Making progress with
no significant resistance
We look around a half-starved huddle of ponies, who shrink back as we look at them.
"Who..?"
"Discord's victims. They come from all parts of the world, speak all manner of languages, practise all manner of customs… He frequently broke up families or changed parts of the ponies' memories and bodies for his own amusement."
I watch one pony fire a chameleon tongue at a fly, wincing as she tastes it and trying not to gag. Another has teeth like a shark and doesn't appear to have eaten in some time. A third is making clucking noises, and I have no idea whether they're a chicken physically transformed into a pony or if Discord just rewired their vocal system. Or a pony given a chicken's mentality.
"And after he had his entertainment, he paid no care to whether or not they could survive as he remade them, or in the land to which they had been brought."
I nod. "No concept of supply chains. You were all just there for his entertainment." I frown. "I'm a little surprised that you're not getting the red sigil from this."
She shakes her head sadly. "Have We not done the same? Eternal night would have frozen the world, or frozen one half and scorched the other. We cannot hold another to a higher standard than We hold Ourself. But when We acted against him We were
guided by compassion for Our citizens."
An indigo flare, and another sigil.
"Oh, these poor dears."
A mare wearing a crown of roses nuzzles a cyclops pony, who looks slightly happier.
"That Discord deserves what's coming to him."
I look at Luna in concern, but she shakes her head.
"You do not need to convince Us. We were one of those who administered judgement 'pon him."
"Were you really?" The mare comes a little closer, and I see that the rose stems are covered in thorns which are biting into her skin.
"Do you think he suffered a lot while he was a statue? Do you think it was more or less than you did on the moon?"
"More, probably. And for longer."
The mare smiles.
"And when you shot him with the Elements of Harmony? Did that hurt him more?"
"Why do you wish to know?"
"Oh, I just love helping ponies who are hurt. But I can only do that if there are hurt ponies around."
Luna considers that for a moment.
"What is your name?"
"Twisted Caretaker."
"And are you truly alive?"
"Of course! I'm getting a one sixth share of your body when we win. I wanna be there for Celestia, you know? It must be horrible for her to spend all that time trying to get you back only to lose you again right away."
"Avarice and rage, Luna. There's nothing to be-."
"You were the one who revealed to Us that the copies of Pinkie Pie were intelligent beings. We did not intend for the Tantabus to have such mental flexibility but clearly it
does. Why would you have Us treat this creature differently?"
"Time constraints. If the Elements of Harmony hadn't been available, would you rather Celestia let Nightmare Moon win, or kill her?"
Luna's eyes dip. "She should have killed Us."
"Right. So either we're going about this the right way and they'll be.. purified or whatever, or they'll die and the monster we made won't get freed. So
pick-."
She flaps her wings, the air
buckles, and we fly through the air and land on a balcony of the Canterlot palace. Luna
stalks off.
"We will
show you what we want most of all."
I trot along behind her, letting her get a little ahead.
"Yes, yes, good."
I'm a little lost for a moment, but then I recognise where we are. I came through the mirror not far from-.
A phantasm of me steps out of an adjoining corridor-.
"
HAVE AT THEE!"
Luna
tears an ornamental spear from the wall and
lunges at 'me', stabbing and slashing as the phantasm is forced to back up, clumsily trying to turn aside the point with his forehooves.
"
WE FINALLY FACED AN ENEMY WE COULD ENGAGE WITH OUR OWN POWER AND WE WERE CRUELLY DENIED OUR RELEASE!
BUT HERE IN OUR DREAM WE SHALL NOT BE-"
She
rams the spear forward, piercing the phantasm through the chest and out through the haunches. She steps back as he weakly grasps at the spear shaft before collapsing on the ground.
"-
DENIED!"
She takes a couple of panting breaths and then turns to give me an interrogative stare.
…
"
Might be standing proud-"
"U
gh."
"-again."
She
glares. "Even if We felt inclined to such behaviour, yours would be the last 'proud standing' that We would
touch."
I smile saucily. "But you
would get there
eventually?"
She huffs. "Why do you
insist on this behaviour?"
"Because you've still got anger to go." I look at her peytral. "And.. apparently I'm not making you angry enough."
"You are-." She exhales sharply. "A most
vexing-"
"Hey, maybe you actually
like it?"
"-
individual."
Still no? Huh.
"Okay, so what makes you really angry?"
She hesitates for a
moment, then regains her poise.
"What makes
you afraid to be honest, Grayven? Thou hast not
hesitated to speak of thine manifold acts of violence before. Is there some great shame that thou fears that thou must confess to gain Honesty's blessing? Art thou not proud but rather shrivelled in the manner of a
raisin or
prune?"
Damn, pony!
"Okay, not even joking now, but are you single? Because I like mares with courage and aggression, and you-."
The floor drops out beneath us and we plummet into the void!
