private The Tyranny of Princess Cadence

[Agent505 661]

@@Pripyat Pony,

 

"Oh I see what you're doing Chrysalis...I see what you're doing. It's a long and dangerous game you're playing here! I just hope you have the patience to see it through, because the first slip up, and you're history." Harmonic growled, baring his fanged teeth to the queen.

"Very well then, Chrysalis. I suppose it's for the best..." Cadence replied as she looked over to the changeling unicorn by her side, unsure of what to think of the situation. "By your leave then" she waved off a hoof in the direction of the door as she made eye contact with the guards. "Harmony will remain in the dungeon until you feel the time is right to release him." 

As she finished speaking, the guards surround him walked out of the door, taking him into the dungeon again. "Oh I wont forget this Cadence! And the goddamn mare is dead! You hear me!" he shouted back as he was escorted away. 

"Thank you, Chrysalis. I know it would have been easy for you to simply order him executed."

 

"Now, for the rest of the day, we have to begin our marches. Tonight. We'll march under the cover of the night, when Luna lights the skies and Celestia retires. This is when we strike out. I trust you and yours have taken care of the train problem, Chrysalis? How fares Manehatten's supply lines?"

[Justin ZW 396]

@@Pripyat Pony, @@Avolon

 

 

Ah sell cocaine and cocaine accessories

 

Dawn Wing was panting. Why am I feeling so tired all of a sudden? I was just fine a minute ago... While he'd managed to learn the art of magic, he had never bothered to study it fully. He did not understand that his own energy was fueling his spells.

 

Swordpoint saw this, and smirked. "Well, Dawn Wing, why not prove to me that your magic is stronger?" He turned to the guards who were entering the room and staring in shock. "Keep Golden Age, Phylomon, and Sanura safe! Leave Dawn Wing to me!"

 

Dawn Wing snarled and cast a flame spell, sending a jet of fire toward Swordpoint. Swordpoint effortlessly raised a barrier and deflected the spell. Aggravated, Dawn Wing conjured an ice spike and shot it forth. Swordpoint used his own magic to send flames at the ice, melting it in mid flight. Swordpoint was splashed lightly by the water.

 

Rainbow jumped to her hooves as one of Dawn Wing's guards approached. The guard swung his axe, but Rainbow dodged it easily. She countered with a quick swipe of her dagger, opening the guard's throat. The guard clutched at his throat with his hooves as his life's blood ran out.

 

Dawn Wing was livid with rage. His adrenaline was rushing, and all that he knew was that he wanted to see Swordpoint dead. No, all of them. Especially that stupid bitch of his. Oh, how I'd love to kill her in front of him. Cut her Celestia-damned throat... and then maybe have some fun with the body afterwards.

 

(OoC: Dawn Wing's pretty fucked up, in case you couldn't tell.)

 

Swordpoint could see that Dawn Wing was nearing his limits. Swordpoint could tell by the subtle shaking of Dawn Wing's muscles that it wouldn't take much more before Dawn Wing exhausted his energy and either passed out or died. Personally, he wanted to see Dawn Wing put on trial. He had reason to suspect that Dawn Wing was an orchestrator of far more devious plans. "Come, then. Fight me."

[Ano170 162]

@@Pripyat Pony,

 

"Oh I see what you're doing Chrysalis...I see what you're doing. It's a long and dangerous game you're playing here! I just hope you have the patience to see it through, because the first slip up, and you're history." Harmonic growled, baring his fanged teeth to the queen.

"Very well then, Chrysalis. I suppose it's for the best..." Cadence replied as she looked over to the changeling unicorn by her side, unsure of what to think of the situation. "By your leave then" she waved off a hoof in the direction of the door as she made eye contact with the guards. "Harmony will remain in the dungeon until you feel the time is right to release him." 

As she finished speaking, the guards surround him walked out of the door, taking him into the dungeon again. "Oh I wont forget this Cadence! And the goddamn mare is dead! You hear me!" he shouted back as he was escorted away. 

"Thank you, Chrysalis. I know it would have been easy for you to simply order him executed."

 

"Now, for the rest of the day, we have to begin our marches. Tonight. We'll march under the cover of the night, when Luna lights the skies and Celestia retires. This is when we strike out. I trust you and yours have taken care of the train problem, Chrysalis? How fares Manehatten's supply lines?"

 

@@00Pony, 

 

Arrow watched the protesting Harmonic being dragged back to the dungeons, and shook his head slightly. Why did I even bother assisting a stallion who refuses to help himself?

 

It was a matter of principle, really - Arrow would not have minded seeing Harmonic locked away in a dungeon, but he had no intention of standing by while injustice was carried out plainly before him. 

 

Still, having a "foalsitter" as Steeleye so aptly put it...What a delightfully embarrassing punishment. The thought made Arrow smirk slightly. It faded when he looked at Chrysalis, though. What even were changelings, to have such insidious magic? Ally of the Empire or not, the Queen's presence made Arrow uneasy.

 

The news that they would begin marching tonight snapped Arrow to attention. He straightened, at once both apprehensive and, though he was loath to admit it, a touch excited. It had been a while since Arrow had enjoyed a real fight. Appleloosa certainly didn't count, not least because Arrow had spent most of the actual "battle" unconscious.

 

Thinking about Appleloosa made Arrow's gut twist. Instead, he began wondering who this "Luna" was who apparently now ruled the night in Celestia's stead, and how he could find out without raising suspicion.

 

"So..." he began cautiously, turning to the closest pony, who happened to be Sanguine. "Do you think we stand more of a chance starting the march while Luna is in charge than if we went during the day?"

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

"Oh I see what you're doing Chrysalis...I see what you're doing. It's a long and dangerous game you're playing here! I just hope you have the patience to see it through, because the first slip up, and you're history." Harmonic growled, baring his fanged teeth to the queen.

"Very well then, Chrysalis. I suppose it's for the best..." Cadence replied as she looked over to the changeling unicorn by her side, unsure of what to think of the situation. "By your leave then" she waved off a hoof in the direction of the door as she made eye contact with the guards. "Harmony will remain in the dungeon until you feel the time is right to release him." 

As she finished speaking, the guards surround him walked out of the door, taking him into the dungeon again. "Oh I wont forget this Cadence! And the goddamn mare is dead! You hear me!" he shouted back as he was escorted away. 

"Thank you, Chrysalis. I know it would have been easy for you to simply order him executed."

 

"Now, for the rest of the day, we have to begin our marches. Tonight. We'll march under the cover of the night, when Luna lights the skies and Celestia retires. This is when we strike out. I trust you and yours have taken care of the train problem, Chrysalis? How fares Manehatten's supply lines?"

 

Chrysalis smiled serenely as Harmonic was dragged off. She still planned to put the mind control spell on Harmonic at the first possible chance, but thought how much more amusing it would be if he was still a Commander in control of his unit, if he was shown to have a complete about face in regards to her.

 

She replied to Cadance, "The station at Canterlot is completely destroyed. Manehatten will find it very difficult to get supplies, now. And the best thing is that when Celestia investigates, she'll find it was her own citizens who rioted and torched the station."

 

Cicada smiled, as well when she heard that she was to "foalsit" Harmonic. She had her own magic, altho it wasn't as strong as her Queen's. She would relish the prospect.

 

@@Justin ZW,

 

In respect to Sanura's wishes, she stepped back from Dawn Wing to let Swordpoint deal with the traitor. She hit out at any of Dawn Wing's guards who tried to attack her; the number of guards left was dwindling by the minute. Soon, all Dawn Wing would have would be his own powers... and Sanura could see that those would soon go. He was expending too much energy.

 

[00Pony 286]

@@Ano170, 

 

Sanguine had been standing to leave when Arrow addressed him. He looked at the stallion, eyes narrowed for a second before he shrugged and answered, "I can see something of a tactical advantage in going under the cover of dark. My assassins, and the Changelings, both operate best when we cannot be seen, or be recognized in the case of the Changelings," He gives the disguised Cicada a discreet glance as he says this, "Plus, most of Equestria will be asleep, so we won't need to cut through quite as many citizens. Just the military if things go to awry."

 

He waves a hoof, "Plus, the Princess Luna will probably be distracted with gallivanting through her 'subject's' dreams to be of much use in detecting us. At least, these are as far as my knowledge allows."

 

(I had Sanguine glance at Cicada, considering he was present during Chrysalis and Cadence's meeting, albeit he was hidden. If this seems to broken of him, I will cut that bit out.)

[Agent505 661]

@@Pripyat Pony, 

 

"Her own citizens? What do you...oh, I see." Cadence laughed at the thought as it entered her mind. "Very good, thank you. That should cut them from the picture altogether...I hope." She narrowed her eyes and peered across the room at the map Steeleye had plotted, showing all kinds of secret routes and uncharted territory. "I would ask your advice on our next course of action, I would like to hear what my newest ally would attempt. My next step was another assault - we've had enough of sneaking around and hitting the smaller towns, they are of little benefit or consequence to us now. Our next focus should be Neighagra Falls. It's large, it's a march, but it's a fantastic forward staging point for our forces to move directly against Canterlot." There was a peculiar bloodlust that seemed to be filling Cadence's eyes as she spoke about killing ponies and destroying Canterlot. The kind of look that spoke volumes about just how much she wanted Equestria for herself. "But I would like your opinion on the matter before I send any...scouts...that way." She turned her head towards Sanguine and gave him a wry smile as she mentioned "scouts."

[Justin ZW 396]

@@Pripyat Pony, @@Avolon,

 

I didn't say this!

 

Dawn Wing smirked and teleported next to Rainbow Dash. He reached out to grab her, and she shoved her dagger into his leg.

 

"Get the buck away from me!" she screamed. She withdrew the dagger and bucked him into the wall.

 

Dawn Wing quickly regained his bearings to find Swordpoint lunging toward him. He teleported again, and once again tried to attack Rainbow, except he felt weak. Too weak to hold a weapon, even. His world turned black as he slipped to the floor, unconscious.

 

Swordpoint smiled. "Well, I am glad that this little incident is over. To the rest of you who follow Dawn Wing! Drop your weapons now and you shall be spared. There will be no mercy for those who refuse to comply." The clattering of weapons against the ground could be heard all around. There were only seven guards who remained from Dawn Wing's followers.

 

Swordpoint kneeled over Dawn Wing. "He is alive, but he needs medical attention." He turned to one of the guards. "Bring me hoofcuffs and a magic supressor. I want him alive, because I want to know what he was planning. He would certainly never have attacked me out of pure spite."

 

The guard nodded and galloped from the room.

 

(OoC: That's that. Dawn Wing is KO.)

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Agent505,

 

"That sounds like a good idea to me," Chrysalis replied. "We ought to scout it very thoroughly first, however. If we can appoint a stronghold in Neighagra, all the better. Certain of the townsponies could be convinced to join us; there are always those who oppose a ruler and wish for better things."

 

Chrysalis also had a plan of her own. She would visit Harmonic in his cell tonight... and, the next morning, others would find that he'd completely changed his mind on the subject of changelings. She laughed inwardly at the thought of having Harmonic completely under her control, as once she'd controlled Shining Armour.

[HigurSan 195]

@@Agent505, @@Pripyat Pony,

Steeleye evaluated his chances of success with the statement he was considering making. Eventually he decided it was worth a try. "With due respect Lady Chrysalis and Madam Cadence," he spoke up. "It is not only the Canterlot rail line that has been made... dysfunctional. In my own jaunt across Equestria just recently, I sabotaged a number of key rail lines that will be difficult to repair, at least during war time. Fixing them will not be much of a problem one peace is restored, after we are victorious. While doing so, I arranged to steal one of the newer train engines, the one's powered by coal fires and steam. With Lady Chrysalis's destruction of the Canterlot train station, this leaves us in an optimal position." Steeleye outlined the rail line running between the Crystal Empire and Canterlot itself. "Namely that we are able to use the rail line, while they cannot. While this will certainly help when shuttling supplies and troops as we push further into Equestria, it has been suggested to me that we could weaponize the train engine, making it a mobile siege engine and fortress if you will."

 

"As for scouting operations, I do certainly respect Sanguine's abilities, those of his subordinates as well," he continued. "However I must put forward that such actions are more styled towards me and mine. While both groups are adept at stealth, his is styled more to covert offensive actions, such as assassination or sabotage. Mine on the other hoof, were trained as scouts and spies, which makes them a bit more suited to the task." He paused for a moment and looked at the map. "I also have a few agents planted around Equestria, so please do ask if you need information on enemy fortifications or the enemy's troop distribution."

[AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA 20]

@Justin_ZW

 

Phylomon looks at Swordpoint with awe "how in the name of Celesta did you and Dawn Wing do that magic and are you planning on teaching us how to do that" Phylomon says avoiding sounding energetic as much as possible. "one more thing do you think that Dawn wing had many followers or was it just what we see here"

[RAGESTAR 479]

Crimson sighed in dissappointment as he exited the black mares HQ, now back in his original form, walking the streets of the crystal empire with his hat tilted low over his eyes, "damn...the rebellion looked like it was finally ready to make a difference in this corrupt shithole, but all of the rebels seem to be too scattered to do much of anything at this point...I'm sorry crystal, I hope you and the black mares succeed in your quest, but I must leave to go help out an old freind of mine..." thought crimson as he made his way to the city gates, but before he could set hoof out of the city, three guards surrounded him holding swords at him, crimson merely sighed in boredom "I don't have time for this..." mumbled crimson, before igniting his body, the guards, and anything else within 20 ft of crimson in fire, causing the guards to drop their swords and run around screaming in pain and panic. They all died mere minutes later and crimson stepped past their bodies with a sad expression, "war...terrible war...we must end this soon before even more blood is spilled..." mumbled crimson before telorting outside of the barrier and beginning the long trek to canterlot. After nearly three days of travelling, crimson finally reached the city of canterlot anc approached the castle, but as he did, he was once again surrounded, but this time it was canterlot royal guards, crimson merely sighed and held up his hoovs, "please take me to see the princess, I have come to aid her in the coming battle..." said crimson calmly.

[Agent505 661]

@@Pripyat Pony,@,  

 

"Indeed we should Chrysalis, it will be at least a days march. I'll have Harmo- hmm." Cadence sighed and looked around at the ponies in the room, wondering who would be best qualified to lead the march now Harmony was out of the frame. They all had individual talents, but none of them met leader status in her eyes. "Tell me, how would you feel marching some of my soldiers down there? Take Arrow and Sanguine with you and scout the place out, having one as powerful as yourself leading the march, you'd make the right call on wether we should take it now or later." She shrugged her shoulders, realising she may be asking too much of her new ally so soon, she darted her eyes around the room nervously for a moment before changing the subject to Steeleye. 

 

"I am aware of your troubles Steeleye, and I thank you too for the part you have played in this, however, Manehatten would have been trouble had we not stifled it now. Also, with Chrysalis's unique abilities, it should hopefully sow some dissent amongst the Equestrian forces, seeing "some of their own" destroying their train to their second most well defended city." She smiled again at the thought, before she gestured over to Sanguine and Arrow.

"As adept a scout group you and your squad are, I seem to remember your team being recently distraught after your last scouting mission? Regardless, Sanguine's assassins have a talent neither you nor the changelings could match for efficiency. There's a reason Sanguine was Harmony's chosen successor, should anything happen to him. Of course he would never admit that openly." She laughed girlishly at the prospect of the tough guy commander being sheepish about something so silly.

 

"And besides -" she flicked her mane from her eyes with a hoof and stood up, stepping towards Steeleye "I do believe you are otherwise...occupied?" She smiled, tilting her head slightly in a way that could easily be interpreted as being playful.

Edited July 17, 2013 by Agent505

[Ano170 162]

Sanguine had been standing to leave when Arrow addressed him. He looked at the stallion, eyes narrowed for a second before he shrugged and answered, "I can see something of a tactical advantage in going under the cover of dark. My assassins, and the Changelings, both operate best when we cannot be seen, or be recognized in the case of the Changelings," He gives the disguised Cicada a discreet glance as he says this, "Plus, most of Equestria will be asleep, so we won't need to cut through quite as many citizens. Just the military if things go to awry."   He waves a hoof, "Plus, the Princess Luna will probably be distracted with gallivanting through her 'subject's' dreams to be of much use in detecting us. At least, these are as far as my knowledge allows."   (I had Sanguine glance at Cicada, considering he was present during Chrysalis and Cadence's meeting, albeit he was hidden. If this seems to broken of him, I will cut that bit out.)

 

 

 

  "Indeed we should Chrysalis, it will be at least a days march. I'll have Harmo- hmm." Cadence sighed and looked around at the ponies in the room, wondering who would be best qualified to lead the march now Harmony was out of the frame. They all had individual talents, but none of them met leader status in her eyes. "Tell me, how would you feel marching some of my soldiers down there? Take Arrow and Sanguine with you and scout the place out, having one as powerful as yourself leading the march, you'd make the right call on wether we should take it now or later." She shrugged her shoulders, realising she may be asking too much of her new ally so soon, she darted her eyes around the room nervously for a moment before changing the subject to Steeleye. 

 

"T-travelling in dreams?" Arrow could not help asking. His head reeled at the mere motion. "But dreams are private! How is that even possible?" He bit his tongue before he could blab anything else that could give away his ignorance to Sanguine. Instead, he shook his head. "I mean...those crazy Princesses, am I right?" A nervous choking noise that could have been an attempt at a chuckle crawled up his throat and spilled out his muzzle.

 

I should get away...

 

Abruptly, Arrow turned and trotted a few feet away from Sanguine, staring fixedly ahead and making a show of listening very intently to what Cadence had to say.

 

So Sanguine and I are to march under the Changeling?

 

A slight frown creased Arrow's muzzle at this news. He was unsure what to make of the news - at least with Harmonic, one knew just what potential craziness and treachery to expect. But Chrysalis? Arrow still wasn't entirely sure what exactly changelings were, never mind whether or not they could be trusted, though judging by other ponys' attitudes towards the Queen and her subjects, the answer was apparently no.

 

The meeting was beginning to wear on. Arrow stepped forward politely to address Cadence. "I shall go ah..prepare my troops." The words still sounded strange coming out of his muzzle. "M'lady, Queen Chrysalis." Arrow nodded to both mares, then turned to leave.

[00Pony 286]

@@Agent505,@Ano170,

 

Sanguine raises an eyebrow at Arrow's reaction, "Well, that's curious..."

"Of course. It's rather pretentious of her, really. Like you said, dreams are private." He says, aloud.

 

Sanguine angles his head slightly in curiousity as Arrow walks off, but doesn't pursue him, instead turning his attention to Cadence, his interest piqued by her words, "Now that was certainly unexpected. Don't know if I'll be bringing it up to him, however. As for working beneath the Queen, I have no qualms. Could be enlightening, actually."

[Justin ZW 396]

@@Avolon

"I am sorry, Phylomon," Swordpoint said quietly, "but I cannot teach you magic. Being an earth pony, you have no means of tapping into the land's natural magical energies." He watched as Dawn Wing and his subordinates were hoofcuffed and fitted with magic suppressors. "As for his followers... I plan to interrogate him later. We shall discover how deep this conspiracy runs."

 

(We're doing a timeskip to keep up with the empire. Next day.)

@

The guards brought Crimson to Princess Celestia. When the door opened, Swordpoint's eyes widened, and he ran from Celestia's side. "Crimson! Unbelievable! I thought you had perished for certain!"

Edited July 17, 2013 by Justin ZW

[Agent505 661]

@@Ano170,@@00Pony,  

 

"Unless of course, there are any other offers? I'm sure the Queen has her own business to attend to" Cadence called out, looking across at Arrow and Sanguine again. "It's okay Arrow, you may leave to prepare your troops if you so wish. Sanguine, honey? Regardless of the decision, I would like you and your assassins to take a look at Neighagra falls before we send a full excursion up there. You would be better off leaving as soon as you can, it's a good march and I would like to know what forces they have before I sent a full parade." She chuckled as she rearranged her crown and peered across at the map again, trying to work something out in her mind.

_____

 

Enid had been sleeping soundly by her sister all night, as per usual. Come morning however, she awaited any news from the doctors tending to Myra, about her recovery. It looked promising the other day, but there had since been nothing as far as Enid could tell. Then again, she was a soldier, not a doctor. 

Edited July 17, 2013 by Agent505

[HigurSan 195]

@@Agent505, @@Pripyat Pony,

Watching his opinion once again being brought down in a rather blunt fashion annoyed Steeleye. Complications were expected, especially with Cadence. Sometimes he wondered just what path of logic she followed in making her decisions. Perhaps, she was truly mad and went with such things with complete random abandonment of common sense. As always, his poise and eloquence did not falter for even a millisecond. "It is my wish to reach your goal with the best possible speed and ease my Lady," he said with small flourish. "That is all. As for my team... well... it is best said that I always have more cards up my sleeve. Sometimes literally as well as figuratively. In any case, that you now know that there are other options should the current fail is all that is important." Out of the corner of one eye he observed Chrysalis with disguised intensity. News of the events at Cadence and Shining Armor's wedding were well known to him, specifically that the Changeling Queen fed off of love. It was quite possible that she fed off of other strong emotions as well.

 

It was entirely likely then, that the Changeling Queen was able to detect emotions in order to seek out more power sources. Perhaps then, she could be manipulated through emotions. It was a curious concept, to have such total control over oneself that you could actually change your feelings and very thoughts at will. It had taken Steeleye years to reach this level of self obedience. To him, it was simple to lock away the truth in a miniscule hidden part of his mind and replace it with something else. This is what he did now, with his feelings toward Cadence. Thoughts of a sociopath and an incompetent ruler were quashed into the size of a pea where they had previously been an entire house. This kernel he hid in the deepest depths of his sub-conscious. He knew that when the time came, all of those locked away memories and emotions would come flooding back out. For now, he let a slow trickle of like and eventually love begin to seep into the void left behind. If his theory was correct, it was likely that Chrysalis would soon become aware of it and just -maybe- try to take advantage of the fact. If or when she did, he'd be waiting and ready with a deadly embrace.

 

This having taken place within a second of silence, he turned his full attention back to Cadence. "Not to overly lay on the flattering my Lady, but one simply cannot be anything but... occupied, in your presence." What he said was entirely the truth. The difference was that he was constantly watching her to see if she would turn hostile or become vulnerable, rather than being captivated in a more romantic sense. Of course, the latter was slowly going to take the place of the former if all went well. Perhaps it could be used to manipulate Cadence as well? Probably not. She was as likely to string him up by his horn and beat him with a baseball bat as bed him. Still, he made it sound incredibly convincing that he was distracted by her feminine nature. "It would be a disgrace for me to presume that you accepted, but perhaps you received my message? Maybe my timing was a little... off. But I had waited to do so for quite a long time before now and seem to have let my judgement slip a little."

[Ano170 162]

@@Agent505,

 

Arrow nodded once again to Cadence, then exited the room. The halls of the palace were quiet as usual, the only sound being the echo of Arrow's hooves clopping against the polished floor as he trotted towards the exit. In truth, he was reluctant to have to confront his troops again - he had no idea how to address the squadron rank and file cutthroats that he, in theory, commanded.

 

Truthfully, it was part of that reluctance that made Arrow pause outside the medical bay, though a part of Arrow was also genuinely concerned about Enid and her sister's wellbeing. Besides, someone needed to tell the mute soldier what punishment had been decided for her commander, and to inform her that the Empire was preparing to begin marching.

 

He deliberated the matter for about another whole second before heading into the bay.

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

Ooc: It begins! XD

 

@@Agent505,

 

"Of course, Cadance," Chrysalis said. "I will take my leave now, as I have a few matters to attend to before we can start the march." She nodded to Cadance, and then left the meeting. Chrysalis decided that it was time to go to Harmonic's cell, and put him in a better frame of mood than he was currently in. Chuckling evilly to herself, she made sure that she was unwatched and unfollowed before heading to the cell that Harmonic was currently residing in.

 

Two crystal guards put their spears accross to try and stop her, but Chrysalis said, "I am Princess Cadance's newest allie, so of course I have clearance. In any case, I wish to speak with the Commander; see if I can't change his mind on his opinion of myself and my changelings."

 

The spears were raised, and Chrysalis made her way to the cell. She peeped thru the viewing grill and saw that Harmonic was securely chained, with the dark crystals stopping him from doing magic. She opened the door with magic and stepped inside, making sure that Harmonic could clearly see her.

[Agent505 661]

@@Pripyat Pony,

 

Harmonic was left dangling there as before when the queen walked in, for a brief moment he had hoped it would be one of his guards, or even his generals. No such luck of course.

"Oh, big surprise. Come to gloat have you? That you've gotten your own way and you can now get about murdering us one by one in peace? Or have you come so you can introduce me to my new 'foalsitter'?" 

Edited July 18, 2013 by Agent505

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Agent505,

 

Chrysalis smiled. "That will come later," she said. "Right now, I feel it's far more important to put you into a better frame of mind, so that you can get out of here and go back to being a Commander. When that happens, Cecy will of course be your foalsitter, to make sure that you behave yourself. But I have come to lay the groundwork first."

 

With that, Chrysalis' horn glowed green, then a beam of light shot out and hit Harmonic. It was the same exact spell that she had used on Shining Armour before, and it was just as strong; Chrysalis had found, like all the changelings who'd come to the Crystal Kingdom with her, that there were plenty of emotions to feed on and all were much strengthened. She kept up the magic til the spell was complete; Harmonic was now completely under her control.

[Agent505 661]

@@Pripyat Pony, @,@@Ano170,  

 

Harmonic's eyes widened as Chrysalis practically admitted to plotting to killing the Crystal Empire after she had finished helping. "You do realise, I AM going to kill you, right?" He snarled, suspended from the chains as he was, he couldn't really do anything "when I get out of here..."

 

Then there was another intense light, like the one from before, only much brighter and much more painful. He could feel her magic snaking its way into his mind, and his attempt to fight back with his own magic was met with it being blasted back into himself again as before, thanks to the magical crystals. "Good...g'ah! I...will...kill you!" he struggled to force his words out and attempt to fight back at the same time "Cadence...will...know!" As the remainder of his thoughts and feelings where blocked from his own mind, the hatred he felt for not just Chrysalis, but for all changelings, was replaced by compassion and even something stronger. 

 

As Chrysalis released the spell, Harmonic's head simply flopped down, his entire body limp and weakened, and the only clear thought in his head was one of protecting his queen, and serving her whim. 

_____

 

Enid had been anxiously awaiting news from the hospital staff, pacing back and forth in front of the door when Arrow entered. She almost bumped straight into him, managed to pull herself back at the last second before realising who it was. Immediately after noticing it was Arrow, she dove into him and wrapped her forelegs tightly around his neck with a beaming smile across her face. 

_____

 

"I'm afraid I will have to decline your offer for lunch today, on account of us both being busy. However, i'll take you up for breakfast if you like." Cadence smiled, stifling another giggle before it could escape. 'Going to have to find out what this stallion is planning...nopony invites the Princess to a meal without an ulterior motive...' she thought, but she didn't show any signs of concentration on anything aside from accepting Steeleye's offer. 

Edited July 18, 2013 by Agent505

[Pripyat Pony 2,608]

@@Agent505,

 

Chrysalis grinned evilly as she saw the spell working. "How do you feel now, Harmonic?" she said. She studied him carefully. "I think I will send Cecy to visit you shortly. Then perhaps, we might get you out of this cell and back to your command. I think that will be best."

[RAGESTAR 479]

@@Avolon

"I am sorry, Phylomon," Swordpoint said quietly, "but I cannot teach you magic. Being an earth pony, you have no means of tapping into the land's natural magical energies." He watched as Dawn Wing and his subordinates were hoofcuffed and fitted with magic suppressors. "As for his followers... I plan to interrogate him later. We shall discover how deep this conspiracy runs."

 

(We're doing a timeskip to keep up with the empire. Next day.)

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The guards brought Crimson to Princess Celestia. When the door opened, Swordpoint's eyes widened, and he ran from Celestia's side. "Crimson! Unbelievable! I thought you had perished for certain!"

Crimson chuckled and patted swordpoints shoulder, "don't insult me swordpoint, I'm not THAT easy to kill! I've been busy in the crystal empire trying to help a small group of rebels attempt to overthrow cadence, but they've recently become very inactive due to planning problems, so I figured I'll help you guys from this end until they get things moving again, so my brother, is there any room for me to assist you in defeating cadences army?" Asked crimson

[Justin ZW 396]

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"Certainly," Swordpoint said with a smile. "You claim that you were in the Empire? So tell me... Has Cadence truly gone mad?"

 

Celestia stepped forward. "It has been a long time, Crimson. I'm glad to see that you're alive and well. Perhaps I should tell you the current state of affairs." She cleared her throat. "Appleloosa has been destroyed. Applejack claims that the ponies responsible were from the Crystal Empire Army... and this worries me. The last communication we had from the empire was from Shining Armor, who wrote to me, telling me that Princess Cadence seemed to be growing increasingly distant. I fear for his safety, and for her sanity."

 

Swordpoint glanced away. "... we are on the brink of war, brother. The call has not yet been made... but it is only a matter of time. Our cities have been reinforced as a precaution, but I fear that we will soon find ourselves making our stand." He faced Crimson, revealing a worried expression. "I truly wish to hear that this is all a falsehood... and yet your eyes betray it all." Stepping forward, Swordpoint sighed deeply.

 

"I have not yet ordered an attack," Celestia began, "but if the empire continues its push, I will have no choice. I welcome you to aid us, if you choose."