean, the vast majority of meat consumed by exo-Terran humankind is either synthesised, vat-grown or recycled. Real meat, the flesh of a living animal, is a fairly rare luxury on streamworlds and is a royal pain in the ass to get. Not that it makes much of a difference, it all tastes the same to me. It's a status and wealth thing, I guess.
Anyway, the point is that while we eat meat, we don't eat meat. Now try to explain gen-engineering food labs and automated nutrition factories to a civilisation armed with swords and spears, using pictures.
I think we're entitled to a little white lie.
When they finally breathe evenly enough to approach, I pull up a rotating representation of human teeth, arranged in their natural configuration. Pointing at the flat molars and opening my mouth to let the ponies observe their position in my virtual jaw. Yeah, that's right. Omnivore. Yeees, nice pony, calm pony. *
After displaying its teeth, the image of the leader returns to its original position. With the same movements as before, the little depictions of farms and strange free-floating orchards disappear, leaving only a fairly cartoonish but well-made representation of a biped and a pegasus pony leaning on each other, laughing, and holding a pair of half-eaten apples.
"Well, that's a relief," mumbles Twilight.
"Predators are perfectly natural," pipes Fluttershy quietly.
"I hope they weren't offended by our... episode," continues Twilight, flushing slightly at the memory of the frantic explanations and images in the wake of the ponies' little fit.
"Well anyone would be frightened if you suddenly found out that the other party could want to eat you," huffs Rarity.
"Scared? I wasn't scared."
"Yea', yea', RD, we know."
"No, really! I'm not-- what's this, now?"
At the gesturing biped's call, weakly glowing lines form in the air, six fanning out from the leader to point at the coloured ponies and one connecting Mountain Gale to the magician, still working on details and shading on his impromptu work of art.
"Uh... what's going on?"
"Maybe it's trying to make a point."
"Oh!"
"What is it, Rarity?"
"Well, look. What is the feature that separates us from sergeant Gale over here?"
"...he's a guardspony?"
"Girls," Rarity wiggles her eyebrows with heavy emphasis on the word, "what are we, that Mountain Gale is not?"
Twilight is the first to realise the implication of her friend, whirling on the grinning biped.
"She's a mare! And the other must be a stallion!"
Six pairs of eyes take in the projections on the other side of the circle, noting features and comparing them to the more familiar differences of pony anatomy.
"Well, now that you mention it, they do have a lot of common features to us..."
"Yeah."
"How exciting, I wonder what else we could have in common? I should-- oh! I've completely forgotten to take notes!"
Twilight hurries to draw a blank page of parchment out of her bags, bringing quill to paper in a frenetic burst of writing. As the scroll fills with tight lines of text and intricate concept maps, the female takes a few steps, curiously peering at the levitating stationery from an oblique angle. Twilight's quill stops as the biped waves to get her attention.
The red-shirted female stops the closest rolling torus and deftly draws her free hand across a spread of rectangles, the blank pages blurring into the air above the glowing section. With a quick double tap and a grabbing movement with her fingers--as if grabbing a fly from the air--the leader steps back, glowing pages remaining above the still ring without disappearing but rotating into a new configuration, flowing together into a large canvas.
She wiggles her index finger at the canvas, eyes moving over invisible controls. Twilight perks up as three high-pitched beeps sound in the magical space, and the lines of light thrum in response to an influx of outside power. Slowly lowering the scroll of notes, Twilight moves to stand besides Rarity, the other, more weakly attuned ponies looking towards the source of the new noise without feeling the strange vibrations.
In front of the spectating group, the central construct splits cleanly all the way to the top, smoothly sliding to the sides under the commands of the pointing alien. Hard, black lines sheathed in shimmering blue light flick on out of nothing, forming a narrow, angular alleyway to the looming shape of the alien vessel, a note hovering at the lowest frequency of hearing rolling across the dark corridor.
Rarity and Twilight edge backwards, with cold chills unheeded by their bespectacled comrades running down their backs, as ghostly spikes and translucent razor edges whisper in the air at the end of the tunnel where the corridor disappears into the metal hull of the great ship. Low murmurs like monotone voices hum in the distance.
"What's in there?" Rarity asks in a small voice.
"Wards," whispers Twilight in return, "very, very powerful wards."
Fearlessly stepping into the open mouth of the newly formed avenue, the bipedal manipulator slashes her hands through the air, yanking an invisible line. In a rush of speed barely visible to the naked eye, a shining progression of pages tears through the air, cleaving the sinister alley like a golden beam. Instinctively ducking or dodging the immaterial pages into the air, the ponies scatter as the slivers of amber rush into the tori, merging into the giant shapes in a blur of flying colour. The blast takes less than a few heartbeats, the storm of shapes disappearing in the blink of an eye and leaving the equines disoriented and scrambling to readjust their concept of space. The ominous pathway collapses on itself with two angry beeps, the golden rings melting together and resuming their languid rotation.
"What-- what just happened?"
The biped turns to the ponies, smiling broadly. Indicating the surrounding mirage with a sweeping gesture, she finally points to the large canvas, now alive with a bewildering labyrinth of tiny nodes and infinitely fine interweaving lines. Twilight pokes a segment of torus with her hoof, the pages jumping out of it as before.
Now, however, it is no longer blank. Hypnotised, she scrolls through page after page of images, moving recordings and texts in unknown alphabets, several rectangular pages displaced by tiny, three-dimensional models instead.
"She... filled it. She filled the library with knowledge," she says quietly, enraptured.
Working through the rows, she walks a slow circle around the torus, images flickering by as fast as she can sweep her hoof over the still surface of the toroid shelf. Finally, she reaches the open canvas, leaning in to study the intricate designs on it. As her eyes scan the page, understanding dawns on her face.
"It's like a spell diagram!"
Tracing the intricate shapes with her hoof, Twilight's excitement grows like a torrent.
"It is a spell diagram! The design is strange, and it's ridiculously recursive, but the basic layout is the same as in basic magical theory! Here's a balance node, this is a... yes! Control logic, here's the input..."
The other ponies close in, peeking at the gibberish on the canvas over the shoulder of their engrossed friend.
"I don't understand a thing about that mess," decides Rainbow, before becoming bored and hovering up into the upper levels of the construct.
Rarity studies the chart with a thoughtful frown.
"I recognise the designs, but it's really far beyond my understanding of magical theory. Twilight, are you saying this can be used for making a spell?"
"Yes," exclaims the excited unicorn, turning to her friend with a grin "the design is unorthodox, but the theory seems sound. It looks very similar to the translation spell I was attempting, only with a ridiculous amount of safety catches and repeating patterns."
"That's nice, but... won't that take a lot of preparation?"
"Yes. I'll need to copy this..."
The unicorn pulls out her half-filled parchment again, flipping it over and copying a number of nodes from the labyrinthine tangle. Suddenly, the biped steps forward, shaking both it's head and a front appendage. Miming a grabbing movement with both hands, a semitransparent copy of the canvas detaches itself and flits into her hands. Depositing the ghostly after-image on Twilight's horn, she releases her grip, and the projection promptly implodes into a miniature version of itself, falling into a quick orbit around Twilight's horn.
Twilight stares cross-eyed at the tiny chart spinning in circles around her head, feeling a niggling pressure not unlike the touch of the earlier red ring's spell. Carefully activating her own magic, the same clicking sensation of latches falling in place resounds in her mind, followed by the ticklish caress of silk against skin. The small patch of light has disappeared, but Twilight feels a new presence form in her mind, resting against her psyche like a memory almost remembered but just barely eluding the conscious mind.
"Well, that certainly feels weird," she comments, touching her head with a hoof and probing the strange feeling with her thoughts.
With a sudden release of pressure, the hovering chart suddenly escapes the confines of her skull, exploding into being in front of her face. Releasing her concentration, the luminous map recedes back into her horn.
"Oh wow," she exclaims in wonder, "that is weird."
Pinkie giggles loudly at the odd display.
"They put it inside your head! Now you can really have the library on your mind all the time!"
Snorting, the pink pony collapses in laughter, the others rolling their eyes, smiling at the antics of their friend, or doing both.
"Are y'all sure tha's safe?" tries Applejack, poking Twilights head with a hoof.
"Ya can't put too many apples in a basket, and, pardon me fer sayin' so, but yer basket is plenty full already, Twi'."
"Don't worry, it's not really... in my mind as much as it's... in with it. This is excellent, now I can do research back at home!"
Twilight turns back to the tall alien, nodding her head in thanks. The other party reciprocates with a slight bow, before backing off. The lavender unicorn casts a final, longing look at the endless pages of data languidly floating around them.
"Oh, I'd so like to go through all this knowledge, but... I think we'll have to get back to this tomorrow. There's only so much studying we can do without being able to talk to the other party. Or read their alphabet."
"Yes, it's been a good while, already. I believe it would not be a wrong decision to retreat for today," Rarity agrees, rubbing her head with a hoof, "...and besides, it's very tiring to keep up this... connection."
"Um, I'm worried that the animals are getting lonely..."
"Hey, are we leaving? 'Cuz I'm getting pretty bored up here," comes a voice from above.
"Maybe it's for the best. Let's saddle up, girls, and come back tomorrow."
Removing their visors, the non-unicorn ponies line up to hand back the loaned equipment. Twilight and Rarity concentrate, feeling the connection to the aliens' magic decouple, the spectacular colours fading so fast as to leave both mares blinking in the sudden brightness of the sun. The smaller rings re-appear, switching back to their angry red, before winking out entirely as the two hosts disconnect from the invisible assembly as well.
Twilight projects the gifted diagram back and forth a few times, discovering that the spell is in fact visible even outside the arcane dimension as the leader turns to the ponies, covered in her suit of dark fabric and clear glass again.
The two parties bowing to each other the ponies turn and trot away, the four bipeds watching them go.
"What in Celestia's name were you up to?" begins Chain Mail as the group of seven returns to the waiting Guard detachment, "you were prancing around like crazy up there."
"You didn't listen in on our conversation?"
"Didn't carry so well, all the way here. What happened?"
"Well... Look, I'll explain on the way," sighs Mountain Gale, "...it's a lot to take in." *
The formation of ponies disappears back into the woods. I'm fairly sure they'll be back.
"Huh, turns out those horns can act as comlink interfaces, data storage units and projectors as well," I muse aloud, absolutely certain that I don't even want to think about how that works.
"Hey Ace, how about that drink?"
"...yes. I'll be on the observation deck with a bottle."
"You're my favourite brother."
I cast a passing glance at Julianne craning her neck to catch a final glimpse of colour through the woods. She'll be back in the lab with her head in a data engine before I'll even get to the briefing room, I promise. Xavier walks up to me as I follow Tito up the ramp, the engineer already disappearing behind the airlock doors.
"Do you think we'll have any use of the translation software they got?" he asks.
"I don't know, but it's worth a shot. Besides, it's a common enough program, it's not like we bequeathed great secrets of dangerous potential upon them. And the purple one seemed to get what it was about."
"Yes. It-- she seemed the most active in interfacing with us. Well, in a rational manner, at least."
I chuckle as I remember the first events of the meeting.
"Yeah, that pink, fuzzy one was pretty intense. An odd group of envoys, to say the least."
"Courtesy of social status?"
"Maybe. I'm sure they'll be back again."
The cool spray of the decontamination nozzle hoses the airlock down with a wet hiss as the heavy doors clang shut behind us. Stepping through the drying airstream and through the opening inner doors, I release the locks on my helmet and shake my hair free.
Ah, yes, nothing like stale, recycled air to conjure up a thirst.
"Let's take a review in the briefing room in half an hour. Same crew as before, plus Tito."
"Understood. See you in thirty."
The inner door slides shut on silent rails behind Xavier's black-clad back, his headwear loosely hanging from one hand with the eye visor reflecting corridor lights. I wiggle out of my suit, hanging it inside one of the red personal lockers and stuffing the hard full-face helmet into its shelf. Throwing on a loose, brown tunic, I saunter off in the direction of the combined briefing room and observation deck, already tasting single-malt low-gravity-distilled whiskey on my tongue. * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 10 | CHAPTER X
On two occasions I have been asked,--"Pray, mister Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?" (...) I am not able rightly to apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question.
--Charles Babbage, Passages from the Life of a Philosopher
"This coffee tastes like cat piss."
"You're free to make your own any time, captain."
"My stash is for emergency use only. And you're a real cunt in the mornings, Tito."
"I got a grand total of two hours of sleep tonight--in three segments--because of a rocket fuel leak, so please stumble into a thruster."
"Your insults suck. They lack punch."
"I have manners."
I sip the terrible coffee, eyeing the slow progression of reports rolling over the screen. The night has passed without incident, so I'm well-rested and motivated enough to actually do my morning rounds all the way down here. The engineering bay is Tito's kingdom, and hence is full of quaint little anachronisms like wall-mounted displays and mechanical switches. He always boasts that he could make the ship fly without a single automated system, and I'm inclined to believe him. The space is full of hustle and bustle, technicians with sprawling smart tools poking at some piece of obscure equipment or another and engineers with smudged overalls lumbering about in bulky yellow exoskeletons. A pair of younger crew members snicker at our familiar-albeit-hostile banter, trying to hide grins under the visors of their caps as they rummage around inside an open service panel.
"So, are you going to get this scrap pile into the air any time soon?"
"We could fly tomorrow, in an emergency. I estimate a week for full repairs, give or take a day."
"A week? I could build a new ship myself in a week."
"If you're unsatisfied with my work, you are free to release me from service and recruit one of the ponies to do engineering work for you instead."
"That doesn't sound like too bad a plan. Maybe I'd get a cup of decent coffee, for once."
"You don't have to drink it, if you don't like it."
"What would I have to gripe about then?"
A comm channel opens into my ear with a quiet pop.
"Eris, it's Jo. The pathogen results for the outside atmosphere are in."
"Hit me."
"Well, it should be safe. The air is breathable, although a little high on oxygen, and we identified a few tens of thousands of unknown microorganisms, but analysis says here's nothing in the surroundings that the smart antibiotics can't target. I'd still be a bit careful with local wildlife, though. We've been picking up heat signatures in the area."
"Good, excellent. Thanks, Jo."
"No problem."
The line closes with a click. I finish the last of my drink--that really is quite disgusting--and hand the cup to Tito.
"Right, duty calls."
"Going to go pose in someone else's work area, trying to look important?"
"Fuck you," I call over my shoulder as I leave the engineering area, the thrum of the reactors disappearing behind me as I turn a bend in the corridor.
Ah, what a great morning, feels like today is going to be a good day. Visiting Tito always gets my mood up.
Whistling the jaunty melody to The Sailor With The Ocean's Biggest Gun I greet the assorted crew members passing me by with a sloppy caricature of a salute, knowing the catchy tune will most likely haunt the ship all day. As most good maritime drinking songs, The Sailor has a goodly amount of raunchy lyrics to go around so by the time I march through the doors to the bridge I'm loudly singing the end of verse twenty-one.
"Whatever this bloke aims at, his target always falls,
he fires with both barrels, gives em' powder, shot, and balls!
The harbor's local madam, she ran off to be a nun,
the time she saw the sailor with the ocean's biggest gun."
I'm ambushed inside the door by billowing coats and hat plumes in various shades of turquoise, green and neon orange, heavy arms draping around my shoulders and two rough voices joining in on the chorus.
"Thrusters up! Fill the sails! Sound the horn for departure, he's setting off again,
and from whichever port he's leaving, he's a legend!"
It's a song about a guy's dong, okay? It's not high art.
Shrugging off Sasha and Kolya, I lean against the back of my command chair. Elizabeth quickly corrals the two brothers to stand by the door, presently opening to admit a tall, gaunt man flanked by two tall, gaunt subordinates.
"Hello, Eris," he says with a twinkle in his eye and takes a gentlemanly bow.
"Abebe."
I treat him to a warm smile. Degagmanna Abebe is a charmer to his fingertips, and having him around is always a nice counterpoint to the rough-and-tumble bulk of the crew.
I turn to the assembled personnel, proprioception sensors implanted in the back of my skull translating hand gestures into commands. A three-dimensional topographical projection forms in the air, the rough outline breaking down into finer and finer shapes in five quick pulses. Finally, the mountains, hills and forests take colour from a patchwork of photographs and artificially coloured radar images, forming the distinctive light-and-dark mess of a multi-sensor composite map. Numbers and labels flicker to life on my retina, the tiny projectors inside my eyeballs overlaying my vision with shorthands and legends.
I look over the image, taking in roads, railways, buildings and tent villages.
'Schizophrenic fairy tale' is the term that comes to mind. Railroads but no gunpowder? How does that even happen?
"Okay everyone, here's the map of the area, compiled from drone surveys and radar images," I begin.
"...as you can see, we're just on the edge of a fairly large wetlands, here. The closest native habitation is this town or village here, and we're surrounded by what appears to be a military cordon, marked by this circle here. Here, about an hour's flight away, there is a larger city with several railway connections. Any questions about these locations?"
"Designations?"
"For now we're just going with 'LZ', 'VILLAGE', 'CITY', and 'CORDON'. Anything else? Good, moving on. I have given orders pertaining to movement already, but until we can reliably communicate it'd probably be helpful to appear as friendly as possible. Then again, looking like a target has never benefited anyone greatly, us least of all, and I know the platoons will be going stir-crazy within half a week if they have jack shit to do."
"Yeah, let's not 'ave a repeat o' Blacksburg, awright?" Spitfire mutters with a dark expression.
"Hey! That refinery was accident and you know it," Sasha protests indignantly.
"And we were young at time," adds Kolya.
"Shut up, you."
"...right," I continue, "let's not. Anyway, beside the regular close perimeter response readiness, let's run a few mobile patrols for intel and show of force. No engaging, strict mission control. Set up a schedule between the two of you for for an even handful of patrols, day and night."
"Any specific route you want us to take?"
"Inside the cordon, and at maximum visual observation range. If the cordon shifts, so do patrol routes. Altitude no higher than the tree tops. Otherwise do as you see fit."
"Roger."
"Oh, and the pathogen results are in, the air is safe. I'd be careful in the forest, though."
"I understand."
"Awright."
"Good. Any questions? Then get to it."
Xavier gestures me over as the others leave. Drawing a circle in the air starting from his head, Xavier partitions the spot we're standing in from the rest of the room, the bridge blurring through the distortion barrier blocking clear sound and vision. I'd raise an eyebrow but I'm already fairly sure what he's going to want to talk about.
Right, now he pulled up Ace on a private feed. This is about the cargo.
"Ma'am, sir, about the cargo."
Called it.
"...I've told my opinion of this job, and I won't repeat it, but I will say I have an itch that something's terribly wrong with the whole picture. The initial acquisition and loading went smooth and easy, not a single sign of trouble, but the minute we were out in free waters we're jumped by three hostile ships? With all due respect, ma'am, that's a little too much of a fecking coincidence to me."
"You think the whole job was a setup?"
"I'm saying it's a possibility. Devil knows we've got plenty of people willing ta hoist us off to the Geckos."
Ace clears his throat.
"Xavier, a setup for what? Only thing we know about that thing in the hold is that it's not a bomb. Seems like a fairly convoluted way to get us killed."
"Honestly, sir, I haven't got the foggiest. The only reason I can think of why we aren't taking an orbital carpet bombing is that the only one of those three ships that could keep up with the Trickster was a corvette. If it could breach the streamwall, we'd be in trouble."
"How much time are we looking at, worst case?"
"Worst case, they'll be coming for us in less than a week. Most likely it'll take almost a month."
I digest the information for a moment.
Shit.
Well, now it's more important than ever that we can open a channel to the equines. It's not entirely ruled out that the Great Empire would want to talk first, but then again it's not entire impossible that I'll sprout wings and start laying eggs either. The--literally--cold-blooded bastards aren't really famous for taking kindly to other sentient species in their territories. Doesn't help that they consider fairly everything their territory.
"This is going to be really hard to explain to the natives," Ace notes.
"Oh, really? I think 'we might have lead a species of genocidal lizards vastly more advanced than you to your planet, sorry' might not really cut it. Jesus, they don't even have firearms."
We collectively mull over that for a second.
I sigh.
"Well, right now there's nothing we can do about it. Your concerns have been noted, Xavier. Let's concentrate on getting the ship fixed for now."
"Aye."
Ace nods before cutting his feed.
The distortion field disappears, the sounds and sights of the bridge rushing back into focus. Xavier salutes and moves along, leaving me in the meager company of the map and my thoughts. *
"My goodness, Twilight, you look like a mess! Have you slept at all?"
Twilight grins sheepishly as Rarity moves in to brush off the generous amounts of chalk on her coat.
"Hi, Rarity! I guess I have been a little engrossed in this translation spell. But look! It's almost complete!"
"It ought to, with all that. It looks like a terribly complicated spell."
"Well, it's not as--my mane is fine, please stop fussing! It's not as complicated as it would appear on first glance. Translations spells are really more like enchantments with a lot of fiddly bits: they basically upkeep themselves once they've been cast on someone."
Trying to shoo off the other unicorn, Twilight releases the glowing image stored in her horn, eyes flicking between it and the blackboard taking up most of the floor space.
"Hm, I think it's almost done, but I can't really be sure it works without testing it out with the aliens' spell. Ooh, this is so exciting! We might be the first ponies to ever talk to an extra-Equestrian alien!"
"I must admit that I was intrigued by the clothes they showed in those... images. At least some of them are as interested in us as you are of them, too, if the one in that hideous suit was anything to go by."
"Yes, I was a little taken aback, but I think I can understand what it... he was feeling. Was it a stallion? I can't recall."
"Neither can I, dear. I think they never indicated that."
"I guess we can ask. I can't wait! I just have a few more things to do and we'll be almost ready to go!"
"What, this early?"
"What better time? Sweetie Belle is already at school, right?"
"Well, yes, but--"
"I'm sorry, am I interrupting something?"
The voice belongs to a beige mare, curiously looking around at the mess of books and the extended blackboard covered in near-illegible scribbles. Twilight smiles amicably at the newcomer.
"Oh, no, it's fine. Welcome to the Ponyville library, can I help you with something?"
"I hope you could. I'm looking for any books you might have on the topic of dreams."
"Do you mean dream magic? Hypnomorphea and the like?"
"Something like that, yes--I'll know what I'm looking for when I see it. It seems like a very hard topic to get any information on, though."
Twilight trots to a corner of the library, already pulling tomes off the shelves.
"Well, yes, it has only recently regained its former popularity. You're in luck, though: it's a long-time hobby of mine, so I have a number of books on the topic! Nice to meet another unicorn with the same interests, miss..."
"Poppyseed."
"...miss Poppyseed. I don't think we've met before, are you new in Ponyville?"
"Oh, no, I'm just passing through. I'd heard that princess Celestia's prodigal student runs a library here, so I thought to stop by and take a look. I figured it would be a fair probability that you would have books on rare magic."
"Oh, I just like to gather knowledge on many different topics," Twilight answers, looking slightly abashed.
"No need to be modest about it. You're quite well-known in Canterlot. Protege of the princess, Element of Magic, diplomatic envoy to unknown creatures..."
Twilight fidgets uncomfortably under the praise, but Rarity's ears perk up.
"Excuse me if I seem rude for interrupting, but how did you find out about that?" she asks curiously. Poppyseed turns to her with a detached smile.
"It's no big secret. Princess Celestia held a speech on the topic yesterday."
"Really? But there has been no extra activity in Ponyville, not even a single journalist."
Poppyseed shrugs noncommittally.
"Maybe they just haven't made it here yet."
"Why, if I know one thing about the Canterlot press, it's that they'd be over rumours like these in a heartbeat. Are you sure this is where you heard about this?"
"Quite sure. But really, I only remembered the fact because I was looking for that book."
"Well, here are all the works I have on dream magic. Take your time," Twilight says as she straightens out a tall stack of thick tomes. Poppyseed begins rifling through the tower, discarded volumes quickly forming a new stack next to the first one. The process is short, and Poppyseed lowers the last book with a sigh.
"Not here. Oh well."
"Sorry I couldn't be of help. If you could give the title of the book you're looking for, I might be able to find it..."
Thank you, but I don't remember the title. Or rather, I only know what it looks like. Thank you for your time, miss Sparkle."
"Oh, no problem."
The guest nods to the two friends before trotting out the library, nudging the door closed behind her. Twilight begins re-shelving the volumes in silence, while Rarity thoughtfully stares at the closed door.
"Twilight, didn't you think there was something awfully strange about that mare?"
"Hm? Strange how?"
"It's hard to place, but... it felt like she was avoiding my questions. Like she wasn't here looking for a book at all. She left in quite a hurry, too."
"Well, why would she come here, then?"
"I don't know. But there were other things as well. Didn't you notice her cutie mark? A sealed envelope doesn't seem very related to poppy seeds. Or dream magic, for that purpose."
"Well, many ponies change their names. And maybe she's just a hobbyist, like me."
Rarity gives her her friend a long look. Twilight giggles.
"Well, okay, I might have more than a passing interest in the topic. Anyway, I can mention it to the princess in my letter. I was about to send a report before leaving to test out the spell anyway. Spike should be back any moment now."
"I'm sorry to be such a worrywart, Twilight. All that business yesterday was quite exhausting."
"Oh, think nothing of it. Would you like some tea while we wait for Spike?"
"Why, that would be lovely." *
The second trip to the encampment goes much smoother than the first one, the guards in the outer cordon obviously now informed on the identity of the Elements. Soon enough the group is back amongst the escort detachment and ready to move out.
"Good morning, ladies. Another day, another alien, eh?"
"Good morning to you too, sergeant."
"Just call me Plate."
"Attention!"
"At ease, for the princesses' sake. It's too early for this."
"Captain! We weren't informed you'd be joining us."
"You are now. Going to return the stretcher I see, sergeant Gale."
"Yes, sir. I thought it prudent."
"Hrm."
"Hello again, captain Hoof."
"Hrm. Are we going or what?"
"Yes, sir. At your pace, miss Sparkle."
"Thank you." *
"By the sun, what is that?"
Leaving the treeline behind, the ponies find the area around the visitors' ship quite changed. Four familiar figures wait at the end of the ramp, but the surrounding terrain has been mostly cleared. Fallen trees rest in large, pyramidal heaps, a large bipedal machine completing one of the piles as the ponies make their careful approach.
"I didn't know they got that big..."
Apparently satisfied with the stability of its work, the angular walker turns to look at the approaching ponies, gives a small wave with one enormous claw and lumbers away to disappear behind the ship.
"It's another suit," Mountain Gale notes, "there was one of those creatures inside it."
"Wow, it must be really strong to move that around."
"No... remember how much trouble they had with the table? I think they're using the suits to multiply their physical power."
"Like you do can with magic, Twi?"
"Yeah."
"What's that noise?"
The high-pitched whine has barely become audible when the group of flying machines arcs over the foliage to the far left of the ponies. The four skimmers momentarily slow as they break their fall, tightening up into a close formation and making a low-flying approach to the bigger craft. Pointing with its foreleg, the lead of the group gesticulates towards the lowered ramp before breaking off and flying over to the group of bipeds waiting for the ponies. The machine comes down to a jerky hover, and the pilot briefly converses with the other group before turning around and following the other three up the ramp.
"Fascinating! Were those the machines you talked about, sergeant?"
"Not the observation one, if that's what you mean. We saw that kind when we evacuated Chaser, though."
"We've actually seen them around a lot since yesterday," comments Plate Mail. "They seem to be running patrols inside the cordon."
"Those seemed pretty fast, I wonder if they'd be up for a race?"
"Hopefully you can ask them yourself, Rainbow."
Making their final approach, the group of ponies finds he previous day's table already deployed, the goggles lying on it. The red and green circles hover in the air. The waiting hosts are somewhat different from the day before, however.
Wearing the same suit but having eschewed the helmet, the leader smiles at the approaching ponies. The group take some time to take stock of the aliens' now unobstructed facial features.
"They're eyes are really small, I wonder if their vision is worse than ours..."
"Wow, they have really sparkly eyes!"
"Indeed, I wonder if it's just the light, or..."
"It's pretty weird, how flat their muzzles are."
"I find them quite endearing, actually."
Twilight steps forward, reaching out for one of the circles with her magic. Excitement shows in her movements.
"Right, let's get right to it."
HELLO
USER [TWILIGHT SPARKLE]
ACCESS GRANTED
"Oh, uh. Thank you?"
Her friends lining up to have their goggles activated, Twilight takes a deep breath, closes her eyes and concentrates. Her horn shines with the forming magic, the spell spreading to envelop her in a lavender glow.
"Hm, these here glasses feel different. Feels like they fit on mah head much better than yesterday."
"Yeah. I think they've been adjusted some-- whoa. Whoa! Check out Twilight!"
Curious to the reaction of her friends, Twilight opens her eyes and gasps. Within the aura of her magic, normally slightly translucent and fuzzy, intricate shapes are now visible. Infinitely tiny dots and swirls appear and disappear seemingly at random, creating a beautiful mosaic of shapes whirling around Twilight's body.
"Oh! That is fabulous!"
"It's like a magic pattern chamber!"
"A what now?"
"It's like a really dense magically charged cloud, it's used for magic research. But this one is so clear! And it doesn't require any bulky equipment. This could mean a lot for magical research!"
"Uh, Twi', Ah'm happy for ya, but how's that spell coming?"
"Oh, right!"
Finalising her spell, Twilight watches as the luminous squiggles whirling around her slow down and settle down on top of her fur like an intricate full-body cutie mark. As the spell finishes, the marks pulse once and then rapidly fade from existence. Accompanying this strange, silent theatre is the familiar, slightly dizzy feeling of magic taking it's hold of her perceptions as the translation spell settles on her mind.
"Well, that was interesting... Now we'll see."
Twilight expectantly turns to the other party, who runs through a short series of gestures. Touching her lower front teeth. Toughing her ear. Twisting her free hand against her palm and finally extending her arm across the intervening distance.
A tight matrix forms in the air. Perfectly geometrical lines shoot out to connect with Twilight's horn, small whirlpools of light responding in kind.
There's that strange feeling of magic adjusting, and the matrix is gone in an instant.
Twilight blinks.
She takes a breath.
"Hello? Can you understand me?"
The alien smiles broadly.
"Good morning, miss. Just call me Eris." * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 11 | CHAPTER XI
To-day's most trivial act may hold the seed
Of future fruitfulness, or future dearth;
Oh, cherish always every word and deed!
The simplest record of thyself hath worth.
--Henry Timrod, The Past
My dearest Twilight,
I am delighted to hear that the visitors are not hostile, especially considering everything you've described their magic capable of. I must admit I am a little concerned about their liberal use of war wards and their seemingly militaristic appearance. I have faith in your abilities, however, and trust you'll be able to find a common language soon enough.
The politics here in Canterlot are turbulent as ever, and I would not burden you with the details. I deeply regret almost all of my time is consumed by putting out fires, so to speak, and that I cannot join you in forming new bonds with these guests from beyond our world. The Council, consisting of more than one pony, suffers no such limitations, and their subordinates seem have their hooves in every aspect of governance around here.
It is with that in mind that I would like to caution you of strangers asking veiled questions for the time being. Though I wish it weren't so, your description of Poppyseed makes me suspect somepony may already be eyeing Ponyville in the name of some petty intrigue or another. The public announcement regarding the visitors will be made only later today. It will not mention you or your friends to spare you from some of the publicity, at least.
I would not wish to make you suspicious of every new pony you meet. Just remember you have no obligation to tell anyone but me or Luna what is transpiring in the forest, no matter what anypony says.
Your teacher,
Princess Celestia
Laying the quill down with a sigh, Celestia rubs her eyes with a weary hoof.
Whoever thought that pesky Council would conspire in silence and without causing trouble?
Rolling the parchment up and affixing it with her personal seal is an almost unconscious action after so many years. Celestia's mind is already occupied with other things as the immensely complex spell effortlessly whisks away the letter, the flickering magic curiously reminiscent of the flames from which the letter will re-appear in a moment.
As she returns to finalising her her speech, Celestia is interrupted by the muted steps of unshod hooves. She turns to the only guest who would enter her chambers without knocking.
"Good morning. I am surprised you are still awake."
Luna stifles a yawn before sitting down next to her sister.
"So I was. There is something we need to discuss, however."
"Pray tell."
"Something novel moves outside the Dreaming."
In present company Celestia allows some surprise to bleed into her expression.
"More visitors?"
"Visitors... but not of the same vein as before. I am not quite sure what to make of them, to be honest."
"Do explain."
Finding her efforts to hinder it futile, Luna allows a wide yawn to escape her.
"Let me first tell you what I have found. Or rediscovered, rather. Hundreds of years ago, shortly after the beginning of my... absence, Clover the Clever finalised some of Star Swirl the Bearded's lesser-known theories, sealing the Dreaming from the inside."
"Oh? I wasn't aware those two had such insight into your sphere."
"Dearest sister, there weren't many spheres those two didn't study at some point."
The sisters share a private smile at old memories.
"Anyway, Star Swirl in his later years apparently entertained a suspicion that some of the monsters of old would actually not hail from inside Equestria at all, and strove to shut them out of our realm for good. I was aware that he had been conducting research in that direction, but I admit I never knew Clover actually put it into practice."
"Neither did I."
Coming to think of it, that may well be the source of that lovely Hearth's Warming tale, Celestia silently muses. She thoughtfully taps her chin with a hoof.
"But if the Dreaming is sealed, how did our current visitors get in?"
"Quite honestly, I cannot yet say for sure. The magic is very old, and very subtle, but as far as I can tell the seal was purposely built to allow for someone to be able to detect the entrance under certain circumstances. I would guess great distress would qualify, if I were wont to explain the presence of our new guests."
"Well, that does sound a lot like Clover."
"Indeed."
Furrowing her brow, Luna gets up and walks a worried circle.
"That said, we're back at my original matter."
"The other visitors?"
"Yes. As I said, the seal itself is built to subtly detect strong emotion. The better to distinguish those in need of urgent aid, supposedly. Lately I've begun understanding how to tap into that to probe what lies beyond..."
Stopping, she turns to her sister.
"...but I am not quite put at ease from what I see."
"How so?"
"There is sentience there, that I can tell. Something about them seems off, however."
"Do you mean they are aggressive? Warlike?"
"No, quite the opposite. It is... hard to explain. If anything, I'd say they exhibit no strife whatsoever."
"Isn't living in harmony a desirable thing?"
"Yes... Perhaps you're right. Still, I would like to know what inspired our original visitors to such terror before making a judgement."
"If you say so. Twilight will be testing the new translation spell today. Perhaps you'll have a chance to talk to the interlopers soon enough."
"Splendid! Do keep me informed when word arrives."
Blinking tiredly, Luna turns and begins trotting towards her chambers.
"I will. Sleep well," Celestia calls after her.
"Of course."
The sound of hooves receding into the distance, Celestia turns back to her desk, suppressing another sigh.
"Now where was I? 'Citizens of Equestria...'"
Outside the chamber, one of the guards swivels his ear back to face the corridor. *
"The princesses' pupil and her entourage have successfully made contact."
"By the stars, Astoria. Can't we at least have a drink before we get to business?"
The copper mare so addressed turns to give the speaker an icy glare.
"My time is valuable, Golden, and I have little patience for your social games in private."
The stallion shrugs, filling a small crystal glass with a thick, orange liquid.
"As you wish, my dear. I must warn you that you're eschewing an excellent vintage, however."
"I'll survive. Now. My sources tell me there are more aliens on their way."
The stallion pauses with the glass halfway to his muzzle.
"Really, now? How accurate is this information of yours?"
"Very."
"...I guess that's all I'm going to get? Oh well. I assume since you bothered to come meet me in person you think that these newcomers will change something?"
The mare flashes a quick smile that doesn't reach her eyes.
"It might. According to princess Luna, the new intruders are strangers to conflict. Perfectly harmonious, you could say."
The stallion's ears perk up, and he unwittingly casts a worried glance around him. He puts the glass away and looks at his companion intently.
"You mean they could have potential for our project?"
The mare gives a predatory smile in response, before turning and trotting for the door.
"That is all I had to impart. Keep your eyes open."
Sitting down on a low chair, the stallion thoughtfully rubs his chin.
"Oh, rest assured I will, dear. Rest assured."
Golden Touch reaches for his glass as the door clicks shut and swirls the liquid within. After a while of contemplation he empties the whole glass of fifty-year old salt liquor in one swig and gets on his hooves.
"Feather Duster!"
Few heartbeats pass before a slate grey pegasus in a simple black apron opens the door.
"Yes, sir?"
"Send for two messengers, and have them meet me in my study. I wish to remain undisturbed until then."
"Very well, sir. Anything else?"
"No, you may go."
The pegasus bows and leaves. Golden Touch smiles to himself as he starts trotting towards his work room, plans and instructions already forming in his mind.
"This may yet turn out to be a good year indeed." *
"Ahh..."
I'd forgotten fresh air tastes this delicious.
I take deep, long breaths, enjoying the feel of a light breeze on my face. It's hardly distinguishable from the simulation of the suit, but just knowing it's real makes all the difference in the world.
Oh, and there's the smell, of course. Smell and texture, I should say. The air filters in a closed environment have a tendency to purify and purify until the air inside is utterly sterile. It's not something you notice while actually living on the ship, of course, but the sudden switch to the humid wetland atmosphere outside is amazing. The smell of the mud, of trees, the sweet tang of rotting under-vegetation... all overlaid with the sharp odour of burned plants and metal. It's a beautiful symphony of olfactory instruments, and I'm enjoying every second of it.
I don't get many moments of peace before the ramp shakes under the heavy steps of the first engineers moving out to work. I walk to the side, giving a wide berth to the massive walker heading down from the airlock. Motobu waves at me with a wide grin from the wide open cockpit as he lumbers by, guiding the six-ton beast onto the ground as smoothly as I would a skimmer. He may be young and cocky, but he drives that thing well, and to be fair, 'cocky' probably applies to the whole damn crew in any case. I laugh as Motobu grabs a whole fallen tree in one massive claw and twirls it like a marshal's baton, before heading off to the closest piece of flat land to start piling rubbish on.
It's sunny, and only a few clouds drift lazily over a clear blue sky. Morbid what-ifs aside, it looks like I wasn't wrong when I though it would be a good day. I flex my arms and run in place, trying to shake loose the kinks in my muscles before taking a few walking steps and then slowly easing into a jog. Running in an outside environment feels great after such a long while, even if I won't be able to stray more than a few hundred meters from the ship. Starting to feel warmed up, I accelerate slightly into a comfortable running pace, soon falling into the pleasant rhythm of my own steps.
In through the nose, out through the mouth. Thump, thump, thump, thump.
As I run, my thoughts begin to stray, remembering jobs past and loves lost. Now doesn't that sound like something a bitter old witch would say? Hey, I'm not trying to weave a dark and troubled backstory here, I'm just stating facts. It's been good at some times and rough at others.
The clammy sweat on my right palm only serves to accentuate the dryness of the left. As always, the prosthesis responds smoothly and instantly when I flex my hand. I've had it for so long--and had it fixed so many times--it's in a very definite way a part of me now, but there's forever that slight difference of feeling, a tiny disconnect between left and right. Good thing I'm right-handed, I guess. I pull my wrist back to its extreme and nudge it back and forth a couple of times to the beat of my running.
Beep, 'ARMED'. Blip-blip, 'DISARMED'. Beep, 'ARMED'. Blip-blip, 'DISARMED'.
See? 'cause it's in my arm.
Comedy gold.
Thump, thump, thump, thump.
I was eleven when I lost my hand. I actually regard the memory with some fondness now. We were still kids back then, Ace and me, and all the other kids thought it was wicked cool. Started a bar brawl, too, when I was sixteen. Snuck out during port stay with the idiot brothers, and some half-drunk asshole called me something ugly at a local watering hole. Sasha smacked him upside the head with a bottle of spirits, and then all hell broke loose.
Uh, now that I think about it, that got me grounded for the whole stay. That wasn't a fun memory after all.
I glance at my wrist, numbers flashing into existence over it, telling me I've been running for no more than a quarter of an hour. I speed up a little as I start on my second lap.
Mom was furious that time. 'Jesus, Alexandr'--she never used nicknames, not even for Sasha--'a fucking bottle? Do you know what it fucking cost me to have that bloke's eye replaced?' she asked, again and again. Never did she question his motive, but she was pissed off for losing money. I smile.
I carefully poke at the memory of her death.
Nnnope, still hurts.
Thump, thump, thump, thump.
I busy my mind with short-term administrative stuff for the next lap. By the time I round the bow of the ship, more engineers are already out, clearing ground and disassembling scaffolds from repaired areas. I wave at them as I run past, getting cheery shouts in response.
On the third lap, a skimmer team is forming up under the loading ramp. Miloslava kicks her turbine into gear and roars away into the forest, the three others forming up around her. I watch them weave skillfully into the trees, swearing as I almost stumble on a root sticking from the ground. There's a snort behind me.
"Careful, or you fall and hurt pretty face!"
"Go suck a dick, Kolya."
"Sorry, but am not into men."
"Where's your brother?"
"Helping Spitfire. Is equipment day today."
"Right."
We run in silence for a while.
"What is wrong?"
The questions startles me. I think it over while catching my breath.
"Why would you... think anything's wrong?"
"You're gloomy."
It's a simple statement, but it implies a lot of things. I glance at the stoic profile of my friend, and he pretends not to notice.
Are you becoming unstable?
The question remains unsaid, but it's there.
There's a little flash of annoyance, but it's overshadowed by a much stronger impulse of gratitude. Sasha and Kolya don't show it often, but they care. They care a lot. They've also been around for most of my life, so it's hard to hide things from them.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. Just thinking of the past."
"Okay."
"Remember that bar on Recuperance?"
Kolya grins widely.
"Where Sasha smacked that guy with bottle?"
"Yeah."
"Good times. I remember a certain girl kick that guy in nuts, also."
"I did not."
"Oh yes! Then you tell him: 'bitch, my hand is fabulous' when he on ground." He laughs loudly.
Huh, I did not remember that happening.
"In my defence, it is."
Kolya laughs again. Both him and his brother display plenty of mirth, so they have a quite large repertoire of laughs to pick from. This one has a warm, comforting sound, a laugh than can wring joy from almost anything. I chuckle along, which my lungs soon tell me I have no business doing while running.
Glancing at my wrist again, I note I've been exercising for just over an hour. Time to get to work. I slap Kolya on the back, get a grunt and a smile in response and decelerate to walk up the loading ramp. I'm just through the inner airlock when Xavier opens a line into my ear.
"Ma'am, the diplomats are en route again."
"Got it. Good timing, I just got in. I'll take a quick shower, get the meeting ready."
"Same crew as before?"
"Yeah."
"Roger."
I skip the long walk to my own quarters in favour of the communal showers on loading deck, grabbing my op suit from my personal locker as I go by. As I predicted, the Sailor's been the soundtrack of the day, and I'm humming the melody as I rinse myself in the stall.
Barely ten minutes later I'm stuffing the sweaty jumpsuit into the washer at the bottom of my locker, the other members of our impromptu diplomat team arriving one by one.
"So, how's the air?" Tito asks.
"Fantastic. You should all leave the helmets in and enjoy the weather."
"But we still had to wear the suits. Why?"
"Does it matter?"
"Of course."
"Well, wear whatever you want next time."
I hide my smirk as he harrumphs and flicks his glasses onto his nose. Motobu comes stomping up the ramp, delicately grabs yesterday's table in a claw and stomps back out again. Seems the engineers didn't enjoy carrying that piece of furniture by hand. Lazy buggers, always coming up with ways to automate the workload.
Julianne's eyes are literally glowing with all the software she's running, her gaze flicking this way and that, working some arcane subroutine or another. It's funny how you can almost tell what job people have around here just by looking at how much light bleed there is from their micro-projectors.
We chat about everything and nothing as we make our way down. Eventually the conversation peters out and we simply wait, enjoying the sunshine. Tito walks over to the table and starts unloading the augmentation visors from his satchel.
It doesn't take long for the ponies to appear at the edge of the clearing. They seem surprised at what we've done with the place, Motobu earning several long stares as he piles logs into a stack with his walker. I shoo him away and he waddles away behind the ship to do something else instead.
At the next moment, Miloslava's skimmer team busts into the clearing and moves straight up to the ramp. She breaks off and hovers over to where we're standing.
"Good morning, everyone," she greets us over the whine of her turbine. "Cordon's still there, if you're wondering."
"Whatever would we do without your input?"
She shrugs, unwittingly drawing a little buck from the skimmer.
"Hey, you gave the orders. Anyway, seems they're not closing in at least. Nothing's changed since last night. We saw a lion, though."
"What?"
"Yeah, it was pretty weird. It ran into the woods when it heard us coming."
"...okay? Oh well, it's not like it's any more surreal than anything else so far. That all?"
"A-yup. See you around."
"Later."
She spins on a dime and flies back up into the bowels of the ship, disappearing behind the airlock door. Having slowed their advance slightly during the exchange, the ponies are now approaching in the same configuration as before. The purple one seems to be all business today, striding right up with purposeful steps with the others chattering away behind her. Without preamble she connects to the data space, and I turn an imaginary monocle and let the visual input brighten until I can see the structure as well.
As the other ponies move to start putting on their borrowed goggles, the unicorn up front begins doing whatever it is she does with her horn. Tito leans in, talking in a low voice. Kinda redundant, that, considering our guests can't understand us anyway.
"Okay, just so you know: I tuned down the subroutine visualisation filter. Julianne wanted to see how that horn interacts with our cloud."
"So program runs will be visible?"
"Yeah. Since it's capable of interfacing, there should be a point... of... connect..."
I turn to look as Tito trails off, and so does everyone else present. Inside the glow coming from the unicorn's horn, there's this strange organic mess of squiggles and flickering points of light. Now, I may not be an expert on data systems, but I know what they should look like. That is not it.
"Uh, Tito?"
"Que diablos...? That's not what a program should look like. That's an incoherent mess!"
The unicorn seems unrattled. Excited, rather, rapidly explaining something to her companions. Soon enough the squirming patterns settle down onto her body, briefly tattooing her from top to tail with glowing runes.
Right.
Well, now she's looking at me. Faint, stylized speech bubbles superimposed over the pony inform me of an available translation interface, so here goes nothing. Trusting the safety measures of the ship to do their thing, I start chaining gestures.
Translate: speech. New audio connection. Open interface.
Execute on target.
A far more familiar program matrix manifests in front of my hand as a host of airware kicks into gear, billions of qubits of linguistic data arming the interface for translation. Thin lines representing the points of connections streak out, locking onto--apparently functional--biological connectors on the unicorn's body. Ignoring the superficial insanity of that though, I wait.
The purple mare looks up at me with a nervous expression, and takes a deep breath. The slightly metallic voice synthesis of the translation program hits my ears a second after the words leave her mouth.
"Hello? Can you understand me?"
I grin. Now we're getting somewhere. * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 12 | CHAPTER XII
"Language is a virus from outer space."
--William S. Burroughs
"Citizens of Equestria!
A few days ago, our world bore witness to an unprecedented event. An event which may change our understanding of the universe forever..."
Princess Celestia's voice echoes from the palace balcony, washing over the mass of ponies gathered to listen.
Well, at least the news are officially out now, Celestia thinks to herself, mentally sighing at the disappearing prospect of having to sort out another press scandal.
"...our envoys have successfully made contact, and are at this very moment trying to find a common language with the visitors...."
I wonder if they've already talked.
It's past midday, and the warm summer sun shines from a cloudless sky. With routine and confidence polished under hundreds of years of public appearances, Celestia flawlessly delivers her speech though her mind wanders on completely different topics. Mentally going over her list of tasks for the day, she feels a tinge of nostalgia at the memory of the now rare moments of privacy with her sister.
Luna's right, things used to be so much easier in the old days. But then again, we've come a long way since then, in many ways...
Celestia looks out over the thousands of ponies standing amongst the splendour of the city, her city, and the endless view from the palace. Green hills, lush forests and sparkling rivers stretch into the horizon in every direction, the tableau beautifully framed by mountains topped with pure white snow.
It's almost imperceptible, but were you looking very closely you might note the prime regent of Equestria standing just a bit taller. *
"Good morning, miss. Just call me Eris."
The purple pony in front of me takes a small, involuntary breath. I can understand the reaction. I'm as surprised as you are that this worked, my alien friend.
"...may I ask your name?"
"Oh, of course! My name is Twilight Sparkle..."
Ingrained habits from years of negotiations with short-tempered clients paralyse the muscles controlling my face. Thus, my incredulous laugh is restrained to the silence of my mind.
H... Her name is what?
"...and these are my friends: Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack and I believe you've already become acquainted with Pinkie Pie."
I can feel my cheeks twitching. For a few increasingly awkward seconds I say nothing until I feel I can trust my voice again. It's the translation software. It's got to be the translation.
"I'm sorry if I seem rude, but are these your given names or titles of some sort?"
Twilight Sparkle titters in an exceedingly adorable way. I notice from the corner of my eye that the other members of my team are pointedly looking in other directions, and that Julianne is shaking slightly.
"Oh, no, those are our names. We're just regular ponies."
"Then you aren't diplomats?"
"Well, not by profession. We were just appointed to the task by princess Celestia."
"I see. Forgive me, but for us it appears slightly... callous to send six completely novice subjects to such a meeting. Unless out-of-worldly visitors are common around here, of course."
"Oh! Well, you could say we're not entirely regular ponies. We represent the six Elements of Harmony: Laugher, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity, Kindness and Magic, one of the most powerful magics in all of Equestria. Since I came here to study friendship we've-- I'm sorry, is something the matter?"
Julianne, though silent is shaking violently, tears rimming her eyes. She looks at me with a panicky stare before shaking her head and almost running out of the simulated space. I wince at her howling laughter in the distance, mercifully cut off by the ship door sliding shut. I turn back to the ponies with a wooden smile.
"Sorry about that."
"Is there something the matter? Is your friend alright?"
Aw, she seems genuinely distressed.
"Yes. She shares my translation interface, and, uh, your names sound quite..."
I futilely search for a neutral word.
"Adorable," Tito deadpans.
So much for tact. Augh, her confused face is even worse!
"Well, yes. In fact, everything about your appearance comes across as exceedingly cute to us."
"But that's, I... what?"
The other ponies are becoming restless hearing but one side of the conversation. Twilight Sparkle quickly sums up the short exchange and then tries to answer the deluge of ensuing questions, giving us some time to compose ourselves. I can relate to the ponies behind her as I try to piece together the discussion from the translated fragments.
"Well, yes, but-- no, they're not 'crazy'. Different species have different standa-- no, I don't think they are cute, I don't know-- stop interrupting me!"
After a while, Twilight seems to get her little group in order, and she turns back to me with a slightly embarrassed smile.
"Well, I guess it's better than the opposite..."
I laugh.
"Yes, quite so. By the way, how come you're not... applying your translation to your friends?"
"Ah, well, it's a quite exhausting spell. I don't think I could cast it on all of us."
"'Spell'? As in a magic spell?"
"Of course. You're doing it, aren't you?"
Oh boy, this is going to be interesting.
"Well, to be frank, I'm not."
"Excuse me?"
"I mean I don't have the abilities you've been exhibiting through your horn. All the translation and airware runs are done by the ship."
Twilight flinches at 'airware'. Ah, of course.
"Sorry, that didn't translate?"
"No... it came across as something unintelligible. But I'm still not sure I understand...?"
"Allow me to demonstrate." I press my thumb and two first fingers together.
"Translation interface: new object. Two-part composite: air break ware stop, dictionary meaning. Related nodes: software, hardware, data, program. Add and process."
I turn back to Twilight.
"Airware. Airware runs. How about now?"
"Fascinating. What did you do?"
"Like I said, all the 'magic' you're connected to is done by that vessel over there. She's called the Trickster. I just taught her how to look for the right word to translate with."
"It's alive?!"
"Oh, no. It's not sentient, just a very, very complex machine. Still, it's capable of storing and analysing vast amounts of data, or simple 'learning'. It's not perfect, though. You can see my lips don't sync up to my words, can't you?"
"Actually, my spell also enchants vision, so it seems like you're using the right words..."
"Oh, wow. That's cool. We have to synthesise your voice, so it sounds rather unnatural, but like I said, the machine's learning. You're already much less artificial-sounding than a moment ago."
Twilight's eyes light up as she listens to my explanation.
"So it's learning Equestrian as we speak? That's amazing! How does it work?"
I laugh and put my hands up.
"Whoa there, I just tell people where to drive this thing. Ask Tito if you want to know." I jerk a thumb behind me.
"Tito?"
"Oh, right, sorry." I step back to let the team members behind me step up.
"This is Xavier d'Havillande, my first mate."
"Ma'am."
"Tito, my chief engineer."
"A pleasure."
"Likewise. Your spellcasting is quite impressive."
"But of course. Talent and practice go a long way, as I'm sure you know firsthand."
Huh, someone's being remarkably humble.
"...and finally, back from her little episode we have Julianne, the head of our forensics and analysis team."
At least she has the decency of looking ashamed.
"Hello. And sorry."
"Oh, it's fine."
As the rest of the group shakes hands with the three, I point to where the group of soldiers is still standing.
"I presume your escort answers to your princess as well?"
"Yes, they're part of the Royal Guard. I understand you've already met sergeant Mountain Gale?"
Meh, I liked Grumpy better.
"I have. We had a little... altercation with one of his soldiers."
"She'll be okay, I'm told."
"I'm glad to hear that. It was not our intention to cause you any harm."
"Twilight he-what-now expression-question?"
The sudden, robotic voice seems to come from orange pony with a tattoo of apples on her rump--'Applejack', I think? Seems the pattern matcher got an adequate amount of data out of the interface to start making simple translations. Nice. I hold up a hand to stop Twilight Sparkle from answering.
"Translation interface: adjust settings. Audio broadcast on. Filter: complete translation only. Process.
Good day, Applejack. I only asked about your Guard escort."
She starts in surprise as my sentence translates into passable Equestrian. The other ponies look at each other with open surprise, with the exception of Twilight Sparkle, who's curiously looking back and forth between us.
"Understandable-do-I-you?"
"Yes. The translation will get better with time."
The following sentence doesn't translate well enough to make any sense, but since she's offering her foreleg I assume it was some kind of greeting. Oh well, it'll come. I shake her hoof.
"Well, to get back to your question," Twilight Sparkle begins, "the Guard was deployed by princess Luna for safety reasons. We couldn't know what kind of creatures you would turn out to be, after all."
I nod appreciatively. This other princess at least seems to have her priorities in order.
"You seem to have a lot of princesses to go around, Twilight Sparkle."
"Just Twilight is fine. The royal sisters rule Equestria jointly, with princess Celestia controlling the sun and princess Luna the moon."
Interesting translation error there.
"I see. I must say I am fascinated by the mismatch of your magic and your technology. It took our species thousands of years of cumulative development to create the things you seem to be doing naturally, yet your soldiers still carry spears."
Twilight gives me an apprehensive look. Even without Empathy I can tell she's slightly worried about something, but hesitant to bring it up. I try to smile at her in an encouraging manner.
"Well, Equestria is a peaceful place. There hasn't been a war for hundreds of years. Then again, you seem very well armed. Are you... a military unit?"
Are we a... I burst out laughing. Xavier is scowling fiercely in an attempt to stop the corners of his mouth from creeping up, and even Tito has forsaken his laconic mask to reveal a grin. Through the gaps in the dataspace I notice the Guards lean in, curiously trying to listen in on our conversation. The ponies up front seem to hover between being confused and being offended. I shake my head as I wipe the corner of my eye.
"Uh, was the question inappropriate? I don't see the..."
"Don't worry about it. I'm sorry for laughing, but quite frankly I don't think there's a military outfit in all of human-inhabited space which would accept us into service."
"But your weapons? And the wards I triggered when I first tried to cast the translation spell?"
"Oh dear, but is this gonna be a long story. Extremely compressed version?"
Twilight nods. I select the master brightness controller and dim the virtual space to reveal the surrounding scenery. As the visitors blink in the sudden light I touch my ear.
"Ace? Strip the camo."
"Are we making a show?"
I grin.
"Of course."
I step up in front of the group, casting my arms out wide as I turn to face the envoys.
"Again: allow me to demonstrate!"
The single undulating note of a klaxon cuts through the clearing, and a powerful buzzing fills the air. I watch the widening eyes of the audience, enjoying their reaction indescribably more than I would the admittedly impressive sight unfolding behind me as the Trickster sheds its camouflage in a slow, sweeping wave from bow to stern.
The sounds are, of course, completely redundant, but for style points? We'd do anything for style points.
Turning around, I pause to admire the pure white coat Ace has chosen, red highlights running the length of the sleek hull.
"I assume you have seagoing ships? Yes? Now, this one essentially works in the same way, though it mostly travels in the air. You can see the yard foundations--where the sails come out--along the hull there and there, for example." I begin pointing as I explain. "Now, please look back there and imagine this was one of your ships. What's missing?"
I turn back to our guests. The answer comes without a second's pause.
"Easy. Flag-none. Another-of-me-ask!"
Everyone turns to look at, uh, Pinkie Pie. I absentmindedly note she's quite accurately named.
Another note to self: first impressions sometimes lie. But I'll be damned if I'm thrown off by that. I cast my arm out in a dramatic point to the pony in question.
"Correct! We're what you would call free mariners. It means this ship recognises no sovereign, and thus we fly no flag." I pull myself up with pride. "...and neither will we do so. Thus we're under no protection but our own. We go where we want, but we aren't welcome everywhere."
"Ah, I think I understand. So you live on the ship?"
"Sure. With full supplies we could theoretically stay on the Stream for months, if not years."
"The stream?"
"Yeah, the 'world-between-worlds'. You know, where we came through to get here?"
"Oh, Luna's domains? Oh, you've got to tell me more about that! The information I could find was spotty at best..."
Twilight's getting quite excited, her eyes exhibiting a gleam I've seen before. In the science team. Uh-oh.
"I'm sure Julianne can help you with that, though as I understand, we don't know too much about it ourselves. That will have to wait for a better time, though. We've got something we'll need to discuss with your princesses as soon as possible. Do you think there's a possibility of an audience?"
"I'm sure, though both seem to have been very busy lately. I'll write them and ask. May I ask what the matter is about?"
"It's related to the reason we had to enter your world in the first place. Please understand I'm quite reluctant to discuss it frivolously, but be assured it's a matter of life and death. For many."
The sudden change in demeanour must've come across as quite sudden, because Twilight involuntary tenses up. Discomfort radiates from her posture, and I lean back slightly and smile weakly to soften the impression.
"Please? I don't wish to alarm you, but this is important."
"Yes, of course. I'll pen the letter as soon as I get back to Ponyville."
"That's the name of the nearby town?"
"Yes, we're all from there."
"I see. Are you all students, then, or...?"
"Farmer-of-apples-am-I. Many-generation-family-in-village-Pony do-so."
"Beautiful-clothing-maker-I-am. Own store-in-town."
"Most-fast flier-I-am. One day-will-be-I lightning-bolt-of-awe!"
"Um, Animal-care-taker-I-am. Live-near Forest-Forever-Free."
"I-am baker! Do I-parties all-time for all-pony!"
I notice the translator is slowly starting to piece the sentence structure together.
"Hello, all, nice to meet you. I am the captain of this vessel."
And so the discussion goes.
For a while we simply query each other about various topics, the other ponies slowly joining the discussion as the quality of translation gradually increases. If I'm to believe the envoys, their civilisation sounds like a proper paradise: minimal crime, not a single war for centuries and a society built on the values of harmony and friendship, all benevolently ruled by two immortal princesses.
Call me cynical, but I'm not buying it.
Don't get me wrong, I've seen enough of their 'magic' and other completely unbelievable things just today to be beyond doubting small details like supposedly immortal rulers. It's the utopian society I can't swallow. During my life I've negotiated with spies, soldiers, bureaucrats, outlaws, merchants, scummy politicians, religious leaders and arrogant nobles, and though it's an ancient cliche by now, if something seems to be too good to be true...
Besides, if I was a princess negotiating with aliens, sending an adoring student and her sheltered friends to negotiate under strict military escort would be exactly what I'd do to get the opponent's guard down. Thus, under my diplomat's smile and generously offered information about humankind in general, I'm sparse on the details about my crew, the Trickster, our weapons and our capabilities.
I like to think the best of people. But I'm not stupid.
I tell the ponies about Earth, about the Golden Age, the invention of fusion technology and the exploration of space. I tell them about the great disasters of the twenty-first century, about the Eco-wars, about the Sigma protocol and the global lockdown.
Twilight recalls the legend of Nightmare Moon and the thousand-year banishment. She explains the context to the Elements of Harmony. She tells the story of Hearth's Warming Eve and the founding of the country, of Star Swirl the Bearded and Clover the Clever, of the development of magic and the Ordering of the realm.
I tell the story of the prototype dimension collapser, First Breach and of the first forays into the Stream. I describe the beautiful but tragic tale of the Fahri family, Abdul-Khaliq and Khairiya, who gave their lives to spread the blueprints all across the world and triggered the Exodus. How we spread across the Stream in those first, rickety pioneer ships, finding new worlds, completely free for the first time in centuries.
She talks about the Griffon Wars and the withdrawal of the dragon Unities into the far reaches of the world, the turmoil of the Wild Winters and the founding of the weather control teams. Of places: Cloudsdale, Canterlot and Manehattan. We learn that we've landed in the Everfree forest. The group of six tells us about Discord, about the redemption of Luna and their lives in Ponyville. At some point I notice the Guards have crept closer and closer as we've been talking, and are now standing close enough to listen.
For hours we talk. Xavier tells the old, old story of the New Hansa and the roots of the world-merchants who eventually rejected the rule of sedentary society and gave birth to the free mariners. Tito describes the rebellions that led to the colonial wars against the navies of China and the European Federation and the founding of the first freeports. Julianne describes advances in science and medicine, gravity distortion rails and smart metals, prostheses and replacement body parts. We watch videos and holographic projections, and explore Tito's dataspace.
As we take a break for a late lunch, a small group of the Guards approaches us humans where we sit on the negotiation table. The rest of the ponies are seated a distance away, unpacking what seems to be a spread of different kinds of vegetables and fruit. The military detachment is quite obviously led by the gruff stallion in front wearing a simple but functional piece of body armour. I nod in greeting, both to him and to Grumpy who's accompanying the leader.
"Good afternoon."
"Greetings. I-am-called Captain Diamond Hoof. I-am appointed as the commander of the cordon."
Ah, the military types. They're the same everywhere, aren't they?
"A pleasure to meet you. I'd like to apologise for the earlier incident."
"Worry not. I-am-told the action was self-defence."
"Indeed. I assume you require something from us?"
"Yes. We-have listened to your dialogue, and we-are interested: you-say you-serve no nation, but you obviously have combat-skill. What is it you-do exactly?"
Well, that's the billion-credit question, isn't it?
"Everything. As long as it pays well and preserves our honour, we take on most jobs."
"You-say you-are not bound to a nation, but I-am. And I-must know for the safety of the pony-persons I-am sworn to protect: is-your empire a possible threat to Equestria?"
Whoa. I raise my eyebrows in surprise. You don't muck about, do you, pal?
"You know, that's an uncommonly direct approach. I think I like you."
I stop to think for a second.
"Well, look." I hand him a pair of goggles. "Let's take a simple example."
A quick flick of my wrist detaches a segment of the data tori, the pages forming a small map of the Hermes tradeway. More than a dozen major ports light up along the winding substream.
"Here's one of the most trafficked trade routes outside Earth-controlled space. Every one of these specks of light is a port anchored outside the Stream, in real space. These..." I point "...are estimated population numbers."
Diamond Hoof's got one of the best poker faces I've ever seen, but not good enough for me. A second's pause in breathing, a fractional widening of the eyes. A tiny tension in his neck as his brain takes in one seven-digit figure after another. I grin.
"Now, if all these would be ruled by one instance, then you'd have an issue. Fortunately that isn't the case. Take Milnesport here, for example. Though there are almost five million people living there, they're divided into factions ruled by the Council of Miros, the Council of Commerce, four major corporation-protectorates and over a dozen minor ones. And that's before you factor in religious factions, other local communities and all the passers-through. Milnesport, as a community, wouldn't and probably couldn't act as one unit unless forced to. And for most of the space outside Earth's sphere of influence, that's the way we'd like it to be."
I turn from the map and display the small knife I'm eating with.
"Here's the thing, though: your magic is capable of some pretty fantastic things, but the level of your technology is this. Against any of the more powerful factions on that map, not to mention the ones outside it, you wouldn't pose much of a challenge, militarily or industrially."
I skewer a piece of omelette on my knife and stick it into my mouth.
"I-see. But you-must have at least some factions which-are not as strong. How do-those-live in harmony?"
Looks like this guy didn't make his rank just by kissing ass. I chew and swallow.
"Well... Some, if they are strong enough to police themselves, declare themselves freeports. Basically that means that the trade oversight superfactions and autonomous organisations will step up to protect them against colonial forces or external aggression, but it also means you get a huge influx of all kinds of people. Your infrastructure and society have to be strong to carry that kind of burden. Others just submit to an existing sovereign power as a vassal state."
"Those-are the only options?"
"Well, there's declaring independence, but that leaves you standing alone, so you'd better be ready to either step up your military game or play the political one well."
Diamond Hoof silently broods over the map for a good while while I finish my meal.
"Thank-you for your time."
He turns to leave.
"You're welcome. Hey Gr-- sergeant Mountain Gale!"
The pegasus turns back, surprised. I smile at him.
"Mind if we have a little chat?"
Unsure, he looks to his superior who dismisses him with a curt nod, although I can tell the captain's curious too. Mountain Gale trots up to me and I indicate the grass at the side of the table.
"Thank you. I-prefer to stand, ma'am."
Oh fuck off, even other species?
"Eris is fine. I'm not much for titles."
"Very well. How may-I stand to service?"
"Let's just say I'm curious by nature. How's your teammate doing?"
"Wind-chaser? She-will heal. While we-discuss that matter... Please stand by a beat."
With a few wing-flaps--it somehow looks very intuitive and natural, although I intellectually know it should be all wrong--he flies over to the rest of his formation to return with Kolya's stretcher dragging behind him.
"I-would-like to return this. It-was a great help."
"Thanks, I'm sure Kolya will love to get it back." I put the object away. "Now, tell me something about yourself." * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 13 | CHAPTER XIII
"People who enjoy meetings should not be in charge of anything."
--Thomas Sowell
Majesty,
My report on the aliens follows.
The captain, "Eris", doesn't seem hostile, and neither does her crew. While they are well-armed and in possession of great magical power, she insists they are not a military unit in the sense of the Guard. While these creatures' empire is enormous it seems fractured into smaller fiefdoms. I am told that major factions within it would be powerful enough to force Equestria to submission, were they so inclined.
I'm sure you'll get a comprehensive write-up from your sister's student.
We will meet them again tomorrow. I continue my vigil.
Diamond Hoof
Luna lowers the letter, hiding her snicker behind a polite cough as her sister skims through the massive scroll slowly scrolling in front of her.
"I heard that," Celestia notes without turning around.
"It seems your student has been quite productive, sister."
Celestia puts down the huge report and rests her eyes on the horizon.
"Twilight, though a brilliant scholar, has always had a penchant for somewhat... verbose reports."
"So it would seem. I find her thirst for knowledge a quite endearing trait, myself."
"You don't have to read said reports." Celestia nods towards the night blue scroll. "Is that from captain Hoof?"
"Indeed, and it is as it's author. Curt and to the point."
"Well, I believe you've said that you chose him for this job exactly because of his personality."
"Hah! His impatience with etiquette is one of his most valuable traits."
"True words. I hope the talks will continue as well as they have started."
"So do I, though it seems we have nothing to fear from our first guests."
Celestia frowns.
"I would like to think so, too, but these... primates still seem quite volatile, advanced though they may be. Can you trust a mage who bows to no mistress?"
Luna snorts dismissively, waving the roll of parchment in the air.
"Bah, a little roughness and a disregard for authority has always been the hallmark of sailors, even here. And recall the knights errant! What happened to the Celestia who bestowed her favour upon a stallion before a particularly exciting joust, hm?"
Luna playfully pokes at her sister with the scroll. Celestia bats the offending object away with her wing, a faint colouration to her cheeks.
"That was a long, long time ago."
"Ah, but you have grown old and stiff, sister. I shall leave you to your bureaucratic entertainments."
"I'll take a break soon enough. Will you be visiting the encampment?"
Luna turns back at the door.
"I'm thinking of taking a first look tonight."
"Be careful."
"By the stars, sister. There's a full squadron of Guards present. What could possibly go wrong?" *
"How in the name of all fuck did this happen?"
The angry shout rebounds from the metal bulk of the ship and echoes around the clearing. The responsible human continues into a long string of curses which, even only partially translated, manage to bring a blush to the cheeks of most ponies within earshot. The engineer punctuates her rant by accusingly waving her cap at the other orange-suited crew members milling about her and occasionally kicking a nearby walker. Showers of sparks and clouds of steam burst from inside the damaged bulkhead.
"W-what's going on?" Fluttershy asks, peeking over Twilight's withers towards the railing engineer. Eris laughs a hearty laugh, collapsing her artificial hand back into its normal shape and rolling down the sleeve of her suit.
"Welcome to engineering. It's not a work place for the faint-hearted."
"But, um, does she have to be so--" Fluttershy's ears flatten over the earbuds of her visor as the distant shouting rises in volume for a few seconds.
"--will kick you so hard in the dick you'll be pissing blood out of your--"
"...angry about it?" She casts her eyes to the ground.
"Well... That's just her personality, I guess. I'll admit she's got a slightly short temper."
"--tear your goddamned tits off--"
"...and quite a colourful vocabulary."
A new human steps into the circle of those already present, a faint grid of crossed-out triangles springing up between the group and the working crew. The volume of the chaotic scene around the hull abruptly drops to a whisper, and Eris greets the newcomer with a lazy wave of her hand.
"Thanks, Ace."
"No problem. Looks like there's a skimmer team suiting up, if you want to take a break."
"Oh, nice! You take over here, then."
"Sure."
The tall newcomer turns to the ponies and inclines his head. His voice is quiet but carries clearly over the muted backdrop of distant clangs and shouts.
"Good afternoon. My name is Ares, though most seem to prefer to call me Ace."
"Treat my brother well, alright?" Eris quips over her shoulder as she walks away.
"Oh, so you're related? Nice to meet you, my name is Twilight."
"I know," Ares says as he squeezes the offered hoof, "I have been following your interactions with my sister from the bridge."
"Oh. Oh! That reminds me, you have to tell me how that works! I can't sense any magic when you talk to each other across a distance..."
"There isn't any. We transmit our messages encoded in very high-frequency electromagnetic waves," Ares explains as he moves to greet everypony present in turn.
"But... you'd need an oscillator for that, and Eris said you don't have anything similar to our horns."
"True, but you saw her left hand, yes? It's the same thing. We manufacture the equipment we require and then merge it with the body in various ways. Like inserting them behind our eyes."
Ares' eyes shift through a flurry of glowing colours as a demonstration.
"Amazing..."
His mouth quirks into a small, crooked smile.
"It's just a long, long process of small improvements. To us your ability to levitate objects and fly with those tiny wings appears far more impressive."
"Hey! My wings aren't tiny."
"My apologies. I merely meant that, physically speaking, you shouldn't be able to produce enough thrust to fly. They are quite beautifully proportioned from an aesthetic point of view."
Rainbow self-consciously angles her wings back, the conflict between pride and annoyance at having them called pretty evident on her face. Applejack snickers behind a hoof.
Ares peeks behind the next to last pony in line, offering his hand to the half-hidden figure behind.
"Well met, miss Fluttershy."
"Um, hello..."
Ares gently grasps the timidly offered foreleg. Fluttershy carefully looks out from under her mane, meeting the human's dark eyes with an involuntary squeak.
The other ponies watch with interest as their pegasus friend goes through a series of fidgets, jerks and posture changes under Ares' steady gaze. After a few seconds he releases her hoof.
"Hm."
"Don't worry, she's just nervous around new ponies. Creatures. Persons."
"It's all right. I wasn't the most sociable of people when I was younger, either."
"Really?"
"Yes. Eris was always the more... outgoing of us."
"...y."
"Pardon?"
"Um... I-I meant to say... I'm sorry, I don't want to offend anypony..."
Ares thoughtfully scratches his chin while looking the pegasus over.
"Like I said, it's quite all right. But I wonder..."
With a sudden squeal, Fluttershy dives behind Rainbow Dash. The human stands still as a statue, following her with his eyes.
"Fluttershy? What the hay?"
"Oh, um, it's... I just..."
Peeking out from behind her friend with a haunted look, Fluttershy blushes and hides behind her mane.
"What's up with you today, Shy? You're totally on edge."
"I-I... don't know..."
"Fluttershy." Her name called, she peeks at the human. Instantly, the tension drains out of the scared pony, her crouched posture relaxing into a more upright stance. She looks at Ares, wide-eyed.
"But... why?" Confusion is evident in her voice.
"Because you are like me. Come, sit. Let's talk."
Ares settles down on the edge of the projection table.
"Did Eris talk to you about Sympathy?" The ponies shake their heads in unison. "Well... this might take a while."
Ares collects his thoughts for a few heartbeats, and begins talking.
"In... the final stages of the Eco-wars, the amount of land available to farm and live on became critical on Earth. Genetic engineering saw a surge as the surviving governments scrambled to effectivise agricultural production to the point where they could upkeep the existing population. Somewhere along the way the gene-engineers of the time--it's lost to history who--mapped the workings of a cluster of genes integral to the development of our prehistoric ancestors' brains: the structures of social interaction.
These were genes that had always existed in the human gene pool, of course. The research, however, made it possible to bring out, multiply and control these effects in individual humans. What we essentially created was a human who could consciously manipulate the subconscious signals we use to affect others. They were the perfect spies, ambassadors and instigators, and very soon they were in use by all parties of the war."
Pausing, Ares looks up to the half-empty sky.
"In the aftermath of the wars a lot of old borders crumbled, and hundreds of years of knowledge were either lost or freely distributed. The same was true for the gene program. The engineered genes spread into the general populace as former combatants settled down to rebuild, their former identities forgotten or consciously hidden. Today, an approximated four percent of all humans carry the altered genes in some configuration.
There are two main ways the engineered genes manifest: Sympathy and Empathy. The first is the ability to affect others subconsciously, and the second is a heightened sensitivity to their emotions and attitudes."
"So it allows you to manipulate others to do your will? That's terrible!" Twilight exclaims.
"You misunderstand. Sympathy is no different from being, say, a 'natural leader' or a 'good persuader'. The signs such a person exhibits--confidence, purpose, trustworthiness--are simply amplified, because the Sympath can identify them in their own behaviour. There is no hard line which separates a skilled speaker from a weak Sympath. Do you see?"
"I... think I do."
"You should. You spend time seeing the effects of both every day."
"I'm sorry?"
Ares nods at Pinkie Pie.
"I presume she's very good at making you cheer up and go along with her plans?"
"Well, yes..."
"Of course I am, silly! Nopony likes to not party!"
Ares waits patiently. Twilight's eyes finally widen as she understands the implication.
"Are... you saying Pinkie has this 'Sympathy'?"
"Well, something very akin to it. It saved her life when she ran up to Eris at our very first meeting."
"You would have attacked her?"
Ares' eyes remain inscrutable.
"She charged at our captain without warning. People have gotten shot for much less."
A heavy silence descends on the group as the ponies take stock of the alien with new eyes. Even Pinkie seems quiet after the revelation.
Twilight finally breaks the silence with a nervous laugh.
"Well, I'm glad nothing happened. Right, girls?"
"So are we. She's not the only one, though."
Ares shifts his dark eyes back to Fluttershy.
"What did you feel when you hid behind your friend?"
"It... I, um, thought you were going to attack us. Sorry..."
"Don't be. The signals I gave were aggressive."
"What signals? You didn't move at all!" Rainbow suddenly draws back. "Can she read minds?"
Ares' sudden laugh takes the ponies by surprise.
"Ah, no, she can't. The reason she reacted so strongly was because she's not used to interpreting human body language. It's not something supernatural, only a combination of very, very high sensitivity to a number of very minuscule signals. The threat of violence seems to be a universal concept."
"So when you said Fluttershy is 'like you', you meant..."
"Yes. I was born a weak Empath. And unless I'm mistaken, she has a potential far higher than mine."
Another silence descends on the group as the ponies mull over the information. Rarity protectively steps in front of Fluttershy.
"I am most certainly hoping you're not thinking that this will change a thing between us six!" She levels a glare at the other ponies. Ares clears his throat.
"Before you start arguing, there are a few things I'd like you to keep in mind. First of all, like I said, it's only a natural disposition to certain social behaviours, untrained it doesn't really differentiate you from the rest of the populace. The Gods know we've had enough misunderstandings and prejudice in our own culture."
For a split second Ares' eyes flick to the side and something hard glints in his expression.
"Secondly, and more importantly, what I've said only applies to humans. With your species, the genes were most probably not introduced into the gene pool artificially. It's entirely possible you've evolved the traits on your own, which would explain why you're still alive. And sane."
"What do you mean?"
"For humans, while they confer quite tangible advantages, these forcibly developed skills aren't without a price. For us Empaths, the strain is usually mental. Tell me, Fluttershy, have you ever felt that society is full of lies, aggression and hidden agendas?"
"I... um..."
"That doesn't sound like Fluttershy at all. She's perfectly fine with other ponies!"
"You say your passion is taking care of animals. Why?"
"Hey! Is this an interrogation? Lay off her!"
"It's... alright, Rainbow."
The other ponies turn in surprise. Fluttershy looks straight back at the unwavering Ares.
"Animals are... honest. They don't tell lies. I think I... understand what you mean."
"Fluttershy!"
"My friends are the same. I trust them because I know they want me to be happy."
Ares nods thoughtfully, and for a second he smiles warmly.
"I see. They are the bedrock of your sanity." He alternates between Pinkie and Fluttershy. "...and yours too, I would imagine. You are both very lucky."
"Of course! We have the bestest of friends, after all!" Pinkie exclaims, before scooping as many of her friends into a hug as she can reach. Ares chuckles at the scene.
"But then... what about y'all? How d'ya handle the strain?" Applejack manages from within the group hug.
"Fortunately, though I said four percent of humanity carries the genes, only a fraction of them exhibit fully matured Empathy or Sympathy. For those few, life can be tough... Many die, by their own hand or by accident."
"How awful!"
Ace shrugs.
"People die for various reasons all the time. It's not as bad as it sounds, there's always techniques and drugs to curtail and control the backlash."
"So you were... trained?"
The human smiles softly with a faraway look in his eyes.
"Our father taught both me and Eris. He was a very important pillar for us both, while he still lived."
"Oh, he's passed away... I'm sorry."
"Don't be. That's life." Ares' expression has returned to it's blank default state.
The conversation dissolves into silence at the heavy topic, Twilight and her friends unsure of how to continue. Their thoughts are interrupted by the now familiar whine of thrusters, audible even through the dampening screen as a new group of hovercraft exits the ship. Ares eyes Rainbow Dash as she floats into the air for a better view.
"Are you interested in the skimmers?"
"Do they go fast?"
"Very."
"Really, now...?"
Ares dismisses the intangible noise wall with a flick of his hand and whistles sharply through his teeth. The group turns in response and quickly makes its way over to the group by the table. Eris' face becomes visible as she pulls up sideways, the remaining four hovercraft skipping around impatiently behind her. The distant shouting continues unabated.
"--jam a frequency wrench up your asshole if you give me lip again--"
"What's up?"
"Looks like Rainbow Dash here would like to run a patrol with you."
Eris grins with delight.
"Think you can keep up?"
"Hay yeah I can! You're looking at the fastest pegasus in all of Equestria!"
"I'll believe it when I see it!"
Releasing the decelerator, Eris rotates her skimmer around full circle before gunning the engine, the team ascending straight into the sky with a roaring blast of wind.
"All right! Finally some action!"
"Rainbow! Maybe you should--"
The pegasus flexes her wings and takes off after the humans in a blur of movement, leaving her friends behind in the swirling cloud of ash and dry leaves. Twilight coughs and rubs her eyes with a hoof.
"--inform the Guards..."
She trails off as the fliers disappear over the Everfree. Three pegasus guards scramble in a panic to pursue, desperately flapping their wings to keep up with the sudden change of situation. Ares chuckles.
"Well, they'll be gone for as long as your friend can fly, I'll reckon."
"Oh dear. That could be a while," Rarity comments as she tries to re-arrange her mane. "Seems your sister enjoys flying as well."
"Loves it. The ability of flight has always fascinated us as a species, I think."
"I can understand how that would be enticing if you lack the natural means to do so."
"How do those machines fly?" Twilight asks, squinting towards the horizon. "They don't have wings either, and enchanting an object to fly at that speed would be massively energy-consuming..."
"I'm sure it would be. There's some complex technology involved, but basically there's something called a Stoltzmann rail inside, which creates a kind of weak lifting force. Think of it as a balloon full of a light gas, only compressed into a very small space. Active, it makes the whole contraption light enough to move with a single, big thruster."
"Interesting... how does that work, exactly? Balloons need a lot of volume for lift, but..."
"It's not really my specialty. You might want to talk to the scientists or engineers."
"--I will murder you in your sleep! Perkele!"
Ares reasserts the zone of silence with a wave and smiles wryly at Twilight's pensive expression.
"Don't worry, Niina's not the only engineer we have. She is a very good one, though."
"What about the one we met earlier?"
"Tito? Sure. Do you want to go now?"
"What, inside?" Twilight's eyes light up. "Yes! Yes I would!"
"Twi, wait up fer a beat."
"What's wrong?"
"Look, Ah understand this is all very 'mportant and we were asked by the Princesses, but Ah can't leave the orchard for too long. Big Macintosh can't handle all those trees by himself."
"Oh... Are you sure? It's a great opportunity!"
"Ah know, and Ah'd like to go. But..."
"Excuse me, but if I understand correctly, you run a rather large apple orchard?"
"A-yup. Sweet Apple Acres, biggest orchard in th' region!"
"Impressive. I think I might have a proposal which might benefit all parties."
"Ah'm listening."
"Since we're confined to our ship most long journeys, our supplies are often of a rather... well-conserved variety. Fresh produce is a rarity, and one we value greatly. We can't offer you any local currency, but perhaps we could spare some farm hands in exchange for goods?"
Applejack thoughtfully rubs her chin.
"'Farm hands'? D'ya mean hired workers? Well, it's not like we need any help, but it'd save us time a-plenty, and we've got more than enough apples ta spare..."
"Exactly. Our maneuver platoons aren't doing very much at the moment, and I would rather not have them getting too restless. As an additional bonus, you wouldn't have to leave your friends today."
"Well, that does sound like a darned good deal! All right."
Ares gets up from the table, sealing the deal with a shake.
"Well then, I'd be glad to function as your guide. Will your escort be joining us...?"
"I dont' know, let me go ask..." * |
Under Free Flag | Chapter 14 | CHAPTER XIV
"A certain man once lost a diamond cuff-link in the wide blue sea, and twenty years later, on the exact day,
a Friday apparently, he was eating a large fish - but there was no diamond inside.
That's what I like about coincidence."
--Vladimir Nabokov, Laughter in the Dark
The rough surface underneath is making the skimmer skittish, and the swirling currents throw the vehicle around when I ease up on the decelerator handle.
"I'll believe it when I see it!" I quip as I spin back, grinning at the pegasus in front of me.
I stamp down with my feet, the skimmer gleefully pushing off the ground and streaking into the sky, the scream of the exhale nozzles dampened by the speed of my ascension. I can't help but laugh out loud at the rush of wind, safe from the chill behind thick layers of heat insulation.
"Woo-hoo!"
The altimeter ticks away in front of me: a hundred meters, one hundred and fifty, two hundred... The strain of the rapid climb burns in my thighs, pressing my boots into the footrests. In a matter of seconds I level out at about two hundred and twenty meters and settle into a lazy holding pattern, the rest of the team forming up around me.
Now, where's that pony?
"Whoa! What the hell was that?" Sabra's voice breaks into my ear and I wrench around in my seat to see what spooked him. The other pilot's head is tilted back, and I follow the direction of his gaze to a rainbow-coloured tail flapping in the wind.
I glance at the airspeed meter. Twenty meters per second.
"What the actual fuck?"
The broadcast must be on, because Rainbow Dash turns her head around and laughs. I glance to the closest skimmer pilots. Sabra is still gaping, while Steph just grimaces and shrugs at me.
I laugh out loud. She's got spirit, this one.
"Well, looks like you weren't boasting there, Rainbow Dash. Most impressive."
"Uh, hello? Is this thing on?"
"Yeah, go ahead."
"I told you I'm the fastest." I think I could hear the smirk over the radio even without visual confirmation. I match her expression as she looks back at me.
"Don't get too cocky. We're not even close to the limit of what these babies can do."
Free from the unpredictable ground turbulence, the skimmer is to me all but an extra limb. I flick my wrists to pick up some speed with a tiny nose dip before aggressively twisting the controls to starboard.
I revel in the adrenaline rush as I fall into a rapidly accelerating dive, safety straps around my lower back and thighs jerking taut as the centrifugal motion tries to throw me off my seat.
I whoop with glee as the skimmer plummets, turbine screaming.
You ain't seen nothing yet, my winged friend. *
A bright, orange light blinks thrice as the heavy door slowly lifts and folds into the hull. The smallish room inside follows the style of the humans' other equipment, predominantly sporting sharp angles of metal and smooth surfaces of some unknown, dull material. Ares casually walks into the gloom, leaving the five friends together with captain Hoof, Mountain Gale and a third guard named Glitterstreak nervously peering inside. The human patiently waits for the emissaries to make their move.
Finally Twilight crosses the threshold, closely followed by the poker-faced Diamond Hoof.
One by one, the rest of the group enters the chamber, glancing around as nothing immediate happens.
"Um, is something the matter?"
"Not really. We're just waiting for the airlock to cycle."
"Why not just open both doors?"
"It's built to work this way. Both for security and for operation in hostile environments."
"Like the Everfree?"
"Oh, much worse than that. Here you have breathable air, at least."
"Uh..."
The orange light flashes again, and the door re-unfolds itself with the same, even speed. The walls take on a soft, ambient glow to illuminate the room as the entrance seals with a click. The outside sounds of machinery and raised voices disappear, only faint clangs echoing through the walls.
"Don't be alarmed, but there will be some moisture in the air in a moment. I recommend closing your eyes, it can be slightly irritating to the sensory organs."
Hidden nozzles expel a fine mist into the room, the ponies fidgeting as the cool droplets drift over them. Somepony sneezes.
"Agh, I got some in my eye..."
"Um, sorry, but what is this?"
"A mild disinfectant. We try to minimise the impact we might have on a new environment as well as keep the ship clean."
"Oh."
Narrow slats open up in the floor and a hot gust of wind ruffles fur and wings.
"My mane! Oh dear."
The enormous inner door chirps cheerfully. With a loud clack its segments separate, the overlapping petals opening, flower-like, and retracting into a cylindrical stump of corridor. Loud noise assaults the visitors: echoing shouts, bursts of laughter and the rattling of footfalls on metal punctuating the ever-present backdrop of idling engines. A very, very quiet bass hum emanates from the inside walls, as if the ship itself acted as an enormous speaker.
Ares stops at the circular entrance and sweeps his arm to encompass the space beyond.
"Well then, ambassadors. As the executive officer of this ship, and on behalf of our captain and crew, it is my honour to welcome you onboard the Trickster."
Slowly filing out of the small chamber, the group enters the huge hall.
"Oh goodness..."
Craning their necks to grasp the size of the space, the ponies scan level after level of walkways framing wide doorways stencilled with yellow numbers. Large, square doors neatly line the inner wall like the cells of an enormous beehive. Both individuals and groups of humans walk around on the metal shelves or sit by the handrails with their legs hanging over the side.
On the bottom, the hall forms a wide square lined on a side by a series of similarly tubular entrances as the one open behind the group. Following the gentle curve of the hull the room tapers towards the top, terminating in a tight wedge more than a hundred wingspan above.
Ares looks at the gawking ponies with a mildly surprised expression.
"I did not expect you to be so impressed by our hangar. Surely you must have bigger structures in that mountain city in the far distance."
Twilight excitedly trots around in a wide circle.
"Canterlot? Well, yes, but not by much, and certainly none that fly. Besides clouds, I mean, but this is all built in metal! I can't even imagine what it would take to process this much iron!"
"There's actually a lot less steel than you probably think. Much of the hull consists of lighter alloys over carbon superstructures."
"Carbon? But that's... I mean, how can it hold?"
"It might be a bit of a long lecture. Let's talk about that later."
"Is this a storage space for your flying machines?" Mountain Gale breaks into the conversation.
"Very good. How did you guess?"
"The layout is very similar to pegasus housing in Cloudsdale. I presume there are emergency hatches in the roof?"
"Indeed. You can see it outlined in yellow if you look carefully."
"Above the topmost level? Yes, it's clearly visible from here." The winged pony points with a hoof.
Ares squints at the weak lines of paint half-hidden in the shadows above.
"Huh. You must have remarkable eyesight. Or perceive colours quite differently from us."
"Hey, check it out! Look!"
Yells and whistles calling for attention sound from above, heads popping over the safety rails or out of open entrances. The sound of excited discussion floats down to the visitors.
"Whoa, that is the cutest thing."
"They can fly? Awesome!"
"Sir! Will we get to meet the ponies too?"
Ares waves his hand at the closest faces peering down.
"In time. Get back to work."
"Yes, sir!" The grinning head disappears.
"If you would? This way, please."
Ares leads the group into a side corridor, metal doors--easily a leg measure thick--easing into the walls like curtains at their approach. Behind, the pathway continues into the distance, light spilling from windows painting the walls and floor in alternating segments of light and dark. Thick lines of colour run across the floor. Diamond Hoof squints at the sunlight as they walk past.
"Strange... These windows seem to be set right at the surface, but I could've sworn we didn't move back towards the entrance."
"We didn't. There's more than thrice your body length in armour and hull layers separating us from the outside."
The old soldier peers suspiciously at Ares.
"Magic?"
The human smiles over his shoulder.
"If you'd like to call it that."
A gesture from Ares pans the image of a nearby window to the groups of Guards still waiting outside.
"You seem very fond of scrying magic," Twilight remarks as the group continues, leaving the oddly angled image hanging on the wall.
"Why waste time? Fast communication is both convenient and life-saving."
Twilight lapses into silence, eyes tracing shadowy alcoves hidden away from the brilliant sunlight.
Every one of them speaks of life-threatening danger and death with such ease. It feels... dark, somehow.
"Mister Ares. I'm terrible sorry if I appear to be prying, but we only seem to be passing a lot of closed doors. May I ask where this 'tour' is headed?"
"Of course you may, miss Rarity. We'll be at our destination in a moment. And to answer your unasked question: the doors in this corridor lead to cargo holds. Most of them are simply empty."
The corridor ends in an identical door to the one at the other end, the metal lightly swishing away. The silence of the empty corridor is replaced with the sounds of life, dozens of voices mingled with the sounds of clinking metal and thumps of feet. The new passage is devoid of windows, instead branching into twisting paths framed by doors and hatches of varying sizes. Raucous laughter, stumps of drunken song and a blanket of loud, overlapping voices drift from an open double door to the immediate right. Pinkie immediately perks up, zooming to the front of the group with surprising speed.
"That sounds like a party! Is it a party, Acey?"
"Ac... Huh. Yeah, you could say that. It's the mess hall, so there's probably an off-duty squad or two in there. Want to stop by and say hello?"
In a pink flash Pinkie is across the intervening corridor, bouncing into the middle of the doorway and striking a dramatically pointing pose, precariously balanced on her hind legs.
"I sense a party! Why wasn't Pinkie invited?"
The mess hall reacts with dumbfounded silence, the song faltering into confused mumbles.
Then the room explodes into cheers.
"Heeey! It's crazy pink pony!"
"Awesome!"
"Get in here, you badass motherfucker!"
Bouncing with glee, Pinkie disappears into the rowdy room. The rest of the group gathers up by the doorway.
About a dozen humans mill around a square table bearing Pinkie, most of them sporting cups or canteens of varying sizes. A lank man in a long-sleeved jacket, limply leaning against a wood-panelled bar, clears his throat and starts up on another jaunty vocal tune. The words of the song fail to translate. Twilight peers at the out-of-place piece of ornate furniture in the otherwise spartan hall, colourful bottles neatly lined up and fastened to shelves behind the counter.
"Is that a salt bar?"
"Pardon?"
"It's, uh, something adult ponies consume for enjoyment... Dulls the senses and creates euphoria."
"'Salt'? Do you mean alcohol?"
"Alcohol?"
"It's a liquid chemical with a depressant effect on the central nervous system. You can see the effects of small amounts with the crew members present: flushed skin, lessened inhibitions, some balance problems..."
"It sounds a lot like salt, except the liquid part. I mean, salt is sometimes dissolved into liquids, but..."
"Huh. Interesting. It might just be a translation error, but to be on the safe side... Hey, Lin! Don't give her that until we have greenlight on toxicology."
Caught red-handed, the dejected technician takes back the canteen from Pinkie before the pony has a chance to drink whatever's inside. Pinkie shrugs.
The door behind the counter opens and a horror of colours well too small for the frame squeezes through and into the room.
"Govno! Fuuuck!"
Straightening the massive orange feather in his hat, the muscular human gives the counter an angry kick before pulling a bottle out of the bar shelf.
"How can single platoon have so much shit to catalogue, huh? I ask you! Fuck!"
With a deft flick of a thumb the rubber cork clatters into a sink. The human promptly attempts to empty the contents of the bottle in one swig, disregarding the drops escaping into his bright blue beard. Noticing the uncommon guests in the middle of trying to drink and pull a chair out at once, the newcomer almost chokes on his liquor.
"Hey, it's little horses from outside!" The human grins as he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. His cheeks stretch even further as his eyes travel to the table and register Pinkie. "It's you! I like you!"
Perched on the side of the table, Pinkie giggles and stretches out a foreleg.
"I'm not 'you', silly! I'm Pinkie Pie!"
The human bursts into laughter, rapping his fist against the extended hoof, the strength of the gesture almost pushing Pinkie off the edge of the table.
"Okay! I'm Kolya."
"Hello Kolya! Do you like parties, because I should totally throw all of you a 'welcome to Equestria'-party since you've never been here before and..."
"Pinkie." Twilight gently chides, doing nothing but adding to the noise of the laughing Kolya, the off-key singing in the background and Pinkie's excited explanation.
"...and then we could make more cupcakes since Eris dropped the first one and it got all inedible..."
"Pinkie!"
Quickly the room devolves back into the ambient chaos of a small but lively party, made all the worse by the addition of the ponies. Ares looks down as a well-trimmed white hoof daintily knocks on his knee.
"Yes?"
"Well, I... Hrm. Most of you seem to prefer rather... let us say pragmatic gear, so I could not help but notice your friend's..." Fidgeting uncomfortably, Rarity's gaze lingers on Kolya's garish outfit before flacking towards the floor, trapped somewhere between scandal and not being able to look away. "...ensemble," she finishes lamely.
"Ah, yes, the brothers Incorrigible."
A shudder runs through the unicorn.
"There's two of them?" She swallows audibly.
"Dreadful, isn't it?"
Rarity's shoulders sag in relief. "You think so too? Oh, thank goodness. I must admit I was afraid you would all dress like that out of those drab full-body overalls."
Ares lets out a small, dismissive laugh.
"Ye gods, no. Sasha and Kolya just have a... slight authority problem. They like to break the rules where they can. Including the rules of fashion."
"I'm so glad we can agree on that."
"Really, I was already amazed that they manage to look out of place in every human culture we visit, but to think they'd look awful even across species... Truly the stream is full of wonders."
The pair observes the play unfolding in the hall, Twilight still working to catch Pinkie's attention while trying to resist the distractions of the curious crewmembers' questions. Applejack similarly shares her attention between good-natured conversation and shielding the panicky Fluttershy from inquisitive humans, while the Guards hang back in a tight group of their own.
"They seem to be getting along surprisingly well."
"Yes. It does feel like an incredible coincidence that we would share so many cultural features."
Rarity looks up, Ares' piercing eyes observing her. She holds her gaze on the human as he shifts away, trying to assess the mysterious creature.
He would probably look good in a cape, Rarity muses idly. Or armour. He stands as if suspended over a frame of steel.
Ares claps his hands together, curiously managing to quiet the rowdy crew with the simple gesture.
"Sorry to interrupt, miss Pinkie, but we ought to be going. There will be plenty of time to get to know all of us later."
"Okies, Acey!"
Subdued giggles from the crew are quickly suppressed by the level stare of dark eyes. Towing the quadrupedal group behind him, Ares leaves the hall and continues down a corridor. Fluttershy quickly nestles close to Rarity in the middle of the formation.
"He's... a little intimidating, isn't he?" The pegasus asks in a voice barely audible to her friend.
"Ares? Well, he is a bit hard to read," Rarity replies.
"It's, um, I meant the other humans... They obey him very naturally. It's... respect and, um, a little fear, I think."
"Fear? I admit he is a little... stiff, but that's hardly a frightening attribute, dear."
"Maybe. Um, it's just what I think. It's probably wrong."
Rarity muses over the tall back leading them forward with a thoughtful frown.
"No, don't play down your intuition, darling. It's a lady's most important tool!" She cushions the mild admonition in a smile.
"Well, we're here."
Leading the ponies through another oddly contracting door, the shouts, thumps and rustles of vigorous physical activity echo from the corridor up front. Bridging the short distance to another pair of large doors, the ponies step into an entirely different type of room.
Brightly lit by hundreds of spotlights, the rectangular hall aspires to horizontal size rather than height. Though spacious, the front half of the room is entirely occupied by a large crowd of humans spread across its breadth in sparsely spaced pairs. The foremost ponies flinch as one of the closest human voices an aggressive shout, rushing into a wild tackle to grapple her opponent.
"Oh, no! What's going on? A fight?"
"No," Mountain Gale states flatly. The three Guards' eyes are firmly glued to the spectacle. "They're training."
Finding leverage, the attacking human lifts her opponent's legs into the air, using her shoulder to bodily slam him into the thick mat underneath. Quick as a snake, the attacker slithers between her downed quarry's legs and pins him to the ground, the strike of her free hand stopping just short of his neck. Getting up, the female offers her partner a hand, pulling him to his feet and receiving a nod as thanks. The pair steps apart and both combatants resume their original stances, slowly dancing around each other in search of an opening.
Twilight and her friends breathe out as they reassess the situation.
He's right, Twilight thinks as she carefully studies the pairs, they're not really trying to hurt each other.
Academic interest piqued, the unicorn glances at the guardsponies following the "training" with rapt attention.
Seems it's not far enough removed from Guard training to be completely alien... I guess this is what Shining had to do, too. Or does.
"Protect your head! It doesn't matter how tough you think you are, a good shot to the chin will drop you in one strike!"
Though the translation only slightly ups the volume, the original exclamation carries clearly across the room. Far from the brute force of a simple shout, the voice carries across the air with the resonance of an instrument. A tall man--even on human standards--steps into view from within the sea of bodies, elegantly side-stepping grappling or toppling fighters with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Balance is everything! Find your center and fight from there!"
The lithe trainer stops to observe a pair on the fringes of the group where a large, blocky man bodily lifts his much smaller opponent into the air and slams him down like a sack of flour, the smaller human shaking his head to clear the shock of the violent impact. The trainer carefully observes a repeat performance, his brows knitted in a slight frown.
"Trent! Leverage. Don't just use your muscles to throw your partner around."
The big human looks up as his partner clambers up again and smirks self-assuredly.
"Commandress says strength is a virtue, sir."
"I know she does, I've worked with Elizabeth for years. The difference is that she focuses her considerable power, whilst you just throw it around indiscriminately."
The man named Trent bristles at the comment, unconsciously lurching into a more intimidating stance. Whatever reply he is about to muster dies on his lips as he notices the mismatched group in the doorway, his eyebrows shooting up. Turning in the direction of the other's gaze, the trainer notices Ares and the ponies.
"Cease! XO on deck!"
The command stops the frenetic motion in the hall as the combatants help each other up. Far from the polite bow, or the rigid snapping to attention of the guard, the stances of the fighters remain relaxed and haphazard. Nonetheless, the atmosphere of the room subtly shifts into one of attention as curious eyes turn to the new group. Ares steps into the bright light of the hall, holding up a hand to his head.
"Thank you. Carry on." The ponies remain under the scrutiny of the room as Ares steps up to the trainer, but unlike the crew in the hangar and mess hall, the humans remain in their positions without approaching.
"Good work, Abebe. How far along are you?"
"Almost done for the day, sir. There's one more lesson we need to go over."
"I found some day work for the platoons. Do you think blue'd be up for the task?"
"Anything is better than training general combat skills all day."
"Excellent. Don't dismiss the crew once you're done."
"Yes, sir. All right, gather around!"
The dispersed crew quickly form a rough half-circle, wiping off sweaty foreheads and necks. Beckoning Trent over, the trainer, Abebe, positions himself between the arc of humans and Ares' group.
"Have you ever sparred with Elizabeth, Trent?"
"Spitfire? Sure."
"Yeah, he got his ass handed to him in the first week after joining," an amused voice adds from the crowd.
"Shut up," Trent growls.
"She fought just like you, in the beginning. Directionless, mindless power."
Frowning, Trent rolls his shoulders.
"It's worked for me so far."
The taunting conversation continues. Ares lowers himself to a knee, speaking from the corner of this mouth.
"Trent there is a fairly fresh crew member, and he's been something of a troublemaker. Abebe probably wants to teach him a little humility."
Mountain Gale leans in, but keeps his eyes in front. "I'm not looking to criticise your methods, sir, but big egos often react badly to public shaming..."
"True. But being part of this ship is more than a job. We can't afford any loose cannons--for all our sakes. Look." Ares subtly points to a whispering group behind Trent. "The older crew knows what's going on. Most of them have been out there themselves." Ares flashes the ponies a lopsided smile. "Big egos are nothing new on this ship. But that doesn't mean you get to be a bully."
"--demonstrate, then, if you'd please. Strike me," Abebe states calmly, tapping his chin.
"You sure? You might get hurt."
"Are ya sure this'll be all right?" Applejack whispers. "Ah mean, Big Mac'd probably beat me in a fair tussle just on account'a being bigger an' stronger..."
Ares' eyes twinkle mischievously.
"Fair? Watch."
"Don't be frightened, Trent. Strike."
"Fright-- All right, you asked for it, old man."
The bigger human moves without warning and with surprising speed for his bulk. Trent feints left with a light instep, reverses and levels a vicious hook at Abebe's slender neck. Applejack grits her teeth in sympathy. Fluttershy covers her eyes and the rest of the friends gasp audibly. Even the Guards flinch in anticipation of the blow to fall.
It doesn't. With a tiny, relaxed step the slender man barely shifts his weight forward. Barely, but enough.
Trent's eyes bulge when Abebe's palm sinks into his torso, just below the ribs. For a long, lazy moment the two figures flow around each other, looking like dancers in the middle of a slow waltz turn.
Abebe almost casually grasps his crumbling opponent and pivots.
The faint rustle of cloth is the only sound indicating that anything physical has actually happened. The room watches in perfect silence as Trent gracefully sails through the air, rotating slowly. The moment shatters as the heavy human unceremoniously impacts with the mat, rolls over and gasps to fill his suddenly uncooperative lungs with air. Quickly stepping up, Abebe turns the big man over on his side and checks for damage with practiced ease.
"Just breathe. Easy does it. Breathe."
Slowly, Trent's lungs sort themselves out, the suspended gasp replaced with quick, shallow breaths.
"What-- the f-- fuck just... h-- happened?"
"Redirection. I used your momentum against you. Don't talk. Breathe."
Others leave the crowd and help Trent up into a half-sitting position, the grins on their faces earning deathly glares from their unwilling patient. Abebe turns to the assembly.
"Power is useless without control. Remember this. Good work today, everybody, Ares's got some words for us before you go."
"Right," Ares begins while stepping up. "We've all been cooped up on this ship for fairly long, and I'm aware you're probably going a little stir-crazy in here."
Amused snorts waft from amidst nodding heads.
"R&R restrictions still apply, but at least we've found something for you to occupy yourselves with all day. Applejack here needs some help on her farm nearby, and she needs a few pairs of capable hands. Anyone interested?"
A couple of glances and a few whispered sentences pass around the crowd before a small group steps forward as one.
"Red two volunteers."
In rapid succession more crew steps forward, many at once or as individuals.
"If it gets me out of here? Anything."
"Blue one volunteers."
"Sis and me grew up on a hydroponic farm, we'll help out."
"Fuck, if everyone else is going... Count me in."
"I'm in."
In moments almost the whole crowd has voiced their assent. Ares turns to Abebe.
"Well then. Could you set up a rotation?"
"Of course, though only for my platoon. Reds will have to ask their commandress."
"Very good. Is tomorrow at sunrise acceptable to you, miss Applejack?"
"Ah reckon' that sounds mighty good."
"Excellent. Then you're all dismissed."
The crowd breaks up, some staying to chat with the ponies or each other but most heading off through various entrances. The first group of volunteers strikes up conversation with the guardsponies, the topic quickly moving onto the earlier sparring match. Twilight and Ares observe the lively discussion from the sidelines.
"I don't know why they're so excited. Trent could've gotten badly hurt!"
"I doubt it. Abebe is a master of his craft."
"At violence?"
"At controlling the situation with the minimum amount of necessary force. Far better than irresponsibly causing collateral damage."
Twilight furrows her brows in dismay.
"I still think they could've tried to talk reason instead of fighting..."
Ares scratches his chin.
"Maybe. The stream is a dangerous place. It's better to hurt now and learn than to get stabbed in a bar fight on some Gods-forgotten asteroid."
Twilight uncertainly looks up at the human, shuddering slightly.
"Are all humans this morbid?"
Ares smiles crookedly.
"I'm told I have a very dark outlook on life."
Listening for a sound only he can hear, Ares stares at empty air for a second.
"Are you expecting more envoys, miss Twilight?"
"No. Why?"
"An object approaches the ship. It seems to be a--" Ares listens again, eyebrows rising. "A... flying chariot?"
Twilight's eyes widen.
"The princess is coming here?"
The guardsponies stop in mid-sentence, turning around at the exclamation.
"What?"
Ares follows the rapidly panicking unicorn, pinching his ear with a hand.
"Eris, it's Ace. Go escort them in. Looks like we're about to receive royal guests." * |
Free to Fly | pre | "Hey, Rookie, are you okay?" Spitfire asks once she gets close enough.
I nod, and swallow back more sobs threatening to escape my lips. "Sure am, Ma'am. Just a race, right?"
Spitfire smiles sadly, "C'mon, let's get you back to the ground."
"I can't, my wings aren't working," I whisper and look away, embarrassed.
Soarin' is now by my side and he very gently takes off my goggles before placing them around his neck to keep them safe. He uses a single feather on his soft blue wing to carefully brush away any tears which unwillingly escaped my eyes.
"I'm sorry, the screams, they were too much," I collapse onto his chest and throw my hooves around his neck.
He gently strokes my mane as I sob into him, letting all of my pain out. "I've blown it, Soar. I've lost the chance."
Soarin' turns to Spitfire and whispers, "Get rid of the crowds, will you?" Then he returns to comforting me.
He takes me over to a stray cloud and holds me as I continue to cry. My eyes burn as the tears fall down my face, onto his warm chest causing his light blue fur to turn dark. Soarin' gently takes my face in his hooves and he tilts my head up.
"You really pushed yourself, Dashie. You made your nose bleed pretty badly," Soarin' gingerly begins to brush away any more tears. "Let's get you back down and cleaned up, okay?" He says, just as Spitfire returns and gives the sign that all the crowds have left.
Soarin' scoops me up in his forearms and flies us back towards the library. Fleetfoot is the first pony to run over to me.
"I'm so sorry, Dash! I didn't know you had stopped, I'm so sorry. You should have won," she suddenly throws her arms around me in an embrace.
The other Wonderbolts all seem to be fairly upset; I frown as I wonder why they seem like this. It's not like they needed me, they have an amazing team already.
Twilight Sparkle walks over to me with a clothe floating beside her, surrounded in her purple aura. "Come on, Dash. Let's clean up this blood." She begins to dab away at the blood around my nose.
I sigh sadly as I allow Twilight to nurse me. Wave Chill walks over to me and sits beside me.
"Hey, Dash, are you alright?" He asks in concern.
Smiling, I turn my head slightly to look at Soarin's brother. "Course I am, it was only a silly race, after all."
Wave Chill shakes his head. "We all know it wasn't, Dash. Don't worry, there'll still be a place for you on the team next year, I can promise you that."
I roll my eyes. "Thanks, I'll just have to work harder, anyway, it's not like I'll never see you guys around. I can catch you in between tours I suppose."
Unfortunately, that's the thing that hurts the most. I now have to wait a whole year before I get another chance of getting in the team, which means a whole year until I get to be with Soarin' permanently. I'll only see him between tours which are probably only a couple of weeks at a time.
"Listen, I know you're upset about this. At least talk to Soar about it," Wave Chill smiles and walks away.
Twilight finishes cleaning my nose up, "All done, try and rest, Dash. I know you don't want to end up in the hospital again." She walks away, leaving me alone with Soarin'.
I glance up at the Pegasus beside me. "I'm sorry, Soar. I really blew it this time, didn't I?"
Soarin' smiles and shakes his head. "No, it wasn't fair, Dashie. It wasn't your fault."
"But, it's going to be another year before we get to be together properly," I say sadly as I rest my head on his chest.
"Hey, we can handle that. I'll see you as much as I possibly can, and maybe I can convince Spitfire to let you travel with us
occasionally, just so we can spend some time together. Anyway, it's only a year; we don't have to wait long. Okay?" He wraps his forelegs around me and holds me close to him.
Sighing in defeat I move so I can look up at him. "Okay, we'll be fine. Let's make the most of the three weeks you have left here."
Soarin' smiles and kisses me gently as he wraps his soft wings around me.
Although I've pretty much pushed the race to the back of my mind, it is still there. Constantly reminding me of what I've lost, what I could've had. The only thing keeping me sane is the Pegasus holding me in his arms. All I can hope is that he's right when he says that we'll only have to wait a year.
I'll be back, and I'll be better than ever. Just wait and see. |
Free to Fly | A Lesson with Scoots | Chapter 8- A Lesson with Scoots
Soarin' and I fly home in silence, although I refuse to admit it, I am still pretty upset about the race. Still, maybe it's for the better. It gives me a year to overcome my nightmares and flashbacks. If I had won this race, I would have ended up freezing up with the Wonderbolts.
What if the screaming never stops, though? That means I'll never become a Wonderbolt. No, that's not going to happen. I'm going to come back fighting, and with Soarin' to help I can perfect a few tricks which will make me look better. I can do this, I will do this.
Soarin' has constantly been watching me with a look of concern plastered across his face from the moment we departed the library. I don't think he knows that I've noticed, but the big dope really needs to stop worrying about me, I'm okay. Like I've said before, it was just a silly race.
Okay, that's a complete lie: it wasn't just a silly race. My whole dream of becoming a Wonderbolt was resting on the results of that race. If the crowds weren't there, I would have won. I need to stop; I learnt my lesson of being a sore loser back when Applejack and I competed in the running of the leaves. This time, I didn't cheat, but I can't stop thinking about the race, thinking about the 'what if's' and 'if only's'. I just need to forget about this race and move on, if I don't forget about it now I will never get back up on my hooves again and I'll never be able to get into the Wonderbolts.
I can feel Soarin's eyes constantly on me as we slowly fly towards my grand cloud home, which is sitting alone in the sky, isolated from everything. Although I can feel him watching me, I pretend to be oblivious to it. The air is tense between us as I can feel a question forming on the tip of Soar's tongue, and he's anxious to ask it.
Finally, we touch down on the soft cloud and I sigh in relief, glad to be away from that awkward flight. I enjoy hanging out with Soarin', but I just know that he wants to ask if I'm okay. I don't want to tell him that I'm not, but I know that I'll have to because I can't lie to him. That's why I'm dreading walking upstairs and having this conversation with him. That's why I try and drag it out as long as possible by slowly taking out my key, taking my time as I unlock the door and drag my hooves as I walk into the warmth of my house.
Slowly, I trudge up the stairs into my room. Soarin' follows behind me, stopping me just before I sit down on my bed.
"Dashie, I know you aren't okay," he frowns, of course he knows I'm upset, he'd be upset if he was put in the same situation too.
"Okay, Soar, I'm not okay." I kick the soft cloud with my hoof.
Soarin' sits down on my bed, pulling me to sit next to him. "Okay, well talk to me about it, what's hurting you the most?"
I groan inwardly, hating to admit that I'm hurting, but Soarin' is the only pony I can actually talk to about this stuff, I can't bottle it up. "The fact that I let the screams control me. They won't stop, Soar, I hate it."
"Next time, try and imagine a sound that comforts you drowning out the screams. Maybe that will help?" Soarin' suggests gently. "But I'm always here to help Dashie, even when I'm back at HQ I'll just be a letter away."
Lying back on the bed, I nod in acceptance. He's right, I'll always have him here to help me, and I'll be okay. "Thank you," I whisper as I pull him down beside me. "Tomorrow we're giving Scootaloo some flight lessons after school, is that okay with you?"
Hopefully tomorrow will be a good day. Scootaloo is the type of filly that can always make you happy, always make you forget your problems. Still, I sometimes worry about her. She and her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders tend to go off gallivanting straight into danger, some days I stay close by, just to make sure they don't do anything overly stupid. Fortunately, I have never had to interfere with their crusading since there have been no life threatening accidents, thank Celestia.
Then I wonder about her parents, and why they've never bothered to teach her to fly. All Pegasi fly within their first few months constantly, but forget once they reach the age of one. Most Pegasi relearn the skill of flying once they reach the age of three. Scootaloo is now almost ten and she can only hover off the ground for a few seconds at the most. I know of her parents as well, it's not as if they're Earth Ponies or Unicorns, even then I'd expect them to send her up to flight camp. Whenever I ask Scootaloo about it, she just says they're too busy and she'd rather if I taught her. Not that I'm complaining, I love hanging out with the squirt.
Soarin' smiles at me. "That's great, I met her the other day whilst you were waiting to be discharged, and she's awesome on her scooter."
I laugh, "Yeah, we're all convinced that's what her cutie mark should be, but it's not like we can tell her. She and her friends are trying all sorts of crazy things to try and get it, although time and time again we tell them to look at what they already know."
"Well, her wings seem to be pretty powerful already; I mean they're powerful enough to lift her and the scooter. Why can't she fly already?" He frowns, asking the question which has been on my mind for months now.
"How about you try and ask her, maybe she'll tell you." I look at him sadly, I sometimes just want to go and yell at her parents for abusing her like this, why would you not teach your Pegasus foal how to fly?
Soarin' shakes his head. "She looks up to you, Dashie. If she didn't tell you she certainly won't tell me."
Sighing in defeat, I rest my head on his soft chest. "I suppose we should get some sleep, it's getting pretty late." I mumble sadly.
"Don't worry about it, Dashie, she'll learn how to fly, she has the best Pegasus teaching her." He wraps his forelegs around me and pulls me close.
I chuckle and glance up at him, a grin spread across my face. "You're a bit cocky, aren't you?"
Soarin' rolls his eyes. "No, I'm talking about you."
"I know, I just wanted to hear you say it." I smirk and close my eyes. "Goodnight, Soar."
Slowly, I drift off into the world of sleep, the last thing I hear before total silence is Soarin' whispering, "Goodnight, Dashie, we'll be okay. I promise."
****
The sun shines brightly through the window of my bedroom. Soarin' stirs beside me before falling back asleep. I smile as I slowly slide out from his embrace and walk over to check the weather Rota. I have been put back on patrol since there has been a lack of Pegasi after the accident last week.
Sighing in annoyance, I place my goggles on over my head and walk over to Soarin', gently shaking him awake. He mumbles in confusion before opening his sleep filled eyes.
"Wha-huh? Why are you up so early, Dashie?" He mumbles, clearly still half asleep.
"I have weather patrol; I'll come get you once I'm done okay?" I kiss him gently before he rolls over and instantly falls back asleep.
I fly out of the window, not bothering to get breakfast, and head towards the edge of the town where the clouds are usually clear. Today, they seem to be quite sparse, so I don't think it will take me too long. Plus, I have about three hours before Scootaloo gets out of school, so I have all the time I need.
The town is silent, not a single pony around, the only sound to be heard is one of some birds chirping away as they fly overhead.
I begin to kick the clouds, gently at first, making sure to examine each one for electrical currents beforehand. However, as I progress, I decide to play a game by throwing the cloud up in the air and bucking it as hard as I can. Soon enough, I've finished the job and begin to return home, but I make a quick stop at the library first.
Twilight Sparkle is sitting at her desk reading, as per usual and the Wonderbolts are beginning to pack up their stuff for their journey home tomorrow.
"Hey, Rainbow!" Spitfire greets when she spots me walking through the door.
I smile and wave at her, I wonder if Soarin' will get a chance to hang out with them before they leave tomorrow.
"Hey Captain, what time are you heading back tomorrow morning?" I ask as I sit down on the floor beside her bag.
Spitfire places her suit onto of the rest of her possessions before pulling the bag shut. "Bright and early, six AM on the dot. Why do you ask?"
"Why don't you stay at my place tonight? It's closer to Cloudsdale and I'm sure Soarin' would want to spend the night with you guys," I smile at Spitfire, hoping that she'll accept my offer.
The Wonderbolts captain grins at me. "Are you sure you can handle six more Wonderbolts in your house, Rookie?"
I roll my eyes. "Of course I can; anyway, I want to show you guys some tricks of my own."
Spitfire laughs and nods. "Okay, we'll be around later this evening. See you later, Dash."
I spread out my wings and give her a quick salute before flying out the door as fast as I can. The clock in the town square chimes two PM, indicating that school is about to finish. Knowing that I'm late, I speed across the town, my mane being pushed back by the sudden force of the wind. Within ten seconds flat, I'm at the other side the town, arriving at the school just as Scootaloo's class files out.
Scootaloo sees me in an instant and waves to her fellow crusaders as she runs into my forelegs and hugs me. "Hey Dash! Where's Soarin'?"
"He was asleep when I had to get up and do weather duties, we're going to go and grab him now." I smile and ruffle the filly's mane before placing her on my back.
I feel her hooves wrap around my neck as I prepare to fly. Behind me, Scootaloo giggles in excitement as I shoot off into the sky, back towards my home where Soarin' is probably still sleeping.
The moment we touch down on the soft cloud of my home, Scootaloo hops off of my back and begins to bounce up and down, excited that her hooves are touching the unfamiliar surface. From what I know, she has only been up in the clouds once before, when I took her on a day trip to Cloudsdale, a few months ago.
The filly had been so excited that she began rolling around giggling in joy as the soft white cloud got caught in her purple mane.
"Thank you, Dash! This has been the best day ever!" Scootaloo bounced up and down as she looked at Cloudsdales architecture in awe.
"Wow, squirt, you make it seem as if you've never seen Cloudsdale before." I commented, completely oblivious to her situation.
The orange filly blushed as she gently kicked the cloud with her hoof. "Well, I've never even been on a cloud before." She mumbled sheepishly.
I stood there with a gobsmacked expression plastered across my face, as I attempted to find the right words. "W-wait," I stuttered, completely shocked. "You've never been on a cloud before? Why didn't your parents ever take you?"
Scootaloo looked away, her purple eyes full of evident unease. "They were busy, you know, with work and stuff." She lied through her teeth, her eyes were full of pain as she lied to her idol.
I carefully picked up the young Pegasus and placed her on my back. Although it was blatantly obvious that she lied to me, I decided not to push it because I was only just gaining her trust. I didn't want to scare her off.
I'm thrown back into reality as I watch Scootaloo bounce happily into my home, bumping straight into Soarin's tall light blue
body.
"Whoa, hey there kiddo, how was school?" He asks as he stops her from stumbling over.
Scootaloo looks up at Soarin' with an expression which shows that she sees him as just another pony and not as a Wonderbolt, but I can tell that she respects him greatly. I never expected her to like him this quickly; it can be hard to get on the good side of Scootaloo even if you are a Wonderbolt.
"It was so boring! But, we're planning our next crusading attempt," Scootaloo beams at Soarin' as I wonder what their stupid idea is going to be this time.
Soarin' raises an eyebrow at her. "Oh, well what are you going to do this time?"
"Abseiling, of course. It's going to be so fun!" Her wings buzz excitedly as she flutters a foot off the ground before landing again.
My eyes widen in shock as I imagine the three Cutie Mark Crusaders abseiling down a mountain. That definitely won't end well; it looks like I'm going to have to hang close by when that happens.
Soarin' chuckles at my expression, before turning to Scoots. "Right, well, be careful okay?"
Scootaloo grins and nods before turning to me. "Are we going to go flying now, Dash?"
"Yup, Soar can give you the ride down if you want?" I ask, knowing how much she'd love to fly with a Wonderbolt.
I know that deep down she is jumping up and down in joy because she's in the presence of a Wonderbolt, something that not every pony gets to experience, but she's trying to keep her cool and treat him as if he's one of us, which he is. I'm proud of her for the way she's handling it because I didn't even handle it this well. Okay, I'm pretty sure I passed out the first time I got to talk to a Wonderbolt, so I definitely didn't handle it as well as she is. I know that Soarin' probably appreciates it too because it can get pretty annoying being surrounded by fanfillies non-stop.
Soarin' bends down and allows Scootaloo to climb happily onto his back, before she wraps her forelegs around his neck. She has a smile spread across her face as she prepares herself for the flight ahead of her.
"We'll go to the park by Sugar Cube Corner because that has the emptiest space," I smile as I watch Soarin' stretch out his wings and prepare to fly.
Scootaloo lets out a small giggle which melts my heart instantly. I may not act sappy around other ponies but when it comes to Scootaloo, well I just can't help it. She's like the little sister I never had, I promised I'd take care of her and take her under my wing and that's exactly what I've done.
Somehow, she has managed to make me forget about all the problems which have been haunting me for the past few days. She always seems to make me feel like a better person. It's strange, in the few months I've gotten close to her, I've changed a lot. I never thought I could love something as much as I love her, and now Soarin' has come along and the two of them together has made me a sappy mess. I kind of like it though, I feel happy for once in my life. Not that I'd admit it to any pony.
Soarin' flies ahead of me with Scootaloo holding onto him as he slices through the air with ease. I can hear Scootaloo yelling at him to fly faster, and he obliges without protest. I take my time for a change; giving Scootaloo and Soarin' a chance to bond because I have a feeling they'll be seeing a lot more of each other.
Now that I've been left alone to my own thoughts, the screams are beginning to dully ring in the back of my mind. Still, it is bearable, but only just. My wings quiver slightly in fear, but I continue to fly. I need to get used to flying again, I cannot let the screams take over my life. The park begins to appear before me, and I descend towards the ground to find Soarin' already giving Scootaloo some key tips.
My hooves touch the cool grass, sending shivers through my body. Slowly, I walk over to the two Pegasi, to see Scootaloo flapping her wings vigorously. I put on a brave face as I attempt to block out the screams, gradually they grow quieter, they're still there but they are now only a whisper.
"Whoa, whoa, squirt. You'll sprain a wing if you do that," I say gently. "Try flapping then slower, bringing them as high as they can go, then as low as they can go."
She takes my advice and begins to give her wings more powerful flaps. Her hooves very slightly come off the ground. Her small orange wings tremble slightly as her body floats higher and higher.
Soarin' looks at me in concern before reaching up and gently bringing her to the ground again. "Okay, that was good but your wings aren't very strong at the moment."
Scootaloo looks up at us, disappointment evident across her face which sends pangs of guilt all through my body.
"Hey, don't worry we can do some exercises which will fix that in no time," Soarin' reassures. "Plus, you've already gotten the hang of hovering, which is the tricky part."
Hovering was the one thing I managed to teach her during our only lesson last month. I would have had more with her, but summer was over and then the whole accident happened. Nonetheless, I'm impressed that she's practiced and she must have practiced a lot.
Scootaloo's face changes from one of disappointment to one of joy within a nanosecond. "So, what exercises do you want me to do?"
"Well, you just need to do wing-ups every morning, start on ten the first morning then gradually add on ten more each day. Keep using your scooter too, without that your wings would even be half as good as they are now." Soarin' crouches down by her right wing and carefully begins to examine it. "There isn't anything wrong with them, so there is no reason why you won't be able to fly by the end of this year. Why didn't your parents teach you how to fly?"
I hold my breath, hoping she'll finally tell us the truth. Although, I very highly doubt it, every time I ask she makes up an excuse.
I was relaxing on my regular cloud beneath the afternoon sun, when I heard my name being called from below. I popped my head over the edge to find Scootaloo looking up at me with her round purple eyes, a grin plastered across her face.
"Rainbow! Can you teach me to fly?" she asked.
Slowly, I jumped off of the cloud and landed beside her. "Sure, but why haven't your parents taught you?" I frowned.
The little filly shrugged as if it meant nothing. "Busy, busy, busy, you know. They don't really have a lot of time. Anyway, I'll see you here tomorrow?"
I nodded, but I still felt uneasy about the whole situation. "Okay, sure, Scoots. Remember, if you need to talk I'm here okay."
I blink as I'm thrown back into reality, to find Scootaloo looking up at us both with a very uneasy smile across her face.
"Oh, they're very busy you know," she says nonchalantly. "Anyway, I need to go. Bye Soar, bye Dash, thanks for the lesson!" She gallops off out of the park, leaving Soarin' and I staring after her, dumbstruck.
Soarin' looks around the park in confusion as if he's only just realised that Scootaloo has run off. The both of us stand in silence, still shocked from the sudden departure of the young filly.
Without the distraction of teaching Scootaloo how to fly, the screaming begins to grow in my mind. It is always there; always present but sometimes it's easier to cover it up. Now is not one of those times. My legs shake as if they've turned to jelly and the screams grow louder and louder, suddenly blocking out all sound around me.
Soarin' is now looking at me, his emerald eyes full of concern. I put a smile on my face, pretending that I'm okay. Squeezing my eyes shut for a few moments, I take a deep breath and wait, hoping that they'll slowly begin to die down.
Hooves are now on my shoulders, shaking me, attempting to get me to open my eyes. When I do, we're in the cave, surrounded by fallen debris. Soarin' is standing in front of me as his lips move quickly. All I can hear are the screams. The never ending screams.
Gasping for air, I look around in fear, we need to get out. Suddenly, the roof caves in on us, causing me to scream out in fear. Soarin' continues to call out to me; his voice is muffled by the noises all around me. The crumbling of rocks, the constant screaming and then there is silence. I fall onto my flank and begin to sob uncontrollably.
Soarin' is beside me as he silently comforts me, not needing to say a word. When will these screams go away? How long will they haunt me for? I do not know, but all I can do is hope that it doesn't affect my chances of becoming a Wonderbolt, because if it does, I will never forgive myself. |
Free to Fly | A Spell of Hope | Chapter 9- A Spell of Hope
After about an hour of struggling to push the screams right into the back of my mind, Soarin' suggests we go see Twilight, in hope of finding a cure or a spell to help me. Reluctantly, I accept and allow him to drag me to the library with hardly any fuss. However, I remember that the other Wonderbolts are supposed to come around to my house tonight, so I hope that they haven't left the library already.
Soarin' opens the door silently and glances around before spotting his fellow teammates. He nods towards them and walks over to Twilight to explain the whole situation to her. I sit down where he left me and wait patiently as I try to keep a clear head, I don't want the screams to start haunting me again, especially not here.
Spitfire sees me sitting alone, so she decides to sit beside me for a chat. "Hey, Rookie, I thought we were meeting you at your place?"
"We were, but Soar wanted to see Twilight first, once we're done you guys can come back with us if you want." I keep my eyes straight as I focus on the bookshelf across the room from us.
Spitfire nods, leaving us both sitting in silence until Soarin' returns with Twilight following close behind. I breathe in shakily, knowing that I'm going to be interrogated by the purple Unicorn. I'm not looking forward to this at all.
"Hey, Dashie. Twilight wants to talk to you," Soarin' smiles at me but it is evident that he's worried.
Sighing, I stand up walk over to Twilight with Soarin'. She smiles at me with her eyes full of concern, before leading me out into the kitchen so we're alone.
"Well, Dash, Soarin' told me your problem and there is a spell to help. However, you will have to get it done once a week for the next couple of months, and the screams will gradually begin to nullify. Are you alright with that?" Twilight asks.
I nod enthusiastically, I just want the screaming to go away because, well, I hate to say it but it's holding me back from my dreams. "When do we start?"
"Well, we can do the first lot right now, and you can come back this time next week for the second round? But, just to warn you, it will probably hurt... A lot." Twilight frowns and I just roll my eyes, does she honestly think I can't handle pain?
"I can handle it; can you just do it, please?" I say, completely confident, I'm not the slightest bit scared about the spell which is about to be cast upon me.
Soarin' stands nervously beside me as Twilight Sparkle's purple horn lights up with a violet aura. I watch as she walks forward and lightly presses her horn against my forehead, sending her magic through my skull. It is as if the magic is burning the screams away, because it feels like my brain is on fire. I squeeze my eyes shut and pretend that I cannot feel the searing pain which is tearing through my mind.
My legs shake slightly, as my whole body is now beginning to feel weak from the pain, but I somehow manage to stay
standing. Slowly, the screams begin to grow quieter and disappear before the burning morphs into a soothing warmth which caresses my mind as if it's apologising for the recent pain which it caused.
Twilight steps away and I slowly open my eyes before glancing around me. Both ponies are watching me in concern as I take a deep, shaky breath and force a smile upon my face.
"That didn't hurt at all!" I lie, trying to sound brave like my mum always told me to do.
Twilight frowns slightly as if she knows that I've lied, but she brushes the thought away. "Does it feel slightly better?"
I nod and grin. "Yup, right now they're just a quiet whisper but I'm sure they'll get louder again later, but hopefully not as loud as they used to be. Thank you, Twilight."
Soarin' is still sending me glances of concern as I say my goodbyes to Twilight and walk back into the main library. Spitfire smiles and waves a hoof at us both before trotting over to us.
"So, are we heading off now?" Spitfire inquires and I glance up at Soarin' who now looks completely lost.
"Yup, sure," I smile and turn to the light blue Wonderbolt. "I invited them to stay over tonight, so you got some extra time with them."
Soarin's face changes from one of confusion to one of joy within a nanosecond, which makes my heart melt instantly. I sometimes hate myself for how sappy I've become recently, but when I look at Soarin' I don't regret it whatsoever.
Smiling, I stretch out my wings with more effort than usual. It seems that the spell Twilight cast took more out of me than I first thought. Nonetheless, I put on my usual brave face and prepare myself for flight.
"Are you ready?" I ask the other Wonderbolts and when I receive enthusiastic nods in return, I shoot off into the sky.
We race towards my cloud home in silence, somehow, I've managed to get ahead of all of the Wonderbolts, and it seems as if they're struggling to keep up. Still, it's probably because it's late at night and we're all tired. My heart pounds in my chest as I feel the breeze in my mane without the fear of freezing up because of those dreaded screams that have been haunting me for the past few weeks.
I land on my porch and collapse on the soft cloud, panting heavily due to the workout I just endured. I'm followed close behind by Fleetfoot and Spitfire, who collapse beside me, equally as tired.
"Good race, Rookie." Spitfire breathes heavily and tries to gain her composure again.
I slowly sit up and stretch my wings out, suddenly feeling more relaxed after that race. Twilight's spell is actually working; maybe the terrors of the screams will be a mere fragment of my past. Of course, I'm still going to have to endure at least five more helpings of that spell to ensure that I will never be haunted by those screams again. Nonetheless, the feeling of being free again is exhilarating and makes me want to fly around in joy. I miss flying, I haven't been able to have a proper flight without freezing up and stopping dead in my tracks. Hopefully, I will now be able to get back on track and catch up for the few weeks of training that I've missed.
Once all of the Wonderbolts have arrived, I climb to my hooves and open my front door. I'm suddenly attacked by a flying tortoise, getting hit square in the jaw. I groan and catch Tank as he dizzily spins around from the impact he just gave me.
Soarin' blinks slightly. "He wasn't here before, was he?"
I laugh and shake my head. "No, Fluttershy must have just brought him back today; she knew I needed to recover. Still, I've missed you Tank." I lovingly pat his firm shell and rub my cheek against his.
Realising that I'm being watched by all of the Wonderbolts, I carefully place Tank down inside and walk over to the kitchen to
get some snacks.
"Make yourselves at home," I say to my guests as I turn around and find that they've already made my living room into their own bedroom.
Laughing softly, I place the snacks down and decide that we're celebrating so we might as well have some alcohol to go along with it all. We all sit together in my sitting room and laugh cheerfully as we spend the Wonderbolts last night in Ponyville together.
> Saying Farewell
Chapter 10- Saying Farewell
I wake up with a pounding headache to find that I'm sprawled out on my sitting room floor, surrounded by the Wonderbolts who are in the same state that I'm in. Groaning, I push myself up to my hooves and look around the room to analyse what damage that's been done. Fortunately, not a lot.
As I try to remember what happened last night, I look around and find dozens of empty cider mugs littering the floor. It didn't take Fetlock Holmes to piece my fuzzy, and quickly fading, memory to the cider mugs. All I remember doing last night is bringing the alcohol and... Well that's about it.
I squint at the clock pinned above my television and find that it's almost six AM. The Wonderbolts will be leaving soon; I wonder who will have the task of waking up a hung-over Spitfire. Horsefeathers, it's going to be me considering the state of the others. Oh, sweet Celestia, who will save me now?
Soarin' is lying on his front, fast asleep, snoring softly. Maybe I could wake him up and get him to do the dangerous task of disturbing the captain from her peaceful slumber. Slowly, I walk over and poke Soarin's side. All I get in return is a groan and a snort before he rolls over, turning his back from me.
"Soar, wake up," I whisper as I nudge him with the tip of my hoof.
Still, Soarin' refused to stir. I turn my head and pluck one of my feathers from my wing and tickling him with it. Soarin's body twitches slightly and suddenly his eyes shoot open as he laughs uncontrollably. Once I see that he's awake, I drop the feather and grin at him.
"Good morning, sweetie!" I beam at him as he rubs his head in confusion.
"Why do I have such a bad headache?" he groans.
I laugh softly and help him to his hooves. "You're hung-over. March on through it, soldier, that's what I'm doing."
Even though my head is pounding, I pretend I can't feel anything, like I do with everything else. At least the screaming hasn't come back, yet. I know Twilight's spell is effective, but I also know that it's not going to make it all disappear so easily.
"Don't the others need to get going soon?" Soarin' asks as he glances around at his sleeping teammates.
Even though this isn't a laughing situation, it's still hilarious. Spitfire is hanging off the back of the sofa, her mane a complete mess. Fleetfoot has somehow managed to make her way to the top of one of the cupboards in the kitchen, and she seems to be sleeping comfortably there. Wave Chill, Rapidfire and Misty Fly have ended up piled up together on the floor in a drunken heap.
I glance at Soarin', trying to find a way to break the news to him. "Exactly, so it's your job to wake up Spitfire, right? Considering you're second in command and everything."
Soarin's face literally pales, and he looks as if he's going to be sick, the fact that he's hung-over probably isn't helping. "I-I can't, Dashie, can't you do it? She would kill me. She's like the She-Devil when you disturb her even if she's sober; imagine if you disturbed her when she was hung-over!"
I roll my eyes and nod. "Fine, but you owe me."
Soarin' sighs in relief and wraps his hooves around my neck. "Thank you, Dashie! You're the best, you're brilliant and you're awesome!"
"Okay, okay, chill with the compliments. It's not going to be that bad. Why don't you wake the others?" I pull away slightly and look at him to find a smirk forming across his face.
"You don't have to worry about them. Spitfire will take care of them." he snickers.
I laugh softly and kiss his cheek before pulling away. "You really are evil, aren't ya?"
Soarin' grins before running up the stairs to my room, for safety. I think back to my time at the Wonderbolts Academy, and understand why Soarin' is running away. It was bad enough spending a few weeks with Spitfire like that, let alone your entire career. Still, it was fun and I loved every second of it. It kind of hurts to think that I have to wait a year to return, all because of that stupid race that I lost.
Slowly, and cautiously, I walk over to Spitfire. I take a deep breath before reaching out and shaking her. She groans slightly, and mumbles under her breath before thrashing her hooves about angrily, making me jump back in shock.
"U-Um, Captain, you need to be heading off soon." I whisper and shake her again.
Spitfire's eyes shoot open and she sends me a glare. "What time is it?"
"It's, uh, ten past six, ma'am." I straighten reflexively, like a meek soldier presenting herself in front of her commanding officer.
The yellow mare stays silent for a few moments as she climbs to her hooves and analyses the state her comrades are in.
Suddenly, she steps back before shouting: "Alright, fillies, time to get your flanks up and back to Cloudsdale. Now!"
Groans from the rest of the Wonderbolts fill the room and a groggy Wave Chill mumbles, "Who was cruel enough to wake up the captain before us?"
Spitfire growls and takes a step towards Wave Chill who has now escaped pushed a confused Misty and Rapid off of him as he cowers back against a wall.
"Wave Chill, do you want to be the one to carry back all of our luggage?" she hisses.
Wave Chill shakes his head, his dark blue mane flopping from side to side as he does so. "N-No, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am."
Spitfire smirks and flies over to Fleetfoot and pulls her down from the top of the cupboard. Fleetfoot shrieks and catches
herself by fluttering her wings.
"All of you get your flanks over here with your belongings." Spitfire glances around the room. "And Soarin', you better come out of your hiding place or we'll drag your sorry flank back with us."
Everypony slowly moves as they gather their stuff, trying to hide the fact that their heads are killing them. A sheepish Soarin' appears at the top of the stairs and he flies down slowly before standing beside me.
"I told you she was like a She-Devil," he whispers to me.
Spitfire, who has obviously heard him, glares at Soarin' which makes him yelp in shock and hide behind me.
"I'm gonna start the countdown." Spitfire warns causing everypony to go from dead slow to as fast as possible.
"Oh Celestia, please don't do the countdown!" Fleetfoot begs in fear.
It's obvious that the Wonderbolts have to deal with Spitfire like this quite often; she definitely fits the role of captain. No wonder Captain Hurricane picked her. Even though they are all like a family, they still know when to stop joking around because Spitfire has the control.
"Five, four, thr-" Spitfire stops to find that all of her comrades are standing in their military stance with their right hooves on their foreheads.
"Good, right, we need to be heading off..." She glances around the room to find what mess they'll be leaving behind. "Sorry about the mess, Rainbow, I'm sure Soarin' will be willing to help, won't you, Soar?"
"Y-yes, ma'am!" He nods in fear and I smirk slightly.
I step forward and hug Spitfire, causing the others to gasp in fear.
"D-Dashie, I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Soarin' warns and I simply roll my eyes.
Spitfire laughs softly and returns the hug. "I'm not that evil, guys, c'mon. Thanks, Dash, you can come visit any time and keep an eye out for the letter calling you back to the Academy next year. It was nice spending time with you, Rookie."
I smile and nod. "I'm sorry that I can't be on your team sooner, Captain. Don't worry, though, I'll be back and I won't be giving up so easy."
"That's what I like to hear. Say your goodbyes everypony; we have two minutes before we take off," she tells them before going to say goodbye to Soarin'.
Wave Chill walks over and hugs me tightly. "Take good care of my brother, okay?" he whispers in my ear.
I smile and nod. "Of course I will."
"And if you need anything, we're always a letter away. We'll probably see you around a lot more now that you're with Soar, anyway." he smirks as a blush forms on my cheek.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll see ya, Wave." I shake my head as I try to get rid of the blush.
"Good race, the other day, Dash. You almost kicked all of our flanks. Next time, you will for sure." Fleetfoot smiles and hugs me.
I smile as I watch everypony say their goodbyes to Soarin'. Rapidfire walks over to me once he's done, and he looks at his hooves guiltily.
"Hey, Dash. I'm sorry about before, you know, the race. I thought you were gonna win for sure. If I had known..." he mumbles, pawing the floor.
I place a hoof on his dark fur. "It's fine, Rapid. I thought I was gonna win for sure, too," I pause and laugh softly. "I just need to get over my fears first; I wouldn't have stopped except..." I trail off and shake my head. "Anyway, the point is I should have known I wasn't in a fit state to fly. It's not your fault. Anyway, I'll be back, don't you worry about that."
Rapidfire nods slightly and walks back next to Spitfire. "See you in a few weeks' time, Soar, don't cause too much havoc here." he smirks and Soarin' laughs.
"Can't make any promises. See you guys later." He waves as they take off and head towards Cloudsdale.
"See ya!" They all call and wave. "Thanks, Dash!"
Finally, the house is silent and I glance up at Soarin'. "How about we go back to bed?"
"That sounds like a great idea!" he grins.
We fly back up to my bedroom silently, too tired to talk as we collapse on the bed, falling asleep before our heads even hit
the pillow.
****
The Wonderbolts fly away from Rainbow's cloudhome, as Ponyville grows smaller beneath them. Spitfire flies on ahead, her fellow comrades seem to be flying well behind as they avoid the wrath of their captain. Spitfire keeps her eyes straight as she thinks about her second in command, who she left behind.
"Spit?" Fleetfoot calls gently, speeding up so she's flying beside her best friend and captain.
"Hey, Fleet, just worried about Rainbow Dash," Spitfire frowns slightly.
Fleetfoot pauses midflight as she ponders on what Spitfire just said, before returning to her friend's side. "Why are you worried? I mean, I know she lost the race and all but she'll be back."
"Yeah but Fleet... Why did she lose the race? She was winning right up until the end." Spitfire continues to look out into the distance.
"Soarin' told us it was just because she was still a bit traumatised from the... Uh... Accident. Spit, don't worry about it, she'll be okay." Although Fleetfoot is trying to remain optimistic, she is also worried about Rainbow.
Both her and Soarin' were in a traumatic experience and although Soarin' seems to be doing okay, they all know they're struggling. It seems that Rainbow Dash, surprisingly, has had more trouble coping with it. It's not as if Rainbow is suddenly going to get better. What if her struggle doesn't improve by next year? What if she's still afraid? The littlest thing can remind her of the incident that happened at the cave.
"If she doesn't get better, Soar will probably want to stay with her," Spitfire sighs sadly. "It's not like I can stop him or anything, the bloke is free to do what he wants. But still, if he stays we'll lose two important parts of the team."
"We can't, like, forget about the deal we made and let Rainbow come back to the Academy... Can we?" Fleetfoot asks with trepidation, already aware of the answer.
Wave Chill, who has been silently listening in to the conversation, cautiously flies over to join the other two.
"Of course not, Fleet, you already know that it can't happen." Spitfire shakes her head and allows Wave Chill to join without any protest.
"Captain, we both know Soarin' well enough to know that even if Rainbow gets better he will want to stay with her until next year. I spoke to him after the race, he seemed pretty upset. He knows it's his duty to return to the HQ after his break but he doesn't want to leave Rainbow behind..." Wave Chill pauses for a moment. "We don't know how well he's really coping with this whole thing either, Spit, he could be struggling as much as Rainbow for all we know. He's always been good at hiding things even when we were kids."
Wave Chill looks away as he thinks about the last time Soarin' had gone through a traumatic experience. It had been when their father had passed away when Soarin' was sixteen and Wave Chill was thirteen.
Soarin' had been more attached to their father than Wave Chill had but when Soarin' was told the news of his father's passing he didn't react. He pretended he was okay, that nothing had happened but one day it all came flooding back to him and he snapped. He broke down into tears and let out everything he was holding back.
Their mother thought that now he had let go of all the bad feelings he'd be okay again but she was so, so wrong. Soarin' began to distance himself from everyone, everything. Wave Chill tried to help him, but he couldn't do anything. He should
have talked to him about it beforehand. He could have helped...
Misty's voice pulls Wave Chill out of his thoughts. "Rainbow wouldn't let him stay, no matter what, she's too proud to keep him there unless it's really important. Anyway, we can always let Soar go back to Ponyville on holidays or weekends if we
aren't busy and Rainbow can come visit us too."
Spitfire sighs and nods slightly. "Alright, I'm sure it'll all be okay. Let's just face the problems when they come guys, we're the Wonderbolts for Celestia's sake. We're always okay."
The team returns to flying silently, each of them trying to stop worrying about their friend and fellow comrade. Still, they can't help but worry, even just a little. |
Free to Fly | Being Haunted | Chapter 11- Being Haunted
The bed shifts beneath me, disturbing me from my slumber. As I open my eyes and sleepily glance around the room I find that Soarin' has just sat down beside me. I wonder how long he's been awake. I push myself into an upright position and wrap my forelegs around his waist.
"Hey, what're you doing up? It's only eleven," I mumble into his mane and hold him close.
Soarin's shoulders shake as his laugh fills the room. "Oh, I was just doing a bit of cleaning, you know."
My eyes widen in shock and I pull away so I can have a good look at him. "You seriously tidied up that mess everypony made?"
"Most of it, I did make you wake up a hung-over Spitfire. I had to make it up to you," he grins his regular goofy grin, the one that I fell for in the first place.
Rolling my eyes, I jump off of the bed and walk down the stairs to find that my sitting room is pretty much back to normal. All that is left is a few rubbish bags full of plastic plates and leftover food. I never knew Soarin' had the patience to clean; I don't even have that type of willpower!
Soarin' comes down the stairs close behind me and I turn to face him with a smile across my face.
"Thanks, Soar, you're brill!" I beam and wrap my forelegs around him.
Soarin' laughs softly and holds me close. "No problem, Dashie. I knew that I needed to help since I contributed to the mess... Also, Spitfire would've killed me if I didn't help."
I smile slightly, imagining Spitfire angrily chasing Soarin' around because he didn't help tidy the HQ, now that, I have to see that one day.
"Well, thank you. How about we go out for a flight today?" I throw a foreleg around his shoulders and pull him close to me.
As I pull his body against mine our noses accidently bump together. We both freeze and look at each other in sweet silence. He looks deeply into my eyes with his beautiful green ones and I gaze back into his, getting lost in the emerald labyrinth.
Sweet, blissful silence is shared between us as we communicate through our intense gaze, which sends warm flutters throughout my body. I never thought I would feel this way about anypony whatsoever but here I am, foolishly in love.
Love. I play the word in my head over and over again as I realise we have yet to utter those three simple- yet meaningful- words to each other. However, I can wait until he's ready to say them; I could never imagine saying them first, I'm too proud to do that. But I can hardly wait to let my feelings known to him. I have, in fact, loved Soarin' ever since the cave incident. I wonder if he has felt the same way...
Soarin's voice pulls me out of my train of thoughts and back to reality as I look up at the goofy Wonderbolt.
"Should we go fly then, Dashie?" he grins goofily as he pulls me out the door and into the sky.
His grin, his trademark Soarin' grin that is so childish and silly, never fails to make my heart flutter. He is oblivious to the fact that his simple goofy grin gives me such emotions. He will never know about the warmth that shoots through my body when he performs simple gestures such as that one. Don't get me started on the nickname he uses, the one that only he- and occasionally Pinkie- uses. Dashie. The way he says it is far more intense and different to the way Pinkie Pie says it, however. He puts so much love into those two syllables, so much passion... Sweet Celestia, when did I become such a sappy, love struck, sod?
We soar through the sky together and I watch as the wind pushes Soarin's mane back and his tail trails along behind him. I somersault through the air and land gently on a fairly large cloud then sit back and watch Soarin' fly through his solo routine with ease. He flies high into the sky, his nose pointing towards the blue blanket above us, and then he smoothly flips his body so it's facing in a vertical line. His wings which were held open up until this point are now sitting comfortably on either side of his body and then he begins to fall.
He rockets towards the ground as his whole body begins to spin, seemingly out of control. I scramble to my hooves and ready myself to zoom into the rescue, however, as I glance over the edge of the cloud at his falling body, I find that he has regained control and is gracefully spinning and somersaulting through the air.
I collapse back onto the cloud and gasp for air because I had been holding my breath without realising. I should have known that move was part of the routine; anyway, Wonderbolts are trained in being able to get out of sticky situations, such as spiraling out of control.
Still, I couldn't help but worry about him, we both almost died not even three weeks ago. I could not bear to almost lose him again; it pains me to even think about it.
Mentally, I slap myself. Come on, Dash, get a hold of yourself. You're not going to let yourself go soft, are ya? I scold myself.
It's not true, I haven't gone soft. There is one emotion, very deep down, that everypony has. Even the hardest, most cruel of ponies have it. This emotion is one which some decide to hide and only share with a few of their closest friends and families whereas others want to share it with the whole of Equestria. That emotion is love.
I am one of those hard ponies who pretend they don't hurt and pretend they don't care. I'm one of those ponies who only share my love with a few special ponies. Just because I don't show my love often doesn't mean I don't have it deep within. When I do finally show others the compassion I have inside me, it does not mean I'm going soft it means that I'm strong enough to finally share it.
So, no I am not going soft, in fact, I've grown stronger. I only really show how much I care to a few ponies. Twilight, AJ, Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy are all my best friends and I care about them greatly, however, I probably don't show it enough.
Although Tank is not a pony, I love him a great deal too but I only show my affection towards him in private. There are only two ponies that I publicly show my affection towards without feeling embarrassed. Scootaloo and Soarin'. When I'm with them, I don't care if I seem soft or weak because I care greatly about them. I care about the others too but this is different. They're like the family that I lost long ago. They make me feel at home.
I stare at the sky above me and watch as the clouds drift peacefully. Slowly, I close my eyes and drift as if I'm one of those clouds...
A sudden weight on my body startles me and I open my eyes, only to see a dark blue mane pressed against my face. I laugh softly and turn my head slightly to find Soarin' lying across me, fast asleep. The sun has past its midday point and I begin to wonder if I had fallen asleep, and if so, for how long? Soarin' must have been practicing for hours, no wonder he's knackered.
I keep my body still in hope of allowing him to get some rest since he did wake up extra early to clean up the mess his comrades left behind. I still have to thank him for that. Soarin' never fails to surprise me in our relationship. I think I know him and then he does something like this which makes me feel all warm and fluttery inside. Celestia, what is happening to me? I can't help the way I feel though, but that doesn't mean I'm going to make it known to the world that I've turned all sappy. I'm going to make sure they still think I'm the confident, cool, Rainbow Dash.
Soarin' begins mumbling softly in his sleep so I lean in closer to listen in. It is then that I realise he's having a nightmare. Although I cannot make out what he's saying, I can tell that he is distressed. His body is tense and suddenly he begins shouting out incoherently.
Gently I push him off me and begin to shake him, trying to wake him up. "Soar, sweetie, wake up! I'm here, it's okay."
Soarin' thrashes about as he cries out and suddenly he goes over the edge of the cloud which we were laying on. My heart stops and I feel as if I'm going to be sick. Oh sweet Celestia, why do you do this to us? Without even thinking about it, I am in the air flying after him at once. His eyes are now open and his mouth is wide with a scream which seems to be trapped in his throat.
The last time this happened it was reversed. I was falling after my wings had locked up and Soarin' had to save me. It seems as if we're taking turns in plummeting to our deaths and saving each other. Hopefully this will be the last time but I very much doubt it.
The cone of the sound barrier forms around me but I don't even care about the Sonic Rainboom. All I care about is saving Soarin'. I break through the barrier without even thinking about it and I push myself as fast as I can as I wrap my hooves around Soarin'. Suddenly flying upward, I only barely avoid a hard crash, but I must've been more tired than I thought because carrying Soarin to safety was too difficult a task and we both tumble to the ground, not as soft a landing as I'd hope but we survived.
Soarin's body is shaking on top of me and I can hear his weak sobbing. Slowly, he rolls off me and pulls me on top of him, holding me tightly. I gasp for air as I wrap my hooves around him, images of him hitting the ground at full force flashes through my mind. I almost lost him again.
"Ponyfeathers, Soar, I... I can't lose you," I whisper and look up at him to find his eyes are full of fear.
Soarin' is silent as I sit up and pull him with me, still in his embrace. I can feel his body shaking around me as I take his face in my hooves and feel the dampness of his tears against my fur.
"What happened in your nightmare, Soar?" I whisper gently.
Soarin' shakes his head and just clings onto me. "I don't wanna talk about it..." he whispers in a weak voice.
Tears fill my eyes as I hold him close to me. The only other time I saw Soarin' this frightened was in the cave. His warm body is still shaking violently against me as I desperately try to comfort him.
"Soar, it's alright... It was just a dream," I whisper as I stroke his soft mane and he rests his head on my shoulder.
A pained sob escapes Soarin's lips, which causes my heart to clench and more tears to escape. I just want to help him, why can't I help?
"Come on, let's go home, okay?" I stand up and help him to his hooves.
My body aches slightly from the crash we had moments ago but I ignore it as I stretch out my wings and gently place Soarin' on my back since he's in no condition to fly. I make sure his hooves are wrapped firmly around me before I set off towards my house.
As my house is growing bigger before us, Soarin' seems to calm down slightly and his shaking subsides.
His broken voice reaches my ears just as I prepare to land. "Dashie?"
"Yes, Soar?" I ask gently as I help him off my back.
He looks at me with tired eyes. "C-Can I talk about my nightmare? Last time something happened to me, I didn't talk to anyone about it and it got really bad... I don't want it to happen again, Dashie."
I watch him for a few moments as I wonder what had happened to him before. In the cave when things ended up getting really bad, he stayed frozen, unable to talk at all but he must be talking about something else, I'm just not sure what. I decide it's best to push my curiosity to the back of my mind before nodding and wrapping a wing around him, as I lead him inside.
"Sure, I'm always here to talk if you need it, Soar. I'll help you when things get bad, I promise," I whisper gently as I take a seat on my settee.
Soarin' takes a seat beside me and he looks down at his hooves as he takes a deep breath. I reach over and put a hoof over his in hope of reassuring him.
"We were back at Ghastly Gorge again, but it was after the whole thing had happened. You wanted to go in the cave again to overcome your fear of the place. I tried to stop you because I was beginning to feel uneasy, but you were being as
stubborn as you always are and you said 'I'll go in myself then.' So, you did. I waited for you and when you never came back out I got worried so I ran in... It was as if we were thrown back in time or something, because the entrance was blocked off again but this time we were never found. We were so hungry, I kept telling you to hang in there, I begged you but you gave up. It was like all the strings inside of you had broken so you could no longer go on." Soarin' looks at our hooves in silence once he finishes.
I sigh softly as I wrap my hooves around him. "Sweetie, that won't happen. We'll be alright, I promise."
Soarin' nods slightly before leaning against my shoulder and closing his eyes. I absentmindedly stroke his mane, thankful that I was able to make him feel a little better. It hurts seeing him so afraid. It's like the goofy, bubbly Soarin' that I know and love has disappeared. But I will always be there to help him just like he will always be there to help me.
"Hey, Dashie?" He whispers against my fur, his warm breath causes me to shiver.
I glance over at him to find that he's looking back at me. "Yeah?"
A smile forms across his lips as he watches me. "I love you."
I blink in shock and stumble over a few words before I can finally say, "I love you, too, Soar," in return.
A goofy grin spreads across his face as he closes his eyes again. "Thanks for everything, Dashie."
I smile as I lie back on the sofa, pulling him back with me. I never thought that he'd actually say it to me; I never thought he felt the same way but now I know. Right now, I don't care if I'm a sappy, love struck, sod because I love him and there is nothing in the world that could change that.
I hope I've helped Soarin's nightmares disappear, but I have a feeling that it's going to be a rough couple of weeks for the both of us. We only have two weeks left together before Soarin' has to return to the Wonderbolts HQ and I hope he won't suffer with his nightmares there as well.
The dull screaming is beginning to return as the spell Twilight cast is beginning to fade, I know I have to wait a few more days before I can get a top up though. I just hope that the screaming and the nightmares don't stop Soar and I from having a good time together before he has to go.
I can't wait for the day when we aren't troubled by the Gorge.
Hopefully that day will be soon. |
Free to Fly | Scootaloo | Chapter 12- Scootaloo
Soarin' sleeps somewhat peacefully as we lay on the sofa together. I just wish I could help in some way; maybe this is how he feels whenever the screaming haunts me. I feel guilty that I've made him feel this bad or maybe even worse.
I close my eyes in attempt to have a rest but whenever I try I just see Soarin' falling to the ground and me being unable to catch him. My eyes shoot open and wave of nausea runs over me as the first image switches to one of Soarin' getting crushed by a boulder, even when I open my eyes it keeps running through my mind as if it's on repeat. It won't go away, it's getting worse again.
It's obvious that the spell which Twilight cast on me is beginning to wear off since the screams are gradually returning. I suppose three days without this torture is a gift, in a way, but now I have to wait before the spell can be recast. I'm not too sure if I can even handle this wait.
Soarin' stirs from his slumber and I glance at him for a moment. The sun is beginning to set behind Canterlot and I want to go and see Scoots today, so I decide that it's time for me to proceed with the dangerous task of waking him up. Although, it probably won't be as bad as waking up Spitfire, that was probably one of the scariest missions I've ever had to do and this is the fearless Rainbow Dash speaking.
Gently, I nudge the sleeping Wonderbolt in hope to wake him up but when there's no answer I sigh and walk into the kitchen. I could use my feather on him again but that would mean having to pull out another feather which I don't really want to do. I don't really care about how I look but I do care about how my wings look and if they're missing feathers they don't look good and they also don't work as well.
I find a glass and fill it up with ice cold water before returning to the side of the sofa. Thankfully he didn't have a nightmare this time around but that was probably because he was so worn out. He looks so comfortable lying there, I almost feel bad for having to wake him up. Almost.
Standing on my hind legs I take the water in my hooves and tip it over him. Soarin' yelps in shock and his wings shoot up at their sides as he instinctively flies up and away from whatever disturbed him.
Soarin' stares at me in shock for a few moments as I try and fail to hold back my laughter. He runs into the kitchen and I watch him go in confusion. What is that goofball planning on doing now? When he returns with a basin full of water and an evil smirk across his face, my eyes widen in shock and I realise that we're now at war so I fly out of the window as fast as I can.
"It's on, Dash!" Soarin' calls after me and I glance back to find him following me with the basin balancing on his back.
I freeze as I analyse his form and how well poised he is. He truly is a remarkable flyer; the fact that he isn't spilling a drop of water proves that. Suddenly, I realise that he's getting closer to me so I shoot off without any more hesitation. It was a bad idea declaring war upon a Wonderbolt.
Behind me I can hear Soarin's wings flapping as strong as ever as he draws closer and closer to me. I take a sharp left then a sharp right in attempt to confuse him but he still keeps up with me without a problem.
I see a cluster of clouds off to the left of me and I get the perfect idea. Quickly, I fly over to them and search for the ones which are heavy with rain. I fly around them all to make them into a large grey ball.
As I fly back to analyse my work, a pair of hooves wrap around me and I feel Soarin's breath against my ear. My heart pounds in my chest from the adrenaline and I know that there's no way to escape this.
"Gotcha," he whispers softly.
"Horseapples," I mutter under my breath as I feel him pull away. "Fine, I surrender."
I turn to face him and he sends his goofy grin to me before he grabs the basin off of his back and pours all of the water out towards the ground below us. I watch as it falls down over the grassy area underneath us before I gaze up at him in confusion but find that he's disappeared from his spot in front of me and is now flying towards the cloud which I created.
"Aw, no fair, Soar!" I yell and fly after him.
Soarin' turns his head and winks at me and I use this opportunity to catch up with him. I push myself as hard as I can to get closer to him. My hooves are stretched out in front of me as I prepare to push him down onto a cloud before he has a chance to escape. I'm behind him in no time at all and I tackle him down onto a nearby cloud. Soarin' is trapped on the cloud below me. He could push me off of him but he doesn't, we just gaze at each other as we breathe heavily in sync with each other.
"You were gonna use my weapon..." I say in between breaths. "That's a real dirty move, Mr Wonderbolt, real dirty."
Soarin' laughs softly and wraps his wings around me. I sigh and shake my head at him as I gently brush my lips over his.
"You know, you make it very hard for me to be angry at you." I smile.
"Well, that's the whole point, isn't it?" he murmurs as he pulls me closer to him.
I chuckle as I gaze into his emerald eyes which are glistening in the setting sun. I wish I could stay like this forever, in this moment where we aren't bothered by the screams or the nightmares. Where we aren't haunted by the Gorge. It's just us lying together contentedly. But I know that we have to get on with life. One day, we won't be haunted by the accident anymore but we have to go through the pain before we achieve our happiness.
"Thanks, Dashie," Soar whispers as he gently brushes his lips over mine.
"What for?" I say, raising my eyebrow in question.
Soarin' gently touches my cheek with his hoof as he gazes into my eyes. "Even when I'm feeling down you can always make me laugh. That was the most fun I've had in a while," he admits.
I shake my head in amusement. "I just did it to get your lazy flank up!"
"Well, where do you want to go?" he asks gently, knowing instantly that there was a reason to all of this.
"I want to go check on Scoots," I whisper and I rest my forehead on his.
Soarin' nods slightly. "Me too, do you know where she lives?"
"Yeah, I do. I think it's time I go and have a word with them to find out what's been going on," I mumble and climb to my hooves miserably.
I stretch out my wings and Soarin' stands beside me, doing the same. "Do you mind if I come along?"
"Sure, I think it'd be better if you were there with me," I look out into the distance and take a deep breath before flying towards Ponyville's town centre.
Even though the screaming is haunting me, I continue to fly. I'm Rainbow Dash, for crying out loud, I can get through anything. I need to be brave and confident for Scoots. I look over at Soarin' who is flying beside me. I wonder how much he really is affected by the cave. He only seems to be bothered in his dreams but maybe he's as good at hiding his suffering as I am. Well, I admit, I've been seen as pretty weak lately and I need to fix that.
The town is beginning to fall asleep, most of the shops have closed down and the daily market has been packed up and the owners have returned home.
Scootaloo's home is in an enclosed area just behind the town hall, the house is silent and the only sign of life is the warm light coming from the landing. I land on the front lawn and walk down the pathway. Once I reach the front door I glance at Soarin' before taking a breath and knocking on the door loudly.
When nopony answers, Soarin' turns to me and says, "It looks like nopony is here, maybe we should head back?"
"No, there's somepony in there, they left the landing light on," I mumble and hammer on the door even louder.
Finally, the door swings open to reveal Scootaloo's father, Thunder Blaze.
"What do you want, Miss Dash? I've already given you the weather plans for the next month." Thunder Blaze says sharply.
Thunder Blaze is Ponyville's Weather Planner, he works with the ponies in Cloudsdale and helps them plan what weather we should have and then he passes the information on to me. I then create the rota. As the Weather Patrol Manager I can give him suggestions on what would be best for Ponyville at the current time. For example, Sweet Apple Acre's needs more rainstorms since their crops are getting dry so that's been put into this month's rota. Still, since Thunder Blaze works with the Cloudsdale team more so than I do- the only time I ever see the Cloudsdale team is when we have to transport the clouds over to Ponyville-he thinks he has more power over me.
"I'm not here about the work business, Mr Blaze," I tell him bitterly. "I'm here to talk to your daughter."
Thunder Blaze looks at me then at Soarin' and his eyes betray a bit of fear. "H-Hello, Officer," he stutters and salutes Soarin'.
It takes me a few moments to remember that the Wonderbolts are also a Military Force and Soarin' is second in command, I wonder what his reaction would be if Spitfire turned up at his door.
"What has the brat done now?" Thunder Blaze mutters.
Soarin' growls softly under his breath, "Scootaloo hasn't done anything, Sir," he says, the last word dripping with sarcasm.
"Well, Scootaloo isn't here right now, so can you leave my property," Thunder goes to close the door but I put a hoof out and stop him.
"With all due respect, Sir, I know for a fact that Scootaloo is in because she's standing at the top of the stairs so can you please step aside and let us talk to her," I say, my voice growing darker with anger.
Scootaloo stares down at Soarin' and I in shock. Her eyes are slightly red as if she had been crying for a while now which makes me more determined to get in and talk to her.
Thunder Blaze shoots a look back at Scootaloo before shouting, "Get back into your room, you stupid filly."
"Excuse me, don't you dare talk to her like that," I shout and step forward so I can look at him in the eye. "Now, Mr Blaze, you better step aside or, Celestia help me, you'll be sorry," I growl as the rage bubbles up inside of me.
The screams are growing louder inside my mind, but this time they are angry screams. They're making me angrier at Thunder Blaze by the second. It's as if I could snap any moment and I don't care, if this is the way he's always treated Scootaloo then I can see why she never learnt how to fly. He's a spiteful stallion with no heart and hates his sweet and loving daughter. He deserves to be hurt, he deserves to suffer.
Soarin' reaches out and gently puts a hoof on my shoulder and I can barely hear him telling me to calm down. Thunder Blaze laughs which makes the anger bubble up more inside.
"Now, Miss Dash, if you so much as touch me I can get you fired from your job so you better back off," he sneers.
I laugh, "You don't get it, do you? I don't care about my job. I care about that little filly which I took under my wing."
Soarin' steps forward and speaks, "Sir, please step aside or this will have to be an issue which I will need to pass on to
Captain Spitfire, our first in command. We can take you to the courts because you have abused Scootaloo by not teaching her how to fly. If you know what's best for you, you better move."
Thunder Blaze frowns but nods and moves over, letting us both in. He knows what will happen if he's brought to the courts and he knows it wouldn't go in his favour, especially if he had the Wonderbolts against him.
I walk upstairs and go towards the room that has a Wonderbolts poster on the door and I decipher that it's obviously Scootaloo's. I knock gently before opening it to find Scootaloo sitting on her bed with tears in her eyes.
"Hey, Scoots," I say gently and sit in front of her.
Scootaloo throws her arms around me and she clings on tight. "I'm sorry, Dash. I'm sorry," she sobs quietly.
"It's okay, I understand," I whisper and stroke her mane gently. "Now, do you want to tell me what's been going on?"
Scoots nods slightly before pulling away and looking down at her hooves. "Well, mum has been sick since I've been very little, she has to stay in bed most of the time, that's one of the reasons he never taught me when I was younger. We were both too busy looking after her, we were both very worried and we both still are. I suppose he blames me for mum getting sick, he says that I stressed her out too much... Mum says that when she gets better she'll teach me to fly but I know that she's never gonna get better; I don't think she's going to be here that much longer..." She whispers, "That's why I never learnt how to fly, technically I was telling the truth, dad is very busy looking after mum and mum always gets too tired when she tries to teach me..."
I look up at Scootaloo with a few tears in my eyes; I wish I heard of this sooner. "Okay, Scoots, well I will teach you to fly, for your mum... Then you can show her how much you've learnt; tell her everything you've done, alright?"
Scootaloo nods slightly. "Thank you, Dash."
"You know," Soarin' says gently as he walks over to sit on the bed beside her. "It's not your fault your mum is sick..."
Scoots looks up at Soarin' with tears in her eyes. "I know, but I don't want her to go, I want her to watch me find my cutie mark..."
Soarin' gently puts a wing around her back. "You want her to be there to watch you grow up, I know, she'll always be watching over you though and you'll make her proud."
"How do you know?" Scootaloo sniffles.
I listen intently as Soarin' begins to tell his story to the filly. "My father suddenly passed away when I was sixteen, I had just been accepted into the Wonderbolts Academy and he had promised to watch me perform in my first show and my last show and every show in between... But he couldn't and I was upset. I pretended everything was okay and hid away all my feelings and all my pain. At some point I broke and push everypony who loved me far away... I thought I couldn't go on; I wanted to quit the Academy... Then I remembered that I had to make him proud, he wouldn't want me to give up just because he was gone..." He looks down at Scootaloo and gently brushes her mane out of her face. "So remember that, Scoots, and make her proud... Also, talk to somepony when you're hurting, you've got your friends and you've got Dashie and me, too. You're going to be an amazing filly, Scoots. Don't listen to your dad."
I stare at Soarin' for a few moments in shock; I never knew that had happened to him. Scootaloo smiles and hugs him.
"Thank you, Soarin', that really helped. I'm gonna spend some time with mum, now, so I'll see you both later?" she jumps off the bed and wraps her forelegs around me too.
I smile and hug her back. "I'll see you later, squirt. I'll come find you after school one day for a flight lesson, alright?"
Scoots grins and bounces out of the room. "Sure thing, Dash! See you later!"
I laugh softly as I climb to my hooves. "Come on, Soar, let's go home and get something to eat."
Soarin' nods and walks over to me. We leave the house together, only muttering a 'Goodbye' to Thunder Blaze but I don't feel as angry at him anymore. I can understand their situation a whole lot better now, but still, he didn't need to treat Scoots like that.
The screaming is still there but I push them to the back of my mind as I stretch out my wings and begin to fly alongside Soarin'.
"I never knew, Soar... I'm sorry." I say gently after a few moments of flying in silence.
Soarin' looks over at me and smiles. "I'm sure there are a few things like that which I don't know about you either, Dashie, so it's alright."
"I guess, but we can save those stories for another night..." I say softly, "So, were you one of the last sixteen year olds to get into the 'Bolts?"
"Yeah, I was in the last round, that's why I didn't expect to get in... Spitfire was in the 'Bolts a year before me, so she was in the second last round," he smiles nostalgically. "Wave Chill was so upset that he had to wait another five years to apply."
I nod slightly. "I was only fourteen when they announced it, I was so distraught. I was hoping that I could get into the 'Bolts and prove that I wasn't Rainbow Crash..." I sigh sadly.
"But you didn't even apply when you turned eighteen, did you?" Soarin' asks in confusion.
I shake my head. "I ended up not applying when I turned eighteen because I had just moved to Ponyville and I had no money, plus I wouldn't have been able to get a job if I was put into the Academy, I would've been broke. Then when I had finally settled in, the whole Nightmare Moon thing happened so I had to wait another year to apply. I was lucky enough to get accepted into last year's round, which only happened because I entered the Best Young Fliers competition and saved your flank."
Soarin' laughs slightly. "Celestia, that competition was two years ago now... We've been watching you ever since that day, you know?"
"I know. I've occasionally spotted a few of your team watching me from afar. You're not very stealthy. Plus, I know what you all look like without your suits on because I met you all after the competition." I chuckle. "I pretended not to notice though."
"Spitfire was going to send you an invitation to join the Academy if you never applied yourself. You're definitely going to be on the team next year, Dashie, and I can promise you that." Soarin' says gently, I know this must be information which I'm not supposed to know.
"Thanks Soar. I'll be back, don't you worry about that. I just hope it happens before I turn twenty-two; we have about eleven months until my birthday though... I just don't want to hit my peak," I smile sadly as I prepare to land on the soft cloud by my front door.
Soarin' lands beside me before wrapping his forelegs around my neck. "I'm gonna miss you when I go back, Dashie."
I nod in agreement, I'm going to miss him a lot too, and I just hope that the screaming improves a significant amount by the time he has to go. I can vaguely tell that there has been an improvement, the screams are less sharp and are quieter. Still, I want them to be gone for good.
"You should see somepony about your nightmares, Soar. Maybe Twilight can give you a potion for it or something?" I say gently.
Soarin' sighs sadly and pulls me closer to him. "I know, I'll ask next week when you go back for the spell, okay? How's it been going, by the way?"
"They're starting to come back again, but I can see an improvement... Anyway, let's go and get some food before it's too late to eat. Plus, I fancy a cup of tea." I nudge him towards the door.
Soarin' glances back at me. "Celestia, Dash, are you from Trottingham or something?" he sniggers before going on to talk in a Trottingham accent, "Would you care for a cup of tea?"
I roll my eyes and punch him in the shoulder to which he mutters a sarcastic "ow," in return.
Soarin' walks in through the threshold, still chuckling under his breath from his stupid joke. I would tell him that tea is brilliant and there is nothing wrong with drinking it but he wouldn't listen. After a while, I begin to laugh at his joke and I follow him into my home, closing the door behind me.
I hope we both get better soon and I hope that the two weeks we have left together aren't ruined by the Gorge.
I can't help but fear the day that Soarin' has to return home, though. |
Free to Fly | I Make Tea | Chapter 14- I Make Tea
I would've thought that finding out the truth about Scootaloo would make me feel better, or happier, but now I feel as if I'm worrying more than ever.
Guilt bubbles up inside of me as I realise that I could have, should have, helped her sooner. I just thought she wanted to keep her family problems private. I also hate to admit it, but I was partially afraid of her dad too, which was stupid considering I don't really care that much about my job since I have a lot of backup plans and the Wonderbolts to support me. I wish I noticed sooner, noticed that her desperate want of acceptance from me was a cry for help. Why didn't I realise sooner?
Soarin', who I had been leaning against, shifts beside me, pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Are you alright, Dash?" Soar asks gently, carefully, as if I'm about to break.
I nod, ever so slightly, almost afraid of breaking myself. I can tell the screams are coming back, along with the guilt I begin to feel a lot worse than I ever have before. My stomach clenches and twists against itself. Sweat pours down my body. I feel cold. I feel weak. I feel empty.
"Dashie?" Soarin' says in concern, as he wraps a wing around me to stop my shaking form.
I gasp for air as the room spins around me, everything blurs into one. "I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine." I whisper under my breath over and over again.
Soarin's voice is muffled as he urgently tries to sooth me. I am unable to breath, unable to think straight. Everything is falling apart.
Tears roll down my cheeks as I sob uncontrollably. I'm a failure. I should've helped Scootaloo before; I should've helped when I first became her big sister. I don't deserve to be a big sister to a filly as amazing as her. Still, I need to get over myself. I'm being selfish: making all of this about me. I need to help Scootaloo, somehow. I need to get over my stupid fears.
Finally, my tears begin to subside, my breathing becomes more even and Soarin's voice becomes clear to my ears. I carefully wipe away my tears and shake my head in embarrassment. How could I be such a fool? There's a little filly who needs me and all I seem to care about is my stupid fears.
I take in a shaky breath and turn to face Soarin'. "I'm sorry, I just feel so guilty. I never realised that she was suffering so badly. How many other ponies have been suffering and have turned to me for help?"
"You can't save everypony, Dashie. Anyway, just be thankful that you've helped Scoots now." Soarin' glances at me, checking to see if I'm okay.
I stand up and walk into the kitchen, boiling the kettle. "Do you want a cup of tea, Soar?" I ask.
My mum used to always make me a cup of tea if I had a bad day at school or if I had a big exam that day. I've made it tradition now to have a cup of tea whenever I feel stressed out because tea always makes you feel better.
"Can I have a coffee instead, please?" he calls from the sitting room.
I roll my eyes and make the coffee first before bringing both his and my drink into the sitting room.
"Soar... I want to go back to the Gorge," I mumble weakly.
Soarin' glances at me nervously and breathes in a shaky breath, "If you want to then I'll go with you... but make sure you don't push yourself."
"Can we go now?" I ask, wanting to get it over with but at the same time not wanting to go at all.
Soarin' nods and guilt instantly rushes over me, I know that he probably really doesn't want to go but I know that I have to do this; otherwise I will never get rid of my nightmares. I'm just being selfish really, dragging him along with me, but I also know that I can't do it alone. I want to be brave but recently I haven't really wanted to fit the title of 'Rainbow Danger Dash'.
"You don't have to if-" I start.
"No, no. Dashie, I need to come with you." Soarin' cuts me off. "What if something happens to you? I have to be there to protect you."
I open my mouth ready to argue, but I can tell from the look of determination on his face that he won't change his decision and that, no matter what I say, he will refuse to stay behind.
"Come on then," I mumble in defeat, dragging my hooves as I walk towards the door.
We stop at the edge of the cloud that supports my home and I look across Ponyville. In the distance I can just about make out the Gorge, for the past month I have been avoiding looking that way and even now I feel sick. Nonetheless, I have no other choice. I can't back out of this, I have to be brave. I have to act like the Rainbow Dash that everypony knows.
Soarin' puts a hoof around me in encouragement before he stretches out his light blue wings and shoots off into the sky. The force of his wings against the air blows my mane back and I stand frozen in shock for a few moments before setting off after him. I may be scared, but I can't let him win this race. I haven't changed that much.
I close my eyes and race after him, paying attention to every little detail as I fly to keep my mind off of the fact that we're heading towards the place where we both almost died less than a month ago. I feel the wind brush through every strand of my mane. I feel it caress my feathers as I flap against its strong force. It is then that I remember how much flying comforts me.
When I open my eyes I find that I have caught up with Soarin' and we're drawing closer and closer to the Gorge. My heart begins to pound and I almost stop and fly back home so fast that I perform a Sonic Rainboom; however I don't because I can't leave Soarin' behind.
Soarin' looks at me and smiles, but I can see right through it, I can tell that he's absolutely terrified which is why I can't let anything go wrong.
We slowly descend and land on the edge of the Gorge. It seems as if nopony has been there since the day of the accident. Boulders lie haphazardly across the opening; broken parts of the stands from the show stick out from the piles of rocks.
At the far end of the Gorge there is a small opening where some rocks have been cleared away, and I realise that was where we were trapped.
Soarin' stands beside me and I can feel him shaking. I gently wrap my wing around him and lean against him. I try and stay strong but I can feel the flashbacks trying to push their way into my mind. Still, I refuse to give up. I need to go further.
I need to go back in the cave. |
Dealt A Bad Hoof | pre | "Really?!"
"Yup, in fact these were passed down to me from your grandpa, and they were passed down to him from his father. A magician's trusty cloak and hat can be just as important as his name."
"Is that why you're always shouting your name in that weird way?"
"Of course! When strangers hear my name they know that I'm a well respected mage, and take great heed in my words. It's all part of being an amazing magician, well you know besides going on adventures, beating up bad guys, saving ponies, and all that fuss."
Little filly eyes grow to the size of saucers as the stallion tells stories of travel, and learning powerful magics.
"Dad do you think that someday I can be a magician like you?"
A prideful smile grows on the stallion's face as he gazes down at his young offspring. She reminded him of a young wide eyed colt who would chase his father around from morning to night insisting that the gruff elder instruct him on the basics of magic. Despite her young age the stallion could already feel the dormant unicorn magic within her building up, she may very well be an earlier bloomer. Even more pride swelled within him at the prospect of so much potential being possessed by a creation of his own flesh, and blood.
"I bet you could be if you really wanted to, though we'll have to start working on a name. If you are going to be a great spell-weaver like your old man, then your gonna need a cool name."
"Does that mean that I'll have to wear that silly hat, and cape?"
For a brief moment that prideful smile deflated, and a look of dread flashed across the light blue ponies face. "You wouldn't want some old dusty outfit that your dad ran around in all his life. Nope a rising star like yourself is going to need her own garb specially made." The seasoned colt patted himself on the back for his quick cover up, though his daughter looked up at him in confusion. He wouldn't wish the dreadful responsibility of wearing this hat, and cape on any pony, least of all his own offspring. He was quick to change the subject back to what kind of title his daughter should give herself, hoping that the slip-up would be buried underneath a foal's short attention span, and his stories of magical adventure.
Despite his best efforts, the little azure filly never forgot that brief look of fear that passed over her father's face.
The first thing Trixie became aware of as she slowly awoke to the conscious realm was the sensation of moving, or to be more exact the world around her moving. The familiar creaking of her carriage's wheels rotating, and the sound of said wheels moving over the earth filled the air, and for a brief moment Trixie couldn't figure out why. Then it all came flooding back, her capture, meeting that blasted dragon, that damned deal they made, and everything that followed after.
"The things Trixie gets herself into." Moving to rub some of the sleep out of her eyes Trixie realized just how snug she had been wrapped in the thick dark blankets she owned. She easily dismissed the occurrence as her body instinctively doing the best it could to keep her warm even in her sleeping state, though she wondered slightly if the dragon had any trouble sleeping. Realizing that she was showing early signs of concern for another creature caused the unicorn to gag in a very unladylike manner.
"As if Trixie could care less if that rotten reptile sleeps soundly or not." Tossing her mane about to fully wake up, Trixie attempted to sit up, but the ache from her muscles argued against the sudden motion. With a grumble Trixie settled on continuing to lay in bed while her mind roamed freely, she briefly wondered how long she had been asleep, and how long her acquaintance had been pulling the carriage.
"Not long enough." The azure mare could just barely feel the trickle of her magical reserves regaining it's former glory, it would probably be a bit more before she could do much. Trixie's eyes scanned over the inside of her carriage to take inventory of all her possessions just to be sure that the dragon hadn't soiled anything with his dirty claws. Nothing looked molested and Trixie was pleased to see that her hat and cloak were placed safely on her dresser with no noticeable marks or stains. The faintest signs of a chance that she might think of the purple dragon in a less despised light were beginning to emerge on the edges of her mind, but were quickly brushed aside when a grumbling in her stomach took precedence in her thoughts.
She was hungry, and decided that fixing something to eat was beneath her. But Trixie knew just the dragon to force the task upon to start her day.
Earlier that day:
Despite the previous day's multiple conflicts, near-death situations, and countless headaches Spike at least woke up in better shape than the day before. Once Trixie was within her carriage, and peacefully snoring up a storm, Spike was out like a light within minutes. Truth be told he would much rather have something a little more comfortable to sleep on beside the cold, hard ground but at least he wasn't in a dungeon, and his travel companion's snoring wasn't nearly as maddening as when she was insulting him.
The night had been slightly cold forcing Spike to raise his body heat by using his inner dragon fire the majority of the night, but doing so had left him considerably low on energy. When he first awoke with a fang-filled yawn, and the sun's rays warming his scales he felt pretty alright, but then the consequences of his self heating dawned upon him as he was assaulted by a terrible clawing within the empty pit that was his stomach.
Though a dragon could metabolize just about anything it managed to get into it's mouth, factors such as taste, and the actual energy it was able to get out of what it ate always varied. To put things simply a dragon could survive off near any substance, but to remain healthy a dragon had to be more precise with it's eating habits. With his hunger distressing him so, and knowing full well what could happen if it got out of control Spike quickly, and quietly checked the carriage for a bag, or pack to carry anything he found in. Luck was on his side as he found an old burlap sack amid Trixie's traveling gear without displacing anything else or waking the still sleeping mare. Clenching the bag between his teeth Spike bolted away from the carriage, and into the forest to quickly find something to eat.
A few mushrooms, and a small patch of wild flowers had taken the edge off his hunger, but Spike was still in incredible need for something to digest. Sadly his senses hadn't picked up on any nearby gems, well despite the ones that Trixie used to clasp her cape, but the purple dragon had enough sense to not count that as an option. So now he found himself looking up at a large tree, his eyes focused on a birds nest with unreadable intent. As a dragon raised by herbivores he felt a inner conflict with the choice presented to him, there was always the feeling of despicable sin when his predatory instincts took him down this road, but meat did considerably better for a dragon's metabolism than plant life did.
"One bird equals up to a few pounds worth of hay sandwiches Spike." An inner voice at the back of his head pleaded for Spike to find another option, but time was of the essence and the nest above would make an easy target. Trying his best to push the voice in his head out of hearing by drowning his guilt with logic. "Nothing wrong with this Spike, it's just the circle of life. Dragons need to eat just like everything else, and since there isn't any rubies or sapphires to munch on..." As his claws gripped into the tree bark, and he hoisted himself upward into the branches of the large oak, Spike spared a few sad words as he approached the nest. "I'm really sorry."
A short time later Spike returned to the carriage, his hunger now gone, the rest of him aching to head home, and the bag filled with a few things he figured a grumpy unicorn might eat. Trixie was still fast asleep, and Spike knew better than to disturb a female unicorn when she was resting. A bitter chuckle escaped the dragon as he realized that he had thought the exact same thing a day or two ago back when he was home. "I hope Twilight isn't too worried, she's an absolute mess without me." Spike's brows furrowed as it dawned upon him that the longer it took for him to get home, the worse off his best friend might be. Fastening himself to the carriage's harness quickly, Spike set off down the dirt path in a brisk walk.
A few hours after he had first started walking Spike's ears picked up the sound of something stirring within the carriage. Though he said nothing, and continued moving onward the purple dragon was actually dreading what his travel companion might do or say once she was fully awake. Though the night before had ended on a somewhat neutral note heck maybe even friendly, he was convinced that her bad attitude would be back in full swing.
"Oh come one Spike, what's the worst she could do?" Spike's brain had a good point, even if she was a aggravating mare with a superiority complex what harm could she possible do tucked away inside her carriage. As long as Spike kept pulling the carriage, and hadn't done anything to tick her off, she'd probably just quietly ignore him until her mood was at a bearable level...Right?
"The Great and Powerful Trixie demands that you pull her vessel smoother, scale for brains unless you plan on buying her a new one!"
Wrong!
Spike inwardly groaned as he slowed his pace a bit, and was now just moving at a leisured stroll. An unlatching sound, and the creak of wood was his only warning before he felt a familiar glare on the back of his skull. Taking a moment to turn his head Spike was now staring into a scowling Trixie's eyes as she watched him from an opened window. If not for the hostile look in her eyes Spike would have asked just how many potential openings this odd carriage was equipped with. Such thoughts were quickly set aside as the azure unicorn began to speak.
"Morning dragon."
"Uhhh it's more like the afternoon Trixie, you were pretty knocked out."
"Do not correct Trixie, especially if the first thing she has to see in the morning is your scaled mug."
"Well if you're going to insist on being wrong then I really can't be faulted for trying to correct you. And like anyone would be happy too start their day with laying eyes on that bedhead mess you call a mane."
Spike stifled a chuckle as Trixie's eyes widened in realization, she hadn't taken the time to check her appearance and her current look was quite the sight. Her usually well maintained mane now stuck out in unusual places, and was frizzled to the point that one would think she had recently undergone shock therapy.
In half a second Trixie's head was back inside the carriage, and the window slammed shut. Spike continued walking as the sounds of items being moved quickly, and hair being brushed rapidly filled the air. After a few minutes the sounds stopped, and Spike's ears notified him that Trixie had reopened her window, and was probably glaring holes into the back of his head.
"At least Trixie's problem can be fixed, it's a shame we can't say the same about you." Trixie smirked as Spike visibly flinched at the remark, she was sure that the dragon had been put in his place with her use of wit.
"I guess you got me there Trixie, now if only there was a way to make you at least half as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside." Spike congratulated himself on that quick rebuttal, but knew that there would be consequences for allowing himself to stoop to her level. A loud growl followed his words, and Spike's ears heard a few whispered curses, and threats toward him. Taking a look at the sunny sky above him that was now only partially blocked by the tree line Spike sighed knowing that even though he won another unnecessary argument, it was going to be a long day.
"Well now that we have the pleasantries out of the way, Trixie is hungry." Despite hating that the purple dragon had beaten her at her own game, the azure unicorn couldn't ignore the grumbling of her own famished stomach.
"Oh really, I could sworn you were great and powerful." Stopping in his tracks Spike reached for the sack that he had slung around his neck for safe keeping. Using his tail Spike gripped the bag, and handed it towards the awaiting mare who held it using her magic that had started returning gradually since she had woken up. "This is all that I could find while you were sleeping, it should be enough until the next time we stop."
Trixie withdrew her head back inside the carriage bringing the sack with her. Once inside she peered inside the bag, and took notice of a few flowers, one mushroom, and a slightly underdeveloped pear. As she began eating the first flower, which happened to be another daisy Trixie wondered what Spike had eaten. Her thoughts instantly went to the pear since it would have had to come from a tree which would have more unless the gluttonous reptile had eaten them all by himself leaving her the runt of the litter.
"So dragon, is it safe to assume that your breakfast consisted of delicious ripened pears, while poor Trixie has to make due with scraps?" Though completely inside her carriage Trixie had left the window open, and spoke loud enough that she knew his sensitive ears had heard her.
"That was the best one I could find, the rest weren't nearly matured enough for you to get anything out of, so I left the rest alone. Once their ripe enough they'll doing more good for the wildlife, then they would for a few passerby's like us now." Spike would have loved to engorge himself on the pears if he could, but underdeveloped fruit would just leave a bad taste in his mouth, and he didn't see any sense in robbing a small part of the ecosystem just to still be overwhelmingly hungry afterward.
"Then what pray tell did you eat?" Trixie had a hard time believing that a creature similar in size to a large stallion had fed on anything less than an entire bushel of apples, or at least half his weight in some stash of gemstones he had come upon.
"U-Uh you know this and that, found a few acorns, and dug up some rubies." Spike picked up his pace slightly, and concentrated his gaze straight ahead of him. A dragon's diet wasn't something he was very comfortable talking about with a pony, but a chill down his spine told him that the conversation wasn't over.
The Great and Powerful Trixie may have been lacking in some social graces, but she was no fool when it came to picking up on sudden tension, and unease regarding a topic. Taking her time to chew on the mushroom, Trixie debated on just how she planned on probing this delicate subject. She could try being subtle but that would take too long, and she certainly wasn't going to try being nice until he felt comfortable to just spill the beans on his own. She decided that simple blunt force would be enough, and if it wasn't, she would just use more.
"For some reason Trixie doesn't think you're being entirely truthful with her." Spike's eyes narrowed as he tried to concentrate harder on the path ahead of him. The extra effort proved to be in vain as Trixie's voice continued to carry out from within the carriage to his ears. "Trixie wonders just what kind of dragon she's made a deal with here. A deceitful one that's taking advantage of her charity, or maybe a big dumb forgetful one that just can't remember his last meal."
Spike's lips curled back in a slight snarl, and his pace began to slow again. The prying unicorn couldn't possibly understand this problem he had to deal with, how could she fathom the moral dilemma he had to suffer through earlier. He wished that she would understand that the answers she was trying to drag out of him would just complicate their partnership, possibly even ruin it. As loathe as he was to admit it he had no idea how he would get back to Equestria without the boastful unicorn to guide him, even if she was doing terribly little in that field at the moment.
"So dragon are you going to tell Trixie or not?" Trixie was now appraising the small pear before her, though she had moved back to looking out the window so she could better gauge Spike's reactions to her words. His walk had slowed, his legs moved with a tenseness that displayed his growing levels of discomfort, and from her position Trixie thought that she could even see a slight baring of fangs. Rolling her eyes in annoyance Trixie decided that she would have to play dirty to get what she wanted.
"Either tell Trixie, or she won't help you get back to that middle of nowhere town Ponyville." The carriage rocked roughly, as it came to a sudden halt. Spike's head wiped around, and his blazing emerald eyes burned into her own, though she kept a mastered poker face displayed on the outside, Trixie shrunk ever so slightly on the inside.
"I ate a bluejay, and it's three eggs ok!" Spike's voice was level but dripped with emotion, his eyes now alight with an inner fire that swirled with anger, and guilt. "Are you happy now? I was so hungry I climbed up that tree, snapped them all up, and went looking for something that you could eat." Now that he had given his answer Spike hung his head, and wrapped his tail around himself. The dragon closed his eyes, and prepared for the outraged cries of disgust, and shrieks of terror from the now enlightened unicorn that would surely hate, and fear him for his actions.
"....And?"
Well that was unexpected too say the least.
Spike's eyes popped open in surprise at Trixie's reply, he looked up to see her gazing at the still uneaten pear with a bored expression. It took a moment for Spike to even get his head on right enough to say anything back. "A-And?! I ate a defenseless bird, and it's eggs! I just ended another creature's existence just to further my own!"
The pear now floating in the air thanks to Trixie's magic began spinning in midair like an air born top, as Trixie tried to entertain herself. Her violet eyes glanced toward the flabbergasted dragon before her, than refocused back onto the pear as she readied her next words of wisdom. "So what?"
Spike had to physically restrain himself from face-palming in frustration, obviously this mare wasn't understanding. "That's a terrible thing to do Trixie! I'm a dangerous monster that has to eat other living beings to survive! Why isn't this bothering you?!"
With an annoyed sigh Trixie caused the spinning pear to suddenly start peeling by using her magic as a sort of knife, though now her eyes were staring straight into Spike's very own. "Why would Trixie be bothered just because you ate some dumb bird? It's not like you tried to eat Trixie, which wouldn't go well for you by the way."
"B-But..."
"Dragon's eat stuff big whoop, not like ponies didn't know that before." Trixie though understanding to a degree couldn't figure out why Spike was making such a big deal out of a biological function. It's not like she felt bad every time she ate a hay sandwich, or a nice looking tulip.
"You don't know anything about dragons, so stop acting like this is such a simple thing." Spike's guilt was slowly giving way to just full on anger, and frustration.
"Then perhaps you need to explain to Trixie why you're being such a drama queen about this." Trixie really couldn't care less, but she recognized that this dragon had a chip off his shoulder that needed dealing with if they wanted to get back to Equestria in one piece.
"Fine! As you probably know dragons can pretty much metabolize anything organic, and even a good number of things that aren't." Trixie nodded her head in affirmation, this was pretty basic knowledge for anything that knew what a dragon was. "The thing is though we can eat most anything, what we get out of what we eat varies dramatically depending on the food source. When a dragon exerts it's body he draws from the last thing he's eaten as fuel which burns up at different rates depending on the fuel, and even the dragon itself." Trixie's interest regarding the matter grew slightly, now this was something she hadn't heard before, though that could be blamed on the fact that her interest in dragons was scarce, if not entirely nonexistent.
"Gems for a large portion of the species do the best, which is why most dragons have hordes of treasure. That way they have a fuel for their bodies that doesn't burn quickly, and are less likely to have to go looking for large quantities of a less efficient food source to keep them going." Spike's anger was slowly ebbing away now that he was lost in reciting knowledge of his draconian heritage. Trixie picked up on the dragon's improving mood, and nodded again to insure that he knew she was listening.
"The problems arise from when a dragon doesn't have enough of that most efficient food source, lacks the capability to get that food source, or in some cases when young dragons misidentify their bodies need for that food." Spike thought back to the 'Greed Growth' episode he had undergone years before, his gathering of random items was caused partially by an influx of hormones, and partially because of his own body's confusion on what it's most efficient food source had been. Having been raised by ponies it was obvious that he wouldn't be around meat, and had to supplement his bodies need for it by eating large sums of pony food, and gems when he could. The gems had done a great deal in keeping him in check, but due to his love for them Twilight and the others compared them to candy so he was only allowed so much every now and then.
"When a dragon has no fuel left to burn it's body goes into a sort of panic mode which disregards vital things like reasoning, and depends more on instinct." Spike visibly shuddered when his thoughts drifted to what could have happened earlier if he hadn't dulled the clawing of his hunger with the few things he had found, when he had...eaten the bird his systems were brought back to a safe level for the time being.
Spike's musing were suddenly interrupted when he noticed Trixie suddenly raise a hoof in the air. He was surprised that she had a question, and even more so that she had been polite enough to raise her hoof, instead of loudly speaking her mind.
"Uh do you have a question Trixie?"
"You said that young dragons misidentify their bodies needs. So what, do they just run around eating random things until they can figure out what they like?" The question was more of a way to keep the dragon talking since Trixie noticed Spike shudder, and how his face darkened slightly over whatever he was thinking about.
"Not exactly, you see young dragons go through what we call 'Greed Growth' which is a series of chemical reactions that cause the dragon's body to jump alarmingly in size based on the amount of things it possesses, and how badly it's body is reacting to it's lack of stimulating food source."
"So Trixie is being led to believe that dragon's can change their size depending on how much junk a dragon owns, and how much it's starving?" The subject was strangely becoming more, and more interesting and Trixie was surprised herself that she was still paying attention at all.
"Kind of, though it's less based on how much a dragon owns, and more on how badly the dragon wants it, or how valuable it is to the dragon." Once again Spike was thinking back to his own incident, after some time Spike found himself questioning exactly how he had succumbed to his greed. He found himself thinking less and less that it was because he wanted lots of stuff, and more on how badly he had wanted both the fire ruby, and his crush on Rarity. It made sense really, his mind and body had been investing in how wonderful the gem would taste, and he ended up giving it to the one mare he wanted perhaps just as badly causing a subconscious reaction he wasn't even aware of until it was too late.
"Sounds like dragons aren't as vicious, greedy, and evil as some ponies may think." Having fully peeled the young pear before her, Trixie was now inspecting the small fruit for any signs of worms, or other inner issues. Though she now saw dragons in a slightly different light, that didn't change her viewpoint on the matter that they were probably dimwitted, and hardly worth her time. A stray thought raced across the unicorn's mind, and she briefly wondered if there was something weird in those mushrooms that was making her nicer than she typically would allow.
"We aren't..... but a lot of creatures misunderstand, and dragons are made out as horrible monsters. There's always going to be a few bad eggs that ruin it for the rest, but most just want to be left alone." Spike's spines wilted slightly, and the end of his tail was now busy drawing circles in the dirt as his gaze once again became downcast.
"So what do you think you are then?" Once again Spike was assaulted with an unprecedented question, and for a lack of better words he didn't know how to answer it.
"W-What?"
"Trixie said, what do you think you are dragon! Are you a blood thirsty monster? A timid deer encased in scales? Or a drama queen laying in the dirt because you're too thick to understand the laws of nature?" Spike looked up to glare at the insulting unicorn, but she was gone. The window she had been watching him through was closed, and the sound of movement echoed through the carriage interior. Suddenly the main door burst open, and out hopped the light blue mare now fully garbed with her iconic hat, and cape.
Trixie had decided that she had heard enough of this lizard's wallowing in self pity, and she was going to apply that extra amount of blunt force right now. The magician now stomped toward the surprised dragon until she was glaring at him only a few inches away, her eyes still demanding an answer.
"N-No, I'm a dragon...a dangerous dragon that just wants to go home." Spike hated how weak he sounded, but all of this was happening so fast, and he truly thought he was more harm than good at the moment. He dreaded the day that his friends back in Ponyville would eventually find out about the darker side of his appetite, and how much distress it would cause them to know that a potential predator was in their midst.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie demands that you shut up already!" The tables were turned, and now Spike found himself shrinking back as the loud unicorn stared him down. "Do you honestly think you're the only dangerous being around here? Is there any chance that you can comprehend the scale of destruction a single unicorn can unleash if she deems it necessary?" The air around the two seemed to thin, and Spike could sense Trixie's magical reserves skyrocket with every word. Spike was well aware of the potentially dangerous force a magical creature such as a unicorn could bring forth, having lived with one of the most gifted mares in Equestria for a large portion of his life, and having grown up under the tutelage of the mighty sun goddess herself. Yet here he was trying to make himself as small as possible while being yelled at by a two-bit show pony, just now realizing that he never thought of ponies in any form as being dangerous, powerful at times yes, but never truly dangerous.
"Trixie knows from past experience just how dangerous another unicorn can be. Trixie knows the amount of danger she can put others in if she wishes, or if she isn't careful." With a slight swoosh of her cape Trixie spun around, and with a magically charged jumped, leaped on top of her carriage. Striking what she imaged looked like a stylish pose, Trixie's cape shrugged off the confinements of gravity, and she resumed her leer toward the dragon below her.
"The most important thing Trixie knows though is that no matter what, she will be The Great and Powerful Trixie! If she chooses to turn another pony into an apple and devour it to appease her hunger, she is still Trixie. If she decides on a whim to save an entire town from a horde of basilisk, she is still Trixie. And even if her body was changed to that of a feather-brained pegasus, or some dirt covered earth pony. SHE WOULD STILL BE TRIXE!" If she wasn't so caught up in the passion of her own speech, Trixie would have given herself a pat on the back for having improved such a spectacular rant, but then again she wouldn't be surprised she was Trixie of course.
"All things eat other things, that's just the way it is. You can continue to cry every time you gobble up some rapid squirrel, or fat pigeon, but Trixie refuses to shed a tear whenever she decides to nip some harmless, and defenseless flower. Trixie never looks back because she chooses to do so, it's that ability to make a choice that puts her above other creatures. Now then you stupid salamander, do you have the capability to make a choice?"
Still completely caught off guard by the unicorn's words, it took a moment for Spike to realize that he had been asked a question. "Y-Yeah I guess so, but what does that have to do with anything?"
"On any given day would you choose to rather eat a single bad tasting jewel, or double your weight in wheat, instead of one tiny rodent?"
"Of course!" Spike's reply had more power to it than his previous words, and his tail started to unwind from his body.
"If faced with either going on some hunger-induced rampage, or snacking on some fish, or possum what's it going to be?"
"I guess the fish, or maybe the possum." Now Spike was standing up, his spines now pointing out proudly, and his eyes fully locked with Trixie's.
"And why is that?!" Another odd question from Trixie, who stared down at the now more confident dragon like some sort of motivational coach. At least now Spike had an answer, and didn't hesitate to reply.
"Because their just animals, and if I don't then something else might just stroll by and eat them, and I'd much rather that than put some poor pony in danger" It was true, Spike knew that if he was some small little wildlife animal none of the other local fauna would think twice about taking him out on the spot just to fill their own bellies.
"That's right! Now tell me again, are you capable of making a choice?"
"YEAH!" Spike was now completely caught up in all of the energy, and was briefly reminded of a muscle-bound pegasus by the name of Snowflake...or was it Big McLargehuge? Either way the purple dragon found himself feeling unexpectedly pumped.
"Are you going to quit moping about what you had for breakfast so you can go back to pulling Trixie's carriage?"
"YEEAH!" In her own weird way Trixie had significantly improved Spike's mood, and the earlier choice he had to make weighed a little less heavily on his mind. He didn't want to, and if he had any control over the matter he wouldn't have. He was just playing the cards dealt to him, and he made the best decision that he could at the time. Despite how insufferable she could be, and how sure Spike was that Trixie would eventually go back to being a jerk...he couldn't help but he appreciate the unicorn's mature way of looking at the situation, and how she had chosen to help him.
"Do you suck your thumb when you sleep, and you think that The Great and Powerful Trixie is the most amazing unicorn that ever lived. And it's a privilege to be able to pull her carriage like a common ugly beast of burden?!"
"BUCK YEEEAAH!.....Wait what?!" And now the mood was effectively assassinated by a mare who couldn't deny herself the satisfaction of making a now cheered up dragon look like a complete fool. Trixie's laughter echoed all around as she rolled on her sides, and continued to make fun of Spike's lapse in judgment. Spike was now left to cover his head in shame, and think of the most vilest of revenge schemes to apply while he waited for her chuckles to end.
"Another victory for the Great and Powerful Trixie! Now then dragon, do you feel better?" Trixie's triumphant smile grew more so in size when she noticed the intense hate filled glare Spike sent her way. "Good! Now shall we continue on our journey? Trixie has tuckered herself out from being such a great symbol of motivation, so let her know when we reach a town or find a place to make camp." And with that Trixie hopped off the carriage roof, and went back inside her room to attend to that still floating pear.
Grumbling loudly Spike reattached the harness, and started pulling the carriage again. As he trudged down the dirt path his thoughts drifted toward what Trixie had said earlier. 'What do I think I am?' Spike was still surprised that someone as thick headed, and self-absorbed as Trixie could ask such a cryptic question, and he wondered if she had truly expected an answer.
From within her carriage Trixie found herself once again inspecting the bare fruit in front of her. It was a wonder that it hadn't succumbed to the elements around it, but perhaps that was because of the magical stasis she had suspended it in since she had first peeled it. Finally deciding to put the danged thing out of it's misery Trixie willed the small morsel toward her awaiting mouth, as it moved closer and closer she briefly wondered if her ramble had gone too far.
"...Naahhh Trixie's priceless advice is a gift from the heavens, and his life can be nothing short of improved by it. Even if Trixie didn't do much besides state the obvious, and perhaps she did kinda sour the mood with that last jab. It's not like Trixie is here to make any friends, she's just making sure that dumb dragon won't be dead weight." Despite patting her ego on the back, and squashing any miniscule chance of feeling guilt Trixie couldn't help but notice that her first bite of the small pear was unpleasantly bittersweet.
The next few hours passed by in relative silence, the only sounds made were from the forest that surrounded them, Spike padding against the dirt, and the carriage creaking as the drake pulled it along. The walk had become dreadfully dull, so Spike tried passing the time by reanalyzing Trixie's advice, and his still present fears on the matter. The root of his fear stemmed from a bout of recurring nightmares that had plagued him when his body had first began to change naturally. It would always begin with him searching the tree house in vain trying desperately to find something to eat. Then the hunger would increase tenfold, his empty belly would feel like dozens of snakes were writhing angrily, and attempting to bite their way out.
His eyesight would blur, tinge a dirty rust red, and his fingers would twitch frantically in anticipation of grasping something to eat. His throat would feel dry as a bone, and burn as if he was trying to breathe fire, and for some reason his insides weren't protected from the intense flames. And that's when the dreams would take the worst turn, some poor pony completely oblivious too his ailment would wander in hoping to aid him in anyway he or she could. In the first few dreams he would decline, and clumsily exit the library to escape into the Everfree forest. From there his dreams would just deteriorate to flashes of scenery, and the frightened eyes of startled wildlife.
The dreams only got worse after that, instead of escaping into the forest Spike would turn his red-tinted sights on the unfortunate pony and.... Well for a segment of time Spike started hanging out with his pony friends less, and less too the point where he dug a hole in the ground and stayed there until Twilight dragged him out with her magic and demanded an explanation from him. He wished that he had told her the truth, wished that he had trusted her enough to not have lied and blamed his behavior on his dragon hormones messing with his mind. But he had been too afraid, had seen what his predator instincts would attempt to do to her if pushed to it. So from that day Spike always made sure to sneak a ruby, or sapphire before going to bed, and when nothing else was on hand he would slink away into the forest to deal with himself.
Spike had kept this dark secret all to himself for a year now, and oddly enough the first pony he spilled any of the beans to was one of the mares he despised the most. And still the most alarming thing was how well she took the news, it really made Spike feel stupid for thinking Twilight of all mares wouldn't understand his plight. Twilight would have done research, made theories, charts, graphs, and would try to explain the entire ordeal in detail to her assistant. Then again...Twilght's method would probably leave Spike feeling like some sort of science experiment, or worse one of her friends might possibly weasel the information out of her and then everypony would know just how dangerous he was.
Sigh "Spike keep it together, just let it go and go back to concentrating on the road ahead of you, the sounds of the forest around you, and the faint smell of water in the air." Spike inhaled deeply letting the fresh air fill his lungs, and getting a much stronger sense of his surroundings. He looked upward to the sky, and couldn't see a single cloud past the tree line that had become much less dense since he had first started walking. Spike found if odd that his fine tuned sense of smell would pick up on the unique odor of H20, but there was no sign of rainclouds or any oncoming storm.
Then it hit him, Spike suddenly stopped, and whipped his head around to and fro trying to pinpoint the exact origin of the smell. Taking a few strong sniffs Spike turned his head to the left and began pulling the carriage off the rudimentary road, and weaved it between the trees before him. The sudden change in direction, and erratic movement of the carriage didn't go unnoticed by his travel companion and all too soon Trixie's confused voice rang in the dragon's ears.
"Hey bird breath, what gives? Trixie could have sworn she told you to pull her chariot more carefully." The irritated unicorn was already sticking her head out her window, and watched as Spike continued to pull despite her complaints.
"Shut up, I just want to check something out real quick." The smell was stronger now, and Spike was sure that he was close to it's source. He hadn't had anything to drink all day, and the thought of cool water quenching his thirst took complete dominance over anything else.
"Your going to get us lost you dumb dragon!" The uneven ground, and numerous tree roots that the carriage was pulled over caused the whole thing to shake to the point that Trixie was close to losing her footing.
"In case you didn't know, we're already lost Trixie. I doubt we'll be any worse off than we were a few moments ago."
"At least back there we have a path to follow!"
"Wheres your sense of adventure? I was given the understanding that the Great and Powerful Trixie was fearless, and had been traversing the road for a long time." All Spike had to do now was pass the next couple of trees, and he'd be at the source.
"That sense of adventure is securely locked away in Trixie's brilliant mind, it's a shame that you let yours shift into complete buffoonery!" Trixie growled in frustration as Spike once again blatantly ignored her words, and moved them past the last tree line. For a brief moment both the unwilling unicorn, and the daring dragon were forced to close their eyes shut in response to the bright sunlight that was now surrounding them. Spike was the first to recover, and his opened eyes were greeted with the beautiful sight of a vast body of water stretching for what could have been miles, and miles. The sun's rays shined all over the scenery without a single cloud dotting it, making the blue sky almost completely mirror the water below.
"So you found a lake, still not worth dragging us off the path." Trixie had now recovered from her momentary blindness, and her jaw had dropped halfway open when she took in the sight before her. Luckily enough Spike hadn't noticed, allowing her time to don a mask of disinterest, and make a snide comment.
Spike quickly shrugged off the harness, and quickly made his way toward the small beach in front of him. The sand felt good between his toes, and the purple dragon found himself wanting to sun on one of the larger looking rocks that sat on the left side of the cove. Deciding to put that thought on hold Spike reached the water, and without hesitation dunked his head into the life giving substance. A few feet back Trixie watched with another raised eyebrow trying to figure out the dragon's strange actions.
After a few seconds Spike lifted his head back up, and let out a long sigh of relief. Just submerging his head had felt like washing his troubles away for a brief second, and another sudden want surfaced in his brain. Spike eyed his reflection noticing how his head looked leagues cleaner then his dry neck, and most likely the rest of his body. "Well of course spending the night in a diamond dog den would probably dirty me up a bit, not to mention all the running around I've been doing since we broke out."
If Trixie had been slightly confused before, she was now completely stumped as she watched Spike begin sniffing around the beach suddenly. The dragon now having moved closer to the large rocks began to dig frantically into the dirt, and sand until his head had disappeared into a hole that he had dug. "If you're choosing now of all times to go completely insane, Trixie will just continue on her way, and let you do...whatever it is that you are doing." The awkward feeling mare trotted back to her carriage when a few muffled words reached her ears, and she turned her head back around to watch Spike's head exit the hole with a mouth full of rocks of varying coloration. Trixie was about to demand that the dragon repeat himself, and then pull her carriage back to their original path, when the sound of rocks grinding into each other cut her off.
With a few hard crunches Spike's teeth ground the minerals up into a glittery dust that he promptly swallowed. A small burp threatened to escape past his lips, but it was stifled within the dragon's fang-filled mouth, and now that he didn't have any food in his mouth Spike was able to repeat himself.
"I was trying to say that I found a small stash of Binghamite over here." Feeling a few stray shards of gem still in his mouth Spike walked back to the lapping waves of water, and rinsed the meal down with a few gulps. Binghamite wasn't really one of his favorite minerals to eat due to it's sour after taste, but it would do nicely for what he had planned. Spike now entered the water until he was deep enough to completely submerge if he wanted, and after giving a quick glance toward Trixie he inhaled deeply.
Though it made some sense that Spike would sniff out some rocks to chew on, Trixie couldn't think of any other reason why the odd dragon would go into the bank afterward. She was in the middle of deciding on if he just fancied water, when a bright spout of green fire erupted from within Spike's mouth to hiss, and rage against the water he was treading. A fog of steam began to rise from the water as the hissing increased in volume. When faced with unconventional situations Trixie found it most reliable to express her opinions in a calm manner.
"What in Celestia's name are you doing?!"
Spike cut short his fire-breath to cast an odd look toward the flabbergasted unicorn, and replied with a nonchalance that most certainly didn't suit the situation. "I'm heating up my bath, duh." And with that he went back to the deed, bringing the water to a near boiling point, until he let loose a long moan of pleasure. "Oh yeah, I can feel the dirt disintegrating on the spot." Spike's eyes rolled back lazily, and he stretched his limbs out earning a few cracks, and pops, and the entire time he did Trixie cast forth the ugliest scowl that she could muster towards him.
Even the Great and Powerful Trixie had her weak points, and in her travels a soothing hot bath was hard to come by. And here she was staring down an opportunity she would probably wouldn't get again until they reached the next town, and even then she would have to perform her heart out to even get a chance at it. Once again she was going to have to ask for that ridiculous dragon's help, and barely fourteen hours had gone by since the last time she was forced to.
"Easy now Trixie no need to fret, just demand that he heat the water enough for you to get a well deserved soak, and if he refuses bash his skull in with a rock until he changes his mind." And with that Trixie trotted toward the edge of the cove until she was just a few inches away from the blue water. She opened her mouth to speak, but at that exact moment Spike suddenly disappeared beneath the water's surface with a splash. A few minutes stretched by, and Trixie now sat staring at the spot where the young dragon had just been bathing, her eyes straining to pinpoint any sign of the drake's whereabouts. The minutes dragged by even more so, and a slight shudder began to creep up the mare's spine.
"Uhhh dragon...are you still there?" No reply reached her ears, and a small frantic gleam started to show in Trixie's eyes as they scanned over the cove's surface in a hurried pace. "Trixie demands that you return to the surface so that you can do her a favor." Trixie's words echoed across the now silent beach, the only other sound being that of the smalls waves that crept up and down the shore.
An ominous feeling of being watched began to roll over the nervous unicorn like a thick fog, it circled her, pressed against her, and threatened to constrict the very breath from her being. Yet as she quickly spun around nearly tripping over herself, Trixie saw nothing except for the tree line, the beach, and her cozy carriage that seemed miles away. Alarms began to go off in her head, and ancient instincts that had been engraved into her very nature stirred with unease.
Unbeknownst to the now skittish magician a large form slunk toward her from the large rocks Spike had been looking at earlier. It's footsteps precise and muffled by the sand, and ill intent burning in it's irises.
The ominous feeling was even worse now, and Trixie's hair stood on end as she felt the presence of another creature nearby. The back of her neck was suddenly assaulted by the sensation of something breathing deeply against her, and it took everything she had not to freeze on the spot.
"Get a grip Trixie, this isn't the first time you've been in a rather....dicey situation. Just turn around and show it why nothing makes a meal out of the Great and Powerful Trixie!" Trixie's tail whipped angrily, she let out a small snort, and readied all her necessary muscles. The smell of red hot ozone burned into the air as Trixie's horn glowed, and in an instant the unicorn pivoted around to face her unfortunate foe.
If it was capable of showing fear Trixie's trusty carriage would no doubt be shaking it's wheels in absolute terror right now as it's owner stared it down ready to blast it into splinters at a moments notice. A long minute of silence stretched by as Trixie's pupils shrank, and her horn continued to fizzle with volatile magic. With a sigh Trixie relaxed, and was partially thankful that she was all alone on the still sunny beach. "If that dragon had been here he'd be holding his scaled sides like some sort of ingrate and....Oh Manure!" With her thoughts refocused on her missing dragon Trixie quickly turned back toward the beach, and came face to face with a fang filled maw only inches away from her nose.
"Boo!"
"AIIIIEEEEEHHH!!" And just like that Trixie leaped a surprising six feet into the air with all her hair standing out like a startled cat. Before she had even landed back on the ground Spike's laughter rang loud, and proud as he rolled on the sand. Trixie had only been embarrassed to this level one other time, and that ironically enough had been by the guffawing dragon's keeper. In retaliation Trixie growled in outrage and willed her magic to blast Spike right on the spot. Instead of unleashing a torrent of angry energy, Trixie's horn sputtered, and sparked until whatever magic she had stored up snuffed out.
Completely oblivious to how close he had come to being reduced to purple ash, Spike's laughter had died down to a small chuckle as he wiped a few tears of mirth from his eyes. He wasn't sure what had drove him to swim out into the deeper waters of the cove so he could emerge behind the large rocks, but the end results had been well worth the trouble. Spike honestly didn't think that Trixie would have been so easy to prank, now all he could do was grin and await the angered unicorn's wrath.
Trixie face-hoofed in realization as she figured out why her magic had waned suddenly. Her concentration was shot, the most powerful emotion she was feeling was embarrassment, and nerve-racking adrenaline was still running it's course through her veins. All the things that could ruin an unprepared unicorns connection with her magic, and now she was almost as useless as that still giggling dragon in front of her. "It's not that funny."
"Depends on which side of the joke you're on, and here I was thinking that you weren't scared of anything." Spike turned on his side so that he was facing the glaring mare, and it took all he had not to bust out laughing at the still present blush on her face.
"T-Trixie wasn't scared! You just startled Trixie for a brief moment."
"Startled? Didn't know a startled pony could break the sound barrier by screaming out of surprise."
"SHUT UP! A startled pony has no problem blasting that stupid grin off your face. And to believe that Trixie might have actually been worr..." Trixe stopped her sentence right then, and there as Spike raised an eyebrow and gave her a surprised look. A second skipped by before Trixie found the right words to cover her earlier misspoken sentence."Worried that she wouldn't have some scale for brains dragon to pull her carriage, and fetch her lunches!" Spike didn't look like he was completely buying Trixie's cover up, but his face turned apologetic as he spoke.
"Alright I'm sorry, I shouldn't have scared...err I mean startled you like that. Anything I can do to.."
"Yes there is! Trixie commands you to run her a hot bath this instant." Pride would have to take a step back as Trixie was in no mood to let this elude her any longer.
"You mean heat up the water like I did earlier? Is that all?"
"Yes! Well you could shut up for a while, now stop yapping and do as Trixie commands!"
With an annoyed huff Spike turned to the water, and belched out another torrent of green fire. Trixie allowed herself a small giggle of glee as she watched the waters simmer, too excited to merely stand patiently the azure mare paced back and forth until Spike stopped. Trixie almost leaped into the awaiting embrace of the heated water when a sudden thought halted her. Spike, now done with his task had plopped down on the sand and was now watching her while his head rested on his clawed hands.
"What are you doing dragon?" Spike seemed confused by the question, and even looked himself over to make sure he wasn't doing anything odd. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary Spike turned back towards the unicorn who was now donning a slight glare.
"Uhhh laying here, is there something wrong?"
Trixie rolled her eyes and stomped her front hooves against the sand in impatience. "Yes there is, don't you think that there is a slight problem with you laying there while Trixie bathes?"
"What? So now you have a problem with a dragon watching while you take a dumb bath." Honestly Spike couldn't understand this irate mare to any degree, one moment she's giving him advice, and the next she has a problem with him relaxing for a minute. He was just keeping an eye out to make sure he hadn't over-heated the water since he knew ponies were a little less heat resistant than dragons. Trixie gave him a look that screamed 'are you seriously this dense' before her eyes jumped from the water, to him, to her, and back to the water. This continued until Trixie spoke with what sounded like barely contained irritation.
"Trixie has a problem with a MALE dragon watching her take a bath, stupid!" And just like that all the gears meshed into place, and for a long second the only thing that transpired was the rapid reddening of Spike's face. His forest green eyes now wide open glanced toward Trixie, to the water, and back to himself just like Trixie's eyes had a moment earlier. His frantic gaze settled back on the unicorn who seemed to read his mind, and nodded her head to confirm his train of thought. Several emotions flashed across the dragons face before he jumped to his feet, and stuttered an apology.
"O-Oh! T-that makes sense! Wow I can't believe that I didn't r-realize...Sorry f-for that...I-I'll just go over there!" And with that Spike scampered over to the large rocks, and ran out of sight behind them. Despite the air of awkwardness caused by that situation, and the amount that would surely be present later on Trixie smirked. The only way that could have been any funnier is if the ashamed dragon had tucked his tail between his legs while he scurried off.
Now that she was alone Trixie eased herself into the still plenty warm water, and for a moment she completely submerged herself to allow all the built up dirt, and filth to dissipate. Her head broke the water's surface a second later, and she whinnied in satisfaction feeling the tension in her muscles being soothed away. "Oh Trixie it's been much too long my dear, a pony as great and amazing as you should never have to go so long without a relaxing wash." After a few minutes had gone by Trixie could already feel the water's temperature lowering back to it's original level, and she sighed in annoyance. The mare briefly wondered if she should call Spike back, and have him raise the temperature again while she lounged in the water comfortably. But the emerald fires probably wouldn't be discriminant regarding what they burned, and that would be a problem, plus Spike would probably be much to shy to offer his assistance until after she had dried off.
Trixie giggled at the image of a red faced Spike trying his hardest to keep his eyes off of her as he bathed the water with a blanket of flame. If one was willing to look past his wise-guy attitude, somepony might actually find him...attractive. Of course not her! Trixie couldn't stand his rare abundance of wit, or the brilliant way his scales had gleamed in the sunlight before he had ran off.
Before her thoughts could get any more confusing, or hypocritical Trixie became aware of something nudging her back left leg. The unexpected touch had unsettled Trixie to such an extent that she kicked out rather suddenly, making the water murky with displaced sand, and bubbles. Not even a second later the same foreign entity was now poking her sides almost making her succumb to a tickle fit. As she swatted at the unseen limb with a submerged hoof, Trixie's mind jumped to the only creature dumb enough to try something like this.
"Cut it out you overgrown gecko!" Trixie's horn glowed to life and she felt her magic grasp, and constrict around the offending shadow that she could barely make out in the now murky water. "And to think that Trixie might of assumed you had some shred of decency!"
A loud splash announced the entrance of the magical aura surrounded tail as it thrashed about in vain. Spike must have thought it would be funny to poke, and prod her with his tail in an attempt to scare her again. A forceful tug on the tail's other end nearly dragged the unsuspecting unicorn deeper into the water, but she dug her hooves as deep into the wet earth as she could, and pulled back using her magic. Even though it was covered in Trixie's blue hued magic, the tail whipped about angrily, and whacked her once on the head.
"So you wanna play rough huh?! Alright but don't say Trixie didn't warn you!" And with that the magic surrounding the tail compressed, and shaped until the once rebellious limb now stood stiff as a board. Trixie smirked to herself as she used her well honed magic to bend the helpless tail into an odd, and hopefully painful angle. The tugging beneath the water increased tenfold as Spike must have been thrashing about in agony. "Maybe next time you'll know your place lowly dragon!"
And like that the limb hung limp in defeat, it's other end ceased it's pulling, which Trixie took as a sign of surrender. With a victorious smile Trixie minimized her magic hold until it was down to a ethereal blue ring still gripping the tail by it's tip. Trixie offered a few tuts before she began lecturing the limb turned prisoner, adding as much insult to injury as she could.
"Well Trixie hopes you learned a lesson, never match might, or wits with your superior. Trixie had actually thought that you might have been close to her level of intelligence, now look at yourself. Bruised, broken, and at Trixie's mercy, just like all her other challengers." Despite her gloating Trixie felt slightly let down, she had hoped Spike would put up more of a fight, but perhaps even a dragon had it's limits. The limp greyish brown tail that she held in her magical grasp lacked the stubborn, wise-ass , and mentally maddening backbone that she had seen the night before...In fact it lacked any of the purple scales, or small green spines that had lined it as well. Now that she thought about it Trixie could have sworn that Spike's tail ended with a small arrow headed tip instead of just a blunt point.
An uneasy feeling began to crawl up Trixie's spine as her eyes followed the dull colored tentacle back into the murky water that it's owner was probably shrouded in. Suddenly from the corner of her eyes Trixie noticed something slithering out of the water, toward where she stood. Another brown limb felt it's away around the wet sand until it found itself prodding Trixie's front left hoof. Before she realized what was happening the second tentacle wrapped itself around Trixie's leg, and out sprang out another three grasping limbs from the water each one reaching toward the surprised mare.
Trixie pulled back as fast as she could, but the second limb held strong, and the original came back to life, and reached out toward her neck with renewed energy. The cove's water level began to swell rapidly as a large mass made it's way toward the surface, and Trixie was transfixed with fright as two large yellow orbs stared up at her from deep below.
Remembering her magic Trixie fired up her horn, and blasted the grasping tentacle that held her in place, causing it to fry up and release her. But the other tentacles had closed the distance, and Trixie found both of her front hooves being dragged toward the menacing waters, and the approaching entity beneath. The water now swelled high above her, before being burst forth by a large silhouette that eclipsed the sun with it's size.
As Trixie looked up into the pair of hungry yellow eyes, and the cavernous mouth filled to the brim with teeth, her mind loudly shouted within the confines of her skull. "Horse-apples!" While her body rerouted all functions to opening her mouth, and sending forth what could be her final words.
"SPIIIKE!!!"
End of Chapter!:
CLIFFHANGAAA! |
Dealt A Bad Hoof | Chapter 6 | "Spiiike!"
This was ludicrous, what kind of dumb luck does a unicorn have to be cursed with to finally get a shot at a much deserved bath? And instead of a gross bar of soap with some hair on it or even a cute rubber ducky, you find a giant lake monster in your tub. Of course when that layabout excuse for a dragon took his turn nothing tried to bad touch him, but the moment Trixie just so happens to get her hoof wet. Bam! Big, scary, dumb looking harbinger of death packing a cavernous mouth full of teeth, and for extra giggles, tentacles as well.
As she kicked about in vain in her moment of complete helplessness, Trixie thought back to some of the stories she had been told back when she was just a filly. This would be the moment where the handsome, valiant knight would save the beautiful, selfless damsel in distress in true heroic fashion. Swiveling her head from side to side, Trixie found the entire area lacking of would-be saviors, it was like some cruel, sick joke was being played on her for the amusement of a third party. Luckily when all else fails, Trixie possessed a brilliant Plan B for these kind of situations.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie demands that you release her, before she uses her unparallelled might to cast you into another dimension!" Anyone who believed that said plan would involve humility should excuse themselves at this point. "The Great and Powerful Trixie warns you that she has a fearsome, blood-thirsty dragon as her servant, his size causes Ursa Majors to shriek in fear, and his flames rival the very sun!"
As a rule it's considered a bad habit for one to play with it's food, but the odd creature within his grasp had piqued the Lord of the Lake's interest. It's not often that a fish would ponder the inner machinations of an insect that had flown too close to the water's surface before jumping out to eat it. In his time this monster had been known by many names, each well deserved through his prowling of this section of the great lake. The Lurking Hunger, Terror of the Shallows, and the Grasping Death, but for the moment let's just refer to him as Homer.
Homer was a classic monster, he hadn't been afraid of anything since he had grown past ten feet, he was hungry frequently, and he liked to stay within the section of the lake that he was familiar with. For the past few decades things have been pretty cushy, well cushy for a top predator like himself. Plenty of food sources frequented the the depths that he stalked, his area was much too shallow for the varying aquatic life that dwarfed even his size, and he could laze about all he wanted without worries. But now here he was intrigued by this squawking morsel caught within his whiskers, if it wasn't making such a racket it might have looked cute enough to keep as a pet. As he pondered whether he could handle the responsibilities of caring for a lesser life form Homer was oblivious to the threats of his captive.
"This is your last final warning you overgrown minnow! Put The Great and Powerful Trixie down, or face the full unrestrained reservoir of her wrath!" Seeing that the tentacles continued to constrain her, Trixie scowled in frustration before she began to concentrate her magic. A blue aura began to surround her horn as she focused every irritated thought swirling inside her head on the monstrosity that loomed before her. Her power was limitless, her intellect without equal, this thing was nothing, and she was everything! The pungent odor of burning ozone perfumed the air as Trixie's horn glowed angrily.
After much internal debate Homer decided that he was in fact ready for the challenge of owning his own pet. He would feed it, and take it for walks... err swims, and love it unconditionally until the day he grew bored of it and ate it. He would name it Chatterbox, and together the two would be the best of friends till the day it displeased him, and was promptly devoured for it's actions. As he focused his attention back to his captive, Homer noticed that the his adoptive pet's head was glowing. For a moment Homer gleefully wondered if his pet knew any tricks.
"Who the hay do you think I am!"
Homer's eyes were suddenly blinded by a flash of light, then a stinging sensation overtook one of his oldest whiskers. When the yellow orbs that were his eyes finally regained their sight, Homer was shocked to find that the whisker that had been restraining one of Chatterbox's limbs had ceased to exist.
With a victorious smirk Trixie stared down the shocked looking beast in front of her. "The Great and Powerful Trixie did warn you, foolish flounder. Now tremble in fear of the most powerful unicorn to walk the land, and pray that The Great and Powerful Trixie shows you mercy!" With the tables turned the triumphant mare actually felt silly for calling on Spike for help. This so called lake monster was a pushover, an empty threat, and...
"Raauuugh!"
..looked really pissed off! The smirk quickly slid off Trixie's face as her hat was blown off her head from the sheer force of the monster's irritated roar. "...Manure." With a shriek Trixie found herself being lifted into the air by the tentacle that still held her other leg. A feeling of nausea swept over Trixie as she was swung to and fro for a minute before she came to hang upside down in front of the now glaring leviathan.
To be completely honest Homer should have saw this coming, this he could admit. He was aware that Chatterbox had 'stung' him earlier when he was first investigating the disturbance on the beach, so it really shouldn't have come as a surprise that the undomesticated creature would do it again. Homer realized that if his new pet was ever going to behave, he would have to nip this rebellious behavior in the bud. And the best way to do that was to scare the living daylights out of Chatterbox so that it understood that stinging was not tolerated.
"Seriously, where in Celestia's name is that stupid dragon?!" As terrible of a hero that drake would make, his scale hide would still be better than nothing. As she hung upside down like a mere plaything Trixie scowled as she imagined the purple dragon gorging himself on rocks, and ignoring her request for aid. "The Great and Powerful Trixie swears that if she somehow manages to survive this, the dragon will pay severely."
"Well, I guess I'll just turn back around and go save some other egotistical unicorn in over her head."
Both Trixie, and the Homer turned their heads to see a certain purple and green dragon watching them just a few meters away. An odd silence settled over the scene as monster, and captive stared at our nick of time hero, and he stared right back.
Silence is overrated.
"It's about time you showed up! Now hurry up and rescue Trixie, you lazy lizard!" And just like that our damsel expresses her gratitude toward her liberator's arrival.
"How is it that I'm barely gone for five minutes, and you've already managed to get yourself in this kind of situation?" Not that Spike had expected anything other than Trixie's typical grating attitude, but given the mess she was in a little appreciation would be nice.
"Trixie didn't even do anything! Trixie was innocently enjoying her bath, when this fish popped up out of nowhere and tried to eat Trixie for no reason!" Despite still being dangled in the air by the confused looking lake monster, the blue mare had no problem glaring at the pain in the flank dragon. "Now, shut up and liberate Trixie from this grotesque goldfish before she uses your scales for a new cape!"
Hearing that Spike took a thoughtful expression then looked from the irate pony to her huge new friend. With a toothy smile Spike waved his arms around to get the monster's attention. "Hey big guy, are you sure you want her? Seriously I've been stuck with her for only a few days and I don't think I'll ever recover from the physical and emotional trauma." Spike nearly laughed when he heard the unicorn cry out indignantly, he figured a little humor at Trixie's expense was worth the sure to come payback.
"Quit joking around like an idiot and save me! Right now!" Trixie might have actually preferred being devoured by a scourge from the deep then have to deal with her traveling companion for another second. If she wasn't hanging here so ridiculously and had her hat, Trixie would just blast both Spike and this fish..toad..thing into dust.
Sighing, Spike rolled his eyes, and decided it was time to be serious. "Fine, I guess if I'm going to have any chance at getting back home keeping you in one piece is necessary."
For Homer this was certainly a strange twist, apparently Chatterbox had a friend. Or at least he thought they knew each other seeing the way they squawked back and forth. As interesting as the new arrival was Homer wasn't looking to adopt an entire litter of critters, so Chatterbox's friend would have to go. With a deep baritone growl, Homer lifted his prize high above his head and croaked a challenge to the newcomer.
"Twilight is never going to believe me when I tell her about this thing." The gargantuan monster holding Trixie hostage really was a lake monster in every right, five times Spike's size and looking unwilling to just talk this out. At first Spike thought it had to be some huge catfish with the blank yellow eyes, and multiple whiskers on it's face, but it didn't seem to be having issues breathing out of the water so maybe it was more like some kind of giant newt or frog. Another impatient shout from Trixie brought Spike out of his musings, he had a irritating pony to save. "Alright Mister, I'm only going to ask nicely once. Put the pony down."
Elsewhere:
She could raise the sun, run the entire land of Equestria from her throne room, and play a mean game of tennis when the mood struck her. But as the alicorn made her way down the countless lavish corridors and passageways of her castle, Princess Celestia sighed at her own inability to track down her distressed student. Celestia had hoped that Twilight would still be in bed once the alicorn had finished speaking with the Royal Guards as well as her younger sister Luna, but upon her return Celestia found the guest room vacated. And now the white alicorn was attempting to track down her missing student before she did something... rash. Having a single loved one lost somewhere outside of her land's protective borders was more than enough, and Celestia wouldn't stand for another to go blindly chasing after.
As the ruler of Equestria it was Celestia's sworn duty to watch over and protect her ponies, and in the alicorn's eyes all of her subjects were family. A sentiment that was expressed strongest when referring to her apprentice, and the missing drake. Her godly creation gifted her with a body that would withstand the ravages of time, but also robbed her of the most magical thing a creature could do. It was the threads of fate themselves that had tugged, and pulled her to that first meeting with a wide-eyed purple filly, a promising candidate for the element of magic that had managed to do something quite unexpected. Hatch a dragon egg, a task that should have ended with said egg shaking slightly before the young unicorn was graded on the intensity of her magical aura.
Instead of what should have happened, Celestia arrived to find a flabbergasted filly, and a baby dragon with no caretaker. To place the responsibility of another life upon a pony as young as Twilight would be ridiculous, and with no other pony willing to take him, the newborn was somehow placed in the Princess's very own hooves. It wasn't supposed to be a permanent arrangement, the hatching now dubbed 'Spike' was only to be in Celestia's care until a more suitable foster family could be found, but once again the threads of fate continued their work. It wasn't long before Celestia was doting upon 'her little Spike' and the two were inseparable, bringing the baby dragon to all of her conferences, and of course to her magic session with the young Twilight.
Celestia could honestly admit that those years had been arguably the best of her long life. Walking the impressionable filly Twilight through levitation spells, while her younger charge murmured incoherently in his sleep as he nestled within her multicolored mane. Soon enough Spike was talking, and following the studious purple unicorn like she was his older sister, Twilight in turn developed a soft spot for the dragon and quickly began treating him like a little brother. A mental image of the three of them spending their time together in the castle gardens settled on Celestia's mind, and suddenly she was struck with inspiration. The alicorn's walk sped up to a quick trot as she suddenly had an idea of where her missing student might have gone.
Meanwhile:
Thud!
"Le gasp! And to think that I honestly believed that you would fail The Great and Powerful Trixie in her time of need."
Thud!
"Spike you're my hero, w-will you sign m-my autograph book?" The blue mare wheezed.
Thud! "Okay, I get it, knock it off."
"But Sir Spike, how else can the Great and Powerful Trixie express her overwhelming gratitude for accomplishing such a courageous feat. You have liberated this unicorn princess from her horrible captor and The Great and Powerful Trixie is ever so thankful."
THUD! "Cut it out, this is bad enough without you patronizing me here." Thud!
"Oh to be rescued by such a valiant, and handsome dragon, The Great and Powerful Trixie's poor heart is aflutter with emotion. The Great and Powerful Trixie can't control the thoughts that run through her pretty little head as she gazes upon her champion. To have his scaled arms hold her close, to feel his brimstone breath on her neck. Oh, Spike, I can't control my feelings any longer! I must have your scaled, gem nibbling babies!"
"FOR CELESTIA'S SAKE SHUT UP!" THUD! "...Ow." Despite his face currently being used to make imprints on the warm sand, Spike could still clearly make out the sound of somepony's aggravating laughter.
"Oh, you're no fun at all, Trixie is just trying to amuse herself while she patiently waits to be rescued...you do plan on rescuing me eventually, right?" Propping her elbow on the tentacle holding her high above the ground, Trixie rested her head upon her front left hoof as she took in the sight below her. Somehow after the point where her 'savior' demanded that this overgrown fish put her down, she was forced to watch the young dragon being used as a whack-a-mole mallet. At first the sight had her gasping for air between her bouts of laughter, and eventually she settled for cheering her companion on...or was it ridiculing? At the least the lake monster looked thoroughly amused, which was better than it deciding to eat them both.
"I'd love to, if I wasn't getting my scaled hide handed to me at the moment!" Quoting a well meaning pegasus that had a unexpected mastery of chess, Spike for the life him just could not figure what had gone wrong. One moment he was hurtling himself toward the monster holding his obnoxious partner captive, the next he was being swung up, down, and all around.
"All kidding aside, you are honestly the worst hero of all time."
"Well excuse me princess, but you're the worst damsel in distress ever." Gritting his teeth in agitation at Trixie's antics, Spike was suddenly struck with an idea. It wasn't the most 'pleasant' of plans, but given the situation at hand, Spike really lacked the time to be picky. Taking a deep breath to help steel his mind, (a challenging effort thanks to two surprisingly strong tentacles constricting his limbs and torso,) Spike gave the seemingly amused fish/frog/thing an almost apologetic look, then revealed a mouth full of extremely sharp dragon teeth. "This is going to hurt you a lot more than it'll probably hurt me."
Surprisingly, Homer was having much more fun with this than he had anticipated. Chatterbox's purple friend was much more resilient than Homer had expected, and made a highly satisfying noise when it met the ground. So caught up in his jolly good time Homer was completely oblivious to the look his newest toy had given him, and the stiletto-filled jaws that were about to close on his whiskers. Chomp! And then the good times came to an abrupt and painful halt.
"Took you long enough, scale for brains." A small smirk settled on Trixie's face as she watched the lake monster's huge eyes cringe in pain, and it's monstrous form go stiff as a board. "Now let's see what a dragon can really do."
The metallic taste in his mouth was most unwelcome, as Spike's fangs cut cleanly through one tentacle, and bit deeply into the second. Barely a few hours ago Spike had confessed his disapproval of feeding on other organisms, and now here he was with the sickening tang of copper trickling onto his tongue. Almost immediately his opponent writhed in pain, and Spike was flung across the beach, using the momentum Spike rolled a safe distance away from the no thoroughly unamused creature.
The creature bellowed it's outrage, and tossed it's head to and fro, an action that had the still captive unicorn shrieking in surprise. "Hey, idiot! Get The Great and Powerful Trixie down before she loses her lunch!"
As he picked himself off the ground Spike wondered briefly why Trixie was resigning to the helpless maiden role instead of blasting this thing with her magic like she had threatened to do to him oh so many times before. Taking note that those slithering whiskers were much faster than they looked Spike darted forward like a purple bolt of lightning. Like the time before his charge was met with a dozen feelers eager to seize him, and probably pull each of his limbs painfully from his body. With a last minute hop to the right Spike moved past the spearing tentacles, and was now close enough to actually mount a counterattack.
With no time to draw back, and his whiskers reacting too slowly Homer did the only thing he could. With a groan Homer heaved forward hoping to catch the blasted little purple vermin in his cavernous jaws, he would take a perverse pleasure in tearing Chatterbox's acquaintance to pieces.
The horrendous odor of dead flesh, and mud that met Spike's nostrils nearly made him trip over himself in a fit of coughing, and gagging, but Spike swallowed down the bile threatening to escape his throat and pressed onward. As the ungodly sized mouth filled with teeth bore down on him, Spike couldn't help but notice his stomach grumble uneasily. As the creature's form blocked out the sun, and Spike's eyes peered into the ravenous maw that was more than happy to swallow him whole, the young drake decided that this would be one of those 'trust your gut moments'.
Three things took place at that one moment.
Homer found out the hard way that Chatterbox's purple friend knew some tricks of it's own. As his tongue blistered, and his eyes teared up from the unparallelled agony that came from a mouth filled with dragon fire. His opponent, and his prize were both forgotten as Homer wanted nothing more than to put out the burning pain within his jaws.
With the familiar tingling heat tickling his mouth Spike gazed into the cave of gluttony as it was bathed in emerald green light. Not the most visually pleasing sight to behold, but at least the green tint was a nice touch.
Despite her disapproval with the purple dragon in nearly all aspects, Trixie whistled in appreciation as the air suddenly grew hot, and she watched the lake monster getting a spicier meal than it probably had planned. The constricting tentacle that was holding her released immediately, and Trixie found that gravity had sorely missed her. The blue unicorn scarcely had time to yell in surprise as she plummeted toward the wet sand below, Trixie really wished she had her hat right about now. Though no hat magically appeared back on her head, a consolation prize came in the form of a certain scaled hero snatching her up just before she hit the ground. Vision swimming for a moment thanks to all of the sudden falling, then not falling Trixie shook her head for a moment before making eye contact with her less than willing savior.
"Well, my irritating princess, was that a good enough rescue or not?" Despite how irksome saving her had been, his victory over a huge lake monster had Spike feeling pretty good, and admittedly Trixie's expression pulled a unexpected grin out of him.
Violet eyes finally focusing, Trixie gasped inaudibly as her vision was filled with two bright green orbs looking right at her as well as the ridiculous way the sun in the background was making those purple scales glint. This was the way a valiant hero was supposed to look no doubt, it's a shame it had to be in the form of a know it all dragon. Feeling the damnable hints of heat spreading across her face, Trixie replied with complete professionalism, and grace.
"I-I guess so....for an incompetent dragon. Next time try not to waste time with goofing around alright." Seeing the dragon's dumb grin sour into an annoyed frown, Trixie congratulated herself for handling the situation with her ego, and image intact. A short lived congratulation as Spike suddenly dropped her his slitted pupils narrowed at her version of a 'thank you'. As she rubbed her smarting flank for moment, Trixie shared a look of mutual dislike with Spike before she picked herself up, and tracked down her hat.
"I'll keep that in mind next time you manage to tick something off, which I'm sure is just a matter of minutes." With a roll of his eyes Spike growled to himself as he could still taste copper on his tongue and resisted the urge to spit.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie won't need your help dragon, in fact she didn't even require assistance this time." The light blue mare was dusting off her hat at the moment and had her back turned to Spike as she continued with her task. "Trixie merely found battling that bottom dwelling leech beneath her, she could have vanquished it without even try..."
The sound of splashing cut Trixie off, and barely a second had gone by before Spike yelped in surprise. A chill crept up the magician's spine as she slowly turned around, taking in the sight before her Trixie nearly face-hoofed.
Apparently a mouthful of green fire wasn't enough to dissuade this monstrosity, in fact it looked highly pissed off. Spike scarcely had time to defend himself before he was hoisted into the air by his tail, twirled around like a sling, then tossed over Trixie's head to land in groaning heap next to her wagon.
Homer was mad, not just mad but outright furious. He had tried to be a nice guy, tried settling for crushing that purple thing's bones as a warning, and going about his day with his new found companion. A line had been crossed approximately around the time that his tongue was set alight, and everything began to taste like brimstone. His mother had always told him back in his tiny days as a mere foot long spawnling. "Homer, don't play with your food, it gives them hope that they might escape." A lesson painfully learned it would seem, but now the kiddy gloves were coming off, and this creature was in for a world of hurt.
"Umm, are you alright dragon?" Not that Trixie cared about the dragon's well being but he had almost hit her beloved wagon, and she needed him conscious for a well deserved berating.
"...Pinkie? W-what do you mean the fourth wall is breaking?"
"Never send a dumb dragon to do a mare's job." With a roll of her violet eyes, Trixie adjusted her hat, and faced her opponent. The creature was rising up even higher than before as more of it's form began to emerge from the lake's waves. Trixie's horn glowed a light blue as she flexed her magic knowledge within her mind, she was prepared for whatever ridiculous thing the monster would try with it's odd whiskers.
It was at this moment that two large, and webbed hands surfaced from below Homer, and with them he pulled half his body onto the beach. With a croaking roar Homer began dragging himself toward the still down and out dragon almost within reach.
"Of course! Why wouldn't that stupid thing be able to chase us on land too." Horn now shining with unicorn magic Trixie willed a pale blue wall to materialize between the defenseless dragon and the clawed left hand that was only a few feet from closing on him.
Homer's rage subsided slightly as his hand impacted a solid surface that hadn't been sitting in front of his prey a second ago. Despite a few curious attempts at moving past the wall, or moving it from between him and his target, the shimmering wall continued to stubbornly stand strong, and even moved to block his path. Within seconds the curiosity gave way to agitation as Homer's decision to eradicate the unmoving purple creature was being denied, and with another roar Homer began lashing out with his whiskers alongside his hands.
Tsh! Trixie's magical shield hissed in objection to the multiple impacts from the now raging monster, and in Trixie's mind the wall was beginning to strain under the pressure. Gritting her teeth, Trixie redoubled her efforts concentrating on her own ironclad will, and focusing on the image of an impenetrable wall with her cutie marks insignia engraved into it's center. The magical wall grew in size, and defiantly stood as solid as a mountain while Homer continued to bash away at it.
Despite watching the barrier between him and his prey grow, Homer's assault never lessened in fact his blows began to rain down harder, and harder still as his fury fueled his desire to reduce this odd wall to rubble, then rend the small fire spewer to pieces.
The strain from keeping the raging beast at bay was beginning to show as Trixie grit her teeth, and the sounds of groaning metal began to echo in her head. Despite her might she couldn't stay on the defensive forever, and her confidence began to wane as the implications regarding what else this mutant newt was capable of started to worm their way into her thoughts. The wall crumpled slightly in her head, and the magical one in the real world mirrored the movement Trixie's eyes widened as the blows increased even more so in frequency. "To hell with this, The Great and Powerful Trixie doesn't defend. SHE ATTACKS!"
To Homer's surprise the wall crumpled into itself like a wadded up piece of paper, and careened into his head with the force of a angry bison. Staggering slightly Homer's eyes blinked wildly as a far off tree was covered with that same pale blue and then uprooted itself so that it could careen toward him like a giant sized baseball bat.
Wham! The tree's bark creaked in protest, and hairline cracks began to creep up it's trunk from hitting the incredibly solid lake monster. Without hesitating Trixie continued to wail on the now retreating beast with the tree, scattering leaves, branches, and bits of bark all along the beach. The unicorn felt her confidence return as she felt every blow strike true upon the hard to miss monstrosity, hopefully it would turn tail before her procured weapon gave out.
Wham! Wham!
Homer lashed out blindly with his right hand, and deflected another incoming blow. With a few moments time before the tree would surely be back Homer viewed the landscape wildly, he wouldn't lose sight of his target if he had anything to say about it. Instead of the still unconscious drake, Homer's yellow eyes focused on Chatterbox, and the strained look upon her odd face. His vision swam in crimson once more as Homer connected the dots in his old mind. Chatterbox was using it's tricks again, and was defending it's acquaintance from him, Chatterbox would have to be reprimanded harshly for this.
Another roar assaulted Trixie's ears, accompanied by the stomach dropping sound of her tree finally breaking as the monster struck out with both claws. Her magic dropped instantly as Trixie stumbled over her hooves in an attempt to avoid the massive claw that struck the very spot she had been standing on. The monster's bellows of anger shook Trixie's world as she scrambled madly to outrun a dozen of tentacles that slithered toward her, the sand caused her hooves to sink slightly with every step denying the mare from reaching her full speed and causing her heart to nearly beat out of her chest.
The sand beside her exploded as another webbed hand missed it's target, and sand rained down on Trixie's body and mane as she continued to zigzag her way around the beach to avoid being easy to hit. Any luck Trixie might have accumulated ran out instantly, as Trixie found herself tripping over the very hole that damned dragon had dug up earlier. As she rolled across the sand Trixie pulled her hat as tightly to her head as she could while her eyes shut close, she didn't want to see the massive claw finally blot out the sun, and then her life.
The incoming claw struck something with enough force to create a miniature crater where Trixie laid huddling, but not a hair on Trixie's mane had been disturbed. Daring to take a peek from behind her closed eyelids, Trixie's eyes sprung wide open as she watched a familiar scaled figure stave off the massive claw still training to reach her.
"Now, this feels more like how a damsel in distress scenario should play out." Spike's legs ached in pain as he tried to stand as solid as Trixie's magical wall while he kept the one claw almost as large as his entire body at bay with his two hands. The lake monster seemed to be so caught up on getting past Spike that it forgot being able to just toss him aside, not that Spike was going to complain.
"...H-how?"
"Hey, don't mention it, Trix. You did save my skin just a moment ago so the gentle dragon thing to do is return the favor at my nearest convenience." Spike offered a sharp-toothed grin to the still surprised mare, though he felt that his muscles might give out if he stalled for much longer. "I was thinking if you weren't too incredibly busy, the Great and Powerful Trixie might do me the honor of helping me get rid of this overgrown salamander." Spike's green eyes twinkled almost playfully as he silently prayed that Trixie's would help out thanks to the light ego stroking he was attempting.
Finally losing patience regarding his claw being held back Homer swung his other claw in a slicing arc intent on spilling the purple creature's blood. With all his concentration on keeping the first claw away from Trixie, Spike could only watch as the webbed hand closed in with it's dirty claws poised to dig into his shining scales. The purple dragon blinked unconsciously as the giant appendage stopped mere inches from his face, the hand now encased by a familiar blue glow.
"That's two for flinching, dragon, and The Great and Powerful Trixie looks forward to collecting on that when we are done." Despite the light blue unicorn getting him again at the most inappropriate of times, Spike couldn't help but mirror Trixie's smug grin with a smirk of his own. With a stomp of her hoof, Trixie willed the claw to draw away from Spike, then crash into it's sibling riding her savior from his burden. The lake monster croaked out another challenging growl as it regained itself, and began to charge the pair. Sharing a nod, Spike and Trixie faced the oncoming foe, the smell of ozone and brimstone spiced the air around them.
Celestia's Royal Garden:
Flowers bloomed, the local fauna filled the air with various sounds of contentment, and the sun shined pleasantly over the landscape. But even the near perfect environment couldn't brighten the mood of a certain purple unicorn as she sat quietly from the balcony overlooking what was once her favorite spot in Celestia's castle. Various memories weaved through her thoughts as Twilight pondered her next course of action. The rest had done her wonders, and she knew Celestia was doing everything in her power, but none of that could quiet the restlessness that raged in her heart. She wanted to gather her friends and brave the alien world that existed outside of Equestria's borders to find her little lost brother, but even she had to admit the slim chances of finding him without any clues or direction to go on. So instead, Twilight quietly watched the garden's residents carry on with their day while the memories of her filly days played within in her mind like an old home movie.
Images of the day Twilight first hatched Spike were followed by the motherly way Celestia would look after the dragonling while Twilight practiced simple levitation spells. Spike's first word had actually been Twilight's name, and his second had been an attempt to say ruby though baby speech made it sound more like he had burbled 'rupee'. In time Spike was speaking full sentences, asking questions (which Twilight loved any opportunity to answer if she had the knowledge), and even assisting the young apprentice in her studies. When Twilight's older brother began his enlistment within the royal guard, and was scarcely around to lend her the brotherly support she craved from time to time, it was Spike who filled the role. He listened to her troubles, more than once dragged her back to reality when her thought process would run awry, and in the end pushed her to make friends.
"I really wish I knew where you were, Spike."
"As do I."
So caught up in her thoughts Twilight failed to notice that her mentor was now standing only a few feet away. The Princess herself wore an expression of deep thought as her eyes drifted from the gardens below to fixate on the purple unicorn.
"You can be hard to locate when the mood suits you Twilight, it would seem rest has done little to ease your mind."
Twilight could only nod quietly as she tried to keep her gaze focused on a familiar fountain that she had spent past days practicing next to in previous years. She could feel Celestia's eyes focused on her, and Twilight had to fight off the urge to shuffle nervously. The sound of a deep sigh caused Twilight's ears to perk up, and she spared a glance toward the alicorn, the exhaustion radiating from the Princess almost caused the purple unicorn to gasp.
"Oh Twilight, please pardon me, I must look a complete mess." Celestia's mane was disheveled, small bags were beginning to form under her pale magenta eyes, and she rested what was probably a weary head on the balcony railing. Seeing the worried sheen in her young protege's eyes, Celestia tried to offer a calming smile, but it had no effect on Twilight's expression.
"Princess Celestia, you look like you haven't slept for days. Wasn't it you who told me that staying up all night worrying would do more bad than good?" It's not often that the sun goddess found herself on the receiving side of a solid scolding, but for a moment all Celestia could do was sit there sheepishly while her apprentice made her sound like a foolish filly.
Twilight might have went off into a full blown lecture if it hadn't dawned upon her just how much the situation was probably affecting her princess. Who knows how many royal duties Celestia had neglected in favor of scouring her archives for books that might have helped locate the missing dragon, or the amount of sleep she skipped so that more time could be spent sending messengers to far off outpost to relay orders to be on the lookout for a young purple dragon.
"If I'm not allowed to drive myself into the ground worrying about Spike, then that goes double for you, Princess." The rainbow-maned alicorn's smile grew slightly, since the beginning Celestia could tell that the doe-eyed filly that sat across from a recently hatched dragon egg was marked for great things. It only seemed right that her student would be the one to drag the princess out of depression she was slowly sinking into. With that Celestia's mane seemed to brighten slightly as she stood back to her full regal height, and she motioned for the purple mare to follow her into the castle.
"Thank you, Twilight... I needed that."
Twilight followed her princess into the castle, and before long the two were conversing about recent developments, the weather, and fond memories regarding their beloved dragon. An unspoken agreement seemed to have passed between the two as at the moment both, they would do everything they could to locate Spike, but wouldn't allow each other to sink back into that pit of helplessness they had both nearly fallen into. As they neared Celestia's private quarters, Twilight had brought up the subject of the Elements of Harmony's creation, a question that had sat quietly within her mind for years .
"As much as it pains me to say Twilight, my understanding of the Elements of Harmony is hardly beyond your own." Noticing Twilight's surprised expression Celestia willed her magic to open the twin doors before them as she elaborated. "Much like the Crystal Heart's purpose is to protect the ponies within the Crystal Empire's land, the Elements of Harmony are used to keep Equestria's denizens safe. While my sister and I are here to watch over the land, and maintain order, the Elements keep the balance when we are unable to do so."
"But you used them to banish Discord, and to stop Nightmare moon, so you must have some kind of understanding of how they were made." Any other moment Twilight would have reprimanded herself for questioning her own princess in such a way, but the purple unicorn was baffled that the all-knowing alicorn before her was almost as clueless as her regarding the most powerful treasures within Equestria.
"The Elements were constructed by a force much more powerful than myself, Twilight, while I came into being to put an end to the various dangers that plagued Equestria, they had been the ones to restore actual balance." Celestia now moved toward the large cushy bed that her body so desperately wished to lay upon, though she knew that Twilight's questions were far from answered. "When Luna and I first came across the tools to end Discord's reign, it was due to a shared dream we had regarding a bird sitting peacefully within the ruins of an old castle. The same castle that you journeyed too to find the answer to Nightmare Moon's return."
The pieces all began to fit together and Twilight's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as she realized the implications. "B-but when we first went there to find the elements, we couldn't find anything."
"Perhaps the knowledge you seek can be found, now that the elements have accepted you as their avatars." A small smile fixed itself on Celestia's face as she watched Twilight's natural curiosity light up the mare's face, it was a look that Celestia always enjoyed to see.
"D-do you think I'll be able to find a way to...."
Celestia understood why the question hung there unfinished, both of them wished for a solution to their missing family member, and a wild goose chase would be a waste of time that could be spent tracking the drake down. But Twilight needed a distraction, unlike Celestia who had an entire land to run, and countless subjects to look after, Twilight only had a library lacking a sorely missed assistant. "I certainly hope so, Twilight Sparkle, until we find out we'll have to trust that Spike can take care of himself."
Watching Celestia begin to nod off, and slowly enter the realm of dreams, Twilight offered what she hoped looked like a reassuring smile. "R-right! Spike's a tough dragon, I'm sure he's fine."
Far off in a place that was less than fine:
With a thunderous roar, Homer tossed his head to-and-fro while his hands reached around in vain to grasp the purple thorn that was painfully clawing into his back. Chatterbox was nowhere to be seen, though an occasional large rock would smash into his body, or another strange wall would block his claws when they got too close to where his first problem was. Sand, and water flew in every direction as Homer thrashed about trying to angle himself so that he could crush the purple insect, until an idea bubbled to life within his mind.
After he, and Trixie had first blasted the monster with fire, and magic Spike had taken the initiative and raced toward the flailing beast before them. Whether from sheer stupid luck, or an unknown force smiling upon him, Spike had somehow climbed his way onto the monster's head and attempted to belch more scorching pain. The key word being attempted since all Spike could do was cough out a few embers, and sparks. It would be his luck that at a moment like this he'd be running low on fuel, and he scarcely had time to duck as a massive talon nearly raked him off of his perch. After a miscalculation on his part Spike tumbled down the monster's back into his claws gripped into slime covered flesh, and held him where he was currently placed. He seemed safe enough from the monster's limbs, and was happy to catch his breath until he noticed that the monster, and him were moving toward the lake. "Horseapples!"
Right as the young dragon began to dislodge himself, the lake's waters rose up to his chest as the lake monster brought them both into it's realm. With barely enough time for a quick inhale Spike was now fully submerged into the lake's depths once again. A violent twisting shake wrenched Spike's claws from where they had dug in, and Spike desperately clawed his way upward back to the surface. An ominous chill seized the dragon, and he turned his head back down toward the dark deep to witness the lake monster barreling at him like a freight train filled with teeth. Changing direction as fast as he could Spike swam back down toward the beast, hoping to dart past it and take advantage of it's large body preventing it from taking sharp turns.
After watching both the monster and Spike go under, Trixie galloped from her vantage point back onto the shoreline. Violet eyes searched the water's surface; trying to catch a glimpse of the purple drake, without being able to see either of them Trixie's magic was useless. "Where the hay are you, Sp-... D-dragon!?"
Spike hurdled through the water as his plan came with an expected detriment, though he cleared the jaws, and claws the tail was another matter. Quicker than he had expected it whipped into his frame with enough force to make any lesser creature gasp out in pain, and be caught with a mouthful of lake water. Catching himself, Spike kicked his legs furiously, and tried to get back to the shoreline as fast as he could. Another haunting croak echoed behind him as his claws reached the submerged sand of the beach, his pursuer was catching fast.
Trixie was just about to step into the water when an explosion of water caused her to shriek out, while she back peddled erratically. Spike gasped in a few breaths of air, before he took note of the wide-eyed unicorn in front of him barely a moment past as he realized the danger zone they were both still in.
"Trixie, move out of the way!"
Unaware of the incoming danger Trixie merely blinked in confusion, her heart still pounding through her chest from Spike scar... ermm surprising her. "Wha-?"
From behind them the water exploded again as a much larger form charged out toward the too. Body springing in action before he could conjure a thought, Spike thrust his hands out palms forward to push the shrieking mare out of the way. With the ferocity of one of Gummy's larger, deadlier cousins the lake monster snapped the dragon whole into his jaws, and thrashed it's head about.
Covered in water, and laying on her back from Spike's push, Trixie looked up as the monster glared down at her most likely eager to get to it's next meal. Despite the looming leviathan baring down on her, Trixie's eyes narrowed angrily, and her horn glowed bright magenta. The sand beneath her seemed to pack itself lower to ground from an unseen pressure as Trixie rose to her hooves. Before the day was over that overgrown sorry excuse for a toad was going to wish it had never showed it's miserable mug to her. As her horn sparked furiously, and a low hum seemed to radiate from the air Trixie noticed something odd about the monster.
Despite moving toward her still the monster couldn't seem to move it's mouth right like it was having a hard time closing it's mouth. Then a flashed of purple appeared from behind it's teeth, and looking more carefully Trixie could see a certain dragon in quite the predicament.
Grunting in frustration Spike hunched down within the very jaws of the beast as his scaled arms strained to keep the mouth from closing on him. Somehow he had gotten past the teeth, but if this went on for much longer he'd lose strength, and it would be all over for the young charming dragon. "F-forces unknown...I-I know you've been h-helping me out today a lot. B-but would it be too greedy to ask for a little more help here?" A large flat tongue began to push into Spike's back trying to push him toward the teeth, and to his doom. "...F-freaking figures." Thinking back to how dumb he probably sounded just a moment ago, Spike was struck with an idea. It was crazy, stupid, and best case scenario incredibly unsafe, but looking back to his alternative Spike decided it was worth a try.
Finally Homer had this pest in his jaws, and couldn't wait for the crunching sound he was sure it would make once he bit down. After several attempts to eat the purple creature, Homer was aggravated to find that even in certain death, this far below him organism would be an annoyance. Somehow it had managed to work it's way into his mouth past his teeth and was refusing to let him fully chomp down on him. Just as Homer felt himself gaining some headway by pushing the cretin with his tongue, the damned thing felt like it had grown bigger all of a sudden. But that would be ridiculous...right?
"I'd really like a couple of emeralds right now." The delicious visage of a ripe, bright green emerald materialized in Spike's mind, and he focused on just how much he wanted one right now. Spike's muscles swelled painfully, and he could feel a few more spines sprout between the ones he already had. The plan was working so far, and despite the jolt of pain that wracked his body every time he grew Spike could feel the mouth slowly becoming easier to hold open. It was risky, every jolt felt more painful than the last threatening to cause him to give out from the stress, and if he grew too much he might get stuck.
Trixie's eyes widened as she witness Spike nearly double in size within the monster's jaws, she could easily see him now as he held the mouth wide open gritting his teeth in concentration. The monster merely growled, and gurgled in frustration as it couldn't shake Spike loose, and was using it's hands to keep it poised upright. Sensing an opportunity, Trixie came up with a brilliant idea of her own, and quickly set to work imagining her own hoof. Beside her a giant pale blue hoof materialized into existence to the magician it radiated greatness, beauty, and just a hint of world traveled wisdom. It was beautiful enough to almost drag a vain tear from Trixie's eyes, and was perfect for what she had in mind.
"Almost there Spike... just a little more." Spike was now large enough that he hoped that he could force his way out of the mouth, without coming into contact with the various teeth that could probably still dig deep into this scales. Just in time because the thing's breath was making Spike want to hurl in the non fire making kind of way, all he needed was just a few more seconds.
"BEHOLD THE MIGHTY HOOF OF TRIXIE!"
"....oh please no."
"WORSHIP IT'S ELEGANCE AND TREMBLE BEFORE IT'S MIGHT!"
Gripped with fear from whatever hair-brained scheme the blue unicorn planned on unleashing, Spike tried to call out to her from his position. "Uh, Trixie, there's no need to do anything crazy now."
"FEAR THE HOOF YOU TOAD!" So caught up in her speech Trixie was unaware of her companion trying to get her attention.
"Seriously Trixie I got this! Just let me..."
"TRIXIE'S GONNA KICK YOU IN THE GUT!"
"Horse-apples!"
Homer had finally realized that all he had to do was head back to the water, and the purple pest would either drown or finally dislodge so that Homer could snap him up when suddenly a tremendous force crashed into his stomach. Immediately the self-proclaimed lord of the lake felt something rise from within his belly to his throat, as Homer's eyes teared up from the pain, he could just barely make out the sound of something crying out in horrified outrage.
"ARE YOU BUCKING SERIOUS?!" This is so gross!"
Swept up in the bile that came rushing from within the monster's gullet, Spike fell out of the monster's maw, past the thrashing whiskers, and landed with a disgusting splat onto the beach. Spike's twitching eyes focused on the posing unicorn a few feet away even while the monster behind them writhed in pain.
"I guess you could say that monster doesn't have the stomach for a fight with The Great and Powerful Trixie!" Trixie laughed at her own joke merrily while Spike plodded toward her with unclear intent.
"......I will get you back for this." Spike deadly serious threat fell on deaf ears as Trixie continued to pat herself on the back, even going so far as to prance past him to mock the downed monster.
"That's right grovel for The Great and Powerful Trixie's mercy, you worm. You mess with the Great and Powerful, you get the Trixie!" Feeling as confident as ever the blue mare turned her back on groaning nightmare, and looked over what was most likely a very appreciative dragon. "No need to thank me, The Great and Powerful Trixie only asks that you remember this next you even think about handing out any backtalk, dragon."
Spike's eyes continued to twitch in barely contained fury as he came to terms with just how full of oneself some ponies could be. "Why would I thank you?! I would have been fine, and not covered in freaking monster puke if you'd have just let me handle it myself!"
With a roll of her eyes Trixie merely huffed in indignation, like it would have killed him to say thank you. "Last time The Great and Powerful Trixie goes out of her way to save your scaled butt, ungrateful dragon." Whipping her head into the air Trixie decided that Spike can enjoy the scathing gift that is her silence for the rest of their journey.
Spike suppressed the urge to growl at Trixie's antics, of course she assumed that she was in the right and he was in the wrong that's exactly how her egotistical mind would work. Seriously who else could try making a dragon that was nearly three times her size feel bad when in all truth she hadn't really helped at all. Still an entire childhood spent with the wise goddess of the sun as his mother had it's lasting marks within his thought process. It was a curse really that his mother figure had managed to imprint her ability to see past selfish ideals, and forgive even those who probably didn't deserve it. So personal dignity, and self respect would have to take another hit as Spike prepared to apologize to a unicorn that in his mind didn't deserve it.
He groaned. "Alright, look..."
Trixie's eyes glanced in his direction, and a small victorious smirk began to grown across her lips. At least the dragon was smart to eventually realize he was wrong, and as it should be she was right.
"...I'm.."
"RAAUUUGGHHH!"
Homer may have been down but he wasn't out, with a furious roar he reached toward the closest thing that he could get his claws on. Pulling backwards toward the lake's waters Homer was happy to see that it was none other than Chatterbox itself that squirmed within his grasp. Taking heed to loosen his grip so as not to break his pet before he could do so at his leisure, Homer vowed to return and finish his dealing with the aggravating purple splotch.
With a speed unnatural for it's size the lake monster spun around, and began to dip back into the lake's waters with a screaming Trixie in tow. Instincts kicking in Spike dashed frantically forward, and latched his talons into the giant's skin, the entire time Spike kept his green eyes locked on the helpless Trixie. Despite his greater size Spike's strength was scarcely enough to halt the monster's movement as his claws merely ripped along it's skin creating long red lines that bled, and even dragged him forward until he was ankle deep in the water. Most of the monster's head was submerged at the point, and the huge webbed hand was making toward the lake's surface as Trixie struggled in vain to pry herself free.
Half her body submerged into the water Trixie tried to will her magic life to free her, but the growing terror in the back of her mind was making it hard to concentrate. As her horn fizzled, and only managed to create a few half-hearted sparks, Trixie locked eyes with the dragon that was still furiously trying to drag the monster and her back to the beach. "..."
"Don't you worry, Trixie! I got ya... just hang in there, okay?!" The water was up to Trixie's neck now, her cape floated above the lake's surface, and instead of continuing to struggle Trixie opted to use her free hooves to hold her beloved hat onto her head.
"Don't you dare, Trixie you stupid, annoying unicorn, you're not going anywhere!" Spike dug his claws deeper into the sand, and deeper into the monster's skin. "Come on Spike, concentrate! I want gems. I want lots of stuff. I want a warm bed to sleep in instead of the damn dirt!" A jolt caused Spike's to spasm slightly as he grew just a little more, but with an agitated croak the monster moved forward again and Trixie disappeared beneath the lake's surface.
Most of the creature was now beneath the water alongside with it's catch, and within a few seconds so would Spike.
"No!" With a horrified growl Spike forced his claws deeper still into the beast's flesh his claws coated with crimson blood. "Nonononono! There's no way I'm letting you out of here before you take me home! I still have to say I'm sorry for no bloody reason!" Spike frantically tried to conjure up more things that he wanted, but the list was running short. "I want to go home! I want to see my friends, and Twilight, and Cele..my mom!" Another painful jolt caused Spike to snarl in agony as he grew again his weight causing him to sink into the sands, and he pulled as hard as he could. He still wasn't large enough, and Trixie probably only had seconds left before whatever air she managed to inhale ran out.
"Give..Her...BACK!" The straining of his muscles, accompanied by his body screaming at him in protest from the constant growing left Spike nearly unable to finish his sentence.
"SHE'S..." He was out of time, but still Spike kept at tugging as hard as he could. He wasn't going to give his charge up without a fight. As much as she annoyed him, belittled him, and made him want to bash his head in with a rock. Trixie was the closest thing he had for a friend in this world outside of Equestria. Trixie was his unwilling companion, his egotistical mare, and like it or not his responsibility.
"..M-MINE!" That familiar fire roared into life as Spike felt himself inflate like one of Pinkie Pie's balloons at a party. His vision blurred from the pain, but Spike could feel the mass he held onto give slightly as he pulled. He needed more, wanted more, whatever it took to save that blasted mare.
"MINE!" Another burst of fire in his belly, this time reaching out to the back of his mouth, he was able to actually pull more of the monster back to him. Spike's thoughts jumbled around erratically, and he found himself unsure of why he was pulling this thing, then he remembered that there was something he wanted on the other end.
"SPIKE... WANT!" In a voice several tones deeper than his original Spike spoke to himself as he pulled with all strength, His massive hands held steady as he pulled a now thrashing mass onto the beach. Vision slightly hazy for reasons the dragon couldn't fathom, Spike could barely make out the form of a creature slightly larger than himself, as well as another smaller creature that was currently coughing up water. The smaller creature sparkled before Spike's eyes, it's odd pale blue form beckoned to him, more than enough reason to take it from the roaring monster that currently held it.
Trixie thanked her ancestors that something had managed to bring her back to the free air right as the lake's water began to seep into her lungs. A baritone version of Spike's voice pierced through her coughing, and a moment later something massive crashed into the lake monster that still held her. The arm holding her suddenly swung to the side to avoid the scaled purple hand that reached out to her, despite the frantic movement Trixie's eyes focused on the purple, and green giant that grappled with her captor.
The two giants exchanged blows back and forth as the huge dragon seemed hell bent on reaching the unicorn prize that the lake monster held just slightly out of reach. With a furious growl Spike lunged forward and sank monstrous teeth into the lord of the lakes arm causing it to groan in pain as well as drop the mare in it's hand.
"Can't anything just place Trixie on the ground carefully?!" A second later ,Trixie found herself caught, and carefully entangled within the grasp of a familiar albeit large purple tail. Before she could catch her breath Trixie's nearly lost her lunch at the speed the tail whipped back behind the dragon with her in tow, a second later the lake monster's teeth snapped on the location it had been earlier.
Using both hands Spike smashed into the lake monster's back, forcing it face first into the ground, he had what he wanted but needed to do away with this foe. Stomping a massive claw into the groaning monster's back, Spike opened his massive jaws wide and bathed the downed adversary in an inferno of emerald flames. With a final surge of strength, and energy Spike grasped the huge still smoldering mass, and will his might tossed it into the air over the lake.
As he flew in the air, limbs thrashing about wildly, tip of his tail to his huge noggin singed painfully, and pride wounded like never before, Homer wished he had never crawled out of bed this morning. Chatterbox had broken his heart with it's betrayal, the small purple pest apparently called in a much larger family member to beat the daylights out of him, and now Homer was really hungry. Being a bit of an optimist Homer was at least enjoying the weightless sensation that came with swimming in mid air like the birds, and various insects he used to enjoy eating. Twisting his body slightly Homer was now able to look down toward the large expanse of brilliant blue below, it was odd how you might not truly appreciate something till you see it from a different angle.
As Homer gazed lovingly down toward his watery home, he noticed a immense shape moving underneath the lake's surface. Homer gulped nervously as he recognized the dull yellow orbs that stared up at him, his mother had never possessed the keenest of memories, and from her angle Homer probably looked like..
As a cavernous maw large enough to swallow Homer whole rose from the depths toward him, Homer pondered the various levels of irony that permeated the air around him. As jaws that probably belonged to his own mother closed around Homer's form, the once mighty lord of his small slice of the great lake wondered what his mom would think if she knew she was about to devour her own offspring.
A pointless thought, as it wasn't often that the matriarch of the lake would ponder the inner machinations of anything that had flown too close to the water's surface before jumping out to eat it.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie has a great idea, how about we leave this lake before something else shows up?" Despite still being held within Spike's tail Trixie had no problem seeing the ridiculously large leviathan that just made a meal out of the monster that had tried to do the same to her.
A oddly familiar voice dragged Spike's attention from the lake toward the small still sparkling creature within his grasp. He couldn't for the life of him remember why this creature had been so important, but a deep rumbling from within his stomach quickly brought an answer.
"What the hay are you staring at?" Even if the giant sized Spike had just saved her, Trixie couldn't help but shudder involuntarily when his large slitted irises focused on her with a predatory tinge. The way that the dragon's forked tongue licked it's chops reminded Trixie of a dragon related conversation that she had just shared with her hungry looking companion a few hours ago. "The Great and Powerful Trixie will remind you that eating her would be a very bad idea.
Unimpressed by his captives words Spike opened his fang filled mouth wide eager to satisfy his hunger.
"Wouldn't you rather snack on some tasty gems instead of stringy, tasteless Trixie?" The dragon paused for as moment as Trixie's words seemed to catch his attention, with no time to lose Trixie frantically pointed toward the still present hole that Spike had dug up earlier. "The Great and Powerful Trixie wouldn't steer such a mighty dragon wrong, right over there is a stash of the best tasting rocks... err gems that a dragon could find.
Gems did sound good, so with a shrug of his massive shoulders the dragon turned his attention to the tiny hole that the mare pointed too. Needing to take only two large steps Spike's massive head hovered over the time mineral deposit, after taking a curious sniff Spike dug a large trench into the sand with single swipe from his clawed hand. A deep growl of satisfaction rumbled from Spike as his eyes took in the small pile of Binghamite that lay exposed to the world, without a second thought the entire pile was scooped up in the dragon's mouth, and after a few brief chews was swallowed. After burping rather loudly, the dragon planned on returning his focus back to the unicorn still caught in his tail, when his large eyelids began to feel heavy.
"Okay, you got your dumb rocks, are you going to let me down yet?" Trixie's question was answered by a long yawn, and the dragon making it's way back toward her carriage. Finding a suitable spot the large, purple dragon curled up in the sunlight, and brought his tail to rest next to his massive head, Trixie was now in quite the predicament. While this was preferable to being eaten by far, the blue unicorn hadn't exactly been looking forward to being cuddled by a giant fire-breathing reptile. Lucky enough for Trixie a few minutes after Spike's large green eyes closed his body began to shrink back to size, his tail was no longer big enough to restrain her, and the mare happily embraced her freedom.
"Zzz..Trixie..I'm...sorry..zz" Spike mumbled in his sleep while the mentioned unicorn watched from a safe distance. Not that Trixie was scared of her sleeping vassal, she just needed some much deserved space after all of the days events. After taking a cautious look around, Trixie opted to go back to her carriage, and wait for her beast of burden to awake from his slumber.
After hanging her hat, and cape to dry within her carriage, Trixie opened up a side window that gave her view of the sleeping dragon. She could easily blame him for all that had transpired today, but decided that it could as least wait until he was conscious, and pulling them back along the trail they had wandered from. A grin settled on her face when she remembered that she still owed him two for flinching, and looked forward to cashing in on that gag. In a whisper so quiet that even dragon ears couldn't hear them, the words "Apology accepted." Escaped from the watching unicorn's lips.
End Of Chapter: |
Dealt A Bad Hoof | Chapter 7 | "Zzzzz"
"...Dragon?"
"Zzzzzzzz"
"Dragon!"
"Zzz"
"Hey, wake up! Trixie's getting tired of listening to you snore all day!"
"...What?" Deep within the dark depths of subconsciousness a spark of higher functioning began to stir, it's sleep disturbed by an annoyingly familiar voice. As Spike roused back to the land of the living the first sensation to assert itself was a painful throbbing that made him hiss out in pain, and to make matters worse something immediately began prodding his skull. With an aggravated grumble Spike half-heartedly swiped at the unseen tormentor, and finally cracked open his eyelids to see a most unexpected sight.
With a disinterested expression on her face The Great and Powerful Trixie looked down at the waking dragon, her hat blocking out the sun, and strands of her pale blue mane hanging close enough to tickle his nostrils. A stunned silence set over Spike as he found himself unable to find any words at all, and just as he nearly grasped a semi intelligent batch of words the unicorn's horn glowed and something the size of his fist levitated toward his face.
"Eat this."
"Huh?"
"Last time Trixie checked you dragons eat rocks so here." Focusing in on the light blue aura that floated before his eyes, Spike could make out what must have been the remaining survivors from the binghamite stash. Despite his stomach beginning to growl at the prospect of receiving a quick treat, the drake couldn't help looking past the floating gems and setting a questioning look upon the mare. Trixie turned her head to look toward her carriage apparently unwilling to meet Spike's gaze, meanwhile the blue aura disappeared allowing the binghamite to follow into a waiting outstretched hand.
"Uhhh... thanks?" Immediately Spike popped the small snack into his mouth and crunched away though not loud enough to drown out Trixie's reply.
"Save it, Trixie's just making sure that you don't go trying to eat her like you did earlier."
Trixie raised an eyebrow as the sound of Spike choking followed her sentence immediately, turning back to the mentioned dragon the mare nearly smirked at the sight of surprised expression facing her.
"I did what?!" He coughed. Guilt spread over the dragon as Spike wracked his brain trying to remember everything that had happened after he pulled the lake monster out of the water. Despite his efforts his mind only managed to conjure blurry images, and vague feelings of anger, greed, and hunger.
"After you surprisingly enough banished that gargantuan nuisance, you seemed to have your feeble mind set on making a meal out of Trixie." Seeing Spike don such an apologetic look nearly made Trixie regret bringing up the subject. Mentally scolding herself Trixie turned away for feeling a wave of displeasure, she'd been feeling less than herself since the end of their monster problem.
"I am so sorry... I didn't hurt you did I?" Though the headache had ebbed away, and the offered gems did a good job at banishing his belly's grumbling, a small sinking feeling grew within him. Trixie might have been the bane of his existence since they met, but he'd hate himself if he learned that his greed form had harmed a single hair on the mare's head.
"Of course not! Trixie outsmarted you the moment that she felt you appraising her with those huge green eyes." Trixie briefly wondered if she could have worded her sentence better, but from the corner of her eye she noticed a flash of embarrassment spread over Spike's face. An ill-meaning grin spread on the mare's face as she decided to poke a little fun for her own amusement. "Though after you gorged yourself on more rocks you did try to spoon Trixie."
"What?!" Scales tinted darker from a large blush, and ears morphed to an odd mixture of the colors green and red, Spike turned toward the lake in an attempt to hide his face. Frowning at his inability to remember the chaos his greed form might have exacted, the dragon's back stiffened when something began to lean onto his left side.
"Not that Trixie blames you for the incident, The Great and Powerful Trixie is well aware that her great and powerful form is akin to a goddess in the eyes of all others." A wicked smile was plastered onto Trixie's face as she watched the purple, and green scales tinge red before her eyes. Who'd have thought that teasing the young dragon would rival how fun it was to insult him flat out? Deeply enjoying Spike's obvious discomfort, Trixie came up with the perfect way to finish her tormenting.
Frozen in place thanks to Trixie's unexpected close proximity, and the unexplainable flustered feeling that ran rampant through him, Spike willed himself to ignore every word that came out of the mare's mouth. At least that was the plan before he picked up the disarming scent of jasmine, and a spine shivering purr entered his ears.
"You know... Spike, there's been something Trixie has been wanting to tell you since you woke up."
"...!" Though he remained silent Spike's mental voice turned from his own into that of Twilight's as it listed every reasonable explanation for Trixie's behavior. The unicorn must have been setting him up for another cheap shot at his less than prepared psyche, or she had developed something close to admiration toward him for saving her life. Dozens of long-winded scientific theories sped through Spike's mind within the time span of a few seconds, only to end on the most unlikely one of all just as Trixie began to speak again. "Its not like she..."
"Well it's just that... you..."
"...but what if she?" Suddenly Spike was quite interested in hearing the end of Trixie's sentence, his ears perked up, and his green pupils darted to the left to see her.
"You still smell like monster vomit."
The Twilight in his head didn't hesitate to recite an "I told you so" as Spike covered both his ears to block out Trixie's laughter. Shrugging the guffawing unicorn off of his shoulder did little to halt her sounds of mirth, and giving his arm a sniff Spike's gut churned when he didn't smell roses. With a defeated sigh Spike trudged toward the lake's edges, faintly hoping that the extreme scrubbing he was about to give himself might attract something big enough to eat him, and his overwhelming embarrassment.
Trixie's mocking laughter had continued on past Spike's angered bath, was still going strong as Spike pulled the carriage back to the dirt road they had abandoned, and showed no sign of stopping a mile down the road. Eventually a boiling point was reached, with a growl Spike stopped dead in his tracks, and whirled around to face a still giggling Trixie.
"Don't you have anything better to do than cackle at me all day?"
"Why? Are the dragon's feelings still hurt from Trixie's little joke?" Though she stopped laughing a large smirk still adorned the mare's face as she looked Spike in the eye from her window, head propped up on her hoof in a relaxed manner.
Rolling his eyes Spike averted his gaze to hide a small blush that began to form, much to his irritation. "No! I just think it'd be a better use of your time to do something helpful, or at least somewhat productive instead of bugging me while I chauffeur you around for free."
"And what pray tell, should the Great and Powerful Trixie do that would be be classified as productive?"
Optimistic that perhaps he was finally making some good natured ground with the mare, Spike tapped a claw to his chin for a few seconds before replying. "Well... you could walk instead of just riding along, that would make pulling this thing a lot easier." An outraged gasp immediately met the dragon's ears as well as the feeling of something burning holes in the back of his head. "...Uh oh."
"And what is that supposed to mean?!"
"Uhh, nevermind dumb idea."
"...Indeed... Lazy drake."
Not wanting to drop the ball completely, Spike tried thinking of something else for Trixie to do in the her free time. "You could tell me where we're going, that'd would at least give me an idea on just how far away from Equestria we are."
"Do you really think Trixie would be performing for drooling dogs in the boonies if she actually knew where she was?" From her position Trixie contemplated finding something to levitate and bounce off Spike's head, his suggestions were getting more and more idiotic and she could use a good laugh.
"Maybe you should work on your act then." Already running on empty regarding ways to keep the unicorn occupied so that he could get a little peace and quiet, Spike was starting to accept that it was a pointless endeavor and started to resume pulling the carriage, until an even more outraged noise stopped him in his tracks.
"Do you dare insinuate that the mind blowing spectacle that is Trixie's gift to all lesser creatures could be flawed in some way?!" No longer leisurely watching Spike from her window, Trixie had disappeared into her carriage one moment, only to loudly exit it once again from the main door. Spike couldn't help but flinch a bit from the loud *bang* that announced the door being slammed shut, followed by the mage's loud hoof stomps as she made her way toward him. Now glaring up at the dragon from right beside him, a quiet crackle emitted from Trixie as if her very magic itself had been offended.
"Trixie could have sworn that you said something profoundly more moronic than the usual blathering that escapes your lips, would you kindly repeat yourself, toad?" And with that gone was Spike's concern for crossing a line, as well any chance of a civil conversation emerging between the two for the moment.
Puffing a few green embers from his nostrils out of annoyance, Spike's head whipped around to begin another tense locking of the eyes with the equally angered female. "I said that your ego driven farce of a performance needs work, maybe if you spent half the time actually being entertaining or good at magic instead of just showboating what little skill you have, you wouldn't be such a laughing stock back in Equestria!"
"Insolent newt!" Raising her head higher up so that she was butting heads with Spike who had lowered his own during his reply, Trixie growled loudly as she inwardly debated using her magic to attempt turning Spike into something small and squishable. "What makes you think that you have any clue about the mind blowing intricacy that involves The GREAT and POWERFUL TRIXIE'S act?!"
Returning the daggers that Trixie's violet eyes shot into his own with just as much force, an idea popped into Spike's head resulting in a toothy grin that spread across his face. "Well from listening and watching you I think it's a pretty safe bet that it goes a little like this!"
Quicker than Trixie's eyes could see the dragon's tail whipped above his head, and lashed out at her. Caught completely off guard by the dragon's sudden aggression Trixie didn't even think to will up a protective barrier, but instead winced from the incoming blow.
A few dozen seconds passed before Trixie realized that despite her failure to avoid the strike, or to block it that she felt relatively unharmed, daring to look back up the mare noticed that Spike had an even larger smirk upon his face than the one that had appeared before his lashing out. Taking a cautionary step back as well as getting ready to stain the path with the satisfied looking drake's ashes Trixie couldn't help but noticed that Spike appeared different. Dark violet eyes scanned over the dragon's form before they narrowed, and focused on something that should not have been there. Through gritting teeth an almost inaudible command hissed from Trixie's lips, as she glared at the dragon harder than she had ever done before.
"Give... it... back!"
Donning an expression of surprise Spike looked wildly around him as if not knowing what the mare was referring to, after a few moments Spike's eyes peered up to settle on the all too familiar purple hat that now sat comfortably upon his head. "Oh! You mean this?!"
"Trixie is not kidding with you dragon, return Trixie's hat or you'll find yourself enduring a level of pain unlike any that you've ever known,"
"Dragon?" Narrowing his eyes slightly Spike raised his snout into the air in mock outrage, crossing his arms like a pouting foal. "Surely you must be some uninformed yutz not to have heard of..." Standing on his back legs, raising his right hand above his head, while holding his left far in front of him Spike looked back towards a now surprised Trixie. Taking a large intake of air Spike exhaled through his nostrils producing twin geysers of emerald fire as he bellowed loudly in faux arrogance. "The Stupendous and Spectacular Spike!"
In a flash the growing inferno of anger that glowed behind Trixie's eyes snuffed out as the little gerbil in her brain tripped over itself on it's wheel, and proceeded to be spun around and around helplessly. She knew her eyes weren't deceiving her, was confident that her ears worked perfectly fine, but her mind refused to believe the image, and sounds that now faced her. Another silent moment passed as the gerbil finally resumed it's running though at an uneven pace at first, and her left eye twitched as the fire sprang back to life.
"..."
"For my first performance I shall make a complete flank out of myself by pitting my might against that of a newborn foal, then I shall share the story of the time I let loose a spout of fire so hot that the sun itself nearly put itself out from shame." Emphasizing his words Spike hopped on one foot a few times before planting his fist at his sides, and laughing loudly to himself.
"That's not funny."
"What was that, little mare? You say that you want The Stupendous and Spectacular Spike's autograph?" Scaled face set into a smug grin, Spike leaned forward till he was nearly touching noses with a now red faced Trixie.
"That is not how Trixie sounds, now give me my hat back!" Giving another growl Trixie lunged forward trying to swipe her beloved hat with her hooves, so caught up in her annoyance that she seemed to have forgotten about her unicorn given talent.
"But it looks so good on me, plus admit it; I nailed your attitude perfectly." Like a huge, scaled feline Spike easily avoided Trixie's attempts at claiming her possession, darting backwards quickly and taunting the mare by blowing a raspberry.
"HA! Attempting to mirror the sparkling personality of the one and only Trixie is leagues beyond your scaled brain, unlike your simple mindset the inner machinations of Trixie's mind are an enigma." Despite the verbal lashing that Trixie was sure would have stumped the young dragon long enough for her get her sorely missed heirloom, the mare found much to her annoyance that instead Spike congratulated her for actually knowing a big word.
"Enigma huh?" Clearing his throat for a moment while also making sure to keep an eye on Trixie who was prowling forward with her eyes dead set on Spike's newest fashion choice, the dragon pretended to primp invisible locks of hair before speaking in his attempt at a feminine voice. "I the Great and Powerful Trixie enjoy acting like a bigshot because I suffer from poor social skills, and can't comprehend being civil with anything besides my own reflection." Spike could hardly keep a straight face as the unicorn ceased moving forward in favor of shooting him a dirty look.
"Two can play at that game you peon." Adopting a dopey look upon her face, and standing on her hind legs (with some difficulty I might say) Trixie rubbed her left hoof on her head and spoke in a deeper tone. "My name's Spike. I'm fat, lazy, love to complain, and burst into tears every time somepony says something that isn't a compliment because I'm a complete momma's colt." Unlike Spike who had attempted to hide his amusement at Trixie's earlier irritation, the mare had no qualms about bursting with laughter from the way the dragon's grin soured into a large frown.
"I AM NOT A MOMMA'S COLT!" Much to Spike's personal embarrassment images of Celestia spoon feeding him crushed gems, kissing better boo-boos gained from childish games, and the fact that his mother still wrote to him to remind her son to wash behind his frills emerged in his mind. And just like that Spike was stalking toward the still guffawing Trixie, and once she noticed him coming towards her the ladder was on her hooves and marching in his direction. In an instant the dragon and unicorn were face to face locked in another staring contest, and both unwilling to stop the mounting tension that coated the scene like a thick fog.
"Hey lookit that Quirk, I'll bet my left wing that the those two are about to pitch the proverbial woo."
"I'd would merrily take you up on that bet Odd if not for two things. One I'm in complete agreement with you brother, and two I don't believe you have a left wing...or a right one either."
"Then it's a bet I can't lose!"
Though their faces remained in place Spike and Trixie's eyes were pulled away from one another and focused on what appeared like two pony shaped figures watching them a couple meters down the path. A silence permeated the area for a moment before the mare, and dragon both adopted a reddish tinge to their face, the traveling acquaintances of course knew that their close proximity was only due to a deep seated resentment for one another... nothing else, but to an unknowing passerby the moment could appear...
"Ope! Sorry to ruin the moment strangers, we were just having a walk and heard voices so well..." The speaker happened to be the left earth stallion or more appropriately colt, his hair; a light purple, was brushed to the right on his head yet stayed straight along his tail, though it curled at the tip, and all between was a body painted a rusty red.
"We couldn't resist investigating, now could we Quirk?" The right colt was actually uncannily similar in appearance to the left, though his voice was higher pitched and carried a tone of amusement instead of the inquisitive one that his fellow possessed. Also, while his fur was the same in color, the mop of purple on his head was brushed to the left instead of right, and his tail was strangely puffed halfway through instead of staying primarily straight. Both twins possessed a matching set of teal colored eyes as well as fetlocks that looked in dire need of some trimming. "Didn't mean to intrude on your romantic tension any."
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" In unison Spike and Trixie shouted out a much too late explanation while they scrambled away from one another as fast as they could. "I HATE HIM/HER! HE'S/SHE'S THE BIGGEST PAIN I'VE EVER MET!" Continuing to speak at the same time Spike and Trixie turned from the new arrivals to glare at one another having heard each other's insult. "HEY!"
While the travelers bickered the left colt dubbed Quirk looked to his brother, raising an eyebrow at the couple's antics. "Now that is quite the interesting pair, wouldn't you agree Odd?"
The right colt nodded his head quickly with an entertained smile painted across upon his face as he replied. "How could I not? Those two would certainly shake things up back home, and the town could do with a little excitement."
Flashing a smile to match his twin's Quick raised a hoof toward Odd while continuing to watch the the argument that had deteriorated to a one-sided scuffle. "I was thinking the same thing dear brother, now how about we get things moving before we only have one guest instead of two."
Odd excitedly raised his own limb so he could hoof-bump his brother, then proceeded to approach the dust cloud that had been kicked up by a combination of Trixie's magic randomly reacting to her anger, as well as Spike's tail swishing to and fro in an attempt to balance himself when a certain mare grew tired of his uninterrupted possession of her hat.
"Not to interrupt, but perhaps my brother and I could borrow a few minutes of your time?"
The insulting, and tumbling stopped long enough for the dirt to settle, and to show an agitated Trixie currently wrenching Spike's left arm behind his back while he used his right to keep her hat out of reach. Remembering that they were still very much not alone the duo stopped fighting long enough to begin picking themselves up, or in Spike case he was halfway there before his head was used as a stepping stool so that Trixie could reclaim her hat, and whip his face with her tail while she jumped off of him.
Seeing that they had the duo's attention Odd nudged his brother prompting the colt to speak before the level of civility began to deteriorate again.
"You see our village lies not too much farther down the road, and I can't help but believe that you two might be able to aid us with a problem."
With an uninterested snort Trixie placed her beloved hat upon her head, and set to work adjusting it to her liking while rolling her eyes in the twin's direction. "Nope."
"Nope?" Amusement gone from his face Odd's eyes began to water slightly in response to Trixie's answer. "B-b-but why not?"
Raising an eyebrow at the emotional colt's apparent displeasure, Trixie merely raised her head upward while her magic set to work dispelling the few patches of dirt that had gotten on her during her victorious battle against the beast of burden. "Because The Great and Powerful Trixie has much better things to do than offer her time to simple village folk."
Seeing the colt dubbed Odd growing closer to what looked like letting loose a flood of tears, Spike picked himself up and turned toward his hat obsessed associate. "C'mon Trixie, we can at least hear them out."
"Oh shut your snout dragon, Trixie has little patience for some bleeding heart routine."
"Cause merely listening to somepony's problem, and considering the option of helping out makes one a bleeding heart these days."
"You catch on quick, there's hope for you yet dragon."
"It's Spike!"
"Who?"
Watching what looked to be another fight about to begin, as well as consoling his sniffling brother Quirk cleared his throat loudly enough to regain the center of attention. "Might we add that your time will be rewarded generously."
Shooting another scowl toward Spike the blue mare's head quickly turned back toward the twins while a predatory smirk grew on her face. "While selling her services is typically beneath Trixie's high standing morals, your story has touched her heart. Please young stallion do share your grievances with the compassionate and empathetic Trixie."
"Well you see-"
"Especially the part pertaining to how many gifts you plan to offer as tribute to Trixie."
"...Well you see, our home suffers from a great ailment. It has affected all pony inhabitants from the young to the old, and the hard working to the layabouts." Nodding toward his still glassy eyed brother Quirk lowered his head to the ground while his vibrantly colored coat seemed to darken. "Since before me and Odd's times, our village has suffered from..."
"BOREDOM!" Flailing away from his gloom twin Odd wailed loudly as he raised himself onto his back legs. "Mind-numbing, soul-wrenching, earth forsaken BOREDOM!" Through teary eyes Odd looked toward the travelers with a forlorn expression that definitely looked out of place on his cheery face, his vision conjured up an image not of two concerned individuals, but instead of a twitchy eyed mare and a confused drake.
"...What?"
"What my brother speaks of is most true I'm afraid to say." Raising his head from the ground Quirk wore a look on his face that mirrored his twins... minus the tears and mucus. "Nothing exciting ever takes place, and the worst of all our fellow villagers are becoming... OKAY WITH IT!"
At this both twins wrapped their forelimbs around one another and let loose a shared sigh of depression. In response Spike scratched his head due to a sheer lack of understanding how something like boredom could cause such distress, and Trixie impatiently stomped her hoof down. "Trixie is still waiting to hear about the reward, so she abstains from telling you just how idiotic this sounds."
Wiping his nose on his left hoof Odd narrowed his teal eyes in Trixie's direction. "Oh the woe we must suffer through dear brother, at the mercy of your average greed driven unicorn and her draconic lover."
"Hey!"
Ignoring the shared cries of outrage from our favorite duo, Quirk wiped a tear from his left eye while nodding in agreement to his brother. "I unequivocally agree Odd, but we must not judge others by their kind's nature, or their choice in sexual deviancy." Ears twitching in response to the louder outburst of irritation that followed his words Quirk sniffled one last time before he raised his right forelimb to his head dramatically while sighing letting out a loud sigh. "Perhaps these humdrum travelers are more dull than we thought, and do not wish to be buried in the vast bounty of our undoubtedly appreciative village."
Hearing enough, Trixie growled loudly before her horn glowed angrily with a light magenta aura, almost immediately the twins were raised into the air, and their heads conked together. "Trixie will have you know that she is THE MOST INTERESTING thing your backwater village will ever have the good fortune to witness." Dropping the two onto the ground Trixie turned around so quickly that her cape whipped into the air nearly catching a less angered but still irritated Spike on the tip of his nose. "Dragon, get to work on pulling Trixie's carriage, I'll give these bumpkins a show so great they'll forsake every dirt-derived god they praise in favor of Trixie's left hoof."
"What about the reward?" Though less interested in getting payed for his assistance than the outraged mare, Spike felt less than charitable after being called 'humdrum'.
"Whatever this village is willing to pay, Trixie wants it DOUBLED!" After slamming the door to her carriage shut Trixie immediately set to work on going through a few props of hers within a trunk next to her bed. "Nopony calls Trixie dull!"
Shaking his head towards Trixie's carriage, Spike let out a sigh before setting to work on putting the harness back on. After finishing Spike peered in the twin's direction so see both of them wearing large smiles as well as wagging their tails about excitedly. Almost instantly the gears in Spike's head began to spin, and an frown grew on his scaled face.
"You know I've witnessed what happens to folks who decide to upset that mare... that whole act could have gotten you turned into crickets."
Shooting an amused grin to his brother Quirk chuckled to himself before slowly walking down the path towards his village. "And what fine crickets we'd probably have made mister uh... Spike. But your marefriend certainly had us backed into a corner there, and the village sorely needs something to liven things up a good deal."
"She's not my marefriend."
"Sorry to hear that friend, she does seem a bit hard to deal with." Quirk's words was quickly reciprocated with a snort, and a small laugh from the young dragon.
"More like arrogant as they come, short-tempered, and suffering from an inferiority complex." Pulling the carriage forward to follow Quirk down the road a small puff of green fire escaped past his teeth as he remembered that it was Trixie's 'hard to deal with personality' that seemed to be causing all of the trouble he was experiencing. "Trust me Quirk, she's a lot to handle."
"Oh I bet she is you ol' fire-spewer!" Jumping up right next to Spike, Odd gave the drake a wink then whistled appreciatively reminding Spike of a few colts friends he knew back in Ponyville. Oblivious to the way Spike had rolled his eye at his earlier comment Odd nudged the drake with his shoulder with a still amused grin on his face. "Well if you two aren't butter and bread then do you mind another drago-... er stallion taking a wing at her?"
Initially the colt's question had caused a frown to begin forming on Spike's face, but after catching himself as well as questioning why he would even care, the drake saw a way to get a good laugh as well as get back at Trixie for earlier... "By all means go ahead, but warned she's a feisty one, you'll have to be persistent."
"Persistent is my middle name... or was it Timothy?" Shrugging to himself Odd slowed his pace until he was even with the carriage. "Miss Trixie, excuse me for not stating it earlier but you have the most spectacular cutie mark I've ever seen."
"If Trixie catches you staring her flank, you'll be your brother's twin sister for the rest of your existence." Hearing the mare's threat caused a panicked look to cross Odd's face and he quickly dashed past Spike to hide behind a snickering Quirk.
Amidst his fit of laughter a tinge of curiosity struck Spike, and once he had managed to reign in his chuckles the dragon's inquisitive side took the wheel. "So what's the name of your village anyways?"
Twin sets of ears perked up in reply to Spike's question, and both colt's turned to face the dragon with a familiar set of large smiles. Stamping their hooves in place Odd and Quirk whinnied with pride before Quirk offered a wink, and spoke.
"Hibiscus Grove my good friend, the humble beginning from which our kinds greatest heros have hailed."
Quickly jumping in to pick up where his brother left off, Odd kicked his legs about excitedly as a merry tone colored his words. "The very earth we commune with sings praise to our line, for only a true pony of the land whose inner magic transmutes into the sweat and toil he offers to the soil can trace his roots back to our home."
"Hibiscus Grove, the village from which the mighty war horse Comanche strode out of a mere colt, and returned a stallion among stallions."
"The oldest and most trusted farming techniques owe their first steps to the hardworking citizens of Hibiscus Grove."
"The birthplace of the beloved hero Chancellor Puddinghead, before her untimely betrayal at the hooves of the calculating assassin of the unicorn king, and the war mongering chief of the pegasus clan."
As entertaining as the twin's praise toward their village was, Spike neither slowed his pace down the dirt path, or missed what sounded like a gross error in historical events. "Betrayal? Are you talking about the founding of Equestria?"
Immediately halting in their jovial exclamations the twins set dubious looks toward Spike, an expression made near comical since they were now walking backwards. Odd looked to his brother and motioned toward the drake with unsure look upon his face, prompting Quirk to reply. "Indubitably so, that day marked the creation of the unicorn pegasus empire as well as ushered in the splitting of the earth pony's civilization."
"Are you sure about that?"
"As sure as Halle Maree's horrible decision in playing lead role in the comedic tragedy 'Feline Mare'."
"....What?"
"Chancellor Puddinghead braved the wilds of an unknown land so she could free our kind from the shackles of forced cooperation with the unicorns and their illusions of controlling the sun. She ended up discovering that deity blighted land, as well as saving the incompetent flanks of Princess Platinum, and Commander Hurricane."
"Once again, say what?"
"In her wisdom Puddinghead offered a hoof in friendship to the two overlords, and motioned that the three tribes work in unison without forcing goods from one another. The generous, and soft-hearted mare was quickly stabbed in the back, and her advisor Smart Cookie brainwashed into telling our kin that this 'Equestria' was a place of equality and prosperity." The entire time Quirk spoke his brother Odd nodded enthusiastically, cheered each time Puddinghead was mentioned, and booed when the other two pony's names were said.
Spike having heard enough shook his head, and gave a quick glance to the carriage behind him wondering if Trixie had heard any of the rubbish being forced through his ears. "I'm pretty sure that isn't how it went down guys, if this was true how would anypony know?"
"When the naive, and easily mislead half of the earth pony tribe left it was our ancestors who saw beyond the veil of deceit that the unicorns, and pegasi had crafted. When the stories had reached our village about how Chancellor Puddinghead had cast the first stone, our forefathers knew it to be some kind of unicorn plot, or pegasus fib so they formulated the most likely scenario that would have taken place."
The twins galloped to a nearby bush pulling out a few loose branches, some leaves, and a large rock which Odd rolled back to the center of the road. With his path blocked Spike had to stop and attempted to figure out why Odd licked a short stick and stuffed it between the hair on his head, for what purpose was a crude face drawn onto the rock as well as two branch covered in leaves placed behind, and more importantly why Quirk had a light blue marker hidden in his tail.
After poofing up the hair on his head slightly Quirk strode forward, struck up a regal pose, and placed a hoof to his chest. "I, the mighty and wise Chancellor Puddinghead, born among proud farms of Hibiscus Grove do claim this land in the name of not just my beloved earth pony kin, but instead for all three of the clans! Let our tribes no longer quarrel, and instead work together for a better tomorrow where they can all trot hoof in hoof for friendship and empathy."
Behind Quirk his brother who was made to look like a unicorn (though badly from Spike's point of view) drew behind the earth pony stepping on the tips of his hooves in a sneaky fashion. Oblivious to Odd's actions Quirk continued to speak, his eyes looking over Spike, the carriage and the road behind them as if inspecting a new land.
"Yes, this is a fertile land, and together we shall thrive. Looking to his left Quirk nodded as if listening to some unseen entity. "I agree, advisor Smart Cookie, we will have to name this wondrous place." Looking back toward Spike, Odd placed a hopeful and determined look upon his face before stomping his left hoof down dramatically. "We will rule over this land, and we shall call it....'This Land'."
Only a few inches behind his twin now Odd let loose a sinister chuckle before hissing loudly. "I think we should call it.....YOUR GRAVE!" Odd then immediately began poking his brother's side with the stick on his head while switching between laughing maniacally, and shouting "Pew! Pew!"
In response Quirk gasped dramatically, and flopped onto his side kicking out his legs in mock pain while his brother began to prance about in victory. "Ah, curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal Princess Platinum!"
"Ha Ha HA! Mine is an evil laugh... now die!" Odd then dramatically placed his makeshift horn to Quirk's heart and shouted "Thundaga!" Which caused Quirk to spasm as if electrocuted, as well as cause Odd's 'horn' to fall out of his hair."
After a few moments Quirk suddenly picked his head off the ground with a serious expression looking straight toward Spike. "And that is how our beloved hero met a grisly fate at the hooves of the treacherous unicorns." Eyes quickly darting from one side to another Quirk placed a hoof next to his mouth as if to whisper to the bemused dragon. "All the while the pegasus commander watches from the sidelines... biding his time and preparing for his civilizations time to strike." To this Odd quickly moved toward the the rock and used his hooves to block out the sun so the pegasus stand-in looked shrouded in shadows.
Both colts looked toward Spike who out of appreciation for the twin's passionate performance clapped his hands together though he rolled his eyes at the same time. "Well that was certainly... something."
"Did you like it?" Shaking his head until his poofy hair resumed it's original state Quirk offered a small bow as did his brother.
"We actually got an award for that a few seasons ago during the "Remembering Great Figures in Earth Pony History festival." After his bow Odd's smiling face switched to a small frown, and he pawed at the ground a bit. "Though all we got as a 'good job', and a basketful of onions."
Sighing in response Quirk nodded to his brother before adding with sarcasm. "One of the greatest honors our village can give."
Chuckling at the twin's antics Spike stretched his limbs before continuing forward, as he passed the still standing in place twins Spike opted to jump back to the current issue regarding historic accuracy. "As interesting as that was guys, every book I've read through states that there was no backstabbing, no brainwashing, and that it was Smart Cookie who voted on equality for all equines."
Turning around and keeping pace with Spike, Odd cocked his head to the side raised an eyebrow. "And how would a dragon know so much about pony history?"
Mirroring his twin Quirk trotted alongside Spike as well an inquisitive look plastered upon his face. "You know brother that's an incredibly good question, strange enough to see a dragon in these parts, but now we have a dragon that courts unicorns and claims to know about the going-ons of past events regarding our kind."
Fixing a scowl toward Quirk for his 'courting' comment Spike turned toward the read ahead with a far off look on his face. "Probably because I'm from Equestria myself." Noticing the matching expressions of shock that appeared on the twin's face Spike sighed to himself before continuing. "I was born in Canterlot where I spent most of my childhood till my sister and I moved to a place called Ponyville."
"Are you saying dragons like you live in Equestria just like the ponies?"
"Well... I haven't met any dragons 'like me', but yeah there's a few dragons that live there though they mostly keep to themselves and sleep." Spike paused to glance at the colt's when they both gasped in surprise, apparently their understanding of Equestria was somewhat... dated. "What's the big deal, all kinds of creatures live somewhat neighborly in Equestria. There's mules, goats, buffaloes, griffons, diamond dogs, and the occasional peryton."
"...Interesting." Quirk brought his hoof to his chin as if in deep thought, his brother on the other hand began to skip as he trotted next to Spike.
"Exciting! You see, the two of you will be a hit!" Looking toward his twin Odd sped around the drake, and extended his hoof toward his Quirk for another hoof-bump.
"Even more so than the time those nomadic zebras passed through, and we chose to 'liberate' that caged Nandi bear they were transporting." With a large grin growing upon his features that matched his brothers Quirk quickly reciprocated the hoof-bump.
So wrapped up in deducing the levels of havoc a newly freed bear might have wreaked upon a village of ponies, Spike was caught off guard when another voice joined the conversation.
"Trixie is starting to become less and less enthused about doing any favors for these two mischief makers."
The twins who lacked any understanding of the many windows, doors, and tricks that Trixie's wagon had installed wore matching expression of surprise due to the unicorn's sudden appearance through her window. Though the mare's sudden entrance nearly caused Spike to miss a step, the dragon opted to continue his trek forward while he replied.
"For once I have to agree with you Trixie, but they did mention a reward and maybe we can get a better bearing on where we are if the village could provide a map."
"Speaking of rewards... have you negotiated the actual size of the bounty Trixie is to be given?" Spikes's imminent silence combined with the the snicker that emitted from Odd caused Trixie to let out a small growl of irritation. "Of course you haven't, too busy wasting time with nonsensical small talk."
"Hey! I was ju-" Spike's attempt at explaining himself was loudly interrupted by a few 'Tuts' from Trixie as well as a rock surrounded in her magic bouncing off of his head.
"It would seem Trixie will just have to do EVERYTHING that requires a degree of intelligence doesn't it?" With a smirk from seeing the drake bristle at her remark, Trixie fixed a leer toward the twins and continued. "Now then. How much is the Great and Powerful Trixie being paid to waste her time at your silly town?"
Happy to be addressed by the blue unicorn, Odd was more than eager to prance beside the cart and offer a small bow before speaking. "Well oh so enchanting one, I'm more than sure that our village will gladly present you with it's finest produce as well as a large bag of pieces."
Crossing her forelimbs, and proceeding to lazily rest her head upon them Trixie raised an eyebrow in Odd's direction. "Trixie prefers to receive an actual number regarding the number of pieces you plan to pay her, keep in mind the greatness of Trixie's performance is impacted by how cheap your village tries to be."
While he pondered about the value of something called a 'piece' Spike had to nod his head in approval of Trixie's business sense. Though she was headstrong, vain, and irritating most of the time, the mare certainly knew how to get what she wanted.
"I'm sure after an exciting performance our fellows will be happy to pay your requested dues. Isn't that right brother?" Feeling his knees wobbling from gaining the unicorn's focused attention, a small blush formed on Odd's face while he set to work on telling the mare anything she wanted to hear.
Seeing that his enamored brother was quick to write a check that they truthfully didn't know if Hibiscus Grove would be willing to cash Quirk rolled his eyes, waited in place until he was alongside Odd, and bopped his sibling on the head.
"Ow! What in polka dotted sassafras was that for?"
Nudging his dismayed brother aside, Quirk cast an apologetic look toward the dubious unicorn. "What my enthusiastic brother means to say is, we wholeheartedly believe that the villages payment will be appropriate to your level of performance." Seeing Trixie's curious expression begin to morph to one of outrage at his less than pleasing answer Quirk was quick to cover his flank. "N-not to say that anything you did for our village wouldn't deserve a worthy prize, but neither we or our village have any proof to your abilities besides your word."
Horn glowing from a sudden surge of her magic Trixie levitated a nearby rock willing it to float between herself and Quirk. "Do you not believe that Trixie's word is enough?"
Eyeing the flying stone warily Quirk gulped before looking back to the smirking unicorn. "Perhaps we do, but we can't say the same for a village full of our kin that are less than trusting of unicorns and their magic."
Trixie appreciated the colt's truthfulness as well as the provided information that she would be putting on a show for a village of lowly magic fearing earth ponies. Looking to Spike, Trixie noticed that his ears were poised to hear the conversation the three were having, but oddly enough he had stayed silent since her reprimanding. The young dragon looked strangely less irritating when he wasn't arguing with everything Trixie had to say, and an odd calmness overtook the mare as she debated tossing the rock at his head... to hear him complain of course.
Just as Odd was about to jump back into the conversation both he and his brother let out a small gasp of surprise as the glowing rock began to chip away before their very eyes. As if being carved by an invisible edge, slivers and small bits of the stone began to fall to the earth the entire time a bored expression was painted on the mare's face though her eyes seemed fixated on the quiet dragon.
After a moment the stone resembled a small grey figurine crafted in the image of the very dragon that still pulled the carriage along, finally processing the twin's gasp in her preoccupied brain Trixie pulled her eyes from the drake to see the product of her unharnessed magic. Trixie wasn't surprised that even without even meaning too she was capable of making something eye catching out of a simple rock, but after realizing what the miniature statue resembled the unicorn frowned and quickly turned it into nothing more than glittering dust.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie will put her faith in your village's ability to properly pay for her services. Now how far away is it?"
"Odd and I will run ahead and see." Elbowing his brother who had been sneezing from a nose full of dust, Quirk nodded toward the unicorn before the two siblings galloped past Spike and around a nearing bend ahead. Once the twins were out of sight Trixie sighed loudly hoping to prompt some sort of response from the still quiet dragon.
"..."
Not surprised that the slow-witted dragon was unable to pick up on her attempt at starting conversation, Trixie rolled her eyes and coughed into her left hoof.
"..."
Eye twitching from the drake's continued refusal to say anything Trixie uncrossed her forelimbs, and glared darkly at the back of Spike's head before clearing her throat loudly.
"Something wrong, Trixie?" Refusing to turn around because of the toothy grin that was plastered on his face, Spike luckily had managed to hide the amusement in his voice.
"Of course not! Why would something be wrong?"
"It just sounds like you might," he snickered, "want a glass of water or something that's all." Spike felt the glare intensify so he plastered on a neutral face and turned to face the mare.
"...So smart-flank, what do you think about those two?" Trixie could have sworn she heard the Spike let out a small laugh before turning, and the dragon was obviously struggling to keep his bad poker face from cracking, but the unicorn wasn't in the mood to get into it with her scaled companion.
Spike scratched his chin for a moment as he mulled over Trixie's question. Quirk, and Odd were certainly... strange, but they didn't look dangerous and a village full of expectant ponies eager for entertainment certainly beat one full of unicorn suspicious citizens who might chase the two out before Spike learned anything about their location.
"I think that it's a better idea to make friends than enemies given our situation, and if you think that you can truly give them a great performance without agitating the whole population supplies would be really nice right now."
"Are you calling my abilities into question again?"
"Actually no." A small smile formed on Spike's face as he watched Trixie's narrowed eyes open wide in surprise. "I'm just saying that hopefully you've come up with something that won't end with a town full of earth ponies burning you at the stake."
"...W-well it's about time you admit to Trixie's greatness, and don't worry your scaled brain dragon, Trix-"
"We're back!" Returning from around the bend Odd followed by his brother pranced toward the carriage with a large grin on his face. Coming to stop next to Spike, Odd was practically dancing on the tip of his hooves while his brother caught up and began to speak.
"It would seem in our short travel together that we've entered the very outskirts of Hibiscus Grove, just around this bend the trees will dwindle in number and you'll be able to see our homes."
Raising an eyebrow Spike looked back toward a contemplative Trixie before turning back to face Quirk. "Surprised we've gotten this close without bumping into any of your friends."
Piping up before his brother could muster a response Odd hopped up and down in barely contained excitement. "Me and Quirk completely forgot that today is Jubilation Day!"
"What?"
Seeing the matching looks of confusion on Spike and Trixie's face, Quirk stepped forward and picked up where his brother left off. "Jubilation Day is the time of year where our village's proud citizens gather together to feast on the bounty of our hard work, as well as listen to our lord retell stories of our town's accomplishments." An excited glint flashed in Quirk's eyes as a wide smile grew across his face. "Everypony in the village is gathered at the town square, so the timing is perfect for our special guest, don't you agree?"
From her window Trixie's eyes twinkled with the excitement that came with knowing that she was about to shock, and awe entire population with her special brand of greatness. Casting a large grin toward the twins and wink toward Spike, Trixie quickly came up with an entrance worthy of 'The Great and Powerful Trixie'.
"Here's what Trixie wants you to do."
A few minutes later:
Within the humble village of Hibiscus Grove all of it's hard working citizens were hard at work putting the final touches to one of it's oldest traditions. Booths were set up where individuals, and families would sell their wares to one another at discount prices, the spirit of the celebration at hand convincing even the greediest and proudest to lower their requested payment in good spirit to their neighbors. From the ponies that toiled for hours in the fields to grow crop, to the artsy shut ins who spent a few smug moments staring at a canvas just to splotch a few drops of paint and dub it a masterpiece, every pony in town was gathered and happily sharing the fruits of their varying levels of labor with one another.
At the moment the village's highest noble Archduke Tapioca Brain the Third overlooked his towns ponies happily enjoying themselves... within agreeable procedures, and guidelines. Since Tapioca Javen Brain's grandfather had begun his own regime many, many years ago the ponies of Hibiscus Grove were instructed to reign in all desires to 'fly off the handle', 'carry on insistently', or 'behave unnecessarily' in any scenario. The reasoning was partly due to Tapioca Brain the First's small heart condition, his inability to take a joke, and his disagreement with any levels of excitement. So with the use of strict ruling, and the subtle spreading of propaganda that stated that high levels of unrestrained enthusiasm acted as beacons for trouble-making witch ponies, and violence hungry winged ponies by the time that the First passed his title down to his eldest son Tapioca Brain the Second, the denizens of Hibiscus Grove were calm, and highly believed in a no nonsense lifestyle. All in all the rules set in place seemed to be for the good of the village, accidents were always low, emotions never ran high, and all of the villagers were content... just not overly so. Thrill-seeking pegasi never bothered to visit, hearing that the Grovians were boring, and tended to abhor excitement. Unicorns seeking to widen their magical views of the world avoided the town thanks to common knowledge that it's population of earth ponies feared the visually appealing, and titillatingly cool abilities that their horned cousins possessed.
Dull grey eyes glanced at the marble statue that sat in the middle of town center, with a smile Tapioca Brain wondered how proud his ancestor the wise Chancellor Puddinghead would be of him and his father for keeping the town safe, and it's ponies happy. Like the lords before him Tapioca wore the large hat shaped like a bowl of bland, and tasteless tapioca pudding, when he was young Tapioca Brain often questioned the wearing of helm that depicted something so unexciting, and devoid of flavor, in return his father shared a tidbit of lunacy that had been passed down to him from his own father.
"The grandness of Tapioca pudding lies in it's blandness my son, for you see when dining on such a dish you know what to expect so a pony can never complain of a bad taste because frankly they exactly what to expect the moment they dip in for the first bite. When our subjects look upon our iconic hat they are reminded of the greatness that exuded from our ancestor Puddinghead, and then can rest assured that there will be no unexpected change in flavor from us. We are bland, our intent is easy to ascertain, and we are unchanging; truly we are symbols of leadership that ponies need in these troubling times."
Eventually Tapioca Brain the Third came to understand his father's words, and now proudly shared the same image of blandness that his forefathers represented. His rule was fair, his village prosperous, and it's citizens abiding to his grandfathers laws... well most of them.
The Peculiar Twins... brothers born from Tapioca's grandfather's sister's unusual son. A constant nuisance, and embarrassingly enough close family of the ruling nobles. While all other ponies strived to work toward a long life of humdrum tasks, and unexciting missions in doing what was expected of them in Hibiscus Grove's society, the twins were always trying to inspire unnecessary moments of excitement, and were at the heart of anything interesting that went down without proper regulation. It frustrated Tapioca to know that his cousins bared a closer resemblance to their shared ancestor Puddinghead than he did, their hair and tails exhibiting curls and poofs while his merely hung straight and uninspired.
"Brothers and Sisters of Hibiscus Grove! It is I, Odd Peculiar!"
"And me, Quirk Peculiar!"
"And the two of us are here to provide you with something unlike anything you've ever bore witness too."
It would seem that thinking about the troublesome twins for more than a second had summoned the duo, and now with a large sigh Tapioca rolled his eyes as he watched his cousins gallop around the town center while spouting nonsense.
"Our love for this grand ol' town, and it's wonderful citizens has possessed us to search far, and wide to present you with unparalleled wonders, and we can happily say that we have succeeded."
Both colts let loose laughter fitting that of a maniacal scientist, or perhaps a victorious villain as they stood proudly next to the beloved statue of Chancellor Puddinghead.
Raising his left hoof into the air while his brother Odd raised his right, Quirk beamed happily at the crowd before speaking loud enough for the whole staring population to hear. "So then fine ponies of the earth. WHAT SAY THEE?!"
A stunned silence followed soon after, fillies and colts had their mouths shushed by their parents who themselves cast plate sized eyes toward the twins. Ponies close to the brother's age began to gather to one another intent on whispering about just how wacky Odd was, or how how weird Quirk tended to be, while the elder's felt their hearts begin to race in a fashion that seemed distant but familiar. For a long moment only the sound of Archduke Tapioca groaning to himself, and slapping a hoof to his face dared to pierce the eerie calm before the storm.
"I say quit acting like a couple of screwballs, and do something productive for once!" And like that the silence was over and the stunned expressions were beginning to morph into ones of agitation.
"Yeah! How come you two gotta be rockin the dang boat all the time?"
"By the lords of soil and sediment, is this going to be like that time you convinced that group of traveling minstrel donkeys to expose the town to their whole second album? Most of us are still recovering from that!"
"What if they hired another so called super hero? Remember Puma-Mare?"
"Don't even kid about that, Crow! Her costume was ridiculous, and last time I checked pumas don't fly."
Tapioca Brain held his head in his hooves for a moment as he watched what had started out as a pleasant, controlled level of happiness inducing celebration turn into what could possibly be a full blown riot. He raised his left hoof in preparation for commanding his guards to escort the twins from the area, when Odd let out a merry laugh loud enough to quiet the angry ponies.
"HAHAHA! Oh you silly colts and fillies, truly your shouts of disagreement will change to cheers of praise once you see...." A sound similar to the squeaking of a cart's wheels began to grow in volume from down a path leading into the forest.
"The Great!" The sound of wooden wheels traveling down the road, and past where the town's gates stood was now loud and clear for the entire crowd causing numerous heads to turn toward the sound.
Standing next to his brother, Quirk flexed his two forelimbs as he shouted above the approaching sound. "THE POWERFUL!" Before the very eyes of the entire population of Hibiscus Grove a large carriage raced into view, pulled by an invisible force that the watching villagers could hear impacting the ground with quick, solid feet. Suddenly the carriage leaped into the air as if possessed by an unseen power, the vehicle coming high enough to block out the sun and cover the watching crowd in it's shadow. Finally the carriage returned to the earth, it's wooden wheels creaking in protest and it came to a stop before the statue of Puddinghead herself just as the twins raised their forelimbs into the sky while shouting.
"TRIXIE!"
The carriage emitted a sound like that of a firecracker, as three of it's walls split apart and fell to stand splayed out like a stage. A mysterious light blue smoke hissed from the still standing wall, blocking the population's view of the carriage's innard, and from within the smoke multiple glowing missiles rocketed into the air and exploded bathing the watching ponies different vibrant light. The loud sound of hooves tapping onto the wood of the cart brought the mesmerized eyes of the audience back toward the carriage, within the now dissipating smoke the form of a pony began to become recognizable.
As the light blue mare donning a large smirk became visible for all to see, mutters of interest began to arise from the earth ponies.
"Quite an entrance.."
"Is she a unicorn?"
"I really like her mane."
"This is a nightmare!" Rubbing a hoof on his throbbing temple Tapioca Brain was already pondering the levels of the unregulated excitement the twins were about to cause.
Clearing her throat to make sure she had every ponies undivided attention, Trixie strode forward till she was at the end of her stage her violet eyes flashing as she began to speak. "Ponies of Hibiscus Grove! The Great and Powerful Trixie has been called upon to provide you with the greatest show that you have or ever will see!"
A series of gasp emitted from the crowd as Trixie's cape fluttered in a non existent wind, and behind the mare ethereal shapes began to form, and contort until they looked like see through, blue diamond dogs. The beasts numbered at nearly a dozen and they sniffed about the stage, growling, and snarling at ponies that stared at them for too long, the entire time Trixie gauged the crowd's response while she looked upon the mass of earth ponies.
"Known as one... if not the most powerful sorceress in the land it was I The Great and Powerful Trixie that rid the far off northern roads of a vicious pack of diamond dog marauders, and banished them back to the holes in the ground from whence they came." One of the lead dogs flashed it's see through fangs, and made a dash for the edge as if to leap off the stage and maul a filly who stared with wide eyes. Just as the dog sprang forward, and the crowd let loose cries of fear and worry for the scared stiff filly a sudden bolt of magic struck the creature causing it to whine pitifully before it exploded into a blue mist that tickled the filly's nose and caused her to sneeze.
After allowing the crowd to let out a shared "D'aww.." Trixie tilted her hat, just as the rest of the magically created dogs began to work themselves into a frenzy and charge her. The crowd now fully caught up in the excitement cried out toward the mare who seemed unaware of the approaching danger, but the mixed "Watch out!" and "Turn around!"s quickly changed to "oohs" and "ahhs" as Trixie pivoted on her left hoof and willed a wall of magic to appear just in time for the dogs to comically splat against it's surface.
"That's totally not what happened!"
A moment passed during which Trixie narrowed her eyes at the familiar voice of the only creature willing to nick-pick at such unimportant bits of information. Quick on her hooves so as not to lose the crowd Trixie willed two large twin orbs of glowing magic to dance above her hat, and as they floated to and fro the orbs left lines of light that trailed in the air for a few seconds before fading. With a smirk Trixie raised a hoof into the air, and a few watching ponies clapped their hooves as the audience watched the orbs spiral around one another, separate, and fly about until the glowing lines the marked their paths painted an image of a small beach beside a large lake.
"Not very far from here lies an immense lake, it's size bordering that of a sea or ocean." The orbs stopped leaving a trail behind them and stood in place side by side in the middle of the lake giving the appearance of two large glowing eyes peeking at the spectators. "Within the lake a monstrous sea creature lies in wait for any unsuspecting traveler who comes near."
Fearful whispers emitted from the crowd since many of the villagers had heard rumors of the great beasts of the lake only a days travel away from their home.
"This beast was large enough that it's head nearly touched the clouds, and a single sweep of it's fins could cause tidal waves!" Lines began to twist, and turn as the image of the lake warped into that of a large monster rearing it's head from out of the lake's surface, and reaching a large webbed hand toward a tiny pony now drawn onto the beach. "That very beast made the grievous mistake of picking a fight with Trixie."
A large flash of light temporarily blinded the earth ponies, and when they could see again they witnessed the pony in the picture coming to life and charging at the now moving monster that strained toward the tiny pony. The pony narrowly dodged a massive hand that impacted the beaches surface, and quickly scaled up the creature's arm before striking the monster dead in the face with a blast of magic.
As the monster let out an inaudible roar of defeat, and sunk back into its watery home, Trixie took a bow prompting the entire audience to clap loudly, and excitedly at her efforts. "Truly there is none greater than The Great and Powerful Trixie!"
From his hidden spot behind the carriage Spike grumbled to himself in annoyance as he was forced to listen to Trixie's shameless self-promoting as well as note that his 'assistance' hadn't been mentioned at all so far. Now Spike wasn't one for fame, nor did he seek out the spotlight very often, but he did like to be credited for his contributions to whatever occurrence he ended up wrapped in. Before the grand entrance Trixie had made it quite clear that she didn't intend to share any spotlight, nor did she need any help from a dragon she could barely stand. So Spike's role came in the form of pulling her carriage along while under the guise of simple illusion Trixie had cast that hid him from view for a few seconds, and now he was to sit quietly while the egotistical show pony weaved an intricate tapestry of complete goat manure.
As much as Spike hated to admit it, though her tales were certainly far from the truth Trixie was putting on quite the show, and the audience seemed pretty entertained. Resting his head on the ground Spike let out a small sigh, at least things were going smoothly.
"The Great and Powerful Trixie is so great in fact, that she challenges this village's ponies to match their talent against hers!"
"...No"
"You there! Trixie sees that your cutie mark is that of a rope knot, do you dare defend your honor and try to out knot Trixie?"
"Is this some kind of cruel sick joke?"
The sound of some pony cautiously climbing onto the stage caused Spike to lower his ears in disagreement, and after a moment the crowd let out a small unsure cheer as Trixie undoubtedly managed to beat the poor pony as well as make a bad winner out of herself.
"This is already getting out of hand." Smacking his right hand onto his face Spike groaned as he heard Trixie accept a challenge from what sounded like an offended stallion. A few moments later Trixie's laughter rang out loudly, only matched by a mixture of applause and some booing that began to grow in intensity. "Certainly she wasn't so vain as to be oblivious to the agitated comments, and the sound of pitchforks being gathered at the back of the crowd."
"Trixie rule Hibiscus Grove!"
"That's enough." Growling at Trixie's behavior Spike stretched his limbs, then proceeded to hop over the carriage wall he was hiding behind, and land somewhat gracefully onto the stage which prompted a gasp of surprise from Trixie... as well as the rest of the audience. Realizing that another reason he was forced to remain hidden was due to the Hibiscus Grove's citizens having an incredibly small number of run ins with dragons, Spike gulped as he watched the citizens expressions change from agitation to pure terror. "...uhh Hi."
It was absolute chaos from the point on.
"DRAGON!!"
"Sorceress save us!"
"ERMAHGERD DURGAN!"
"You see! This is why I don't leave my house, the real world sucks!"
Always one to capitalize on an opportunity Trixie reared back on her hind legs and shouted out to the panicking villagers. "Worry not my audience, for this terrifying drake is no match for The Great and Powerful Trixie!"
"W-wait what?!" Before Spike knew what was happening four magic tendrils manifested before Trixie, and struck out faster than he could react. Within a split second Spike the dragon was now hogtied and looking a wee bit annoyed at the unicorn that placed a triumphant hoof onto his slumped over form.
"You may thank Trixie at your leisure now." With smug smirk Trixie cast a wink toward Spike who much to her enjoyment grumbled to himself in reply. Now safe from the wyrm's fiery wrath, the earth ponies let out 'whoops' and 'hoorays' loudly, while cheering Trixie's name in praise.
"Hooray for Trixie!"
"Yay Trixie!"
"Slay the dragon!"
That last cheer had prompted Trixie to blink in surprise as well as cause Spike to sputter loudly.
"H-hey isn't that a bit much!" Spike turned his eyes to Trixie who looked just as panicked as he did, much to the drakes dismay.
"Do it!"
"Yeah, Trixie keep us safe from the dragon!"
"U-uh The Great and Powerful Trixie would much prefer to punish this foul beasts than spill it's blood on her stage." After hearing a few cheers, as well as a few ideas from her audience Trixie regained her stage voice, and set to work on circling the still bound dragon. "Perhaps Trixie should force the drake to apologize to my appreciative spectators, or maybe trim it's claws and spines like one would a naughty feline." It dawned upon Trixie that at the moment her infuriating travel companion was at her complete an utter mercy, and even if he was able to free himself there was little Spike could do that wouldn't damage the progress Trixie had managed to make.
From his position Spike couldn't help but notice the smirk that had grown into the unicorn's face, nor could he ignore the sudden shiver that went down his spine.
"Maybe Trixie shall let the drake go if he promises to be a good little dragon, and admit defeat by Trixie's hooves." As she spoke Trixie willed Spike's bindings to levitate raising her captive while he squawked in surprise until he hung in the air for the whole population to see.
From his new floating position Spike scowled at the mare, and whispered a nearly inaudible hiss. "Hahaha... you've had your fun now ease off."
"Do you hear that my fantastic audience? This drake dares to command the Great and Powerful Trixie, perhaps a quick death would be would be a proper means to silence his serpent tongue." Once Spike had lost the defiant fire in his emerald eyes, and he finally admitted to her superiority Trixie would be give him a slap on the wrist and send the drake on his way until she gathered him later. "What'll it be drake? Admit Trixie's greatness, or let the audience decide how we should best end you?"
"Just put an end to me already then, anything would be better than having to suffer through that last bit you called a performance." Having heard enough from Trixie, the disgruntled drake chose to at least share his point of view before he was put to the mercy of the watching crowd. The growl that escaped past the frown that had formed on Trixie's had been expected, but the few chuckles that emitted from the crowd had not been.
From the rear of the crow Tapioca Brian snickered from behind his hooves, true he certainly didn't agree with the dazzling light show that the magician had put on, or the surge of anxious energy that had been caused by the fire-spouter's appearance but just like his subjects the archduke was now completely sucked into the spectacle before his eyes. From the sidelines Odd and Quirk hoof-bumped out of pride for how well their scheme had worked out.
"What do you plan on doing for your grand exit? Probably something along the lines of filling yourself with enough hot air to cause you and this wagon to float into the sunset, right?"
This time the chuckles were full on bouts of laughter accompanied by few whistles, and one enthusiastic stallion shouting "For the love of soil and sediment the dragon tells jokes!"
"I can do a lot more than that if a certain somepony would put me down already." Spike turned his head to glare at his magical captor who returned the scowl along with blowing a raspberry. A series of murmurs, and whispers went through the crowd as the earth ponies debated authorizing the release of possibly dangerous dragon.
Feeling it was his station to address his subject's concerns, Tapioca Brain cleared his throat before striding to the front of the audience. "No offense Mister Dragon, but I'm sure you can understand why we'd be less than willing to allow you to run rampant. It was quite lucky for us that the Great and Powerful Trixie was here to apprehend you before you did anything thrilling *cough*... I mean threatening." The Archduke's word were immediately followed by multiple sounds of agreement coming from the villagers behind him, something that cause Spike to sweat slightly.
"Oh don't worry about this lug, folks!" Sliding into view in front of Spike and Trixie, Odd waved his hooves in the air in an attempt to ease the crowd.
"Truth be told we hired our splendid scaled friend here as entertainment, much like our esteemed guest Trixie here." Quick to follow his brother's lead, Quirk stood next to the still floating drake, and patted Spike on the head as one would a pet. "Our good friend here merely got overly excited for his turn to excite, and amaze and popped up before we could properly introduce him."
Green eyes narrowed at the head patting Spike resisted the urge to growl, only because Quirk shot him an apologetic look before turning back to the crowd.
Now the earth ponies eagerly chatted amongst themselves as the prospect of a real life dragon following up a spell-caster had even the elderly twitching anxiously.
"What kind of tricks can a dragon do?"
Spines perking up at hopefully a chance to absolve his less than agreeable situation, Spike nodded his head frantically as he replied. "Well I'd be happy to show you if we can do something about these binds."
Rolling her eyes at the loss of her fun Trixie flicked her tail to the right in disapproval and the tendrils immediately vanished, but instead of falling to the stage with a crash Spike twisted around and landed with the grace of cat. A portion of the crowd clapped at the dragon's unexpected dexterity, one of them being Tapioca Brain who was actually more interested in the scene then he'd like to admit.
"Much better." Stretching his limbs to relieve some stiffness that had built up, Spike cast a long glance onto the crowd before settling his gaze on a certain azure unicorn who appeared to be busying herself admiring her hooves.
Sensing Spike's gaze upon her Trixie looked up to lock her violet eyes with the drake's emerald ones, feeling a familiar need to egg her companion on Trixie gave a large smirk in his direction. "Like there's anything that newt could do that could possible match my performance."
Picking up the silent challenge Spike snorted causing light green embers to spark into the air from his nostrils causing the watching earth ponies to 'ooh' while subconsciously taking steps back. "Let's see how they like this."
Taking a large intake of air Spike puffed out his cheeks, and pointed his snout into the sky. A moment passed before suddenly the drake opened his maw, and a near blinding geyser of neon green fire climbed nearly twenty feet into the air. The ponies below were painted shades of green as they basked in the light made by the flames, and from their startled faces a large cheer roared into the air.
"Mares and gentlecolts!" Snapping his jaws close with a loud snap, Spike offered the watching villagers a large hopefully non-threatening smile toothy smile, and gave a bow. "For my first trick..." Spike wracked his brain for a quick moment trying to think of something entertaining besides blowing fire into the air, noticing Trixie glaring at him from his peripherals a light-bulb dinged in his thoughts.
"I shall teach a mare how to fly!"
Immediately the crowd exploded with young fillies, and mares raising their hooves into the air while loudly volunteering to be chosen. The only pony who seemed uninterested was a dubious Trixie who inwardly searched through her magical knowledge on any spells that could give an earth bound pony the gift of flight.
"Aha! And now I believe we have ourselves a volunteer folks!"
Pulling herself away from her musings Trixie scanned the crowd for the chosen mare, admittedly interested in seeing the poor dolt that Spike would mostly likely end up humiliating. Focusing so hard on picking out a mare that would be jubilantly making her way toward the stage the blue mare was completely oblivious to the scaled form that had snuck behind her.
"On the count of three!" Nearly jumping out of her own skin from the loud voice that rang into her ears, Trixie only had enough time to gasp in surprise before a pair of hands firmly yet gently grasped her midsection.
"Dragon, don't you dare!"
"Not my name." After chuckling at the incredulous look that his reply put on Trixie's face, Spike raised his head to look toward the crowd. "1...!"
"Trixie will only give one warning you spark-puking, slime-coated..." During her threat Trixie attempted to flail out of the dragon's grasp, but surprisingly enough Spike was able to keep a good hold on her without harming the mare.
"Tut tut tut Trixie, compliments won't save ya now." His captives shriek only served to cause Spike to shudder with suppressed laughter as he once again called out to the audience that had now joined him in counting. "...2!"
"Drag...I-I mean S-spike!" Trixie gritted her teeth as she tried to will a magical fist into existence so she could bash the dragon's head in, but all her horn did in response was sizzle and spark thanks to her panic ruining her concentration.
"Too little too late, Trix." Calculating the trajectory he was about to send his hapless associate on Spike let loose two columns of green fire from his nostrils as he, and the crowd let out a loud. "3!"
"Spi-iiiiiike!" And like that Trixie went higher than the spout of emerald fire the drake had let loose moments before, her cape whipping in the wind, and her hat falling off to land gracefully onto Spike's noggin. A moment passed until Trixie finally took a moment to take in the sight of the area below her; Spike, the crowd, and even her stage looked like ants and for a moment Trixie was caught up in the thrill of being so high up, that is until gravity said hello.
Down below the whole crowd watched in morbid fascination as the Great and Powerful Trixie flailed her limbs about with the grace and technique of a chicken attempting to fly. To add emphasis to the rapidly approaching unicorn Quirk procured a drum set from seemingly nowhere and his brother Odd immediately began to do a quick drum roll.
"So this is how it ends? Reduced to an attractive smear on my own stage by some idiotic dragon, if I survive this... the dragon will pay." Closing her eyes, and ready to meet her maker Trixie wondered if her eventual collision with the earth would be a traumatic one, or quick and painless one.
"Geez Trixie if I didn't know better I'd think you were actually worried about hitting the ground."
Welp that was it, either Trixie had died instantaneously and had gone to the only place the cursed dragon would likely end up in the afterlife, or infuriatingly enough she was never in any danger to begin with. Noticing that she couldn't smell brimstone, and when she opened her eyes she didn't see any roaring red flames Trixie groaned angrily at the smirking dragon that had apparently caught her.
"You might be an annoying unicorn with an ego the size of a lake monster, but as long as I'm around I'll make sure you don't hit that ground too hard." Whether it was a trick of the light, the blood rushing to the mare's head from going up then suddenly coming down, or maybe just the embarrassment that came with being saved by a possible nemesis, Spike certainly couldn't help noticing the red hue that began to dominate Trixie's face.
"S-shut up!" Trixie might have found the grin on Spike's face less annoying than usual if not for the fact that she noticed something belonging to her placed upon his head for the second time that day. "And give Trixie her hat back."
"...Say please."
"Hate you so much right now."
"Tsk, tsk!" With a quick flick of his arms Spike flung the unicorn into the air, caught her, and positioned the mare in a way that made the watching ponies before them believe she was taking a dancing pose. "For my second trick I believe I'll show my lovely assistant how to dance!" The watching ponies cheered, and whistled approvingly as they found watching the magician being placed at the butt of another's joke quite amusing.
"W-what?!" Before Trixie realized what was going on Spike twirled the mare in place, wrapped his tail around her waist and lifted her above his head. Finally finding herself Trixie kicked her legs about until she felt the tail drop her... back into Spike's awaiting claws. Scowling at the dragon who grinned at her like a complete fool, Trixie hissed quietly enough so that only her 'dance partner' could hear her. "Trixie has had enough of your jokes, dragon! Now release her and continue to entertain this crowd ALONE!"
Stilling grinning at the glaring unicorn Spike tossed her into the air evoking a loud 'Eeep!' from the unwilling volunteer, and caught her again this time in one hand which gently fixed her into a dip that caused the watching stallions to whistle, the mares to swoon, and the young 'uns to complain loudly to their parents about their eyes being blocked by censoring hoof. "But we're doing such a good job as a team Trixie, surely you can share the limelight for the good of the fans."
"Trixie works alone, brimstone breath! Now put me down and GIMME BACK THAT HAT!" With a growl Trixie wrapped her forelimbs around the neck of a very surprised Spike, and threw the both of them to the floor.
Quickly seeing where this was going Spike restrained Trixie with his tail, and carefully put a little distance between the two. "Only if you agree to work with me instead of scowling at me from the sidelines."
"How about instead Trixie makes good on that promise to familiarize you with a new level of pain." Missing hat aside the mare her lowered her horn toward the watching drake, and the smell of ozone began to permeate the stage.
Near the front of the crowd the Peculiar twin watched with approving grins, a large bag of popcorn between them, and surprisingly enough their cousin Tapioca Brain sitting beside them. As entrancing as the show turned out to be the worry-wort, and family instilled need to be a wet blanket caused the archduke to cast a worried glance toward his troublesome family.
"Perhaps we ought to call an end to this show you two, it's beginning to look like those two might start wrecking the place."
In response to their cousin's cautious comment Quirk merely patted the stallion on the shoulder while Odd stuffed his face with popcorn.
"I'm serious you two! I know I let a lot of your shenanigans slide, but a dragon and a unicorn going at it in the center of town isn't something that I'll be able to write off as one of your pranks gone awry." Tapioca Brian motioned for a few of his guards to assemble next to him as he put more and more thought into ending the performance while everything still remained in one piece.
Seeing that his brother was still happily munching away at his popcorn Quirk rolled his eye before draping his arm around his older family member. "Tapioca, trust me when I say this, but you really need to compose yourself; Odd and I have this completely under control."
"That's what you said before that incident with the baby manticore got out of hoof!"
"And we've apologized for that lapse in judgement time and time again, but worry not these two are professionals of their trade." At that exact moment a small explosion from the stage sent forth a shockwave that bowled over Odd, Quirk, Tapioca Brian, and a third of the guard ponies.
"Hey watch it you mad mare! You could've blown me to bits with that last shot!" Grumbling at nearly being blasted into smithereens by a certain mare, Spike coughed up a few embers due to having to belch forth a quick torrent of emerald fire at the last minute. Though the resulting explosion had created quite the lightshow, and from the sound of the cheers proved to be visually entertaining for the audience, Spike wasn't looking to repeat that last stunt.
"That was the idea you reptilian rube!" Without waiting another second Trixie was able to create a single blue tendril that wrapped around Spike's legs and brought him to the ground with a loud thud. "Given how easily Trixie can beat you with a single thought, you should know better than to tick me off, Spike."
"Hey that was a cheap shot, last time I checked you still couldn't even win a game of chess without throwing a hissy fit, also color me surprised that you actually said my name." A loud "ooh" emitted from the crowd as Spike glared up Trixie from across the stage.
"Is that so? Well then the Great and Powerful Trixie votes that we resume our previous competition...this time we have an unbiased audience." While levitating her hat off of Spike's head and back to her own Trixie turned toward the crowd and gestured toward the watching ponies. "How about it? Me and this sad excuse for a dragon will undergo a series of competitions, and you all shall be the judges of who wins."
Back amongst the crowd Odd clapped his hooves loudly while cheering along with the rest of the audience. "Woooo!" Turning away from the stage Odd shared a smile with his twin, and looked toward Tapioca Brain with an all-knowing smirk. "See dear cousin, the conflict resolved itself and your subjects are further indebted to us for spicing up a rather dull celebration."
Sighing loudly Tapioca Brain rubbed his temple with his hoof again casting a baleful glance toward his younger cousin. "Perhaps, but I'd be more appreciative if you didn't have such a track record for spicing things up to the point of ruining the stew for everyone."
Free of his restraint Spike stood beside Trixie who gave him a heated glare while keeping a hoof on her hat. "I'm game, though I must ask what should be our first competition?"
All was quiet for a moment as the villagers mulled over a challenge worthy of such rare visitors, until a single voice broke the silence.
"Ah ain't one to brag none, but ah've always found rock sculptin' to be a good challenge." In the back of the crowd a large grey stallion with a thick beard and a large mining pick on his back waved his front right hoof for Trixie and Spike to see. "Ah gots a few slabs of stone you can use if'n yer up for it."
Spike raised an eyebrow and shot a challenging grin toward Trixie. "Sounds good to me. What do you think, oh great and powerful one?"
Snorting at the dragon's taunt Trixie stomped her left hoof down, and looked Spike dead in the eye. "Trixie thinks that this will be an easy win." And with that a loud cheer went out once again as the grey stallion and a few others quickly set to work moving two large cubes of rock the size of a teenage colt onto the stage.
"Here's the rules. Ya'll have five minutes to carve something, and after that we'll vote on which one looks the best. Any questions?"
Both Spike and Trixie shook their heads in reply neither needing any more guidelines than what was given, and after a countdown to three the duo quickly went to work. Trixie's horn glowed intensely as the rock began to peel away much like a smaller rock she had worked her magic on earlier, while Spike breathed green fire onto his claws until they themselves glowed a fiery green, and he began swiping at the slab. The crowd let out multiple cheers, and sounds of awe from watching the competitors begin to turn two pieces of earth into possible art. Though as most of the village watched with rapt fascination, three spectators were deep in conversation.
"See that, not only is the crowd entertained, but now we have a few privileged ponies that are able to show off their wares while giving more fuel for this show." Elbowing his nervous cousin from the side Quirk received a hoof bump from his twin who had joined in on trying to convince their noble cousin that everything was going smoothly.
"Perhaps you have a point, but still..."
"Still nothing, Tapioca! You really need to quit worrying so much cousin, all that self-induced stress is exactly what brought Uncle Tapioca into an early grave." Joining in on the conversation Odd pranced past his twin, and cousin so that he could plop down and put his own arm around the now narrow eyed archduke.
"...That and partly due to that half-baked idea of yours that involved inviting a changeling to dinner."
"How were we supposed to know that she'd break your father's heart, and feed on his emotions."
A loud cheer went through the crowd as Spike was announced the winner, and Trixie could be heard loudly complaining about brown-nosing the judge with a carving in his image. After some debate through the crowd regarding the complaint, it was agreed that a near life-like statue of the judge was still preferential to what looked like an angry stump. To that Trixie proclaimed that the crowd was blind, and that it clearly looked like a monster that they had never, and would never see.
"One point for the dragon!"
"Uh, for the record you can all just call me Spike."
"Duly noted! Onto the next competition... RIVER STOMP!"
Watching the two on stage even Tapioca had to whistle in appreciation, who'd have known that the mare was so quick on her hooves. "So uh... where'd you find these two anyways?"
Clapping at how expertly the dragon had landed after what appeared to be an impromptu backflip Quirk looked toward his brother with a grin before answering. "Strangely enough we stumbled upon them while brainstorming a way to bribe a river serpent into sharing his mustache fashion secrets with us."
"Yeah! We took one turn and next thing we see is the two of them about to reenact some scene from a cliche romance novel." Odd then proceeded to bump his two hooves together while making mock kissing sounds.
"Are they...?"
"You would think so the way they argue like some kind of married couple, but they keep saying no... plus the mare is sending me a few signals." At this Odd sighed dreamily, while his brother merely shook his head with a chuckle.
"And the winner is...The Great and Powerful Trixie!"
A cacophony of mixed cheers and boos echoed from the crowd as the dragon pointed out that winking at the judge should be considered as attempting to garner favor. To this the judge along with a fair number of stallions shouted for the dragon to quit being a sore-loser, and to next time work with what he's got. It should be stated that after the performance most of the mentioned stallions would soon get quite acquainted with their living room couches, while their wives, and girlfriends enjoyed a few nights of sleep without obnoxious snoring, or late night request to 'cuddle'.
After some debate the next challenge to be chosen was the ancient, and honor-risking tradition... all you can eat key lime pie. For this competition a duo of giggling mares brought forth a large table that Spike and Trixie were to eat at, as well as a colt who pulled a cart of deluxe sized pie.
On the stage Trixie eyed the pie before her as she waited for the judge to announce the start time. She was hungry enough, but....casting a quick glance toward the dragon a cold chill ran down the unicorn's spine as she watched the way Spike licked his lips.
Feeling watched Spike turned toward Trixie in time to see her sizing him up, though he wasn't one to brag... often anyway, Spike allowed a wide grin to form on his face before he gave the mare a quick wink.
"I got ten pieces on the dragon!"
"I got forty pieces on Spike scarfing the whole dang table!"
"Enough betting! Commence consumption!"
To say that Spike wolfed down those pie would be an endearment to lupine creatures all across the globe, so rapidly did the unsuspecting pies cease their existence that the two mares from earlier had to chuck their creations into the beast's maw instead of just placing them before his mouth in fear of being mistaken for a baked good. While the crowd cheered, and applauded the in the name of amazing dragon, and his apparent bottomless stomach one single mare watched with a look that was half appalled and half furious.
"That... dirty... cheating... where is he putting it all?!" Trixie had gotten to her third pie and already that tub-o-lard scaled menace was onto his twenty-fifth, worse yet she was starting to get a tummy ache. This was just like back in the forest, she would win fair and square and he'd resort to some underhanded dragon tactics and cheat for the remainder of the competition. "So unfair..."
"The dragon's eating two pies at a time!"
"...Completely... unfair."
"Now he's juggling the pie... and catching them with his mouth!"
"RIDICULOUSLY UNFAIR!" With an outburst that was half immature screech, and half bestial snarl Trixie slammed her hoof onto the table with enough force to cause the table to catapult Spike's current victims in line into the air. The crowd, Spike, Trixie, the twins, and archduke Tapioca Brain watched as half a dozen pies soared into the air gracefully only to bombard with extreme prejudice the statue of Hibiscus Grove's most honored hero.
A long silence overcame the entire village as Chancellor Puddinghead the hero that gave everything for her subjects, the mare that represented this village with a wisdom only seen once a few generations was pelted mercilessly with key lime pie. From his position on the stage Spike turned his head to count the number of faces that had gone from fascinated to pure disbelief. Trixie who visibly paled after seeing what she had done immediately set to work on pushing Spike off her stage and setting it back into it's carriage form.
Slowly in unison the crowd of ponies began to turn toward the unicorn frantically running about her home, and the dragon currently picking himself off the ground.
Setting the walls back in place, and magically latching all the proper points Trixie galloped over to Spike and whispered hurriedly into his ears. "Trixie is willing to agree on a tie if you can have those harnesses on in ten seconds flat."
From the youngest filly to the most decrepit stallion, faces set in expressions of appalled surprise began to give way to eyes filled with burning infernos, and looks of unrestrained anger.
Nodding his head Spike sprinted over to Quirk, and Odd the only ponies who looked more amused than furious. "Uhh, thanks for inviting us, we had a swell time and now it's about time we continued on our way." Shrieking in fright in response to a cream colored filly hissing at him like an angered cobra Spike quickly back-peddled until he loudly bumped into the side of the carriage.
From his position next to the chuckling twins Archduke Tapioca Javen Brain the 3rd slowly raised his hoof toward the dragon, and the carriage he had backed into. "...seize them..."
"Oh manure! Manuremanuremanuremanure!!" Spike placed the harness onto himself as fast as he possible could all the while keeping a frantic eye on the large crowd that had started making a sound akin to that of a hundred griffons growling in displeasure. "Uhhh Trixie..."
"Seize them!"
"What, Spike?!" Popping her head out of the usual window Trixie let out an audible squeal as she took notice of the pitchforks, and torches that began to sprout left and right within the villager's ranks.
"SEIZE THEM!" At this the guards stormed forward their hooves sounding like thunder as their withdrawn sabers glinted with malicious intent between their teeth.
"Make sure to get our reward on the way out." With that Spike bolted forward dragging the carriage with enough force to send Trixie flying back into the darkness of her carriage, a moment later the guards stomped the very place they stood into dust.
"IN THE NAME OF EARTH PONY KIND, SEIZE THE DEFILERS OF OUR GREAT AND BELOVED CHANCELLOR!" Eyes red and foaming at the mouth Tapioca Brain let out a blood curdling howl as he joined his subject in chasing the dragon driven wagon that raced up and down the streets of Hibiscus Grove. The only ponies still in place were the infamous Peculiar twins who once again shared a hoof bump.
"Best!"
"Jubilation Day!"
"EVER!"
Wiping lone tear that escaped his eye Quirk trembled with mirth as he turned to his equally amused twin. "It's a good thing we found those two Odd, the lack of excitement was making me glum."
Nodding his head in understanding Odd looked down toward his bag of popcorn, and pushed it toward his twin. "Well for now we've done our beloved village a favor, so here's to you and me, chum."
Hearing a noise Odd and Quirk turned to their left to see a familiar dragon pulling a familiar carriage while being chased by a few guards out for blood. As the cart passed the abandoned food stalls, a magical blue aura enveloped a few sacks of food and whisked them into a window that had opened up on the carriage's right side.
As Spike raced by Quirk let out a small sigh his eye completely filled with envy. "Sometimes Odd I wish we weren't so darn dedicated to injecting excitement into our village, seeing those two travel toward the unknown I can't help but wish we could come."
Hooves hitting the ground hard enough to cause the watching twins to vibrate the lead guard shouted out "Stop right there, criminal scum!"
Shrugging their shoulders in unison Quirk and Odd dusted themselves off, and excitedly began to make plans for their next scheme while hoping that the village would be much too obsessed with catching their latest guest to remember that the twins had set everything that transpired into motion to begin with.
On the other side of town Spike finally found a gate and wasted no time in dashing through it, and down the road. Wherever it lead the pair Spike certainly wasn't going to complain as long as got them away from the hoard of righteously angry ponies. For a small while the only sound that was made was Spike's feet pounding into the earth as he pulled the carriage as fast as he could intent on escaping any pursuers still intent on seeking revenge.
Ten minutes of panicked sprinting later:
"I think we can afford to slow down and let you catch your breath now." Though her head remained within her wagon Trixie's voice was unmistakable, and for once Spike had no qualms with agreeing with his companion.
He sighed in relief. "Things got a little dicey back there, didn't they?" Nearly collapsing on the spot Spike wiped a scaled wrist across his brow, the sun was beginning to set, and he was happy for the slight cooling down in temperature.
"Indeed they did, Trixie would thank you if you refrained from any you told Trixie so's, or yammering at her for causing that last part."
Surprised by the unicorn's unwillingness to start a fight Spike stretched out his limbs, and took a seat next to the carriage. "Deal! I think I've had enough excitement for one day, in fact I think I've had excitement for the rest of this whole journey."
"...Agreed." From within her carriage Trixie let out a small yawn and pondered whether or not she could allow herself some early rest. Within a few moments Trixie was curled up within the welcoming embrace of her bed, and just a few seconds from being fully asleep. As she slipped into the unconscious realm Trixie ironically wondered if this quest could get any more tiring.
Elsewhere:
Many miles away back at a familiar hole in the ground the leader of a large pack of diamond dogs followed one of his brothers down a narrow hallway which would lead to an exit two previous escapees had used. Grug had been roused from a well deserved nap by the frantic urgings of his youngest siblings, and was now rubbing the sleep from his yellow eyes while attempting to understand the reasoning behind his brother's fear filled voice.
"Pugg. What is it that makes you scared like squirrel without a tree, and what makes Pugg want to disturb nap?"
In reply the diamond dog dubbed Pugg merely babbled, and whined fearfully while he attempted to pull his brother along faster and faster.
Finally after a few minutes Grug could see the exit that would take the two creatures out of their tunnels, and into the light of day, though from what Grug could see the sun was close to laying down for it's own well deserved rest.
After pushing past his brother, and emerging into the outside world Grug growled as his nose picked up a scent he was less than happy to have around his home since the last incident.
"Grug would advise pony to leave in matter of seconds. Grug's pack don't like ponies."
In response a small laugh slithered into Grug's ears the tone was light and feminine, but for some reason Grug suddenly felt an incredible cold crawl down his spine.
"Oh don't worry your flea-bitten head poochy, I'll be one my way after you answer a few questions for me." Standing next to a large tree a sea-foam green pony with bright red eyes smiled brightly at the diamond dog alpha, stepping into the direct sunlight the pony looked to be a matured adult, as well as a unicorn.
Growling at the pony for not only insulting him, but for also being a troublesome unicorn, Grug's eyes scanned the area for his guards that had been stationed at this entrance. A moment later Grug's eyes went wide as he noticed the pile of bodies that laid off to the left, the scene caused Grug's growl to turn to a snarl. "Begone horned pony! Grug has had enough of your kind."
The unicorn let out another amused laugh a sound that reminded Grug of food that had gone unreasonably bitter in taste, and would cause most to empty their stomachs upon eating. "Is that so? Well I certainly hope you can be civil enough to tell me if you've seen something of mine."
"Grug will answer no questions!" With another growl Grug took a threatening step toward the smiling pony, he had endured enough of the creepy cold that crept up his bones, as well as worried about his brothers who only looked to be barely breathing.
"What an ill trained dog you are... we'll have to fix that, now won't we?"
Before Grug would reply his throat tightened to the point of causing him to yelp in surprise before he felt his body go weightless and rise into the air. Grasping in vain at the invisible force that held his neck Grug looked weakly down at the unicorn who had come close enough to touch his nose with her left hoof.
"Now we're gonna do a little group activity, alright?" Although the amusement was still present in the unicorn's voice it was now joined with a sliver of venom that further frightened Grug. "I'm gonna ask a few questions, you're going to be a good dog and speak when I say speak... and he's gonna break every bone in your body if you don't."
Grug's eyes widened as a large stallion walked into view from behind the tree. Beneath the shade of the tree, Grug could only really make out what looked like a metal mask that covered the stallions face, though it did little to cover the dark violet eyes that stared up balefully at Grug, as well as the horn that glowed a deep miasmic purple.
"Now that you know the rules I'll ask my questions." Taking a moment to fix her forest green colored mane the mare looked up coyly at the choking diamond dog. "You see I'm looking for a little lost family member of mine, and a few things she stole from me. Would you happen to have seen her lately?"
End Of Chapter: |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | pre | The golem returned and nodded slightly. "You can go in now. Great timing on your part. Whatever they were doing it's over now."
Lightning made his way into a crumbling stone structure. A ghostly Twilight silently phasing through the wall next to him. Three more creatures left just as she and Lightning entered. A black-clad hairless ape with a long black mane and severely injured mammalian wings. A green-clad ape of the same nature with a green hat, a short blonde mane and a goatee. And a short not so hairless ape with an actual tail. Twilight would've been happy to see that as it was almost close to normal, if it wasn't entirely green that is. Lightning had a slight frown on his face as he looked at them. But then made his way inside.
Twilight was blown away. On each of the two walls that ran perpendicular to the one with the entry way. Were three banners each. Each banner had a minimalist depiction of her and one of her five friends. The one that had her visage bore a single word: "Learn" Underneath her friends faces were the words: "Play" "Race" "Shine" "Strive" and "Love" for Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy respectively. On the far wall were two discolored red, blue and white posters depicting an image of an angry Princess Celestia looking down and an impassive Princess Luna looking forward. Beneath Celestia was the word "Obey" and beneath Luna was the word "Bide".
However, the next thing she saw made her blood run cold.
Discord.
In a moment of fear, her concentration broke. And her spells fell.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Revelation | A/N: My original plan is to update about once a week. So don't always expect me to update this often. Because you'd be disappointed and I'd feel guilty.
Also, the Circles have thousands of bronies in them, so if you'd like to make a cameo, send me a PM with your name and design and I might work it in. After all, you guys are bronies too. Those of you who have already commented have a higher chance at making it in. Good luck!
Three people have put their characters forth and I am currently hashing out details. I may later have room for more, but for now the invitation is receded. Thank you.
Also, there's a scene at the end that explains a little bit about Overture. While not graphic, the subject material is not meant for readers with weak constitutions. You have been warned.
Twilight barely managed to regain her composure, she quickly threw the three spells back on and slowly backed away from Discord and the building that was far more confusing than anything she'd yet seen today. And that was saying something. The fact that Discord didn't follow her, even bothering to act like he lost her, would have been one more thing that occupied her mind if it weren't already full.
With a voice quite unusual for Discord, he spun around a few times in an apparent panic and ask-yelled "Where'd she go?!" Then he pointed to Lightning and said "Find her! Get the entirety of the Harmonics to find her. And Celestia help us, please tell me someone considered themselves to be Men In Black. 'Cause we need a neurolizer." The questions that arose in her head, like 'Why would Discord invoke Celestia?' and 'What does the suffix -lizer mean? Neuro means having to do with the brain.... lizer, lizer... what other word ends in lizer?' were quickly cleared when she turned and trotted off in the direction she had come, out of the clearing she subconsciously tweaked her route to match that of the three who had left earlier. Twilight didn't care, she wanted nothing more than to put distance between herself and the spirit of chaos.........
Wait, Twilight thought, These ponies are obviously being led by Discord... but they are more ordered than Celestia's own guard. Not much more ordered, but a trained eye could see it. Though that was tough considering their odd body structures and garments. Why would Discord surround himself with such suffocating order? Order that even the Queen of Organization was having a small amount of trouble digesting.
It was also obvious that these ponies, a term she decided to use based on the obvious sentience they all shared, had been here for a long time. About two months judging by the refuse and damage to the forest. That of course was the nice way of putting it. It had been two months sense this foul smell had first appeared. The smell of unwashed ponies and poorly disposed of biological waste. And she'd seen Discord's statue only a week ago when her and her friends gathered for Luna's birthday. Strange that even immortal goddesses who stay forever young are uncomfortable delving their age. Twilight silently chuckled to herself, despite the inaudibility spelled that cloaked her sound waves.
So, if Discord was out, but he hadn't made a move other than to gain a very large group of followers. Did that mean he was planning? Impossible! Discord couldn't plan. Not really. It went against his very nature. Besides, Twilight knew from first hand experience that this was a very bad year for planning.
That only left one option: That wasn't Discord. Whoever he was just looked like Discord. He didn't even have the right voice. What was their game? Twilight was snapped out of her reverie when two of the people in front of her began singing.
"We're Monks of The Moon!
We worship a cartoon!
Oh, we a-void jail,
So we tell a tall tale,
And sing our monk-y tune!"
Monks? Of the moon? Did they worship Princess Luna? Why won't these ponies MAKE SENSE! Argghh!
-||-||-||-||-
After the impromptu song, I tried to lie down on the patch of ground I had been calling my bed for the past month and a half when Snake decided that bedtime could wait.
"So, what do you guys think it's gonna be like on the Mountain side of things?"
"Cold" I say simply. I really want to sleep. Please just go to bed. It's been a long day. And we've got a big day ahead I silently beg my green skinned friend.
"Does anyone remember all the different types of people there were when we got here? I've completely forgotten what kind of people are protecting Ponyville from the mountain baddies. I think I remember seeing a batman. Hey, you could get along with him Arrow. You're both from the DC 'verse."
"You know I'm not actually Green Arrow, right? I'm a Green Arrow inspired Bluntman from Bluntman and Chronic. And I seriously doubt Mr Forehead Wrinkles And Scowls, tokes up. Or allows anyone who does to go un-punched."
"Bluntman looked nothing like that. I've seen that movie. You have way more Green Arrow in you." Snake retorted.
"Yeah, well. I didn't like the original design of Bluntman. Plus I never really saw what he stood for other than smoking weed. And I wanted a more Robin Hood theme. You know, resist the Man.... man. At least I didn't get two feet shorter and grow a tail. What's up with that anyway?"
"You've destroyed brain cells, haven't you? This is like the fifth time I've told you. It's simple. Beast boy's my favorite hero. And I imagined being him a lot. That's my only connection to my appearance."
"Guys, we've got a long day ahead of us," I interrupt "Let's get some rest. Please."
"Okay, boss. Whatever you say, boss."
"Dude, not now. In fact, not ever."
"Whatever you say..... boss"
"Uggh" I groan, violently laying down as though I was on my bed back home, and immediately I was regretting it. "Ow...." I open my eyes and an OC pony was staring back with a very worried expression.
"Ahhh!!" I sit up quickly, flailing my arms before settling them into a defense position, confusion and fear coursing through me. "What- what do you want, man?"
The OC was panting, it would seem he had run to our camp. "Lightning Strike *pant* was followed *pant* by Twilight *pant* Sparkle."
"Twilight? Here? Do we get to meet her? Oh this gonna be so cool! I've always wanted to meet her!" Snake's favorite, of course he was excited.
After giving Snake a glare that stated simply, 'shut up'. The pony continued. "She's seen us. We're to find her, and kill her."
The five seconds it took the three of us to process what he just said felt like hours. And when those second long hours were over three voices rang out in unison.
"WHAT?!?"
"That son of a bitch! That goes against all we stand for! It's our job to protect them! How could he possibly allow that to happen?" I screamed, stomping in emphasis.
"Overture said that if whoever finds her doesn't have the stomach to do it themselves, to bring her to him and he'd do it himself."
"Get out of my sight." I say coldly, using my new authority for the first time. "I don't want to see your face again."
"Yes, your holiness." I cringe at the title. Turning to Snake and Arrow I take a deep breath. Steadying myself. It's been a long day, and it would seem the night would be far longer. And my nerves are so shot I'm actually shaking slightly. Heart going a mile a minute at the thought of Overture murdering an innocent pony. My deep breath fails to help and I collapse onto my knees. Putting my head in my hands and wrapping myself with my wings I begin to sob. I try to muffle my yelling but I'm pretty sure Snake and Arrow are hearing me curse Overture's name.
Arrow puts his hand on my shoulder, what little of it he can reach through my wings. "Dude, if we see her. We can just pretend we didn't. She'll make it to Ponyville and she'll be fine. I'm sure she's inside the Inner Circle by now anyway. She's a smart mare. She'll be fine." He smiles down at me. He's not known to do that so his small soft smile might as well have been a Pinkie Pie grin.
"Thanks, man. You're right. She'll be fine."
"Umm, excuse me? But... I'm lost..." said a very, very unfortunate familiar voice.
-||-||-||-||-
When the singing stopped Twilight began paying very close attention to the creatures she was following. Enraptured by thier conversation. She learned the following things in quick succession:
1. The beings extended into the mountains, the current destination of these three.
2. They consider themselves protectors of Ponyville. The strange just keeps getting stranger. Evil protecting good?
3. The one clad in black was a high rank in the group.
4. They worshiped her, and if that building was any indication. Probably the Princess and her friends aswell. They certainly were a creepy lot.
5. The worst fact she'd ever learned. And she's learned a lot of facts in her life. Their Discord shaped-leader wanted her dead. Obviously he was as vile, if not more so, than the original Discord.
What happened next took her by surprise. Despite such a violent leader. Despite Black-Clad's assumedly high rank. He and the other two reacted to news of her execution order worse than even she did. When the black pony with a red mane left, she watched Black-Clad break down in a sadness she had not thought possible. She listened as they planned to aid her escape, and comfort each other by talking as though she was already safe. And it worked! Many ponies cared for Twilight. Her Parents, her Brother, all three princesses, the other elements of harmony, Spike, and many throughout Canterlot and Ponyville. But never had she seen someone care like this. It was alien, it was disturbing, and strangely, it was heart warming.
She might as well head home before the spells wore off. A letter to Princess Celestia had to be written. If it was only one them, she wouldn't have bothered. New creature, whoop de doo. But thousands? That's too large an impact to leave unreported. As she turned to Ponyville a thought occurred. She had no idea where she was. She had rarely been this deep into the Everfree before and needless to say the terrain looked different than it did two months ago. Turning to the only three creatures she thought might help her. She uncloaked. "Umm, excuse me? But... I'm lost..." she nervously pawed the ground as they ever so slowly turned around to face her.
"Twi-Twilight?" Whispered 'Snake', "I -I love you..." and his eyes rolled up and he crumpled to the ground as Black-Clad rushed towards her, wings extended.
-||-||-||-||-
Overture's lion paw was massaging his forehead. This went so wrong. Lightning Strike would pay for allowing this. When Twilight dies. So would he. Overture was alone in the temple. His big yellow eyes glistened as he stared at the Lavender banner with the word Learn on it. His breath was ragged.
"It's for the greater good" he reminded himself. But he was still dreading the report. He only hoped that whoever found Twilight had the stomach to do it themselves. Someone like Soulless. He might have been a bit disagreeable but damn if he wasn't loyal. And he had some serious bloodlust in him. Overture did not want to the deed himself. But it had to be done. Twilight knew of the bronies presence. She would tell others. The human infection would spread, and they'd lose what they were fighting for. Even if Twilight could somehow remain silent (Yeah. Right.) She herself was already lost. And she would slowly spread human filth throughout all of Equestria. She could not be allowed to live. A single tear dropped down Overture's cheek. Gut clenched he moved to a pew and thought back to when he vowed to protect innocence.
17 Years Ago
Brattleboro, Vermont
15 Year old Richard was relaxing on the couch watching Rugrats with his little 7 year old sister, Stacie. Most brothers his age with a sibling of her age would be hard pressed to find themselves willingly spending time with them. But Richard was no ordinary brother. He loved his sister with all his heart. And when Dad died he took on the role of a fatherly figure to her. He poured his heart into making her happy, and making sure she'd grow up with all the opportunities in the world available to her. When he wasn't playing or watching TV with Stacie he was poring into his studies. He'd be damned if he wasn't going to get a high paying job to help out his family. His mom had become a bit of an alcoholic after her husband's death and was in danger of losing her job as local radio station Disc Jockey.
Richard didn't have a lot of friends. But those he did have more than made up for that. Quality over quantity. Every Friday Richard and his friend Matt would hang out for hours. They'd play D&D, Magic The Gathering, football in the backyard, Mortal Kombat, and whatever else they felt like. Usually they'd drink a few beers aswell, though never when anyone else was home. It was Richard's one day off in the week. And he loved it. Matt was even good with his sister. He brought her candies and trinkets and all kinds of crap. And she loved him. Even so far as calling him 'Uncle Matty'
One Friday, Richard was babysitting Stacie when Matt pulled in hauling two six packs.
"No, man. Stacie's here. I told you, not while anyone else is home"
"C'mon, man. It's just a few beers. Don't be a pussy." Richard shook his head, it had been an especially long week so a few beers wouldn't hurt.
5 hours later
"HOW. FUCKING. DARE YOU!!! I LOVED YOU MATT! SHE LOVED YOU!"
Blood seeped from Matt's head where Richard had broken the bottle over his head. He was now punching Matt in the head hard enough to break his knuckles. But in his drunken rage, he hadn't noticed the pain. Matt wasn't feeling any pain. He hadn't felt any for five minutes now. Because that's how long Matt had been dead. The coroner would later remark that it was the most gruesome blunt force trauma he'd seen dealt by a fist. Richard was screaming, tears flooding his face. His sister was curled up in a ball in the corner. Expressionless. Tear stains lined her cheeks. The cause of her tears was not her brother. She had yet to even recognize her brother since the ordeal.
The windows in their unlit house flashed red and blue. A violent knock on the door proceeded the violent entry of a group of police that surrounded Richard and pulled him away from Matt's body. Struggling to pin the reeling, distressed, completely out of control teenager. Two cops slowly coaxed Stacie out of her corner and into a blanket.
Richard was found guilty of Manslaughter and Assaulting a Police Officer. And was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He got out 5 years early for good behaviour. But he was never the same. He vowed he'd never see the empty look of lost innocence again. He'd never allow someone to feel that pain. He'd never let anyone hurt an innocent under his watch.
It was no surprise when he latched onto the Ponies. Their pure innocence was something forever lost to him. He had found an outlet. He wrote a fanfic and poured his pain into it. He wrote and sung music and poured more of himself into it. Haunting Melodies and cheerful, masking tunes churned in his computer. He even latched onto a villain, if you could call him that. The ponies would never really know true evil. And he'd hurt any writer of the show that would seek to change that. But that wasn't likely. At all. The villain he attached himself to was Discord. It reminded him so much of himself. Overture, as he now called himself, was never allowed the luxury of self discovery. He didn't know himself. Was he a murderer? A protector? A brother? A friend? A son? A traitor? A musician? An author? So many parts thrown idly together. Sometimes when he looked in the mirror he even saw Discord.
Overture sighed. Not even the ponies were safe after all. If there was a God, Overture would have a few words with him when he died before he went to hell. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Departure | A/N: The "winners" of the cameos: Technia, S1nt4x, and Pascal. Pascal's character had me in giggling fits and will be a challenge to write for. And I look forward to tackling that challenge. However, he won't be seen this chapter.
Edit: I guess Technia will also be introduced at a later time
"Ahh!" Twilight screamed as I wrapped my arms and wings around her, shielding her from view of anyone who might see her.
"Shhh! Please be quiet!" I stage whisper. Twilight calms down but doesn't cease shaking. I scan the forests looking for anyone who might see Twilight. Seeing none, I let go of her and let out a sigh of relief. Thankful that the 'sleeping camps' are a half a mile away from the Inner Circle.
"Why did you attack me? I thought you guys liked me?"
"Attack you?" I respond, confused. "Oh, no. I'm sorry. I was just trying to make sure no one saw you. The rest of my kind... well let's just say that you don't want to meet any of them. And by 'let's just say', I of course mean you seriously don't want to meet them."
"Wait, you thought we liked you?" responded Arrow accusingly. Twilight looked hurt.
"You mean you don't?" Twilight sat on her haunches and her eyes went a little large. Arrow and I could barely contain our d'awwws. Arrow looked flustered as he verbally backpedaled.
"No, no! Of course we like you! I guess what I mean is, how did you know that? And-- wait, shouldn't you be freaking out over our appearances?"
"I've already had my freakout. At least I think so. I could be in shock. Is this what being shock feels like?" She brought a hoof to her chin. Then, shaking her head she continued "Nevermind, you see... the reason I knew you liked me is.... I was sorta..kinda...spying on you guys" She looked down and appeared to be a little ashamed. I was admittedly a little uncomfortable having been spied on, but given the situation, I wasn't about to let on.
"Woo! Ammunition against Rainbow Dash!" Snake had apparently regained consciousness long enough for him to hear Twilight's confession. Twilight was not happy to hear what she considered to be a threat against her friend, and glared at Snake. Sitting up, he raised his hands in an internationally, and hopefully interdimensionally, recognized sign of surrender.
"No, I mean. When she eventually asks us if we're spies we could work it in that you were. That's all."
"That does seem like something Rainbow would ask. How do you know that? Why do you people have pictures of me and my friends in that building? Why do you.... Arrgh! You're all so confusing I can't even find the right questions to ask! Do you know how long it's been since I've failed to come up with a decent question?"
"Uh..... no?"
"Neither do I!" She practically screamed. Which freaked us out a little.
"Shhh, please calm down. We can't alert the others. As for your questions. Maybe we can answer them later. But right now what's most important is getting you back to Ponyville and your friends as safely, and as quickly as possible." Twilight pondered this and settled down.
"Alright. Let's get me home."
"Can you become invisible or anything? 'Cause that would be really helpful right about now." Ah, Snake. Where would I be without your genius? Oh right. Fucking dead, that's where.
"I only have enough energy left for an invisibility spell. But you'll still be able to hear and touch me."
"We can touch you?" Snake asked hopefully. Pervert.
"I'm not saying you have permission, because you don't. I'm saying everyone, as well as the enviroment, has the ability to touch me. I can't go intangible anymore."
"Anymore? You mean you could before?"
"I only have energy enough for invisibility. Can we go? I want to go home."
"Er.. yeah, sure. C'mon guys. We're going to the Inner Circle. Twilight, you probably want to cast that spell now." Twilight's horn gave a soft glow that briefly reflected off the trees before she disappeared from sight. "Great let's get going. Twilight, try and mask your steps with ours." We turned and faced a South Easterly direction and moved silently through the dark forest.
About 20 minutes later we arrived at the Inner Circle. Roughly three quarters of the guards were facing inward in a very deep bow. Seems It was sunset. That should help. One of the guards that was not bowing and was still facing outwards was going to be the one we met. I tried to get around him but he'd already seen us. He waved us over and I reluctantly made my way to see him. I had to act like nothing was wrong.
As I looked at his gas mask and German officers cap, I couldn't help myself, "Are you my mummy?" I asked in a lilting British accent.
"Um, what?" He responded in a voice clearly filtered through electronics.
"Are you my mummy?" I asked, doing a remarkably good job at keeping my voice the same dead, creepy, childlike tone as before.
"No..?"
"Are you my mummy?"
"Look man, I ain't got the time for this shit. I just wanted to know what you were doing out here. Shift change was two hours ago. Not to mention we're on high alert with Twilight having been spotted. Real shame, that."
"Twilight?" I asked, feigning innocence. "She's been spotted?"
"Yeah." The man had a long black leather trench coat, with sleeves that tucked into a hard plastic material that covered his forearms before switching into gloves at the wrist, a black combat vest and a pistol belt over the trench, slightly baggy black cargo pants tucked into knee high combat boots topped by knee pads. He was looking a little forlorn. His wings that were similar to my own but without the coloration or holes and a demonic arrow pointed tail sagged slightly, futher giving that impression. This guy looked brilliant. Except for the hat, I could totally see myself hangin' with this guy. That and he probably would rat out Twilight pretty fast. Not a good way to make friends.
"So, um.. what's the plan to catch Twilight?" I was hoping he'd give me the lay of the land and make it easier to bring Twilight home.
"We've set up her home as a trap. There are snipers positioned throughout the Everfree. If she so much as pokes a horn out the bush, bam. She's gone. The unicorns have set up an anti-teleportation magic shield around Ponyville. Aided by mages of other varieties. If she tries to pop home her molecules will scatter across the planet. To top it off there's a telepath roaming the woods scanning for her mind." At this he sat down. His wings stretched out and settled back into a more comfortable position. He looked up at me and asked simply
"Why do you have to kill her, Priest?"
"Um...." I didn't know what to say. This guy didn't want to kill her either. I was glad that not everybody was a heartless bastard. But I couldn't let on that I agreed with him. Many HOH were glaring at him. Some looking at me as though demanding that I publicly punish him for such blasphemy. I had to get out of there.
"It would seem you are unfit for duty, Harmonic. You will come with me." I began to lead him away and the HOH looked happy. Though some appeared dejected that I would handle his 'punishment' privately. I imagine if I could see this guy's face he'd look scared.
When we were far enough away I asked him his name.
"It's S1nt4x, sir. You can just call me Sin for short."
"Syntax, huh? Neat. I have a few questions for you: One, would you prefer Twilight lives or dies. Answer honestly, Snake can tell when you lie. And he hasn't eaten anything for three days." At this Snake became a green velociraptor and I could swear I saw him smile. Syntax just looked bored. Which freaked me out a little.
"Honestly, I want Twilight to live." as the words leave his mouth his face locks onto Snakes and he gets into a defensive position, clearly expecting a fight. When none comes, he looks my way, tilting his head in inquiry.
I smile and say simply, "We, also, want that." Twilight chooses this moment to reveal herself. And Syntax, in a motion quite unbefitting his appearance, fanboy squees.
Twilight, sitting down, is looking a little irate as Sin absentmindedly pets her like a dog. Earning a scowl from Snake, who's once himself again, and chuckles from me and Arrow. "You realize that Overture will gut you if he finds out?" Sin asked, a hint of disappointment lining his electronic voice as Twilight decided she'd had enough and moved away.
"I took the same oath as you. Protect the ponies, even at the cost of our own lives. That's what I'm doing."
"Good enough for me. What are we gonna do? She can't go back to Ponyville. She can't stay with us."
"Wait. Sin, you're a genius!"
"I am?"
"Overture sent us to the other half of the Circles, right? We just take Twilight with us. When we get to the Canterlot Break, we can smuggle her in. She'll go to the Princesses and... oh boy. Well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, onto the Canterlot Break!"
"What's the Canterlot Break?" Twilight asked.
"Well, we erm.. Harmonics, have formed two circular perimeters around both Ponyville and Canterlot. However, given Canterlot's unique topographical location, we haven't been able to form neat lines there. What we've done in stead is place a few strong individuals with ranged abilities, flight, or advanced eyesight to adorn the face of the mountain that Canterlot rests on. There are also a few weaker Harmonics, spread throughout. If we can avoid being spotted, we can slink right past them into Canterlot. Hopefully they won't be expecting stealth attacks and we can slip in easy enough."
"Well," clapped Arrow. "This sounds like a plan. I say we start our little quest early. While the diurnal creatures sleep."
And so we set off, doing our best to stay away from the many sleeping former humans and from the nocturnal guard. About a quarter mile of woods and darkness on either side of us blocking our view from said groups.
-||-||-||-||-
Celestia had had a long day. The longest in a thousand years. Paperwork, cleanup and grief was the unholy trifecta that sought to drag her into the pits of Tartarus. Now that all but grief had been dealt with, she needed some company. Luna was busy training her own Night guard after the attack on Celestia. Celestia's remaining day guard, which she had successfully managed to loosen up after years of effort, were back to being the stony statues of vigilance and discipline that they were trained to be. She would get no comfort from them.
"Prepare a chariot to Ponyville, I think it's time I visited my favorite student." Besides, she hadn't written to Celestia today either. And she was usually so punctual. As good a reason as any to visit, Celestia mused.
Sitting in the Chariot Celestia sighed and visibly relaxed as the cool evening air rushed over her. Celestia closed her eyes an breathed deeply and slowly. Finding her center. She smiled as the Chariot touched down and her guards let her continue to meditate.
Now in a relaxed, serene, state she walked gracefully to Ponyville's one and only library, knocking on the door softly she called out to Twilight. However, it was a puffy-eyed little dragon that opened the door instead.
"What's wrong Spike? Is Twilight home?"
"No!" He cried, wringing his little clawed fist in one eye. "She went into the Everfree Forest! I told her not to go! That it was dangerous, but she refused to listen to me. Again!" Celestia knowingly smiled at Spike, Twilight was known to go on little adventures, this time would be no different. "But this time it's different," cried Spike "She'd be back by now. She's never been gone this long. And she'd never stay in the Everfree at night, not unless she absolutely had to like when she first moved here. And even then, she was in great danger! Please find her Princess. Please!"
Celestia smiled. She'd find Twilight, but not because of her assistants worries. Celestia was sure Twilight could handle herself. However, Celestia wanted to talk to Twilight. She needed a shoulder right now.
"Okay, Spike. I'll find her. Don't you worry." Celestia offered a warming smile.
"Thank you, Princess. I- I think I'm gonna lie down. Please have Twilight wake me when you bring her home" Spike yawned, heading up the stairs to where is basket lay in wait.
-||-||-||-||-
As Celestia flew over the Everfree, scanning for her student, she took notice of the changes apparent in the forest. The most noticeable of which was a large circular clearing of downed trees. In the center stood a shoddily built stone building. Whatever this was, it was new, and likely to have drawn Twilight's attention as well.
Celestia tilted her wings and descended into the clearing, landing right in front of the building. Carefully opening the large twin wooden double doors she called in for Twilight. Or anypony else that might occupy the small structure.
When her gaze took in the one roomed building, she stiffened. It was weird staring at a propaganda poster of herself that demanded obedience. It went against everything she stood for. It was also weird seeing the banners that held minimalistic artistic renderings of the six bearers of Harmony. As well as a younger looking Luna depicted with the same style propaganda poster.
Celestia's assumption of the structure having only the one room was quickly proven false as Discord walked casually out of the back room, cleaning his hands on a rag. When she spotted him, she yelled out his name and quickly began readying a spell.
Upon hearing this and spotting The Goddess of The Sun in his Temple, Overture quickly fell into a deep bow, practically kissing the ground, and yelled. "I swear my loyalty to you, Princess Celestia, Goddess of The Sun, Day Bringer, Life Giver. Also, I'M NOT DISCORD. I only look like him. I swear to you, my Goddess."
Of course this confused Celestia. Only one thing looks like Discord. And that's Discord. But this creature did not share his voice or mannerisms. And Discord would never bow to Celestia, much less give her grand titles that included 'Goddess'.
"My name is Overture. High Priest of the Holy Order of Harmony. Leader of a group of roughly four thousand souls ready to give their lives to protect you, your sister, and your ponies. And I am at your service." Overture finished with a graceful bow. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Eminence | Celestia was confused. In all her long life she'd never met such strange beings. This 'Overture' was guiding her through the dark Everfree night, explaining their predicament to her as they went. She tried to pay attention but her eyes repeatedly stole glances of creatures she'd never seen before, not in her dreams, not in a storybook, not anywhere. Several had a very familiar, very disconcerting shape to them.
"...and that, Life Giver, is what's best for all."
"What?" Princess Celestia felt a little guilty at having tuned him out. She hadn't done that in a long time. But then again, there had never been anything quite like this to distract her before.
Overture smiled a small tight smile. "You weren't listening, were you? That's understandable. Here, follow me to where you might be less prone to the whims of ADD."
"ADD?"
"Nothing, nevermind. Inside joke."
"Sure, lead the way, Overture."
As they made their way deeper into the forest, Overture began to speak again, and Celestia resolved to hear every last word.
"At what part did you lose me last time?"
"I believe you had said that you were a race of creatures called "Humans" and that you had gathered for a celebration of sorts."
"Ah, yes. Seems you tuned out early on and caught some information after that. Well, unlike last time I can't go into great detail, as we're running out of time. So here's the short and sweet. One: we humans are evil, true evil. Two: we-"
"You're evil? And you dare speak to me!" Celestia charged her horn once more and Overture sat still, and held a single hand up.
"Yes, I am evil. As are my brethren, however we are not here to harm you, please hear us out before you defeat us. And if you decide to engage us, defeat us you shall, as not one soul will put up even a meager resistance. Even if they believe themselves to be more powerful than you and your sister combined."
Once again Celestia's horn's glow receded. Confusion seemed to be a common emotional state for her today. "That's not how evil works, I think you may be misguided, Mr Overture. You seem to me a decent being. Why call yourselves evil?"
"Where we're from, Good and evil isn't quite so black and white, oil and water. It's a cloudy gray. So while on our own planet, we may be relatively nice guys, compared to you and your ponies, we're the greatest evil you've seen."
"If you are so evil, why haven't you attacked me? Why haven't you tried to take over Equestria?"
"Ah, there it is. That's part of two. Two: On our world, we came to know of yours. We followed the adventures of your student, Twilight Sparkle, and those of her five friends. We came to learn much about your world. The purity of your joy and innocence lit within us a spark of hope and happiness many of us hadn't known in years. It was a beacon. A bright and warm beacon. And that beacon brought us all together to celebrate you all, even though we all thought you were fiction. However, for whatever reason, during our Celebration, something happened. Whatever it was brought us here. And we swore an oath to protect you and your ponies."
"I still don't hear any evil..."
"It's in our very nature, Princess. And it's a corrupting force. A very powerful corrupting force. I am happy that you are momentarily immune, Princess. But I don't believe you have much time before you succumb, which is why you need to listen to me."
"I'm listening..." Celestia was perplexed, but she had no reason to doubt this creature. If he spoke true then to ignore his words would have been met with catastrophic consequences.
"Twilight Sparkle has been spotted in these woods. Unfortunately, she is not an Alicorn, and thus fell victim to our evil. She has been tarnished by our presence and poses a grave threat to Equestria. She did not grow up in a world of darkness and she has lost complete control. She is in the woods somewhere, that much we know. And we are doing our best to save her. In spite of our best efforts, she has evaded our sentries with magic. We need your help, Princess."
Hearing that sweet innocent Twilight Sparkle had been corrupted by the presence of these things made her both wary at their natural evil and awestruck at their raw power. Though that was nothing compared to the worry she felt for her student. Poor Twilight, an agent of evil. When these creatures cured her she would be guilt ridden for weeks. "What do you need, Mr. Overture?"
"Just Overture is fine, Day Bringer. And all we need from you is some magic dampening fields on this net, and the cage on the edge of the clearing. But you must hurry. I fear we cannot protect Equestria against an Alicorn infected by our evil, much less the Goddess of the Sun, and you cannot have much time left."
-||-||-||-||-
"Hey man, how about a pizza and a fuck?" Arrow has been, for the last 15 minutes, trying to get in Sin's pants. And he's been met with failure everytime. I'd laugh. But it's getting on my nerves.
"No, man. I told you-"
"What's wrong, you don't like pizza?" Sin stopped walking, his fists clenched he leaned forward slightly, shaking. Obviously simmering in anger.
"For the last time, I ain't into you. You ain't my type. By a long shot. Hit on me again, and I'll make sure you sleep for a long time." at this his right arm changes shape. Other than the missing ethereal dark red glowy crap, his arm is now a dead ringer for Alex Mercer's blade. Pointing it at a very pale Arrow he said, "Keep your dick in your pants, and I keep my own sword sheathed, get me?"
"Yeah, man. Fine. Whatever. Shit, thought you were just playing hard to get. You don't need to get all screamy."
"You don't even know what I look like. Every inch of me is clothed. What possessed you to want to possess me?"
"What can I say? I got hot guy radar, Shit man! I wasn't hitting on you, calm down!"
"Would you two knock it off!? In case you've forgotten, we're on a stealth mission. Ya fuckin' idiots."
"I will ask later, what that was about, Mr Soulless. But what I want to know now is, just what stealth mission are we on? We're nowhere near Canterlot and we haven't seen hide nor tail of your kind in half an hour." whispered Twilight.
"Twilight, for this I think you need to sit down. You're probably not going to like the answer." Twilight sits, a worried look on her face. "Twilight, when was the last time you ate?"
"About fifteen minutes ago, why?"
"And you, Snake?"
"Three days."
"Arrow?"
"Two days."
"Syntax?"
"A week." Whoa, what?
"Excuse me, a week? How are you still standing?"
In a slight German accent he yells: "I HAVE NO IDEA!" Guess that explains the irritability.
"Ohhh- kaaay. Well, that aside. I think you can figure where this is going, Twilight"
"No. No I can not. Why would you choose not to eat?"
"We don't choose not to eat, our food is scarce. Do you understand now?"
"No there's food all over the place. Just eat already."
"We're carnivores, Twilight. Well, omnivores really. But the plant life here has very little nutrients and calories. They can't sustain us. We need meat." Goddamnit, Snake. For someone so smart you can be a little dense at times.
"Is that all?" Ummm... what? What does she mean, 'is that all'?
"Uhhh... you're okay with that?"
"Yeah, why wouldn't I be? I've read plenty of biology textbooks. Honestly, I figured you guys were carnivores. Your omnivorous nature was admittedly a little surprising"
"Wait, you knew? Then why did you say we should eat the plants around us?"
"I had you guys pegged. I guessed you knew that the ponies you worshiped were herbivores. You tread lightly on so many issues, I was curious as to how long you'd keep your diet a secret. Not too long apparently."
"I wonder how the other ponies would react to that?" Snake wonders aloud.
"Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash would be okay with it, Fluttershy takes care of all creatures and all diets. And if I remember right, Dash said she's even eaten meat herself-"
"What?!" All four of us respond.
"From what I remember of what she told me, in a bizarre moment of curiosity she ate some of Gilda's chicken during flight camp. Apparently it tasted odd, but was in no way worth the severe gut wrenching pain that followed that evening."
"Daammn" Arrow responded. "I knew she was brave, but... daammn."
"Really, as long as you don't eat in front of anypony. I don't think you'll have a problem. Just don't tell Pinkie Pie. I'm afraid of what she might do to cater your welcome party... what is wrong with you guys? Why'd you all stop walking at the same time? You guys look really scared. I've never seen you guys so scared."
"Um..." I swallow. "It's uh... nothing. Don't worry about it. Let's just uh.. go. I'm not hungry anymore."
"Yeah, uh.. me neither."
"But you guys haven't eaten in days. You said so yourself! I need you at full strength if I'm going to get home safely."
"Just.. no. Just drop it please."
We walked for the next hour in complete silence. Though we did finally manged to get a deer roughly forty five minutes in.
-||-||-||-||-
Washington DC
White House, Oval Office
November 30th, 2013
2:26 am EST
President Romney. The CEO of America. Was the happiest he'd been in just over a year. An entire planet of untapped natural resources at his country's front door. Sure it was a bit of a squeeze getting in, and there were some pesky savage natives to deal with. But they'd be dealt with quickly enough.
"Sir. I don't think that's a good idea. From what I gather from the report, the planet is occupied by sentient life. We can't just declare war on an alien species. It's not right." Romney rubbed his temples. Part of the problem with his position was dealing with the bleeding hearts. No matter how may times he's blatantly ignored them, they keep offering thier 'advice'.
"Jenkins, I read that report. They declared war on us. They killed one of our soldiers in cold blood."
"It could be a cultural misunderstanding, and.." the thin man in a suit flips through a few pages of the report in front of him, "it looks like they appeared in a throne room of sorts. He was killed by guards. Who's to say they didn't attack first?"
"That report," Romney offered. "That report is to say they didn't attack first."
"Oh, so now you care what the report says, figures."
"What was that professor, I didn't quite catch that."
"Nothing, Mr President. But, is it really worth it to wage war over one dead soldier?"
"They pose a great threat to this nation, Doctor. We must attack first."
"Uh.. no. They don't pose a threat, actually. They have spears. What they pose is an excellent opportunity for advancement of our mutual knowledge"
"I've had enough out of you. Go sell your unpatriotic drivel to someone else." Why this brainiac was trying to get in the way of God's work was beyond Romney. And it was obviously God's work. America had been in an enormous economic decline in recent years. And just when all hope is lost, A portal to an entire world neatly pops up in America's capital city. The sign couldn't be clearer. And this SETI worker would seek to explain it and diminish the rewards America deserved. Atheist filth.
-||-||-||-||-
Belly full for the first time in days I was dead tired. Every now and then I would stumble forward, flapping my wings to help regain balance. I wasn't the only one. Twilight wasn't known for physical labor and just moving had worn her out. We made camp in a tree, Arrow and Snake worked to create a hammock and tied the makeshift thing between branches so that Twilight could sleep with us. The dense foliage would hide us from Human search parties that would undoubtedly search for us when the sun came up. Seems we would become nocturnal. Fitting really, for the HOH's priest and monks of the the moon.
Staring through a small gap in the leaves I watched as a bit of extra-planetary rock burned up in the upper atmosphere. A shooting star for those less astronomically inclined. A childhood habit rose itself out of my mind and I wished upon a star, tweaking it to fit our environment.
Dear Luna, I wish with all my heart that we safely deliver Twilight to Canterlot. Where she can be kept safe from the rest of my kind who desire to kill her. And on a lesser note, I want to go home. It's not great, but at least I'd have food, shelter, internet, and indoor plumbing.
Yawning, I hooked my feet around the branch I lay on, instinct taking hold I let myself drop. Hanging upside down from the branch, I cocoon myself with my wings and fall into the best sleep I've had since I came to Equestria.
-||-||-||-||-
Given the events of the day, it was understandable that her night was a little lackluster tonight. Giving it a once over she let it remain with the dimmer stars and galactic cloud. Waving her hoof lazily her horn glowed as she briefly added some shooting stars and waited for what would undoubtedly come. Contrary to popular belief, she couldn't actually manipulate the stars. They were far too far away and far to large and took far too long to create and destroy. No, what she could do however was manipulate the exosphere, thermosphere and mesosphere's molecular density on a grand scale. Thus altering the way the star's light waves traveled through the planet's atmosphere. When she wasn't feeling up to it, the molecules would gather and thicken the outer atmosphere and dim the light of the sky. When an asteroid got close enough it took no effort to move it. Often times she'd drag it into the sky and create a light show. Ponies that saw this tended to offer prayers to Luna when she did. Often in wish format. And she chose to open her mind to those prayers every time. When Equuis passed through the tail of a comet she'd open her mind then too. But that wasn't as special. It was more public, less personal, and Luna could do nothing to stop the shower that would create the barrage of wishes that came her way.
"I wish being a fillyfooler was a taboo again. The sex was so steamy back then."
Nothing I can do about that, Lyra dear. Luna smiled.
"I wish for a billion bits!"
Aren't you rich enough, Filthy?
"I wish Spitfire would see how awesome I am and make me a Wonderbolt!"
Dash, all you need to do is the paperwork, I'll send you the application in the mail.
"Dear Luna, I wish with all my heart that we safely deliver Twilight to Canterlot. Where she can be kept safe from the rest of my kind who desire to kill her. And on a lesser note, I want to go home. It's not great, but at least I'd have food, shelter, internet, and indoor plumbing."
Luna's eyes went wide, her irises shrank. Where had that come from? Before it went cold she traced the line, ignoring all the other wishes for the night. Her minds eye flew over the country. Soundlessly speeding past building after building before leaving Canterlot. It flew in the direction of Ponyville before lurching right and delving into the forest. It twisted past tree after tree. A sleeping timberwolf pack was undisturbed as it flew within inches of them.
Finally, it rested on the sight of an overly large sleeping bat, two bipedal creatures resembling the ones that had attacked earlier, and a small green monkey. All sleeping around Twilight Sparkle, who was lying on her back on a net in the tree, appearing relaxed, but not asleep. Luna watched as Twilight wrote in a small notepad, occasionally glancing at the others. Luna slowly shifted her line of sight so she could see what Twilight was writing
"Hello, Luna. Seems I'm not the only spy these days," Twilight chuckled. Caught, Luna teleported to her sister's student.
"What is going on, Twilight. That bat thing had a very ominous desire." Twilight raised an eyebrow
"Oh?"
"He wished for your safe return. He believed you to be in danger. Is this true, Twilight?" Twilight chuckled.
"They're cooky, and on some level yes. I'm in danger. But I trust them to return me safely."
"Why not just allow me to return home with you?"
"These things are the most amazing things I've seen in all my years. I want to spend as much time as I can with them. I think that one and that one have a crush on me. I think the bat thing worships you. And they are masters of Theater. The old you would have been proud."
"How do you mean?"
"Every little thing sets them off. They fear me as though I were a sensitive parental figure that they need to appease, and quite frankly, that's hilarious. I can see why Celestia messes with her subjects sometimes. The whole meat thing had me going so bad it was miracle I kept a straight face."
"Meat thing?"
"They're carnivores, or I guess technically omnivores."
"Ah, I see. And they-"
"Yeah." Luna smiled.
"They don't eat sentients, do they"
"No, Luna. Hey wanna meet them? I think they might make the noise that Syntax here made when he met me. It was cute. Weird and mechanical, but cute."
"Eh, why not? I think I'll the wake the bat one first. Hey, wake up sleepyhead. Time you met the awesome Mare of the Moon.
-||-||-||-||-
New York City
Worth and Broadway, Portal Location
November 30th
4:20am EST
"So, what we've discovered is that the wormhole is stable on this side. However, the other side flits between locations. Using multiple sensors we've calculated that the area that the other side pops up in is roughly twenty five square miles. However. The portal remains stable on the other side in a specific location for nine hours and twenty three minutes a night. It's deep in the woods. About sixteen miles from Location Alpha."
"Wormhole?"
"It fits the mathematical parameters of an Einstein-rosen bridge to a T. I never thought I'd see one. Especially not one visible to the naked eye."
"When does stability occur?"
"10:16pm eastern standard time, sir."
"Hmm, that only gives us a few hours tonight." Jameson moved his arm in a motion that said simply, 'move out'. Teams of soldiers carrying ammo crates and stores of weapons moved through the portal. Followed shortly by teams with food and other necessities. A line of port-o-potties followed them. Humvees pulling trailers full of metal rode through the cleared ground before flashing white and disappearing. A single Abrams tank. The only one Jameson could requisition at this time of night was poised to follow. Before it arrived at the portal that was smaller than it, the driver got out and signaled that he was ready. A team of soldiers and a couple of vehicles proceeded to push the tank into the portal.
The scientist on station stared wide-eyed. The entire tank went. Not just the part that connected to the wormhole. Jameson was the only one left. With a wave he walked into the wormhole, leaving the scientist alone with his work.
-||-||-||-||-
New York City
November 30th, 2013
4:27am EST
Two figures stood on the roof a short skyscraper opposite the ruined building with the portal to another world in it. One wore a long white trench coat with gold trim, the other wore a midnight blue trench with purple trim.
"Hmmm," said one
"Huh," said the other.
"Seems the Americans mobilized earlier than expected."
"You don't suppose it's because we-"
"I don't discount it. But it's possible they were supposed to go this early."
The other chuckled darkly "I don't envy those on the other side. It's about to get ugly, fast"
"Dark days ahead indeed for The Holy Order Of Harmony" The one smiled.
A/N: Holy shit, guys: FANARTS! Pascal created these fantastic images of Soulless, S1NT4X and Pink I think I'll even use one as the new cover art for IBDF. Hope you guys enjoy these as much as I did. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Technology | 3 hours in the future
Princess Celestia was about to head back to Canterlot after successfully managing to place magic dampening fields on roughly 25 nets and one very out of place cage, confident that they would hold Twilight long enough for the creatures to purge her of their influence, when one of the strangely colored ponies burst into the clearing.
"Overture! Princess! Something terrible has happened!"
"Calm down, what happened? Has Twilight been found?" Overture asked with a hint of trepidation in his voice.
"That's just it. We found her. But she's being aided by the Priest of the Moon, his monks, and another we don't know of. They've turned traitor, sir."
"No. That's not possible. Soulless is loyal. Misguided, but loyal. He'd never allow human influence to stain Equestria." Overture stated simply, refusing to believe.
"That's not all, Her Majesty Princess Luna was seen aiding them. We don't know why. But I think Luna has been corrupted, I think she might even be Nightmare Moon again."
Overture did not take the news well. Soulless, a traitor. Luna, an Alicorn as mighty as Celestia aiding in their escape. She was probably the cause of Soulless' behaviour, after all, he was the Moon Priest.
"L-Luna? Dear sister? Corrupted? Nightmare Moon?" Celestia was stammering, visibly upset, her eyes glistened in fresh tears. "NO! We just got her back! I won't allow her to go again. Even if I have to hurt you creatures to get her back." with that Celestia galloped into the woods. Before she broke the treeline, however, Overture shouted.
"Wait! I won't stop you, Celestia, but I won't allow you to go alone." Overture turned and shouted "Pink! Get your Nordic ass over here!" A shirtless man with long blonde hair and a braided beard ran into the clearing. "Princess Celestia, this is Pink, Priest of The Sun. Pink, you know who she is. You're to aid her in finding and subduing Princess Luna, the Moon Harmonics, and Twilight Sparkle. And you, random pony, where were they seen last?"
"They were that way. Two Harmonics were fighting them, but I doubt they'll last long." The pony pointed in the direction he had come, the very direction Celestia had already been headed. Pink summoned a 21 speed mountain bike and joined Celestia. However, they were stopped before entering the forest again. "No.. wait... that way" The pony pointed in a wholly new direction. Sighing, Celestia and Pink changed direction. Gaining momentum they stopped again as the pony pointed in the opposite direction they had just been moving in. "....or was it that way? Actually... I think I lost 'em. Sorry." Pink shrugged and moved off into the forest, followed closely by Celestia. It may take longer than they'd like, but they were confident they'd find their quarry. Hopefully before any real damage could be done.
-||-||-||-||-
The Present
I had been asleep for maybe an hour, I may not value it as highly as Arrow, but I still value it. So when I felt someone try to jostle me awake I felt justified in making death threats. "Unless your name is Twilight Sparkle, if you keep that shit up, I'll cut you into neat little cubes. Good. Day."
"What if my name is Princess Luna?"
"I'm supposed to believe the Princess of the night is here in our humble tree? Right, and the space pope isn't reptilian."
"I do not know what a space pope is, but I assure you I am indeed Luna."
I open my wings a little to get a good look at whoever's doing that admittedly really good Luna impression. If they say 'Made you look' then this will be over and I can go back to sleep. Who knew I needed to hang upside down? However, instead of Snake, Arrow, or even Syntax's face, there in the little gap in my wings with a cute little smile, was Princess Luna. Shocked into attempting to right myself, I lost my grasp on the branch and fell. "Oh, right in the jewels." I mutter as I land in an unfavorable manner on one of the lower branches. Spinning on the branch I continue the fall, head first again towards the ground. I hit the ground in a heap. "Ohhhh.... That sucked." My left wing hurt. A lot. I tried extending it and it spasmed. Guess I wasn't gonna fly anytime soon.
"Oh, I apologize. I had not meant to frighten you, beast." Luna gracefully glided down from the foliage where Twilight and the others remained hidden. Her face betrayed her apology as insincere as it looked like she'd break into laughter at any given moment and was trying not to.
"Okay, one. My name is Soulless, not Beast. Two, you didn't frighten me. You startled me. There's a difference."
"I am sure."
Pushing myself off my back I finally manage to bow to Luna. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Soulless, The Holy Order Of Harmony's Priest of the Moon, Protector of Ponies."
"Holy Order of Harmony? Priest of the Moon? What do these things mean?"
"Well, basically, since coming to Equestria my people have formed a religious organization based around the Elements of Harmony, their bearers, and you and your sister. I've been named Priest of the Moon. Which basically gives me authority over all, mainly those in the west. But, despite my position, I'm not actually a member, if you can believe it. Anyway, why are you here? Are you taking Twilight back?" I ask hopefully.
"No. I'm afraid I cannot. Whatever is preventing Twilight to teleport herself, also prevents me from teleporting her. Though I believe I will accompany you and your friends on your journey to aid in her safe keeping."
"I can't say that's what I was hoping for, but that's better than nothing. Thank you, Princess. We could use all the help we could get."
"Really? Luna's here? Where? This is awesome!" A mechanical voice screeched from above. Soon after Syntax landed neatly next to me. Followed closely by Snake and Arrow. Snake and Arrow, in what could only be a choreographed motion, mirrored each other perfectly as they unfolded their makeshift dried vine hammock and extended it between themselves. Once it was unfolded, Twilight jumped into it and was carefully lowered to the ground. Once everyone was on the ground they gave a quick, but deep bow.
"Will you be taking Twilight home?" Snake asked.
"No, but I will be traveling with you for some time."
"Sweeet." Arrow and Snake high five each other.
"Should we get moving?" asked the Princess.
Before anyone could answer, I chimed in quickly "Aren't you Nocturnal, Luna? The day just started, can we please get some sleep? It's better if we move at night anyway, less of a chance of getting spotted."
Luna was about to say something when an unknown voice called out to us. "You there! What are you doing-- We've found her! Get her, bring her to Overture!" Two ponies and a Jedi appeared from the bush, yelling and pointing in our direction. At this we all assumed defensive stances. Syntax's left arm once again became Alex Mercer's blade, his right hand held a very large gun. A Desert Eagle, I believe. I pulled out my twin blades, Snake transformed into a tiger, Arrow pulled out his bow and lined up an arrow, Luna and Twilight's horn began to glow. "Brick Build, get to Overture, tell him what we've found!" The Jedi yelled to a red pegasus pony that was a dead ringer for the steroid junkie from Hurricane Fluttershy. Brick Build ran away from the fight. Once he was out of sight the Jedi glared at us menacingly. He switched his lightsaber on and made towards us.
In the middle of his swing, however, he stopped moving, twitching and foaming at the mouth he fell to the ground. Revealing a unicorn mare with bright green eyes, a dark grey coat and a red-grey messy mane. She had a red cutie mark of the uppercase greek letter Phi. She was holding a taser in her magic. "Uh. Hey guys. Mind takin' a chill pill? I ain't gonna hurt ya." Sensing the danger was gone weapons were holstered, bodies were reverted and magic was dampened.
"Why'd you do that?"
"Do what? Taser this scumbag? You're welcome, by the way."
"Um.. thank you? I thought all the OC ponies were loyal to Overture?"
"Fuck no. Once that little shit said 'Kill Twilight Sparkle' I became his enemy. Fuck Overture. Twilight Sparkle is Best Pony." When the mare said "Kill Twilight Sparkle" she tilted her head and her voice deepened to almost demonic levels.
"What's your name, friend?"
"Technia." Said the unicorn.
"I'm not 'best pony'. I don't hold a candle to Celestia." Twilight was again confused.
"To each their own. Personally, I'm a Luna fan." I respond, giving the air that Twilight was an MLP fan with her own favorite pony, enjoying the look she gave me. And if I didn't know any better, I'd swear Luna blushed.
"Well, Technia," started Luna "No doubt this position has been compromised. And you've outed yourself with your attack on your partner here. Would you like to travel with us?"
"Travel with Twilight Sparkle and Princess Luna? Is this a trick question? Of course I will!"
"I feel like I'm in an RPG. Our group keeps growing. This will make stealth difficult." Snake commented dryly.
Once again we made our way southward. Trudging through the the thick underbrush everyone but Syntax was getting scratched by multiple thorns. Though Luna was healing so fast she might as well not have been. Arrow and Snake were arguing about the potential of black hole enabled time travel, Syntax was having a conversation with Technia about the positive and negative effects of industrializing Equestria, a conversation Luna was discreetly paying a lot of attention to. And Twilight and I were talking about Humans. Specifically Human's lack of magic.
"Well, then, how did you get here?"
"No idea. A portal is the best I can say"
"But that's magic."
"Maybe someone opened it on this side, then."
"You need magic on both sides."
"Maybe it was a top secret government technology that went haywire, or was tested on us."
"But, how do you live with out magic? It's unfathomable."
"Technology." Technia answered for me, briefly interrupting her own conversation to do so.
"Hey guys, it's about midday, how about we rest a bit? Heal up some wounds, gather strength, I think we're far enough away that they won't know where we are." Arrow said.
"Sounds good." said Twilight, still not used to this much exercise.
"I'm down." put forth Syntax, promptly planting himself where he stood.
"Whatever." I say and sit down as well.
Syntax produced from his back a small white box with a simple red plus on it and passed it around. "Take what you need, I've used it twice and it refills itself."
"Speaking of medicine that refills itself," Arrow fished around his utility belt and pulled out a joint. "I'm already covered." His other hand fished around and he came back with a lighter. Lighting up he inhaled, his voice strained as asked "Anyone else wanna hit? I'm tired of smokin' alone." He blew out a stream of smoke and he slumped a little. "Anyone?"
"Holy shit. Is that what I think it is?" asked Syntax
"You know it, want some?"
"Yeah, man!"
Arrow began handing the joint to Syntax, but pulled back. "How you gonna smoke with that on your face?"
"I can take it off."
"Oh." Syntax took the joint and put it up to a port on his mask.
"I just choose not to."
"Okay then."
"Anyone else?"
"Eh, sure, why not? It's been a stressful few weeks" replied Technia. The joint glew bright green in Technia's magic as she brought it to her lips. She coughed a couple times before passing it Snake. Who then passed it to me without partaking. I took a hit and passed it to Luna, not thinking. Everyone's eyes went wide as Luna took the drug and inhaled deeply, copying our motions. She blew out and smiled lightly.
"What? This is not dissimilar to some early dealings I had with the Buffalo tribes to the north. Twilight, would you like to participate in this human custom?" Of course she had it word it like that. Now she'll be curious. Twilight took a hold of it in her purple magic and eyed it curiously. It was burned halfway and was slowly getting smaller as she eyed it. "Twilight dear, either take your turn or pass it. It won't last like that." With wide eyes and jaws we all stared at Twilight as she slowly brought it to her mouth and inhaled deeply.
The coughing fit that followed was drowned out by our laughter. "I can't believe," cried Snake "That Twilight just smoked weed!" tears in his eyes went unabated as he was too busy holding his abdomen together.
The tears in Twilight's eyes were caused by her coughing/choking, and she was having trouble stopping. "I don't -cough- understand -cough- why you -cough- would -cough- willingly do -cough- that to yourself -cough, cough-"
"Eh, it's an acquired taste."
"You mean to tell me--"
"Shhh!" I cut Twilight off, and everyone shushed. I had thought I had heard a twig break, as though we were being watched. We stood still for about five minutes straight before Technia spoke up.
"I don't hear any-" before she could finish, a timberwolf sprang out, knocking her onto her back and pinning her. Tree sap served as drool and poured onto her face as her eyes went wide. The timberwolf growled and snarled, gnashing his teeth every now and then. I pulled out my blade to deal with it when it's head exploded.
Twilight glared at Syntax. Whose gun was pointed at the corpse, a line of smoke billowed from the barrel. "What?" he asked, "It was gonna eat her."
"No, it wasn't. You didn't have to kill it."
"What do you mean, it wasn't gonna eat her? It was all like..." Snake asked, turning into a green timberwolf and mimicking the other's actions before returning to normal. "Oh, I see." he stated simply.
"What am I missing?" Arrow asked.
"Did you notice how the timberwolf looked, physically, I mean?" asked Twilight, full on lecture mode. Complete with the sudden appearance of half moon glasses and a bun hairstyle.
"Yeah, it looked mean, and hungry. And kinda in mah face. Not cool." Technia answered.
"Did none of you notice that it's hollow?"
"So, what then? It can't eat? Then why attack? And how does it live?"
"You ponies-"
"People." I chimed.
"...people.... ever heard of Changelings?"
"Yeah." we all respond, heads nodding.
"Well, then you know that Changelings feed off of love. Timberwolves, are similar to Changelings in that they feed off of emotional energy. However, their food of choice is fear." We nodded, that made sense, actually. "Most of the time they're harmless, only needing to stalk, growl and snarl to get a reaction. But occasionally they'll resort to violence if they're hungry enough. Very rarely will they actually inflict pain. Not because their sentient and have morals, but rather it is simply a high risk/little reward scenario that they evolved not to engage in."
"I just got a lecture from Twilight Sparkle." whispered Arrow, "I feel like my I.Q. just rose 20 points."
Three more timberwolves emerged from the thicket. "Remember," said Twilight, raising her voice just enough to be heard over their growls, "they have no need to hurt you. There is nothing to fear." I cooly gazed at the wolves. Trying to drink in as much detail as I could. Nothing like clinical detachment to wipe away fears. I noted the knotted style of the branches. The bio-luminescence of their yellow eyes, the row of canine teeth shaped wood in it's jaw. The way the wood flexed and retracted as a muscle would as they circled us.
"Okay, I'm goin' to sleep. This is boring." Arrow remarked.
"No, we've rested long enough. Let's move forward." said Luna. Arrow groaned but stood up, ready to leave. As we seven made our way south through the woods, the wolves followed us, hoping to catch us off guard. But nobody was scared. It was a beautiful moment when we ran into a patrolling group of Wolverines. They saw us and cried out for our blood, they must have been a little fearful going into battle because the timberwolves saw new targets and made the Wolverines simpering cowards crying in fetal positions.
"The more a timberwolf feeds the scarier it's perceived to be by it's victim. Creating a cycle that can incapacitate someone, this is a wolf's true power. If an especially hungry wolf is left to feed on a single victim until it's satiated, the victim can lapse into a fear induced coma. Luckily I doubt those three will get that bad. The wolves were not hungry enough to attack physically, after all." Twilight pushed the glasses she had been wearing since lecture one up.
"Bwahahaha! Wolves attacking Wolverines! Priceless!" cried Arrow. Syntax's right hand twitched over his gun.
"That's the second battle today that was fought and won for us. I'm developing an itch on my trigger finger." I ignored Syntax and hoped that the itch would not get out of hand, and that a situation in which he could scratch the itch would not arise.
Stepping over the wolves and X-men, we continued our way south. All of us returning to the conversations that were held earlier, albeit quieter as we remembered we weren't alone in the Everfree.
-||-||-||-||-
Sixteen miles south west of Canterlot, known to the Americans as "Location Alpha", a military force Equestria had not seen moved into a heavily wooded area that was very similar to the Everfree, but wasn't the Everfree. Soldiers began unloading the trailers that were pulled by the humvees. Most of what it contained was metal of varying shapes and sizes. They moved the metal into position and the brilliant light of welding lit up the surrounding woods. Buildings began to take shape from the metal and a small network of narrow dirt roads interlaced the building frames. Within a few days of arrival thanks to the expedient work from trained soldiers and pre-built parts, a forward operating base would be established. Complete with mess hall, armory, barracks, motor pool, a security office, and an officers office.
A/N: Hey guys, how you doing? I don't feel too awesome about this chapter. Certainly not my greatest work. But I hope you guys like it. If not I may redo it. If you missed it in the previous chapter or did not see it in my blog post some fanart has been made of IBDF. Click 'Previous Chapter' and check it out. Also, I made a shitty map in MS paint. I'm no artist, but I thought some of you might want a visual aid when it came to the lay of the land.
More Fanart! This time of Arrow and Technia. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Blockage | It has been a relatively uneventful past few days. Luna had promised to make the cover of night even darker and had gone back to Canterlot so it was just the six of us again. While Luna's darkened night aided our evasion of the others, it also greatly hindered our navigation, as the Everfree was already very naturally dark, the thick canopy blocking almost all sunlight. It was miracle that the forest floor was as lush and green as it was. This of course made what might have been a day or two long trip, into much more. I was glad for my improved eyesight, and Snake overcame the darkness easily by becoming an owl. But it was still a struggle trying to help the others find their way. Our sleep during the day was almost as troublesome as moving during the night. Each day seemed progressively brighter than the one before.
Twilight had begun to freak out during the dusk, dawn, and nighttime hours, as storms began to build up. But it wasn't a pronounced freakout. Just the occasional shudder or eye twitch followed by the soft muttering of the words "Everfree" and "Unnatural". The storms added length to what was already a daunting trip. Technia, it would seem was adept at creating tools from crap she found in the forest. And by tools, I don't mean a sharpened rock on a stick for poking things to death, no, I mean she easily hefted minerals and metals from the ground and created devices that you could find in your local RadioShack. Explains the taser. I had watched as she pulled a huge chunk of tin, copper and iron, separated it and molded it as though clay. Sand swirled and coalesced into glass. Copper into wire. A black sludge seeped from the ground, poring upwards, dragged from it's place deep down in the crust of the planet by Technia's magic. If you poured a liquid and filmed it in slow motion, and played the video upside down, that's how the sludge looked. We had seen her mix the sludge with an off smelling yellow rock and air. It coalesced into a ball of filth and crackled with energy. It wobbled to and fro while leaking excess material. It settled into a kind of rudimentary plastic. The metals, glass and plastic came together to create..... a digital barometer. ... Well. That was anti-climactic. All that power, for that. If all the unicorns possessed that much raw power no wonder Overture is still alive. At least the instrument helped calm Twilight.
We had found that the air pressure was in a stable kind of flux. The barometer hit the same points of measurement at the same time, every day. And be we, I of course mean Technia, who besides Twilight, was the only one who cared. Basically the day saw high pressure, and the night low. So when the sun set or rose, we would be faced with a storm. One that appeared to be getting worse each day. The forest canopy was no longer keeping us dry. In fact it made what droplets that did find their way down thicker and heavier than normal. And recently the drops had become nearly as frequent as open air rain.
On a particularly brutal Wednesday morning, as we neared the edge of the forest we found a cave and hunkered down for the day.
"Hey guys, come check out what I found" Snake had come back from the recesses of the cave and morphed out of his owl form, turning he motioned for us to follow. Arrow and I followed, curious to see what had gotten him so excited. Turning left and right the cave narrowed and snaked downward. When it got to be almost too shallow to continue without crawling the cave opened up to an area about the size of a two car garage. Other than the occasional stalactite and water droplet echo the area was featureless. Unless you counted the small family of rats in a corner.
"What are we looking at?" I asked, annoyed.
"I thought I-- Ah! There they are!" Snake pointed at the rats, grin wide.
"The rats?" Asked Arrow, as dumbfounded as myself.
-||-||-||-||-
"Ahh, that's better." moaned Syntax happily, rubbing his stomach in satisfaction. The fire in the cave had begun to die down along with storm. The sticks with scraps of rat meat and tiny rodent bones that littered the cave floor were brushed aside as we settled down for the remainder of the day. Our stomachs weren't full, but the deer had run out days ago and this was the first food we had had in as many days. So we were going to sleep without the pain of hunger we had been dealing with. The cave we were in also provided a sense of security that we had also been without. Needless to say we fell asleep quickly and deeply. So deeply, in fact, that we didn't notice when three figures appeared at the mouth of the cave hours later.
"Ahh! Get your paws off me, you damn dirty ape... fox... THING!" Twilight's voice rang through the cave, reverberating off the walls and proving to be better than the most innovative alarm clock ever made in waking the rest of us up. Twilight was unsuccessfully trying to remove herself from the grip of a Kitsune Anthropomorph. The Kitsune held her mane in one paw, and a dagger in the other. Before it could reach the soft flesh of Twilight's throat and arrow pierced his hand, forcing him to wail and drop his blade.
"Celestia damn it! You fucking moon cursed are going down!"
"What?" I ask. Moon cursed? Instead of a sigh and lecture, the Kitsune rushed Arrow who was standing just behind me, and was promptly clothes-lined by Syntax. However, before the Kitsune hit the ground he used his downward momentum to strike a sweeping motion at Syntax's shins. Surprised by the motion Syntax didn't brace himself and fell flat on his face. Getting up to face the fox he received a quick but hard blow to his spine. Temporarily immobilizing him. Turning to the rest of us he marched onwards. Fury on his muzzle. Snake went velociraptor and charged. The fox calmly grabbed the head of the ferocious predator and used it's own momentum to send him flying into the cave wall behind him. Snake crumpled into a reptilian heap and became an unconscious monkey boy. Arrow shot at him a few times and the furry dodged the arrows like he would the pitiful throws of paper airplane by a toddler. Arrow, momentarily out of arrows, charged the Kitsune. The Kitsune grabbed arrow by the throat and raised him a good foot off the ground. Choking, Arrow tried desperately to claw the paws of death off of his throat, his legs feebly kicking underneath him. Technia stood behind the fox, ready to electrocute both him and Arrow with her signature taser. Raising the device her face met paw as the fox casually kicked behind him. Reeling, she charged him, fully intent on delivering her electric fury. The fox spun and used Arrow as a weapon, sending both him and Technia into the cave wall next to Snake. The fox slowly turned to face me. A smile slowly spreading across his face.
Confident I was about to get my pale ass handed to me, I was faced with two choices. I knew which one was wrong. But I really wanted to be wrong right now. I could either turn tail and run like the little bitch this fox would undoubtedly make me to be, or I could stay and not got out like a pussy. Try and make an effort to save Twilight. Ugh, fine. Let's get this over with. Pulling out my blades I spread my feet in a fighting stance, as the only thing I managed to learn from the previous scuffles was that charging him did nothing, and that he was a badass. The second bit information was only helpful in that it had me properly scared, keeping my adrenaline pumping. Seeing that I was not going to attack he moved towards me, pulling a katana from the larger of the two sheaths at his waist. He picked up speed and pointed the blade at me, no doubt believing I'd be an easy kill. "Time to die, Moon filth."
The fox's Japanese blade was about half a foot from my stomach when it, and it's wielder, stopped completely. I looked up from what I had thought was my doom to see the look of surprise on the fox's face. As well as the purple field of magic that surrounded it. The surprised fox whipped his around 180 degrees in an unnatural speed, then fell onto both his, back, and his face. His neck was twisted completely around, a bit of spine jutted forth, blood oozed out of the wound. It took me a minute to realize that the fox had not turned his head like that of his own volition, but rather his neck was snapped by Twilight, who was yawning.
The fight wasn't over though, there were still two figures standing there. One was a nervous man in a blue overcoat and black boots. A state alchemist, if memory served. The other was an obvious chi-blocker from The Legend of Korra. The chi-blocker tilted his head, and without looking away from us, raised a desert eagle to the back of his unwary partner's head. And fired. The blood shot backwards from the state alchemist's head, as if it was that, and not the forward momentum of the bullet, that propelled his now lifeless body to fall forward and land motionless and wide eyed on the cave floor.
"You guys mind if I join you? You look like you've been having fun. Or at least interesting times. And I've been bored out of my mind without my phone. Name's Pascal" The chi-blocker calmly lowered the gun. He acted as though he hadn't just murdered his own teammate in cold blood.
"Uh..." I say. "No...? You just killed your last ally. Why would we let you be in our group?" Pascal looked disinterestedly at his former ally.
"No, I didn't. He was sun loyal. I am moon loyal. Therefore we are enemies. I would have done the fox in sooner, but he was kind of a decent fighter. And quite paranoid, I might add."
"What is this 'Sun Loyal and 'Moon Loyal' stuff?"
The chi-blocker again tilted his head. Great. Just what we need. Another fucking masked man. "You mean you don't know?"
"No."
"The Holy Order of Harmony has begun to split in half. Word of what's happened with Twilight and Overture has spread all way around the circles. Those loyal to Overture are calling themselves Sun Loyal. Apparently he has a good relationship with Princess Celestia. However there are those that are wise to conspiracy, and we're loyal to you, Moon Priest."
"There are members loyal to me? Why?"
"Don't feed your ego just yet. You're nothing more than a symbol. That and you're genuinely attempting to safeguard Twilight Sparkle. You'd be surprised just how much people care for her." He sounded bored. As though that was a mystery that didn't need solving.
"Oh."
"We should continue heading west. There's almost a border in the circles as the east side, being closer to Overture, is mostly sun loyal. Moon Loyals make up the majority of the western halves."
"We were already heading that way."
"Then that'll make things easier. Come, wake your friends. They appear to be mostly unhurt."
-||-||-||-||-
"What do you mean Twilight killed him?" Snake asked, seemingly personally offended. We had walked the evening hours away, the wind was picking up as we neared the tree line and the sun neared the horizon. Ominous clouds roiled over the green and purple hills. Distant flashes of lightning lit up the gray evening sky, occasionally followed by quiet thunder. A light drizzle began to fall.
"I mean she magically reversed the orientation of his head. And ended his life." Saying that out loud I understood the feeling that had been in my gut since the incident. Not only had Twilight killed. She seemed unphased by it. I thought I was gonna be sick.
"Yeah, no. That's not possible. The ponies ain't capable of that." Technia butted in.
"And why not?" an irritated Twilight asked. "Are we not strong enough? Is that it? are we weak, Technia?"
"No! You're plenty strong, it's just, Killing is.. not something easily done." Twilight's hard look softened.
"Look at it logically. That thing wanted us dead. It wasn't going to stop unless it was itself dead. It's unfortunate that it came to that, but I feel no guilt. He had to die. He's dead. What's the problem?"
"B-b-but... you're Twilight Sparkle...." stammered Snake. His world yanked from beneath him.
"So. Overture is wrong on every point. Not just most of them." I point out "The ponies, aren't innocent. Our presence was never a real threat. All this time...." It begins to sink in for the others as I say out loud what they had all been likely thinking. Shoulders sag as we exit the forest, the rain falls harder and the thunder clouds completely envelop the sky, at this time of day it effectively becomes night. Though the sun is likely still above the horizon. The wind pushed at us forcefully from behind and our ears popped painfully as the air pressure dropped significantly.
"So.. does that mean you're not going to protect me anymore?" a now worried Twilight asked shouting above the wind, eyes wide in fear.
"What?! Of course we'll protect you. You may be not be the innocent ponies we thought you were, but you still don't deserve death." I said, shouting back.
"Speaking of," shouted Pascal "It would be best if we kept Twilight's actions in the cave secret. Many Moon Loyal would see it as a sign of Overture's ways being correct, others may simply want justice or may go on a rampage of what they'd see as a betrayal. The Sun Loyal would likely strengthen their efforts to find her, and they would become effective."
"Aww, I didn't know you cared." Shouted Snake.
"I don't." Pascal replied "I've simply made your goal my own, nothing like an objective to make a mission. And missions are more fun than free roaming the map, anyway."
"Oh." Snake replied looking forward, and away from Pascal who, despite my better judgement, trailed behind the rest of us.
-||-||-||-||-
The nighttime storm followed by the very dark night, and the absence of forest allowed for the fastest traveling we had yet accomplished. Within four hours were at he base of the mountain. The sparkling city of Canterlot directly above us. The clean sound of rushing water on rock drowned out all other noise as waterfalls from the city connected with the false delta of a real river. Snake had gone falcon and was scouting the area for HOH and an effective way into the city, the rest of us sat in the darkness of the city's moon cast shadow, resting our tired legs when Snake came back. Being a monkey boy with pointy ears again he sat, panting.
"You guys, have to see this." If I had a nickel.
"What?" I ask.
"Just, follow me. And Technia, could you make us some binoculars?"
"Binoculars? Just plastic and lenses?"
"Yeah."
"No, too difficult. But I can make some high tech military grade night vision binoculars, will that do?"
"Yes." Snake said simply. Not sure how to respond.
"What? The more high tech an object is, the easier it is to make. Don't ask me why." Ten minutes later we were one pair of high tech military grade night vision binoculars heavier and we had crested a low part of the mountain, allowing us to see southward.
"Look there." Snake pointed, leaning against Syntax to allow him a better judgement of where Snake was pointing. Syntax peered through the binoculars.
"No.... way....."
"What?" I ask, suddenly interested. Syntax, moving only his arms in shock, handed the binoculars to me. A field of Mountain Dew green covers my vision as the night vision takes the place of visible light. I'm glad I have my sunglasses on, or this would hurt. But that makes using the binoculars cumbersome. The field moves erratically as I try and stabilize the binoculars. Finally it settles. "Is that.. what I think it is?"
"If you think it's a fleet of frickin' tanks, then I think yeah." Snake said. In the distance we heard a familiar soft whine build up, and then an extremely loud blast. A huge red beam launched itself from somewhere in the mountain. The beam lined up directly with the tanks. Looking through the binoculars again I see that the forward most tank's right track has been damaged. The other tanks had stopped, and their barrels pointed in the direction of the Spartan Laser that had damaged their friend. Flashes of light rocked the night vision, about five seconds later the thunderous boom of the tank rounds being fired rocked us. Followed closely by the explosions created by the very rounds as they no doubt hit the ODST that was stationed here. Another beam of red hit some of the other tanks, this time the beam was narrow, an split in two. The Kryptonian with heat vision must be here. Clouds formed and and spun around the fleet of five tanks, lightning sparked within them. A man with blonde hair and red cape swung his hammer down, a bolt of lightning hit a tank. And the tank was pretty much unfazed. But a foot soldier who had been walking next to the tank was burned pretty badly. Though still alive.
Twin blue-white beams finished the soldier off as Iron Man, or rather, a geek who really liked Iron Man, began his assault. One of the tanks turned it's barrel an obliterated the red suited man. Turning him into a mix of red paste and mist in a single shot.
"Is it just me, or are these really powerful beings getting their asses kicked? And their attacks are not doing as much damage as I'd expect either." Pascal posed.
"Yeah, I thought that laser would kill a tank." Technia said.
"To be fair, Halo weapons kind of suck. I mean, 500 years in the future, interstellar travel, and all we can do is add an LED ammo counter to our assault rifles? Can't even really aim the things anymore. No sights on the gun. Knowing how much ammo you have is more important I guess." I quipped.
"Let's not lose focus." Pascal reprimanded. "We are under attack."
"By Americans, it looks like." said Syntax.
"Aren't you American?" Technia asked
"I'm Equestrian now. Maybe not legally, but it's the nation that I hold dear. And the one I'll fight to protect." answered Syntax.
"I'm Equestrian too." Put forth Snake.
"I'm down." Added Arrow.
"Sure, why not? I'll admit I feel a lot more loyal to Equestria than America right now, especially if they're the ones attacking." I add.
"Don't look at me, I'm already a pony. I think you know my answer." added Technia. All of heads turned to Pascal expectantly.
"I swear no loyalties. Only that I won't betray you six. Don't feel like seeing the mission failed screen."
"Is life a video game to you?" Technia asks.
"No, but it's entertaining to treat it that way."
"Okay. Well. I think it's time we kill some alien invaders, what do you guys think?" I ask, arms spread in question.
"Let's go." Pascal and Syntax said at the same time. Eager to taste blood. "Oh, you might want this back. I took it off you in the cave." Pascal handed Syntax a desert eagle. Syntax took it and looked in his holsters to find one missing. I could only imagine the glare he sent Pascal as he checked the magazine and holstered the weapon.
"You're a prick, Pascal. Don't steal my shit again."
"Whatever." he shrugged.
Moving towards the tanks we steeled our resolve with a battle cry.
"For Equestria!" Shouted six voices.
"For the hell of it!" Screamed another. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Confrontation | "You," I point to Snake as we run toward the battalion of tanks that have luckily continued to be ignorant of our existence. "I've seen Teen Titans, go wreck shit." Snake nods and goes cheetah long enough to launch his humming bird form at rather excessive speeds. "Technia? What can you make for weapons?"
"I'm already on it." alongside her the ground is being torn apart as she summons the materials needed to create her latest gadget. I can only hope it's devastating. Glancing towards the tanks I quickly remove my sunglasses, making sure to keep them on my person so that a new pair doesn't rematerialize on my face. With my natural nocturnal vision I can't help but smile as a Tyrannosaurus Rex materializes in the midst of the slow moving fleet. Unleashing a spectacular roar straight out of Jurassic Park. The soldiers on foot turn to face the new threat and unleash a hail of bullets. Another roar and the dinosaur begins ripping into the humans. It's thick hide absorbing most of the ballistic damage.
"Syntax? How good are you with those guns?" Instead of a verbal answer he pulls them both out and squeezes off a multitude of rounds, nearly convincing me that they were sub machine guns rather than simple pistols. Refocusing my gaze on the growing tanks I watched as several soldiers went down. But not all. It's enough of a distraction and T Rex Snake flings a tank away before taking a form too small for me to see. A bright light flashes directly next to me followed by a loud boom. Convinced that one of the abrams nearly hit me I whirl. But there is no damage. Only a smiling grey unicorn and a rising light. I follow it into the night sky as it briefly blots out the stars with it's own light pollution. Flickering it bears downwards again, landing directly into the nearest tank.
"Gotta love Javelins. Thank you Battlefield 3." Technia laughs as she rips more material from the earth. The tank that was hit erupted into a small mushroom of fire which became thick black smoke that reached into the heavens. One of it's occupants made it out, bathed in flame and screaming. He writhed on the ground in agony before silencing. His charred corpse casting an orange glow on the grass around him. The fire that danced in the carcass of the tanks provided enough light to make the rest of the battalion visible even without visual enhancements. Natural or otherwise. Three tanks remained, flanked by at least fifteen foot-mobiles. The Javelin shot alerting them all to our presence.
"Twilight! Get me, Pascal, Arrow and Syntax into the middle of that. Then get you and Technia somewhere safe!" I ordered.
"I can handle myself!" Technia protested.
"I didn't say out of the battle, I said safe. You're a serious ranged combatant. You need range. Twilight! NOW!" I say, as the barrels of three tanks lock on to us. In a flash of white we find ourselves no longer in the darkness of the night covered fields, but within the orange light of fire lit tan armor. Before anyone can react I hop onto the tank nearest me. Intent on poking holes in it's driver an gunner. Pascal beating the ever loving shit out of soldiers and occasionally electrocuting them while Syntax proceeds to turn them into holey flesh cubes using a combination of his right hand pistol and left arm's Prototype blade. Arrow shot soldier after soldier in the face as it was the only area unprotected by their gear. After some trial and error I finally mange to open the hatch. Before I stab them silly I get a moment of inspiration. "I'll take that, souvenir, if you will." I reach down and grab a ring and quickly shut the hatch. Blocking their shocked faces. Scrabbling off the tank as fast as I can I chuckled as it's frame bulged slightly and the tank stopped moving entiely. The hatch that wasn't resealed blew open as the concussive force of the driver's pinless grenade went off.
Of course, taking the time to admire your handiwork is not a good idea in the heat of battle. And I was promptly reminded of that when a bullet tore through my left shoulder. Let me tell you, getting shot? SUCKS. The searing pain brought to me to my knees. We still had two tanks to get rid of and we were down a beast boy and a reckless bastard. That bastard being me, of course.
"We need.. to fucking BAIL!" I shout, as much over my own pain as the roar of battle.
"But we're winning!" Pascal shouted, appearing to enjoy himself. I was about to explain our predicament, when it became bad enough on it's own to render such conversation moot. On the horizon a field of headlights and armor created a cloud of dust as it approached. The familiar sound of chopper blades slashing the air grew and faded as they passed us by, heading directly to Canterlot. The ground force was roughly 10 times the one we were fighting. With APC's and jeeps and everything.
"Okay." Said, Arrow. "To quote Monty Python: 'RUN AWAY!'" And that we did. Syntax grabbed me in an attempt to aid me in our escape, causing me to scream like a little bitch. Looking back one of two tanks lined up a shot. Looking to remove our entire group from existence in a singular blast.
Eyes wide I began to chant loudly, "Move it move it move it run run run run RUN!" But the tank never takes the shot. It's massive barrel pointing to where we were mere seconds ago. Behind the tanks I watch the headlights of the various vehicles flicker off in quick succession. cascading from the center of the line. The six helicopters ahead of us have also doused their lights. Though I don't think they're doing it on purpose. I could tell because they were spinning and falling, their rotors still. As each one landed they exploded. Fire balls shot into the sky. Metallic debris rained down on us as we ran northward. Stabbing into the ground at our feet. Quick waves of physical sound rocked us during our sprint. Thick columns of black smoke leaned to the right, orange light flickering at the base of each column.
"What was that?" Pascal asked, slowing.
"I don't give a shit! Whatever happened let's take advantage and vanish!" I shout, despite the newly acquired quiet. The pain in my shoulder overriding my basic sense of decency. I curse the night's high pollen and dust count as some managed to find their way into each of my eyes, causing them to water. Or, if you wanna get technical about it, I cried. A lot. Pain does things to tear ducts. Don't believe me? Shoot yourself. Let's see how much dust is in your house on that day. Barreling towards the mountain I catch sight of Twilight and Technia sitting on the edge of a cliff face. "Twilight! Get us out of here!" I shout and soon after we're surrounded by a familiar purple light. When it dissipates we're once again in a new location. Unprepared, Syntax and Pascal trip over their own momentum. And I slam into the ground, sending a new wave of agony to tear at my shoulder.
"Soulless!" Twilight runs over to me, eyes wide at the dark crimson wetness that coats my trench coat. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," I spit, "I bleed all over the place from bullet wounds every Tuesday."
"You don't need to be a dick about it. She's only worried, man." Arrow said, shaking his head.
"Someone hold him down." Syntax says, a field of purple magic the immobilizes me as Syntax leans over me, pulling out his first aid box. "This... is going to hurt. A lot." Wide eyed, I try to struggle against Twilight's magic as he uses the hole made by the bullet wound to help him stab me with pliers. The bullet seemed to cause less pain than this. Screaming I try to flail around, to no avail. With an emotionless expression on his mask, Syntax continues digging around the meat of my shoulder. He pulls out in in the pliers is a 5.56mm round, soaked in my blood. As he sews me up, causing me pain, but less than what I've experienced recently I hear a conversation.
"So.... what the hell happened?" Pascal asked.
"EMP. Electro-Magnetic Pulse. Worked wonders, if I do say so myself." Technia answered.
"Technia, I could kiss you." Arrow chirped.
"I'm not gay." She responded.
"Good thing I'm not female then," Arrow responded, leaning in and puckering his lips. Only to receive a face full of hoof.
"I've only been a female for a few months. And I'm not gay. Nor am I even your species anymore. So don't do that again."
"Y'all suck." Arrow complained, rubbing his cheek. "Back on earth I was a dirty fat stoner, and I still got laid. Now I'm a hot piece of blonde ass, and I get none? You must be prudes." Arrow turns to Twilight who has released me. Syntax having finished his stitching. "Twilight, you wanna experiment with some inter species relations? For science?"
"You're disgusting, man." I respond. And it seems Twilight agrees as she bucks him right in his blue balls.
"That's okay," he squeaks "Kids are overrated anyway." holding himself he curls into the fetal position, eyes watering from similar dust that landed in my own eyes earlier.
"Hey, anyone seen Snake?" Heads twirl looking for anything green, but the search is violently interrupted.
"YOU GREY COATED BITCH!" Technia's head is impacted by a small, sleek black object. Pascal appears enraged. "Your stupid little EMP rendered my phone fucking USELESS!"
"Whoa, calm down there, man. Wasn't your phone already useless? Not like there's a lot of cell towers in Equestria. And it was probably off too, I doubt it's had battery power for very long. So the EMP didn't do anything to it." Technia reasoned, rubbing her head.
"Oh yeah." Calmly, as though he hadn't just beamed Technia with his phone, he walked over to her, picked up his discarded communication tool, and sat next to Technia. "Hey, Techy, mind charging this for me?"
"Had you asked a minute ago, I'd have agreed. But now? No way. Find an outlet."
"Well why not?"
"You mean beside the fact you just threw that thing at me? I don't know... could be anything really."
"That's not a good reason. Just charge it. I promise I won't throw a working phone at your precious pony head." He waves it in front of Technia, who is trying not to pay attention, glowering past it. Soon however, she caves. Probably not wanting to get hit in the head again. Her horn glows and the device beeps on, the white screen casting a soft white glow on the cliff edge. "Yes!" he pumps the air. And sits down, legs straight in front of him as he messes with his phone, talking to himself.
"Um guys?" Snake says, causing us to turn our heads.
"Snake! You're back, thank Luna!" I shout, opening my arms in an invitation to hug, genuinely glad to see him. He ignores the invite however, and continues speaking.
"We've got a problem. I did some spying. They've got a huge base about sixteen miles that way. And I mean huge. And it's only getting bigger. They've found a portal to Earth and are sending in reinforcements day after day. And there's a bombing run on Canterlot planned tonight. We've only got a few hours before Canterlot is destroyed. Everyone there will die. We need to do something."
"Twilight, we're inside the anti-teleporation bubble, assuming it still exists. Can you get us up to Canterlot? Preferably right to Princess Luna?"
"I think I have enough energy for that." Twilight's horn glew brighter than it had during her last two teleports. A light purple sphere of energy enveloped the six of us, and in a flash, the City of Canterlot snapped into existence around us. Bewildered looking ponies stared at us curiously, showing not even a hint of fear. Twilight collapsed, spent. Green arms surrounded her as Arrow lifted her carefully over his shoulder. Slowly we stood, cautiously eyeing the ponies. Wincing, I was the first to speak.
"Um.. which way to the castle?" Wide-eyed, which was saying something, considering the natural hugeness of their eyes, a white unicorn stallion slowly pointed a hoof directly behind me. "Ah, thank you kind sir." I gave a quick bow and power walked off. Trying to gain as much distance as I could without running and causing a panic. Arrow, Snake, Syntax, Technia, and Pascal marched closely behind me. Easily managing my pace as I was working against the fire in my shoulder. Ponies gave us a wide berth, but otherwise went back to their normal routine. The occasional glance our way the only sign that we were a wholly unfamiliar sight.
Approaching the hugely tall, most likely marble, structure none of our mouths failed to gape. As for sheer size the show didn't do it justice. It was probably three quarters the height of the Chrysler building. And made of a series of polished, seamless white towers that even in Luna's moonlight, sparkled. Each one topped with golden onion looking domes. The many towers beautifully accented by greenery. It occurred to me that the pony who had given me directions was probably wide-eyed not at our appearance, but at our stupidity, as the castle was kind of hard to miss. At the main gate two unicorn guards crossed their spears over it. Another two pointed their spears at us. "State your business, creatures."
"We're here with an urgent warning for Princess Luna." I say.
"We come bearing gifts." Pascal adds, nudging Arrow. Who then walks to the front of the group, still out of spear range. A sleeping Twilight snoring on his shoulder, hind leg twitching adorably. Contrasting the scowl Arrow wears on his face.
"What have you done with her!" A guard asks, not entirely politely, I might add.
"Shit all." Pascal says,
"She put herself to sleep teleporting us here." Snake adds. "Does that matter?! There's a threat against Canterlot!"
"Changelings?" A guard asks, appearing to believe our answers, but still not moving his spear.
"Worse!" Syntax shouts, irritation growing.
"That's it!" Pascal pulls out a nightstick that cackles with arcing electricity.
Whoomp
"What the--"
Smack
Ooof!
"Hey, wait I sur-" Thud.
Pascal holsters his weapon and wipe-claps his hands in a motion of success and completion. "Okay. Stage 2 complete. High Scores?" Pascal mimes writing in the air. "AAA. 'Cause I'm too lazy to do my real initials. But let's be honest, you all know it was me that got that number one spot." Technia facehoofs, and the rest of us resist following suit as we trail behind Pascal through the gate. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Evacuation | PREVIOUSLY, ON IBDF
"We need.. to fucking BAIL!" I shout, as much over my own pain as the roar of battle.
"But we're winning!" Pascal shouted, appearing to enjoy himself. I was about to explain our predicament, when it became bad enough on it's own to render such conversation moot. On the horizon a field of headlights and armor created a cloud of dust as it approached. The familiar sound of chopper blades slashing the air grew and faded as they passed us by, heading directly to Canterlot. The ground force was roughly 10 times the one we were fighting. With APC's and jeeps and everything.
"So.... what the hell happened?" Pascal asked.
"EMP. Electro-Magnetic Pulse. Worked wonders, if I do say so myself." Technia answered.
"Technia, I could kiss you." Arrow chirped.
"What have you done with her!" A guard asks, not entirely politely, I might add.
"Shit all." Pascal says,
"She put herself to sleep teleporting us here." Snake adds. "Does that matter?! There's a threat against Canterlot!"
"Changelings?" A guard asks, appearing to believe our answers, but still not moving his spear.
"Worse!" Syntax shouts, irritation growing.
"That's it!" Pascal pulls out a nightstick that cackles with arcing electricity.
Whoomp
"What the--"
Smack
Ooof!
"Hey, wait I sur-" Thud.
Pascal holsters his weapon and wipe-claps his hands in a motion of success and completion. "Okay. Stage 2 complete. High Scores?" Pascal mimes writing in the air. "AAA. 'Cause I'm too lazy to do my real initials. But let's be honest, you all know it was me that got that number one spot." Technia facehoofs, and the rest of us resist following suit as we trail behind Pascal through the gate.
...................................................................................................................................................................................................
The castle wasn't just enormous on the outside, it was enormous on the inside as well. And while this discovery was not unexpected, it didn't deter the gasps that escaped us. In front of us was a long hallway with a fifty foot high arched ceiling. The ceiling that wasn't the evenly spaced enormous windows was gold and covered in fantastic art that would put DaVinci and Michelangelo to shame. The walls of the hallway were a snow-driven white, and had a number of doors on each one. Mirroring the wall opposite it. Each door led to a myriad of rooms each large enough to house my entire house. Stacked on top of itself. Fifty times. Door ways on each of the four walls in each room were large enough to fit an SUV. And each room seemed to serve a purpose. Ornate dining halls, decorative meeting rooms, and I think I saw one at the end that housed a bowling alley. Odd.
Trudging our way through the main hallway to what we assumed was the throne room, we weren't stopped at all. The guards only gave us funny looks. Obviously they thought we had permission to be here. Well, I certainly wasn't about to correct them. We arrived at the huge doors at the end of the hallway and Technia coughed. Attracting the attention of the guards stationed outside.
"Um... we're here to see the Princess of the Night. Princess Luna. It's vitally important. If we don't see her soon lives could be-" Technia's once slightly timid to now suddenly impassioned speech was interrupted by one of the guards.
"Yeah yeah yeah. Go on in. Seriously, you delegates take everything too seriously. I'm sure ponies will live if thier taxes are altered a few single percent points, honestly if was that important you'd bring it up to Princess Celestia."
"LIEUTENANT!" Snapped the guard next to him. "You know better. We don't need an international incident on our hooves because you can't use the few muscles you have active tonight to move your eyes long enough to watch your tongue!" The guard, identical to the other except for the addition of a grey five o' clock shadow, turned to face us. The fire in his face gone and replaced with a small apologetic smile. "I apologize emissaries, it's been a long week for my friend here. Princess Luna is waiting for you in the throne room. I have to say, I didn't know there was monkey kingdom on the other side of the world. Hay I didn't even know there were sentient apes! But you guys seem to be doing very well for yourselves. I hope your visit is fruitful and your kingdom prosperous." with a bow the doors behind him briefly glew white and opened revealing a throne room straight out of the show. Well the hallway was, anyway. I don't recall seeing the actual thrones in the show yet. But the stained glass windows and the banners were all there. In the center, right at the door, was dark blue alicorn who was laughing her flank off.
Once the lunar princess had composed herself she led us into the throne room and closed the doors behind her. She eyed each of us an introduced herself to Pascal, who completely ignored her, choosing instead to get revenge on some green pigs. Strangely, Princess Luna skipped over Technia completely. As though she weren't there. Curious about why Luna had been laughing, as well as to why she chose to ignore Technia, I voiced my confusion.
"Do you know how long it's been since I was Nightmare Moon?" was her response.
"No." I answered simply. Wondering where this was going.
"Five years. Five years I've spent every night here handling Night court. Guess how many creatures have come into this castle during that time with the express purpose of meeting me for any reason, business or otherwise?"
"Um.... 1,000?" At this Luna smiled a little.
"Less."
"950"
"Less, not even that may digits." Less than a hundred??
"90?"
"Divide by ten."
"What? Nine? That's it? Well, I guess with our presence you can bump it up to ten, that double digits at least." Arrow said, hoping to cheer up the lunar diarch.
"No, you fail to see my meaning. With your presence I can bump it up to nine. Before you beat your way in here it was one. And that pony was my sister. So you'll excuse me if I don't feel like introducing myself to some random pony who's finally got enough ovaries to set hoof in my throne room. Especially if she needed you as escorts."
"Excuse me princess, but a couple of months ago I walked on two legs and ate meat. Since I've been here I've been stationed in the Everfree. Believe me, if I could have been here and talked to you before then, I most certainly would have."
Technia brought a hoof to her face, as though guiding glasses that had fallen down her nose back up onto her face. Of course, there were none.
Luna went wide eyed. "You were once one of these creatures? What was it you said you were called again?"
"Humans." She answered.
"Oh, my. I apologize for my blunder and outburst, miss..?"
"The name's Technia, Princess. And I forgive you completely."
"Please, I'm not your princess. No need for formalities here."
"Yes you are." all but Pascal said in unison.
"No--"
"This is all well and fun and all, really I was looking forward to the bowing even. A little surprised you people didn't do that right of the bat. Especially you, Moon Priest. But I believe we have more urgent matters than small talk and killing zombies with peas?"
Quietly, Syntax voiced what I, and more than likely everyone else was wondering, "Zombies with peas...?"
Pascal waved his phone, showing the colorful game screen of Plants vs Zombies. Obviously eager to get on with it.
Of course, the subject change snapped me back to reality. Ah.. balls. I actually forgot about that. "Princess, we need to protect the city. I'm afraid that Canterlot is under attack." Luna eyes widened in anger.
"And thou think to wait this long to tell Us!" She stamped a hoof, her eyes flashed momentarily. All of us, surprisingly even Pascal, immediately flattened ourselves, the more vocal of us begging apologies.
"You people are really easy. You know that?"
Bravely, I hazarded a glance at the throne. And Luna was just smiling. "Did... did you already know?"
"This castle has more than walls you know."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
Looking behind me she said "You see that image of Discord being vanquished by the elements? What is that image on?"
"A stained glass wind..Oh, I see." Looking through the image I could make out the field we had fought on. A flicker of light the only evidence of the tank scout force that we had decimated.
"So why isn't there like, a shield around the city? Why is everyone snug in their homes? Why isn't there a flurry of activity?"
"Well, I watched you defeat that force. Besides, Canterlot is the most heavily fortified city in Equestria. I'm sure we can handle whatever they'd throw at us."
It was Technia that spoke up, "We didn't defeat that force. We merely temporarily immobilized it. It's still coming. We have about an hour, assuming they don't send something else before they recover."
"I thought EMP blasts were permanent." Piped up Snake.
"Normally, yes. But the rules are slightly different here. Not to mention the Military has been working on EMP defense systems."
"Okay," said Luna "But if they're still coming it still doesn't matter we can handle--" She trailed off as Technia gave a huff and left the throne room. Only to come back dragging a very annoyed Pegasus guard from the throne room doors. "Um.. what are you doing with my guard?"
Technia ignored the Princess, instead she spoke to the guard she brought in. "Using your weakest, non melee attack, destroy that bust."
"Where those always there?" I whispered to Pascal who just shrugged and gave a non-committal "I dunno."
"I don't take orders from civilians."
Curious to see where this was going Luna urged him on. With a sigh of boredom the guard reached on his person and took a small knife bereft of a handle and threw it right into the mannequin's (ponyequin's?) head. Other than a small tilt back before regaining it's stance and a gleaming new eye accessory, the ponyequin remained unfazed. "Now Syntax? Sam order, try an keep it military." With a shrug Syntax pulled out a deagle and fired. The Night guard and Princess were on the ground covering their ears with their hooves. The rest of stood like nothing happened, apparently we've gotten accustomed to the noise of gunfire. Twilight, though, was now now very awake. And very annoyed. "DAMN YOU SYNTAX THAT WASN'T FUNNY THE FIRST TIME! AND... hello Princess Luna. Long time no see. Where are we? Oh, right." The ponyequin head was missing, as was most of it's neck. The wall behind it was sporting a new hole at the center of a spiderweb of cracks.
The pony night guard was obviously impressed, rubbing a hoof along one of the larger cracks. "That was your weakest attack? It blew a hole right through the marble!"
"You have war machines, right Princess? Or you at least at one time? Trebuchets? Catapults? Flaming arrows?"
"Equestria hasn't had much use for them in the last few centuries, but we had them before I was Nightmare Moon."
"If the guards throwing knives are analogous to Syntax's gun, imagine what your people's war machines are analogous to?"
"Holy horsefeathers we need to evacuate the city. Guard, sound the alarm! We need to get everypony out now!"
The guard, still entranced by the damage to the wall, jumped about a foot in the air before scampering off through the throne room doors, shouting the entire way. Not long after the sounds of an air-raid siren wailed in the distance. Out of the window I had peered through earlier the distant lights of the city began to flicker on one by one.
"Wow, the city seems so distant from this vantage point." I say, marveling at the illusion.
"What are you talking about? That window does not face the city." replied Luna, confused.
"They managed to override the EMP already?!" shrieked Technia, having realized what the lights I had seen truly were. Technia bolted out of the castle
"Where the hell are you going?" called out Syntax.
"There's something I need to do, gather all the unicorn and earth ponies together! The pegasi can fly away on their own!" She called back, the last sentence barely reaching our ears. Luna, Syntax, Snake, Arrow, and I exchanged nods. Each of us silently communicating, 'You heard the mare, get to work'. Twilight was out of the loop, still recovering from fatigue and that rather jarring wake up call. And Pascal was still just not givin' a fuck and was still messin' with his phone. Humming what I'm fairly certain was 'Hush Now Quiet Now'. For some reason, that gave me the fuckin' creeps.
Exiting the castle we were greeted by a familiar sight. Mind you, it was familiar because I watch action and sci-fi and the occasional bit of fantasy. So a medieval looking town freaking the hell out over a alien invasion? Familiar. Just the first time I've seen it in 3D, or acted out by cute ponies. Actually, the cute ponies made thier hysteria hilarious and I had to fight back chuckles. Though Pascal was having no such qualms.
"This...." he chuckled "Is the funniest Faust-damned thing I've ever seen." and the he lost it. Rolling with laughter he failed to stop even when Luna's death glare nearly ripped in half. Even continuing when she addressed her subjects. Of course, Luna's presence helped stem the panic and thus Pascal's levity.
"CITIZENS OF CANTERLOT. THE CITY IS UNDER ATTACK BY AN UNKNOWN AND POWERFUL RACE. EVERY PEGASUS NOT ON THE ROYAL GUARD IS TO FLEE IMMEDIATELY TO CLOUDSDALE. BRING NOTHING WITH YOU. UNICORNS AND EARTH PONIES ARE TO GATHER IN THE CITY SQUARE. ONCE AGAIN, BRING NOTHING WITH YOU"
Like a flock of startled pigeons, pegasus ponies that were peppered throughout the city took off at once. Their wings beating the air with the sound of feathers before becoming specks on the horizon minutes later. The remaining ponies, whose number had not appeared to shrink, were no longer screaming and running wild. The fires that had begun were even being put out as ponies made thier way to the city center. Though the ones on the edge burned brightly. At least until pegasus guards made some rain storms to douse the flames.
"How do they do that?" I wonder out loud. Until now I had figured that part of Equestria was myth. The storms that we had been graced with every dusk and dawn had been very natural in thier manner, despite thier Twilight-like need to be right on time.
"Oh, well it's quite simple, really-" started Twilight, once again conjuring her lecture glasses. I wonder if teaching people causes her eyesight to change?
"Okay, I'm done, are the ponies gathered?" Technia, sweating profusely, ran up to us. A small smile played on her muzzle. "Cause we need to get the fuck out here, like now" she pointed a hoof toward the approaching lights. They appeared to have halved the distance. Squinting. Arrow pulls out the night vision goggles.
"Uh, guys. We've got a problem. Technia's more right than you know. That's a bloody A10 on it's way here." Technia, Synatx, Arrow and I feel the color drain from our faces as ice grips our blood.
"Technia, for the love of Luna, please tell me you have a plan." Luna's only reaction to my turn of phrase is a raised eyebrow. But otherwise ignores it as she turns to a suddenly animated grey unicorn mare.
"Yes! Quite right! I need you all to follow me, and any ponies you want to live need to follow me aswell. Make that happen. We have but minutes before Canterlot is destroyed."
"HOLY BLEEDING HORSEFEATHERS YOU ALL NEED TO COME WITH ME IF YOU WANT TO LIVE!" Luna screamed at the gathered pones. (I guess that works...) Who didn't hesitate to scream and calmly follow their Lunar Goddess. The disconnect between thier actions and and sounds was jarring to say the least. Technia led us, and the panicked ponies, to a large rectangular section of mountain that seemed to have been pulled out as though it were a drawer and the mountain itself the cabinet. On it sat a vary large cargo plane. And on that sat a myriad of badass weaponry. Once again, I was looking at something that simply did not belong. Anywhere. The back of the plane was open, creating a convenient ramp for it's passengers who were following a surprised looking Luna into the plane.
"Technia... how...."
"You see the weapons right? Well, That's not all I put on this thing. There's so much computing power in the cockpit alone I could probably send a probe to Uranus-"
"Really, Technia? Arrow is rubbin' off on you-"
"Shut up. As I was saying. Even with all that tech, to get this behemoth made was still taking too long. So I stuffed it full of weapons. Which is awesome considering what'll be in our rearview. Also, There are probably enough Xbox's and HDTV in the hold get a BTB match on Halo Reach going." I'm the last one in I close the cargo bay hatch and make my way to the cockpit.
"So where are we-" I don't finish my question when I see our pilot. Or rather, lack thereof. Leaning back into the cargo area and leaning away from a TV, I pose a new question. "So uh... who's piloting this thing?" Technia facehoofs.
Syntax bolts up and nearly runs at me, trying desperately to get in the cockpit. Of course if he'd have just waited, I'd have moved. But now it was an uncomfortable squeeze as muttered apologies and grunts fly every which way, and 12 limbs try and make thier way to freedom. Finally Syntax makes it into the cockpit and I have room to move around in.
"So, you can fly huh? Neat." I say, leaning on the cockpit doorway. Syntax says nothing while he flicks switches and his gaze hovers over every light. He grabs the intercom radio.
"Fillies and Gentlecolts this is your captain speaking..... I'm about to fly a plane, BOOYAKASHA!"
"Wait, what?" Once again letting his actions speak for him he grabs the gear shift thingy and presses forward, launching the plane in the same direction and me in the opposite.
"Ow... motherfucker"
"Flaps, flaps flaps, Ah! Here the are!" He flicks a switch and the plane jolts suddenly. The ponies letting out panicked gasps. "Shitshitshit, that was the landing gear." I hear him mutter, and he flicks the switch again. "...that could have been bad. Oh here they are. Duh." With more confidence than last time he eases the plan into the air. I breath a sigh of relief. But the feeling doesn't last. Just as the landing gear makes it's way into the body of the plane, this time on purpose. The aircraft and it's many, many passengers were rocked. Luna and I do a quick head count and we find that no one's hurt. Thankfully. I climb one of the ladders that leads to a 360° mounted machine gun with a glass dome. Using the handles on the gun to pull myself up I take a look around for what could have caused the boom. What I see makes my heart drop. Directly behind us, a massive tower of fire and smoke. Littered among the flames are are the remains of once proud and ancient buildings. The entire city has been reduced to rubble. The skyline forever changed. And, as if that just wasn't enough a loud thunderous crack can be heard even over the roar of the jet engines strapped to what should've been a propeller plane. The floor of the city. The floor that had been built to accommodate the weight of an entire metropolis, buckled. Gray and brown plumes of dust, smoke, and pulverized metal blanket the once great city as it falls of the face of the mountain. Snuffing out the majority of it's own flames in the fall.
"Your people are truly a force to be reckoned with" Startled, I nearly slap Luna across the face, or I would have, if she were not somehow resting comfortably outside of the dome. I note that, like me, she has a single tear decorating her cheek. "I'm sorry, did I startle you?" I rub my own cheek and try and play it cool.
"Nah, that's how I always react when greeted suddenly and out of nowhere."
She doesn't buy it, but ignores it. "What reason could they have for such violence?"
"I have no idea, Princess. I'm sure if I did, I'd either be famous for creating world peace or dead. The peace lovers on my world tend to have a nasty habit of getting assassinated. By the way, how are you doing that?"
She waves a hoof dismissively "We can fly faster than this. We might aswell be on a rather fast chariot, honestly."
"Hmm?"
"I mean, I. It's an.. old habit."
"Oh, right, The 'Royal We'." From beneath me an electric voice drones out, muffled by my position.
"Ladies, Gentlecolts and Bronies, we are arriving at the greatest little town you ever did see. PONYVILLE. Get ready for some awesome 'cause I think we're out of gas anyway. Hold on to your dinners, cause we're about to make an emergency landing!" The cheeriness in his voice his disturbing considering he basically just said "We're about to crash." And right on cue the tell tale sputtering of fuel-less propellers I'm not gonna ask, I'm not gonna ask, I'm not gonna ask. preceded the whistling of an aircraft in a nose dive.
"Welp" came Syntax's voice on the intercom "Looks like we're all about to die. If someone could do me a huge favor, and give me a hug, I'd appreciate it." This of course created even more panic, unbelievably. Though one white pegasus with blonde curly mane did try and make her way to the cockpit.
Through the utter chaos no one seemed to notice the plane slowing down gradually. Nor did any of them grasp the leveling of the floor beneath thier hooves. Though some did see the slow opening of the rear cargo door. That some being me, Arrow, Snake, Technia, and maybe four ponies. Eventually though, the ponies realized they should be dead by now, and weren't. And calmed down into a fearful, but relieved state of confusion before resting thier site on Princess Luna calmly standing the threshold. Once the last scream died Luna simply stated "You may take your leave now. You are safe. Twilight and I have guided you into a safe landing." The embarrassed ponies slowly made their way out of the airplane, slowly because it was packed tighter than a can of sardines up a 12 year old's ass. About a half hour later our group finally made it out of the claustrophobia inducing vehicle. Only to be graced with a very strange sight. Behind Luna, were six ponies. Six very specific ponies. One of whom I actually consider a friend already. But, that wasn't strange. That was just awesome. No, what was strange was what was written on the banner that was raised above them.
WELCOME CANTERLOT REFUGEES AND MONKEY CREATURE THINGS THAT ARE A LOT LIKE LAUREN FAUST
Oh and you too grey unicorn that wasn't always a pony but was also a monkey thing |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Antagonization | WELCOME CANTERLOT REFUGEES AND MONKEY CREATURE THINGS THAT ARE A LOT LIKE LAUREN FAUST
Oh and you too grey unicorn that wasn't always a pony but was also a monkey thing
I just stared at the banner, or rather, two words on the banner. Lauren. Faust. I don't how long I was standing there, mouth agape. But it couldn't have been long because Syntax's reaction would later be described as "instantaneous".
"Fluttershy!"
"Eep!" Fluttershy managed to, at the same time, hide behind both her own mane, and Rarity. Though it wasn't needed. Syntax hadn't moved. He had merely gotten taller. Wait. What? Upon further inspection I noted that he had gotten purple aswell. His legs kicking in place underneath him as he tried to run at full sprint, his feet failing to find purchase. Following his arms, which were straight out in front and topped off by greedy, gripping at air, hands, I noticed Twilight's horn glowing above an expression of irritation and amusement. Ah, I see now. Good going Twilight.
"So, Pinkie. Are you gonna tell us what a 'La-rown fost' is? Or are we gonna hafta wait 'till another round o' monkey things show up in a falling metal can?" Applejack asked the ever smiling Pink demon.
"Nope! This is the only group of humans that we're waiting for." Pinkie smiled. I mean, smiled more. Okay, unless I say specifically, that she's frowning, let's just assume that she's smiling. And if I say she smiled... you get the idea. "And Lauren isn't a what silly, it's a who!"
"Well, who is it, darling?"
"She's my human friend from another world! We've been friends for twelve years, and three years ago she made a TV show about us. It's really good, too." turning away from the other mares present, she continued to speak to them though her eyes were glued to us. "I never thought I would get to meet real humans though! This is really neat!" Pinkie begun bouncing towards us, eyes running over our figures inquisitively while she made faces that an 8 year old would make in a mirror. Eventually, she sat down and looked at us sternly, though the smile was still there. I could tell that she was having a tough time keeping it off her face. Then she asked us what she tried to sound like a serious question. "Do you like bananas?"
"What?" I say dumbly. It occurs to me that this is the first time I've spoken to the Mane 6. Ah, good ol' first impressions.
"Do you. Like. Bananas?"
"Um, sure?" and then I kid you not, a friggin' paper bag with the Publix logo appeared at her side. She reached in and pulled out that megaphone and I just lost it. As did everyone else. The joke may have been old, but having it done by Pinkie Pie, not to mention in reality, was too much. Snake wet Hyena and fell like the rest of us, on his back. The high pitched laugh adding to our own. Pinkie couldn't help herself and followed suit. Well, she remained a pony. Every other pony, just stood there. Confused. And that, to me, was far funnier than the banana bag.
"Oh Pinkie, your fourth wall breaking skills are legendary." Arrow said, wiping a tear as his laughter began to subside.
"I didn't break the fourth wall, silly. I CAN'T break the fourth wall. Because there IS no fourth wall." Pinkie responded, killing our laughter.
"What?" said about three voices. Not sure whose.
"The fourth wall is when fictional characters know that they're fictional. I'm not fictional. I am as real as you. I just have a window into your dimension. As well as complete, total, absolutely whole access to the interwebs. By the way, you people are weird. But I like weird. And I'm very happy that me and my friends have become famous. All those smiles I brought! I could die happy."
"We're famous in another dimension?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Awesome! That must mean you guys are here to see me! Why else would you cross the dimensional divide?" she did a couple of mid-air backflips and was only met with stares of incredulity.
"What? I know some big words."
"That's not why we're-- what big words?" Twilight added.
Rainbow waved a hoof dismissively "Dimension, divide. yadda yadda. Had to look 'em up when I was reading Daring Do and the Curse of the Ancient Unicorn Mirror."
"Those aren't - whatever. Pinkie, how do you know all this stuff?"
"I told you, I'm friends with Lauren Faust. Creator of My Little Pony."
Before Twilight could repeat herself, I made my first full sentence in the conversation. "Yes, but how are you friends with her?"
"Oh. That's simple. I just cast a spell. We've been chummy ever since."
"But, dear. You're only an earth pony. How in Equestria could you cast spells?" asked Rarity, voicing Twilight's obvious curiosity.
"Oh. That.. um... You see, I'm the last of my kind, here in Equestria. The humans have a word for me."
"We do? What word is that?"
"Witch."
-||-||-||-||-
"Princess, it's been a week. No doubt your subjects are worried about you. With Luna in the woods your entire country has likely been in anarchy. Please. Go back to Canterlot. I will send you a letter as soon as I find Twilight or Luna."
"That's just it, Pink. Equestria needs me, now more than ever. I feel the threat. But like always, I still can't pinpoint it. Obviously Luna has something to with it, until I can find and subdue her. I am needed here. Besides, the Canterlot nobles can handle the governing fine. We just need to keep searching the Everfree. They can't hide for long."
Tragedy, unseen by Princess Celestia, floated next to Pink, her form largely transparent. "I got it!" She said, her voice more distant than her body and echoing off unseen walls. "Tell her that Luna has taken advantage of Celestia's absence and is now ruling over Equestria with a corrupted mind! Bah!" she hit her ghostly forehead with the palm of her equally ghostly hand. "Why didn't I think of that earlier. Once she sees how much her citizens need her she'll stay in the city and we can find the Soulless motherfucker ourselves and kill him like the bastard he is, right Pink!"
"Yeah, right. Of course." Celestia had gotten used to Pink's quirk of talking to himself. Unaware that he had gone insane with the loss of his sister and good friend. As the brain is opt to do, it coped in an unusual way. Externalizing his grief at the loss by projecting an image of his dead sister and the anger at his friend by making her the one to bear the rage. Now he was lead on his trip of revenge by a hallucination. Though he was convinced it was truly her. He was a sorcerer after all, if that kind of magic didn't let him see the dead, nothing would. "Um, Celestia. Luna is corrupted, right?"
"I know this, Pink. We've been over this."
"But the moon still sets to make way for your sun."
".... that it does."
"So if she's evil, but civil. Then it would make more sense that rather than outright attacking you to gain power, she would use subterfuge instead. And it's been a week since you've seen your throne. Maybe she's taken over completely by now."
With a gasp and a flash of golden light, the Solar princess disappeared. Leaving the Nordic Sorcerer to summon weapons and take a much needed rest. "When I find you Soulless, I will make you pay. And my sister will at last be able to rest in peace." and with yawn, he fell asleep.
-||-||-||-||-
Hours ago
Private Montgomery was admittedly nervous. Ever since he had gone through with his company a glowing, arcing blue sphere in the middle of Downtown Manhatten he had been nervous. The land he had found himself in was alien. And dangerous. The hills looked man made, the grass was purple, there were insects the likes of which he never seen, and more surprisingly, insects he was all too familiar with. One of which was drinking blood off of his face at the moment. With an audible slap he corrected the theft and continued walking with his company. A tank division that was behind another as they were headed to "Location Alpha." When it had been described to him he felt a wave of nostalgia hit him. It sounded just like Canterlot from a favorite cartoon of his. Though he didn't say anything. The other bronies may give him serious respect, but the other military he was with were nothing like that. Trudging through the field in the middle of the night he caught a glimpse of the city known to him only as Location Alpha. He gasped as he saw what was essentially a mirror image of Canterlot. Confident that he would see Canterlot perfectly were he looking form the other side.
One of his squad mates bumped into him in a motion that he read as, 'Why'd you stop. Keep moving.' but his ears registered a voice that said "Dude. Do you see what I see?"
Without thinking, he responded. "Canterlot." Realizing what he let slip he turned to his smiling squad mate in horror.
"Dude, brohoof?" Montgomery's fears fell, and he did the only sensible thing. He brohoof'd his new best friend.
"The similarities are striking. Why are we attacking this place again?"
"Apparently they're the ones that rendered Manhattan a waste land with that super radioactive bomb a few months back. We're here to kick some ass."
"I feel like this has been done before." Moore was about to respond when thier attention snapped back to the unit of tanks in front of them. A flash of red had damaged one of the tanks making a very familiar sound. "Was that Spartan Laser?"
"What's a Spartan Laser?"
"It's a weapon. From Halo."
"Oh. Then of course not. Those aren't real. You can't get attacked by things that aren't real."
"Really? Then explain that." Montgomery pointed to the tank unit a couple hundred feet in front of them. Where Superman and Iron Man had just fought. And lost.
"The hell?" a sudden roar resounded through the field as a green tyrannosaur erupted into being in front of them.
"HOLY HELL WHAT IS GOING ON?!?" Yelled Moore, shaking like a leaf. "Fire everything!" and he brought his M4 up to bear, screaming as he unleashed a hail of bullets into the impossible creature.
-||-||-||-||-
Present
Princess Celestia cried. She had expected the worst she would come back to was a power drunk Lunar princess. But instead, she had come to find an unrecognizable pile of rubble. She couldn't hear any screams, nor see any bodies. so she assumed that all her subjects had perished, thier bodies buried beneath the pulverized stone that was once Canterlot.
Princess Celestia cried. Her soundless sobs racking her body as her tears fell onto the unsightly grave of her beloved ponies. She stayed this way for hours as her thoughts came and went like surf at a beach.
'My dear ponies, you did not deserve such a fate.'
'How dare she! Luna will pay for her crimes.'
'It's not her fault, she was corrupted, again.'
'It was the fault of those damned humans!'
'Oh, I'll never forget you all, I loved you all so much.'
'I swear on my own name and that of the Goddess, I WILL return Luna to me. And when I do, I will personally kill every single human who dared touch Equestrian soil! They will fear me, and they will pay with thier lives!" at that she stomped a forehoof, her eyes went gold and a brief burst of flame engulfed her as her rage became momentarily physical. When she did, she heard a gasp. To her left was one those humans she had just mentioned. A female wearing the same pattern as those that had come to Canterlot over a week ago. Looking behind the female, Celestia spotted several more humans wading through the ruins. At the sight, she smiled. A very malevolent smile that caused the female to wet herself. And the the Solar Princess went to work. Gleefully and brutally murdering the infantry unit that had been sent to secure the site. She danced on her hind legs as she cast her magic about. Telekinetically grabbing hold of organs and body parts and ripping them off their perspective owners. Crushing skulls beneath her hooves and impaling bodies and cloth on her horn. Maddeningly licking at the blood that fell to her lips. She cackled at thier screams and tore the legs off those who tried to run. There were two who bowed to her the moment they saw her, despite what she was doing to thier brethren. But despite the show of loyalty, they were still human. And she crushed them as well. She could see the look of betrayal on the one's face as she snuffed the life of his friend. She loved the anguish in his scream, confused though, as to why he screamed 'more'. Though she happily obliged him, and ripped his head off his shoulders, taking a section of bloodied spine with it.
When the last human fell, she gazed over the rubble once more. Now fittingly filled with bodies and painted dark red with drying blood. She licked her lips and felt the pain of her loss subside a little. It would take a lot more human deaths to make it go away entirely, she doubted the number she needed was even available to her in Equestria. Plans would have to be made to arrange a trip beyond the limits of her knowledge so that she might one day be satiated. For now, there were a host of creatures in the Everfree that might point her in the right direction to her sister. She hoped that they would be unwilling to speak, as there were some interrogation techniques she hadn't used in millenia that she would like to bring back. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Consternation | It had been an odd day for Lightning Cloak, it had been little more than a week since the incident with Twilight and Overture, and luckily he was able to resume his duties in Ponyville. Nopony had even asked him any questions as to Twilight's whereabouts. Spike had given him a few nasty glares occasionally but that was the extent of it. A day after the incident and the town had become aware of the disturbing lack of a purple librarian that was as much a fixture of the town as town hall or the fountain in town square. A week later and the town had been in a panic. Though you wouldn't know from first glance. You had to look behind the eyes of everypony. Whatever had caused Twilight's disappearance was so unknown and the steady and slow way that the townsponies became aware of it made running around and screaming quite the silly way to react. Ponies instead chose to stay indoors far longer than usual, not even daring to exit their homes when the sun wasn't out. Interactions were rushed and voices were shushed. Businesses that had no practical purpose like the Day Spa suffered from a complete loss of customers. Lightning Cloak couldn't help but be amused at their behaviour. On earth if someone went missing reactions would have been quite different. Candlelight vigils, Search parties and apathy would be the most prominent behaviour.
Last night however, the ponies went back to normal. Overnight. It started when Pinkie Pie stood in town square and shouted through a megaphone, that oddly enough said that it belonged to Princess Celestia, "HEY EVERYPONY! GET READY TO PARTY! TWILIGHT WILL BE BACK TOMORROW AND SHE'S BRINGING SOME REALLY FUN GUESTS!" And just like that, as though a switch had been thrown, the towns spirited lifted simultaneously. It was a strange sight, like he had entered a parallel universe where everypony was happy and the one he had come from was a place of fear.
While it was no doubt a welcome change, it meant he had to follow his new standing order: Only venture into the Everfree if a change relevant to the Circles occurs in Ponyville. After all, it would be preferable to not have to hunt and kill another of the mane 6 or even a beloved background pony. Overture wouldn't know it, but the standing order to kill Twilight made Lightning a Moon Loyal Pony. But he wore the colors of the Sun Loyal. A conflict was building and Lightning's unique position made him the perfect spy. But for now, he had a job to do. Arriving at the Everfree treeline Lightning heard a familiar sound and looked behind him and up to the sky. What he saw made him sprint into the woods. Directly behind him a huge cargo plane with jet engines was hurtling towards the Earth.. Or whatever the locals called their planet. It was surrounded by a glowing blue aura and slowing, Obviously Luna's work as she could be easily seen flying next to it. Lightning trusted Luna, but wasn't about to wait to find out if she would succeed in preventing the crash.
-||-||-||-||-
Deep in a strange forest in a dimension filled with talking brightly colored ponies stood a hard line of strange creatures. All of whom could be identified easily as having two things in common. The first of which was that in one way or another they wore a combination of white and gold. The other was that each and everyone of them, despite the rigorous postures that they held in defiance to all that would do their unknowing charges harm, were extremely emaciated. Some even listed at various angles as they used every last ounce of strength they had to remain upright in sheer denial of thier situation. Many had small buzzing insects flying around and landing on them. The fact that most did nothing to deter the annoying bugs, even letting them use thier faces as dance floors, was a testament to just how much they had gone through in the past week. Food had become scarce, predator attacks were on the rise and to top it off the emotional roller coaster that was the combined effect of the Twilight Incident and the halving of the Holy Order of Harmony had quite visibly affected the Bronies of the Everfree. And if anyone had to bothered to ask, the bronies of the plains and mountains would no doubt shared similar experiences.
"Oh, look" said one such creature. A short, squat, hairless, neckless purple creature with three eyes, two legs, four tentacle like protrusions sprouting from his "head" and speckled with green dots said to a taller metallic biped with an unusual head structure. Two L shaped bars sprang from the ears and connected at the top of it's head. It's eyes were perfect black circles with tear-like indents in the metal below them. It's slim rectangular mouth made no movements as it responded in an emotionless and robotic voice.
"What?"
"The Outer Circle's got a new messenger again. Is he covered in blood?"
"It would appear that way."
"Man, that report can not be good. Don't want to be near Overture right now."
-||-||-||-||-
In a clearing in a strange forest in a dimension filled with talking brightly colored ponies stood a shoddily constructed stone temple. In it a few well fed creatures sat and ate, laughing merrily and talking about thier pasts in another dimension. In a corner a slumbering werewolf had somehow manged to have phallic imagery painted on his slightly smiling muzzle. As the draconequus and his high powered, well decorated in white and gold friends sat and laughed, they passed each other a small smoking piece of rolled up parchment with a particular dried plant ground and placed in the center. All in all it was a good time had by all. But of course it couldn't go uninterrupted. A new messenger from the Outer Circle had made their way back to the temple, covered in blood. The new messenger was a tall, highly muscled male human. His skin was ash grey and the only hair on his head was a well trimmed triangular goatee. The red tattoo that was like a ribbon draped over his form led the eye to the ornate red and gold armor and tattered skirt with Greek markings. His forearms were wrapped in chains that seemed fused to him. In his hands were vicious looking blades, his face wore a permanent scowl. He would have appeared threatening were it not for the very visible ribs and open sores that pockmarked his skin.
"Hello, Kratos. What can I do for you?" Asked the annoyed draconequus. With a voice that sounded like it belonged to a ten year old boy the once mighty man-child responded.
"My name is Jeffrey, sir. I'm here to report. We l-l-lost...." shakily, the ashen man raised a paper to his face "Thirty-four bronies yesterday. A pack of Manticore t-t-took 'em all out." The man began to tear up. "One of them was my dad. W-w-what are we gonna do Mr. Overture? I ... I wanna go home!"
"Your dad died doing something honorable. He protected the ponies. That is our job in life, little one. I appreciate your hard work. But you need to get back to your people now." when the man-child didn't move Overture added "Go on, shoo!" The child's silent tears began to flow more freely. Overture, annoyed by his presence, groaned. "How about this, to thank you for your services to the Holy Order, why don't you have uh..." Overture scanned the food stockpile for something he didn't like all that much. "...an orange!" He threw the round fruit at muscled skeleton. Jeffrey wouldn't say it, but he hated oranges. The texture and flavor were both abhorrent to him, and yet he acted genuinely when handed the fruit. With a gasp and wide eyes and the first smile he'd broken in days, which was considerably difficult to do given his form, he eagerly tore into the fruit as he turned and exited the temple. Savoring the flavor that somehow managed to be the most delicious thing he'd ever had. Though it was no different than any orange he'd ever had before.
Overture turned to face one of his layabout friends. "You, get fifty people from the inner circle and transport them to the Outer Circle. I can't have Everfree abominations on my heels. Make sure that whoever you pick is strong. All these deaths are nothing more than a serious breach in our defenses."
"Yes, sir, Overture sir!" a young asian woman with feline ears and tail saluted and took off.
-||-||-||-||-
In the same part of the forest as before where a cyberman and a disgusting purple alien stood, their attentions were grabbed by an attractive asian woman with nekomimi who was well known, as she was one of the solar monks, and one of the most sadistic sexual partners in likely all of human history. She inspired fear without having to utter a word as her reputation as a sadistic dominatrix rapist preceded her. Some, due to thier forms, were given a reprieve from that fear. Which was why all those made of metal, bearing an exoskeleton, or were simply without genitalia, were now being rounded up for duty in the Outer Circle. The Cyberman and ironically, the Chode McBlob copy were easily among this group. As the cat like succubus neared the duo, a scream rang out through the forest, swiveling all heads with the capability to move. Meaning roughly half remained stationary. Screams had been heard before. But they were almost always quieter as they originated from the Outer Circle. This scream was most certainly not from such a distance. Those few who could mustered the energy to make their way towards the sound, hopeful to save one of their own.
None of those who made it were prepared to see what they came upon. Suspended in the air by a golden aura a short, skeletally thin Italian plumber in red, white and gold with an obnoxious moustache was screaming in pain and his limbs flailed in a fashion not unlike those affected by the Cruciatus Curse from Harry Potter. Beside the floating man, was a beautiful white alicorn with a flowing prismatic mane and an image of the sun emblazoned upon her flank. Her large horn was aglow with same golden aura that surrounded the infamous drug addict. Her pupils were pinpricks and her voice was savage as she made demands of the screaming man.
"WHERE. IS. LUNA!? WHERE IS MY SISTER!!? TELL ME OR I WILL RIP YOU APART SLOWLY!!"
Despite the scene the sun loyal, in what could only be described as pure instinct, bowed before their princess. And despite white hot searing pain, the plumber that had become notorious for acquiring psychedelic mushrooms and distributing them throughout the Circles was able to gasp out a simple response. "She was. Last seen. With Twilight. We don't" he sobbed, "know where they are."
"You LIE!" and with a simple jerk of her head the man's screams became more pronounced as he grew in every direction. The sound of bones snapping, skin tearing, muscles ripping apart and blood pooling onto the forest floor assaulted the ears of the still bowing bronies.
Her front now latticed with the bright red of fresh blood, Celestia turned to the prostrate bronies. More of them lying to her. Their very presence was an affront to her sensibilities. She saw them for what they were, yet they continued to bow as though she would fall for thier false loyalty. It angered her. But she was not one to waste an opportunity, honestly if they had not shown up she wouldn't have killed the other one so soon. But he wasn't talking and certainly the gory show she put on might loosen the lips of her audience. With a voice that contradicted her appearance with it's sweetness, she asked those before her where her sister was. Unsurprisingly, they also feigned ignorance. Good, she enjoyed making them suffer. Though her patience was wearing thin. She grabbed the oddest looking one, a slick black creature with four legs, no eyes, and a complex looking exoskeleton.
"TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!!" Celestia bellowed.
"IIIII sssssswweeeeeaaaaarr IIII dooooooonnnn'tt knnnnnoooooooooww!!" the foul creature hissed. She knew this speech impediment would make information gathering a chore even if it had been cooperative. Not knowing how to rid herself of such a beast she opted to stab every square decimeter with blades of pure sunlight. The one and a quarter meter long blades met in the innards of the creature and glew brightly as they stuck out of the limp corpse of the Xenomorph. Celestia tossed the carcass to the side and the glowing blades dissolved into mist. Celestia magically took a hold of the feline primate female and her eyes shown with barely contained glee. Of those present this one most closely resembled those that attacked her in Canterlot, somehow she knew that that was the true form of those present.
"You. You will tell me where my sister is. And I plan on hurting you bad. So for your own sake, speak up." the cat's eyes widened in fear, she knew she couldn't lie to her princess, but it would not end well for her.
"I- I- I- I- I- I-...." The cat began to cry and piss herself in fear.
"TELL ME WHERE LUNA IS!" Celestia's interrogation was interrupted when a pony named Lightning Cloak burst through the foliage.
"Princess Luna is in Ponyville, your Highness." |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Praecantatio | "A witch. You've got to be shitting me." I said, flabbergasted.
"Actually, that explains some things" replied Syntax.
"What's a witch?" asked Twilight irritably, obviously annoyed that her questions were growing faster than any answers were. No doubt irritated that she was being mostly ignored.
"A witch is someone who can cast magic. Just not Unicorn magic." Snake offered. Twilight tilted her head in a sign of confusion.
"That's simply not possible."
"It's not just simple unicorn-y Magic. Witchcraft, that's non unicorn magic Twilight, is some really complicated stuff! It's way powerful by itself. And most spells and stuff require all kinds of bizarre ingredients and rituals. Though, being the last witch alive in Equestria my magic was so powerful those rituals were super useless. I had to use magic everyday to prevent worldwide disaster from magical build-up. Hammer space, Super speed, teleportation, all kinds of stuff or BOOM! There goes the world. The first time I realized my power was so huge was when I was a little filly. I tried to find out what flavor of cake I was gonna have for my birthday the next day and WHAM!! Future sensitive muscle spasms. I was so scared I didn't cast any magic for a week. My sisters thought I had gone on a sugar binge I got so fat. But that was just me about to go boom. Luckily I figured it out so I did a brief dimension hop. Good thing too, if I hadn't, this planet would be a young asteroid field."
"Whoa. So like, you breaking the fourth wall and stuff...."
"Once again, fourth wall doesn't exist. And you guys do know that MLP is not a window, right?. The episodes are BASED on true stories. Sometimes loosely. I imagine Lauren didn't think Spike finding wise old dragons and doing a little growing would too entertaining to young fillies. So she changed that. So don't you bronies think you know us, 'cause that'll be awkward! And awkward ruins parties, and since Twilight is back, LET'S PARTY!"
"Wait, party? What about Canterlot? This doesn't seem like the right time for frivolity." Snake said, looking down at his feet somberly.
"Everyone survived a human attack. I think that deserves a celebration. C'mon. I know you've always wanted to experience a Pinkie Pie party, let's go!"
And so we did. Everyone followed Pinkie to the Town Square and with a wave of her hoof, a party, sans guests and music, appeared. "Since my secret's out, I don't think I need to use the 'Party Cannon' thing." She said, probably reading my mind. Soon a white pony with an electric blue mane and violet-pink goggles draped around her neck started playing some dubstep. A fog machine-laser light combo lit the area. and everypony began gyrating to the awful ear shattering electric music. Funny enough the Canterlot snobs seemed to be having the most fun. I guess they were just happy to be alive. Snake, Pascal, Technia and I however, remained at the snack bar. Happily munching on various sweets and doing our best to drown out the dubstep. Of course, we failed miserably. But that didn't stop us from trying.
Syntax was somewhat unsubtly stalking Fluttershy, who seemed very sensitive to that and hid behind Rainbow Dash. Though Rainbow was oblivious to the perceived threat. All too focused on a blue pegasus stallion with a dark blue mane.
Arrow was sitting on the edge of the gathering in a circle with a minotaur who was in all likely hood Iron Will, Spike, Snips, Snails, and oddly enough Silver Spoon. Each one of the ponies and Spike appearing older than they did in the show. They were all laughing about something and passing around a joint. It looked like fun but I didn't trust myself to be near Spoon without punting her into a building, so I hung back, chewing on a chocolate chip cookie and silently begging for some death metal.
As the party dragged on it became apparent that the punch had been spiked. The laughing got a bit too loud, the dancing a bit too uncoordinated and everypony seemed to be losing thier battle with gravity. Arrow and Pascal were absolutely wasted and a sober looking Twilight was paying close attention to them and jotting things down in a small notebook. Syntax was bragging to a few ponies who looked mostly uninterested about how he successfully flew a plane despite the fact that his sole training was video games and flight sims. Of course I overheard that and thanked my lucky stars Luna and Twilight were with us on that doomed flight. Otherwise we'd all be paste. Thinking of Luna I spot her by herself looking at her stars. Stars that had begun to fade into the morning light and thunderclouds.
"Aww, man. Not this AGAIN! Every morning and every night for the past two weeks! Rogue thunderstorms non stop! Arrgh." and with that Rainbow Dash and a line of drunk pegasi flew off in another futile attempt to stop the twice daily storm.
"Hey Luna, what's up?" I said, sitting down next to her in the grass.
"The sun, it would seem."
"Um. Right, I guess. What I mean is, how are you? You look deep in thought."
"I am well. Though I am worried. I haven't seen my sister since I last met with your group. I know she is alive and well because of the magic she's been casting to raise the sun and alter the atmospheric pressure of her days, but it is quite unlike her to simply vanish from the castle for such long periods of time."
"I'm sure she's just vacationing somewhere. Good timing, I say. Our appearance here would no doubt be some serious added stress."
"Hmm, it is true that she has not vacationed in over a millenia. But she would warn me first, this much I know."
"Maybe she thought she did?"
"My sister's mind is like a vice. Something like that would not simply 'slip her mind'."
"I don't know what to say Luna, other than that I expect she's a very capable mare."
The drunken crowd at the town center several feet away from us became quieter suddenly, the dull roar and occasional laughter switched to low murmurs and the sloppy movements became sloppy bowing. This got the attention of Luna and I and we turned to see what the fuss was about. Luna's gloomy demeanor instantly brightened as she stood and galloped to the crowd, a wide grin plastered across her face.
"Sister!" At the sight of the cheerful familial reunion The mane 6 and my group, which I've just now decided I'm going to call The Brony Defense Force, or just BDF for short because it's easier that way than listing everyone's name or calling it "my group", had huge smiles on our faces as we expected the heart melting scene of a tight sisterly hug.
What we got, however, replaced our smiles with looks of abject horror. Just before Luna made it to the edge of the party goers Celestia frowned and glared at Luna. She lowered her horn and before Luna could understand what was happening, blasted her with raw solar magic. The golden yellow beam was the loudest thing I had ever heard, it must have been so hot as to have been two to three times the heat a lightning bolt made. Which, if you aren't aware, is five times the surface of the sun. The heated air created one hell of a thunderclap. And I'm sure many ponies lost most, if not all, of their hearing. The artificial silence and ringing added to the slow motion effect of the adrenaline pumping in my veins. A very surprised looking midnight blue Alicorn fell slowly to the ground as Celestia calmly and scornfully walked towards her, heedless of the panicking ponies scurrying every which way around her hooves. The Mane 6 and the BDF, myself included, made their way to Luna automatically. A near instinctual need to protect her overriding our logic centers that were begging to ask, "What just happened?", "What is happening now?", "Shouldn't we run AWAY from the clearly angry and mentally unbalanced goddess?"
As I became more aware of my surroundings and the ringing wore off, I could hear the screams of the ponies as they ran away, having finally picked a direction to flee to. That direction simply being, 'not here'. The speed of the world hastened and the colors, which I had not noticed had faded, became more vibrant once again. Rainbow Dash, the speedster that she was, was already in front of Luna's still, but not unconscious body. She had taken a defensive posture and was yelling at Celestia. But at this distance and level of regained hearing I could not make out the words. Sadly it seemed she would be alone to face Celestia initially as the rest of would not make it Luna before her.
"So, you've been affected too, Element of Loyalty? Honestly I thought you would be the last to fall under their influence. Once again I have underestimated their power. No matter, I can easily deal with you. But right now, I have to discuss things with my dear sister. Please move out the way, Rainbow."
"And let you hurt Luna again? No way!"
"You asked for it, traitor." And with that she levitated the cornflower blue pegasus who waved her four hooves around in fear and tossed her aside like so much garbage. Clearing her way to her broken, struggling sister.
By this time, the rest of us had arrived, making a wall of ineffective flesh to protect the night Princess from Celestia. As I looked at us gathered I realized Pinkie Pie was not among us. I wondered why for the briefest of moments before my attention snapped back to the Sun Princess in front of us.
"Humans, you dare to step foot in Ponyville? And I see you've corrupted the Elements of Harmony, I commend you on your strategy. But it will not work." The princess spoke dispassionately, as though any enthusiasm for life she once had had been sucked out of her. It was like she was in mourning.
"Princess, whatever's goin' on, we're not your enemy!" Technia spoke up, trying to be heard above the wind, which had picked up considerably, making Celestia's already unkempt mane dance wildly, framing her bloodshot eyes and tight frown.
"Snake, who was standing next to me in our makeshift defensive line. shouted to me. "That's not a natural wind. I think Celestia's getting ready to attack!"
"YOU LIE, HUMAN!" Celestia shouted at Technia. "BECAUSE OF YOUR KIND, CANTERLOT HAS FALLEN. HUNDREDS OF PONIES ARE DEAD! SLAUGHTERED FOR NO REASON BY YOUR BRETHEREN."
"Princess, what are you talking about? Everypony survived!" shouted Twilight, the furthest one to the left. Celestia snapped her focus to her personal student, the edges of her mane began to lick with flame. A flame that was slowly beginning to consume her mane.
"IMPOSSIBLE, NOPONY COULD HAVE SURVIVED SUCH DESTRUCTION!" The wind picked up speed and Celestia's regal mane and tail were now a yellow white inferno that was framed by a line of blue. Her eyes had become slitted and harsh golden-orange color. Her voice lowered and she lowered her head in preparation for attack. "I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!"
Celestia let off two shots of magic, this time it held no heat capable of the earlier thunderous boom, likely Celestia herself had suffered the effects before. They hit Snake right in the chest, drilling a hole right through him, clean and precise. In horror we looked at him, and he almost a little too calmly looked down at his chest.
"Fuck me." he said, before falling to his knees, and then his face. Blood pooled from around his lifeless body. The Mane 6, the minimized BDF, and Celestia's gaze were locked on Snake's body. The perfect hole exactly where his heart should've been. Celestia was the only one who did not wear an expression of horror. In fact, she seemed prideful.
"NO!" Arrow sobbed, collapsing protectively over Snake's body. Tears streamed down his face. The rest of us broke our attention once again on Celestia. As one, all of us, with the exception of the ponies and Pascal, let out a war cry. Bringing whatever weapons we had to bear. I charged at her with my dual short swords drawn, wanting nothing more than to cut off her head, consequences be damned. I couldn't get close though due the barrage of gunfire the was making no effect. The bullets were stopped inches away from her, floating in midair like she was fuckin' Neo. Arrows stacked neatly inches from here eye also floated, creating a surreal scene.
"You think that's enough to defeat me?! HA!" Celestia released an outburst of magic. Every bullet and arrow was sent away from the sun Goddess at a rate mirroring their speed upon impacting her magical shield or telekinetic field. The bullets tore through each of us, and only one lethal hit registered. Ponyville would no longer have beautiful custom made dresses. As Rarity's wide eyed lifeless body hit the ground Twilight began to cry over it. Begging her Princess to stop even though she herself was bleeding from several bullet wounds in her legs and a couple in her left shoulder.
None of us had any fight left in us. I wasn't sure if I was going to live. In movies, when you're shot low in the abdomen like myself, it was a 50/50 chance you'd be dead before too long. Not one of us had zero unaffected limbs. Fluttershy was crying loudly, easily having the lowest pain tolerance of all us. Luckily she was also the least wounded, a single arrow in one of her forelegs. That almost enough to get me going again, but the pain shooed that little heroic thought away and I crumpled.
"EXSAEVIO CAESUM TEMPUS CAPRIGENUS PERCURO!" A high pitched, but angry sounding voice was heard from a distance. But loud enough to rival the Royal Canterlot Voice and in a flash, the lesser wounds among us vanished, making Fluttershy fully healthy again and Pinkie Pie was growling at Celestia who, like Pinkie Pie, had teleported. Something must have happened during that teleportation because Celestia was sporting several bleeding cuts, her mane, while still the shape of fire, had returned to it's usual colors and her eyes, though still slitted, had also reverted colors. Celestia was sweating profusely, looking a little bedraggled, though her expression reflected none of this. Her rage filled stare locked onto Pinkie Pie.
"CAESUM TEMPUS GLACIES IMPETUS!" Once again Pinkie and Celestia teleported. Pinkie's mane had was now matted down in sweat but she stood easily. Still growling at the Princess. The Princess appeared bowed. She was panting and her mane was neither ablaze nor flowing. Her eyes had returned to normal and her coat was dirty and full of scabbing cuts. Many more fresh and bleeding cuts and gashes also littered her form. Ice hung from her horn, wings, and snout.
"Do you give in now, Celestia?" Pinkie asked, catching her breath.
"How..... are you...... so powerful?" Celestia asked, clearly needing more effort to breath than her opponent.
"That doesn't matter. Do you concede? Do you surrender? Or do I have to kill you to protect my friends? I beg of you, Celestia. Don't make me kill you."
"Fine, Pinkie. You win. But you will regret it. I assure you." and Celestia lay down, curled herself up, and fell asleep.
Pinkie looked at Celestia as one might look at an abused puppy, full of sorrow and a kind of unwarranted guilt. She spoke three words, once again in latin. Though much quieter this time. "Carcer, Ascendo, Collige." lines of what seemed to be liquid metal surrounded the princess, before solidifying into a cage. Pinkie looked at us, most had fallen unconscious due to their wounds but Twilight, Fluttershy and I remained awake, though I felt myself slipping. "That will hold her, the act of touching the bars of the bars will make her really sleepy. Maybe we can find out what happened. That's not the Celestia we know and love. Not by a long shot." Pinkie looked sadly at the two bodies she had been too late to save. "Do humans have funerals? If so, we need to start getting those underway."
"What... just happened?" I asked. But I never got an answer, because I passed out onto the grass. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Condition | Peviously, on IBDF
"Oh. That.. um... You see, I'm the last of my kind, here in Equestria. The humans have a word for me."
"We do? What word is that?"
"Witch." --
"Everyone survived a human attack. I think that deserves a celebration. C'mon. I know you've always wanted to experience a Pinkie Pie party, let's go!" --
What we got, however, replaced our smiles with looks of abject horror. Just before Luna made it to the edge of the party goers Celestia frowned and glared at Luna. She lowered her horn and before Luna could understand what was happening, blasted her with raw solar magic --
Celestia let off two shots of magic .... They hit Snake right in the chest, drilling a hole right through him, clean and precise. In horror we looked at him, and he almost a little too calmly looked down at his chest. "Fuck me." he said, before falling to his knees, and then his face. --
The bullets tore through each of us, and only one lethal hit registered. Ponyville would no longer have beautiful custom made dresses. As Rarity's wide eyed lifeless body hit the ground Twilight began to cry over it. Begging her Princess to stop... --
"....I beg of you, Celestia. Don't make me kill you."
It had been a week since the confrontation with Celestia at Pinkie's Block Raver. Today was the funeral for Snake. Rarity's funeral was being post poned. Namely, because she wasn't actually dead. A day after the fight I learned that Rarity's death was a feint. An attempt to appeal to Celestia's good side. Failing that, her tactical side. The bullet had merely grazed her left shoulder, the pain kicking Rarity's natural predilection to drama in high gear. In the heat of battle a spark of inspiration guided her drama to more constructive acting. Using a quick bit of magic she had guided the wound to a more fatalistic location. An illusion that she completed with the sudden stopping of motion and sound, followed by the more awkward fall that was unlike her previous dramatic losses to gravity that usually landed in a more comfortable location, namely her favorite "Fainting Couch". Twilight, who's special talent was magic, caught onto the act quickly and fell in line. Also hoping to derail her fuming mentor.
Celestia had been sleeping for the entire week. Pinkie's conjured cage keeping her in a near comatose state. An IV had been set up to keep her as healthy as possible without eating solid foods or getting regular exercise. The cage itself was being cleaned twice daily from the Solar waste. A task Luna insisted on doing herself. A task nopony fought her over. When Luna was not doing her bare minimal royal duties, eating, sleeping, or cleaning Celestia's cage, she sat silently next to the cage. Crying without sound as she looked miserably at the poor condition of her sister. Pinkie Pie and Twilight took shifts studying the princess. Trying their absolute best to determine the cause of her breakdown. Electrodes and candles decorated Celestia's head and cage respectively. It was bizarre scene as Science, Unicorn Magic, and Witchcraft combined to aid a Goddess that pissed herself in her sleep while inside a glimmering cage. I had half a mind to take a picture and get Technia to make copies so that I could really piss off that bitchy mare should she ever get better, as I was often reminded that her behaviour was WAY out of character.
Not that I would, though. No matter Celestia's condition I didn't want to upset Luna, and to humiliate her sister would have most certainly succeeded in doing just that. I had for many hours sat with the night princess, quietly offering her company which she never denied. Nor did she outright accept it either. Not until the night before Snake's funeral when she had ever so slightly leaned on me. Neither of us said a word. Still as silent as we, and many many other ponies. And even the most the BDF, had been the entire week.
With Snake's funeral on the horizon there seemed to be an unspoken agreement that the longest period of quiet most of these ponies had known would end. Somehow, we just knew that it was time to talk to each other again. If for no other reason than that the United States Military, however impossible it was, was still out there. And still a threat. And no defense could be mounted if the most verbal among us was Big Macintosh. That day Luna and I were woken up early, roughly two in the afternoon. The only two truly nocturnal creatures in Ponyville. Arrow had returned to his crying over Snakes grave. The grave had already been dug and Snake had already been buried. The tombstone, if you could call it that, was being placed today. Marking the end of Snake's story.
Everyone was seated in neat little organized lines on the grass. Funerals, being the scheduled outdoor gatherings that they were, were never rained on in Equestria. Often times cloudless skies and a warmer than usual sun meant that somewhere close by a family was grieving. The correlation of beautiful days and death held a strong impact on Pony society. The celebration of Nightmare Night, which wasn't actually named after Nightmare Moon initially, hadn't started taking place at night until a solid century into Luna's banishment. Today's funeral, however, had a few clouds and a somewhat dimmer sun. Luna wasn't strong enough to give her planet two hard pushes a day and mess with the water content in the atmosphere. Thus cloud manipulation had become a more difficult job as the formation of said clouds became greatly more unpredictable.
The turn out was bigger than I expected. Luna had said that the novelty of the situation had probably been the main draw. It wasn't often their beloved princess killed somepony. Many who still had unflappable faith in thier princess did not attempt to hide their happiness at Snake's demise, believing that Celestia was infallible and so the humans must be devils of a sort. Though not surprisingly it was most of the Canterlot ponies that showed support not for thier Princess, but the group of traitorous apes that saved them. They thoroughly believed the BDF had come with the same humans who had destroyed Canterlot. But though we were demons, we were inherently good, and so broke rank and warned of the attack. Even rescuing them in the end. No one had the energy to tell them different.
-||-||-||-||-
The funeral over, ponies had begun to speak to each other. A dull roar followed the crowd as it dispersed and ponies made their way into town. Doing what they could to regain a sense of normalcy that had all but vanished. The Canterlot ponies had taken up residence in the local hotel. A too large building that had rarely seen customers and was on the verge of bankruptcy now filled to the brim with guests staying so long they were practically tenants.
Another unspoken agreement had the mane six, the BDF, and Luna gathered around Celestia's cage. Twilight spoke first. "Pinkie and I think we know what might have happened." There was a long pause. It was broken by Luna, a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"Well?"
"Celestia is showing early signs of... The Nightmare."
"What? But I thought you guys got rid of her on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration?" I almost shouted
"You read too much fanfiction, Soulless." Pinkie scolded me lightly. A tight smile on her face.
"Huh?" I responded, once again showing off my excellent conversation skills.
Twilight giggled, "Pinkie told me you'd say something like that. 'The Nightmare' isn't a mare. Not a pony, nor even a separate entity. It's a condition. One unique to Alicorns. Alicorn mental health and emotional stability is notoriously, well, unstable."
"And you let two of them rule you?" Asked Technia. Twilight glared at her, though Technia showed no sign that it had affected her.
"As I was saying, Alicorns require several things to function normally. Sleep, meditation, peace, and above all, love. Pinkie's examination the Princesses memories has revealed that she's been roaming the Everfree non stop with, and no offense guys, a bunch of assholes and one particularly crazy human with a serious case of bloodlust. She's barely slept. Let alone meditated or eaten healthy. We've even found evidence of meat in her digestive tract. Not unhealthy for a pony but it goes against her values fairly extremely. The scene at Canterlot took what would have developed in another few years and brought it forward in the span of hours. She would be a full blown Nightmare alicorn in just another day had Pinkie not stepped in."
"Whoa." said Syntax, the word repeated by the rest of us save Pascal, who was bored and watching a bird fly from tree to tree, idly fingering his phone while he waited for the group meeting to disband. "Wait, what was that about meat?"
Twilight's eyes widened in realization momentarily "Oh, right. Sorry." looking over each of us her gaze fixed on me and trotted over. "Soulless, on your knees please."
"What?"
"Oooh! Damn dude! I didn't know you clopped!" Cried Arrow, trying his best to find humor in, anything really.
"And in Public too, Shame Twilight." Chimed in Rarity.
"Shut up. Both of you." Snapped Twilight, though she failed to hide the smile on her face. Curious, I did as I was asked and got on my knees. And Twilight leaned in and said "What do you see?" and opened her mouth.
"Teeth, tongue. A green haze?"
This earned a hoof to the stomach, "Buck you Soulless, what do you notice about my teeth?" and she opened her mouth again. And that's when I noticed it. All the normally visible teeth were square, but the ones in front were not cubed, like molar. But flat. Like human front teeth. Canines rested just behind the visible teeth.
"You're.... you're omnivoures?! No way..." I breathed
"Biologically, yes. The caloric intake required for the brain power used by sentient creatures is too high for grass and leaves alone. Which is what an herbivorous species would eat without the aid of agriculture. Ponies were a rather efficient predatory species back in the day. Things you've likely attributed to "Herd Mantality" was more likely "Pack Mentality.""
"Whoa," I mimicked Syntax. "Wait, then why is Equestria like, super peaceful. Shouldn't your predatory nature make you more violent?"
Twilight returned to her spot. "We have our moments, but so far the consensus of our peaceful ways is the wiring of our brain. To put it simply, we're extremely empathic. The very idea of causing somepony else pain, of any sort, causes about the same amount to ourselves. It was an effective survival behaviour that eventually extended to would be prey once agriculture had gotten good enough that hunting became less necessary for survival. As a species we've been vegetarian for about 6,000 years. Our teeth have actually changed as a result. Pony mouths used to be filled with razor sharp-"
"Twilight, this is fun and all, but I'm BORED!" Pinkie's voice. I took a look around. Me, Technia, and Syntax, were all leaning forward, enraptured. But everypony else was lying on their back or sides, some fiddling with random objects like grass, others engaged in low conversation with each other. Pascal was even brave enough to vocalize his frustrations at the mini game he was playing on his phone.
Blushing, Twilight looked at the grass." Right, sorry Pinkie. Not often I have eager students. It was too much to resist."
Without sitting up or drawing his attention away from the game, Pascal spoke up. "What are we going to do about The Nightmare?"
"Oh, that's easy! Nothing!" Cried Pinkie, a huge smile on her face.
"What? We can't just-"
"Silly filly, Celestia's been asleep for a whole week, not to mention her sister's been showering her with love! Sad love, but love all the same!" With those words spoken the IV glew red-pink as Twilight carefully magicked it out of Celestia's forleg. and Pinkie mumbled some latin and the cage liquified, seemingly into the ground.
For the first time in a week the great white Alicorn stirred. Groaning, her eyes fluttered open and her head lifted up. casting her eyes on those of us gathered.
"Oh.. um... good-" Celestia looked at the sky and back to us, "-afternoon everypony. Um.. I'm-" and without warning Celestia's eyes bulged, a howl escaped her.
"Ow, ow ow ow ow Somepony!" Though everyone jumped, Luna was the only one who made her way towards Celestia, and immediately began massaging her right hindleg. Calming the Princess of the Day quickly. Sighing, she said a quick thanks to her sister but blushed when she noticed everyone's stares of confusion and mild terror. "What? Have you never gotten a cramp before? They hurt!"
The sound of epic facehooves were heard clear across town. Even managing to echo once on the oddly shaped mountains. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Mobilization | In a clearing in the Everfree, a Discord look-alike was brooding on his makeshift throne, brooding. It had been weeks. Weeks since the red pegasus pony Brick Build had burst through the low foliage claiming having seen the traitorous Moon Priest. Weeks since the first OC pony went Lunar. Weeks since he had last seen Princess Celestia or his Sun Priest Pink. It had been about five days since he had been informed of a well organized military force of humans that had destroyed Canterlot. Since then Overture had been miserable. He had failed in his one objective, and it hadn't been half a year. Scouts in the south were still actively trying to find the base of operation that launched the attack, but no word had been heard as of yet. Though Overture still had hope. Hope that these soldiers would be found. Whoever they were, they were going to suffer.
Things were going to shit around him. Bronies were still succumbing to the elements. The growing conflict between the Eastern Sun Harmonics and the Western Moon Harmonics had recently become fatal. A filthy moon harmonic the first to die in a fight. From what he could tell it was one of the pure humans. One of those that changed just enough to be attractive. He had stood up to the strong Superman when a pony had accidentally entered the woods in the north. Following Overture's standing orders the superhero killed the pony, the human didn't take that too well. The death of a brony, by a brony, as a direct result of the new division of ideals was essentially the Holy Order of Harmony's Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The North and South circles had erupted into a near constant fistfight or verbal fight. Luckily it seemed both sides were trying very hard not to kill, but it was unlikely that would stay that way for long. And as much as Overture would like to separate them, it would open up too large a hole in the circles. Allowing threats access to Ponyville. And that just wouldn't do, no matter what else happened. The un-tainted, purely innocent ponies, were not allowed to feel fear. Not allowed to be unhappy. And Overture would be damned if he wouldn't give his all to do everything in his power to make sure that never happened.
His yellow eyes once again found themselves resting on the image of Twilight. He reread the word "Learn" over and over again. Sighing to himself he wished someone had thought themselves The Doctor. Or maybe even Doc Brown. But no one was time travel capable. The closest was the Doctor Pony, Time Turner. He had a sonic screwdriver that could only make noise. The brony behind those large brown eyes had explained he liked the idea of a Time Turner that had merely gone insane and thought he was Gallifreyan. His thoughts were interrupted when the Ponyville Spy calmly walked up to him.
"My Lord, they have been found."
After a brief pause in which Overture slowly turned his head to focus on the pony, he simply asked, "Where?"
"Ponyville, sir."
...... Overture, had failed again. It was far too likely that all of Ponyville was lost. Sighing, head down. He called in his surrogate lieutenants. "I want the Solar loyal separated from the Lunar traitors. We'll be making a move on Ponyville tomorrow night. Get it done." The lieutenants bowed and left backwards. "You, leave me. Return to your post." Overture said to his spy.
Little did Overture realize, he had just sent word of the attack on Ponyville to Shirotora, current head of The Moon Harmonics.
-||-||-||-||-
Tragedy was raging. Absolutely livid. Though Pink couldn't have been calmer. He was in the same place he had been for the last two days. Resting with his back to a tree while trying to find ways to get the Moon and Sun halves to kill each other. The search for Soulless had been fruitless and Pink had given up, much to Tragedy's chagrin. Tragedy's bloodlust, which needed to be sated immensely was focused now starting a war. If he couldn't kill Soulless, the he'd be more than happy to kill his ilk in the mean time. Though the change in goals meant his sister would never calm down. Fuming at every little thing. Strangely even when he had been stung by a bee she reacted far more than he did, even yelping in pain.
So far they had been somewhat successful. Kidnapping Noteworthy and dropping him right in the middle of the eastern and western halves forcing the Solar Superman to follow his orders. In creating a situation where a pony was murdered right in front of the idealistic lunar bronies Pink finally manged to rile up the halves. Though what came after essentially amounted a slap fight. He needed to do more, he couldn't keep silently killing Lunar Harmonics at night. It wasn't violent enough and each had to look natural. Another dropped fly, victim of the Everfree. But soon someone might catch on that a lot more Lunar Harmonics were dying than Solar. They might even take note that the highest concentration of deaths were in the north. At the border between sides.
When Pink opened his eyes he noted that Tragedy was beating the hell out of his tree, mouth frothing in rage. A usual sight these days. But what was unusual was the movement of the eastern members of the Order. All of them were slowly making their way east. The closest western Order were inexplicably asleep. Curious as to why his conflict had done the opposite of what he wanted he deigned to follow the Solar bronies. Maybe this was good. If nothing else it sure was different. And different, no matter how bad, was most certainly welcome.
-||-||-||-||-
In Blackwood Forest an artificial clearing housed several metal buildings and a few log cabins. In between the buildings a network of worn earth provided pathways for the bipedal inter-dimensional aliens and their various vehicles. Antenna and radar dishes dotted some of the buildings. Trees had been cut down in an ever expanding circle that seemed unnecessarily large. The base of operations inside the clearing could have fit at least ten more times. At the edge of the clearing a mine had been started. Ores and gems considered rare and highly valuable on Earth were commonplace here. Halfway between the edge of the base and the new tree line a single oil pump worked slowly, pumping out black crude that would eventually power millions of car on Earth. On one of the many pathways stretching from the base two identical lines of humans marched synchronously after a single human, their gruff strange musical yells falling in line with their heavy footsteps. A jeep drove by them carrying two higher ranking officers and parked in front of one of the log cabins.
Inside the said cabin Stone eyed the two officers as they made their way to another part of the building before snapping his attention back to the private in front of him. The soldier wouldn't ordinarily be receiving such harsh treatment, but it had a real shitty week for Stone. Marines were dying left and right from the local flora and fauna as well as several mining accidents. A couple of marines had gone missing, witnesses saying they saw strange bipedal canines abduct them, and in this land, it wasn't an easily dismissed explanation. Scientists and congressman from home were up his ass 24/7 demanding results, and to top it all off Location Alpha had been completely destroyed. That was not the intention. The entire city had fallen off the map. Quite literally. It was only supposed to be heavily wounded, with no chance of rebuilding within the decade. The attack was supposed to be more or less a display of power. And you can't have a display without an audience. And dead people make a poor audience. After the initial bombing the aliens were going to be given an ultimatum. Stay out of the way or be destroyed, maybe even enslaved. The initial team sent in to find anything of worth, namely a survivor, had found one. And that survivor had killed all but one of that team.
The sole survivor of Location Alpha's destruction matched the description of the land's monarch. A description which might've been tossed out the window if it were not for the recorded radio chatter from the night of the attack. The survivor had gone on about pop culture icons and prehistoric animals attacking them before they had even arrived. The recorded chatter all but confirmed the crazy man's ramblings. Though it was still difficult to digest, many soldiers still refusing to believe such a far fetched tale. Some, but not as many, still found it difficult to believe a hostile EMP was able to temporarily shut down their ground assault. After all, the architecture seen had hinted at a more medieval society.
The monarch's presence meant that the shock and awe and subsequent "negotiation" were utter failures. However, if their monarch was still alive, then she only need be located once again. Wherever she resided would be destroyed, many of her subjects killed. This time heavy bombing would be left off the table, it was far too effective. They would continue the slaughter until she begged for them to stop. And when she did, the "negotiation" would finally commence. And no matter how things fared, they would make an example of the alien Queen who so arrogantly killed american soldiers. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Reconciliation | Deep in the caves of the Foal Mountains, a young adult dragon was crying in pain and fear. Blood like angry paint on his face. Tears streaming from his eyes and cutting the red art in straight lines as he ran from his attacker. Hobbling on his now good leg he felt hope rise in his chest when the light of the outside world finally came into view. However, before he could stretch his thankfully still good wings and finally escape this new hell he heard a thunderous roar behind him. If he had anything left in his bladder he would have spilled it right then as the roar became a terrifying thunderous voice. "You will not escape me, dragon!". Whimpering, the dragon pumped his leg faster, even risking the pain of his badly injured leg. But it was to no avail, a grey blur burst from the shadows of the cave walls, barrelling into the dragon. The dragon let out a cry that he himself could not hear over the roar of the beast that had him in his claws.
With a glint in his eyes the beast spoke once more. "You have one more chance dragon, promise to go home. Leave this place. Tell your kin that Ponyville is protected. And that threats such as you made will be responded to in kind. I have no qualms about killing those that would do harm to ponies. Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-yes L-lord Shirotora s-sir!" The trembling dragon that had only hours ago claimed that he would lead an attack on Ponyville that would leave all of Equestria defenceless from invasion mwa ha ha, wiped his face and flew in the opposite direction of Ponyville with his tail literally between his legs. Stopping to talk to other dragons that had been watching on the cloud bank some ways off. It amused the white tiger when those dragons flew away faster even than his quarry had. Though he supposed that was due to his injuries.
Leaning back on the nearest cave wall he allowed himself a sigh and closed his eyes. It had been a long day and he had finally, after all this time, managed the chaos magic he just knew he had. And was able to use it to do his job for once. Months of surviving on the unforgiving mountains for no real purpose had made him irritable. So he was in a good mood now that he knew that his presence wasn't for naught. And even if he never fought again and died on this mountain. He would have served a purpose. His spirits were so high, even, that the sound of a hologram being activated, a sound he had been dreading, wasn't able to wipe the smile off his muzzle. Standing up, he walked on his hind legs to the corner of the cave where a stormtrooper's holo-communication device waited. A tiny, blue, transparent pegasus pony hovered just above the device wearing a mask of grim determination.
"Sir, the Solars are launching an attack on Ponyville. It appears Twilight found her way home."
Shirotora glared at the hologram. "And how did the Solars learn that, Lightning?"
"I told them, sir. You know he has that anti lying charm active. And if I waited to tell him it would have activated the same alarms and I'd be dead. You'd have no line of communication into this side of the Circles, sir."
Shirotora sighed again. He couldn't fault Lightning, as much as he wanted to. He had a job to do as much as he did. And right now, as always, the job description was simple. Protect Ponyville and it's citizens. And it would seem that for the first time, that would require physical contact with those citizens. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little excited. But he was scared too. For a battle was guaranteed, and his life was not. And should he fail, far more than bronies were at risk.
-||-||-||-||-
We stared at Celestia and Luna while they nuzzled each other. Well, most of us were staring. Arrow was glaring rather obviously, but he made no moves toward Celestia. No doubt he wanted revenge for Snake's death.
"Um... I'm really sorry-" Arrow, likely not wanting to hear it, huffed and walked off. Leaving the rest of us to deal with Celestia. Celestia appeared hurt, though she did not attempt to halt him or apologize further. Slowly, and unsteadily, she made her way onto legs that had been in disuse for a week. When she finally managed to stand she took a look at her surroundings. Many of the Canterlot nobles were walking around the park along with Ponyville natives. Finally her eyes rested on us. And a single tear fell down her cheek.
"Oh, my dears, I really am sorry. I- I-" she lowered her head in shame, but no one offered her forgiveness. But I felt that something had to be done, and while Snake's death had been an indirect result of Celestia's Nightmare, it would be a while before I could truly forgive her. But I could at least tell her I wasn't averse to the notion of one day forgiving her. Carefully, I walked up to the quietly crying princess, and rested an arm around her back, just below her neck. This appeared to shock the princess and she stared at me without any attempt to hide her shock.
"Why--?"
"No, if you're wondering, I don't forgive you. Not yet at least. Though I think in time I may, you weren't entirely in your right mind after all. But... Snake was a good friend of mine so-"
"You don't know, do you? Young human?"
"Know what?"
"I don't... I don't deserve your forgiveness. And, I'm sorry, but you must know of my crimes. And I'm afraid I'm too much of a coward to speak of them. This... will be unpleasant. Prepare."
"Prepare for what?" but Celestia elected not to tell me, and instead rammed her horn directly into my forehead. My eyes opened wide and I screamed in panic.
"Shhh, relax. You are in no real danger." It took considerable effort, but I did mange to relax, and to my surprise I felt no pain. Shakily I reached up to my forehead where her horn met me. I took my hand away and examined it to find no blood.
"This is a spell I designed millennia ago to read minds of accused criminals, unfortunately it works both ways so I had to stop using it. But now I intend for you to see my memories, so just relax and allow me my sense of justice." I did as I was told and a flood of images and sound invaded my mindscape. I struggled against it at first but then what I assume to be her freshest memories bubbled to the surface. And I was horrified. The Canterlot aftermath, several American military members combing through the wreckage of the once great city. Reduced to smears of gore and screams. The feeling of cathartic release as she rips a human in half. I look on in horror as two military bronies are crushed beneath her hooves.
Bronies? What are-- oh no....... Celestia asks in my mind, and in response I flood hers with fond memories of discovering My Little Pony and the fanbase. All the memes that made me laugh and cringe. The countless fanfics. The feeling of peace and happiness the community gave me. My favorite pony list. Going to BroNYCon for the first time and how excited I was. And I get images from her in return as she sorts out words said to her by Overture On our world, we came to know of yours. We followed the adventures of your student, Twilight Sparkle, and those of her five friends....Celestia seems to reel from the information casting a new light on the next scene as she moves to the Circles in the Everfree and tortures more bronies. Celestia pulls her horn from my head and together we empty our stomachs. Well, I do. Celestia merely dry heaves.
"What happened?" Syntax asks, clearly concerned. Before I answer I feel my forehead, hoping that I don't find a massive hole. I breathe a sigh of relief when I don't.
"Celestia killed.... a lot more than just Snake." I breathe and with that statement all those present gave Celestia hardened looks. Though the humans were surprisingly softer than the ponies. Celestia is once again lying down, sobbing quite a bit as Luna holds her closely. Despite everything she's done, I don't want to hate her. I don't want to dislike her. And I don't. I... like her. And it makes me feel guilty. Aren't I supposed to hate murderers? No matter what the reasoning? But... I can't bring myself to feel anything stronger than pity. Cursing under my breath I give Celestia another hug. When the others see me the ponies gasp in shock, while the rest of the BDF, sans Pascal, make their way to the Sun princess to be a part of the group hug.
"I... forgive you Celestia. I, probably more than most, feel your grief and regret. And I know this will haunt you for ages, so I want you to know that I forgive you." She doesn't stop crying. If anything it only seems to worsen the tears. So I just hug her silently and let her. The others each murmur reassurance to Celestia, though probably half seem somewhat conflicted.
-||-||-||-||-
An hour later and we had managed to get Celestia into a more jovial mood. It took a lot of comfort and love. The Mane 6 finally managed to join in once they saw our forgiveness as mostly genuine. Though they still seemed sceptical of it, and wary of Celestia. Murder was a much heavier crime here. Much heavier. It was difficult for hem to wrap their minds around our being so forgiving. They were at once appalled by our "indifference" to those killed, and greatly impressed by our willingness to forgive. Of course we weren't indifferent, we just pushed it to the back of our minds.
"Luna?"
"Yes sister?"
"If you go Nightmare due to jealousy of me ever again, so help me I will beat the ever loving shit out of you."
"What?! Where did this come from, sis?"
"Do you know how popular you are to the humans, Luna?"
"No?"
"Let me put it this way. On this, internet thing of theirs, there's a "Tumbler" dedicated to me. At least, sort of."
"What's a "Tumbler"?"
"It's a like journal that anyone on the planet can see any time they want. Anyway, someone made a comic about me. And do you know how they portayed me?"
"No. I do not."
"AS A RAPIST! They even called me "Molestia"!"
"I'm so sorry sis-"
"Don't be. It was well done and funny. NOT THE POINT! Do you know what happened next?"
"Must I respond?"
"Of course not. Anyway, they introduced a minor character into their little comic. My sister. And do you what she did in the comic?"
"....."
"She played games with her crush! That was it! And guess what? "Gamer Luna" became such a hit that they added her name to my comic and she got tons more attention. Their audience is a bunch of sex crazed males and the rapist me got less attention than gamer you. On MY OWN COMIC!" Celestia bursts out laughing. Clearly enjoying herself. I get a momentary flash of Celestia worrying herself to sleep that Luna wasn't getting enough love in her life. This news probably made Celestia extremely happy.
"Really? That's odd."
"That's not all. I appear in an episode of the show. No one says anything. You appear, and everyone's screaming your name until five minutes after you're gone.
"They made a roleplay based on a civil war between us. And I have practically no members, art, or music while you have SO MUCH. They all love you so much. Luna, I am so happy for you." and Celestia nuzzles her sister who appears frozen and wide eyed. She blinks and her eyes rest on me.
"Is this true?"
"Um... kinda. Well, actually it's slightly exaggerated. And I've seen you in plenty of fanfics, Celestia."
"Not as many as my sister."
"Did you really get all that from my mind, Princess?"
"Uh, yeah. Actually. I have ALL your memories. 25 years is nothing for my mind to handle, and you have my memories aswell, though you will find them harder to access and if you try too hard it will give you a very bad migraine." Well, that explained the memory flash.
"Hey, this sounds interesting and all. But well, a doozy's about to happen. And it doesn't feel like a good one. So, humans. I need you to come over here please." Pinkie pipes up sweetly
"What?" I say
"Why?" Technia asks
"What's going on?" Syntax asks.
"It's nothing much, but well, we need a lot of defenses. And let's face it. You guys are weak."
"Hey"
"No I'm not."
"I'll have you know I have guns."
"Guys, honestly. You're weak. All the bronies are. Something went wrong with the spell that sent you here and your full potentials remain locked. All I need to do is correct on part of the spell and..... done!"
A flash of light spills from all those present, and I feel like I had been sleeping for two months and I finally managed to get up and pour myself a cup of coffe. I feel.... alive.
"Allright. I understand some things about your world. Like levelling up in video games. So I'm gonna use that formula to let you all know what just happened.
"Technia. Simple builds are now as easy to make as complicated ones and your unicorn magic is at the same level as most other unicorns.
"Syntax. You now have unlimited clip and your aim is 99% accurate. As well as a 1st degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do."
"Aww man, Tae Kwon Do sucks."
"Too bad. Pascal, you can now actually use your chi-blocking abilities. While there are no benders you will be able to render an enemy limp with a few well placed punches. Oh, and your phone has an infinite charge."
"Nice."
"Soulless, your flying skills have improved by 50% and your abilities with swords now rival Deadpools." My jaw drops "Well, I couldn't actually read the comics. So I have no idea if Ryan Reynolds portrayal in Wolverine Origins was accurate. But that's what I meant."
"Just.... how much time did you spend on the internet, Pinkie?" Technia asks worriedly.
"Only about a week a night" Pinkie responds innocently, either not noticing, or completely ignoring, the glare that Twilight was sending her way.
"A week a ... what?"
"Time manipulation magic. You can get a LOT done in suspended time." She says in a chipper tone, still smiling. We all scratch our heads as we try and understand just how much internet the hyper mare has consumed, only to come out confused and impressed. As I was about to ask about her age I was saved from making that mistake when Arrow finally made his way back. Once he was close to us he briefly flashed white.
"What was that?"
"Oh. You leveled up, Arrow! Now all your arrows are 100% accurate and do three times as much damage. Not to mention each arrow can include whatever device you want. Like explosives or a net. Just like Green Arrow!"
"Huh? Really? That's cool."
"Oh, and all your weed is 200 times stronger and lasts twice as long!" At this Arrow visibly brightens
"Awesome!" |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Ultimate | Previously, on IBDF:
Pink Death, the solar priest, has gone insane with grief. It was his actions that resulted in Noteworthy's demise. He is trailing the solar brony retreat.....
The circles have gone to war, the spark that ignited the powder keg was the death of a pony by a solar brony.....
The American military is searching for Princess Celestia.....
Pinkie's witchcraft has unlocked the full potential of the spell that sent our heroes here, but only on said heroes.....
Shirotora, head of the Lunar Bronies, has received word of an impending attack on Ponyville by the Solar bronies.....
Gamer Luna is more popular than Molestia.....
Arrows infinite stash is now bangin'.....
And now, IBDF continues..........
-||-||-||-||-
Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had gone to thier perspective homes. It was getting late in the day and they all had things to take care of. With Celestia awake and the sisters no longer fighting, even indirectly, the world's weather had returned to normal. Leaving the weather ponies a lot of clean up to take care of. Rainbow Dash was unusually slow to leave our group as a result. That just left the current five members of the BDF; Myself, Pascal, Syntax, Technia, and Arrow with Pinkie Pie, Twilight and the Princesses.
Pinkie's earlier warning of a "doozy" had us all on edge. The Princesses included. Last time Pinkie had a doozy a Hydra had been involved. It may not have been the doozy, but it was still involved. Of course the same reasoning was floating around our heads as well. So we weren't too shocked when we heard a familiar roar. Although, that's not to say we weren't shocked. I mean, that particular roar was pretty darn unexpected.
"Sweet Celestia's perky nipples, is that what I think it is?" Asked Pascal, ignoring the wry smirk and raised eyebrow of the owner of said perky nipples.
"I doubt it. Pretty sure Hulk was the biggest among us.", said Technia, looking eastward towards the sound.
"Snake was a tyrannosaurus once." put forth Arrow
"Yeah, but he could shapeshift." replied Syntax.
"Maybe we have another shapeshifter?" asked Technia
"Well, I can say this. If we do. It's not technically ours." I reply.
"What do you mean, Soulless?" asked Luna.
"It came from the Everfree. Everfree is under complete Solar control."
"That's.. yeah that can't be good. Wait, I have an idea!" and like that Technia ran off into a nearby field. her horn glowing and the ground beneath her trembling.
"Well..... alright then Technia. What's your idea?" I asked, knowing full well she couldn't hear me. Getting the response I expected, none, I turned to the others. "Well, while we wait for.... whatever she's doing... what do you guys wanna do?"
"Um...."
"Ano....." Seriously? The Japanese um? Okay.....
"Yeah, I uh... " Great. We're in Ponyville. And we're bored.
"Ooh ohh! I know!" Pascal, excitedly jumped in place, raising his arm like a kid in school.
"Uh, yeah. Pascal, what you wanna do?" I wasn't confident this would be anything fun... or legal.
Pulling out a baton he pressed a button on it, and it started to arc electricity. "Can we see what 3,000 volts of electricity does to a pony?!" And I was right.
"No, Pascal. That'll probably kill 'em. And if it doesn't, it would certainly hurt 'em. Why would you even....."
"But what if it was an Alicorn?" He asked, his tone like a child begging for candy at the checkout line. I think the green lenses on his mask even manged to get bigger.
"C'mon, man. No."
"But, Celestia could take it." at this Arrow started to beg me with his eyes too. Since when did these bastards start asking my permission for stuff? I'm not their damn leader. Though I'm not gonna let Celestia get electrocuted for fun and profit.
"No no no no just.. no. What is wrong with you?"
"All kinds of things." he responded in an eerily chipper tone. Briefly balancing on his toes as he did so.
"Yeah well--" I was interrupted as that roar from earlier sounded again, this time louder. Glancing Technia's way I saw massive amounts of molten metal spewing form the ground, slowly taking shape. It had to have been fifteen stories tall, and it looked like it was gonna take a while. Whatever the hay it was, it probably wouldn't be finished by the time freaking Godzilla of all things got here. Which it now seemed it was doing. If the rhythmic and increasing seismic activity was anything to go by.
The roar sounded again. This time it was uncomfortably loud, and it's footsteps were making noise too. It seemed Ponyville's residents were finally taking notice. Most had stopped what they were doing and were worriedly watching the Everfree. That stopped though as 1998's New York Godzilla burst into view, followed closely by what could only be the Solar bronies. What the hay were those morons thinking? They were supposed to be invisibly protecting Ponyville. Invisibly. As in not so flippin' visible! Maybe Overture snapped and decided to make an appearance?
Wait, Godzilla the brony just crushed a house and it looked like he was trying to eat ponies? What was going on? "Guys, Godzilla must've gone insane in his current form. We need to snap him out of it!" snapping to attention, (and whatever counted for attention for Pascal) they ran behind be. All of us waving our arms to get Godzilla's attention.
"Dude! What the fuck are you doing?! You're hurting ponies!"
"That's the idea, Padre de la Luna." came an all too familiar, and highly aggravating voice.
"Overture," I hissed, not bothering to turn to look at him. Can't believe I liked his music, once. "Why are you doing this? This goes against all we stand for!"
"All you stand for. Ponyville may be lost. But this is for the good of all of Equestria. Y'know, the greater good? A concept you seem completely unable to grasp, it would seem."
"And you call yourself a brony, I will see that you pay for this!" Knowing I couldn't take on the irradiated lizard, I decided to take on it's master. Pulling out my swords I smiled, "This is gonna be fun.". But to my dissapointment, but not my surprise, he vanished in a pop of light.
"DOUCHEBAG!" I yelled, hoping he'd hear me. Meanwhile behind me, the terror of Tokyo had actually managed to chow down on a few ponies, the sight of which nearly made me cry out in agony. I may be the size of a bee compared to it. But I was prepared to sting.
I, of course wasn't prepared for it's thick hide. And now I was down a sword. Fuck. I thought about running after the monster to retrieve the blade when I noticed something in the sky. Pointed, and oddly shaped for an aircraft, it struck me as familiar. Which I need to stop weirding out about. We're all from Earth. We've all seen the same shit. No matter how odd we are it's all familiar.
"It's the mother fucking Batman." I breathed in awe. Then I realized it technically wasn't actually Batman and stopped being awestruck. Though that didn't last long as the pilot was certainly impressive in his (or her) impersonation of the bat when they launched out of the batwing and glided down to the battlefield. Before landing, he tossed an explosive at Godzilla. Well, at least someone finally managed to get his attention. Though, I don't think the bat was really all that ecstatic at the results. As he only managed to piss him off. Launching toward the dark knight his attention was grabbed by a rather tall black man in a green jersey sporting the number 36. Clearly confused, the dragon like creature did nothing as the basketball player laid into it. Just continued to stare at the man, clearly puzzled as to why the human thought it possible that some mere martial arts could possibly hurt him. He couldn't even feel the punches. Smirking, he prepared to eat the little nuisance when a blonde haired little human boy launched himself at the man, apparently trained in a superior martial art.
Batman, seeing his friend getting laid into and losing, seemed to summon his car out of nowhere. Jumping into it he sped to the pair in an attempt to break up the fight. Unfortunately they didn't seem to notice as the car's engine noise was blotted out by the war cry of a white tiger and the rest of the Lunar bronies who were cresting the hill to the west. The crunch of metal and shattering of glass, however, was easily heard afterwards. Seems batman survived though.
Smiling at the back up, I leaped into the fray. So many pop culture icons were fighting each other it was like a ten year old's drawing. I felt a little bad as I cut off heads and limbs of people I liked from TV. There's just something wrong with beheading the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, y'know?
Our forces had essentially been cut in half, however, as so many Lunar bronies aided in the second mass evacuation Equestria had seen this month. And we were getting fairly beaten back. All around us was chaos, and if there hadn't been so much on the line, I would've sat back and munched on popcorn as I enjoyed the hell out some seriously epic fights.
Ozzy Osbourne was fighting Justin Bieber. (Apparently the Canadian's head tasted fairly bad, as after the most spectacular beheading I've ever seen, Ozzy retched)
Time Turner was fighting Screwloose.
Bloo was fighting Dexter. (The short nerdy ginger)
John Marsten was kickin' Eastwood ass.
Alien and Predator were fighting Michael Meyers and Chucky.
Master Chief was sitting on Duke Nukem "C'mon, say it...."
"No."
"Say it and I'll get up."
"Fuck you!"
"Suit yourself...."
"Alright alright, I give! I give!" sigh "Power Armor is awesome, and I'm super jealous."
"And.....?"
"It's not for pussies...."
"Was that so hard?"
"Get off of me!"
I looked around me for batman, intending to help him with the main weapon of the Solars when I finally spotted him charging at some Russian looking soldier wielding an AK-47. With a well placed batarang he knocked him unconscious and immediatley set his sights on the next solar brony, a tall skinny white kid with a stove top hat. Startled at being targeted by none other than batman he made a grab for his fallen comrades gun, and managed to drop my faith in the bat completely by actually managing to down him. As I had been right by the bat I smiled rather than become fearful as I knew my new skill with my remaining sword would redirect all the bullets that would come for me back to the tall kid.
To our mutual disappointment however, his gun clicked, not tied to the weapon himself the ammo wasn't infinite. Fearing for his life he fled back towards the Everfree.
"That's right you better run!" I shouted gleefully.
"You're welcome." Turning around I saw a T-1000 shifting back from a larger form. I wasn't sure what he had been as I caught the transformation's tail end. But whatever it was had elements of blue and red. Damn it, and I thought I had scared him off.
Well, no need to be bitter about getting my life saved, possibly. "Thank---" at which point the top half of my possible savior disappeared into the gaping maw of Godzilla. "...you." I finished lamely. Faustdammit.
Looking back at the bat I noticed he was still alive, barely. I went to help him up when the skinny kid figured he'd finish off the caped crusader, having returned with a machete. Before he could make it all the way to the prone superhero he tripped and fell. Attached to his leg was a whip, which surged with electricity causing the skinny little fuck to spasm.
"Pascal, you just saved Batman's life. Nice goin' man."
"Really? I just wanted to fry someone. This guy's on the opposite team, right?"
"Uh, yeah man."
"Cool." Taking a bite out of a chocolate bar nonchalantly, he casually electrocuted the the skinny steam punk kid again.
"Where'd you get--"
"Pinkie Pie"
"Right. Carry on."
Godzilla the brony, meanwhile, continued to rampage Ponyville. Much to my chagrin.
"Hey, Syntax!" I called out.
"What is up!" He called back, laughing. Apparently having a grand ol' time.
"Can you shoot the beast in the eye? If he can't see, he can't eat!"
"I don't agree with your logic, Soulless, but either way I can't get a good shot off at this angle. Here," he tossed me a gun, "You got Deadpool's sword ability, maybe you inhereted some of his aim."
"I don't agree with your logic, Syntax."
"But....?"
"But nothing. Your logic is as holey as a changeling priest."
"Whatever man, find someone who can aim then. Prick."
"Hey, bats?" he groaned as turned over, his midriff riddled with holes. Think you can hit that thing in the eye with a deagle?"
"I think I can do that." she said. Huh. "Give me the gun..." still lying on her back she aimed past her feet, her arm trembling in her weakened state. Finally she fired off a shot. However, right as she fired, likely believing the shot to hit, Overtrue appeared on the battlefield just long enough to toss a ninja into the path of the bullet. The ninja's hand exploded. He howled in pain, though he could barely be heard over the din of war.
Two angels, one of which I had fought with when I arrived here, came out of the Everfree carrying someone, likely a friend or the Solar's secret weapon. I dreaded who they could be if it was the latter. They carried him by the armpits while he stroked a Captain Morgan pose. As they got close I could hear them singing.
In the eyes of a ranger,
The unsuspecting stranger,
Had better know the truth of wrong from right,
'Cause the eyes of a ranger are upon you,
Any wrong you do, he's gonna see,
When you're in Texas, look behind you,
'Cause that's where the rangers gonna be.
"Oh, you have got to be fuckin' kiddin' me." I moaned.
"What?" Pascal asked obliviously, still torturing the the Lincoln look-alike. I was about to answer when Chuck Norris answered for me. By kicking Pascal square in the nuts.
"Are you fucking kidding me dude? A nut shot! Seriously?! I'm gonna kill you! I'm gonna wear your intestines like a Gala dress you piece of-" I tuned out Pascal and focused on Norris. If this guy was half of those Chuck Norris jokes he'd a force to be reckoned with.
"I am Chuck-Fucking-Norris! I will kill you all! Ah ha ha ha!" Readying my one blade, I took a defensive stance. Seeing me do so, he smiled and slowly made his way toward me. No doubt relishing in the fear on my face. He was nearly in reach when he suddenly disappeared from view. Looking around quickly I saw to my right the broken body of Chuck underneath Bruce Lee.
"You think too highly of yourself, Chuckles." he said, before casually walking back into the heart of the battle.
Taking in my surroundings I was greeted with a wonderful sight. No, it wasn't the entire town of Ponyville on fire. It wasn't the hundreds of dead bodies that littered the ground, it wasn't the vast amount of blood that ran into the storm drains as though it rained the stuff, it was the complete lack of ponies. They had all been safely evacuated. Which also meant our own forces were going to get stronger, soon.
-||-||-||-||-
Meanwhile, just outside of Ponyville
Stone looked through his binoculars at the battle taking place. Without removing them from his face, he brought his radio up his mouth.
"Sgt Hall, report."
"Here sir."
"Those mushrooms you found, and put in our food?"
"Uh.. what about them sir."
"Get rid of them, and make sure no one ever uses them again."
"Yes sir. Permission to speak freely, sir?"
"Granted."
"What's wrong with them?"
Godzilla roared as the Hulk landed on his face.
"Just throw them away, sergeant."
"Yes sir."
> Colossaeus
Previously, on IBDF:
"Sweet Celestia's perky nipples, is that what I think it is?"
"Dude! What the buck are you doing?! You're hurting ponies!" / "That's the idea, Padre de la Luna." / "Overture," ... "Why are you doing this? This goes against all we stand for!"
"It's the mother fucking Batman..."
"Hey, bats? Think you can hit that thing in the eye with a deagle?" / "I think I can do that." ... "Give me the gun..."
Godzilla roared as the Hulk landed on his face. "Just throw them away, sergeant." / "Yes sir."
And now, IBDF continues....
-||-||-||-||-
With the entirety of our own forces now in the conflict we were finally pushing back against the Solar bronies. But it was a grueling battle. We might have been doing better were it not for the surprising amount of effort the Solars were putting into killing Technia. Hopefully whatever she was building was worth the forces we were spending to protect her. I think we all had faith that whatever the hell she was making would put down their own massive weapon. The frustratingly still living Gojira.
Thankfully the Lunar ponies head, a strange bipedal/quadrupedal tiger with a cutie mark calling himself Shirotora had some military experience from home, and was putting it to good use organizing us into a fighting force that more than made up for our lack of firepower and numbers. I couldn't help but draw connections to the three hundred some spartans at Thermopylae. Using organization and tactics against a more powerful, but chaotic enemy to stem the tides.
Whereas during the initial engagement individuals from each side merely tried to take out as many from the opposing side as possible, resulting in a spectacular town wide display, now lines had been clearly drawn and the battle had calmed down somewhat.
Shirotora, some Lunar bronies I didn't know, and the others I had been with since the Everfree currently made up the the forward defensive line that protected Technia as the the massive tower of molten lava she was controlling was cooling and forming into a towering steel humanoid. Though it still seemed to be a while before it would possibly be functional. The glances I caught of it as I fought the Solar bronies sparked recognition, but I couldn't quite place it. The fight in front of me took far too much of my attention anyway.
I found it funny how frequently both sides would shout the same war cry as they launched at each other with intent to kill. Had anyone told me a year ago bronies would shout "For Equestria!" at each other before driving home a blade into each others stomach, I'd laughed at them. I found that even the more die hard bronies would rather talk about their favorite pony than do anything fanatical like that. Yet, here I was, doing the same thing myself. A part of me felt some slight embarrassment at the action, however, the screaming and the reminder of what I was fighting for helped to keep me strong.
And strong I was. As was the rest of the BDF. Pinkie's little "unlock" having done wonders for our capabilities. My dual short swords flashed in the fading sunlight and glistened with blood. Not all of which was red in color. I used my wings to kick up dust and aid my movements to avoid fire from the Predator. I slashed open the Xenomorphs head so quickly and neatly he didn't even notice and continued to fight for a moment before he fell over, decapitated.
Pascal was laughing in maniacal glee as he brutally and mercilessly beat the ever living shit out of a single brony. Only bothering to knock back his healthy attackers while he reduced his victims to a pulverized mess of gore. He was absolutely ecstatic when a firebender, who looked quite like Mako, attacked him.
I felt pity for the Mako look alike.
Syntax was taking cover behind the remains of one of Ponyville's many homes. Easily picking off Solar bronies. Though I couldn't see his face he seemed quite calm. Reading his surroundings tactfully, and clinically.
Arrow was getting the stuffing beat out of him. He was pretty high and uncoordinated and as a range fighter, wasn't getting a lot done in the multiple melee scraps he currently found himself in.
The manly black dude from the old spice commercials was throwing diamonds and and remarkably sharp tickets to shows-of-that-thing-you-like from horseback at oncoming Solars.
Trevor and Johnny Klebitz were hitting each other with baseball bats, reminding me of the game I had only gotten three days of play in before I was transported to Equestria. If there was ever a reason to go home.....
A werewolf who went by the name of Were, because fuck originality, was doing some serious damage to a group of vampires and couple of vamponies. Apparently healing from nearly every wound inflicted on him. I had to hold back a chuckle when he, after having defeated the last of the group, ripped the leg off of one of the corpses and carried it over to Shirotora, who was using his claws to cast magic I've never seen before in addition to using them and his own teeth as blades. It was quite a sight as Were dropped the leg at Shirotora's back paws and panted, wagging his tail. Shirotora ignored this in favor of continuing the fight. Resulting in a whining wolf pushing the leg closer with his nose.
My amusement at the situation was cut short by the sound of a loud foghorn. And I do mean loud. Followed by an equally loud voice coming from massive speakers. Though I couldn't see any.
"Oh, yeah! It's Kaijū stomping time mother fuckers!" Everyone stopped fighting to see that, despite the best efforts of the Solars, Technia managed to finish her machine. A dark gray, with the occasional red striping, Jaeger.
Though this one had a massive screen as a kind of face plate, showing the maniacal, gleeful expression on Technia as she was undoubtedly inside of it. Though we could only see her face, it wasn't hard to judge the rest of her. The Jaeger giving away all her movements. Which currently consisted of slamming a fist into an open hand.
Wait, wasn't she a pony? Fuck it, she was human once, I'm sure her brain can figure it out.
The battle beneath her failed to resume as both sides, some still locked in mid fight, watched in awe while she stepped over us, preparing to crush a lizardy head in her hands.
Like unattended children at a fireworks show, all of us moved toward the titans despite the obvious danger. This fight would no doubt be entertaining, and the winner would determine the outcome of the war. No matter how many we killed, or put out of the fight, it was up to Technia and Godzilla to win. Now I know how Harry's team felt whenever they played Quidditch.
For a brief moment the two did nothing but stare at one another. Then Godzilla unleashed a roar, shaking his head as dog might when drying off as he did so. Technia responded by slapping him across the face, sending him bodily into Town Hall.
"Shaddup. You talk too much." Cheers went up from the Lunar bronies at the death of Godzilla. All that time and effort, and that was all it took to kill him. A back slap to the face. I couldn't believe my eyes.
Which was, of course, the right thing to do as those little bastards lied to me. As Technia celebrated her surprisingly easy victory she was hit from behind by an enraged irradiated saurian. A total of ten homes were lost underneath her. I vowed to do everything in my power to fix up Ponyville if we won, if I had any power left that is, all that I had was given by Overture, and clearly Shirotora had earned his spot at the head of the Lunar bronies. Maybe I'll just talk to him afterwards.
Godzilla lay over Technia's Jaeger, pushing on it with his forearms in an attempt to get up. He finally succeeded in doing so but wasn't on his feet for long. A double row of metal parted from the Jaegers back and slid to the outside, revealing a dozen massive guns, six in each row, that simultaneously opened fire on the beast, irritating it and knocking it back.
As she got up the flaps that revealed the guns folded back in, but the metal on her back continued to shift and move slowly forming a new weapon. A titanic sword that had no right to be used as such that she flung around with surprising ease.
"Time to die you piece of shit." and with that she lunged forward, sword to her side ready to be thrust forward. Godzilla was too quick, however, and side stepped her advance using his tail to trip her. She didn't let that stop her from her goal, though. As she fell into the remains of Town Hall, she quickly turned her torso around, using her added momentum to fling the massive sword in Godzilla's direction.
Thinking itself momentarily victorious it didn't bother looking back at the machine, instead letting out a roar of triumph before getting back into the fight. That was all Technia needed. Godzilla's roar was cut short as a hulking building of a sword pierced its throat. It wasn't an instant kill though. The makeshift crowd continued to watch and listen to the monsters wet gurgles and watch as gallons of blood poured beneath it as it fell. First to its knees, then finally its head. Its eyes never closed when it finally died.
Having learned her lesson the first time, Technia ignored the screams of disgust when she crushed its head underneath one of her huge metallic feet.
"I will show no mercy to any brony that threatens the life of a pony. Surrender, join us and together we may yet better the lives we have destroyed today. Surrender and live. Those of you who wish to harm ponies under Overture's falsehoods of the greater good, know this: Within the span of 12 hours I, with little effort, built this machine which killed the one and only God motherfucking zilla. If you think you can stand a chance I urge you to try." At that she ripped the sword from the corpse and slammed it nearly halfway to the hilt in the ground between the front lines. It was still about four stories tall.
Just about every Solar brony made signs of surrender and walked to stand with the Lunar bronies.
Finally. Finally we could repair the damage we caused. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Season 2: Tempus Transitus | One year, four months later...
April 5th, 2015CE
Vernal 16th, 1005LE
-||-||-||-||-||-
The weeks following the battle of Ponyville had the residents slowly trickling back home. The Mane 6, just hours after the battle, had finally gotten their hooves on the Elements. They used them anyway in hopes of returning everything back to normal. However, the Elements failed to accomplish much as far as normality was concerned. Overture had been turned to stone, those that were injured but alive were healed, fires were put out and loose debris was vaporized harmlessly. The corpses of all the felled bronies returned to their natural, pre-Equestrian forms. But they did little for the mental health of, well, everyone. They didn't repair any of the true damage to the town, and they didn't raise the dead. Twilight had said that the reason the elements failed to heal the emotional and mental wounds was that it wasn't something that could simply be given. It had to be worked for and earned. So nearly all the ponies remained afraid of the bronies, the Canterlot crowd again going against the norm and being the more accepting bunch. Even if only minimally so. It would be months until they would get over their fear. And when they did, it became anger.
Despite their anger we all did our best not to let it get to us. As we had since the beginning we would be quiet and keep our heads down. Even when they threw things at us. We would do as we were asked without question so long as it wasn't the CMC or equally destructive foals doing the asking. Many of us were forced to sleep in the street. Those few ponies that were open to us would still refuse those of us that looked like we came straight out of a horror movie. Can't say I blame them, really. On Earth that'd be a sure fire way to earn a Darwin Award.
The Princesses made sure we were getting along with the ponies. They did their best to get the bronies and ponies acclimated to each other. But there's only so much you can do to convince a group to accept another when they first saw the second initially as naught but extremely violent monsters. Waging war, bringing death, spilling blood, and destroying homes. We were advised by the Princesses to act precisely how we were acting to facilitate better brony-pony relations faster. Apparently they'd soon get over it and treat us better. Due to ponies empathic nature they'd stop seeing us as mindless monsters soon enough and probably feel guilty for their previous actions.
"Honestly, you're all likely to see a few weeks of being treated like royalty before things mellow out. A guilty pony is a generous pony." Princess Celestia had said.
I didn't see it happening. I mean, in my head I juxtaposed freaking GODZILLA on a damn rampage with a miniature Godzilla getting the royal treatment a few months down the line. It was comical in how little sense it made. Never mind the fact that the little asian boy who was the shapeshifter that would forever be known as Gojira was dead. It'd be like the jews doing something similar for Hitler. Or more accurately, the Auschwitz survivors. Well, okay, not that bad. But still pretty bad. So I seriously didn't expect the kind of treatment Celestia promised. I was prepared to live the rest of my life getting pelted by eggs, flower pots, boots, and the occasional knife. See? Forgiving. Only the occasional knife.
However, the Princess, being the immortal ruler of ponies, shockingly had a deep insight into the pony psyche. I know, right? Who'da thunk it? About a year after the battle we saw a dramatic increase in the quality of life for us. Ponies started mirroring our actions: Acting kind to us, feeding us, helping us build more homes to house the brony population. They began inviting bronies to parties (although Pinkie had been doing that from the start. At first only the invited would show up, but soon no one would come to a party that even a single brony was invited to. The parties were damn right depressing.) Pinkie couldn't be happier, the city had finally begun to heal. And now it was bigger than ever.
Yes, that's right. The city of Ponyville. It had become Equestria's new capital, and was now broken into three districts. Old Ponyville, New Canterlot, and Little America. Three guesses as who lived where. On the outskirts of New Canterlot stood two Castles. One reminiscent of the previous Canterlot Castle, though smaller, dwarfed the second Castle that, while sizeable, could have been mistaken for the former's lawn art. It was a blue crystalline tree that held a purple, somewhat classic looking castle aloft. Princess Twilight Sparkle's new home. Yeah. This past year or so has been nuts. I mean, a lot of us had thought when we got here that Twilight wouldn't actually go Alicorn. That it was creative license by Hasbro and DHX. But, apparently Lauren can see the future even in an alternate dimension and is still pulling strings behind the scenes of My Little Pony.
Thanks mostly to Technia, Ponyville City became the most technologically advanced city in all of Equestria. The wonders she brought to the city made it the number one tourist spot on the planet. And as a result the city was continuing to grow and diversify as people from all over moved to town. I knew I was looking at the beginnings of Equestria's Shanghai. Technia alone, however, couldn't handle the strain lifting an entire city, nation, or planet on her shoulders. Luckily she hadn't need to. What things she did make were studied extensively and recreated.
A number of new mines, lumber yards, and oilfields had opened up around Ponyville City to get the materials needed as ponies couldn't easily replicate Technia's clean removal of resources with even their strongest magic, not that they had given up trying. With our guidance all of these new industries were pollution free. We may not have been the silent defenders we once thought we were but there were some things about humanity that we didn't want to visit upon Equestria.
Among the new industries and infrastructure of Ponyville City was an airport. It wasn't all that big as the global infrastructure couldn't handle any 747s we could make, If you couldn't land it elsewhere there was no reason to launch it. Right now the majority of the aircraft were zeppelins of Equestrian origin, though we had a few small prop planes out and about. The knowledge of how to build larger aircraft, airports, roadways, electric cars, green power plants, solar panels (Celestia was particularly happy with that one) among other things had already been released to the public and just about every major city was in a race to advance.
The bronies had mellowed out significantly since the battle of Ponyville. They still had their altered forms, whatever magic had been cast upon us could not be undone. At least not here. And a way home was still being looked into. The Holy Order of Harmony, however, did not die out. New leadership under a John Constantine gutted the previous order and built it back up from the foundation. The division of solar/lunar still existed, though now it had more to do with ideological rather than geographic differences. The Solar half was more about rules, order, and atonement for the battle. Whereas the Lunar half was more about freedom, celebration, and progress. Despite their differences they got along extremely well. My position as the Lunar High Priest remained. As did Pink's.
Pink himself claimed that he was feeling far better. And I was inclined to agree. Initially. He seemed far slower to anger than anybody I'd ever met. Which alone would be great. Unfortunately the way he would occasionally talk to someone that wasn't there when he thought no one was looking made me worry for him. I had been thinking of trying to get him to see a therapist in New Canterlot, but then he disappeared. I wasn't worried, he could handle himself and likely just needed some space and quiet. Which if he were being reasonable he hadn't need go far. It's been relatively quiet here for a while now.
Other than an escape from Tartarus by a centaur by the name of Tirek, apparently a G1 villain according to some of the other bronies, everything has been completely and utterly peaceful. If you don't count the shenanigans of the Mane 6. Which I don't. Rambunctious they may be, but they didn't tarnish the peace. And I was thankful, if wary, of the peace. I didn't expect it to last. There was a formidable military somewhere out there. With tanks and assault rifles who knows what else? And somehow, it had become impossible to find.
If that wasn't enough the disappearance of dozens of unicorn ponies in several cities and towns had the public visibly tense. Other than a few peaceful demonstrations outside local Police Departments and Guard Houses demanding action and answers it hadn't really escalated too much as of yet.
-||-||-||-||-||-
Currently a few of us, namely myself, Pascal, Syntax, Princess Twilight, and Princess Luna were searching the woods some miles to the southwest of Ponyville City for any sign of the foothold location of the United States military. Unsurprisingly we found nothing. Again.
"I don't understand. Even if they've moved, there should still be signs of their presence. Cleared woods, vehicle tracks, something!" Syntax complained, saying what we were all thinking, and for a few of us, had already said before.
"And I'll say it one more time. The Elements must have returned them home when we fired them over a year ago. And don't say they were too far away. Discord's chaos spanned the globe and when we sealed him back in stone everything returned to normal. Everything."
"Hey. That reminds me. Where is Discord?" I asked, suddenly curious.
"In truth I believe he met a grim fate during the Fall." said Luna, shaking her head with just a hint of sadness.
"Wait, but wasn't he supposed to be reformed?"
"AHAHAHAHAHA!" We all stopped and looked in mild concern at Twilight when she fell to the ground in hysterics. Eventually she came up for air and wiped a tear from her eye with a flick of her hoof. "Ahh, that was probably one of the funniest jokes I've heard in some time, Syn. I'm glad that even during a time of crisis you can find it in you to make ponies laugh. Pinkie's been rubbing off on you." She took a few breaths and extended her hoof repeatedly in calming motion and forcibly brought her smile down. "But it's still a time of crisis and we need to find more clues as to the whereabouts of the unicorns. Let's go."
"I... wasn't joking?" I heard Syntax mutter as we all resumed our trek through the woods. Though if anyone but myself heard him they showed no signs that they had. There were more important matters to attend to, like finding our quarry, no matter how adamant Twilight was that they'd been returned to Earth.
Silently we trudged on for a couple more miles and several more hours before the Princess called an end to today's search and teleported us home. Or, to be more precise, her home. She couldn't very well teleport us each to our own home as people need to see us leave the palace just as they'd seen us enter. For all ponies knew we were just discussing politics as heads of government for our districts. If they knew what we were really looking for it would incite a panic.
I headed home, nodding to Technia, Arrow, and Rainbow Dash as they headed inside the castle behind me to begin the day shift of "politicking" with Celestia. Breathing in the pre dawn air, feeling the wind whip at my lunar garb, I drank in the peaceful atmosphere of the City as the Dawnbringer woke and completed her duty.
I just wish that this peace will last. |
The Invisible Brony Defense Force | Invisibilitatem Magicae | I woke up the next evening like any other, hanging upside down from a metal bar in my room meant for that exact purpose. My roommate, a werewolf, still playing a card game of some sort in the back room with two other bronies and three other ponies, if their conversation is anything to go by. The voices of the ponies sound like they belong to Noteworthy, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia if memory serves. Their dull conversation and smoke lightly wafting through the air and up the stairs. I righted myself and landed with a muted thump on the carpeted floor of my small bedroom. Thankfully it was big enough to stretch out my wings, if only just.
I throw on my "religious" garb, admiring it in the mirror. At first I was adverse to such clothing, especially as I couldn't take off whatever I was wearing without it simply reappearing on me. But when Rarity was paid by some lunar bronies to make it I couldn't deny that it looked pretty awesome. For the priests, and later the "monks" we got long trench coats made out of what I thought was leather, but in truth was a fabric made from an exotic plant native to the Willder. Another wild forest located some distance south east of here. The coats came in two appearances, one Lunar, the other Solar. Lunar trenches were a midnight blue with purple trim, while the Solar was white with gold trim. Each had a large cutie mark of their respective princess emblazoned onto the center of the back. My moment of self admiration was disturbed by the dual sounds of my growling stomach and a particularly loud clink of glass from the game downstairs. Time to get a bite.
Downstairs, rooting through my fridge for breakfast, even after all this time, was still a novel experience. The dietary requirements of bronies being more varied and out there than Rainbow's mane. No matter how often I asked him to demand that guests bring their own food my roommate insists on being prepared. It's nice and all but I still feel queasy when I reach past a brain to get to the milk. Where we get the more exotic foodstuffs without Pink is still a mystery.
Oh, that's new. Bagged blood. Guess he's gotten over that silly rivalry with Steven. He must be here too, it's been drained slightly. Good 'cause I've got a bone to pick with him.
"Hey, Steve I-" I say, entering the room containing the game. I don't finish however as Steve isn't here. One of the other bronies was a Custom Job, a term we've begun to use for bronies like myself and Syntax whose looks are completely unique and maybe only borrow bits and bobs from popular cuture, but not quite the wholesale grab of those like Arrow. The other, sitting in a high chair, was Rocket Racoon. I was right about who the three ponies were though.
"Sorry, Carl. You seen Steve around?"
"No. Thank Celestia."
"Oh. Are you aware there's blood in the fridge?"
His eyes briefly flick to Vinyl. "Other people drink blood, Soulless, not just Steven." he says, with just a hint of malice at my name. Carl's one of those sticklers for birth names, and was never happy that I referred to myself as anything but. Personally I side with ponies on that. Names should have more meaning than whatever pre set bunch of sounds your parents chose out of a baby name book. But now is not the time to get into that... again. Steven's been a bit of a nuisance lately for Little American PR.
"Okay, well, if you see him, send him to me. He and I need to have a talk. Oh, and another thing, the blood's gonna go bad. Someone opened it." Vinyl shrank in her seat a touch but I didn't give it any consideration. "Hey, wait, wasn't Noteworthy here?" Octavia and Vinyl went a bit wide eyed but again I ignored it. Carl, Tom, and BlazeIt420 (admittedly someone who should probably be called by their birth name) just looked confused.
"Who?"
"Noteworthy. Blue stallion, likes to play the piano? Nevermind, I gotta go. You six, erm, five, have fun."
-||-||-||-||-||-
Making my way through the streets I couldn't help but marvel at how clean Little America was. Especially when compared to what we did to the Everfree after a mere four months of residing within. The air itself seemed scrubbed clean of impurities save for the smell of smoke from the occasional barbeque and recently cut grass. The skies were clearing from the day's rain; pegasi pushing back small white clouds. Leftovers of the larger gray ones that watered the town. The occasional puddle the only other evidence it rained recently, the air surprisingly dry as evaporation wasn't a natural process here. An apparent remnant from Discord's centuries long reign.
I almost made it to New Canterlot Castle when Technia pulled a Pinkie Pie and appeared right in front of my face, nearly a quarter of which was made of smile.
"Dude! Soulless! You won't believe what I made today!"
"A Particle Accelerator?"
"Nope, guess again."
"A coltfriend?"
"Eew, no. Still technically a lesbian, or "Fillyfooler", or whatever. No, c'mon. Guess."
"I don't know, I give up. What'd you make?"
Like a magician's assistant she waved over to a previously unseen bit of cloth covering... something. "It's a Tridoron!" and she pulled the cloth to reveal a steel grey car of some sort. Though it looked like the most cumbersome thing I've ever seen.
"The hay is a Try-der-on? And if you say it's a car, I should inform you that you've already made like, thirty of those. And they're better."
"Hmmph. You've got no taste, Soulless. This isn't just any car, it's a car that can transform!"
"Autobot or Decepticon?" I ask wearily.
"Neither!" She shouts, an eyelid twitching. Clearly she's not happy with my ignorance. "It can turn into two other things, not one. It's from Kamen Rider Drive!"
"And that is...?"
"It's a Japanese TV show. Think of it like... like Power Rangers meets Knight Rider. Only it's the guys belt that does the talking."
"That sounds really stupid."
"It's not!" Technia fumed, visibly turning red.
"Okay, okay. Sheesh. Besides, I thought you weren't gonna try fictional machines. Something about a coma?"
"Yeah, well, I couldn't help it. Pinkie let me use her internet and I was just reminded of so many things that I was like, fuck it, if I end up in a coma at least I tried."
"What if you died?"
"I didn't, did I?"
"Damn it, Technia, you can't just risk your life over something stupid. I mean, look at this. Would you really want this.." I wave to the machine "to be the last thing you've done on this Earth?"
"A couple of points, Soulless. One, what I risk my life over is none of your fucking business. Two, the hay it does it matter what the last thing I do is? At this point I am like Equestria's Leonardo Da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, and Nikola motherfuckin' Tesla three times over. I've likely made as much impact on this world's history as Princess Twilight Sparkle. Maybe even more, not that I care. And three, fuck you Soulless. I wanted to show you something that I was proud of. An achievement that up until a scant few hours ago I thought was impossible due to the imaginary nature of the components and mechanisms that I usually see in hard, solid detail when I do my usual stuff. And I have to catch this shit from you? You should change your name. Get a title to go with it. Soulless doesn't do you justice. Later, Captain Buzzkill."
It's been a while since I've fucked up this bad and I can't muster the neural power to formulate a response. Even if I could I doubt I could work the jaw to close, let alone speak. I guess she got tired of waiting for a response, that or my perception of time was slowed and she turned and left immediatley. I'm fairly certain I hear her mutter "Fucker." as she made her way to her car. Which I still thinks looks goofy. But I think I should keep that to myself from now on.
"S-sorry, I-" I say to the sound of receding engine and a dust cloud that marked where she once was. Good thing, too. I feel I'm gonna need more time to formulate a more genuine apology.
-||-||-||-||-||-
Twenty minutes later and I was fuming as I ascended the comically long stairs to the Castle proper, muttering all the while. "Excuse me for being worried about your safety. Ungrateful little..... fuckin'... damnit Soulless, why couldn't you have just lied to her and said you approved? I mean, fictional machines... that's gonna open just about every door ever. Aw, Luna damn it. Now she can make Galactica ships and freaking orbital cannons. And I pissed her off. Stupid stupid stupid."
My wings twitched behind me, subconsciously trying to wrap around me to hide my shame. My new biology is weird. My wings are like, "Hey, I know you're feeling embarrassed, so how about we blind you so you walk into walls and fall down stairs? That'll make you feel better." With a thought I forced them to remain behind me and compressed so I can walk through the entrance of the castle. As I made my way to Luna's quarters I began to hear arguing. It grew louder as I got closer. Eventually I could make out words. It sounded like Twilight Sparkle and Pascal were at each other's throats. Again.
"You're the pretty pony unicorn princess with super magic. If you can lay a beat down on that ugly-ass centaur I think you can manage to help me take off this freaking mask!"
"I've already told you. The magic that cast this curse upon you is far more potent than I am currently capable of. Even with the added magic of all life on this planet I would have a hard time removing your curse. Also, I'm an alicorn now."
"Who the fuck cares about what kind of pansy ass horse you are? And I didn't say shit about the curse, I just want to see another color other than green! I want to breathe unfiltered air! I want to shower! MAKE ME NORMAL YOU PURPLESMART CUNT!"
"Hey, Pascal, Dude. Calm down. That's what she's saying. She can't. Whoever, or whatever, did this to us, she can't undo it. It's why you're stuck wearing that mask. Why we're all stuck the way we are." I said, walking though the portal of Luna's chambers.
"Easy for you to say. You're vision is improved. And you can fly. And shower."
"Yeah, okay, I do have it easier. Sure, direct sunlight burns my retinas and I have to sleep upside down. Sure my new blush has sent me down a few staircases and made me vow never to visit the Crystal Empire ever again, but yeah. You're right, I do have it easier. But does my relative ease at life suddenly invalidate what Twilight is saying?"
"Ha see I-" Pascal stops celebrating for a moment to process my words. "Okay," he deflates. "I just, I want to go home. This was fun for a while but I'm not feeling it anymore."
"If you truly feel that way, young human, you may take time off today's activities."
"I meant Earth you stupid--- nevermind. I'll take you up on that offer. Good Eve, Luna" he said with a short bow to Luna. Turning away he silently, and depressingly, left the room. It felt weird to see Pascal that way. Dude was kind of like Pinkie. If Pinkie was a sociopath. A lot like when Pinkie leaves a room the silence nearly became a physical thing.
"So. That happened. Off to the forest?"
"Off to the Forest."
-||-||-||-||-||-
Location Unknown
April 6th, 2015CE
21:38
If you could see it. You would be impressed. Immensely so. But chances are the builders didn't want you to see it. So even though it was about a mile long you wouldn't see it if you were standing on it. All you'd see is undisturbed forest. But if the creators tired of being amused by you walking through them and their stuff like an ignorant ghost, avoiding invisible trees that have long since been cut down, and deigned to give you the sight they see, you would be presented with something utterly foreign to the planet you're standing on. An expanse of trodden earth and asphalt. Upon it vehicles and buildings of varying types. Strange bipedal creatures walking, running, marching through it all. The sounds that you couldn't hear moments before would overwhelm. Engines and orders and chanting. But, if you were unlucky enough to have been a pony, the next sight would make your heart sink.
The reason that they let you see. The reason that they let the others see. To use the horn on your head to make sure no pony else does. That no pony else will ever find you. The only other ponies who will sympathize with you are the other collared, emaciated unicorns. But they'll do nothing as the gleeful creature in tattered furs in front of you laughs sadistically and snaps the collar around your neck. They'll watch with sympathy or dead eyes while he leads you to your new position.
You knew you should've ignored that human and stayed home. |
C.O.L.T.S II | pre | "He got you there Pip." Spike said laughing.
"Oh don't even get me started Mr. Spike and Sweetie Belle!" Pip replied with a smug grin on his face.
"Shut up! It was her sister I liked!" Spike replied.
"Yeah and I liked Princess Luna when I was a lad but I grew onto somepony new" Pip said.
"Aha so you admit it! You do like Applebloom!" Featherweight said triumphantly.
"BLOODY HELL!" Pip said throwing his hooves up as he realized what he confessed to. Spike and Featherweight just started laughing. A unhappy Rumble was trying to fall asleep to no avail.
"Those three better shut the buck up before I make them!" Rumble thought as he out his hooves to his ears. His enhanced hearing picking up almost every sound in the night and the COLTS loud talking wasn't helping.
XXXX
The bodies of COLTS Omega where wheeled to the Canterlot Hospital. The escort was guarded by thirty Royal Guards. They tried to go to the hospital steathily but sure enough, somepony recognized the armor and blasted it to the world.
"THEY GOT THEM!" The pony shouted. Ponies all over Canterlot began coming out to see the super soldiers. The Royal Guard had a hard time holding back all the citizens and the press and once the COLTS were inside sealed operatinf rooms. A platoon of one hundred Royal Guard and a squad of COLT-II's were called in to guard the hospital so nopony could disturb the doctors who would be working long into the hours of the night.
"Deadeye had received numerous blows throughout his body and a blade had gone clean through his chest and pierced his lung and his spinal cord causing paralysis from the waist down. Solar Blitz received a nasty piece of shrapnel to the gut which pierced both his stomach and his intestines. Shadow fell nearly a thousand feet and broke every bone in his body along with shredding quite a few internal organs. Autumn had a whole cavern collapse on top of him resulting in a fractured skull and obliterated skeletal structure.." The doctor said as he examined the videos of the COLTS VISORCAMS from eight years ago which captured everything on film.
"Jeez I knew these buckers were tough but for them to survive that!" A doctor exclaimed.
"Wouldn't that all have healed from their abilities?" Another doctor asked.
"It would but since they were in suspended animation the injuries are still there. The wounds will heal within a day but they need to be kept alive using medicine until their wounds heal. Deadeye and Blitz are in the worst condition since both have gaping holes in their bodies. All of Shadow's and Autumn's bones are broken.
"So they did not age?" Another doctor asked.
"No they did not."( Just for everyponies info, Autumn, Blitz, Deadeye and Shadow were all older than their marefriends so the mane six are now only four years older than the COLTS are if that makes any damn sense)
"Well how do we get them out of this armor? It wont budge!" A doctor said trying to pry off the armor which was sealed.
"We need the team of technicians who made the armor." A doctor said."Fortunately I was prepared and called them in advance. GENTLECOLTS!"
"Yes?" A team of technicians replied.
"This armor needs to come off." The doctor said.
"We got it." The head technician said as they activated a special switch using magic to unlock the armor and began to remove the armor. As the armor was taken off, medical hoses and tubes were stuck into the bodies to keep the COLTS alive from their injuries. The COLTS were still knocked out and would not awaken for another day. Everypony gasped when they saw the bloodied bruised bodies of the soldiers. Numerous doctors preformed endless amounts of surgeries in an effort to stop the bleeding and use artificial means to keep the COLTS ruined organs working. Both Autumn and Shadow had to have all their bone fragments realigned so that when their healing ability kicked in their bones would heal correctly. Blitz had to have all the tiny bits of metal removed from his body and have his intestines realigned. Deadeye had to have the chunks of metal pulled out of his chest and his spine had to realigned. After hours of surgery, the doctors were getting restless and t this point, nopony knew if the COLTS were still alive or not. A heart monitor was attached to the bodies of the super soldiers.
"Come on, come on, come on." A doctor said as the heart monitors attached to each COLT stayed silent and flat. After a few seconds nothing happened.
"No." A doctor said sadly.
"We're calling it. They're dead." A doctor said grimly as they began to put sheets over the bodies. when a familiar sound resounded.
Beep...Beep...Beep.
"T-t-they're ALIVE!" A doctor shouted as each of the COLTS heart monitors came to life. The room erupted into cheers as everypony celebrated.
"Get the press! The COLTS are alive! The COLTS are alive!"
The heroes of Equestria had returned.
All but one. |
C.O.L.T.S II | False Hope | Next Chapter
Gilda, Clawthorne, and Goldbeak reported to their posts the next morning. Clawthorne had a large black eye but it healed overnight so no injury was healed though he was still mentally scared.
"ST4 ON ME!" A large bulky Steel Talon commander called out. His name was Eaglebeak, he was a seasoned veteran of the Griffon-Pony war and had personally served under Captain Gore in almost every mission. He had engaged in hand to hand combat with both Deadeye and Silent Shadow. He naturally hated all ponies despite the alliance the two empires now shared.
"SIR YES SIR!" The three griffons replied.
"Alright maggots you are dismissed!" Eaglebeak said as the griffons went their own way. Gilda stayed with Goldbeak and much to her dismay, Clawthorne had come as well.
"Come on just one kiss?" Clawthorne asked.
"Clawthorne do you want me to knock your eyes out of your skull?" Gilda asked. Clawthorne remembered her kick from the other night and just decided to shut up.
"Hey do you guys know anything about Eaglebeak?" Goldbeak asked.
"Nope." Gilda said.
"He served with Gore and actually engaged in combat with the COLTS on a few occasions. He was the only Steel Talon who had not been charged with war crimes." Clawthorne said.
"Wow you actually have something in that thick-headed skull of yours!" Gilda said.
"So does that mean-" Clawthorne said as Gilda popped him in the face knowing what he was gonna say.
"Was that necessary?" Goldbeak asked.
"More than necessary." Gilda replied. Clawthorne got back up and rubbed his temple where Gilda had hit him.
"Clawthorne if you keep up with this you will be dead by the end of the month." Goldbeak said. Gilda rolled her eyes. As much as Clawthorne annoyed her he was still her team mate. It was just unlucky draw that she was put in his squad. She didn't mind Goldbeak although he could be a wimp at sometimes. Gilda had even beaten him in a fight quite a few times. Rather it was cause she was actually tougher than him or because he was too polite to hit a girl, she would never know.
XXXX
Scootaloo fired past the rainbow blur next to her. She smiled as she passed her mentor. She was suddenly blown back by a loud boom and a rainbow explosion. Scootaloo saw the rainbow blur shoot past her with unnatural speed. Scootaloo tried to catch up but she knew she was out done again by the legendary Rainbow Dash. The two pegasi flew to the ground.
"Great job squirt, one day you might be faster than me!" Rainbow said. Though the term 'squirt' didn't really apply to Scootaloo anymore. Scootaloo was nearly as tall as Rainbow Dash now.
"Thanks Dash." Scootaloo said. Rainbow had taken Windshock's place in the Wonderbolts after he retired. There was still a spot open since Soarin chose to become a COLT-II instead of rejoining the elite flyers. Rainbow Dash was trying to train Scootaloo so that the orange mare could join.
"Well that's enough practice for today. I have to go find Fluttershy. See ya squirt." Rainbow said as she flew off to Fluttershy's cottage.
"See ya Dash!" Scootaloo called out. Rainbow smiled as she took off. She arrived at her friends house in less than a minute. She knocked on the door and got no response.
"You in there Shy?" Rainbow called.
"Um yes I'm here." A timid voice responded as the door opened. Fluttershy came out a little dirty.
"You okay?" Rainbow asked.
"Well um... no." Fluttershy responded.
"Why not?" Rainbow asked.
"Today was the day Shadow went missing." Fluttershy said sadly.
"Hey it's alright." Rainbow said trying to comfort her sensitive friend. Rainbow was the only one of her friends who did not have a loved one on COLTS Omega. But Soarin had died temporarily and she had been devastated by that. She knew what Fluttershy was going through.
"But it isn't! He's dead!" Fluttershy whimpered as she began to silently cry. Rainbow hugged her crying friend. It wasn't easy for Fluttershy to find a stallion that she liked because she was so shy and timid. Losing Shadow was having a tremendous effect on her.
"Let's go to the park with the others, that'll cheer you up." Rainbow said as Fluttershy smiled a little bit.
XXXX
Pip awoke to find himself covered in a cloud of smoke. He began choking on the poisonous fumes and began to cough. He thought there was a fire but he looked to see it was just Spike snoring.
"Bloody hay Spike!" Pip said coughing from the toxic gas. "WAKE UP YA WANKER!"
"Huh what?" Spike said as he awoke.
"Ya tryin to kill us mate? Your bloody snorins making a nasty smoke cloud!" Pip yelled.
"Oh my bad." Spike said embarrassed. He rarely ever snored, probably only once or twice a year and last night happened to be the night he snored. The soldiers looked and saw that it was well past noon, the had overslept extremely late.
"Huh whaz happenin?" Featherweight asked as the commotion woke him up.
"Nuthin mate, is Rumble awake yet?" Pip asked.
"Nope." Spike said pointing to the still sleeping stallion.
"Bollocks, whose gonna wake em up?" Pip asked. Spike and Featherweight immediately put their hoof or claw to their nose. Pip saw this and realized he had to do it.
"Ah buck." Pip said as he carefully approached Rumble. He picked up a long stick and was going to poke Rumble with it when a hoof shot out and caught the stick.
"Don't even think about it." Rumble said with his eyes still closed.
"G'mornin to you to mate." Pip said as he pulled the stick and let out the breath he was holding. Rumble got up and stretched out his stiff muscles and began eating some nearby daisies for breakfast. Pip and Featherweight did the same as Spike pulled out some gems he had in his bag. The COLTS began their trek to Ponyville when their beepers went off.
"What? We have to go back to Canterlot?" Featherweight said confused.
"Oh that's just perfect we just walked miles just to find out we gotta walk back!" Rumble complained. The soldiers hussled back to Canterlot to find out what the commotion was all about. After a few hours they arrived and were debriefed on what had happened. The COLT-II's erupted into cheers when they heard the good news.
Ponyville
The mane six had headed to a park to have lunch together. Each pony was sad because it was the day COLTS Omega disappeared under the mountain but they still had a good time.
"This pie is great Applejack!" Pinkie said gobbling down her third piece of apple pie.
"Ole family recipe." Applejack said. Applebloom was baby sitting Little Mac so she could go out with her friends. Suddenly a figure on two legs came sprinting at them.
"Hey it's a COLT-II!" Rainbow said as the soldier came up to them.
"Good afternoon ladies, I have been sent to tell you that we have found COLTS Omega and they are alive and undergoing treatment as I speak." The COLT said. The mane six dropped whatever they had in their hooves and looked at the soldier.
"We have a transport ready for you." The COLT-II said pointing to a battle chariot. Battle chariots were much faster than a traditional one and they could reach Canterlot in half an hour. The mane six charged over to the transport nearly knocking over the COLT-II in the process. The ponies were so excited they could barely even talk. It was the longest half hour of their lives. When they arrived at Canterlot they were escorted to the hospital rooms where the COLTS were staying at. They saw Spike, Skullcrusher, Soarin, Rumble, Pip, Featherweight, Princess Celestia, and Astro all waiting there. Applejack immediately went to look for Big Mac but couldn't find him.
"Wait where's mah brother?" Applejack said looking to Skullcrusher. "Where's mah brother?"
"I'm sorry AJ they haven't found him yet." Skullcrusher said as he hugged his wife. Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy were all pushing their faces into the glass to get a look at their missing loved ones.
"Oh Autumn!" Rarity said as she began to cry when she saw Autumn's body.
"He's alive!" Fluttershy said louder than usual.
"I can't believe he's back." Twilight sniffled.
"OHMYGOSH! BLITZY HE'S BACK! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE HIM AGAIN! WE'LL TALK AND LAUGH AND EAT CUPCAKES A-AND-" Pinkie said as she began to cry tears of joy. Autumn's eyes began to slightly move. Rarity was the first to notice as she charged in knocking down all the other ponies in the room.
"MOVE I MUST SEE HIM!" Rarity cried as she ran up to Autumn's bed. She grabbed his hoof as he opened his eyes for the first time in eight years. Rarity saw the deep bright red irises stare at her but something was off.
"Who are you?" Autumn asked confused.
"Autumn? It's me Rarity!" Rarity cried hoping this was a joke.
"Where am I? Why are all these tubes attached to me?" He said getting nervous now. Seeing this the other ponies went to the COLTS.
"Shadow?" Fluttershy said as Shadow opened his light blue eyes. He looked at her and jumped back.
"Who are you? Why are you so close to me?" Shadow asked completely confused. Fluttershy was hurt deeply by this. Pinkie was staring over Blitz as his golden eyes reopened.
"Blitzy?" Pinkie asked hoping he would remember her.
"AHHH!" Blitz yelled as he jumped back and stood on his back hooves. "WHO ARE ALL YOU PONIES?"
"Blitzy don't you remember me? I'm Pinkie Pie." Pinkie said as she began to tear up again.
"No I don't remember you or anypony here!" Blits responded. Twilight was now expecting the worst from Deadeye. When Deadeye saw himself surrounded by a unknown crowd. He immediately reacted and and jumped out of his bed in a fighting stance.
"STAY BACK!" Deadeye yelled as he picked up a piece of the bed and used it as weapon.
"Deadeye please calm down it's just me!" Twilight said. Deadeye was the most violent of the COLTS so had the most violent reaction.
"Don't come any closer! I'm warning you!" Autumn said as Rarity tried to reason with him.
"Autumn we loved each other!" Rarity said. Fluttershy was advancing on Shadow who had smashed the ground with all his might to scare her off. The COLT-II's were now stepping in to make sure nopony got hurt.
"Calm down big guy." Spike said.
"DRAGON!" Blitz screamed as he rammed Spike hard into the wall nearly knocking the dragon out. The rest of the COLT-II's jumped into stop the fight. The COLT-I's were much more powerful than the COLT-II's so this was easier said then done. Pip went to restrain Deadeye, big mistake. Deadeye grabbed Pip and threw him across the room. Pip burst through the glass and landed nearly twenty feet away. Featherweight had tried to take on Silent Shadow by himself and was paying the price. Shadow was so slick and fast with is movements that Featherweight couldn't lay a hoof on him. Shadow roundhoused Featherweight into the drywall. Skullcrusher and Soarin were working together to subdue Autumn. Autumn grabbed both ponies and headbutted them together before throwing them to the ground. Rumble went to attack Blitz who ran circles around the COLT-II and hit him at high speeds knocking Rumble to the ground. The mane six huddled in a corner with Applejack and Rainbow Dash standing in front to protect their friends if anything bad happened. Deadeye saw them and made a run for them but was hit by a powerful blast of magic and subdued. Princess Celestia fired her subdue spell at the rest of the COLTS who were incapacitated and no longer a threat. The room had been demolished and all the COLT-II's were severely beaten.
"Celestia, leave me with them." Astro said.
"But what if they attack you?" Celestia protested.
"I am as strong and powerful as they are, I can take care of myself. It's you that I'm worried about." Astro said nuzzling Celestia. The entire room cleared out except for Astro and COLTS Omega.
"Gentlecolts." Astro said. "I believe there is some explaining to do here." |
C.O.L.T.S II | Return to Ponyville | Next chapter.
As Astro explained each COLTS life in exact detail, he wondered if he should leave out the part about the COLTS being framed. It would definitely arouse angry emotions in the super soldiers, especially Deadeye. The COLTS were acting hostile as it was, he didn't need for them to be angered even further. He eventually came to a decision not to tell the COLTS about the event which killed most of the supersoldiers.
"Right, you will all stay in Ponyville with the elements of harmony. Hopefully your memory will come back." Astro said.
"Alright but I don't like this." Autumn said.
"Come on let's go." The COLTS said as they walked to a reinforced blimp. Blimps had been invented a year ago and were much faster, quite, and efficent than a pegasi pulled carriage. The COLTS armor had been damaged beyond repair so they were wearing nothing. The combined weight of the ponies caused a creaking sound to be heard. The four ponies put together weighed nearly 1200 pounds. The blimp was able to hold it though and headed towards Ponyville.
XXXX
Eaglebeak, Goldbeak, Clawthorne, and Gilda entered the caves where the griffon squads were killed and mutilated. They had chosen to fly over taking transport as flying would be much more quite. The griffons held up their weapons as they advanced forward. They came across a patrol which had been literally ripped to shreds, intestines and blood were everywhere.
"ST4, anything beyond this point is to be considered hostile." Eaglebeak said.
"Think this was the 107th?" Clawthorne asked pointing to the dead bodies.
"No these wounds look fresh, it was probably X-Ray team." Goldbeak said as the griffons walked over the dead bodies. Eaglebeak said nothing the whole time as his hearing picked up a sound. He immediately turned around and aimed his crossbow in the direction of the noise.
"CONTACT!" Gilda said upon seeing her commander aim his weapon. The rest of ST4 got into battle position.
"Where?" Clawthorne asked.
"Nevermind, it was probably a small animal or something. Stay frosty." Eaglebeak said. The griffons continued walking as an unsettling fog set in.
"Great just what we need!" Clawthorne said. The fog was so thick even his eyesight could barely make anything out.
"Shut up Clawthorne!" Eaglebeak ordered as an unearthly screech penetrated the atmosphere. Hundreds of arrows suddenly began raining down on the griffons.
"AMBUSH!" Goldbeak shouted.
"CONTACTS! 50 METERS!" Gilda said as she began firing her crossbow. The griffons could barely see where they were shooting as the unknown enemy continued to assault them.
"ST4! FLAP YOUR WINGS!" Eaglebeak said as he began flapping his wings as hard as he could. The other griffons followed suit as the gush of wind from their wings blew the fog away. They could now see the enemy.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE THOSE THINGS?!" Clawthorne shouted as a darkling popped up in front of his face. Clawthorne used his claws to rip the creatures neck open killing it.
"Darklings!" Goldbeak yelled. The ambush was being repelled as the better trained griffons pushed the attackers back. Soon all the darklings were killed.
"They weren't so tough eh Goldbeak?" Gilda asked. A loud roar was heard from the cave.
"You spoke too soon." Goldbeak said as the ground began to shake with each step the incoming behemoth took. The griffons got into their defensive stance as the being approached. Sweat dripped down their faces as adrenaline pumped through their veins. Finally it came, a dark creature standing on two legs, it stood a head taller than Eaglebeak. It had long muscular arms with three fingers and its face was a four eyed monstrosity with purple and red eyes.(Basically, these looks like the elites from Halo without the four mandibles).
"By the gods!" Eaglebeak said shocked. The beast roared as it swung its fist towards Clawthorne at impossible speed.
"SONUVA-" Clawthorne said as the beasts fist connected with his face sending the griffons flying into a boulder. The rest of the griffons fired their weapons but the arrows bounced off the monsters armor. The griffons pulled out their swords realizing they were going to have to fight this thing hand to hand. Gilda rushed at the creature and delivered a solid kick to its head causing it to reel back in pain. The creature growled as it lunged at Gilda and pinned her to ground and attempted to rip her throat out. Gilda thrashed violently as she attempted to escape but the creature was too strong. She waited for death until Goldbeak had stabbed the creature in it's back. The creature turned and dropped Goldbeak in a single hit. The creature suddenly stopped roaring as Eaglebeak put his claws around the monsters neck and snapped it. Eaglebeak let the corpse drop and went to tend to his wounded troops. Gilda couldn't believe what she saw! Clawthorne, Goldbeak, and herself had been defeated easily and Eaglebeak just killed it! He was one tough griffon.
"Are you alright?" Eaglebeak asked.
"I'm fine." Gilda said as she rubbed her shoulder which had been hit very hard.
"Clawthorne and Goldbeak are out. You'll have to carry them." Eaglebeak said. Gilda looked at him oddly. Why did she have to carry both of them when Eaglebeak was carrying nothing.
"I have to carry this thing back to base." Eaglebeak said as if he read Gilda's mind. Eaglebeak picked up the dead creature that had attacked them. It was very heavy as Eaglebeak grunted under it's heavy weight. The griffons headed back to base with the unknown hostile. Both Gilda and Eaglebeak were wondering what in the hell that thing was.
XXXX
COLTS Omega had returned to Ponyville. They were just getting off the airship when they were met with a large crowd of ponies who began swarming them. Cameras flashed as the soldiers backed off.
"ITS THE COLTS! THEY'RE BACK!" Numerous ponies shouted. A wave of journalists began swarming the supersoldiers.
"Captain Deadeye, is it true you have impregnated Princess Celestia's student Twilight Sparkle?"
"Sergeant Autumn Leaf, word is on the street you have had sexual intimacy with element of generosity, Can you confirm?"
"Where is Big Macintosh?"
"Who killed Gore and Von Griffon?"
"Lance Corporal Solar Blitz, rumor has it that you are having an affair with the element of laughter."
"Private Silent Shadow, we have unconfirmed reports that you forced the element of kindness into sexual intimacy."
"Are you still angry over the COLT massacre?" This is what set the guards on the airship off. If the COLTS found out about the way they were betrayed all hell would break loose.
"Listen, the COLTS are suffering from memory loss due to long term suspended animation. They are very tired and they wish to have some peace and quiet!" A guard yelled shutting all the ponies up. The COLTS had no clue what the questions they were asked were about but they had no memory of anything.
"I would never force a mare to kiss me!" Shadow said.
"Excuse sir, what did he mean by COLT Massacre?" Solar Blitz asked. The guard froze.
"When you wiped out an army of ten thousand griffons." The guard lied.
"Why would we be angry about that?" Autumn asked.
"Because ponies thought you were monsters." The guard lied again.
"Ah I see." Deadeye said.
"Alright you four will be escorted to the residence of Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy." The guard said as the four COLTS were dropped off at each mares house.
XXXX
Deep in the caverns of the destroyed Mt. Hooverest. A single body lie dormant, frozen in eternal slumber. The creature known as Discord began to approach the frozen body.
"Well looks like they missed one." Discord said. "We have special plans for you my friend."
With a snap of his fingers, both Discord and Big Mac disappeared. Discord smiled, the magic that gave Big Mac his super abilities was the very dark magic Sombra himself created eons ago. Sombra would be able to control Big Mac because of the dark magic flowing in his veins.
"Looks like we are in for a storm of chaos!" Discord said happily.
XXXX
Deadeye had been escorted to the Ponyville Library by Spike. Deadeye knew this library seemed familiar but he couldn't quite put his hoof on it.
"So you really don't remember anything?" Spike asked as he walked with Deadeye.
"Not a thing." Deadeye muttered with no emotion. With his memory being erased Deadeye went back to his old ruthless self.
"Well once you see Twilight maybe you'll remember." Spike said hopefully as the two walked in.
"Spike! You're back!" Twilight said. She went up and hugged Spike when she saw Deadeye standing behind him.
"Deadeye?" She asked.
"Ms Twilight Sparkle?" Deadeye responded.
"YOU REMEMBER!?" Twilight said happily.
"No, the sergeant was kind enough to inform me of you." Deadeye said referring to Spike.
"Y-you mean you don't remember me at all?" Twilight asked.
"The only I thing remember is that I am a killer." Deadeye said in a disturbing tone of voice.
"Deadeye you were never a killer!" Twilight shouted. "You were a soldier! Killers and soldiers are two different things."
"Are they now? What would you know about that?" Deadeye asked. Twilight looked into his infamous red eye. He wasn't called Deadeye for nothing. His very gaze struck fear into anypony. It was like Fluttershy's stare except Deadeye's burned holes through your soul.
"I suppose I wouldn't know anything." Twilight said. "But I can help you remember who you are."
"And how would do that ma'am?" Deadeye asked.
"Magic." Twilight said as her horn glowed. Deadeye felt himself freeze up as Twilight entered his mind. If she could remove the magical wall that blocked Deadeye's memories, he would remember everything. She suddenly felt herself jolted as she saw Deadeye's life flash before her eyes. She saw him being left at an orphanage and him being bullied by the other orphans. She saw him beat the bullies to a pulp and his expulsion from school. She saw him living off the land and training himself how to fight. She saw him join the royal guard and the Marines. She saw the brutal training of the COLTS and the missions he went on. She saw the face of every single thing he killed. She saw herself scolding Deadeye when the COLTS were framed for the Trottingham of these memories were brutal but what came next was most heartbreaking of all.
"One last thing Deadeye." Striper said as he pulled out a picture. "You never knew what happened to your parents.". Deadeye looked at the picture and saw it was him when he was a foal with his mother and Striper.
"Y-you mean I'm your-" Deadeye said.
"Yes my son, I am your father. I should have told you a long time ago but it was for your own good." Striper said.
"We'll save that for another time dad let's just get out of here!" Deadeye said.
"It's too late for me son." Striper said.
"Please dad! I'll carry you! I don't want to lose you!" Deadeye started to bawl.
"My son, I will always be with you. Your mother and I are so proud of you." Striper said as he hugged Deadeye. "Don't let the grifs win, don't give in to your aggression, Save Equestria."
"Dad? DAD NO!" Deadeye said as he fell into his father's dying body.
"I love you son." Striper said as he closed his eyes forever.
"I-i l-l-love you too dad." Deadeye said in between his tears. "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Twilight couldn't take it anymore, she quickly broke from spell unable to break the barrier which clouded Deadeye's mind. She looked at the Deadeye who had no change of expression. How could one pony deal with that much pain and loss? She was crying as she fell to her knees.
"Is something wrong ma'am?" Deadeye asked.
"No, I'm fine." Twilight sniffled. Seeing Twilight cry struck a chord in Deadeye.
"Twilight Sparkle, you gave me medicine for my injured eye when I first met you." Deadeye said as memory came back. "I do remember you!"
"YOU DO?" Twilight said as her tears dried up. She was still shaken at what she saw but seeing Deadeye's memory return instilled happiness in her. "What else do you remember?"
"Nothing I'm afraid." Deadeye said. Twilight frowned, this would take a long time before Deadeye remembered everything but what mattered was that he would eventually come back. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Mac's Awakening | Next chapter.
Big Macintosh walked through Sweet Apple Acres, it was a cool crisp spring day and the apple trees were in full bloom. He smiled as he went up to a nearby tree and bucked it. The apples from the tree fell to the ground. He picked up a red delicious and took a bite out of it, the sweet fruit quenching his thirst and fulfilling his huger at the same time.
"Big Mac!" A voice called.
"Whose there?" Big Mac said as he turned around and saw his family waving to him.
"Big Mac!" They all called again.
"Ah'm comin!" Big Mac said as he broke out into a sprint. Just as he was about to embrace his sisters the world suddenly went black. He felt a searing pain burn across his body. He had been dreaming for the last eight years and he had felt pain in his dreams but this pain felt so much more... real. He felt his eyes beginning to open as a bright light burned his retina and caused his pupil to shrink down to a tiny size. He shielded his eyes as the light burned his sight.
"AH!" He grunted as he fell over and hit the ground hard. His eyes finally adjusted and he saw what he thought was the burning light of the sun was nothing more than a mere candlelight.
"Where am ah?" He asked himself as he tried to get his bearings. He kept tripping and stumbling, something expected after eight years in suspended animation. His memories began flooding back to him.
"CAPTAIN! SHADOW! BLITZ! AUTUMN!" Big Mac yelled but got no answer.
"Could you keep it down?" A deep voice said. Big Mac grabbed his crossbow and turned into the direction where he thought he heard the voice come from.
"Whose there?" He demanded.
"That is no way to treat royalty." The voice said again as a dark form of dust appeared in front of him.
"Who are you?" Big Mac asked as a unicorns face came out of the mist.
"I am the master of shadows, the bringer of armageddon, the true king of the world, I am King Sombra!" The voice declared.
"That don't ring any bells." Big Mac said.
"I don't imagine it would, I have been here for a thousand years." Sombra said.
"Ah'm sorry to hear that, was it you who saved me?" Big Mac asked lowering his crossbow.
"No, that was my servant Discord." Sombra said as the dracconaques came out of nowhere.
"You turned mah sister into a liar and turned me into a dog!" Big Mac angrily said as he leapt at Discord who teleported behind him.
"Relax it was all in good fun." Discord replied.
"Yes, if it weren't for Discord you would still be in that infernal prison." Sombra said.
"What do you want with me?" Big Mac asked.
"I have a rather interesting proposition for you, bow down to me and serve me and when I become ruler of this world, you will be rewarded greatly." Sombra said.
"Ah I only bow to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!" Big Mac said as he pulled out his crossbow once more.
"Tsk tsk tsk, if you will not be my knight, you will be my PAWN! Sombra said as he used his magic to lift Big Mac into the air. Sombra used his magic to ignite the dark magic flowing through Big Mac's body but it did not work.
"What! How is this possible?" Sombra asked appalled that Big Mac resisted his corruption.
"The elements of harmony purified me so ah'd never go rampant again." Big Mac said.
"AHHHH!" Sombra yelled. "Begone with you! Mordras, make an example of this heretic who denies me!" Sombra shouted. Two creatures standing on their hind legs entered, one carried dual blades while the other carried a mace. They stood a head taller than Macintosh and had deep evil eyes similar to Sombra's.
"When I gain my mortal form by capturing the crystal heart, I will use the alicorn amulet to defeat the royal sisters and I shall become a god!" Sombra proclaimed as the two creatures converged on Macintosh. The stallion fired his crossbow but the arrows did nothing to stall the Mordras advance. Macintosh placed his crossbow on his back and drew his sword. The first Mordra swung at Big Mac but the pony dodged it only to be kicked by the other, the kick nearly shattered his armor and sent him flying nearly fifteen feet. Big Mac got back up and saw he had dropped his sword so he delivered an uppercut to the Mordra carrying the dual swords. He struck the creature as it backed off giving Macintosh time to kick the beast's feet out from under it causing it to fall over. The other Mordra brought his mace down on Big Mac who could not move in time. The hit from the mace completely demolished the armor on his head and even bruised his skull. Macintosh quickly tore off his mask as he got back up to face the beasts.
"Do you see now? Your doom is inevitable, bow to me and I shall spare you." Sombra said.
"Never!" Big Mac said.
"Then accept your demise, the Mordra's have the same powers you do if not stronger powers." Sombra said as the Mordras charged at Macintosh. The stallion jumped out of the way and did a somersault over one of the Mordra's heads. He delivered a solid buck right to the head which took off the creatures helmet and the creature fell back in pain. Big Mac took a battle ax that was hanging on the wall and chucked it right at the beast. The ax stuck right in between the Mordra's eyes causing it to panic. Big Mac ran up and grabbed the ax, he pulled it out taking the Mordra's head with it. He dropped the ax with Mordra's head still attached to it.
"Ah did it! Wait wasn't there another one? Oh buck!" Big Mac thought as the second Mordra, enraged at its partners death, swung it's sword down completely slicing off his left ear. Macintosh fell to ground in pain as blood gushed from his wound. The sight of his own blood unnerved him, all this time he thought he was immortal because of his training now only to see himself at the mercy of this dark being. The creature grabbed Macintosh by the throat and began squeezing, Big Mac brought his hind legs off and delivered solid kick to the creatures skin. The Mordra fell backwards in pain as Big Mac grabbed the mace from the dead Mordra and brought it down only to see it shatter against the Mordra's armor.
"WHAT?" Big Mac said shocked.
"They cannot be killed with their own weapons you foal!" Sombra chuckled. Big Mac couldn't believe this! Not even the Steel Talons or Gore were this ferocious! The Mordra got back up and elbowed Big Mac in the face breaking his muzzle. The Mordra brought his sword down on Big Mac who used his forehoof to take the blow. Macintosh's armor held out but his beaten and fatigued body was being overpowered by the Mordra. Big Mac decided he would have to retreat, he was in no condition to fight this thing. He picked up a boulder and chucked it at the Mordra causing it to be knocked back. Macintosh than sprinted as fast he could down the hallway to freedom.
"Leave him." Sombra said to the Mordra who went to chase after him. "Once he learns the truth about Princess Luna, he will break and I will send him to afterlife."
"What do you know about him and Luna?" Discord asked as he teleported to the magical form of Sombra.
"I have watched these many long years, he has feelings for the princess of the night, feelings she feels in return." Sombra said.
"He already knows she was Nightmare Moon, what else was wrong with her?" Discord asked.
"Something far worse than that." Sombra said laughing.
XXXX
Scootaloo awoke in a hospital bed with a pounding headache. She rubbed her head when she saw Featherweight and Applebloom sitting beside her bed.
"Oh my head! Featherweight?" Scootaloo said seeing the COLT-II at her bedside.
"Scootaloo! Thank Celestia you're alright!" Featherweight said.
"What happened?"
"You tried to do a sonic rainboom but yer body couldn't take it, luckily Featherweight was there to catch you." Applebloom explained.
"You saved me?" Scootaloo asked.
"Yes." Featherweight said.
"Thanks Featherweight! Guess that means you won huh?" Scootaloo said chuckling.
"I guess it does." Featherweight replied.
"Oh get a bloody room you two!" Pipsqueak said walking in.
"Howdy Pip!" Applebloom said.
"G'morning mate." Pip said.
"Hey where is Sweetie Belle at?" Scootaloo asked.
"She was with Spike, she had to fetch somethin fer Rarity since Autumn came back." Applebloom explained.
"Wait Autumns back?" Scootaloo asked. "They found them?!"
"Everypony but mah brother." Applebloom said sadly.
"I'm sorry Bloom, I-" Scootaloo said.
"It's alright, you didn't know." Applebloom said. Pip smiled at Applebloom's forgiving personality.
"Well, I wonder how Autumn is adjusting." Featherweight said.
XXXX
"But why would I ever agree to do something as stupid as this!?" Autumn demanded as Rarity attempted to take measurements of him so she could make some new clothes for him. Autumn however did not like the idea of being a model.
"Because you loved me!" Rarity replied.
"Listen lady, I appreciate the concern but I don't even know you!" Autumn said.
"Thats not true! We've known each other for the past ten years!" Rarity cried.
"Hey don't get me wrong, I wouldn't mind goin out with you, you are quite a catch but I don't know you!" Autumn said. Normally Rarity would have loved being complimented but instead she just sat down and hung her head low.
"You really don't remember anything, I loved you." Rarity said tearing up. Autumn felt a tugging at his heart for some reason like he knew her but he never met her before! How could this happen? Whatever the reason was, he hated seeing mares cry so he went to comfort her.
"I'm sorry if I came off as rude but I'm just as lost and confused as you are." Autumn said. "If what you say is true and that I just can't remember anything I would do everything in my power to gain my memory back." Rarity sniffled as she looked back at the green stallion. She saw in his red eyes the same look he gave her all those years ago. There was hope that he would come back and she would not stop until Autumn could remember everything.
XXXX
"What is that thing?" Lionheart asked as Eaglebeak threw the dead creature he had slain hours earlier in front of the king. Lionheart was the new elected ruler of the griffon kingdom. He was much more gentle and beloved than his predecessor Claws Von Griffon was.
"We are not sure my lord, it attacked my team and knocked out Goldbeak and Clawthorne." Eaglebeak said.
"Guards! Take this beast to the laboratory and see if our scholars can decipher what it is." Lionheart ordered.
"Yes sire!" The guards said as they took the carcass out of the throne room.
"Captain I wish to speak with you." Lionheart said as he walked with Eaglebeak.
"What is it sire?" Eaglebeak asked.
"These attacks are not just happening here, the ponies, diamond dogs, even the dragons are reporting missing civilians." Lionheart said.
"What happens beyond our borders is none of our concern sire." Eaglebeak said.
"Well as of today now it is. I want you and your team to work with the COLT-II's and get to the bottom of this." Lionheart said.
"What?! You mustn't be serious!" Eaglebeak said shocked.
"But I am." Lionheart said.
"With all due respect sir, I personally fought the COLTS many years ago and I watched them slaughter our people and MY comrades! Such feelings of resentment do not die overnight." Eaglebeak said.
"But it has been eight years! You cannot keep living in the past captain." Lionheart said. "I will forever be ashamed of what Von Griffon did to our kingdom but I have learned to let go of the past as must you. Besides, the other ST's do not seem bothered by this.
"Yes but I am also the only ST left who served during the war eight years ago. None of the new ST's ever fought the ponies, some of them were even children when the war broke out so they have no resentment against the ponies like I do." Eaglebeak said.
"Fine I will not force you to work with the COLTS but if you refuse I will put you on guard duty for the local toy store." Lionheart said.
"Fine you win!" Eaglebeak said dreading at the thought of working security at a toy store.
"I always do captain." Lionheart said chuckling. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Getting Back to Routine | Next Chapter
Fluttershy led Silent Shadow to a plateau outside her house. It was sunset and the sky was a beautiful combination of orange, purple, and yellow. Shadow felt much peace at this spot for reasons he couldn't explain. This spot was the place Shadow confessed his feelings for Fluttershy for the first time.
"So we used to come here?" Shadow asked continuing to examine his surroundings.
"Mm hmm." Fluttershy said quietly.
"It's really beautiful here." Shadow said as he took in the sunset. He looked back at Fluttershy who only looked down and squeaked. He did feel sad when he saw her sulking. If she showed this much concern than he must have been real important to her. The two sat in silence as the sun finally went down and Luna raised the moon. Seeing the darkness that overtook the land prompted the two ponies to go inside.
"Shall we go inside?" Shadow asked.
"Um yes." Fluttershy said as Shadow walked next to her. Seeing how small she was compared to Shadow made the mare realize how small and fragile she really was compared to the mountain of muscle next to her. Shadow looked down at her, she was such a fragile creature. He didn't like the thought of her being sad.
"Would you like something to drink Shadow?" Fluttershy asked.
"Yes please." Shadow said as Fluttershy went to make some cocoa. They say smell is the best trigger of memory because the moment the scent of the hot cocoa reached Shadow's nostrils his memory went into overload.
Silent Shadow, the Ghost of Appleloosa.
Fluttershy, element of Kindness
COLTS Omega, callsign Omega-Four
He remembered him falling off the carriage on the way to Ponyville and it was Fluttershy who found him. When he awoke she served him the same hot cocoa she was making now.
"Fluttershy?" He said to himself.
"Yes?" The pegasus asked.
"I remember you, you pulled me into your house when I fell and you gave some of that cocoa." Shadow said. Fluttershy felt a smile grow across her face and heart fluttered.
"SHADOW!" Fluttershy said as she tackled him and hugged him so tightly the air in his lungs blew out his mouth. Fluttershy knew there was a long way to go before Shadow remembered everything but this was a good start.
XXXX
Solar Blitz walked into Sugarcube Corner to find his vision was covered in nothing but pink.
"AH!" Blitz said jumping back as Pinkie Pie bounced in front of him.
"Blitzy it's me!" Pinkie said.
"Oh yeah your uh ummmmmmmm... Bluey? Greenie? Reddie?" Blitz said not wanting to hurt the pink mares feelings.
"Pinkie!" Pinkie answered for him.
"Yeah that was my next guess, Pinkie Cake? NO! Pinkie Tart? Oh horsefeathers!" Blitz said.
"Pie, Pinkie Pie." Pinkie said.
"I knew that!" Blitz said.
"Well?" Pinkie said.
"Well what?" Blitz replied.
"Don't you remember anything else?" Pinkie asked.
"Ummm. Just that my name is Solar Blitz thats it." Blitz said.
"Oh thats okay! I'll have you remembering everything faster than you can say apple pie!" Pinkie said. Pinkie began pulling out different things that would jump start Blitz's memory.
"This was the scarf I wore when we went sledding!" Pinkie said pulling out a pink scarf. Blitz put his hoof under his chin and pondered.
"Nope, sorry." Blitz said.
"That's okay, OH! How bout this?" Pinkie said pulling out a red velvet cupcake. "This is your favorite cupcake!"
"Doesn't ring a bell." Blitz said. Pinkie showed at least fifty more things but all was for naught as Blitz could not remember a single thing.
"Ohhhhh uuhh!" Pinkie said getting desperate. "How bout his? This was the set of false eyelashes Rarity wore on her left eye at the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant!" How Pinkie managed to get ahold of those was anypony's guess.
"Sorry." Blitz said. Pinkie's smile quickly faded as her mane deflated as well. She slumped over and hung her head low. She had tried everything possible and nothing was working! Blitz went to go comfort her but he stepped on the cupcake she had showed him earlier. He began to slip'n'slide all over the place until he went out the door and faceplanted full speed into a rock. The hit was hard as the rock completely shattered and Blitz was nearly knocked out from the hit.
"BLITZY! Are you okay?" Pinkie asked running over.
"Ow dumb rock!" Blitz said rubbing his head. Blitz had a slight dejavu after hitting the rock. When else did he slam full force into a rock when Pinkie was with him?
"Hello? EquestriatoBlitzy!" Pinkie said waving her hoof.
"Wha-? Oh im fine." Blitz said as he walked back inside with Pinkie.
XXXX
Big Mac was wandering through the Everfree Forest and was loosing a lot of blood fast. His entire ear had been lopped off in the battle with the Mordras. Even with his super healing abilities he was loosing blood faster than it was healing. He sighed as he realized what he to do. He went and started a fire by using his flint rock. He waited till the fire began to blaze to super hot temperatures, he took his sword and held it over the fire for about ten minutes. He held his breath as he lifted the super heated sword to his open wound on his ear and pressed down. He cringed as he felt the skin burn and close up, the smell of burnt flesh flaring his nostrils. He tried to avoid screaming too loud so he wouldn't attract a pack of timberwolves or worse a Manticore, not that they would be much of a threat to him. He used Manticores for practice dummies back in training.
"Ah horseapples this hurts!" Big Mac said as he finished cauterizing the wound. He went to a nearby stream and ducked his head in it so the water would cool off the second degree burn that now covered his ear. He estimated it would take about a day for the burn to heal but he would be without an ear for the rest of his life. He began to sprint through the forest hoping he would come across some sort of civilization.
XXXX
Spike was doing his morning workout routine which included push ups, sit up, pull ups, a five mile run, and a ten mile flight. His wings had grown in four years ago and he had been happily using them ever since. He flew to a creek and dove in so he could clean off all the sweat and dirt on his body. Once he was done he pulled out some gems for a snack. After stretching one last time he flew to a nearby tree to take a nap. When you were a COLT-II, sleep was few and far in between so Spike had learned to sleep whenever he could. He was disturbed when he heard something singing not to far away.
"We are the cutie mark crusaders." The voice sang. Spike tried to figure out who was singing.
"We'll never stop the journey." The voice continued. Thats when it his Spike. It was Sweetie Belle! Who else would sing about the cutie mark crusaders? He got up and walked to the source of the sound. He found Sweetie Belle sitting by herself under what used to be the cutie mark crusader clubhouse. Man it seemed like so long ago when she was just a filly running around trying to find her cutie mark.
"Sweetie Belle?" Spike asked coming into the clearing.
"Oh Spike!" Sweetie said surprised.
"What are you doing here?" Spike asked.
"Just visiting the old clubhouse." Sweetie said. "I miss being a filly, no worries or a care in the world."
"I can relate to that." Spike said. As a COLT-II he was constantly being sent all over Equestria. He was often sent into the Everfree Forest to rescue lost ponies and had almost been eaten on more than one occasion. When he was a baby his biggest worry was keeping the library organized. He suddenly picked up a noise and shot up.
"Spike what's wrong?" Sweetie asked.
"I hear something." Spike said as reached for his crossbow. He saw a spear being chucked at him from the left. He quickly dodged it and the spear impaled the tree behind him.
"SWEETIE RUN!" Spike said as he fired his crossbow in the area the spear had come from. When he ran out of arrows he drew out his sword. He turned and saw that Sweetie was still there.
"Sweetie I thought I told you to get out of here!" Spike scolded.
"But I don't want to just leave you!" Sweetie cried.
"No Sweetie, whatever is attacking us you wont stand a chance against it, NOW GO!" Spike yelled. Sweetie yelped as she began to run. Spike turned around to see a figure who towered over him. The creature stood on two legs and had a reptilian like face. Spike could practically feel the dark energy emitting from it. The creature roared as it charged the dragon.
"Dragon." It said. Spike jumped to the side but the creature grabbed Spike's leg and threw him into a boulder. Sweetie watched from behind a bush and whimpered at what she saw.
"Ah what is this thing!" Spike said recovering. He opened his mouth and unleashed a bright fire that incinerated everything in front of him. The creature had been caught in the blast and was wounded. Spike took this oppurtunity to run up and kick it. The creature looked up to see Spike deliver a kick to its face. The monster tumbled back then charged in blind rage. The creature swung its claw down on Spike. Spike put up his arm to block and he felt the claw go clean through his tricep. Spike fell to the ground shocked, his skin was almost as indestructible as the COLT armor and this creature sliced right through like butter!
"AHH!" A voice yelped. Spike looked up to see the creature grabbing Sweetie by the mane.
"NO!" Spike screamed.
"Hahahahaha." The creature mumbled. Spike was surprised it could talk.
"What are you!" Spike yelled.
"I? I am the servant to the almighty King Sombra." The creature said. "I am the Mordra, the deadliest lifeform to ever walk this earth!"
"Put her down!" Spike growled to the Mordra.
"Hold still, or I carve out her eyes." The Mordra said as it picked up the spear it threw earlier. Spike knew he was going to die if that spear hit him but he could not risk Sweetie getting hurt. Spike closed his eyes as he waited for his doom.
"AAAHH!" Another voice said as the Mordra was tackled to the ground. The Mordra was able to throw the spear and Spike moved but it still impaled the dragons shoulder. Spike looked up to see Soarin fighting the creature. Since Soarin was still a pegasus he was not as strong as the Mordra and the beast quickly threw him off. Skullcrusher, Pip, Featherweight, and Rumble all rushed to the scene and surrounded the creature. The Mordra knew he could not take on six COLT-II's at once so it growled before disappearing in a cloud of dark magic. Skullcrusher and Soarin ran to help Spike while the others went to get Sweetie Belle.
"Sweetie you alright?" Featherweight asked.
"S-Spike? Is he okay?" Sweetie asked crying.
"Yes mate, he's alright." Pip said trying to comfort her.
"Spike are you okay?" Skullcrusher asked the dragon.
"That thing was so powerful!" Spike coughed out.
"Easy bud." Soarin said. These wounds didn't look to fatal but Spike would by incapacitated for days. Rumble went over to where the Mordra once stood before it teleported away. There was a dagger it had left behind. Rumble picked it up and inspected it, he was suddenly thrown back as he entered a trance.
"All of Equestria will fall!" A voice said as Rumble saw a destroyed Canterlot and the Elements of Harmony hanging dead from a tree branch. He looked up and saw a gray unicorn with a flowing black mane with red eyes.
"My dark magic flows in your blood! You are my children!" The voice said again.
"NOO!" Rumble said as he chucked the dagger to the ground and stomped on it.
"Rumble you alright mate?" Pip asked.
"I'm fine." Rumble said still shaken up by what he just saw. He would have to get this back to command. He suddenly took off without warning towards COLTS-02.
"RUMBLE COME BACK!" Skullcrusher yelled but the soldier was already gone.
"insubordinate son of a bitch." Skullcrusher said to himself as he helped Spike to his feet. |
C.O.L.T.S II | The Freaks | Next Chapter
"Come on Little Mac, you can do it!" Applejack said to her son. Little Macintosh was bucking his first apple tree today.
"Okay I'll try!" Little Mac said as he wound up and bucked the tree. Little Mac grunted as his back hooves hit the tree trunk. The tree completely broke in half. Applejack's jaw hit the floor.
"Holy horseapples!" AJ said in shock. How could her son have that much power?
"Did ah do that ma?" Little Mac asked. Applejack did not know how her six year old son was able to completely smash that tree in half! Thats when it hit her. Skullcrusher became a COLT-II before the two had Little Mac. Little Mac must have inherited some of his fathers augmentations.
"Well at least ah don't gotta worry bout him bein bullied." Applejack thought to herself. She turned and saw her husband running over.
"PA!" Little Mac said as he ran up this father and hugged him.
"Hey kiddo." Skullcrusher said as he rubbed his hoof through his sons mane.
"I bucked mah first apple tree today and ah broke it in half!" Little Mac said.
"Did you now? Well thats impressive." Skullcrusher said thinking his son was joking. "Hi sweetheart." He said kissing Applejack.
"Um hon, he wasnt joking." Applejack said pointing to the broken apple tree.
"Holy crap." Skullcrusher said shocked.
"Hon can ah talk to you bout this in private?" Applejack asked.
"Of course. Little Mac! Stay with your aunt okay!" Skullcrusher yelled.
"Yes pa!" Little Mac said running to where Applebloom was bucking apple trees. Skullcrusher went into the house with Applejack and the two kissed each other for a long time.
"Ah missed you." AJ said hugging her husband.
"I missed you too baby." He said.
"Listen, ah think Little Mac inherited some of yer augmentations." AJ said.
"It was probably an old dead tree, besides strength does run in your family." Skullcrusher said.
"That apple tree was young and healthy! Not even a full grown stallion could have broke that!" AJ said.
"Well-" Skullcrusher said.
"An he never ever cries when he gets hurt. Ah've never seen him bleed before!" AJ said.
"He's a tough kid!" Skullcrusher said trying to find excuses.
"SKULLCRUSHER!" Applejack yelled. "What more proof do you want? Our son is a super pony!"
"Well it's not like thats bad." Skullcrusher said.
"Ah know it isn't, trust me ah'm glad that he can't get hurt easily but he might be ostracized when he starts school." Applejack said.
"Honey please, who is gonna mess with a kid who is that powerful?" Skullcrusher asked.
"Ah don't know but would if he accidently hurts somepony?" Applejack asked. "Would if some other foal gets him mad and he hurts him real bad?"
"That won't happen!" Skullcrusher said.
"Are you even listenin to me?" Applejack asked angrily. "Applebloom n her friends were picked on because they didn't have their cutie marks when she was younger! You know how foals are, you know somepony is going to be mean to him!"
"Then he can just buck them into next week!" Skullcrusher said.
"How stupid are you? Thats exactly what ah'm worried about!" Applejack screamed. Now Skullcrusher was getting mad, he was still tired and nervous from his previous battle and he was in no mood to yelled at.
"Why are you making ME the bad guy?" Skullcrusher yelled back.
"Cause you think violence is that answer to everything! Heres a newsflash Skullcrusher! ITS NOT!" Applejack growled.
"Well sorry I'm a little paranoid and from spending eleven years in war and combat!" Skullcrusher yelled even louder than he did when he trained Macintosh.
"THIS ISN'T ABOUT YOU! ITS ABOUT OUR SON!" Applejack yelled so angrily tears were coming from her eyes.
"DAMMIT I KNOW!" Skullcrusher yelled as he threw the dinner table clean across the room in a fit of rage. Applejack was getting nervous, she did not want to be in a rampaging super enhanced soldiers path.
"AH-" Applejack started to say before Skullcrusher interrupted.
"I GOT MY EYE CLAWED OUT! MY BACK KNEE WAS IMPALED BY A SPEAR! I WAS BEATEN SENSELESS BY GORE AND HIS THUGS COUNTLESS TIMES! I BUCKING GOT RIPPED IN HALF AND ALMOST DIED! ALL IN A SPAN OF SIXTEEN MONTHS!" Skullcrusher screamed as he smashed the floor in front of him shattering it. "WHAT THE BUCK DID YOU LOSE?"
"I LOST MAH BROTHER YOU HEARTLESS PLOTHEAD! A HATE YOU!" Applejack said as she ran out of the house crying. Skullcrusher realized what he had said but it was too late, the damage had been done.
"APPLEJACK! WAIT! I DIDN'T MEAN-!" He called out but she was long gone. "Ah buck!"
XXXXXX
Twilight dozed off once again and found herself drooling on her book. She quickly wiped away the saliva embarrassed. She had been been up all night researching spells to help Deadeye and the others get there memory back. She was tired and would love nothing more than to got to sleep right now. She almost did when she looked at Deadeye quietly sleeping on the floor. She looked at the super soldier and remembered how much he had gone through. She couldn't, no, she wouldn't rest until Deadeye and the others remembered who they were.
"I can't give up *Yawn* now I-i-i..." Twilight said as she faceplanted into the open book and fell asleep. The sudden noise awoke Deadeye. Although he couldn't remember anything about himself, his natural relfexes and killer instincts remained at 100%.
"What was that?" He asked himself as he scanned the room. He saw Twilight passed out on the table, her face in an open book. Deadeye figured she must have been up all night reading.
"I suppose I shouldn't leave her like this." Deadeye said to himself as he stood on his back hooves and gently picked up the sleeping mare. The moment she was cradled in Deadeye's arms she cuddled into a ball and smiled. Deadeye blushed a little as the mare pushed her head into his chest. He carefully brought her upstairs and laid her on her bed. He pulled the covers over her and shut her blinds. He looked at her one last time before he went back downstairs.
XXXXX
"WHO HURT MY SISTER AND SPIKEY WIKEY!?" Rarity yelled in anger as she was informed of the battle that just took place. Rarity screamed right into poor Pip's ear. He just couldn't catch a break.
"Calm down mate." Pip said.
"Calm down? CALM DOWN! Why, some hideous, grotesque demon DARE hurt my sweet innocent sister and my little Spikey-Wikey! You expect me to calm down?" Rarity asked.
"Is this guy bothering you?" Autumn said coming down the stairs when he heard the loud outburst. Pip's heart stopped when he saw Autumn. If Rarity said yes then the COLT-I would tear Pip a new one.
"No darling, it's just something attacked my dear sister and Spikey-Wikey!" Rarity cried. Autumn had always been a mares stallion, just cause he had no memories didn't mean that had changed.
"Well I'll go kick its ass!" Autumn said proudly. Rarity would have swooned at Autumns chivalry but this situation was serious.
"Thank you dear but I must go see my sister." Rarity said as she went to fetch a hat to wear. When she left, Autumn gave Pip a death glare.
"If I find out you were giving her a hard time I swear I will do unforgivable things to you!" Autumn said. The least he could do for the mare who had taken him in was give her protection.
"I swear I haven't done anything mate." Pip said innocently.
"Fine I trust you...for now." Autumn said as Rarity came downstairs and the three headed for the hospital.
XXXXX
Rumble did not stop running till he arrived at COLTS-02. He almost knocked down a group of recruits who got in his way while they were doing a practice run.
"WATCH WHERE YOU ARE GOING!" Rumble screamed.
"Sorry sir!" The recruits replied.
"TRAINER!" Rumble yelled.
"Yes?" A nearby trainer replied.
"These recruits don't know to make way for a senior officer, how about you teach them how?" Rumble said with a cruel smile on his face.
"Yes sir!" The trainer said with a devious smile crawling up his face. The recruits looked at Rumble with a pained expression on their faces. Rumble laughed as the trainers unleashed their wrath on the recruits. He remembered why he came in the first place and ran to General Blue Rivers office
"Sir I have urgent news sir!" Rumble said bursting in.
"Would it hurt to knock?" Blue River asked. "Take a seat."
"Yes sir!" Rumble said as he sat down on the chair which almost collapsed under his weight.
"What is it that is so important you abandoned your post at Ponyville?" Blue River asked.
"We were attacked sir." Rumble said.
"By what? Grifs? Dragons?" Blue River asked.
"I don't know what they hay this thing was. It was taller than me, it had a reptilian body, it had long claws and it had all the same augmentations as the COLTS do." Rumble explained.
"Great! Got any more good news for me?" Blue River said upset at the news.
"Yes sir, I picked up its dagger and when I did I saw a vision." Rumble said.
"Dont pull this section eight bullshit on me corporal!" Blue River said.
"I'm not crazy sir, I saw a large gray unicorn with a black mane. He claimed that his dark magic flowed through my veins and that he would destroy and enslave Equestria!" Rumble said.
"Normally I would think you're nuts but the grifs are also having this problem." Blue River said.
"What do you mean?" Rumble asked.
"Two days ago, A Steel Talon team was attacked by the creature you jut described. King Lionheart has requested that the COLT-II's and the STs work together to find a solution.
"Sir I will take the entire griffon army by myself but I refuse to work alongside those beak headed scum!" Rumble yelled.
"Tough because those are your orders. I'm not happy about this either but it is the only way we can solve this. You are dismissed." Blue River said.
"Yes sir." Rumble said as he angrily walked away.
XXXXX
Big Mac awoke from a light nap and saw it was still day out. He went to a nearby stream and got a quick drink of water before chewing on some grass for breakfast. There were numerous apple trees but he didn't trust anything that grew in the Everfree Forest. He began to wonder how long he had been gone for. What if he had been gone for a thousand years and everypony he knew was dead? He began to get scared but then figured he might have only been gone for a year. He had no clue of knowing and he just hoped he wasn't gone for too long. He quickly took inventory of what he had: His crossbow was out of arrows, his sword was gone, his helmet was destroyed, his armor had numerous cracks and dents in it, he was missing an ear, the only weapon he had was his trusty dagger. He heard a noise and he quickly jumped to cover. He hid under a small cave next to the stream he just drank from. He looked over and his heart stopped at what he saw.
Several of the creatures he faced earlier were fully armed looking for him.
"You have got to be bucking kiddin me!" He said to himself quietly. He dare not make a move as the Mordras hunted him down. He was in no condition to fight them. Even if he was fully armored and armed he could not take on several at once, still he held on to his dagger just in case.
"Split up, Lord Sombra want's a new head for his collection." The largest Mordra said. It appeared only the leaders were capable of speech as the others just shrieked in response. The creatures broke up into its own group. Six of the creatures headed away from Big Mac's location but one was headed right towards him!
"Buck, buck, buck!" He thought to himself as panic mode set in. He quickly fell back into the cover of the cave and held his dagger at the ready. He could hear the creatures breathing overhead as it hunted for him. What scared him the most was that it appeared to be sniffing like it could smell him, crap what if it knew where he was? Big Mac's thoughts were interrupted when the Mordra jumped down and its back was facing Macintosh. The stallion wasted no time as he put one hoof around the Mordra's mouth and used his other hoof to mercilessly stab the beast in the neck. It was hard as the creature fought back and it's armor was extremely thick. Macintosh felt a stabbing pain on his hoof and saw the creature was biting him! Macintosh dared not to make any noise in fear he would alert the other Mordras of his position so he just gritted his Mac eventually killed it at the expense of almost getting his hoof chewed off. The damn thing went right through his armor and tore of chunk of meat! What the hell were these things that they had so much power? Big Mac figured since he was in hibernation for so long his augmentations were not at full strength, that would explain why his wounds were taking so long to heal. He buried the body quietly and then jumped into the stream and let the powerful current carry him away from the area.
XXXXX
Princess Luna was having a nightmare, again. This one was different though, her nightmares usually consisted of Nightmare Moon and her banishment to the moon but his one was much more terrifying.
"Have you told him yet?" An evil voice said.
"Who goes there?" Luna asked.
"You know who I am." The voice said again as a figure came into view. Luna's heart stopped when she saw who it was.
"King S-sombra?" She said fearfully. "HOW DARE YOU ENTER MY DREAM!" She said as he fired a bolt of magic at the king but he dodged it with ease.
"Come on now, is that anyway for my queen to act?" Sombra said laughing.
"I was never your queen!" Luna retaliated.
"Hahahaha! But you were, and you gave me up and fell for that plain earth pony!" Sombra yelled.
"Big Macintosh is anything but plain Sombra! He actually cared for me! Something you never did!" Luna yelled.
"I wonder how much he will care when he learns the truth about us, Nightmare Moon!" Sombra said as Luna was gripped with powerful dark magic, she felt herself transforming into her greatest fear.
"NOOOOO!" She screamed as she woke up sweating.
"Your highness! Are you okay?" Two COLT-II's said as they barged in with several Lunar Guards.
"I am fine sirs." Luna said. "Just a bad dream, you may return to your posts."
"Of course your highness." One of the COLTS said. The Lunar Guards scowled. Although they were grateful for the COLTS abilities and skill in combat, many royal guards have come to resent the COLTS because the royal court had practically replaced the royal guards with the COLTS for protecting the princess. The royal guards had felt the COLTS had taken their job. Luna went back to bed but was too scared to go back to sleep.
XXXX
Pinkie, Fluttershy, Shadow, and Blitz had gone to a cafe for dinner. The two mares figured that they could bond with the stallions better over dinner. The moment they walked in everypony in the room began praising the COLTS.
"Hey its the COLTS!" Everypony began applauding and whistling. Blitz and Shadow had no idea why everypony was clapping but they didn't like being the center of attention.
"Excuse me everypony make some room for them." Soarin said as he flew over with Rainbow Dash.
"Thanks man." Blitz whispered to Soarin. Across the cafe, four ponies in dark clothing grew more angry by the minute.
"Look at those freaks! Just suckin it all up!" A former lunar guard named Dusk Star said as he drank his eight glass of cider.
"They think they're some big shots!" A former solar guard named Nebulae said. The other two ponies were also former royal guards but had been fired due to their inability to protect the princesses from the griffons eight years ago. The other two ponies, Mountain Mist and Smokey just sat there quietly.
"I'll teach those buckers to steal our jobs!" Dusk Star said as he got up to go insult the COLTS. Nebulae went to stop him be was too late.
"Hiya Dashie!" Pinkie said greeting her friend.
"Hello Rainbow Dash." Fluttershy said.
"Hi Pinkie, Hi Flutters." Rainbow said as she said hello to her friends.
"Well well well look who it is! The mighty freaks!" Dusk Star said as the room went quiet.
"Hey who do you think you are?" Rainbow Dash asked angry that the pony insulted Blitz, Soarin, and Shadow.
"I am Captain Dusk Star, captain of the Lunar Guard till these superpowered freaks cost me my job!" Dusk Star yelled. Everypony was agitated at Dusk's rudeness but was impressed that he was trash talking three COLT commandos.
"Hey just cause you couldn't keep the princesses safe!" Rainbow began to say.
"I didn't ask for your opinion dyke!" Dusk said.
"That will be quite enough!" Soarin yelled as he landed in front of Dusk. "Leave now!"
"Oh you think your scary? You think your tough like these two freaks right here? I was the real stallion! I didn't have any super powers or indestructible armor to protect me! Me and my stallions fought with real courage while you freaks hid behind your super enhanced armor and bodies!" Dusk said.
"So did I, I wasn't a COLT during the war, this is only recent." Soarin said. "And how dare you talk to my fiancee like that?"
"Why would she even waste her time with you? Why would those two chicks waste their time with them?" He said referring to Blitz and Shadow. "They probably don't even have balls!" The hurt was visible on Shadow and Blitz's face. This guy was lucky, if it was Autumn, Deadeye, or Rumble he was trash talking then he would have gotten ripped limb from limb.
"Why you!" Pinkie Pie jumped in. "Your the meanest meanypants I've ever met!"
"You say your sorry!" Fluttershy ordered.
"BUCK YOU!" Dusk yelled at the two mares causing them to fall back.
"HEY!" Blitz said running in with fire in his eyes.
"Nopony hurts her!" Shadow growled. Dusk looked up and saw he had three pissed off COLT commandos ready to tear him limb from limb. The ponies in the cafe were also against him.
"YOU SHUT UP!"
"THEY SAVED EQUESTRIA!"
"THEY'RE HEROES!"
"Fine buck you all!" Dusk said as he left with his gang.
"What's that guy's problem? I outta kick his plot right out the window!" Rainbow growled.
"Why was he so mean?" Blitz asked. "We didn't do anything?"
"I don't know Blitz, lets just sit down and enjoy our food." Soarin said as the six ponies ordered their meal. They were all in a foul mood after what just transpired. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Renewed Anger | Next chapter.
Spike groaned as he the doctors attempted to pull the spear out of his shoulder. It was jammed good and it wasn't coming out.
"Please stop squirming or we'll never get this out." A doctor said as he attempted to pull the spear out to no avail.
"I have a better idea." Spike said as he grabbed the spear with his claw and tore it out. Blood proceeded to spurt everywhere but quickly healed.
"Yes or we could do that." The doctor said as Spike leapt up and walked towards the door.
"Where are you going? You need to rest!" A nurse called.
"I'm a COLT, we don't need rest." Spike said as he walked out. He could hear the doctors and nurses yelling but he ignored it. He was more concerned about Sweetie Belle who had been hurt in the assault. Spike walked into her room where she lay on a bed. There were large bruises around her throat and head from the Mordra and seeing her bruised up made Spike very angry. He saw Rarity and Autumn in there as well.
"Spikey-Wikey!" Rarity said as she jumped at Spike and hugged him. Spike could see Autumn giving him a death stare, the stallion obviously had the wrong idea. "Are you hurt? Did that nasty creature harm you?"
"I'm fine, It's Sweetie Belle I'm worried about." Spike said with concern. Sweetie was unconscious as she lay in her bed.
"You okay Sweetie?" Spike asked.
"Excuse me sir but she must rest, her windpipe is quite damaged." Nurse Redheart said.
"Okay, make sure she gets better." Spike said as he left the hospital eager to hunt down and kill the creature who hurt her.
XXXX
Applejack ran crying into Twilights library. She wasn't looking and she collided with Deadeye who barely budged from the hit but the orange mare was knocked to her flank. She looked up and saw the large stallion looking down at her. She wasn't going to lie, he was bucking terrifiying!
"AH UH SORRY SIR AH-!" Applejack mumbled.
"Is there something I can help you with?" He asked.
"Ah'm lookin fer Twilight." Applejack said. Deadeye pointed his hoof upstairs.
"Miss Sparkle is sleeping." Deadeye said. Little did he know that Twilight had actually woken up and was hearing the whole thing.
"Applejack? Is that you?" Twilight asked.
"TWI!" Applejack said crying as she ran to her friend. "Ah got into a really bad argument with Skullcrusher can ah stay here fer a while?"
"Of coure you can! What happened?" Twilight asked. She could tell her friend was really upset. Applejack explained the whole argument and how it ended.
"An then ah said ah hated him an ah ran off!" Applejack cried.
"It's okay Applejack I'm sure he'll understand." Twilight said. Meanwhile Deadeye had wandered off and began looking through history books looking for more information on the COLTS. He came across a book entitled 'Uncommon Valor: The COLTS'. He opened it and began reading, he was fairly content with what he read as most of it he had already been told. There was one incident however, no pony ever mentioned.
The COLT Massacre.
"On January 17 in the year 1005 , Changeling forces took on the shape of COLT commandos and attacked the city of Trottingham where nearly one thousand innocent civilians were killed. The country was tricked and believed it was the COLTS who attacked the city, because of that the COLTS across Equestria were exterminated." Deadeye read aloud. He was starting to get angry but he continued. "COLTS Omega under the command of Captain Deadeye." Deadeye stopped as he saw his name in the book. "Were arrested and about to executed at Ponyville but were able to escape with the help of Lt. Skullcrusher and Commander Soarin. However the other COLTS were not as lucky, COLTS Omega were the only survivors. The COLTS base was attacked under a battalion of soldiers led by Captain Shining Armor who was the sister of the element of Magic, Twilight Sparkle. Even those who weren't COLTS but were associated with the program in any way were killed, such was the fate of the head of the program, Colonel Striper, who was killed. Colonel Striper was believed to be the biological father of..." Deadeye said as he put the book down stricken with grief. "Me?". Deadeye felt rage building up towards the mare who housed him, her brother DARE kill his father?
"Hey where did Deadeye go?" Twilight asked.
"I am right here!" Deadeye said angrily as he threw the open page of the COLT Massacre in front of Twilight who felt the color drain from her face.
"Deadeye! I-" Twilight said.
"You lied to me! All of you lied to me!" Deadeye said. "You lied to those other ponies I was rescued with as well!"
"Deadeye please listen to me!" Twilight pleaded, she couldn't believe this was happening again.
"So you can corrupt my mind further? No thanks!" Deadeye said as he burst out of the library with the history book.
"Oh no this is not good!" Twilight said. "Applejack we have to get him before he does any damage!"
"Okay ah comin!" Applejack said still upset with her fight over Skullcrusher. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Macintosh Returns | Next Chapter
Astro looked out on the horizon as his sister-in-law went to raise the moon. He was having mixed feelings as of late: If Sombra really was here then not only Equestria but entire world was doomed. He remembered Sombra's armies numbering in the millions, Equestria barely managed to defeat Sombra last time and it came with the price of four dead alicorns. He walked into his private chambers where his old COLT armor was hanging on the wall. It was heavily dented and destroyed but it gave off the atmosphere of combat. Astro used his magic to levitate the legendary armor to himself. The armor weighed several hundred pounds but he was able to carry it. He put it in a bag and placed a cloak over himself so nopony would see him. He brought the armor down to the Canterlot Forge, the place where the COLT armor was originally created. The Forge was secret and only top military and royal officials knew of its existence. Astro entered as a blacksmith went up to greet him.
"Who are you? How did you find this place?" The blacksmith angrily asked as Astro pulled down his hood.
"Your majesty!" The blacksmith said bowing. "Forgive me, I mistook you for a civilian."
"Rise Inferno, I have a task for you." Astro said.
"What kind of task?" The blacksmith known as Inferno asked. Astro threw the battered COLT armor onto the table. Inferno's mouth dropped.
"Reforge the armor, same design but with the modern attachments." Astro explained.
"Never though I'd see one of these babies again." Inferno said. He had forged all the COLT-I's armor but eventually had to make smaller, lighter, and less dense armor for the weaker COLT-II's.
"Can you do it?" Astro asked.
"You bet I can, stand back prince!" Inferno said as pulled his goggles down and heated his hammer in the forge. He went to a special vault where he kept the worlds densest gem, the grey ruby. Gray rubies were so hard and dense that not even a dragons tooth could bite down on it. He placed hundreds of the gems into the vat along with dragon scales.
"My original furnace requires the suns heat to produce the temperature necessary to maleate the rubies." Inferno said.
"What are you going to do then?" Astro asked.
"Do you think you could channel some on the suns heat into the fire?" Inferno asked.
"I could but Luna has already raised the moon. I would have to raise the sun right now and that would cause all sorts of chaos." Astro said.
"It is the only way I can produce a fire hot enough to melt the rubies." Inferno said. Astro sighed as he flew out the hole that was in the roof and began to concentrate. His horn lit up as sunlight peeked over the horizon. He quickly raised the star until it was directly over the forge. He then used his magic to divert a portion of the suns intense heat into the fire. A bright orange beam fired from the sun into the fire and rubies quickly began to melt and mix with the melting dragon scales. Astro then quickly lowered the sun and re raised the moon. He could already hear the shouts of concern in Canterlot.
"Yes here we go." Inferno said as he banged his hammer down on the armor. Astro watched with full attention as Inferno struck the armor with his hammer.
BANG!
Armor made from the indestructible.
BANG!
Armor forged with the fires of the sun.
BANG!
Armor worn by the elite warrior.
BANG BANG BANG!
"It is finished my lord." Inferno said as he lay the famous armor on the table.
"May I try it on?" Astro asked.
"Of course your majesty. be careful it is still hot though." Inferno said as Astro used his magic to put the armor on. He winced as the hot material came in contact with his skin. His whole body except his wings and head were covered. Inferno had made special armor for his wings which allowed Astro to still fly unaffected while keeping his wings fully covered. Next came the helmet, Astro slowly slipped the helmet onto his body until he heard the satisfying *click* which indicated it had attached to the neck armor. Inferno was impressed with his work, the armor was truly fit for a king.
"Magnificent! Excellent work Inferno!" Astro said as moved around in the armor and dropped a large bag of bits next to inferno. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go explain to my wife why the sun was up during the middle of the night."
"Of course your majesty." Inferno said as Astro used his magic to to slip the armor off into a bag and flew back to his room. He stealthily tried to sneak in thinking Celestia was still sleeping.
"Have a nice trip?" A voice said as Astro stopped dead in his traps.
"Uh yes I did." Astro said as Celestia walked out from the darkness.
"If it was so nice, why did the sun suddenly raise up for five minutes then go back down?" Celestia asked tapping her hoof.
"I uh-" Astro stuttered.
"And what is in the bag?" Celestia asked.
"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Astro said backing off.
"Astro." Celestia said as she began to walk towards him.
"NO!" Astro screamed as Celestia pounced on him and tackled him. She sat on top of him as she leaned in close and asked.
"What is in the bag?" Celestia asked as she levitated the bag and opened it. She struggled as she found it to be very heavy and she could not lift it with her magic.
"Did I ever say how cute you look when your mad?" Astro said trying to take her focus off. Celestia giggled but still glared at him.
"Your not out of the woods till you tell me what is in there." Celestia said.
"Just some boulders." Astro lied.
"Boulders? Why would you have boulders?" Celestia asked.
"I was bringing them to a rock farm where they could be broken down." Astro said.
"Well that was awfully kind of you, im sure the family will appreciate." Celestia said nuzzling Astro. "You are so thoughtful."
"Yeah, thoughtful." Astro said feeling incredibly guilty.
XXXX
Deadeye burst into the cafe where Blitz and Shadow were eating at, he was quite pissed off.
"Is there something wrong?" Pinkie asked noticing Deadeye's angry mood.
"Don't give me that BS!" Deadeye said.
"Hey don't talk to her like that." Blitz said getting up.
"Why? You think she's a cute little mare? What did they tell you about the COLTS Massacre?" Deadeye asked.
"Fluttershy said such a thing didn't exist." Shadow said.
"Really, is that what she said? Take a look here!" Deadeye said throwing the book to Blitz and Shadow who began to read. Soarin saw this and went to close the book but was stopped by Deadeye. Soarin could not break out of the stallions iron grip.
"S-stop!" Soarin shouted.
"If history is correct, the only thing stopping me from strangling you is that you helped us escape." Deadeye said.
"Put him down!" Rainbow growled, her arrogance ruling over her common sense as always.
"Or what?" Deadeye asked. Rainbow hesitated, what could she do? Deadeye would drop her in a single hit faster than she could move. She was getting mad, how could Twilight put up with his guy? He was such a jerk!
"Pinkie?" Blitz looked to her, the pink mare was unable to tell if he was crying tears of sadness or anger. "Why did you lie to me?"
"I didn't want to make you all sad and hurt your feelings! I thought that if you knew you would be really really sad!" Pinkie confessed.
"Well you hurt my feelings all right!" Blitz shouted as Pinkie shrunk away. Blitz was so confused, how could something this big be kept a secret to him and the others? Why would Pinkie lie to him if he mattered so much to her? It just didn't make sense. Shadow said nothing to Fluttershy as he just glared a powerful hurt expression at her that made the yellow pegasus' heart rip in two.
"Shadow?" Fluttershy asked holding her hoof out to him. Shadow just shook his head as he backed away.
"According to this book, we sacrificed EVERYTHING for all of you! You turned on us and then after we spent eight bucking years under that forsaken mountain, you don't even have the decency to tell us the truth!" Deadeye said slamming his hoof into the ground causing large cracks. Everypony in the room was hit by a singe of guilt.
"What is going on here!?" The whole room turned to Skullcrusher who had just walked in. Skullcrusher looked and saw the book about the COLTS Massacre and the angry look on the soldiers faces.
"Oh buck!" He said as he put two and two together. XXX
Big Mac awoke to find his injuries had mostly healed but his armor had been absolutely demolished. Still he decided to keep it on just to play it safe. He went and got a drink of water to satisfy his thirst. He had no more weapons except his trusty dagger. After walking for what seemed like hours through dense foliage, he came across a large clearing. He thought he was hallucination when he saw buildings in the distance. He recognized the skyline as the city of Dodge Junction. Finally he was coming to civilization! He began sprinting full speed, he would see his family again! Meanwhile in the city, a new air cruiser was flying overhead.
"Sure is a nice day for flying huh?" The captain said taking a sip of coffee.
"You said it boss." The first mate replied. The air cruiser was basically a giant boat with a large hot air balloon carrying it. It was carrying a crew of two hundred earth ponies. Dodge Junction was an earth pony town as no pegasi or unicorns lived there since only earth ponies had the build to survive in such heat. As the cruiser flew through the sky, one of the lines securing the balloons to the ship had not been secured correctly. The line snapped and whipped through the air causing it to slice through two of the three balloons holding it aloft. Almost immediately the ship began descending rapidly.
"Uh captain?" A crew member said. "We are losing altitude fast!"
"What?" The captain said as he looked up and saw the ship starting to lower faster and faster. They were hundreds of feet in the air and at the rate they were falling they would all die! The captain looked to find the source of the problem when he saw the hole in the balloon which was keeping the ship aloft. The fire from which the hot air was generated had set fire to the torn balloon causing a fire to break out.
"Sir what do we do!?"
"The balloons ruptured! The ships going down!" The captain cried as the crew and the passengers began to panic.
"Were gonna die!"
"Help us!
"NOOOOO!" Big Mac's hearing picked up the sounds of distress and cries for help. He looked to see the large ship plummeting towards the ground below. He was just outside the city and began hauling flank to get there. On the ground ponies were running and panicking everywhere. The air force had been called to get the ponies off the ship but it would be fifteen minutes before they got there and the ship would hit the ground in two. Foals began crying as their parents began comforting them.
"Mommy! I don't wanna die!" A young filly cried into her mothers hooves.
"This is it! Brace yourselves!" The captain said as he closed his eyes. Everypony was so shocked they did not see the red blur running past them.
BANG BANG!
"What was that?" A mother said as she cradled her two fillies. On the roof of the cruiser was Big Mac who had jumped from a nearby tree onto the ship. He stepped through the flames as he held on for dear life. He had to get rid of those fires but how? An idea formed in his head as he walked over to the still operating flame generator. From what he learned in school it was that fire needed oxygen to exist. If one took away all the oxygen, the fire would disappear. He approached the flame and opened his mouth and took a deep breath. Due to his augmentations, Big Mac's lungs were four times as powerful as a normal pony. Big Mac continued inhaling as he saw the fire starting to shrink, his inhalation taking in all the oxygen from the air around them. Once the fire was out save a few small flames here and there. Big Mac let out an exhale, he looked over and saw how close they were getting to the ground. He walked over to the bridge and brought his head down to the window.
"Tell everypony to hang on!" The COLT called. The captain nodded his head as he relayed the order. Big Mac went to go back up when a sudden jolt in the aircraft caused him to lose his footing and he fell nearly two thousand feet to the ground. Fortunately for him his glider was still intact and it slowed his descent but not by much. He hit the ground with a hard thud. He looked up to see the airship continuing to crash. Seeing this, he ran as fast as he could to the airship. Soon he was directly next to it and it was only a few hundred feet in the air. Big Mac launched himself towards the falling ship as it smacked into him. Ponies inside felt the sudden hit and looked outside. They saw a red stallion in partially destroyed armor in the front of the cruiser. Big Mac pushed as hard as he could using his strength and his glider, he had slowed the crashing ship down but it would still be a hard impact. Time slowed down as the cruiser began sliding into the ground.
"AHHHHHHH!" He screamed as he planted his legs into the ground. He felt his knees starting to buckle under the several tons worth of weight flying into him. He glanced behind and saw that the town was directly behind him! If he didn't stop this thing now....
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" He yelled so loud that it could be heard across Equestria. Big Mac began sweating as his muscles contracted to their limit as he attempted to slow the damn thing down. He could feel tendons and muscle fibers beginning to rip under the extreme stress. He felt the ship starting to slow down and then before he knew it, it was all over. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw he was only twenty feet away from the town.
"Woah is that him?"
"I don't believe it!"
"He's back!" Big Mac heard as the population of Dodge Junction began screaming and cheering. He jumped onto the cruiser and punched a hole in the wall.
"Is everypony alright?" He asked as the ponies inside stared with awe at the COLT.
"Yes we are thanks to you sir." The Captain said as he began clapping.
"Mommy look its Big Mac." A colt said to its mother. Macintosh smiled as he began helping ponies out of the wreckage, when he finally stepped out there were now thousands of ponies cheering with multiple news stations on the scene. All across the country, events were interrupted as news of Big Mac's return spread like wildire. In Manehattan, Trottingham, Fillydelphia, Scoltsland, Batlimare and other cities, Big Mac's picture was flashing across screens. All the ponies applauded as the last missing soldier was finally accounted for. Big Mac had never been one for being in the spotlight but he had to admit he enjoyed the warm welcome home.
XXXX
"Come on big guy, lets just calm down here." Skullcrusher said. He was not having a good day and he did want to have to deal with an enraged super enhanced pony.
"No!" Blitz yelled angrily.
"How could this possibly get any worse?" Skullcrusher asked himself as Autumn walked in Rarity.
"Buck me!" Skullcrusher said as Autumn went up to Deadeye.
"We heard a ruckus goin on in here, mind tellin me whats happenin?" Autumn asked.
"Take a look." Deadeye said as he showed Autumn the events of the COLT Massacre. Autumn read slowly and carefully, he was so mad you could have baked cookies on his forehead with the anger he was building up.
"You little swine!" Autumn yelled at Rarity. "You told me this was nothing!"
"STOP!" Twilight shouted as she ran in with Applejack. "Deadeye please listen!"
"I WON'T LISTEN TO ANYMORE OF YOUR LIES!" Deadeye yelled angrily.
"I know how to fix your memories!" Twilight shouted.
"Yeah I'm sure!" Autumn said sarcastically. Even when he was suffering from amnesia he still retained his sarcastic and jerky attitude.
"I think we are gonna need help holding them down." Skullcrusher whispered to Soarin.
"I know just who to call." Soarin said. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Welcome Back | Next chapter.
"PIP HOLD HIM DOWN!" Soarin yelled to the pony from Trottingham as he attempted to restrain Blitz.
"I'M TRYING!" Pip said as Shadow kicked Pip across the room. The COLT-II's had been called in to help restrain the COLT-I's so Twilight could perform the memory spell but the original COLTS weren't exactly compliant with this. It had become nothing short of a madhouse. Nearly a dozen COLT-II's and fifty royal guards were needed to subdue the COLT-I's.
"LET ME GO!" Autumn yelled as Skullcrusher, Featherweight, and several royal guards held him down. Autumn was violently thrashing around and it wouldn't be long before he broke free.
"TWILIGHT HURRY!" Spike cried as he struggled to hold down Deadeye. Twilight's horn began to glow as she approached Deadeye who was violently thrashing to get free. He snorted at her with an evil eye. She smiled gently as she gently tapped Deadeye with her horn. Deadeye suddenly saw his life flash before his eyes as Discord's spell was broken.
Born in Fillydelphia
Raised by royal guard
Captain of COLTS Omega
Son of Colonel Striper
Lover of Twilight Sparkle.
"Twi-Twilight?" Deadeye asked himself as Twilight used the spell on Autumn, Blitz, and Shadow.
"Deadeye! Is it?" Twilight asked as she got close to his face. Twilight suddenly felt hooves wrapped around her as Deadeye embraced her tightly.
"I MISSED YOU!" Deadeye said hugging the unicorn. Twilight smiled as she hugged back.
"What in the buck just happened?" Autumn said rubbing his head as his memories flooded back to him. "Rarity! Where are you?"
"OH DARLING!" Rarity said jumping on him and kissing him all over the face.
"I just had the craziest dream! We woke up and didn't remember anything and then Twilight did some spell on us and now we remember- Wait a minute!" Blitz said tapping his chin. Deadeye and Autumn laughed at Blitz's antics.
"Think again dummy." Autumn laughed.
"Where is Pinkie at?" Blitz asked.
"Uh oh!" The mane six thought to themselves, it Pinkie disappears it was never a good thing. Blitz looked up to see two large blue eyes staring at him with a smile so wide he didn't think it was biologically possible for a smile to be that big. Blitz moved his head up and kissed her before she jumped down.
"BLITZYBLITZYYOUREBACKOHMYGOS HTHISTHEHAPPIESTIVEBEENSINCE IWASAFILLYWHENISAWTHATBIGRAI NBOWTHINGANDNOWYOURBACKYOURB ACK!" She said hugging Blitz. Shadow was still rubbing his head, he began to remember everything. He saw a curled up ball of yellow fur not to far from him.
"Fluttershy?" Shadow said. "It's me! I'm back!" Shadow said. Fluttershy whimpered and slowly moved up to him. She looked at him in the eyes, she smiled and tackled him and began kissing him.
"Now isn't that just the most adorable thing you've ever seen!" Rarity said referring to Fluttershy and Shadow.
"Not as adorable as you toots." Autumn said making Rarity giggle. Rainbow Dash and Soarin looked at each other.
"What the hay c'mere!" Rainbow said as her and Soarin kissed. Skullcrusher figured now would be the best time to apologize and went up to Applejack ashamed of himself.
"Applejack, I didn't mean one word I said earlier. I love you and I probably would be dead if it weren't for you." Skullcrusher said with his head down. Applejack smiled at her husbands sweet words and went up to him and nuzzled him.
"Ah forgive you hon." Applejack said as the two kissed.
"C'mere you knuckleheads! I can't believe you are alive!" Autumn said grabbing Deadeye, Blitz, and Shadow and had one big group hug. They were all brothers to each other at this point.
"Wait where is Big Mac?" Blitz asked.
"Yeah where is the big guy?" Autumn asked.
"Gentlecolts, we have quite a story to tell you." Soarin said as he explained the past eight years to the COLTS. He said how Big Mac was the one who killed Gore and stopped the lava from flowing into Equestria, he talked of the COLT-II's and the mysterious creatures that had been attacking Equestria. He also said how Big Mac was never found. This news hit the COLTS hard but they all refrained from tears, except of course Blitz who was bawling his eyes out in the corner.
"You mean Big Mac is still in there?" Shadow asked quite upset. Soarin nodded his head.
"What are we waiting for? Lets go get him!" Autumn said jumping up.
"Sit down numbnuts!" Deadeye ordered as he grabbed Autumn's tail before he could run off. "You don't even know where the hay you are going."
"We can't just leave him there!" Shadow said getting up and walking next to Autumn.
"You think I wanna leave him down there? He is the one who pretty much ended the war! He is the one who deserves to be here not us!" Deadeye said. "We will find him, I don't care if takes us years! But you two almost ran off without knowing where you are going, not only that you are unarmed and have no armor."
"Oh oops!" Shadow said embarrassed.
"Oops is right filly." Deadeye said. He then fell over in pain as he clutched his chest.
"Captain!" Shadow said helping Deadeye to his hooves.
"Deadeye whats the matter?" Twilight asked concerned.
"Ah, Its where that bucker Gore stabbed me! AHH!" Deadeye said as he fell down again. If felt like something was stabbing the inside of his heart. He was confused, this injury should be healed! Unless...
"Twilight, do you know any x-ray vision spells?" Deadeye asked.
"Yes I do why?" Twilight asked.
"Use it and scan the area around my chest." Deadeye said. Twilight nodded as she begun the spell. She scanned Deadeyes chest and saw a piece of metal still ingrained in the muscle tissue next to his heart.
"There is a piece of shrapnel embedded in you still!" Twilight cried.
"Ah I knew it! Those doctors bucking suck!" All the moving around he had done over the past week must have pushed the shrapnel around. Deadeye moaned as he tried to figure out what to do about this. If he moved too much the shrapnel would impale his heart and kill him. Deadeye then realized what he had to do.
"Ohh this is gonna suck. Shadow come here." Deadeye said pulling out his dagger.
"Yes sir?" Shadow asked worried for his commanding officers life.
"Your gonna have to carve this thing out of my chest." Deadeye said. Everypony's mouth dropped when they heard this.
"Captain you can't possibly be serious!" Rarity said.
"Believe me I wish I wasn't but if I don't get this out now it will impale my heart and kill me." Deadeye said. Twilight nearly fainted at this thought. "You all might wanna look away, this might be a little messy."
"Uh captain?" Shadow said. "Would it be possible for Autumn or Blitz to do it?"
"Don't pull this on me now Shadow! Autumn is too rough and Blitz can't stay still for more then ten seconds, you have the steadiest hooves out of anyone here."
"But I don't want to hurt you!" Shadow said now petrified of what he had to do.
"Shadow if I die because you don't pull this out I'll be a lot worse off than hurting do you copy?" Deadeye asked.
"I-I-I can't" Shadow said ashamed at his cowardice. Everypony looked to Shadow shocked.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! YOURE JUST GONNA LET ME DIE?" Deadeye yelled. "For bucks sake I'll do it myself!"
"Shadow, why couldn't you do it?" Fluttershy asked.
"I just don't want to hurt him, he's like my father now and I hate the thought of hurting him." Shadow said slightly crying.
"It's okay Shadow, He'll understand." Fluttershy said nuzzling him.
"Deadeye please have some sense! We can call the hospital!" Spike said thinking the captain had lost his mind.
"Those doctors bucked it up the first time! I'm doing it myself. BLITZ!" Deadeye yelled.
"Yes sir?" Blitz said as he finished crying over Big Mac's fate.
"Take these." Deadeye said pulling off his dog tags. "And go tell that coward son a bucker that when I'm done I'm gonna go over there and kill him!"
"Yes sir good luck sir!" Blitz said. Blitz ran over to Shadow and whispered into the guilt ridden stallions ear.
"Captain says when he is done he is gonna come here and kill you." Blitz said to Shadow. Autumn face-hooved. Blitz may have been the most common sense deprived pony he had ever met. This wasn't a lie, Blitz isn't the brightest pony and he often takes things seriously and clearly doesn't understand the concept of sarcasm.
"Ah buck!" Deadeye said as he gritted his teeth and embedded the dagger in his chest. Fluttershy, Rarity, and Twilight immediately fainted as Deadeye's blood sprayed across the mirror he was using. Deadeye hadn't been in this much pain since his alterations at COLT training. He continued to dig the dagger further as he felt it dig through skin, muscle, bone, nerves, and finally...
"AHH!" He yelped as he yanked out the piece of shrapnel. It hit the ground with a bloody thunk. The bleeding stopped within a minute and the wounds began to heal.
"Captain are you alright?" Autumn asked helping Deadeye to his hooves.
"I am never doing that again!" Deadeye said. Shadow had broken down completely, his cowardice to do what was necessary almost cost Deadeye his life.
"It would have been better off if they never found me!" Shadow thought to himself as he ran out the door.
"Shadow!" Autumn yelled. "Great, Blitz go get him."
"Roger dodger!" Blitz said as he took off super speed to get his friend.
"It's amazing how that non existent brain can even generate enough power to keep his legs moving." Autumn said.
XXXX
Clawthorne carefully aimed his throw as he chucked a dart at the dartboard. His dart landed straight in the middle unlike Goldbeak's who had all completely missed the board.
"Thats right boy! You owe thirty bits!" Clawthorne said.
"You suck you know that?" Goldbeak said as he gave Clawthorne the thirty bits. Clawthorne was a legend at darts among the griffons. No one had ever beaten him. That was probably why he was so accurate with a spear. Clawthorne quickly burned through his money on cider. Goldbeak went to go sit down with Gilda who was reading a magazine on a lounge chair.
"You get your butt kicked again?" Gilda said without looking up.
"Yeah." Goldbeak said sitting down. "Did the captain find out what those things that attacked us were?"
"Yeah they are called Mordras or something like that. They have the same augmentations as we do which would explain why it was so hard to freakin kill!" Gilda said. "I don't think I've ever gotten ravaged that badly before.
"I could change that!" Clawthorne said. Gilda growled as she picked up a dart and threw it at Clawthorns face.
"AHHH! OW!" He screamed as the dart embedded itself in the griffons cheek.
"Hmph!" Gilda said sitting back down.
"Gotta give him credit for trying." Goldbeak laughed.
"Hay no!" Gilda said.
"Anyway back to these Mordras, where did they come from?" Goldbeak asked.
"I dunno, wish I could tell you." Gilda said as she sipped her cider.
XXXXX
"SHADOW! SHADOW!" Blitz called out for the grey stallion but got no answer. Blitz decided to just listen for him. His ears perked as he heard sniffling and crying. He followed it till he saw Shadow sitting on a cliff with his head in his hooves.
"Shadow? You alright buddy?" Blitz asked as he out his hoof on Shadow's shoulder.
"No!" He screamed in between tears. It was muffled since he his face was in his hoofs but Blitz was able to hear it.
"Come on buddy!" Blitz said but Shadow didn't move. Blitz started making faces so Shadow would laugh but it wasn't working. Blitz frowned, he would make Shadow laugh. He hopped on one hoof as he juggled three pineapples.
"Hey Shadow look at me!" Blitz said as he juggled the fruit. Shadow just looked down as the three fruits hit Blitz in the face covering him in pineapple juice.
"Please just come back Shadow! You crying is making me wanna cry!" Blitz said as he started to sniffle. Shadow didn't want to cause anymore drama so he quickly got up.
"Please don't cry! I'll come back!" Shadow said. Blitz felt a grin move across his face.
"Works everytime!" "Well lets go then!" Blitz said grabbing Shadow and sprinting back to Ponyville.
XXXX
Deadeye's wound had stopped bleeding and was patched up. He was glad he got the shrapnel out but man did it hurt. His injury wasn't the only thing hurting him though. All of the COLT-II's had left including Skullcrusher and Soarin. The only ponies remaining were COLTS Omega and the elements.
"I can't believe I did that." Deadeye said.
"Neither can I! I can't imagine just stabbing myself like that!" Rainbow said as she poured water over Rarity's face to wake her up.
"*Cough* Autumn? *cough*!" Rarity said as she woke up.
"Not that Ms Dash, What I did to Shadow." Deadeye said looking down.
"Come on it can't be THAT bad!" Rainbow said.
"But it is. I know how sensitive he is and it was wrong of me to put him in that situation." Deadeye said. "Boy am I crappy captain or what?"
Not at all! I mean you know all those cool moves and you won all those battles!" Rainbow said.
"Being a good leader isn't about how good of a fighter you are, It's how well you treat your stallions. I made Shadow do something I easily could have done myself, so much for 'never having your stallions do something you wouldn't be willing to do yourself'." Deadeye said.
"You know I kinda know how you feel, you know Fluttershy?" Rainbow asked.
"Yes she is the quiet one." Deadeye said.
"Ten years ago we had to stop a dragon who was snoring cause he was making this huge cloud of smoke over Ponyville. Fluttershy was terrified of dragons but I kinda forced her to come the whole time despite how scared she was. It wasn't nice of me to do but she overcame her fear and she talked the dragon down all by herself!" Rainbow explained.
"Well I guess that is similar to my situation. Thank you Ms Dash." Deadeye said. Twilight had awoken from her unconsciousness and immediately ran over to Deadeye.
"Deadeye please don't tell me you actually-!" Twilight said noticing Deadeye's bloody bandage.
"It was that or death Twilight." Deadeye said as he wrapped his hoof around her.
"You had me so worried!" Twilight said as Blitz and Shadow walked in.
"Heres comes the great shit storm!" Autumn thought to himself as he prepared for Deadeye to explode.
"Captain I-" Shadow began to say.
"Shadow I am totally, completely, 100%, utterly pissed off at you!" Deadeye said standing at his full height. Shadow shrunk away. "For allowing me to be so selfish."
"What?" Shadow asked.
"I know you are sensitive and I know you would never want to hurt anypony. It was wrong of me to put you in that situation when I could have done it myself from the beginning." Deadeye said in a fatherly tone. "I'm sorry."
"Captain." Shadow said as he moved into hug Deadeye. Deadeye was caught off guard by this but he returned the hug.
"GROUP HUG! Blitz said as he joined in with Autumn.
"I already lost one of you boys, I won't lose another." Deadeye said referring to Big Mac.
"Alright this is getting kind of gay." Autumn said noticing how long they were hugging.
"Hey Autumn?" Deadeye said.
"Yeah sir?"
"Shut up." Deadeye said as they all started laughing. The elements sat there with d'awww expressions.
"Oh this is so cute!" Pinkie said hopping up and down.
'Thats just the sweetest dang thing ah've ever seen." Applejack said taking her hat off.
"GROUP HUG!" Pinkie said as the elements also hugged. They were interrupted by Pipsqueak who ran in to a group of full grown stallions hugging each other and a group of mares hugging each other.
"Bloody hell did I miss something?" Pip said to himself he then remembered why he came here in the first place.
"What is it Pip?" Applejack asked the COLT.
"They found him! They found Big Mac!" |
C.O.L.T.S II | The Sweetest Homecoming | Three Hours Earlier.
Big Mac had never felt this good his entire life, the hot clean water in shower washed away the dirt, blood, sweat and any other foul particles on his body. His armor had been completely taken off and though he felt naked without it, he felt much more free with it off. All of his wounds had healed save for his ear which had been cut off. After the warm water soothed and relaxed his fatigued and tense muscles, he got out and dried off. He felt like a new pony as he looked in the mirror. He heard his stomach rumble and remembered he hadn't eaten in nearly a day, or eight years for that matter. He headed downstairs to the food court of the hotel the ponies at Dodge Junction had given him for free. He hoped nopony would swarm him when he went in as he desired to eat in peace without much commotion as was his nature. He surprisingly found it to be devoid of life save the cooks who were making the food.
"I figured you might want some peace and quiet form the mobs of fanponys out there." The hotel owner said.
"Thanks, ah appreciate it." Big Mac said as he got a plate of hay fries.
"Um sir, my son is a huge fan of the COLTS. He wants to be one when he is older. Could I get your autograph to give him?" The hotel owner asked nervously. Big Mac was shocked, when he was bucking apples at Sweet Apple Acres he never imagined ponies would ask for his autograph.
"Eeyup." Big Mac said as he signed a picture of Big Mac in his COLT armor. Apparently he even had his own action figures and arcade games now.
"Thank you so much sir! If there is anything I can do for you!" The owner said.
"Actually." Big Mac said realizing he never asked anypony how long he was gone for. "How long was ah gone for?"
"Eight years." The owner said. Big Mac was relived it was only eight years instead of a hundred meaning his family and friends were all still alive. Since he did not age while he was in suspended animation, his sister Applejack was now technically the oldest apple sibling as Big Mac was biologically twenty years old while Applejack was twenty six. He shrugged off the odd though as another question formulated in his mind.
"Mah teammates, what ever happened to them?" Big Mac asked.
"They were all found and are alive and healthy." The owner said ignorant of the fact Discord had wiped their memories.
"Thanks thats all ah needed to know." Big Mac said as he dove into his food which tasted like heaven after eating wild grass in the Everfree Forest. After he had his fill he went back to his room and laid down on the bed for a while. He couldn't wait to see his family again even if Applejack was not technically older than him. He heard a knock at the door and ran over there. He looked through the peephole and saw General Blue River with two Marine escorts. Big Mac opened the door and saluted the general.
"Well this is a sight I never thought I'd see again." Blue River said smiling observing Big Mac. "At ease COLT, it's been far too long."
"Eeyup." Big Mac said.
"I'm sure you are eager to see your team and family again, am I correct?" Blue River asked.
"Eeyup!" Big Mac replied.
"You will in time, I have a chariot outside ready to take you to Canterlot but first I need a debrief." Blue River said.
"Eeyup." Big Mac said.
"Guards, make sure nopony enters this room!" Blue River said to the Marine escorts.
"Yes sir!" They replied as they shut the door and guarded it. Blue River then turned to Big Mac.
"Deadeye, Autumn, Biltz, and Shadow were found two weeks ago and when they were found it took a team of doctors and technicians to remove them from cyro-sleep. I doubt you had access to either in that cave so how did you escape?" Blue River asked.
"I was taken by a feller by the name of Discord to a King Sombra." Big Mac said. Blue River's ears perked at this.
"Did you say Discord?" Blue River asked interested.
"Eeyup, apparently the two are working together." Big Mac said. Blue River already had a feeling of that so it was no surprise.
"What else did you find out?" Blue River asked.
"He offered me to join him to overthrow Celestia and Luna but ah refused. He then picked me up and said if ah didn't do it by choice he would make me. He zapped me with some fancy magic but it didn't work. Turns out that the same spells that were used to make the COLTS were the ones he used to make his own super soldiers. Because of that he claimed he could control me but since the elements of harmony purified me and mah team ah was immune to it." Big Mac said.
"Interesting." Blue River said. "What happened next?"
"He had two of these things called Mordras attack me. They were so strong! Ah killed one of em but mah ear got sliced off and mah armor got completely destroyed!" Big Mac said.
"I was wondering what happened to your ear." Blue River said.
"Ah ran into the forest to escape and a patrol of the Mordras came after me, ah killed another one and escaped. After days of running, ah came to Dodge Junction where ah saw the airship fallin and here we are." Big Mac said.
"Quite a story." Blue River said. "Listen, what you said here is classified above 'top secret'. If what you said is true we could be in some deep crud."
"Ah understand sir." Big Mac said.
"Right, lets get you back to Canterlot." Blue River said as the ponies boarded the carriage for Canterlot.
"Command this is General Blue River, COLT Omega Two had been found, I repeat COLT Omega Two has been found." Blue River said into a magical radio to COLTS-02. Big Mac could hear the cheers from where he was sitting.
"Copy that General, we'll inform the family." A COLT-II said back.
"General?" Big Mac asked.
"Yeah son?" Blue River replied.
"Who were you talkin too? Are they new COLTS?" Big Mac asked.
"After you disappeared the COLT-II program was launched. Unfortunately, the secret to making and training COLT-I's died with Colonel Striper. We found some old records in the ruin of the original COLT base and we were able to remake the augmentation spells. However the COLT-II's are nowhere near as strong or fast as you are." Blue River said.
"So there are no COLT-I's? Big Mac asked.
"Other than you and your team no. Like I said, only Striper knew how to properly train COLTS and plus since there is no war, the need for lethal super soldiers has gone. The COLT-II's act more as a peacekeeping police force rather than a spec ops unit. I believe you may know a few.:
"Who is one that ah would know?" Big Mac asked.
"Your former DI, Lt Skullcruser, Commander Soarin, Corporal Pipsqueak, Private Featherwieght, Private Rumble, and Sergeant Spike." Blue River said. Big Mac couldn't believe what he was hearing. Skullcrusher was a COLT now? And Pip the little guy? And who would have guessed Spike.
"Wait isn't Soarin a pegasus? Ah thought only earth ponies could be COLTS." Big Mac said.
"As I said before, the COLT-II training is not as rigorous or dangerous as the COLT-I training was. Because of this it is not exclusive to earth ponies as much anymore but tradition was kept as only earth ponies could join even now. An exception was made for Soarin because of his many battles and service." Blue River said.
"Ah see." Big Mac said as the carriage went over the horizon towards Canterlot and home.
XXXX
Pip almost went deaf from the loud cheers of the ponies when it was confirmed that Big Mac was alive.
"I knew they couldn't kill him!" A COLT-II shouted loudly.
"HAOOH!" They all shouted. Pip decided he should inform Applebloom, she would love to hear this.
"Commander permission to leave sir?" Pip asked the second-in-command CO.
"For what reason?" The CO asked.
"To inform the family." Pip said.
"Permission granted COLT." The CO said as Pip took off towards Ponyville. He couldn't wait to see the look on Applebloom's face when he told her the news. He ran for about thirty minuteS before he reached the outskirts of Sweet Apple Acres. The sweet scent of apples fill his nostrils as he searched for the mare. He found her in the fields with her nephew.
"APPLEBLOOM!" Pip called out. The mare turned her head and saw Pip in the distance.
"Pip?" She said as the stallion ran down to her.
"Applebloom I have something really important to tell you!" Pip said.
"What? What is it?" She asked.
"Your brother, he's alive." Pip said. Applebloom's mouth dropped. She hadn't seen her brother in eight years! Was he really alive?
"Mah brothers alive?" She said quitely. "MAH BROTHERS ALIVE!" She shouted in joy as she hugged Pip.
"Aunt Applebloom? Does this mean I'll meet Uncle Big Mac?" Little Mac asked.
"Of course it does sugarcube!" Applebloom said happily as she embraced her nephew. "Come on! Let's go get Aj and Skullcrusher!".
"Hop on my back, we'll go faster if i run." Pip said as Applebloom and Little Mac mounted on Pip's back as he prepared to take off.
"Hold on!" Pip said as he sprinted full speed. The trees turned to blurs as he picked up speed. They eventually reached the restaurant where the whole incident had taken place.
"We're here." Pip said to Applebloom and Little Mac who were holding tightly onto his armor. "Hey you okay?"
"Please Pip don't ever do that again." Applebloom said as she got off completely dizzy from the ride.
"Sorry." Pip said embarrassed as he helped Applebloom to her feet. He then walked into the restaurant to see the COLTS and mares hugging each other.
"Bloody hell did I miss something? He thought to himself. Then he remembered why he was here.
"What is it Pip?" Applejack asked.
"They found him! They found Big Mac!" Pip said as the room went dead silent. You could hear a pin drop till Deadeye went up to Pip.
"If you are lying I swear I'll-" Deadeye said as Applebloom entered.
"He's tellin the truth! Applebloom said to Deadeye. The room went silent once again before erupting in cheers and tears.
"Ma am ah gonna see uncle Big Mac?" Little Mac asked his mother.
"Sure thing honey!" Applejack said sniffling. Skullcrusher, Soarin, and Spike came running in.
"Did you hear?" Spike shouted.
"We sure did!" Twilight said happily.
"Honey!" Skullcrusher said as he nuzzled Applejack. "He's back!"
"Ah know. Mah family is together again." Applejack said as she hugged her husband and son.
"What are we waiting for lets go see him!" Rainbow shouted as she began to fly out the window.
"Hang on Dash, not everypony here can fly." Soarin said calming his fiancees rash attitude.
"Oh eh sorry." She said.
"I'll call in a carriage." Pip said.
"No that'll take way too long!" Autumn said.
"I agree, Twilight could you teleport us there?" Deadeye asked.
"I'll try but it might now work, we are talking teleporting fifteen ponies here!" Twilight said. "Alright everypony let me concentrate." Twilight's horn lit up as a purple aura surrounded each pony. They hoisted into the air and with a poof they were gone. They all reopened their eyes to find themselves in Canterlot where Big Mac was alleged to be.
"Did it work?" Fluttershy asked.
"Why yes it did! Look there is Fancy Pant's mansion!" Rarity said recognizing the Canterlot landmark.
"And now we wait!" Twilight said. COLTS Omega, the COLT-II's, and the elements were all impatiently waiting for Big Mac but he hadn't shown up yet. They were all pumped and excited to finally see him again.
"Where is he?" Applejack asked after twenty minutes.
"Is he not here?" Pinkie asked. "Cause that would totally ruin the surprise party I made for him!"
"We've only known he's alive for ten minutes! How could you make a whole party in less then ten minutes?" Autumn asked confused.
"Its Pinkie Pie, she defies logic." Rainbow whispered into the stallions ear.
"Gotcha." Autumn said still confused at the pink ponies claim.
"COLTS spread out, try and find him." Deadeye said.
"Yes sir!" The COLTS replied.
"That wont be necessary captain." A warm and gentle voice said. The ponies all turned to see a large red stallion with an orange mane standing behind them smiling. Their hearts jumped at seeing the beloved friend and brother again after all these years. The mane six and Applebloom felt tears sting their eyes.
"Wow, y'all have changed a lot in eight years!" Big Mac said. "Applebloom! Your all grown up now! You even got yer cutie mark!"
"Big Mac!" She cried. She wanted to run and hug him but she too frozen in shock to move. Blitz was biting his lip trying not to cry but ultimately failed.
"Its him!" Fluttershy said happily.
"YOU KNUCKLEHEAD!" Autumn yelled as he gave Big Mac a noogie. "We thought you were dead!"
"BIG MAC!" Blitz said crying as he tackled Macintosh to the ground.
"Your really here!" Shadow said joining in on the dogpile.
"Ah missed you guys!" Big Mac said hugging his team mates. He was so happy they were all alive and unharmed.
"Alright this is getting gay again." Autumn said again noticing how long they were hugging.
"Hey Autumn remember when I told you to shut up? That order still stands." Deadeye said as he went up to the dog pile "Welcome back soldier, you've done us proud." Deadeye said holding his hoof out helping Big Mac to his feet. When Big Mac was on his feet Deadeye hugged him tightly. Something Big Mac was not expecting.
"Welcome back Big Mac." Soarin said clanking hooves with Big Mac.
"Big Mac ah missed you!" Applejack said going up to her brother and nuzzling him.
"Ah missed you too AJ." Big Mac said when he noticed a clump of red fur behind Applejacks legs.
"Um AJ who is behind yer legs.?" Big Mac asked.
"Oh Little Mac come meet yer uncle!" Applejack said. Big Mac assumed Skullcrusher was the father. Big Mac looked up to see his former DI smiling at him.
"I knew they couldn't kill you, after all it was me who trained you." Skullcrusher said clanking hooves with Big Mac.
"Eeyup!" Big Mac said.
"Private Macintosh! What did I say about saying 'eeyup' in my beloved Corps!?" Skullcrusher said in his mean voice causing the two to laugh. Big Mac looked down again to see a tiny colt with red fur and a yellow mane looking at him with green eyes.
"Um... hello." Little Mac said nervously. Big Mac bent down to eye level with the colt.
"Hi there, whats yer name." Big Mac said with a friendly smile.
"Little Macintosh." Little Mac said nervously.
"Ah'm Big Macintosh." Big Mac said. The two stood there staring at each other till Little Mac ran up to Big Mac.
"UNCLE BIG MAC!" He screamed jumping onto Big Mac's back. The two laughed as Big Mac hugged and kissed his nephew for the first time. Expressions of d'awww filled the courtyard they were in. After letting Little Mac go, Big Mac went up to Applebloom.
"You look just like ma did." Big Mac said as he hugged his little sister. "Still got yer half?" He said pulling out half a heart necklace.
"You bet ah do!" She cried pulling out her half of the hear necklace Big Mac gave her ten years ago when he first left for Marine basic training at Fort Hoovler. Applejack joined in as the three siblings held onto each other for what seemed like forever. There was one more pony Macintosh needed to see.
"Big Mac?" Macintosh turned to see a blue alicorn princess staring at him in awe. His heart burst out of his chest. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Family Reunion | Next chapter.
Luna continuously turned and moaned as her nightmare would not end.
"Do you really think a mortal uneducated low-class farmpony cares for you?"
"Stop! LEAVE ME ALONE!"
"I am a king! A soon to be immortal! Why would you take him over me? After all we were married were we not?"
"No! I wasn't myself then!"
"On no my dear Nightmare Moon, you were completely yourself. Has Celestia really talked to you much since your return? Have ponies even accepted you back?"
"No! Please just leave me alone!"
"You will kill that farmpony and we will rule over the world together!"
"NOOOOO!" Luna screamed as she awoke sweating and out of breath. Ever since news of Sombra's return she had had the same nightmare every night. It was almost like he was infiltrating her dreams. She tried to blot out the things Sombra said, especially those last words.
You will kill that farmpony.
"YOUR HIGHNESS!" A COLT-II said as a squad of royal guards burst into the room. "We heard screaming, are you alright?"
"Yes, we are fine." Luna said accidently slipping into old equestrian speech.
"Let us know if you need anything." The COLT-II said as he left. Luna noticed the scowls on the lunar guards face as the COLT left. She knew the royal guards resented the COLTs since they had practically taken over their job of guarding the princess. She could relate to the feelings of envy and jealousy.
"It can wait no longer, I must talk to my sister about this." Luna said as she grabbed a quick glass of water and searched for her sister.
XXXX
Hundreds of miles away in the glorious Crystal Empire, a cool breeze blew in as the sentries changed for the new shift. Despite the war being long over the crystal ponies had not lost their fighting skill. They still trained everyday in the event something bad happened.
"Nice day is it not brother?" A crystal guard asked the other.
"It certainly is." The other guard replied as he noticed a speck in the distance. "Brother, do you see that?"
"What?"
"A dark speck in the distance!" The guard shouted.
"What do you think it is?"
"It is probably nothing but we should send out a patrol just to be sure."
"Agreed, let us go."
"Should we not inform the King?"
"We will not be long, now let us go."
"Yes brother." The two guards began making the trek to the dark speck in this distance unknowing that they were walking to their deaths. They felt confident, after all they were crystal warriors, if they were any better they would be COLTS. They had walked for a half hour before they stopped for a quick drink. The two crystal warriors quickly got back up to continue their investigation.
"We should head back soon, our absence will have been noticed by now." The crystal pony said.
"Not until we discover what that speck was." The other said as an arrow missed the ponies head by a millimeter. The two ponies immediately took out their shields and pulled out their swords.
"WHO DARE CHALLENGE US!?" They shouted together as the bush in front of them moved. Sweat began to come out of the pores on their skin as they grew excited for battle. Out came several evil looking creatures they had never even seen before.
"By Faust, what abomination is this?" One guard asked.
"It matters not brother! Kill them!" The two crystal warriors shouted as they charged at the dark creatures. The creatures fired arrows at the incoming ponies but the crystal warriors deflected the arrows with their shields. The crystal warriors proceeded to slaughter the dark creatures until silence befell the battlefield.
"We must inform Lord Rubios and Emeralda about this!" One of the guards said as a deep growling was heard. The two guards turned around again, adrenaline still pumping through their veins as they growling increased.
"What foul beast could possibly await us?" One of the crystal warriors said as their question was answered. Out walked a large bipedal creature clad in black armor, it had red eyes that burned holes through souls and a green mist emitting from its eyes. It appeared reptilian in nature and it carried a large and extremely sharp blade.
"HOLD YOUR GROUND BROTHER!" A guard said as the creature lunged at them at impossible speeds. The ponies moved out of the way just in time as they each delivered a blow to the creatures leg. The creature roared as it brought down its sword on one of the ponies. The crystal warrior held up his shield only for it to be completely shattered by the blow. The crystal warrior did not have time to express his shock as the creature stomped the ponies face into the ground completely demolishing the ponies skull and ending the warriors life. The other crystal warrior roared in anger upon seeing his comrade die and lunged at the creature with a burning hatred. The pony jumped on the creatures back and began relentlessly stabbing it to no avail as the crystal warriors blade could not penetrate the monsters armor. The monster grabbed the crystal pony and held it up to its face. The creature could see defiance in the ponies eyes, the fighters blood always tasted the best. The creature opened its fangs and bit out the ponies throat and through it to the ground dead. After killing the two warriors the creature made a sound that was not of this world as thousands of darklings emerged from the treeline with their eyes set on the Crystal Empire.
XXXX
"Where is she?" Luna asked herself as she searched for her elder sister. She was becoming frustrated as she continued to search the castle, her infamous temper was now building up. She was cantering through the hallway when she spotted a large crowd outside. She recognized Twilight Sparkle and her friends, perhaps Twilight knew where her sister was. Luna walked down the stairs and outside when she saw a red pony in the middle of a giant group hug. She shook her head, there were thousands of red ponies she had met before but could it actually be him? She moved closer as she saw the orange mane, her suspicions were confirmed when she saw the Apple sisters running up and hugging the red stallion. Her heart skipped a beat as she realized who it was. She rubbed her eyes to make sure she was not hallucinating. She was relieved when she opened her eyes and saw the gentle farmpony she remembered.
"Big Mac?" She said as she walked up behind him. The red stallion turned around, his green eyes met her deep blue ones. The two looked at each other for a few minutes before Luna placed her hoof on Big Mac's muzzle.
"I-Is it really you?" She asked.
"Eeyup." He said softly. She shrieked as she threw her hooves around him and kissed him square on the lips. Big Mac was happy to return the favor as he kissed her lips. The two broke as both cried tears of joy.
"I-I thought you w-were gone." Luna cried into his chest.
"You didn't think a mountain fallin on me was nuff to kill me didja?" Big Mac asked as Luna chuckled. The two hugged each other again, they were finally together again after eight long years.
"Welcome back Big Macintosh." Celestia said as she flew down with Astro. It pleased Celestia to see her little sister so happy. Astro looked at Big Mac with a great and deep respect. Of all the famous and great ponies in Equestria, it was Big Mac who defeated Captain Gore when nopony else could. Big Mac brushed his hoof through Luna's ethereal mane and kissed her again on the forehead as he went to bow to Celestia and Astro with his team.
"That won't be necessary friend." Astro said as he and Celestia bowed to COLTS Omega. COLTS Omega looked to each other in utter confusion, why would royalty ever bow to them? Big Mac looked to Luna who smiled as she bowed down as well. The elements, the COLT-II's and the hundreds of other ponies present bowed in respect for the returned heroes of Equestria. Each COLT felt goosebumps go up their backs as the viewed the hundred of ponies bowing out of respect for them. The COLTS had been through a lot: from training to all the missions, the Great COLT Massacre, the exile in the north, the rampancy problems, the liberation of Canterlot, the final mission, and being buried under a collapsed mountain for eight years.
"There is one more surprise for you." Celestia said as two beautiful mares came running into the courtyard.
"Solly!" They cried out. Solar Blitz looked and saw his two sisters running towards him. He couldn't believe it was them! He hadn't seen them in ten years!
"Eclipse? Sunshine!" He yelled as he sprinted towards his siblings. He hugged them tightly.
"I missed you so much big brother!" Sunshine cried into Blitz's mane.
"I missed you to little sister." Blitz replied as she embraced his two younger sisters.
"Solar Blitz, you look just like your father." Another voice said. Blitz looked up to see an elder familiar mare.
"Mama?" He cried in delight as he hugged his mother.
"Oh my little Blitzy Boy. You've grown up to be such a handsome stallion." Blitz's mother who was known as Corona said as she hugged her long lost son. "I'm so proud of you."
"I-I-I missed you mama! I love you!" Blitz cried into his mother's shoulder. After hugging, Blitz lead them to Pinkie Pie. "C'mon you all have to meet Pinkie Pie!"
"Blitz are those your sisters?" Autumn asked in disbelief, Blitz's sisters looked like models.
"Yeah why?"
"What the hay happened to you?" Autumn said as Shadow began to chuckle. Rarity shot him a dirty look which made him shut up. Shadow smiled as she saw Blitz reunite with his family.
"Big brother?" A timid voice said. Shadow turned around and saw a sight he never thought he'd see again.
His little brother, Wind Wiper.
"Little brother!" Shadow cried as he embraced his only surviving family member. Shadow and Wind Wiper were very close and they both shared many traits with each other. Wind Wiper was very young when the war started only four years old. After the rest of their family was killed, Shadow raised Wind Wiper till Shadow sent his little brother away to safety.
"Big brother?" Wind Wiper asked.
"Yes?" Shadow replied.
"I miss Desert Storm." Wind Wiper said sniffling referring to their eldest brother who died in the battle for Appleloosa.
"He's smiling down on us with mother and father." Shadow said comforting his little brother. "Wind Wiper there is somepony I want you to meet."
"Who?" Wind Wiper asked.
"Her name is Fluttershy, she is the most gentle, kind, and beautiful pony I have ever met." Shadow said causing the yellow pegasus to blush. Shadow led his younger brother to Fluttershy.
"Um hello Ms. I'm Wind Wiper." Wind Wiper said as his voice cracked a little. Fluttershy adored this foal, he was so much like Shadow.
"Hello, I'm Fluttershy. You should know you have the best brother in the world." Fluttershy said as Shadow nuzzled her. Autumn chuckled as he saw Shadow's little brother, it reminded him of his own brothers.
"Well well well if it isnt twinkie!" A deep voice called out. Autumn saw two large earth ponies coming his way.
"HOLY PARASPRITE CRAP!" Autumn yelled as he ran at the two ponies and hugged them. "Spring! Summer!" Twilight saw Big Mac and his sisters, Blitz and his mother and sisters, Autumn and his brothers, and Shadow with his brother, she looked at Deadeye who was all alone. She noticed the heartbroken look on his face.
"Deadeye?" Twilight said coming up to him. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine I just-I just-I jus- miss my parents so much." Deadeye said. He was happy to see his team reunited with their families but it also made him realize how alone he really was.
"Deadeye, you are a part of my family now." Twilight said scooting next to him.
"Twilight, you are all I have left." Deadeye said looking down. Twilight nuzzled him softly.
"It will be okay, you will see." Twilight said comforting the lonely Deadeye.
"Woah bro! You been hittin that?" Spring asked Autumn pointing to Rarity who had a rather offended look on her face.
"She's my marefriend." Autumn replied.
"I swear first you become a COLT and now your gettin the mares! Your making us look bad!" Summer said.
"Wait, where is Winter at?" Autumn asked referring to the youngest brother of the Leaf family. Summer and Spring put their heads down.
"Spring, Summer! Where is Winter at?" Autumn asked now getting scared.
"He went missing at the liberation of Scoltsland." Spring said with teary eyes.
"They never found the body, I'm sorry little brother." Summer said holding out Winter Leaf's dogtags. Autumn took the dogtags of his younger brother and held them to his heart. He couldn't believe this! Spring, Summer, Winter and him, they were supposed to be together to the very end.
"No,no,no,no,no he can't be-he-he-he-." Autumn said as he began to breathe heavily. Nopony had ever seen Autumn cry before, they had seen watery eyes but never full out crying from the stallion.
"OH!" Autumn cried as the three surviving Leaf brothers hugged each other. The COLTS and Rarity went up to comfort him. Celestia and Astro felt terrible, they had called the families here for a happy reunion, not heartbreak!
"It should've been me!" Spring said.
"I should've been there with him! He was too young!" Summer cried. The Leaf brother let out their tears as Autumn went to Rarity and hugged her.
"If there is anything I can do for you please tell me." Rarity said to the emotionally distressed stallion.
XXXX
"MY LORD!" A crystal warrior shouted as she burst in through the door. King Rubios and Queen Emeralda were going over paperwork in the throne room when they were interrupted.
"What is it brother?" Queen Emeralda asked.
"Two of our guards have disappeared and a shadow grows in the east!" The guard yelled.
"Shadow?" Rubios said as he headed for his personal telescope. He adjusted the lens to focus on a large cloud of black in the distance. He looked closely to see thousands of individual creatures charging for the Crystal Castle fully armed. What disturbed him the most was the two dead bodies of the crystal guards that went missing.
"Brother what is it?" Emeralda asked.
"War is upon us." Rubios said. "ALL SOLDIERS! TO THE GATES!"
"Sire what is happening?" A crystal warrior asked.
"A great army of darkness descends upon us, at the front of their lines they carried two of our dead, they wish for war." Rubios said.
"By the end of the day they will wish they hadn't!" The crystal captain of the guard said as he strapped on his armor. "EVERYPONY! BATTLE FORMATIONS!" |
C.O.L.T.S II | Fall of the Crystal Empire | Next chapter.
"HOLD THIS GROUD!" Rubios screamed as the darkling army advanced. Thousands of crystal warriors took up arms to defend their homeland. Rubios took position at front and center of the formation. Emeralda was leading the archers on the buildings above.
"Await my order." The voice of King Sombra said from a dark crystal to the Mordras.
"KILL THEM ALL! THEY WILL NOT BREATHE ONE BREATH OF OUR AIR OR STEP ON ONE DIRT OF OUR LAND!" Rubios screamed inspiring motivation in his troops. The very horizon had become blackened from the mass of darklings. The very ground was shaking as if the earth was splitting in two. Hundreds of fauna ran for their lives to escape the upcoming battle. The darklings outnumbered the crystal ponies five to one but that did not deter the spirit of the crystal warriors.
"Oh the chaos!" Discord said as the darkling army advanced. A platoon of fifty Mordras were behind him awaiting orders to attack, Discord told them to hold position and to only attack in the event the massive darkling army was defeated. The darkling army stopped several hundred feet away from the crystal formations, they let out a horrifying shriek that would have caused a lesser being to drop down with fear but the crystal ponies were not intimidated.
"RAHH!" The lead darkling yelled as the army charged for the crystal city. The earth rumbled as it prepared for the bloodshed it was about to endure.
"PHALANX!" Rubios ordered as the front line of crystal warriors formed a wall with their shields and put their spears in front ready to impale anything that dare cross its path.
"ARCHERS FIRE!" Emeralda said as thousands of arrows were launched into the air. Hundreds of darklings dropped dead from the wall of death being fired at them. The first darklings had made contact with the crystal warriors and were being slaughtered. The crystal ponies used their shields to push the attackers back and then impaled them with their spears. As more darklings died the crystal ponies were able to advance eventually pulling out swords to replace their spears. The arrows from above combined with the fighting force on the ground made the lines nearly impenetrable. Crystal warriors were being killed but not at the same rate as the darklings were.
XXXX
Solar Blitz grinned as he saw Pinkie Pie talking with his sisters, the three were getting along quite well. He went over to his elderly mother so he could spend some time with her.
"You have found yourself such a nice young mare baby Blitzy." Corona said as Blitz blushed at the nickname while thanking Faust that Autumn hadn't heard that.
"I really like her momma." Blitz said. "I want to marry her."
"So why don't you ask her?" Corona asked.
"What if she says no?" Blitz said.
"Oh you are just like your father!" Corona said laughing. "Took five years of dating before he worked up the nerve to ask me."
"I miss papa." Blitz said sadly. Like his teammates, his father had been killed in the war. Blitz looked almost exactly like him save a few different mane colors here and there.
"I'm sure your father is so proud of what his son has done, Celestia knows I am." Corona said hugging her only son. Despite Blitz's cheery mood, Autumn was more devastated than he had ever been, the loss of his younger brother was too much to bear. Wind Wiper and Little Mac had become good friends as the two were only a few years apart. Shadow chuckled as his little brother ran off with this comrades nephew. Deadeye would be having dinner with Twilight's family a second time as the first time did not go so well. Rainbow Dash and Soarin were flying high over the castle as a princess led her lover to her room.
"Its so good to have you back Big Mac." Luna said happily as she walked along side Macintosh.
"Eeyup, ah thought ah'd never see any of you again." Big Mac said. He considered the fact he was still alive to be nothing short of a miracle.
"What happened to your ear?" Luna asked now noticing Macintosh's severed ear.
"Ah lost it in battle." Big Mac said.
"Well that won't do." Luna said as her horn began to glow. Her healing spell amplified the healing magic within Big Mac's body and he felt a jolt as his ear began to grow back. Big Mac brought his hoof up to his ear as he felt the flap of skin present again.
"Ah can hear much better now! Thanks!" Big Mac said smiling happy that his ear was now back.
"Tis the least we can do." Luna said accidently slipping back into her archaic dialect. "I mean, It is the least I can do."
"You don't have to worry bout talking modern to me." Big Mac said.
"Really, you don't mind?" Luna said intrigued.
"Eeyup, ah actually like it better when you talk old like that, makes you stand out more." Big Mac said.
"Well in that case." Luna said. "We shall speaketh as thou desires Big Macintosh."
"Eeyup!" Big Mac said as the two shared a laugh and nuzzled each other. They continued towards Luna's chambers as two COLT-II Commands stood guard. Upon seeing both the princess of the night and the war hero, the two soldiers bowed in respect.
"At ease fellars." Big Mac said as the COLT-II's stood back up and nodded. Luna and Big Mac walked into Luna's bedchamber as the COLT-IIs opened the doors. It was just like Big Mac remembered: The walls were painted a hue of dark blue and purple, numerous sculptures and paintings of anything night related, and the large bed. He blushed as he remembered what happened last time he was on that bed. His thoughts were interrupted when Luna invited him onto her bed. Big Mac gulped as he sat on the large comfortable bed. He had forgotten how soft and clean it was. He closed his eyes as he felt a weight crawl on him, he opened his eyes to see Luna's deep blue eyes staring into his. Their lips moved together as they began to passionately kiss. That was about all they did since pre-marital sex was extremely frowned upon in Equestria, especially if it was a princess or a war hero. The two had abstained from going any further then kissing but they were completely all right with that as long as they had each other.
XXXX
Applejack exchanged small talk with Silent Shadow as Wind Wiper and Little Mac played a game of tag.
"So how was it servin with mah brother?" Applejack asked knowing Shadow was too shy to start a conversation, just like Fluttershy.
"He is a very good pony, I am happy to have served with him." Shadow said as Little Mac tagged his brother.
"Ah'm glad to here that, ah always knew he would be sumthin more than an apple farmer." Applejack said. Despite Big Mac's knew occupation his cutie mark remained his old apple core. Despite what others said, Big Mac was an Apple at heart.
"Your son looks exactly like him." Shadow said.
"Yup, it wasn't easy goin eight years without him but we managed. Now he's back an thats all that matters." Applejack said as her husband walked over.
"Hey are you hittin on my wife?" Skullcrusher said in a serious tone which caused Shadow to become very uncomfortable.
"No sir! I was just uh-!" Shadow began to say.
"I'm just bucking with you son." Skullcrusher said laughing. "Speakin of son, where is mine at?
"Pa!" Little Mac said as he ran over to his father.
"Hey there kiddo!" Skullcrusher said giving his son a noogie.
"Ah pa!" Little Mac said squirming to escape.
"Skullcrusher!" Applejack said rolling her eyes. She could of sworn her husband had rocks for brains sometimes.
"I should be going, I have to meet Fluttershy and show Wind Wiper to his room." Shadow said politely as he went to retrieve his brother.
"Kay then see ya!" Applejack said as she left with her family.
"Wind Wiper its time to go!" Shadow called.
"Aw five more minutes?" Wind Wiper said.
"But don't you wanna see Fluttershy?" Shadow asked.
"YES YES YES YES! I LOVE MS. FLUTTERSHY!" Wind Wiper said causing Shadow to smile. Wind Wiper leapt on his brother's back as the two headed for Fluttershy's hotel room. On the way they passed the Canterlot Spa. Memories of when Autumn, Blitz, and him destroyed were still fresh in his mind. The two eventually made it to Fluttershy's room as Wind Wiper leapt off his brothers back and bursted for the door.
"MS FLUTTERSHY! MS FLUTTERSHY!" Wind Wiper called out as the yellow pegasus opened the door.
"Why hello Wind Wiper." Fluttershy said hugging the colt.
"Fluttershy." Shadow said smiling.
"Shadow." Fluttershy replied as the two kissed on the lips.
"EWWWW!" Wind Wiper said making a gag face. Shadow and Fluttershy chuckled at the colts antics and the three settled down for some of Fluttershy's famous cocoa. The three sat there for two hours playing games and telling stories until Wind Wiper began to yawn.
"Looks like somepony is past their bedtime." Shadow said as he picked up his brother and placed him on a bed. He pulled the sheets over his brothers head and kissed him on the forehead. He then went back to the kitchen where Fluttershy was sitting.
"I remember this is what we had when we first met." Shadow said. "Seems like yesterday."
"Um yes it does." Fluttershy practically whispered. Shadow looked at her with dreamy eyes. aside from his brother she was the most precious thing is his life. A cold breeze blew in from the window causing Fluttershy to shiver.
"Here." Shadow said wrapping a blanket around her and snuggling next to her to give her body heat. The two soon fell asleep with smiles on their faces. Outside a rainbow maned pegasus watched Shadow with a keen eye to make sure he didn't try anything funny.
"Spying again Dash?" Soarin said as he flew next to her.
"NO! I'm just making sure he doesn't try anything funny with Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash countered.
"So in other words your spying?" Soarin replied.
"Uh... yeah." Dash said not gazing away from Shadow.
"I understand your concern but its Silent Shadow, he is the last pony who would ever even think of doing something like that." Soarin said.
"Which is all the more reason I should suspect him!" Rainbow said. Soarin facehooved at his fiancees stubborness.
"Trust me she's in good hooves." Soarin said reassuring her.
"Well if you say so." Rainbow said reluctantly.
"I hear there is a sale on apple pie!" Soarin said excitedly. "Let's go check it out!"
"Alright race you there!" Dash said as the two took off.
XXXX
"Oh not this again!" Deadeye moaned as Twilight used her magic to pick him up.
"F-f-fore the last t-t-time!" Twilight grunted under Deadeye's weight. "We are doing this!"
"But they probably hate me!" Deadeye said as he grabbed hold of a wall and used it to pull himself away from Twilight.
"Deadeye please." Twilight pleaded. "Do it for me."
"Ugh fine!" Deadeye said. It should be illegal for Twilight to be that adorable when she begged.
"Excellent! Now lets get you tidied up!" Twilight said as she used her magic to spray Deadeye with cologne and other types of scents that Rarity had lent her. Deadeye coughed as Twilight sprayed the cologne right into his mouth but the unicorn barely noticed. Deadeye then put on his dress blues uniform, he examined himself in the mirror as he walked with Twilight who pulled her hair back in a bun and was wearing a simple but pretty dress.
"Wait!" Twilight frowned as she used her magic to properly align the COLT Insignia patch going across his chest.
"Thanks sweetheart." Deadeye said.
"Now off we go." Twiilght said as the couple headed towards Shining Armor's and Princess Cadence's house. Once there, Twilight made some last minute verifications with the COLT.
"Please do not go off on my brother this time!" Twilight pleaded.
"I'll try." Deadeye said as Twilight opened the door and was met by her mother Twilight Velvet.
"Oh Twilight you look beautiful tonight!" Twilight Velvet said complimenting her daughters look.
"Hi mom." Twilight said hugging her mother. "Where is everypony else?"
"In the dining room dear." Twilight Velvet said. "Where is your guest?"
"What do you mean he is right behind me." Twilight said turning to see Deadeye still outside. "Oh for crying out loud! Deadeye inside now!"
"Ah ponyfeathers." Deadeye said quietly as he walked in. Twilight Velvet was frightened by the massive pony. He had slew thousands of enemies, won many battles, and berated her son last time he was there.
"Yes Captain Deadeye, please come in." Twilight Velvet said as Deadeye walked in. The three ponies entered the dining room where Twilight's father Night Light, Shining Armor, Princess Cadence, and their foals Milos and Terra were all seated.
"Twilight!" The ponies all said happy to see her. Upon seeing Deadeye they weren't so enthusiastic.
"Ah crap. I would rather be stuck under that rubble still." He thought so himself as the family gave him an awkward stare. Deadeye nervously sat down as the family continued to stare at him, he avoided all eye contact with Shining Armor. The ponies in the room did respect Deadeye for all that he did as a soldier but they were a little awkward with him after his last visit. Cadence brought out the food as the ponies began their dinner. Being the only pony there incapable of magic, Deadeye used his hooves to dig into his plate while everypony else used their magic only making the situation more awkward for Deadeye. Cadence noticed something different about Deadeye, last time the COLT was there he had an expression of anger on his face, now he had one of sorrow and regret.
"That was very good Princess." Deadeye said complimenting Cadence's cooking.
"Thank you Captain." Cadence replied.
"Honey I think its time for the foals to go to bed." Shining Armor said.
"But I wanna talk to Mr. Deadeye!" Terra and Milos whined.
"Its already 9:30! Thats an hour past your bedtimes. Besides you two have school tomorrow." Cadence said.
"Oh!" The two foals whined as they went upstairs.
"Now that the children are out of the room, is there somethin you two would like to say?" Twilight asked her brother and Deadeye.
"Uh." The two of them said unsure what to say to each other.
"You know its getting pretty late-" Deadeye began to say as he attempted to leave but Twilight teleported in front of him with a stern look on her face.
"We'll leave you two some privacy." Twilight said as everypony left the room. Twilight was hoping Deadeye wouldn't use this time to hurt her brother. Shining Armor and Deadeye sat their in silence for ten minutes. Deadeye could tell Armor was nervous and he couldn't blame him. Armor probably thought Deadeye was going to kill him.
"You don't have to be so tense around me." Deadeye said calmly.
"I wasn't this is just unexpected." Armor replied wanting to strangle his sister for putting him in this situation.
"We both know why we are here and I will say right now I can never forgive you for what you did." Deadeye said causing Armor's heart to sink. Cadence and Twilight were listening from outside and both sighed upon hearing this.
"I know, I don't deserve forgiveness and I certainly will not ask for it." Armor said.
"I'm not finished." Deadeye said. "I may not be able to forgive you but for Twilight's sake, can we start over?"
"You mean it?" Armor asked.
"I have no family left, Twilight is all I have left." Deadeye said holding out his hoof.
"Then welcome to ours, brother." Armor said shaking Deadeye's hoof as the two finally made amends. Twilight burst with joy when she heard the two greatest stallions in her life finally make amends. Twilight and Cadence ran into the room and hugged Armor. Twilight then went over and hugged Deadeye.
"I'm so proud of you." Twilight said to Deadeye.
"So is my father, so is my father." Deadeye said looking up to the sky.
XXXX
"I'm bloody tellin you ya twit! That one goes there and that one goes there!" Pip yelled to Featherweight who was trying to repair a COLT airship.
"It's not my fault these blueprints are written in zebrican!" Featherweight yelled as he frantically tried to decipher what the instructions told him to.
"Pip what do you know about airships anyway?" Spike said as he used his fire to weld two metal beams together.
"I know quite a bit!" Pip said.
"Okay, what are the aerodynamic dimensions used for the liftoff, flight, and landing of a model 3401 COLT airship?" Spike asked.
"Easy thats uh... x is equal to opposite b plus square root a." Pip began to say.
"Thats the quadratic formula genius." Spike said. Growing up in a library and with Twilight had led to him becoming quite an intellectual.
"Cheeky bucker." Pip said under his breath as the three COLT-IIs continued to work on the ship.
"Anypony seen Rumble?" Featherweight asked.
"Nope, and I don't bloody care." Pip said.
"Don't be so harsh Pip." Featherweight said.
"Why? He is a jerk! He never helps! All he cares about is killing something we fought with nearly a decade ago!" Pip said.
"He lost his brother." Featherweight pointed out.
"So did millions of other ponies. He is the most stubborn, insubordinate, unpleasant jackass I have ever met!" Pip said.
"You wouldn't happen to be talking about me would you?" A voice said from behind Pip.
"Oh Rumble! No no no I was talking about uhhhh Snips! Yeah Snips is a total jerk!" Pip lied.
"You lie like you fix airships shrimp." Rumble said noting the bad condition the airship was in. Rumble headed towards the airship and began working on it himself. After ten minutes, he did what two ponies and a dragon failed to do in forty minutes. He fixed the airship.
"Looks like this lazy, stubborn, insubordinate unpleasant jackass did a pretty good job." Rumble said as he walked away. Pip began to curse his bad luck.
"I need a bloody drink you two with me?" Pip asked Spike and Featherweight.
"Sure why not?" Spike said as the three headed back into the city. It was pretty late so the only places open where cider pubs. The COLT-IIs headed for the nearest cider pub and walked in. It was mostly empty meaning more cider for the COLTS.
"Three Sweet Apple Acres Cider please." Spike said.
"You got it boss." The tender said as he pulled out three large mugs of cider. Pip felt the cool sweet liquid quench his thirst. He heard the bell ring as three new customers walked in.
"Well i'll be." Featherweight said as Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle all entered.
"Hey Sweetie over here!" Spike waved his hand to the three mares.
"Hey look its Spike and the others!" Sweetie said as the three mares headed over to the COLT-IIs
"So hows it hanging?" Scootaloo asked Featherweight.
"Pretty good, how bout you?" Featherweight replied.
"So awesome!" Scootaloo said as she recalled what had just happened prior.
Thirty minutes earlier.
Prince Astro yawned as he lowered the sun. Since there were two Solar rulers they alternated each day. He was about to head to his chambers with Celestia when he saw three familiar looking mares down below.
"Thanks fer comin y'all." Applebloom said.
"No problem Bloom, we were excited to see Big Mac too." Scootaloo said.
"Yeah what she said!" Sweetie Belle said.
"You three haven't changed a bit." A friendly voice said from behind. The three mares turned to see Astro behind them.
"MR BUNNYHOP!" The three mares said as they ran in to hug their old friend.
"Its good to see you all again." Astro said as he embraced the fillies who brought him back from the darkness. He laughed at the nickname Deadeye had given him to hide his identity.
"We haven't see you in years!" Sweetie Belle said.
"I know you are all grown up now! You even have your cutie marks!" Astro said.
"Us? I can't believe your a prince and married to Princess Celestia!" Scootaloo said.
"What about you girls? Got any stallion in your midst?" Astro asked as the former cutie mark crusaders told him about each of their crushes.
"Hmmm, Spike, Featherweight, and Pipsqueak, ah yes I remember them. The Young COLTS, never thought they'd all actually become COLTS." Astro said. "Well these three COLT-IIs certainly have gotten the luck of the draw with you three."
"What do you mean?" Applebloom asked.
"Girls like you certainly are unique, don't tell my wife I said that by the way. You three are the bravest, most determined, creative, and prettiest fillies I have ever met, again don't tell my wife I said that." Astro said. The three mares blushed as Astro complimented them, Astro was like a father to them and they always looked up to him as a friend since they met ten years ago.
"Thanks Prince." They all said hugging him.
"You can call me Mr. Bunnyhop and if any of theses COLT-IIs cause you trouble you know where to find me." Astro said.
"Thanks Mr. Bunnyhop! G'night!" The three mare said.
"Good night girls." Astro said as he flew back to his tower.
Present
Each COLT-II gulped when they heard the part about Astro saying he would deal with them if they caused any harm to the fillies.
"Well that was certainly nice of the Prince." Featherweight said.
"Indeed, what say we all share a bloody drink? My treat." Pip said as the the three mares and the COLT-IIs sat together happily in the pub.
XXXX
"And here I thought this was going to be a challenge!" Rubios yelled as he impaled another darkling. The crystal warriors had killed tens of thousands of darklings and the darkling army was beginning to thin. Discord watched from a distance as the crystal which housed King Sombra's soul began to glow red.
"Pathetic weaklings, send in the Mordras Discord." Sombra ordered.
"But of course." Discord said as he gave the Mordra's the signal to attack. One hundred of the superpowered dark beings lunged towards the crystal castle at unnatural speeds.
"My queen!" A crystal archer said to Emeralda. "Reinforcements coming from the east!"
"Let us give them a warm welcome!" Emeralda said she ordered the archers to aim towards the incoming Mordras.
"FIRE!" She yelled as hundreds of arrows were fired at the incoming enemy. Emeralda was shocked when the arrows simply bounced off of the Mordra's armor. Rubios saw this too as he pulled out his shield.
"REFORM THE LINE! TAKE THEM HEAD ON! CHARGE!" Rubios screamed as thousands of crystal warriors let out a shout as they charged the Mordras. The Mordras swung their maces back and hit the first crystal ponies with full force breaking every bone in the ponies bodies. Numerous crystal warriors tried to stab the Mordras but were stabbed themselves first. The darklings took this advantage to move in and kill any crystal warrior who was distracted by the Mordras. Walls of dead crystal warrior began to pile up as the Mordras continued their onslaught. One brave crystal warrior charged a Mordra only to be picked up and have his throat bitten out by the monster. Rubios was heartbroken and dumbstruck at seeing his army defeated so easily, he began to wonder what instigated this attack when it hit him.
"The crystal heart." He said. "PROTECT THE CRYSTAL HEART!" He ordered as the remaining crystal warriors ran to protect the crystal kingdom's source of power. Crystal warriors fought to the dying breath in the streets of the crystal city as they tried to stall the invading enemy. Emeralda and her archers had pulled back to defend the crystal heart after nearly being decimated by a Mordra. Hours passed as screams of terror and death filled the quietness of the night. The smell of blood and death was everywhere. The crystal city had been razed to the ground as never ending waves of enemies continued to attack. Two Mordras had been brought down by the crystal ponies at the expense of four hundred crystal warriors. Soon Rubios was pushed back to the crystal heart and was frantically trying to defend it with his wife and what few soldiers he had left.
"NO RETREAT! NO SURRENDER! NO PRISONERS! NO MERCY!" Rubios screamed as he impaled a darkling with his spear trying to install morale in his battle weary and tired troops. They crystal army had never faced such an enemy in over a thousand years. Cannonfire and catapults continued to level the city as more and more crystal warriors fell to the Mordras. Rubios saw a Mordra going for the crystal heart so he ran to protect it.
"AS LONG AS I DRAW BREATH YOU SHALL NOT TOUCH THE CRYSTAL HEART!" Rubios yelled. The Mordra growled as it prepared to charge. Rubios went to deliver a hit but was struck by the Mordra's fist which caused his ribs to break. Rubios fell to the ground clutching his stomach in pain. The remaining crystal warriors were slewed by the Mordras as Emeralda ran to her husbands aid.
"Emeralda don't!" Rubios screamed as the Mordra stomped Emeralda into the ground breaking her spine. The rulers watched helplessly as the Mordra took the crystal heart and gave it to Discord who had teleported with the crystal containing King Sombra's soul.
"Excellent work, now chaos shall rule this land!" Discord said as he put the crystal heart next to the crsytal containing Sombra's soul. Rubios and Emeralda looked to see their worst nightmare. The crystal containing Sombra's soul begun to glow as a red gas was released from it. The gas took the from of a unicorn as thunder and earthquakes accompanied the return of the evil one. Sombra stood a head taller than Rubios and was heavily muscled and armored.
"It feels so good to have a body once more." Sombra said as he growled. The Mordras and darklings bowed down to their master.
"King Sombra." Rubios spat with disgust.
"I have come to reclaim my throne." Sombra said.
"Over my dead body!" Rubios said as he used what little strength he had left to charge Sombra. Sombra used his horn to impale Rubios as they crystal king charged.
AH!" Rubios screamed as he felt Sombra's horn rip through his skin, muscle, nerves and organs.
"So ends the reign of Rubios!" Sombra yelled as he fired a magical blast from his horn which blew Rubios into two pieces.
"BROTHER!" Emeralda screamed in pain as she saw her husband blown to bits.
"Such romantic nonsense." Sombra said as he curb stomped Emeralda's face into the ground smashing her skull and killing her. Sombra smiled as he ascended the castle stairs to his throne room.
"It feels so good to be home." Sombra said laughing as his army took over the rest of the city enslaving whoever had survived the battle.
"My lord the natives have been enslaved and all resistance has been crushed." Discord said to Sombra.
"Excellent, Celestia and Luna could not stop me from this, Equestria is next!" Sombra yelled as he saw Canterlot Castle in the distance. A dark cloud began to form over the crystal kingdom as the earth trembled in fear.
The evil King Sombra had returned. |
C.O.L.T.S II | The Enemy of my Enemy | Next Chapter
The next day the COLTS were called down to the Canterlot Armory. They were not enthusiastic about getting up early but it was nothing they weren't used to.
"Gentlecolts, you are probably wondering why I called you down here." General Blue River said.
"Yes we are." Deadeye said yawning.
"We have forged and upgraded new COLT armor for you five." Blue River said. "It is lighter, tougher, and more flexible than your previous suits. It also has the glider and has built in grapple hook launchers."
"COOL!" Blitz shouted. The COLTS began the process of putting on their armor. They started with the full skin tight body suit which covered everything except their faces. Next came the dragon scale suit which also was a full body cover.
"Wooh! I feel like its not even there!" Blitz said as he jumped around effortlessly in the suit. Next the COLTS put on the actual armor components. Starting with the boots and knee pads to the thigh and buttock pads. Then came the gloves for the forehooves and the arm armor with the shoulder pads. Next came the chest and back armor which came together to form one plate. Finally they put their helmets on, unlike the previous models this COLT helmet sported one visor instead of two eyeholes. Blue River stared in awe and admiration of the lethal beauty in front of him.
"Never thought I'd put on one of these babies again!" Deadeye said as he practiced jabbing.
"That's not all, we also upgraded your weapons." Blue River said smiling.
"Do tell." Shadow said interested.
"We have replaced your automatic crossbows with magical crossbows. Instead of an arrow it fires out a magical blast however it is not the quietest thing in the world so on stealth missions you will have to use regular crossbows." Blue River said.
"How does it work?" Big Mac asked.
"Inside is a unicorn horn that some unicorns donated to the project after they were deceased. The horn is enchanted by the Princesses themselves to be self generating magic so your ammo for this is practically unlimited, be warned if it is overused or is fractured it could cause a magical explosion."
"This thing is sick!" Blitz said as he fired the new weapon at a nearby target and shattered it to pieces and almost shooting Deadeye in the process.
"Blitz I swear to Faust!" Deadeye yelled as two magical bolts whizzed past his head. "What about the twos? Do they have these as well?" Deadeye asked referring to the second generation of COLTS.
"No not yet, that armor and crossbow is extremely hard to make and at the moment we only could make five so we figured it best to give to the best. Well what do you say? Is COLTS Omega back in buisness?" Blue River said.
"Ha-ooh sir." Deadeye said in response.
"That's what I like to hear." Blue River said.
XXXX
Spike yawned as he woke up and stretched his limbs. He let out a large flame as he belched. He looked over to his left to see Sweetie Belle sleeping.
"Oh no please don't tell me I did what I think I did!" Spike thought as he shuddered. Waking up next to a mare when you couldn't remember anything from the night before never ended well. Spike's memory began to flood back as he remembered the former cutie mark crusaders falling asleep at the cider pub at around three in the morning so the COLT-IIs had to carry them home. Spike must have passed out in the same bed Sweetie did.
"S-Spike?" Sweetie sweetly asked as she began to wake up.
"Hey Sweetie." Spike said. Even though it was her name, if felt weird calling her 'sweetie'.
"What happened? Where are we?" She asked, her mind a little dark. She looked up to see the muscular dragon looking down on her. She couldn't help but realize how massive Spike really was. She quickly looked away after realizing she had been staring for a while.
"Hotel room, we passed out last night." Spike said.
"In the same bed?" Sweetie asked innocently causing Spike's face to flare up.
"Well-I didn't mean to- I just-" Spike blubbered incoherently. How could he honestly explain that.
"Why are you freakin out?" Sweetie asked. "All we did was sleep."
Really? She is still a foal sometimes I swear!" Spike thought to himself surprised at Sweetie Belles naiveness. "Well Sweetie I better get going, the teams got patrol today."
"NO!" Sweetie said louder than she meant to. Once she realized what she did she covered her mouth with her hoof.
"Sweetie I have to go or I'll get in trouble." Spike said taking her hoof in his hand. "I'll be back tonight."
"Okay if you say so." Sweetie said sadly as Spike walked out. He felt bad for leaving her but he had a job to do. He soon ran into Pip and the others and they made their way to the forests outside of Canterlot. Featherweight and Pip had gotten into a huge argument that was annoying both Spike and Rumble to all hell.
"I'm bloody tellin you mate! Your armors cracked!" Pip yelled at Featherweight who had a mark on his left shoulder pad that Pip thought was a crack.
"No its not! It's a scratch look!" Featherweight said moving his hoof across it to prove there was no crack.
"Shhh! Did you guys hear something?" Spike asked as he picked up a noise with his enhanced hearing.
"I heard it too." Rumble said as he loaded his weapon. The COLT II's moved forward as the bushes in front of them continued to move. Out came four griffons.
Four Steel Talon griffons.
"GRIFS!" Rumble screamed as he tackled one of the griffons to the ground. The other griffons went to help their comrade and the ponies went to pull Rumble off of the griffon he tackled.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" Rumble screamed as he pulled out his knife on the griffon before being tackled by another griffon.
"Rumble get the buck off!" Spike yelled as they tried to pull the enraged Rumble off of the tackled griffon. Spike's stronger dragon body overpowered the former pegasus and he eventually pulled him off.
"AHH WHAT THE BUCK!" The griffon yelled as it rubbed its face. Pipsqueak figured it was male by its lower voice.
"Clawthorne are you okay?" One of the other STs asked the griffon known as Clawthorne.
"Yeah I'm fine." Clawthorne said as he rubbed the dirt off his armor before turning to Rumble. "Put a freakin leash on that thing will ya?"
"Watch it grif." Rumble growled.
"Stuff it pony!" One of the other griffons yelled. This one was unmistakably female due to her voice and curves.
"Or what?" Rumble said walking up to Gilda and stared her straight in the eye. The tension was so thick it could be cut with a knife.
"ENOUGH!" A loud voice from the last griffon yelled. He was much larger than the other three and he had the battle hardened face of a veteran. "Gilda stand down."
"Gilda?" Spike said. That name rung a bell for him but he couldn't quite figure it out.
"Lame ponies." She whispered but Spikes enhanced hearing allowed him to hear it. Thats when it hit him! This was Rainbow Dash's friend from eleven years ago! He could remember she was very rude, hotheaded, and an overall bully. She had even made Fluttershy cry!
"Who is your commanding officer?" The leader griffon asked.
"That would be me." Spike said. He wasn't an officer but he was the highest ranking out of the COLT-IIs.
"Captain Eaglebeak, Steel Talons Team Four." Eaglebeak said. "This is my team: Private Clawthorne, Private Gilda, and Private Goldbeak."
"Sergeant Spike, COLT II Squad Epsilon. This is Corporal Pipaqueak, Private Featherweight, and Private Rumble."
"COLTS eh?" Eaglebeak said. Out of all the ponies and griffons present he was the only one who had fought in the war eight years ago. He remembered how many of his fellow STs perished at the hands of the Equestrian super soldiers. He tried hard to push back old resentment remembering what King Lionheart had ordered him to do.
"What brings you here mates?" Pip asked.
"Reports of missing griffons near caves, im sure you guys are having the same problem." Goldbeak said.
"Yeah, that and these things called 'darklings'." Featherweight added.
"Wait you guys have those too?" Clawthorne asked as he rubbed the area where Rumble had hit him.
"Yeah, little buggers attacked the mines where we found COLTS Omega." Pip replied.
"You boys ever hear the saying the enemy of my enemy is my friend?" Eaglebeak asked.
"NO! I don't care if Faust herself declared war on us! I will NEVER EVER consider you scum my 'friend'!" Rumble yelled.
"Who you callin scum?" Glida asked stepping towards Rumble.
"I'm callin you scum grif!" Rumble scowled.
"If you two don't bloody mind!" Pip said coming between the two and breaking them up. "We've got bigger problems then you two lovebirds quarrelin."
"Your corporal is right. The bigger threat remains the darklings." Eaglebeak said.
"Come with us, we will take you to Canterlot where we can further discuss this." Spike said.
"Are you crazy? We might as well hand over Equestria!" Rumble yelled.
"Bloody hay Rumble!" Pip said facehooving. "That was eight flippin years ago! You didn't even know how to multiply two and two when it happened!"
"You still don't know how to multiply two and two dumbass." Rumble growled.
"Come on man, cool it." Featherweight said trying to calm Rumble. Featherweight was the only pony who could calm Rumble down since the two had practically been friends since birth.
"Fine but if you try anything sketchy." Rumble said pulling out his sword at lightning speed decapitating a nearby tree to prove his point. The COLT-IIs and the STs made their way towards Canterlot. Pip and Spike had started up a conversation with Goldbeak and Clawthorne while Rumble and Gilda shot death glares at each other. Featherweight did his best to keep Rumble from snapping and causing trouble while Eaglebeak said nothing.
"If this is how Rumble reacted then I really don't want to imagine how the Ones are gonna react." Featherweight thought to himself as the soldiers disappeared over the horizon. |
C.O.L.T.S II | How It Came to Be | Next chapter.
Dark clouds rolled over the skies of the former Crystal Empire. Bodies and blood flooded the streets in a scene of unending death. Discord stood pitched up on the roof of Sombra's throne room. It delighted him to see such chaos befall the so called 'Land of Harmony'.
"Discord!" Sombra yelled. The lord of chaos slithered into the throne room where Sombra sat with an elaborate dark crown over his head. Four Mordras stood at either side of his throne, not that he'd really need guards to defend himself. He also had the heads of Rubios and Emeralda placed on pikes at the entrance.
"Yes?" Discord asked as he snapped his fingers and a cloud of cotton candy appeared above his head. He dug into it and began eat it.
"I believe some congratulations are in order." Sombra said as he stood up. Discord gulped, in every story he ever read the bad guy's lackey always got killed when he was supposed to be rewarded for his help.
"What do you mean?" Discord asked trying his best not to sound scared.
"I would have never accomplished any of this without you, so in return, I shall grant you anything your heart desires." Sombra said.
"Really?" Discord asked relieved.
"Indeed." Sombra said.
"Well lets see I have about everything I would want." Discord said as he began to use his fingers to count. "I've been set free from stone, I've been given all this glorious chaos, what else could I possibly-OH YES!"
"What is it?" Sombra asked.
"I want Celestia," Discord said. Sombra was disappointed, he wanted to be the one to kill Celestia but he was a pony of his word.
"Very well, when Equestria falls I will have her head placed on a silver platter and brought to you." Sombra said.
"No, not dead." Discord said. "I want to make her my slave." Upon hearing these words, the gears in Sombra's head began to turn as a dark plan formed.
"Of course! Why did I not think of it before?" Sombra said.
"Think of what?" Discord said as he finished off the cotton candy cloud.
"I was originally just going to enslave Princess Luna, but why not enslave ALL the royalty?" Sombra said laughing.
"Two things: How are you going to defeat FOUR alicorns and two, why the interest in Luna?" Discord asked.
"All answer those in order." Sombra said. "Cadence is weak and she will be no threat. Celestia and Luna are only powerful when together, separated they will fall. The biggest threat is Astro and even he will fall."
"How will he fall?" Discord asked.
"You shall see." Sombra answered. "As for Princess Luna, we have quite a history together."
"Quite a history?" Discord asked confused.
"You are familiar with the tale of Nightmare Moon are you not?" Sombra asked.
"Yeah so what?" Discord asked.
"Lets just say they left out some minor things in the story." Sombra said.
"Like what?" Discord asked.
"You shall see, you shall soon see." Sombra said as he watched his army gather over the horizon. "Once I have the alicorn amulet, I shall become a god once again! You could never have stopped this Faust!"
XXXX
"Autumn, are you alright?" Rarity asked her lover.
"No, I am NOT alright!" The stallion harshly replied. "My little brother is DEAD!"
"It wasn't your fault!" Rarity said trying to calm him down.
"How would you feel if Sweetie Belle was killed and you weren't there to help?" Autumn asked. Rarity was speechless, if anything ever happened to her beloved sister she would never forgive herself.
"I suppose I would feel the way you do." She said.
"I need to be alone." Autumn said as he got up and stomped away so hard his hooves put holes in the ground.
"Oh Autumn." Rarity sadly said.
"HIYA RARITY!" A blob of pink that appeared out of nowhere said causing the fashionista to fall over in stark terror.
"Oh my! Pinkie Pie! Please do not sneak up on me like that, you know I have a low tolerance for surprises." Rarity said dramatically.
"Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie said as she she saw Autumn stomping away. "What wrong with him?"
"His brother didn't make it, he is devastated." Rarity said drooping her head down.
"Oh thats so sad!" Pinkie said sniffling. She remembered how crushed Applejack and Applebloom were when they thought Big Mac was dead. "I know what would cheer him up!"
"Pinkie darling, I don't think he is in the mood for cupcakes or a party right now." Rarity said trying not to sound mean.
"But who doesn't love parties and cupcakes?" Pinkie asked.
"Did somepony say 'cupcakes?" Blitz asked as he ran out from nowhere with a smile beaming on his face.
"You bet I did Blitzy!" Pinkie said pulling out a tray of Blitz's favorite treat, red velvet cupcakes. Rarity just sighed as Pinkie and Blitz began to gorge themselves with the sweets.
"RARITY!" A voice called out. Rarity's ears perked up as she heard the voice. She lifted her head and saw her sister trotting towards her.
"Oh hello Sweetie." Rarity said hugging her sister. "How are you doing?"
"The doctor said I'll be fine." Sweetie said. She had just been released from the hospital after the Mordra had choked her. She had heavy bruises under her coat on her neck. Rarity was enraged that some monster had hurt her sister.
"Whats wrong sis?" Sweetie asked noticing Rarity's sad expression.
"Nothing its just, Autumn is very upset over his brother." Rarity said.
"Are you okay though?" Sweetie asked. "He didn't hit you or anything did he?"
"Heavens no! Autumn would never lay a hoof on me! I just feel so bad for him." Rarity said.
"Do you want to grab something to eat? It would take your mind off everything." Sweetie said. Rarity was going to object until she realized ever since Sweetie had finished school and moved onto a singing academy, the two hardly talked anymore. She also remembered how much Sweetie tried to get her attention when she was a filly and how Rarity rarely made time for her. Rarity decided to make time to spend with her sister.
"That sounds lovely." Rarity said as two made their way to a nearby diner. The two began to talk about each other and how their lives were going, they eventually got on the topic of Spike.
"I still can't believe Spike is a COLT-II." Sweetie said.
"As do I, I can't believe Spikey-Wikey is all grown up!" Rarity said.
"You know he had a huge crush on you when he was younger." Sweetie Belle said.
"Yes I was quite aware but I knew it would never last." Rarity said.
"What do you mean?" Sweetie asked.
"Don't get me wrong, Spike is a very sweet and kind dragon but it was only a childhood crush and they never last." Rarity said. "When I was a filly, I had a crush on former captain of the guard at the time, Captain Chivaly. Beside, Spike has found a new pony."
"HE HAS!?" Sweetie said out of concern and worry as she slammed her hooves on the table. Her outburst brought the looks of several other ponies in the diner.
"Well I say." Rarity said chuckling.
"Sorry bout that, but who is the pony Spike likes?" Sweetie asked.
"Is it really that hard to tell? Rarity asked Sweetie rhetorically as their food arrived and they began to eat.
XXXX
Big Mac had been spending most of his time with Luna. Truth be told, he did miss bucking apples at Sweet Apple Acres. He missed the crisp smell of the apple trees, he missed the soft, brown dirt, he missed watching the sunset from the farmhouse. Someday he promised himself that he would return to his home. He turned to see Luna sleeping soundly. She was the Princess of the Night so she was awake all night and slept throughout the day. Big Mac smiled as he exited her bedchambers. He needed information on this Sombra and he knew exactly where to go. He ran out of Luna's corridor and headed for Celestia and Astro's corridor. Even though he could run on two legs, he was faster on all fours. He saw COLT-II's guarding the entrance to the private chambers, not that Astro would need any protecting.
"Can I help you sir?" One of the guards asked.
"Is the Prince here?" Big Mac asked.
"He is busy right now and-"
"Let him in." Astro said from inside. The two guards nodded and allowed Big Mac access. Big Mac entered and was impressed by the room. There were portraits of Celestia and her family that dotted the room and there was an exquisite bed where the sheets appeared to be flowing like waves. There was a fireplace and adorned above the mantle was Astro's COLT armor.
"Wow." Big Mac said.
"Big Macintosh, to what pleasure do I owe this visit?" Astro asked.
"Oh." Big Mac said bowing. "Ah needed some info."
"On what exactly?" Astro asked.
"This Sombra fella and his lackeys." Big Mac said. Astro sighed as he used his magic to lock the doors and windows to the room.
"Big Mac are you familiar with the story of creation?" Astro asked.
"Sumwhat, mah ma and pa told me stories about how Faust created the heavens and Equestria." Big Mac said.
"There is more to it than what you were told." Astro said. "In the beginning when Faust created the world, she created the race of alicorns in her image. She had given the alicorns jurisdiction over all other life on Equis: The griffons, the dragons, the zebras and so forth. The alicorns purpose was to help the other creatures and teach them harmony. To do this task, the alicorns were given massive amounts of power such as control of the sun and moon. For a time it was peaceful and all the races truly coexisted but good things always come to an end."
"Why, what happened?" Big Mac said.
"Faust allowed free will to the alicorns and there was one who rebelled." Astro said. "Give you one guess who."
"Sombra." Big Mac said.
"Yes, Sombra was once an alicorn. Legend says he was the most powerful and beautiful of all the alicorns. Sombra was blinded by power and felt that he should be in charge since he was the most powerful being in the universe second to Faust. He incited rebellion among all the alicorns save only six who remained loyal to Faust. Faust blessed the six alicorns with the elements of harmony and they easily stopped the rebellion and as punishment, Faust took all the alicorns who had gone against her and stripped them of their power and immortality. She split their wings and magic and they became the three tribes of Equestria."
"The unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies." Big Mac said.
"Faust allowed the six alicorns who were loyal to her to rule over Equestria. These six alicorns included my parents, Celestia and Luna's parents, and Cadence's parents. Faust was merciful and allowed Sombra to live and keep his magic but he was stripped of his wings and cast down to Equis and was never to enter the Immortal Pastures unless he redeemed himself. He was still blinded by anger and instead of simply repenting, he attempted to take over Equestria for himself. He used his supernatural powers to create the spells which turned ordinary creatures into Darklings and Mordras. He manipulated the griffon kingdom into doing his work." Astro said.
"Is that why the griffons attacked us?" Big Mac asked.
"I believe so, Claws Von Griffon was a direct descendant of the griffon king who swore allegiance to Sombra." Astro said. "The six alicorns used the elements to obliterate Sombra's armies but they all perished in the process. Since Sombra survived he led the three tribes of Equestria astray inciting hatred and chaos in the land. Faust again was merciful and sent the daughters of the loyal alicorns, Celestia and Luna, to defeat him and allow the three tribes to set aside their differences and they united in the holiday we call."
"Hearths Warming Eve." Big Mac finished. "But ah thought the wendigos caused all the hate."
"The wendigos fed off the hate, Sombra created it." Astro replied.
"Ah'm just curious though, where did Discord come from?" Big Mac asked.
"Discord was originally created by Faust to act as a prophet for Equis after the alicorns fall from grace. His unique anatomy was to show that all the civilizations in this world could live in harmony since he contained a part of each creatures anatomy on his body."
"What happened to him? Why did he turn bad?" Big Mac asked.
"With Sombra's corruption in the world, the ponies, griffons, dragons, zebras, and all other races viewed him as a freak of nature due to his physiology. They shunned him and hated him. Discord, out of spite, used his powers for chaos and disharmony. Celestia, under the guidance of Faust, was forced to seal him in stone which was preserved by harmony so whenver there was great disharmony, the seal would break and he would escape. All the violence and chaos in the war broke the seal which is why he roams free."
"Wow, ma and pa never told me that." Big Mac said.
"It has been buried by time, it was believed after the coming of Celestia and Luna that harmony would forever be restored but we were wrong." Astro said.
"So that why Luna became Nightmare Moon, because his evil influenced her." Big Mac said. Astro did not have the heart to tell Big Mac the real truth behind Luna, Nightmare Moon, and Sombra. Records said that Luna had helped Celestia stop Sombra but that was only to cover up what really happened. It was actually Celestia who had stopped Sombra all by herself but Astro decided to keep that whole story to himself.
"Just one more question." Big Mac asked. "How come you were never mentioned in any of those old stories?"
"You know that the Mordras have all the powers and abilities of the COLTS right?" Astro asked.
"Eeyup." Big Mac said.
"When the Mordras laid waste to the land, no warrior could ever defeat them in combat. The great wizard of our time, Starswirl the Bearded, had recreated the magical augmentation spells Sombra had made. What nopony realized was that the magical augmentations spells are the greatest form of dark magic. My father decided we needed super soldiers of our own and I volunteered. The methods Colonel Striper used were the same ones written down by Starswirl." Astro said.
"You mean you were-" Big Mac began to say.
"Yes, I was a COLT all those years ago." Astro said before sighing. "Sorry, this is a hard thing for me to talk about."
"If you don't wanna talk about it, ah understand." Big Mac said.
"No, you deserve to know the truth." Astro said. "I was a COLT but it was a double edged package, I got all the powers but I also had dark magic in me. I know you are familiar with the COLT rampancy?"
"Eeyup." Big Mac said.
"Due to the dark magic of Sombra flowing within the COLTS, they are vulnerable to its power and they can become mindless killing machines. Just like the mordras." Astro said.
"So thats why Deadeye was talking all freakishly when he went rampant! He was being possessed by evil! That also explains the voices we all heard in our heads." Big Mac thought.
"When I found out the griffons had allied with Sombra, I snapped and I killed one." Astro said sadly. "I had known Celestia for quite a while and we were in love but when she found me, she was scared of me. Her parents tried to subdue me and in my anger I became fully rampant and became Black Soul. Due to Sombra's dark presence in me I lost my immortality and my magic. I was sealed away under Canterlot for a thousand years until I was released to help aid in the war against the griffons. The thousand years I was sealed caused the effects of the magical augmentations to wear off so I lost my powers so I had to do COLTS training all over again but I was still evil."
"Ah thought the COLT augmentations were permanent." Big Mac said.
"They are only permanent when you only live for one hundred years." Astro said. "They are temporary spells but normal ponies die long before the spells would ever wear off."
"Ah understand, thanks for tellin me all this." Big Mac said.
"Mac, I really should be thankin you. Your sister and her friends were what saved me from eternal damnation." Astro said.
"An you saved mah sister from getting impaled by a spear." Big Mac said recalling the Hearths Warming Eve when Gore attacked Ponyville and Astro fought to the death to protect the ponies there.
"You should be proud of her, she has grown into a great mare." Astro said.
"Ah am." Big Mac said. "Ah am." |
C.O.L.T.S II | Memorial Day | Next chapter.
After finishing dinner at the Sparkle's house. Deadeye went on his way with Twilight. The two ponies walked through the evening streets of Canterlot as Luna began to raise the moon.
"I'm so proud of you!" Twilight said kissing him on the cheek.
"I'm glad I got that crap of my chest." Deadeye said smiling. Deadeye felt as peace for the first time in a long time.
"No war going on, I finally belong to a family again, I've finally made peace with an old hatred, and best of all! No getting called in to missions at random!" Deadeye thought to himself as a beeper went off in his ear.
"Captain Deadeye report to the barracks immediately." The beeper said.
"Faustdammit! I just had to get ahead of myself!" Deadeye thought angrily as he faced Twilight. "Twilight, I gotta-"
"I know, duty calls." Twilight said smiling.
"Thanks, I'll be back after this whole thing is over." Deadeye said as the two kissed and he made his way to the barracks. This had better be important. When Deadeye arrived he put on his armor and loaded his weapon in case of emergency.
"Alright this had better be-GORE!" Deadeye yelled as he leapt at the ST in the room. He pulled out his sword as he jumped down on who he believed to be the infamous Captain Gore. The griffon pulled out his sword as well as the two soldiers met blades.
"How the hell did you survive?" Deadeye growled.
"Because I am not Gore." The griffon said as Deadeye jumped back. "My name is Captain Eaglebek, Steel Talons Team Four."
"An ST? Well if you are not Gore then you will be practice!" Deadeye yelled as he pulled out his crossbow.
"CAPTAIN! HOLD YOUR FIRE!" Soarin shouted as he landed next to Eaglebeak.
"Soarin?" Deadeye said lowering his weapon. "What the buck is going on here?"
"They are here to help us with the darklings." Soarin said.
"Its true mate." Pipsqueak said adding in.
"If you think for one second I am going to trust these scum-" Deadeye said.
"GRIFS!" Blitz yelled as he and the rest of COLTS Omega entered. Blitz and Shadow ran forward to attack Clawthorne and Goldbeak. Blitz flew into Clawthorne who could not hope to match the ponies speed. Shadow began fighting Goldbeak who couldn't lay a claw on the Ghost of Applossa. Autumn ran and tackled Gilda and pinned her to the ground and headbutted her. Big Mac ran up to hit Eaglebeak but the griffons blocked Big Mac's attack and roundhoused the stallion off of him.
"ENOUGH!" Spike yelled as he let out a trail of fire. "Listen, I know this is sudden but they are here to help us."
"Likely story!" Autumn yelled holding his sword to Gilda's throat.
"Back off lamo!" Gilda snarled slapping Autumn's sword away from her.
"Last time ah was in a room with a grif." Big Mac said getting up. "Ah saw mah team almost die and was almost killed mahself."
"Macintosh." Skullcrusher said coming up to him. "I swear on my life that they are here to help."
"Macintosh? Goldbeak thought remembering the stallion who helped him all those years ago.
"Alright ah trust you." Big Mac said.
"COLTS stand down." Deadeye ordered as each pony got off the griffons cautiosly.
"If you are not here to kill us, then you better have a good reason for showing up!" Blitz said.
"We are here to deal with the darkling threat." Eaglebeak said.
"Why do you care about our affairs?" Shadow asked.
"Because griffons have been captured as well." Goldbeak said humbly. Goldbeak seemed the calmest and most respectful of the griffons.
"And because I requested it!" Princess Celestia said as she flew into the room. All the ponies bowed.
"Your highness!" Deadeye said.
"Rise Captain Deadeye!" Celestia said. "I know that you were once enemies but that was a long time ago."
"With respect your majesty, it wasn't that long ago to us." Deadeye said. What was eight years to the ponies was only a few minutes to the COLTS in suspended animation.
"I am aware but you destroy your enemies when you make friends with them. There is a much darker threat that is much greater than Von Griffon." Celestia said.
"The Princess is right." Blitz said as he helped Clawthorne up.
"Do you agree to work with each other to stop this threat?" Celestia asked Deadeye and Eaglebeak.
"Steel Talons Team Four is at your disposal." Eaglebeak said.
"COLTS Omega will fight." Deadeye said as he shook Eaglebeak's claw with his hoof.
"I'm keeping an eye on you." Deadeye whispered as he clenched his grip on Eaglebeak.
"That makes two of us." Eaglebeak growled as the two shoved each other away.
"Captain Eaglebeak, you will be shown to your quarters along with your griffons." Celestia said.
"Thank you Princess." Eaglebeak said as he and ST4 was escorted to their rooms.
"I don't believe this!" Autumn exclaimed. "We are just gonna let them waltz right in?"
"I agree with Autumn, I don't trust them." Shadow said.
"I'll be damned if I let these buckers on our turf!" Autumn said drawing his sword.
"Autumn! Put your sword down now!" Deadeye ordered. Autumn reluctantly acknowledged as he sheathed his sword.
"Captain." Celestia said.
"Yes Princess?" Deadeye asked.
"Tonight is the memorial celebration for those who died in the war." Celestia said. "There will be a ceremony at the COLTS Memorial where COLTS-01 once stood. I was wondering if you would attend."
"I'm not sure." Deadeye said remembering the painful memory of having to bury his father at that spot.
"I completely understand if you do not want to." Celestia said in a kind tone. Deadeye looked over at his team, they all nodded.
"Yes, we will be there." Deadeye said. It would be hard going back to the spot where so many great ponies died at the hoof of those they served but Deadeye wanted to honor Recoil, Earthshock, and his father.
"The ceremony starts at 8:00." Celestia said as she flew away. The COLTS all took off their heavy armor and headed to a shower to spruce themselves up.
"Come on Blitz! You're using all the hot water!" Autumn whined as he banged on the shower door. The COLTS had drawn straws to see who showered first and Autumn had wound up as being the last.
"This is the first shower I've had in eight years! I'm gonna enjoy it buster!" Blitz replied as Autumn growled in aggravation. Big Mac was putting on his COLTS dress uniform. It was a dark navy vest with two white bands crisscrossing on the chest. It had gold buttons going down the chest to the stomach. There was white pants that covered the flank and back legs. There was a golden belt that wrapped around the center of the body. There was also shining black boots that were made for each hoof. On both front sleeves was the COLTS insignia with the COLT motto "Born into fight, fight into death" stitched on. It was COLT tradition to not wear any medals on the dress uniform unless it was the Equestrian Cross. The tradition was made by General Blue River who said that wearing a COLT's uniform is evidence enough of an impressive service record and that any sort of medals or awards were unnecessary.
"Hey let me fix that." Shadow said as he realigned one of Big Mac's buttons.
"Thanks." Big Mac replied as Blitz finally stepped out of the shower.
"Took your sweet bucking time ugly!" Autumn said to Blitz aggravated as he walked into the shower. "There better be hot water."
"Oh there is." Blitz said smiling. Autumn snorted and walked into the stall.
"Blitz what did you do?" Big Mac asked as he saw the devious smile on Blitz's face.
"You'll see in...3...2...1." Blitz counted down.
"AHHHH! THIS WATERS BOILING! BLITZ!" Autumn screamed from the showers. Blitz broke down with laughter as Autumn scrambled to turn the hot water valve off.
"What did you do?" Shadow asked.
"I turned all the hot water valves on before I left so instead of starting out cold and warming up it would come out boiling hot!" Blitz said chuckling as Big Mac and Shadow began laughing.
"You bastard!" Autumn stepped out completely pissed off.
"Uh oh!" Blitz said as he began running.
"Yeah you better run! Wait till you come back! YOU ARE DEAD!" Autumn yelled throwing a bar of soap at Blitz's retreating form. "The buck you two laughing at?"
"Nothing!" Shadow said with a scrunched up face trying not to laugh. Deadeye watched from the other room and just rolled his eyes.
COLTS Memorial-Everfree Forest, 7:55 pm.
Hundreds if not thousands of ponies gathered at the COLTS Memorial where the original COLT base once stood. It was a gentle night with a warm setting and an occasional cool breeze. All of the COLT-II's were present in dress uniform along with hundreds of veterans from the war. COLTS Omega had arrived in full dress attire. Nostalgia hit them like a sledgehammer as they all remembered their days of training here. They also remembered the heartbreak when they came here after they were framed. They were impressed by their statues.
"Not bad." Blitz said looking at his statue.
"Yeah, they made you even uglier in your statue. I didn't think that was possible." Autumn retorted cooled down from the incident earlier. If there was one thing about Autumn it was that no matter how pissed he got at somepony, he was always over it a few minutes later. Deadeye stood at the base of Recoil's and Earthshock's statue. He placed a hoof on each of them.
"Damn feels like yesterday don't it? When we were handpicked to be the first COLTS." Deadeye said remembering like it was yesterday.
Canterlot, ten years ago.
"YAH!" Deadeye screamed as he took down his sparring partner for the tenth time in a row. Sweat ran down Deadeye's head as he helped his partner back up. It was the early days of the Griffon-Pony War and Deadeye had worked his way through the ranks. He had killed many griffons and had gained some recognition for his skills.
"Geez yer gonna kill me on o these days." His partner said in a heavy country accent. "Feel sorry fer any grif that screws witcha."
"Sergeant Deadeye, there is somepony here to see you." A Commander said. Deadeye walked out of the sparring arena and into the observation room where the supposed guest was waiting.
"I have been observing you for some time Deadeye." The pony said without turning around. "Your skills and strength are unique."
"Thank you sir." Deadeye said.
"Tell me something Deadeye." The figure said turning around revealing a white earth pony with a blue mane with the name 'Striper' stitched on his vest. "What do you know about Covert Operations and Lethal Takedowns?"
XXXX
"Never would have guessed that Striper was my father." Deadeye said to the two statues. "You guys remember when I bumped into that trainer the first day? Faust did that suck!"
XXXX
"MOVE IT FILLIES!" A large trainer pony yelled into the confused recruits faces.
"YES SIR!" The recruits yelled as they moved to processing to receive their training equipment. Deadeye was having difficulty organizing his things and he caught the attention of three trainers.
"LET'S GO! MOVE IF FASTER! LETS GO!" A trainer screamed as drops of saliva landed on Deadeye's face.
"SIR IM TRYING SIR!" Deadeye replied.
"OH SO DO YOU 'TRY' TO WIN BATTLES? DO YOU 'TRY' TO PROTECT EQUESTRIA? DO YOU 'TRY' TO FACE THE ENEMY? THERE IS NO 'TRYING' HERE, ONLY DOING!" The trainer yelled.
"Sir sorry sir!" Deadeye said as he finally got his things organized and went to head outside when he slammed right into a trainer.
"Hmmm what do we have here?" The trainer asked.
"Sir I apologize sir!" Deadeye said nervously.
"I think you wanna fight me!" The trainer said grabbing Deadeye by his mane. "Lets go duke it out back there huh?"
XXXX
"Heh, my ass is still sore from that beating." Deadeye said chuckling at the memory. "I'll see you boys soon." He said as he saluted them. He then headed to where his team was standing in the center and waited for the ceremony to start. |
C.O.L.T.S II | Under Attack | Next chapter.
King Sombra walked up and down his throne room trying to figure out where the alicorn amulet was. As of right now he was powerful but he was still mortal, the alicorn amulet would reinstate in him his god-like powers.
"Discord let me ask you something." Sombra asked.
"Yes?" Discord asked as he ate a bowl of paper.
"Are you eating... paper?" Sombra asked.
"Yessum." Discord said as he took a mouthful of paper. Sombra just ignored it and continued on with his question.
"Are you sure you have no indication of where the alicorn amulet is?" Sombra asked.
"Nope, that thing was more heavily guarded and kept safe than the elements of harmony were." Discord said. "All records appear to be lost.
"How disappointing." Sombra said.
"Actually." Discord said. "I think I know where it may be."
"What do you mean?" Sombra asked.
"Now that I think about it, it all makes perfect sense! But what fun is there in perfect sense?" Discord said.
"DISCORD!" Sombra yelled. "Tell me where it is!"
"Okay okay, hold your horses." Discord said chuckling at his little pun. "The alicorn amulet is said to be the most magically powerful item after the elements of harmony. Celestia would not keep in Canterlot because that is too obvious. There is only one pony I can think of that Celestia would entrust the amulet to."
"And who would that be?" Sombra asked.
"Her personal student." Discord said smiling. "Twilight Sparkle.
COLT Memorial
General Blue River went up to podium at the center of the memorial. Princess Celestia and Luna were standing behind him on either side. The elements and COLT-II"s were there as well. All ponies stayed silent as he began his speech.
"Ten years ago, we were attacked by the armies of the Griffon Empire. They were swift, brutal, and tough and many brave stallions fell trying to defend our nation. It was in those moments of despair, certain ponies were called upon to serve. These ponies were trained to do the impossible, these ponies were made to be unbeatable, these ponies were the COLTS." Blue River said. "The COLTS served with great honor and distinction and placed the lives of millions above their own. Unfortunately, due to a bad series of events, the COLTS were wiped out and their base of operations razed to the ground. We are gathered here today to honor those ponies who endured the burden that few ponies could bear. We now asked for a moment of silence as we remember those who are in the Immortal Pastures." Blue River said as he bowed his head. All the ponies followed suit and bowed their heads in respect.
"It is with a great honor that I introduce Covert Operations and Lethal Takedown Squad Omega, please hold your applause till the end. Private Silent Shadow, Lance Corporal Solar Blitz, Corporal Big Macintosh, Sergeant Autumn Leaf, and Captain Deadeye." Blue River said as the COLTS went up to meet the general at the stage while ponies applauded the heroes of Equestria.
"COLTS, for your service and gallant actions during the war, I hereby award each of you the Equestrian Cross!" Blue River said as he put Equestria's highest military decoration on the necks of the ponies. "And to all the COLTS who came before you, I award them the Equestrian Cross posthumously."
"Ooh pretty!" Blitz said as his medal was put around his neck. He winked at his family who was in the crowd.
"Don't worry Blitz, you still look ugly to me." Autumn said.
"Now we shall commence the wreath laying ceremony." Blue River said as TAPS began to play. Each COLT were give wreaths to lay upon each statue of the fallen COLTS. After ten minutes of supreme silence, all statues had wreaths laying at their base except for the tomb of Colonel Striper. Deadeye saved his deceased father's for last. He slowly went up and placed the wreath on the tomb and planted a kiss on the tombstone.
"We saved Equestria father, I hope I made you proud." Deadeye thought as he saluted his father's tomb.
"I'd like to thank each of you for coming tonight-" Blue River said as he heard an explosion in the distance.
"What's happening?" Shadow asked as a royal guard came into the clearing.
"PONYVILLE IS UNDER ATTACK!" He cried out of breath. Ponies began panicking and screaming.
"Shit!" Blue River said as he went up to COLTS Omega who was was already headed towards the armor trunks.
"We got it sir." Deadeye said as the COLTS quickly put on their armor. A battalion of one hundred COLT-II's began adorning their armor as well.
"Princess I advise we get you to Canterlot." Blue River said to Celestia and Luna who were escorted by COLT-II's out of the area.
"Oh no! OH NO!" Pinkie yelled in fear as she heard another explosion in the distance.
"Hey Pinkie!" Blitz said running over to her. "It'll be okay I promise!" A platoon of Royal Guards came to evacuate the elements.
"BLITZ!" Deadeye yelled.
"Yes Cap'n?" Blitz responded as he put on his helmet.
"You are the fastest here, you have to leave now and hold them off till the rest of us arrive do you understand?" Deadeye asked. Deadeye would never send one of his troops to do something like this by themselves but only Blitz was fast enough to get their on time.
"I understand cap'n." Blitz said as he kissed Pinkie and picked up his magical crossbow. He then took off at super speeds towards Ponyville.
"Be safe." Deadeye said as he put his armor on as quickly as possible.
XXXX
"AHHHH!" A mare screamed as she was shredded by a volley of arrows. A Mordra crushed her skull as it stepped over her. Thirty Mordra's and hundreds of darklings waited behind their leader.
"Find the amulet, kill all in your path." The Mordra said as the dark army cheered an approving chant. The darklings and Mordra's stormed the city and set fire to buildings and shoot down any ponies in their way. A group of fillies were huddled up in a corner watching in horror as a Mordra impaled a stallion with its sword. The Mordra saw the fillies whimpering and crying and walked over to them. It laughed as it raised its sword but was knocked to the ground by a blur. The fillies looked up to see a metal mask staring at them.
"Run! I'll hold them off!" Blitz yelled to them but they were too petrified to move. "Listen, I promise i'm not gonna let anything happen to you now you have to run!" The fillies nodded as they ran away. Blitz looked up to see the Mordra he knocked down getting back up.
"A compassionate and foolish move." It said as darklings converged on Blitz. Blitz began firing his magical crossbow at the oncoming enemies and mowed down thirty before he was knocked across the street by a Mordra with a mace. Blitz went flying through city hall where twenty ponies were hiding. The mordra moved in as Blitz got back up, he couldn't find his crossbow so he pulled out his dual swords and connected them to form a double bladed sword. He saw the ponies hiding in the building sneaking out. He circled the mordra as the beast moved in and attacked. The two beings swung their blades at each other in an attempt to cut each other down. The Mordra knocked Blitz's sword away and knocked him to the ground. The Mordra put its massive foot on Blitz's chest and held him down. Blitz activated his hoof dagger and drove into an exposed area on the beast. The mordra howled in pain as Blitz got up and retrieved his double bladed sword. He somersaulted over the Mordra and swung his sword cutting off the beast's arms. He turned around and plunged his sword through the beast's chests and then did a final swing and decapitated the monster finally killing it. He then looked for his crossbow and picked it up.
"Ah buck!" Blitz said as a mace collided with his crossbow and sent him crashing into an abandoned house. He got up and saw that the horn in his magical crossbow was overloading and that it would blow up from the damage it took.
"AHH!" Blitz shrieked as he saw the ten Mordras come in. "Uh, here!" Blitz said giving the damaged crossbow to the nearest Mordra. The beast looked with confusion as Blitz sprinted out of the building. The Mordra opened it's mouth to shriek but never got the chance as the crossblow blew up taking out the ten mordras with it.
"Yes!" Blitz said air hoofing. "Took out eleven so far!" Blitz turned around to see a Mordra commando growling at him with fifteen more commando's behind it. Mordra commandos were even stronger than regular Mordras. "Uh number twelve may be a problem! GUYS I COULD USE SOME HELP HERE!" Blitz said as he pulled out his dual swords and charged the commandos.
XXXX
"HURRY!" Deadeye yelled as the rest of COLTS Omega entered the Ponyville followed by one hundred COLT-II's. They saw Ponyville in flames and dead bodies strewn about the streets.
"BLITZ!" Shadow cried hoping his friend was alright.
"AHHHH!" A figure screamed as it landed on the ground next to Shadow.
"Blitz?" Shadow cried.
"H-hey." Blitz said. His helmet was missing and the top half of his armor was gone. He was littered with scars and cuts. He had two black eyes and was missing a few teeth.
"Blitz who did this?" Shadow asked as he was tackled by a Mordra.
"Theres your answer!" Autumn yelled as he pulled out his crossbow. Autumn fired at the Mordra till it fell down dead.
"What the buck was that thing?" Autumn yelled.
"Doesn't matter just kill the damn things!" Deadeye said as he fired on the darklings. The COLT-II's had also engaged the darklings as well.
"Bloody hell! These are ugly wankers!" Pip yelled as a Mordra tried to bite his face off.
"Tell me about it!" Featherweight said as he kicked a darkling off of him.
"Time for some payback!" Spike said remembering how the Mordra had hurt Sweetie Belle. Spike charged and used his claws to rip darklings to shreds. He ran up to a Mordra and went to claw it but the beast caught his arm and threw the dragon into a pile of debris. Spike got up enraged and released a large fireball upon the Mordra. He could hear it screaming as it burned. When the fire stopped it was heavily charred but still alive. Spike pulled out his sword and went for the kill but the beast kicked Spike before he could strike. The mordra turned and picked up its sword and ran towards Spike to kill him. Spike was prepared and rolled to the side as the blade missed him an inch. Spike kicked the mordra's knee and a pop sound was heard. The beast screamed in pain as it punched Spike in the face knocking the dragon down. Spike brought his legs up and kicked the Mordra in the stomach knocking it back. Spike pulled out his dagger but saw the Mordra was already dead.
"Ugly bastard." Featherweight said as he pulled his dagger out out the mordra's neck.
"That was my kill!" Spike whined as a dead darkling landed in front of him.
"Don't just stand there idiots! Kill them all!" Rumble growled as he activated his gilder and pulled out dual crossbows to kill darklings in the air. Soarin flew through a cloud of darklings and cut them down as Skullcrusher lived up to his name and stomped out a skull of a darkling. Shadow pulled out his harpoon gun as he shot down darklings from far away while he pulled Blitz to safety. Blitz's wounds would heal within the hour but he no longer had armor on his chest or head making him vulnerable to a killing blow. As Shadow prepared to pull the trigger on a darkling, a Mordra Commando landed in front of him and snapped his harpoon gun in half. Shadow somersaulted out of the way and pulled out his magical crossbow and fired at the monster but the bolts were not enough to penetrate it's thick armor. The mordra swung its sword down but Shadow dodged it and launched into the Mordra tackling it to the ground. Shadow used one hoof to smack the mordra's head while he used his other hoof to pull the sword from the mordra's hand. The Mordra used its free arm to punch Shadow off of him and quickly stomped on Shadow's ribs before the COLT could get back up. Shadow felt his helmet get torn off as he was hoisted into the air by the Mordra who was grabbing him by the neck. The mordra brought it's sword to Shadow's throat. Shadow quickly brought up his back hooves and activated his hoof blades and used them to stab the beast in its slightly exposed neck. The Mordra howled in pain as it dropped Shadow. Shadow than picked up his sword and swung with all his might. The first swing chopped halfway through the Mordra's neck so Shadow had to swing two more times to decapitate it.
"Captain!" Big Mac shouted as he shot down a darkling. "They're retreating!"
"COLTS FOLLOW THEM!" Deadeye screamed as he chased after them with Autumn and Big Mac.
"Sir, Blitz is critically injured and no longer has armor, he can't come!" Shadow cried.
"Damn it! Leave him at a medical outpost and get your ass over here!" Deadeye called. Shadow did what he was told and brought Blitz to a field hospital which was being constructed.
"Shadow Im good! I can still fight!" Blitz said passing out.
"Not like this your not." Shadow said as he laid Blitz down. "Your sittin this one out."
"No but-" Blitz said as he passed out. Shadow gave his comrade a hoof bump. Blitz had killed eleven mordra's, thirty darklings, and had taken on fifteen Mordra Commandos all at once by himself! Shadow was impressed by his friends skill.
"Shadow! Let's go!" Deadeye ordered.
"Yes sir!" Shadow replied as they left to find the retreating enemy who would hopefully lead them to their base |
Defenders of Harmony | pre | "What are you doing here, Sombra? What do you have to gain from being here?" I asked, killing time until I could form a plan.
"What do I have to gain? Control." he said. He swung his claw, scratching me in the right side. I screamed in pain as Sombra walked over to Fluttershy. I grabbed the wound and felt the blood leak out. I fell to my knees, squeezing my ribs. I moved my hand away to access the damage. There were five gashes in my side, very deep. The "blood" I felt leak was jet black. Ok. That's bad. Have to get out.
"And you, my dear. We've met before haven't we?" he said standing over Fluttershy. "Quite confident of your colt-friend's abilities, aren't you? Well, he's about to die, so it's only fair that you do as well."
"NO!" I shouted, spinning around on the ground. I pulled Lunar out of the bag, aimed carefully and shot Sombra in the back. The bullet connected, but nothing happened at first. I shot him four more times, and he turned to face me. I emptied my gun into his chest, reached into the bag for more ammo, reloaded and fired again. He walked forward, disregarding Fluttershy. He took my bullets nonchalantly. When he got to me, he touched me on the face. He looked at me one last time, and then dissipated into black smoke. The smoke flew out of the room and down the hall. Fluttershy ran up to me.
"Are you ok?" she asked, concerned.
"I'm fine. We have to warn the others." I said. I pressed my mic to my ear. "Oi! Everypony, abandon the mission. Meet back at base." I tried to get up, and fell back immediately. She grabbed me and draped my arm over her neck. She hoisted me up, and escorted me to the window. She kicked the window, shattering the glass.
"Silver, can you change back? We have to get out." she said. After much concentration, I pulled out my wings. She transformed as well and jumped out of the window. We flapped our wings and booked it back to base. We got halfway there, and dropped. We hit the ground and walked the rest of the way. I began to grow dizzy and I heard whispers. Whispers and laughter. I tripped all the way to the base. We got there just in time to see the other teams arrive. I fell to the ground on the front steps.
"I can't move." I muttered from far away.
"Robert, get him inside."I heard Isaiah say from a distance. I felt myself be lifted up and carried into the house. He placed me down on my bed and covered me with a blanket. The room began to spin, and I couldn't see properly. My ribs were melting and it seemed to be spreading to the rest of my body.
"Isaiah, can you help?" asked Robert.
"Twilight, I'll need you!" he called. The world slowly faded into darkness. Right before I passed out, I heard myself whisper,
"We failed, guys." |
Defenders of Harmony | Option 1 | "Wake up, Chris!" called a voice from outside my room. I sat up in my bed, turning to grab my glasses off of my dresser. I put them on my face and jump out of bed. I use the bathroom, wash my face, and comb through my curly, black hair. I threw on some clothes and ran downstairs. I walked in the kitchen and saw my mother cooking breakfast.
"Morning, Mom." I said cheerfully. I took a seat at the table and waited to be served. My mom dropped a plate of bacon and eggs in front of me. She made herself a plate and sat down.
"What's up, champ?" she said brightly.
"Nothing much. Dad went to work already?" I asked.
"Yeah, but don't worry. He'll be home in time for your party. Who's coming?"
"Well, Robert and Isaiah, obviously. Besides them is Mat, Pat, a couple of girls, and Kyle from the other high school."
"And Sarah is coming." she said.
"But Mom! I don't like her. She's weird. She's always trying to get me to watch that stupid My Little Pony show! Please don't make me invite her!" I begged.
"I know, I know. I don't really like her either, but Harold needs me to watch her for a while. He's busy at the restaurant, and Victoria is away on some restaurant convention. I need to pick her up from her gymnastic practice. We are kinda stuck with her until they get back. Sorry kid, I'll make it up to you. We'll hang out tomorrow. Anyway, it's time for you to get to school." she said.
"Fine. See you when I get home." I said, leaving the house. Little did my mother know, I wasn't actually going to school. I hopped on the bus, which would take me to school in 4 stops. I got off after 6, and walked up to my friends, Mat, Pat, Isaiah, and Robert. I approached them, waving. Mat pulled out five water guns and tossed me one. I opened the tank and sniffed it's contents. Bleach. I think I know where this is going.
"Who?" I asked mischievously. "Where is he?"
"I don't know his name, but he should be walking past here pretty soon." said Mat. Sure enough, a minute after, some kid in a yellow hoodie. On the front were blue eyes, some My Little Pony character. Shutterfly, or something like that. Doesn't matter. We're gonna have some fun. We walked past him, letting him walk away a few feet before blasting him in the back. He turned around, shocked, as we emptied about two gallons of bleach all over him. He ran away in fear and anger, screaming over his shoulder "You guys are assholes!" We watched him run away, us laughing the entire time.
"That was epic!" I said.
"Yeah, it was.He's gonna be pissed. What do we do know?" asked Pat.
"I dunno. Just hang around, I guess." I said. We walked around town, stopping at stores here and there. We stopped off at a burger joint for lunch. We met a few more bronies, harassed them, and kept going. We went to the CD store, picked up the new Tears of Plague CD and were just general delinquents for most of the day. We walked into Jackson's, a vegetarian restaurant, where Sarah worked part-time. I stopped the guys outside and went up to her. Let's get this over with.
"Hey, Sasha." I said drearily. I think some part of me was aware her name isn't Sasha. "Wanna come to my party later?"
"Will there be bronies?" she asked. Here we go.
"No, but there will be normal, non-homosexual, guys you could creep out, if you want." I responded.
"Do I creep you out?" she asked, twirling a lock of her fire-red hair.
"Very much, yes. But, my mom told me you need to stay over for a while, so you might as well show up. I can't exactly tell you to go somewhere else."
"What do you find creepy about me?" she asked, still twisting that bright hair.
"Where to start? You watch a show for 7 year old girls, your hair is bright, obnoxious, and unnatural, you constantly hit on me, and you don't seem to understand personal space." I said, pushing her out of my face. Ugh. She is very... ugh!
"Wanna hear how none of that makes me creepy?" she said. Not waiting for me to answer, she continued. "The show is not for 7 year olds, the target audience is actually for girls more my age. My hair is not all that bright, you're just really normal and dull. I only get in your space to piss you off. As to why I hit on you, well... you're cute."
"Uh... that's cool I guess. Well... see you at my party. Don't be creepy. Try to stay away from me. You're only there because you have to be." I said, walking away.
"You don't mean that! One day, we'll end up together, making out on a rooftop!" she called. I opened the door and stepped out.
"Not even in your dreams, Sasha!" I called looking over my shoulder. I looked back in front of me just in time to see me run into somebody. I fell to the ground, hitting with a thud. He had long, black hair, graying skin and red eyes. He looked down, and extended his right hand to help me up. I grabbed it and felt a rush of wind.
"You must make a choice.", he whispered.
"What was that, sir?" I asked, getting to my feet.
"Sorry. I should have paid more attention to where I was walking." he growled. "Well, have a nice day." He walked past me into the restaurant. I turned back and saw no one but Sarah. Strange. I walked up to my friends to finish the day.
"Who was that?" asked Isaiah.
"I don't know." I said, face dripping sweat. "He bumped into me and whispered... I can't remember. I... don't... what are we doing here, again?"
"We were deciding what next. We gonna mess with more fags?" said Mat.
"Nah. Let's go to find Kyle. He's about to get out of school now, isn't he?" I said. We left and walked to Kyle's high school. We got there a few minutes early, so we had a smoke. Ok, they had a smoke. Me and Isaiah don't mess with cigarettes. We sat outside for ten minutes, waiting for the bell to ring.
BRIIING!!!
Students flooded from the school. I walked into the middle of the group, letting people flow around me. Through the crowd, I picked out Kyle, the short, scrawny, new member of our group. He was cool enough, maybe a little weak for my taste. Anyway, I approached him, grabbed his shoulder, and about-faced. We headed back to my house. We got there and walked upstairs.
"Mom! We're home!" I called heading towards my room.
"Uh... Chris? There's something you should know..." responded my mom.
"In a second! I'm just gonna change my clothes!" I said, opening my door. I walked in and went to hop on my bed. Too bad a creepy redhead was occupying it.
"Hi, Chris!" she said brightly. "I see you're hanging out with your asshole friends. Except for you, Kyle. You're ok."
"What are you doing on my bed?" I asked, exasperated.
"I got out of school early, and your mom told me to make myself at home. I like your room."
"Mom!" I called.
"I didn't expect her to invade your room!" she replied. "Sarah, would you mind helping me set up the party?"
"Of course, Mrs. Brookes. Anything at all." she said. She jumped up and cartwheeled past me. She skipped down the stairs behind my mom, who was mouthing her apology silently. I waved her off and jumped on my bed. My friends and I played video games until 7 o'clock, when the party started. We ran outside to the backyard, where a huge tent was erected. I stepped inside, letting my dad direct me towards a long table, sitting me next to all of my friends. He cut me a slice of cake, threw some ice cream on next to it, and slammed it in front of me. I went to take a bite, but had my face slammed into the cake.
"Happy birthday!" said my dad, raising my face. He passed me a towel to wipe the frosting off, but I couldn't, I was trembling so hard. From laughter, of course. That was hilarious! I wiped my face and finished the rest of my cake. I joked around with my friends and family for over an hour. After a while, I had to take a break, so I left the tent and ran around the side of my house. I grabbed the ladder leaning against the side and scaled up to the roof of my home. I layed down on a mat I had threw down a while back. I stared up at the stars, enjoying the outdoors. I closed my eyes for a while, thinking. I remembered the man from earlier. Who was he? What was that whisper about? And why do I care? He was just some random dude.
"What's up, Chris." came a voice. I opened my eyes and saw the creepy redhead herself, taking a spot next to me.
"What do you want, Sarah?" I asked.
"Ah-ha! You're starting to like me." she said.
"What makes you say that? You didn't get less creepy in four hours."
"You called me Sarah." she said plainly.
"So? That's your name, isn't it?"
"So it is. If you know that, why do you call me Sasha?"
"Why are you up here?" I asked, ignoring her question. "How did you even know I'd be up here?"
"I watched you climb up here. I came up here to talk." she said.
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Do you actually care? Or are you just trying to set me up to look stupid?"
"Guess I do care. So, go on."
"Wanted to ask you why you hang out with such assholes. You're actually a cool person. You should hang out with less-shitty people."
"They're my friends, and they aren't assholes. Why are you so weird?" I asked.
"Ooh, a question game! I like it. Have to answer a question to ask a question; seems fair. I'm weird because it's fun. Normal is boring. Why do you hate bronies so much? We're a cool fanbase."
"I don't hate them. They're just unnatural. They shouldn't enjoy it. Why do you enjoy it?"
"It's funny, it's emotional, it's well-animated, and it teaches good traits. Like how to make good friends. Do you have a girlfriend?"
"Uh... no. Why?" I asked. "Wait, that's not my question! My question is this: Do you consider me your friend?"
"You're my best friend, whether you wanna acknowledge it or not. Do you think I'm pretty?" she asked, inching closer to me. "Answer honestly."
"Er... uh... y-yes. You're really pretty. One of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen." I said, trying to find a way to change the topic. Why was I being so open? "Does your dad know I tease you so much?"
"If he does, I don't care. I know you do it because you can't express yourself. Don't worry about it. Do you wanna start acting like friends?"
"I guess. Will you make an effort to get along with the guys? I'll keep them off your back."
"Will you make a decision?"
"Aren't you supposed to answer my question before you ask yours?" I asked.
"I didn't say anything. I always try to be nice to the assholes. I mean your friends." she whispered, a few inches away from me. "Will you stop me from doing this?" She leaned in and pressed her lips against mine. She kissed me like nothing I've ever felt before. I looked to the right and saw him. The guy from Jackson's was on the roof next to us.
"Enjoying this life?" he growled. "Will this be your choice? Let's see the other option." |
Defenders of Harmony | Option 2 | "Honey, can you come up here?" called a voice from upstairs.
"Coming, babe!" I called. I pushed Angel off of my lap, whispering my apology. I got to my hooves and walked up the cottage stairs. I approached the bedroom door and slowly pushed it open. Sitting on the bed was Fluttershy, in nothing but her undergarments. I sat down next to her, pecking her on the cheek.
"What's up?" I asked cheerfully.
"Pinkie said the cake was done, and I wanted to know if we should go check it out." she said.
"Sure thing. I'm sure Pinkie did a great job. When are we leaving?"
"As soon as I put some clothes on." she giggled. "Unless you want me to go outside in my bra and panties."
"No way! That's for my eyes alone!" I said, feining outrage. "Don't want other stallions getting any ideas."
"Oooh, jealous much?" she teased.
"I'm your fiance. That's part of my job." I said, kissing her again quickly. "Are you gonna get dressed so we can go?" She quickly threw on a top and skirt, slipped into some shoes, hooked her arm around mine, and we stepped out of the house. We strolled into town, heading towards Sugar Cube Corner, the workplace of one of our best friends. We entered the shop, empty except for one stallion. He had a gray coat, a slick, black mane, and stunningly red eyes. He shot us a polite smile and walked past, whispering to himself.
"Will this be it? Will this be your choice?"
"What was that?" I asked, turning around. Nopony was there. "Anypony else hear that?"
"Are you ok? You seem stressed. Wanna talk about it?" asked Fluttershy.
"It's... fine." I replied uneasily, "Just a bit of a headache. Let's see this cake."
"Did somepony say 'cake'?!" came Pinkie's voice from the back room. A second later, she came out wheeling a cart with the most amazing cake I've ever seen. 7 tiers of pure white, pure delicious cake. On the bottommost layer were names of the lucky couple, Fluttershy and Silver Rift.
"Wow." I said. "Pinkie, this is amazing! How did you do this?"
"It was easy! Baking is my whole life! Well, not exactly, because if baking was my whole life, then I wouldn't have time to talk to other ponies, and if I can't talk to other ponies then I can't make friends, and if I can't make friends, I can't find ponies to bake cakes for, and if I can't find ponies to bake cakes for, then I don't have a job anymore, now do I?"
"I suppose not." said Fluttershy quietly. "I love it Pinkie. I'm sure it's amazing."
"You don't think that I made you this super-duper amazing wedding cake without making super-duper amazing sample wedding cupcakes, do you?" said Pinkie, pulling three cupcakes from under the cart. They were decorated similarly to the cake. She passed one to me and Flutters, then shoved one in her own mouth. Me and Fluttershy did the same, and melted at the deliciousness of the cake. Soft and fluffy and sweet. So good!
"So, what do ya think?" asked Pinkie eagerly.
"Amazing!" shouted Fluttershy. Well, she kinda shouted. In her own, whispering way.
"Fantastic!" I said. "How long did it take you to make this?"
"I was up all week! It was fun!" she said excitedly.
"A week?! You haven't slept in seven days?" I asked.
"Nope, not a wink! That's why you haven't seen too much of me. I only left the kitchen to get more ingredients!"
"Pinkie, that's crazy. Even for you! How could you work non-stop like that? Aren't you at least a little tired?"
"It was nothing." she said slowly. "What are friends for? If you can't trust me to make a huge, super-ginormous, amazing, not-to-toot-my-own-horn-but-toot-toot awesome cake, then who can you trust?"
"Are you sure?" asked Fluttershy concerned. "You don't look so good."
"I-I'm good. Just a little... run down. I just need... a little.. nap." yawned Pinkie Pie. Seems like the excitement that was keeping her awake has been exhausted.
"We can't thank you enough, Pinkie. This was amazing! But please, go to sleep. That can't be good for you." said Fluttershy.
"Okey-dokey... lokey." said Pinkie drearily. She pushed the cake back into the kitchen and dragged herself upstairs. We heard the snoring from downstairs.
"That was great!" I said. "What do you think we should do now?"
"Um... If it were ok with you, I'd like to go see Rarity. We have to make sure the rings fit, and you need a suit." replied my fiance.
"A suit, huh? Alright. Rarity's gonna kill me, I put it off so much." I said, grabbing her hand. We left Sugar Cube Corner and made the short walk to Rarity's boutique. We entered. the bell ringing as we opened the door. We stepped forward into Rarity's workspace and called for her.
"One second, darlings!" came a voice from upstairs. "Just finishing up!" A minute later, Rarity climbed down the stairs, covered in sweat, but otherwise happy. She was holding a pillow with two silver wedding rings. On one of them were tiny diamonds encrusted all the way around. She presented them to us as though we held her life in our hands. Fluttershy slipped on the diamond one, while I put on the plain silver. Mine fit perfectly. I held it some distance away from my face to inspect it. I loved it!
"Beautiful, Rarity! You've outdone yourself. It's just so... me. Plain and silver." I said happily.
"Well, I tried to capture your essence in your rings. Speaking of essence, what do you intend to wear?" she asked.
"Uh... The thing is... I don't really-"
"Don't tell me you don't know! You must know! You are getting married tomorrow, and you don't know what you're wearing? Have a seat, darling, I'll find you something nice to wear." said Rarity, pulling shirts and jackets and shoes and ties out of the closet, holding them to my body, checking sizes and... I honestly don't know. I was never the most fashionable. She was doing something seamstress-ish. I dunno, the point is, she got me in a proper tuxedo within an hour, and she didn't rip my head off for procrastinating. It was a good day. She put away the tux, promising to take good care of it, along with Fluttershy's dress. She sent us on our way, telling us to enjoy the rest of our day. We decided to stroll through town, just relax, for the rest of the day. We walked past shops and stalls for a while before we ran into possibly my best friend, Rainbow Dash, soaking wet and holding a water gun.
"What's up Rainbow?" I said.
"Nothin much. Hey, have you guys seen Aj?" she asked, looking back and forth nervously.
"No. Why do you ask?"
"Why do you think, stupid? She doused me and ran! I'll get that mare if it's the last thing I do." she said, only slightly grumpily.
"You don't seem too upset." said Fluttershy.
"Yeah, well, ya know. It's Aj." she said, blushing. "What are you going do? Anyway, I gotta jet. See you two love birds later." She flapped her wings in search of Applejack. She had been acting like that for a while. Always with Applejack. It would seem like my wedding wouldn't be the last. We continued our walk, eventually ending up at Twilight's library. I knocked three times then let myself in.
"Twily! It's us!" I called, taking a seat next to Flutters.
"I keep telling you not to call me tha-. Oh, what's the point?" said Twilight from upstairs. She slid down her banister and took a seat facing us. "What can I do for you guys?"
"Nothing, really. We just wanted to hang out. All the preparations for the wedding are done, so we have some free time." I said.
"Oh, ok. I just have to send out these letters." she said. She closed her eyes for a second, willing her horn to glow. We heard a faint POP from the next room, the pop of a teleportation spell.
"Who were the letters to?" asked Fluttershy.
"Vinyl Scratch, Octavia Melody, and Princess Cadence. Octavia is performing at the ceremony, Vinyl is doing the after-party, and the princess wants to be there to congratulate you."
"How nice." I said, my head reeling. I kept hearing whispers, deep, growling whispers.
"Choose."
"What was that?" I asked.
"We didn't say anything, Silver. Are you ok? You've been like this all day." said Fluttershy concerned. She scooted closer to me and nuzzled her cheek against my own.
"I'll make some tea." said Twilight, getting up. She left to the kitchen, where she began to fill a kettle. I turned to where she sat and saw the stallion from Sugar Cube Corner, sitting in her spot.
"Just as nice as the last one. Which will you choose? Guess we're about to find out." he growled. With a snap of his fingers, the world melted into black. |
Defenders of Harmony | Ultimatum | I was suddenly... nowhere. Nothing was around me, just white. I was definitely standing on something, I could feel my feet touching the ground. It was both hard and soft, cold and warm at the same time. Interesting. I walked forward a couple steps, when, out of nowhere, a full sized mirror appeared in front of me. I gazed into it and saw I was naked. Slightly concerned, I looked around for anyone. No one but me. Still, I wished I had some clothes. No sooner had I formed the thought, I looked into the mirror again, astonished by the sudden appearance of jeans and a black t-shirt on my body.
"Anybody here?" I called into the nothingness. I turned around and was face to face with a man, grey skinned, black haired, and red-eyed. I say face to face, but he was so tall, I only actually got up to his neck.
"Hello." he said in a deep, growling voice.
"Hey, I know you! We ran into each other at Jackson's!" I shouted.
"Really? Is that the only place you know me from?" he said, calmly. I wracked my brain, thinking it over. Oh, yeah. I have seen him besides that.
"You were at Sugar Cube Corner, too." I said, proud that I figured it out. Then something clicked. "Wait a second. How did I see you in Jackson's and Sugar Cube Corner? For that matter, what was I doing at both places?"
"Finally got there, did you?" he said. "About time, too. That is a good question, by the way. How was I both in Equestria and on Earth? I think you can ask a slightly better question, though." I thought about it, and something else odd came to mind.
"Who are you?" I asked, a little frustrated. He was making me feel stupid, and I didn't like it.
"There you are. Well, let's play a game. I always loved games. Guessing games, to be precise. So, guess who I am." he said. I looked at him hard, concentrating. Just then, I noticed his gray steel armor and sheathed sword. He saw my look of horror and smiled a fanged smile.
"Sombra!" I shouted. "Where are we? What have you done with my friends?"
"Not too bright, are you?" he said, condescendingly. "Think about it! What have you experienced lately?"
"I... lived on Earth for a while. Then I was in Equestria." I said, slowly piecing together the puzzle.
"Yes, yes, but more than that! What happened in both places?"
"On Earth, it was my birthday. I was hanging out with Isaiah, Robert, and Mat and Pat? Why would I be hanging out with them?"
"Because that is what you want more than anything." replied Sombra. "Well, that's part of what you want."
"I don't want to be friends with those jerks!" I said.
"No. You want them to not be jerks. What else was on Earth that's different?"
"My mom. She didn't hate me." I replied, remembering. It was like waking from a dream and trying to piece together what happened. "And my dad! He was alive!"
"Yes, he was indeed. Understand now?" said Sombra impatiently. "No? Well, let's keep going. In Equestria, you were getting married to Fluttershy. Why do you think that is?"
"No idea. I imagine you know. It was probably you who did it." I said bitterly. Where was Celestial when you needed it? Other things seemed to just materialize, so why not my weapons?
"You aren't getting your weapons because I have them right here." said Sombra, raising my gun and sword. "Since you don't seem to be getting it, I'll explain. You might want to sit down for this." Two chairs appeared out of thin air, facing one another. Sombra took one and nudged the other towards me. I sat down carefully, waiting for some sort of explanation.
"Well?" I said, crossing my legs. "Explain."
"You have tasted two lives, each perfectly imperfect in their own ways. On Earth, you have loving parents, a pretty girl, and the one thing you want more than anything: to fit in. All you want is to be accepted and loved, so I showed that to you. In Equestria, you had no parents, five close friends, and a beautiful fiance, who you were going to marry in the morning. I gave you a peek at the only other thing you could want: Fluttershy."
"Why would you show me that? What do you gain?" I asked, leaning forward.
"Me? I gain nothing. It's what you gain. And what you gain is the perfect life. If you play my game, of course."
"It's always a game when you have power. Give someone too much control, and they stop taking things seriously." I said, unamused. "Not that I'm bending to your demands, but what's the game?"
"The game is simple." said Sombra, pulling Lunar from off of his lap. He chambered a single round and passed it to me, grip first. I grabbed it, confused. Was this some sort of trap?
"Why are you giving this to me?" I asked.
"So you can play the game." he said, standing up. "The game is this: I've shown you two lives, your two perfect lives. Choose."
"What?" I asked. I didn't understand.
"Choose." he repeated, snapping his fingers. Next to him appeared my mother, wearing an apron, and Fluttershy, wearing a wedding gown. "You have one bullet in your gun. You can choose your mom or your wife-to-be. Whoever you shoot will be erased from your reality. You will be inserted into the moment when you left, with no memory of this or your past. You will remember things that never happened, your time with Fluttershy or your past with your mother. It will be as if you had lived that life in that world your entire life."
"You want me to choose? What's the catch?" I asked.
"No catch. There is no way for you to lose this game. Whatever makes you happy will become real. So what will it be? You can be Christian Brookes on Earth, or Silver Rift in Equestria. Just pick."
"I have to pick? Why would I do that when I can just go and be both?" I asked.
"Because it's the only way out of here. You must decide, or you will rot here for all of eternity." he laughed. "So, maybe I lied when I said you couldn't lose. It's just really hard."
"Where are we?" I asked fearfully.
"We are in your subconscious, deep in the recesses of your mind. But that's besides the point. Just choose. Is it that really so hard? Why can't you just decide? It won't hurt them. It's mostly symbolic. I was going to give you the sword and say you had to 'sever the bonds you had' but that seemed overdone. Don't worry, I won't judge you, whatever your choice may be. You deserve happiness, so I'm just trying to give it to you."
"I can pick which life I want? And no one will be hurt by it?" I asked.
"No one will even notice. You have to decide, though." growled Sombra. Could I? Could I really choose one over the other? I turned Lunar over in my hands, thinking. I would be happy either way, so what was the big dilemma? I just had to choose.
"Flutters or Mom?" I said to myself. I took my time, thinking it over once more. Finally, I had reached a decision. I pointed the gun at my target and gripped the butt of my gun. I aimed carefully and took a deep breath, when suddenly my brain felt a quick ZAP! What was I doing?! I couldn't do this! There had to be another way. I lowered the gun, thinking again.
"What are you doing?!" asked Sombra angrily. "You must choose!"
"I'll choose, after I explain my choice to you. You okay with that?" I said. "Good. You see, I just figured out what you're trying to do. You are trying to destroy me, destroy what I am and what I stand for."
"No, of course not!" said Sombra.
"Yes, you are. But, ya know, I learned something a while ago, from my mother. Me and my mum didn't always see eye-to-eye, but she gave me good advice, advice I follow to this day. Whenever I felt like quitting, she would remind me of something. She would say 'Everything in life has two abilities. They have the ability to create and the ability to be conquered.' And this 'game' of yours is not my favorite thing in this world. I just have to find a way to conquer it. You see, you're evil, pure evil. But even evil does not destroy."
"Evil doesn't destroy? Then what do you call what I did to the Crystal Empire?" he asked smugly.
"Creation. You created the necessary strength for your victims to keep fighting. Even now, as you try to destroy my life, you are creating power, power for me to make a choice." I said, raising Lunar.
"So, you will still choose? What will it be?" growled Sombra.
"Well, I was going to shoot my mom." I said, pointing the gun at her. "But then, I thought, 'Eh, maybe I'll shoot Flutters.'" I turned the gun onto Fluttershy.
"Which is it?!" cried Sombra. "You must make a choice."
"You say that whichever life I pick, I'll win. You are wrong. If I pick either of these I will lose."
"So pick the one where you'll lose less." said Sombra angrily.
"Ah, but I can pick the third option." I said knowingly.
"There is no third option! You must pick between the two!"
"You said whoever I shoot will be erased from my reality." I said, placing Lunar's barrel against my temple. "What if I want to erase myself from this reality?"
"What are you doing?!" yelled Sombra. He seemed to be losing it.
"I don't want to make this choice, so I'll remove myself from a world in which I have to. You had me backed against the wall, Sombra, and I was gonna make a choice, but you made the mistake of giving me a way out. You underestimated my intelligence, and I'll make sure you regret it, that's for damn sure."
"What are you doing?!" repeated Sombra.
"What am I doing?" I said, gripping Lunar. "I'm winning. Isn't that what you wanted?" And I pulled the trigger.
BOOM!
I opened my eyes slowly. I looked down at my right arm and noted the IV needle. I sat up and ripped it out of my arm. I turned to my right and saw Conjure standing at a counter, flipping through files. I jumped to my hooves and stretched out my back. Ugh. Stiff, like I had been sleeping for a while. I shrugged it off and examined my side. Someone had bandaged it up. It was sore, but otherwise I was fine. Isaiah still hadn't turned around.
"Hey. What's up?" I said cheerfully. "I'm awake! We should plan a new attack." He jumped at the sound of my voice. He turned around quickly, staring at me. He stepped up to me and tapped my nose softly. He stepped backwards and punched the air.
"Hell yeah!! It worked!! I am a genius!" he shouted with excitement.
"Someone's excited. Jesus, I was only out, what a couple of hours? A day?" I said.
"A couple of hours?" he asked, sorrow replacing his excitement. "Dude, you were out for-"
"It doesn't matter." I said, ignoring him. I ran out of my room to an empty hallway with no other rooms. Conjure must've been rearranging the house. I ran down to the middle of the hall, looking for a door. I looked down and saw a hidden trap door. I stomped hard, knocking it open. I went into Silver Rift form and floated down. I walked down to the training room, assuming that's where everypony was. In the middle of the the room were the Mane Six, minus Fluttershy, huddled over a table. Their manes were messy and Pinkie seemed to have just recovered from a bout of tears.
"Hey, guys." I said. "Where's Fluttershy?" They turned around quickly, and stared at me. They looked very tired and worn down.
"Oh my..." said Twilight. "Isaiah was right."
"What exactly was he right about? And where is Fluttershy?" I asked worriedly. I heard a few quick, heavy hoof-falls from behind. I turned around and saw Fluttershy at the steps. She looked at me and broke into a run. I extended my arms to hug her, but instead was met with a fist.
WHAM!
Fluttershy's fist collided with my nose, shattering it. I looked up at her and noticed her face, covered in dirt and scars.
"You asshole!" she shouted angrily. "You have some nerve coming back now. I'm going to go for a quick flying. If you're smart, you won't be here when I get back." She left the room in a fury.
"Wad happened do 'er?" I asked through a mouthful of blood. She messed me up bad. "How did she gid so strong?" It was Rainbow who spoke.
"She had three years to work out. She took advantage of it."
"Three years? Wad are you talking about?" Twilight walked over to me and fixed my nose with her magic.
"I'm sorry, Silver. I'm so, so sorry. You've been dead for three years." |
Defenders of Harmony | The New Boss | "What. The. Hell. Are you talking about?" I asked, knees weak.
"After we got you home from the attack, you... died." said Rainbow Dash. Without warning, she jumped from her seat and hugged me, hard. I didn't react. I couldn't believe it. This wasn't real, it couldn't be. If I died, then where was I?
"If I'm dead, does that mean you all died as well?" I asked. "Am I in some sort of pony-afterlife?"
"No. We're all very much alive. The thing is, I scanned your vitals, double, triple checked." said Twi. "I was positive that you were dead."
"We had a funeral service for you and everything, darling." said Rarity. "You should be in a casket, six feet underground."
"Well, I'm not. When I came to, I was upstairs." I said.
"Yeah. How in all of Equestria did that happen?" asked Applejack. Twilight blushed and backed away.
"Um... that may have been me." she said weakly.
"What?!" shouted Aj. "What in tarnation did ya do?"
"It wasn't her fault." said Conjure. "It was mine."
"Look, I don't care who did it. Just explain to me what happened." I said. I walked over and took a seat next to Pinkie. She was being unusually quiet, and she had definitely been crying. I would address that later.
"Here's what happened:" said Conjure, after a deep breath. "We got you here and you flatlined. We tried everything in our power to bring you back, but we failed. You were deemed dead. Fluttershy lost it. She demanded we bury you at once. I couldn't let that happen. I knew you were alive. I didn't know how, but I knew it in my gut. Fluttershy took over the operation, deemed me insane because I refused to accept your death and because I kept your hair trimmed. I finally told her that you could be buried. What she didn't know is that I made Twilight help dig you out and replace you with a dummy. We placed the appropriate counter-spells so that nopony would want to go upstairs to where I had you stashed. Just today, I saw your brain light up with activity for the first time in years. I analyzed it and it looked like you were arguing with yourself. I watched as something convinced you to lean towards a particular decision, then I shocked you. Apparently it woke you up. Don't know how, but it did."
"How did you know that I wasn't dead?" I asked, quietly.
"Your readings. The claw marks were nothing, a simple fleshwound. Twilight could whip up an antidote to any poison in existence, and your heart was in perfect condition. You just stopped breathing."
"What did you accomplish while I was out?" I asked.
"We did more in two days than we did in all of our time under you." came an angry, bitter voice from the stairs. I turned and got a better view of her. She had various small scratches over her face, a tiny chunk of her left ear was missing, and she had a long scar going diagonally across her face. "We took down Shimmer and Discord."
"Awesome" I said, glad to be back in the flow of things, to a degree. "Where are they? Can I speak to them?"
"Yeah." said Fluttershy brightly. "I'll just go get my boot; there might be some of her left on there."
"What?!" I asked in horror. She must've been joking. No way was she serious.
"My god, were you this dumb before?" she asked. "Although, I suppose if I was dead for three years, I'd be a little slow on the uptake myself. Let me explain, slowly for you. Stay with me when I say it: I... killed... her. Stomped her head in, over and over. I was picking little bits of her brain out of my hooves for days. As for Discord, he got away, but it cost him an arm and a leg. Or rather, an arm and a tail."
"Why would you kill Sunset Shimmer?" I asked appalled. "Princess Celestia made it very clear that she wanted them captured. Alive."
"Don't talk to me about Celestia." she said angrily. "Three years, three long years we've been at this, and not once did we get a single supply drop, news on what's happening at home, not even a goddamn letter saying 'Nice work, guys!' She abandoned us a long time ago, so I don't give a rat's ass what she has to say. This is now beyond Celestia's power. This is my jurisdiction."
"So what, you went commando?" I asked sarcastically.
"Oh! That's what I've been calling her!" shouted Isaiah. "Commandoshy, our fearless and psychotic leader!" She shut him up with a murderous stare. This was unreal. What happened when I was gone? I was missing something. I turned to look at Pinkie, her face wet with tears. Why was she so upset? Maybe Robert knew. Wait a second...
"Where's Robert?" I asked. As soon as I said his name, Pinkie burst into tears once more. Everypony looked at me with distaste, except for RD, Fluttershy and Isaiah. I looked around for some sort of explanation.
"He's gone." said Twilight. My heart was beating in my throat.
"G-Gone? You mean he's... dead?" I asked.
"No, but by now he probably wishes he was." said Commandoshy.
"Then where is he?" I asked. What did this all mean?
"After you were... put out of commision, Robert got his panties in a bunch and split. He blamed me for what happened, so he took a 'bigger-on-the-inside' bag, filled it with ammo, and left. We just found out that he was captured by the changelings yesterday. To answer your next two questions: No, we aren't going to save him and yes, that is why Pinkie is crying."
"What do you mean, we aren't going to save him?! We have to!" I cried.
"No, we don't. He stopped being my problem the moment he left the grounds of this house. He shouldn't have gotten himself in such a stupid situation. Besides, I have more important things to do. Like win this war before it gets out of hand."
"What happened to you? The Fluttershy I knew would never abandon a friend." I said.
"Well, kid, things change. Especially during war." she replied resentfully.
"Kid?!" I said indignantly. "I-I'm a year older than you!"
"Yeah, whatever. Just because I haven't kicked your ass yet doesn't mean I won't. I told you that if you were smart, you wouldn't be here when I came back. Apparently you aren't smart." said Commandoshy.
"Listen here, girly." I said boldly. "I don't know what happened to you, but I'll deal with you later. We have bigger fish to fry, like saving Robert. We leave in the morning."
"You listen here, Silver Rift" replied Flutters, walking towards me. She got right in my face and continued. "You've been gone for too long, so let me educate you. While you were dirt-napping, I took over. I kinda run this shit now. We're going to get Robert, but only because I need Pinkie to operate at her best. This is my decision. So don't you ever, ever come in here and tell me what I'm doing. You don't own me, I own you."
"I have to disagree on that one." I said, backing away. Remember earlier when I said that Rainbow Dash was the most intimidating girl I've ever met? Well, I may have lied.
"Ya know what? You can disagree when you've earned the right to an opinion again. Until further notice, you are disposable. Expendable. Your opinion is worth nothing until I let you know otherwise. Got it?"
"No. I don't." I said defiantly.
"Let me explain it slowly: You are my bitch. Plain as that. I own your ass, and there's not a damn thing you can say about it."
"You don't own me, and I am not your bitch." I said angrily.
"Is that a fact? Let's find out." said Fluttershy. She slapped me hard across the face. She backhanded me the other way. She closed her fist and hit me hard in the nose. Grabbing a fistful of my hair, she pulled me close by her face. "Do something about it. If you aren't my bitch, then put me in my place. Make me your bitch. Until you step up and take control, your ass belongs to me. And don't you forget it." She pushed me back, apparently content with her "lesson". She looked at me, semi-satisfied, and swung her right hoof and smacked me on the side of the head, dropping me to my knees.
"Sorry, Fluttershy." I said, tearily. "It won't happen again."
"Damn right it won't." She said bitterly. "And Bitch? Drop the Fluttershy. I actually like Commandoshy."
"Y-yes ma'am." I said, getting to my hooves. "What do you need me to do?"
"RD and Aj will go out and find out where they're keeping Robert. Don't come back until you find him. Twilight, make sure our weapons are in good condition. Find Lunar and Celestial and clean them. Rarity, enforce our armor. Pinkie, go... eat some cake or something. Anything to shut your ass up. Conjure, Bitch, you two need to go work out. You have thirty minutes to train before I come down there and kick your ass. Try your damndest to survive." ordered Fluttershy.
"Hey, Psychoshy. Wanna give me my magic back?" said Isaiah.
"Twilight, give Jackass his magic back. Then meet me upstairs. We need to have a little chat about you going behind my back." said Commandoshy. Everypony left the room except for me, Isaiah, Twi and RD.
"Be careful, Silver." said Rainbow Dash, leaving the room. "Things have changed. Don't get in Fluttershy's way. I don't want to attend your funeral twice."
"Come here, Conjure." said Twilight, walking up to Isaiah. She extended her hand and grabbed his horn. She concentrated, horn glowing for a moment, before letting him go. Then, she smacked him on the back of the head.
"Ow! What was that for?" he said, rubbing his head.
"Why would you get me involved?! I mean, I know we had to get Silver, but now Fluttershy is going to rip my head off! Why couldn't you dig him out yourself?" said Twilight frantically.
"You had already suppressed my magic. I couldn't have gotten any of it done without you."
"You owe me for this one!"
"Twilight! I am not a patient mare!" called a voice from upstairs. "You have about ten seconds!" Twilight shot us one more look of panic, then rushed upstairs. I sat there in silence, trying to absorb what just happened. I think Fluttershy just kicked my ass. That was... odd.
"Wow Chris. Way to go full-on wuss mode." said Isaiah, grabbing his swords.
"Shut up." I said quietly.
"Holy shit. She broke you. Never thought I'd see the day."
"Shut up." I repeated.
"Listen. I know this must be a lot to take in, but right now we have to train. When Commandoshy says we have thirty minutes, we should be done in fifteen."
"Did that just happen?" I asked. "Did I really just let her kick my ass?"
"Hate to say it, but yeah. Come on, you need to help me. I'm rusty. It's been three years since I was allowed to hold anything sharp." said Isaiah grumpily.
"Why? You haven't been helping?"
"I told you, I was dubbed insane, a danger to myself and others. She had Twilight suppress my magic and took all my belongings. I had to smuggle some scissors in so I could cut your hair."
"Wait. You cut my hair?" I asked uncomfortably.
"I knew you hated when it got too long, so I kept it short. I couldn't get my hands on any dye, though. It doesn't matter. Fluttershy wasn't joking. We need to be able to defend ourselves when she gets down here."
"Fine." I said extending my hand. "Pass me one. While we spar, we can answer each other's questions." He tossed me one of his katanas. Hopefully Celestia's spell hadn't worn off. We decided to keep sheaths on, considering neither of us had that Chameleon Armor. We crossed swords, then jumped backwards to begin. I rushed at him and swung to the right. He blocked it, tip of sword pointed at the ground. He pushed me back, raised his blade above his head, and swung downward. Holding my sword sideways, I blocked it and heaved him off.
"So, who's first?" asked Isaiah, swinging towards my knee. I jumped backwards and lunged.
"Guess I'll go. When exactly did Robert leave? And why?" He dodged my lunge and kneed upwards.
"When Fluttershy took over. He refused to follow her orders, so he left. He blamed her for your death." I smacked his knee down with my sword. "What happened when you... ya know. Bit the dust?"
"I lived on Earth with my mom, dad, Mat, Pat, you and Rob. It was perfect. Then I was in Equestria with the Six. Also perfect. Sombra came out and made me choose between them." I kicked forward, hitting him in the gut. He staggered then smacked me on the right side.
"I saw that you made a decision before I zapped you. Who did you pick?" I thrust my sword on his toe, then smacked him in the neck.
"I don't really remember what happened. I know it happened, the details are just... fuzzy. Exactly how long was I out for?" I swung for his ribs.
"You were gone on July 7, 2013. It's January 23rd, 2017. Just over three years." He caught my blade with his hilt, swung around his sword, causing me to drop it. We'd been at it for about twenty minutes. I changed back to human form, took a seat on the floor and fell on my back. I was exhausted.
"When did Fluttershy go crazy?" I asked breathlessly.
"Well, after she took charge she got a little harsher, but not like she is now. She was more like Rainbow Dash until they caught Sunset Shimmer. She lost it and... you know the rest."
"Yeah, she bashed her head in with her bare hands." I said.
"And I'll do the same to you two jackoffs unless you can defend yourself." said Commandoshy, walking down the stairs. She was wearing a skin-tight black bodysuit and two swords, one on her back and one on her hip. Her hipped sword was her cutlass, but the one on her back was my own Celestial.
"How does this work?" I asked, getting to my feet and dusting myself off. "What do we do?"
"Survive." she replied. "We fight until I say stop. If you are in one piece by the end of it, you suit up so we can get Robert the Rebel. If you aren't, well, I'll make sure your funerals are nice. And that you're both actually dead." she added bitterly. She pulled out her sword with her left hand and Celestial with her right.
"Can I get my sword?" I asked frightened.
"Yeah, where do you want it? Your stomach? Your heart? I can make it happen." she said, twirling the blades.
"Um... so I can't have my sword?" I asked sheepishly. Without warning, she jumped at me, slicing down with both swords. Instinctively, I slashed upwards with the sheathed katana, throwing her back. Conjure ran forward and slashed at her stomach. She deflected it with Celestial and swiped at his shoulder with her cutlass. He jumped back, only grazed and pulled his blade from the sheath. He stabbed at Fluttershy, just to be blocked by me.
"NO!" I screamed. "Put that away!" I felt a hoof connect with the side of my head, sending me flying to the right. I fell onto my back as Fluttershy pointed Celestial's tip at my Adam's Apple.
"No thanks!" shouted Isaiah, running at Fluttershy. He tackled her to the ground, got on his knees over her, and punched her in the face. He swung four times, smashing her face before she kicked him off. He got up and slashed her shin, causing her to grunt in pain. She slashed at his hand, cutting two inches deep in his wrist.
"Yes! This is the most fun I've had in a while!" shouted Commandoshy with excitement.
"How did you punish Twilight?" said Isaiah angrily. He slashed furiously at her chest. She blocked it easily.
"She got off with a warning. She goes around my back one more time and she's Grounded." replied Commandoshy. Here is when my panicked sarcasm comes in.
"What are you gonna do? Send her to her room? Take away her cellphone?" I said, getting up. As soon as I said it, I knew I shouldn't have. She seemed to remember I was there for the first time. She jumped back to me and spun, slashing me in the chest four times.
"Cute. When I 'Ground' someone, I make sure they are grounded. Translation: I break something. A leg, an arm, depends on who it is. Twilight only got out because this is her first offense." she said. I blocked swipe after swipe, not daring to attack. Conjure jumped at her back, trying to stab her. Without taking her eyes (or sword) off of me, she swiped backwards, knocking his sword out of his hand. She kicked backwards, hitting him in the ribs and sending him flying. He hit the ground with a sinister CRACK!
"NO!" I shouted. I swung furiously at her chest, throwing the sheath off in the process.
THUNK!!
My sword bounced off of her chest. Her bodysuit transformed into thick, steel armor. Huh. I swung at her leg, indenting her armor. I smashed at her stomach, scratching her chestplate. I dropped my sword a little, exposing the hilt under my fist. I swung downwards ferociously on her skull. She fell to the ground on her butt, dropping both swords. I pointed the tip of the katana at her throat.
"You're done." I said, walking away. I ran up to Isaiah's fallen body, checking him for injuries. I touched his side, causing him to cry out in pain.
"AHHH!" he shouted. "I think she broke my ribs."
"It's ok, we won." I said, grabbing his arm. I lifted him up a little before being kicked in the neck. I stumbled to the ground as Commandoshy jumped on my chest. She picked me up by the shirt and threw me against the wall.
"Remember the rules?" she said angrily. "I said that we fight til I said stop. I didn't say stop yet."
"Well, what if I told you that I didn't care what you said?" I said, kicking her in the stomach. She stumbled backwards, tripping over her own hooves. I jumped forward and stepped on her chest.
"Fair enough. Stop, you've won." said Fluttershy. I removed my foot, ripped Celestial's sheath off of her back, walked over and grabbed up my sword. I sheathed it and put in on my back. I walked over to Isaiah and tried once more to lift his now unconscious body. I struggled under his weight for a minute before I felt some of it alleviated by Fluttershy. I slung one of his arms over my neck while she did the same. I pulled out my wings and we flew him upstairs. I looked at Fluttershy and smiled for the first time since I woke up.
"Don't smile at me like that, asshole! Just because I'm allowing you to go doesn't mean you're better than me. I gave up because we didn't have time to waste and, although I really wanted to, I couldn't leave Conjure sitting there with broken ribs. I'm already planning our rematch." said Commandoshy angrily.
"Flutters, can you answer me a few questions?" I asked.
"What did you call me?" she said poisonously.
"S-sorry. Ma'am?" I tried. When she allowed it, I reiterated. "Who did you Ground and for what?"
"Why do you think? They were being stupid or dangerous. It's not just about keeping me out of the loop. Some of them has done legitimately stupid stuff. For instance, Rainbow Dash was the first one. We were in the cellar, right? I was showing them where we kept the gunpowder and TNT and the like, when Rainbow thinks it'd be cool to light a cigarette. Mind you, the air was thick with explosive powder. If it weren't for Twilight, we would have died. Then she tried to play it off like it wasn't her. She tried to fly off, so I broke her wing."
"Was she the only one?" I asked.
"No. Rarity got her fingers broken because she tried to sneak out past curfew, trying to get some dress. I broke Applejack's ankle for blasting country music when we were doing recon. Pinkie has gotten the most. I broke each arm about four times over, fractured her leg, unhinged her jaw, snapped a few tendons and shattered her ribs because she kept trying to go after Robert. She refused to listen to reason. When we found out that he was taken, I knew we had to save him or else she might go out on her own. I'd never forgive myself if she got killed out there."
"That's the Fluttershy I remember." I muttered.
"Well, don't get used to it. Didn't you want to ask something else?"
"Oh yeah. Why did it take so long for your armor to take effect?"
"I can answer that one." whispered Isaiah. When did he wake up? "She got scared!"
"I will drop your ass right now." said Fluttershy upon reaching the top floor. She heaved Isaiah onto the sofa, not too gently.
"What are you talking about?" I asked. "If anyone here has reason to be scared, it's me."
"Damn right you do. But he's not wrong. Remember, Chameleon Armor only becomes armor when you get frightened or excited. I was calm until I threw Isaiah. Not to say I was afraid, but I knew you were pissed and would actually fight back."
"Another question: Let's say, hypothetically, I stayed dead. After you killed Chrysalis and Sombra, and when you finished off Discord, what would you have done?"
"Twilight would have worked her ass off trying to get us home. If Celestia could do it, then Twilight could." she replied. "One last question before I start planning. Hurry up with it."
"What did you tell the Jacksons?" I asked, scared for the answer.
"The truth." laughed Fluttershy morbidly. "You died, so we made it obvious that you were dead. Made dummies of you three dummies, threw you in a car and threw the car into oncoming traffic. Your mom, your few friends, and that annoyingly cute redhead all believe you're dead. So stop thinking whatever it is you're thinking about. You're not dropping in to say 'hi'. You will never be able to see them again." She walked back downstairs, no doubt to plan. I'll have to add my future to a list of shattered objects, right below Isaiah's ribs and Fluttershy's ability to be kind. |
Defenders of Harmony | War Never Changes | After Fluttershy bandaged up my wounds, she got the team together. According to Aj and Rainbow, Robert was being held underground about a mile north of town. They had a bunker where they kept prisoners. We would have to fight through a large number of changelings just to get in, and countless more to get Robert out. We'd also have to convince him to come with us. A tall order, but he needed our help.
"Alright. I was contemplating on splitting us up into groups, but it's not worth the time or the risk, so we're running in together. No real plan, no real strategy, just rush in, grab Robert, and rush out. Any questions?" said Fluttershy, at the war table.
"Yeah, I have a question." said Pinkie. "How are we going to get in? We can't just waltz in, we'll be shot on sight."
"We blow it up. We walk in, blow a hole in the bunker and leave. I know I will probably regret it, but I give you full access to the explosive armory."
"Permission to leave?" asked Pinkie seriously. Fluttershy nodded and Pinkie Pie ran to the bomb range excitedly.
"We go in as soon as Pinkie is ready. Twilight, can you teleport us all in?" asked Fluttershy.
"Not all of us, no. I can take... six ponies, including myself." replied Twilight.
"So five passengers. And I can't exclude any of you, I need the manpower. Conjure, can you teleport the Bitch and yourself?"
"I can teleport me and Christian, if that's what you're asking. I might be a little off at first, my magic is still returning. We'll get there, it'll be fine." said Isaiah, stretching out his side. Twilight was able to repair his ribs a bit, but they're apparently still sore.
"Is this really a good idea?" I asked. "You can't really expect us to run in there without a plan, can you?"
"I'm sorry, I forgot that I asked you to give your two-cents. Please, continue to grace us with your three years of battle experience. Oh wait, wait, that's not you. That's me with all that experience. How silly of me. Now, what did I really want to say to you? Oh yeah: Shut that goddamn hole on your face!" said Commandoshy. "Like I said: We're rushing in, today."
"Don't take it personally, sugarcube. Whenever she gets like this, it's best to stay out of her way." said Applejack.
"Don't tell him that. He's supposed to take it personally. Rarity, do you have any extra armor?"
"I have a suit for Conjure, Silver and War, in the event that he needs one." said Rarity. "And I have about three extras besides that."
"Excellent. Now if Pinkie would only get down here with her explosives."
"You called?" said Pinkie, walking downstairs. She was in the same Chameleon body-armor as Fluttershy, with two duffle bags on her shoulders. She placed them down, opened them and pulled out two bazookas. She held one in each hand and pointed them at the air. "Let's go."
We approached a grassy hill, just outside of town. Walking briskly and with purpose, Pinkie went to the side of the hill. She reached into her duffle bags and pulled out five bricks of C4. She put them in a square formation on the side of the hill, one in each corner and one in the middle. When everything was the way she wanted, Pinkie ran backwards, reached into her pocket and pulled out the detonator.
"Ready for this?!" asked Pinkie rhetorically. Raising the detonator high in the air, she flicked the button.
BOOM!
The ground exploded, sending grass and dirt everywhere. I walked up to the crater and jumped in the steaming metal hole. It wasn't deep, I hit the ground and stumbled forward a little. I gazed, shocked at what I saw. There was a long, empty hallway that led up to a large door, wide enough for the eight of us to walk in, side-by-side. The door was steel, and probably more than a few feet thick. I heard the others fall down behind me.
"What now, Fluttershy?" I asked. "Still think this 'no plan' business was smart?"
"Pinkie. Go." growled Fluttershy. Pinkie ran up a few feet away from the door with her double rocket launchers in her hands. I stared at them, amazed at how she was able to lift such large weapons, let alone shoot them.
"Like my Party Cannons? I didn't have time to paint them. They were gonna be pink." said Pinkie. She aimed at the door, gave us each a look of focus, and shouted. "PARTY TIME!!!"
BOOM!!
The doors blew apart with a bang. We rushed in, unable to see through the smoke in the room. Uh-oh. That wasn't us. We couldn't see two feet in front of our faces.
"Twilight!" coughed Fluttershy. "Get us some visual!" I heard a soft humming and the smoke began to thin. After a few minutes, it dissipated. What I saw shocked me more than you could believe. Robert was kneeling over a changeling, beating his face in. Seemed normal enough, until you took in the fact that he was completely naked.
"So you came for me, huh?" said Robert not taking his eyes off of the changeling. "Don't know why you're wasting your time. I'm not going with you."
"Not even for me?" I asked sarcastically. He dropped the changeling in shock. He got up and walked over to me. I expected this much. He stared me up and down and, without warning, punched me in the jaw. I stumbled backwards, not quite down and very surprised.
"You have got to stop dying." said Robert with a smile.
"Yeah, well you have to stop being a psycho." I said, rubbing my face. He opened his arms to hug me, but I had to say no... for obvious reasons.
"Just a hug, bro. I thought you were dead for three years!" he said.
"I'll hug you, as soon as you put some clothes on." I replied.
"Come on, don't be like that! It's a party down here!"
"Ooooooh! I knew it was a party, but I didn't know it was that kind of party!" said Pinkie, unzipping her suit.
"NO!" I shouted. "It's not that type of party! Zip your suit back up!"
"Party pooper!!" said Robert and Pinkie together. I rolled my eyes and tossed him a suit. He pulled it on and suddenly got serious.
"Listen, we have two options: Run now or fight. If we run, we're more likely to survive, but if we fight, we might learn something. What do you think, Chris?"
"What he thinks doesn't matter. It's what I think, and I think we should fight." said Commandoshy.
"Yeah, but I didn't ask you. I don't take orders from you anymore, Fluttershy. I'll follow Chris', but not yours. What do you think we should do, Chris?" repeated Robert. Erm... That's not good.
"Uh... Robert? I think we should probably stay and fight. We need all the info we could possibly get." I said quietly.
"Cool. I get to show you my special magic."
He punched her in the ribs and kicked her in the leg. Grabbing her mane, he lifted her up and threw her over next to me. She hit the ground right next to my face. Her nose was leaking blood and her lip was bruised.
"Help... me." she whispered. Robert grabbed her back up, his eyes and skin faintly glowing red. He threw her to the ground twice more before I found my voice.
"Robert, stop!" I screamed hoarsely. I got up slowly. "Stop. You've done enough. Why don't you go work out or something, huh? Blow off some steam."
"Sorry. Unfortunate side effect to Battlecry. Makes me angry." he said, sauntering off. I limped over to Fluttershy and grabbed her up. I carried her upstairs and laid her on her bed. Sitting down, I let out a deep sigh.
"Thanks." she said weakly. "I don't think he would have stopped if it wasn't for you."
"Don't worry about it. What happened back there? I was pretty sure you could've taken down Robert."
"I... panicked, sorry." she replied, closing her eyes. "Chris, can I tell you something?"
"What is it?" I said, grimacing in pain. She really screwed up my wing.
"I don't think I'm up for this. I can't do this anymore."
"What? Can't do what anymore?" I asked.
"Lead. I'm not very good at it. Look at what I've done while you were gone. I've ended countless lives, I've yelled and shouted and even hurt my friends. You were much b"Magic? What can you do?" I asked confusedly. He transformed into War without answering my question. He spread his arms out and inhaled deeply through his nose. A faint red aura engulfed his body. Suddenly, he swung his arms upwards, bathing the room in a red glow. I felt myself get lifted off of my feet. Just as abruptly as it started, it finished.
"I call it Battlecry." said Robert. "I just tripled your physical strength. Thank me later. We have hostiles incoming." No sooner had he said it, had the room filled with changelings. We were surrounded by a ring of 80 plus changelings, when Pinkie threw down a smoke bomb. A thick fog filled the room, obstructing the vision of friend and foe alike. I rushed forward, pulled out my sword, and slashed at a changeling leg, cutting it off like a hot knife through butter. Whoops. Talk about triple strength.
"Forget the sword." I said. "We can take out these guys bare-knuckle." I abandoned my sword and ran towards an enemy. I reared my fist back and swung it at his face, launching him across the room. A bladed arm breezed past my ear. I kicked it's owner in the shoulder, hearing the CRACK! I dropped backwards and kicked upwards, smacking another changeling in the jaw. I stood up straight, observing my surroundings. Fluttershy slashed two changelings in the chest as Pinkie shot another in the knee. Twilight sliced off a changelings arm, kicked a nearby one in the chest, spun around and punched the first one in the throat. Aj and Rainbow were taking turns beating up a group of four changelings with a combination of hands, hooves, and blade. Only me and Isaiah were holding back, as Robert was throwing changelings around with all of his might. I looked around one last time and noted that there was only one left. I grabbed him by the wing and swung him to the ground as gently as I could. I picked him back up and threw him against the wall. I whipped out my blade and pressed it against his neck.
"Hi, friend." I said. "Lovely weather we're having, isn't it?" I felt the hairs on my neck prickle and something told me to duck. I got down just in time to avoid Fluttershy's sword. The blade hit the changeling in the horn, cleaving it clean off. I got back up and thanked her for the save.
"Hurry up, Silver. We don't have all day. Get what we need." she growled.
"What have you been doing lately? Plan any invasions worth talking about?" I asked.
"What if we have? What are you going to do about it?" he said in a slithering, insectoid voice.
"If you tell us, you can run back to your queen. If you don't, well," I pushed my sword into his neck a little, just to scare him. A light trickle of green dripped on my blade. "How do you think my sword will look in green?"
"You don't scare me." he said. I pushed a little more, watching him grimace in pain. "Ok, ok. We are planning an invasion on Canterlot. We plan on taking the Regal Sisters."
"Keep going." I said. "When? How?"
"We're going to open a portal to Equestria next month. You'll never stop it. You don't even know where we are." he said proudly.
"How are you gonna pull that off, dipweed?" asked Fluttershy. "There's no way Chrysalis is strong enough to open a portal to Equestria. How are you pulling that one off? Sombra?"
"Shut up, you filth! How dare you taint the name of my queen! And you imply that we need the help of Sombra the would-be-King-of-Darkness? Never would my queen lower herself to ask for help from that useless wannabe ruler! Let me give you some advice: Don't try to stop her. If you get in Queen Chrysalis' way, she will make you regret it dearly. She will kill all of you, slowly and intimately, for the good of changeling-kind!! What do you have to say about that, filthy pegasus?" he said, chest puffing. Fluttershy walked up next to me, smiling. She tilted her head to the side, staring at my hostage. Finally, she spoke.
"What do I have to say about that? Not very much, actually. I have but one retort." she grabbed Lunar off of my hip and placed it's barrel against the changelings head. "Go to hell." She pulled the trigger, sending chunks of green goo flying across the room and splattering the wall. I dropped him in shock and stared at Fluttershy. She tossed Lunar back to me and walked out. The rest of the girls followed suit, leaving me alone with Isaiah and Robert.
"Did... what the hell?!" I said confused, rushing out of the room. I ran up to Fluttershy and grabbed her wrist.
"What do you want?" asked Fluttershy, yanking her hand away.
"What did you do?!" I asked outraged.
"I heard the information and eliminated the witness. Problem?"
"You didn't have to kill him!" I shouted angrily.
"It didn't matter. He told us what we needed to know. What's the big deal?"
"Wow, really? Where do I begin? He was a living being, he complied to our demands, he was no threat, and we didn't have to kill him. You did it just because you could."
"To be fair, that was, like, Changeling Kill of the Week. That was so goddamn badass!" shouted Robert from behind.
"Not helping!" I yelled.
"You still don't get it, do you?" said Commandoshy. "This is war!"
"That might may true, but you're not following the rules. Even war has rules."
"I'm following my rules. First rule of Commandoshy Warfare: Win. No matter what. Now, get the hell out of my face. We need to get out. Twilight, Conjure, get us home." Twilight grabbed hands with Pinkie, Aj, RD, Fluttershy and Rarity. Conjure grabbed my shoulder and Robert's suit.
"Let's go." he said. He concentrated hard, bathing us in green glow. I noticed his other hand unclench and squeeze back. The light grew more intense and suddenly
POP!
I stumbled and fell to the ground, hitting gravel. I got to my feet and observed the area. I was on the roof of a building, one with a large sign on the top. I walked around it to read what it said.
JACKSON'S
"Isaiah." I said quietly. "I'll be back." I transformed into Silver Rift and turned to fly downstairs. I got halfway to the other side of the roof before she got me. Fluttershy grabbed my left wing, wrestled me to the ground, place her hoof in the crook between my wing and back, twisted and yanked.
CRACK!
She clamped her hand against my mouth, blocking out my scream. She heaved me up, grabbed Isaiah by the horn and gave him a murderous stare. He looked down and concentrated again.
POP!
We appeared in the training room in front of the rest of the group. Fluttershy kicked me in the back of the leg, dropping me to my knees. She swung her hoof and smacked me in the back of the head. I fell forward on my face, crying out in pain.
"You're Grounded, asshole!" said Fluttershy, stomping my broken wing. She kicked me in the wing three more times, then turned away. I looked up and saw Robert grab Fluttershy by the hair. He flung her against the wall and punched the wall next to her face, cracking the wall.
"Don't you ever hurt my friends. I promise to everything that I love, no, everything you love, if I see you hurt Silver or Pinkie again, I'll chop off your head, skin you with a rusty saw and make a necklace with your bowels." said Robert with bass and anger in his voice.
"Can't wait. Let's make an appointment. I'm free for next Tuesday, if you're game. Maybe Pinkie can watch." She said sarcastically. Robert pulled his arm back and swung into her face. He punched her in the ribs and kicked her in the leg. Grabbing her mane, he lifted her up and threw her over next to me. She hit the ground right next to my face. Her nose was leaking blood and her lip was bruised.
"Help... me." she whispered. Robert grabbed her back up, his eyes and skin faintly glowing red. He threw her to the ground twice more before I found my voice.
"Robert, stop!" I screamed hoarsely. I got up slowly. "Stop. You've done enough. Why don't you go work out or something, huh? Blow off some steam."
"Sorry. Unfortunate side effect to Battlecry. Makes me angry." he said, sauntering off. I limped over to Fluttershy and grabbed her up. I carried her upstairs and laid her on her bed. Sitting down, I let out a deep sigh.
"Thanks." she said weakly. "I don't think he would have stopped if it wasn't for you."
"Don't worry about it. What happened back there? I was pretty sure you could've taken down Robert."
"I... panicked, sorry." she replied, closing her eyes. "Chris, can I tell you something?"
"What is it?" I said, grimacing in pain. She really screwed up my wing.
"I don't think I'm up for this. I can't do this anymore."
"What? Can't do what anymore?" I asked.
"Lead. I'm not very good at it. Look at what I've done while you were gone. I've ended countless lives, I've yelled and shouted and even hurt my friends. You were much better at this than me. It's time I faced facts: I'm a failure. I was never meant to do this. You should take over."
"Nope. Not yet." I said, rubbing my wing.
"What do you mean 'not yet'? What are you waiting for?" she said in outrage.
"Not until you figure out when Chrysalis is attacking." I replied.
"When I find out? You mean you already know?! When is it?" she shouted in anticipation.
"I know when, but I won't tell you. You have to figure it out on your own."
"Why?! Is it because I called you a bitch? Or because I beat you up so much?" she asked pitifully.
"No. It's because you called yourself a failure. Prove yourself wrong." I said, crossing my arms.
"That's not right! This isn't about my self-esteem, ok? We need to know this. If you know, you have to tell us." she said frustrated.
"It's obvious." I said, rising to my feet. I walked over and sat on her bed next to her. "It's staring you in the face."
"It's obviously not obvious, because I can't figure it out."
"You just need to open your eyes." I leaned forward and kissed her tenderly on the lips. She pushed me off confusedly, then pulled me back in. We broke apart after a moment, both a bit confused at what just happened.
"Why did we do that?" asked Fluttershy.
"Love makes you do crazy things." I said breathlessly. She seemed to consider it for a second. I sat there, hoping she would figure it out. Suddenly, her face lit up with excitement.
"That's it! Oh, Chris, I could just about kiss you!" she shouted happily.
"Er... wouldn't that be redundant?" I asked.
"Oh, shut up, you." she said, smiling. She sat up and stretched out her arms. "By the way. You remember when we just kissed?"
"Uh... yeah?" I said uneasily.
"No you don't, cause that never happened. The others never find out about this. Understand?" she said threateningly.
"Er... uh... um... No. I mean yes. Maybe?" I said shakily.
"Good. I guess. What are we doing here still? If you're waiting for more, you're gonna be disappointed. Let's go tell the others." she said, jumping to her hooves. She walked downstairs briskly, leaving me in pain and disappointed.
"Damn." I said, leaving the room. "I kinda was waiting for more." I rushed downstairs where things were not quite as we left it. Robert and Pinkie Pie were in the center of the room, kissing furiously, while the others kinda orbited them in discomfort. Even Fluttershy was standing there in shock.
"Ahem. Uh... wow, guys. Really?" I said awkwardly. "Are you two, like, an item now?"
"Oh, shut up Chris." said Robert, breaking away from Pinkie for a second. "Don't act like you're surprised."
"Yeah. I can't believe none of you figured it out." said Pinkie. "None of you saw that I was crazy-wazy for him?"
"Doesn't matter. You two can... eat each other's faces later." said Fluttershy. "First off, I would like to apologize for everything I've done over the years. Especially to Pinkie, Robert, and Isaiah. I lost it a little. Please, forgive me."
"I forgave you before you did it." said Pinkie. "I could never be mad at you, Fluttershy!"
"I don't know. Maybe I'll get over it. After some time has passed." said Robert. "I still hate your guts."
"He doesn't mean that." said Pinkie, pecking him on the lips. "He's just trying to act tough in front of me."
"I appreciate it a lot, guys. What I really came down here for is to tell you that I figured it out. I know when the attack begins." said Fluttershy.
"How did you figure that out?!" shouted Rarity.
"Erm... That doesn't matter! What matters is that I know, alright? Listen, we need to be prepared by February 14th."
"Febooary 14th?" asked Applejack. "Why in tarnation is it gonna be on Febooary 14th?"
"It's Valentines Day. It's the Earth version of Hearts and Hooves Day. She's gonna feed off of all the love on Earth to open a portal to Equestria." answered Fluttershy.
"That's in, like, two and a half weeks. Better get ready." I said flexing my wings. "Twily, be a dear and fix my wings, please? An old friends of mine ruined them. I don't think I'll be seeing much of her any more."
"I think you might be right." said Fluttershy, shooting me a happy smile. |
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