Luna and Chris appeared in a luxurious room and Luna closed her eyes for a moment before she slipped off the bracelet and chain from the a'dam,
"I apologize for the chain and bracelet, but the device will lock down your mind and body unless I set parameters for it, tis an ancient safety precaution. Do not worry, it will only restrict your magic now." Luna paused briefly, but Chris was in a state of shock, "I apologize for the deception, but I assure you, you still have your freedoms of motion." she smiled a strained smile at Chris, "Now I must go for a few minutes, should you need anything just open the doors to the room and order what you need, the Guards and servants already know that anybody in my room is to be treated as they would myself. I will take the a'dam off for practice sessions and once you know enough not to be a danger to yourself and others, I will take it off permanently I promise." with another flash of light Luna was gone.

Chris, finally finding his voice, let lose with a stream of curse words that would make a sailor blush with shame,
"God damn, mother fucking, cock sucking, dirty, stuck up, sadistic, shit eating, crotch grabbing, toilet licking, butt fucking, shit spewing, Nazi loving, midget munching, sack busting, ass hole of a whore!" his hands instantly went for the collar, but it was secured tightly.

He pressed on the spring loaded button but nothing happened. He pressed it more firmly and tugged on it with all his might. It was all for naught, the a'dam was secured. Chris still kept trying to pull it off.

* * *

"Where is Chris!?" Mike Joyner demanded loudly.

Princess Luna had disappeared with Chris then reappeared without Chris and Mike had gone from disbelieving, when Chris put the collar on, to irate when he saw Chris go limp then disappear. He stood half an inch from Luna's face staring directly into her eyes.

Luna took a step back,
"I assure you, he is as safe as he can be . . . "

"Then why isn't he HERE!?" Mike yelled, pointing to the floor beneath their feet emphatically, "I never heard him say he would go with you to wherever you took him!" Mike turned to the other members of Parliament who had quickly gathered around, "Did any of you hear him say he wanted to be taken somewhere?"

"I took him to Canterlot." Luna said evenly, "He is secure in my personal chambers. He could hardly be more safe."

Mike whipped his head back around toward Luna so quickly his neck popped,
"Bring. Him. Back." Mike ordered, poking Luna in the chest, "We've bent over backwards and BEYOND that to make things go smoothly, but THIS?! This is unacceptable! I will wait right here if I need to, but I will see him back here immediately or else things are going to become extremely uncomfortable and I think perhaps my trident may need some exercise. Am I understood?"

Luna stood her ground, looking Mike square in the eye,
"I am sorry, but for the sake of all of us, I cannot do as you ask. Chris represents a clear and present danger to all of Equestria until he learns to fully control his magic. You saw what he accidentally did during our stand against the Diamond Dogs. He might do so again without meaning to and end up injuring or killing somebody. I neglected to act, in the hopes of his Noun and Verb being at levels the Arch Magister could safely ward. During my previous time ruling with my sister, such negligence would have been deemed illegal, but this is a different time, so I withheld my actions." she hung her head, "Unfortunately he is simply too powerful. I am sorry. I will tutor him personally until he gains enough control to practice safely and then I will free him immediately. I will not hold him any longer than necessary. I am going to address my sister as soon as I can. I realize this seems extreme to you, and I admit that it is, but as a ruler and protector of all beings in Equestria, I must make difficult and often unpopular decisions. You all may hate me, but if you are all alive to do so, it is worth the temporary discomfort."

Mike crossed his arms and gazed at Luna darkly,
"What the fuck could be so powerful that you and Celestia couldn't handle it?"

Luna shook out her mane in agitation, she was being far more humble and apologetic than she was used to,
"His Nouns." she said crisply, "His Noun of Space . . . it is a 10. In this Noun he is more powerful than Celestia or I."

Mike threw up his hands,
"Then just join forces! Combine your magic if he's that powerful! It's just one point!"

"You do not understand!" Luna said emphatically, "The difference between a one and a two is like the difference between a stream and a river. The difference between a two and a three is similar to the difference between a mouse and a manticore. The difference between a three and a four is the difference between a pebble and a mountain. The difference between a nine and a ten . . . it would be comparing a sneeze to a supernova. Even two sneezes are no match for one supernova." Luna paused to let the information sink in, "I am sorry, I cannot do what you ask. It would be risking a calamity the likes of which we have only ever experienced once before, during the reign of Discord."

Mike still wasn't having it, and the mysterious name only served to anger him further,
"Discord, Discord, Discord, who the flying fuck is Discord!?" he asked throwing up his hands in frustration.

A brilliant flash of light suddenly illuminated the whole of Town Hall, its point of origin was right next to Mike,
"I am thank youuuuu! WOW!" he turned his head and regarded Mike almost hungrily.

Luna stepped back fearfully,
"Michael Joyner!" she yelled, fear evident on her features, "Get away from him quickly!"

Discord turned his head and regarded Luna sourly,
"Really Lulu, you wound me. I'm reformed remember?" he shuddered with delight, "Even if this strange Human is making me feel . . . " his eyes glazed over, "Oh so deliciously chaotic."

Luna lowered her voice and spoke quietly,
"I am begging you, Michael Joyner, please step away from him."

The rest of Parliament stepped away from the nine foot Draconequus , but Mike held his ground,
"Bring Chris back and I will. This time he stays until he says otherwise."

Luna nodded, obviously nervous beyond explanation,
"Alright, I will," her eyes darted between Mike and Discord nervously, "Upon my word of honor I will bring him back, just step away from Discord."

"What is going on here?" a loud authoritative voice asked.

All eyes turned to the doorway as Princess Celestia slowly walked into Town Hall, her eyes immediately sought out her sister,
"Luna what is the meaning of this? It is my understanding that you used an a'dam on a Human. Please tell me this is not the case. I ordered every a'dam destroyed ages ago, owning one is a crime, using one on somebody is a capital crime." she looked at Discord, "Please excuse us Discord, just a little family disagreement. You are free to go wherever you wish."

"TIA NO!" Luna shrieked suddenly.

"That is enough out of you Luna." Celestia said with a stony face.

Luna ignored her sister, and sent her an urgent telepathic message,
"The Human, Michael Joyner, his magic increases all creatures' Nouns and Verbs by a full level! Discord is an ELEVEN right now!"

Celestia remained calm but turned toward Discord,
"How do you feel Discord?"

Discord's mind was too glazed over for him to answer coherently,
"Yes Mommy, I took the cookies." he mumbled.

Celestia raised her right eyebrow,
"Indeed." she turned to Mike, "Would you please step away from Discord? I believe the overabundance of magical power is frying his brain."

Mike took ten steps away from Discord and turned around, Discord shook his head and placed his mismatched hands against his cheeks,
"Wow!" he looked around, settling on Celestia, "Tia, you have got to try that! It's like the entire universe is laid out before you, all for your entertainment, for you to do with as you please. It's pure bliss."

Celestia's lips curled up into a small smile,
"Good to know. I may try it at some point. You might not want to though, it seemed to turn you even more goofy than normal. You couldn't even make any jokes."

Discord looked stricken,
"Really!? How horrible!" he laid his lion's paw over his forehead dramatically, "Speak not of such travesties my sweet Celestia! Imagine the world without the genius of my humor!? It doesn't bear thinking about!"

"I must admit, I actually agree with you . . . to a point." Celestia said, "Despite my better judgement, I find myself imagining the world less . . . colorful, figuratively of course, without you, now that we have grown somewhat accustomed to your . . . humor."

Discord straightened up instantly, eagle talon held up and mouth open to speak, Celestia beat him to the punch,
"Though I doubt the Ponies of Equestria are quite ready for a full dose of your humor. Perhaps someday though, it may happen that we call upon your chaos."

Discord wilted like a flower,
"You dangle a golden goose before me only to pull it back tauntingly, Celestia," he smiled deviously, "I do believe I am rubbing off on you." he snapped his fingers and he suddenly appeared rubbing his back against Celestia's wings, curled around her back like a sinuous snake, "Feeling any more chaotic yet, my dear?" he asked sweetly into her ear.

Celestia smiled playfully,
"Perhaps I am, but all things in moderation." she turned her attention back to her younger sister, expression serious once more, "Tell me it isn't true Luna. Did you use an a'dam on a Human?"

For her part, Luna was staring at the ridiculous display in complete disbelief,
"But . . . Discord . . . how . . . what . . . "

Celestia stomped her right forehoof loudly,
"Luna! This is an extremely serious matter. Did you, or did you not use an a'dam on a Human even after Catalyst informed you they were illegal?"

Luna straightened up, shaking her head to clear her thoughts,
"I . . . " she trailed off, looking away in embarrassment, "I did, sister."

Celestia frowned deeply and took a step toward her sister,
"I am sorely disappointed at what you've done Luna." with Discord still rubbing his back against her wings, Celestia continued walking toward her sister, "What could have possessed you to do such a thing even after you knew, you knew they were illegal?" her muzzle was less than a foot from Luna's, her voice was soft, concerned.

"He is a ten, Tia." Luna answered softly, "He is a level ten in Space, equal to Discord."

Celestia head jerked back violently as she froze in place, her eyes were wide, nearly unfocused,
"A ten?" she whispered, leaning her head back down, face to face with Luna, "Are you certain?"

Luna nodded silently, Celestia asked one more question,
"Who?" she asked quietly, "Who was it?"

Luna looked up,
"Christopher Vacca."

Celestia turned pale, quite a feat for an Alicorn who was already stark white,
"Where is he Luna?" she asked urgently, "Where did you take him?"

"He is in my chambers." Luna said plainly, curious at her sister's sudden change in demeanor.

* * *

Chris' anger had burnt itself out quickly and he was left with only simmering frustration, he wasn't the type to stay mad,
"Well shit." he sat down on the floor and looked around at the room for the first time.

The enormous room had to be all of forty feet wide from one circular side to the other. To his right sat a colossal bed, nearly half again the size of a California King bed. The bed was square and had four posts holding up a draping canopy overhead. The sheets and blankets looked silky smooth and the top of the bed was liberally covered with mounds of pillows. Everything about the bed was dark, night time colors, cool and inviting. One thing stood out on the bed, a single plush pillow which was shaded exactly the same colors as Celestia's mane and tail. Turning away from the bed, Chris saw an ebony writing desk covered with parchment, quills, ink, and sand. The desk was on the polar opposite side of the room from the bed. Chris looked behind himself and found the tall double doors which marked the entrance of the room. Turning back to the front, he saw a pair of tall, all glass double doors leading out to a spacious rail-lined balcony. To the right of the double doors sat a fireplace, already stacked high with wood ready for burning.

Chris' mind began spinning and something horrible happened, something which, all who knew him feared immensely, he became bored,
"Luna said the collar would come off if magic was flowing through it when the button was pressed. Luna and Celestia are magical creatures and this collar was made for Ponies, not Humans with hands. There HAS to be something in here that's magical. I'll just press it against the button of the collar and I'll be free to chuck this mother fucker out the god-damn window." he rose to his feet and began thinking, "Let's start with obvious." the fireplace caught his attention instantly.

There were no apparent tools to clean it with and there was no ember gate to prevent the fire from spreading if a log popped. There were also a trio of ultra plush pillows sitting in front of the fireplace along with a thickly woven blanket. Chris walked up to the pillows and something else caught his attention. A small silver bucket sat next to the pillows with a crystal chalice next to it. Within the bucket was a bottle of some sort. The fireplace seemed to be made of large onyx stones, all carefully placed together like a puzzle and held in place with mortar. The end result was nearly seamless and strikingly beautiful. Above the fireplace pit was a mantle made of some sort of dark colored stone which reminded Chris of black granite. Upon the mantle sat a silver framed picture of Princess Celestia.

"This fireplace must have some magic to it. There are just too many possible dangers for there not to be any magic on it." he walked up to the fireplace itself and peered at the logs, "Hell, maybe the logs are magic, maybe they never burn out. They look too perfect to be real."

Chris leaned over and picked up one of the heavy logs and held the edge of it against his neck with a grunt of effort. The coarse bark of the log was scratchy against his skin. He carefully maneuvered the log and after a few seconds he had it so that it was pressing against the button on the collar. Nothing happened. After a moment, Chris carefully replaced the heavy log with a deep, disappointed grumble.

Standing back up, he examined the fireplace closer, looking for any indicator of a magic button to perhaps start the fire or keep the embers from flying when a log popped. His hands slid over the outside and found nothing. He glided his palms over the mantle and still felt nothing out of place. As a last resort he leaned over and inched his fingers around inside of the fireplace shaft and felt a small button, 'Aha!' he thought gleefully, 'Gotcha!' he pressed the button.

A small, seamless door sprang open out of the smooth stone just above the fireplace mantle. The secret cubby hole housed three objects: a large silver necklace with a gem in the center, a black book, and a dark blue feather that had the base scrawled with a silver inlay. It was obvious that Luna really liked silver.

Chris reached into the tiny vault and grasped the necklace. His hand nearly went numb from sudden, startling cold. He nearly dropped the necklace, but held on gamely, examining the gem. The gem was so black it looked like it was absorbing all light around it. It was tear drop shaped and smooth as silk, nearly the size of Chris' fist. Realizing that the gem must be magic, Chris quickly pressed it against the a'dam.

In a subdued flash of black light, the a'dam immediately crumbled to dust.

Chris placed the gem back into the little vault and shook out his hand, trying to bring some warmth back into the appendage,
"Damn that thing was cold!" after a few moments his hand was warm enough and he reached up and felt his neck, "Ah, freedom!"

Feeling very pleased with himself, Chris picked up the black book and opened it up,
"Dear diary . . . " Chris closed the book and placed it back in the little vault, "Pissed or not, I'm not reading her journal." he closed the door to the secret vault having no particular interest in the silver inlaid feather.

He looked around the room again and strode toward the glass double doors which led to the balcony. He gently pushed the doors open and walked out onto the balcony. The sight of Canterlot below was awe inspiring. The pure white stone buildings, the golden roofs, the colorful banners caught in the breeze, it was amazing to behold. He felt the late afternoon sun warm his skin and a slightly chilled breeze blew down from the top of the mountain. It was beautiful beyond words. Chris placed his hands against the railing and leaned out, enjoying the atmosphere.

After enjoying the sight and feeling for a few moments, Chris decided to look around some more, he was in full-blown exploration mode. Luna's desk seemed to call to him enticingly and he felt he should heed the call. Smiling to himself, Chris sauntered over to the desk and examined what lay on the surface. There was a stack of lose pieces of parchment which had plentiful scribbling scrawled on it. Chris picked up a piece and examined it. He could read Velensovth passably well, even if he could barely speak a word of it, and the calculations and formulas written on it were as complex as he could have imagined. Sitting to the side of the desk was an old wooden abacus, obviously having seen a great deal of use. Chris dedicated the sequence of the beads to memory and moved on the checking the drawers. The top drawer contained old books on 'Tax Law' according to the titles. Chris closed the drawer with a shudder and opened the second drawer. The sight which met his eyes was an odd one. A small silver dish, similar to a dog bowl, sat within. Alongside the silver dish was a burlap bag of fine grain like kibble which was smaller than rice grains. Chris quirked an eyebrow at the bowl and kibble, 'Does Luna have a tiny dog or something?'

Chris looked all around, but saw nothing to indicate a pet aside from the dish and kibble. Shrugging to himself, he decided to pour himself a drink. He wandered over to the wine bottle and popped out the protruding cork, it was half way out anyway. He picked up the chalice and poured himself a goodly bit of the wine. He held up the crystal chalice and took a long gulp of the wine. Chris didn't know very much about wine, being more of a liquor or beer man, but he liked what he tasted. He quickly drained the chalice and set it back down. He was looking around, contemplating what to do next when he heard a shuffling sound coming from the huge bed. His mind spun through hundreds of possibilities in half a second and he easily came to a conclusion, 'Luna's pet I'll bet.'

Chris straightened up and walked back over to the desk. He opened the drawer which held the bowl and kibble and scooped up a small handful of the tiny food particles. Not wanting to startle whatever the animal was, Chris crouched down low and slowly approached the bed. The shuffling sound seemed to be coming from the mass of pillows on the bed. Chris held out his left hand, which held the kibble, and inched it slowly toward the pillows.

A long, blunt nose slowly poked out of the pillow pile, sniffing to beat the band. A long, slender tongue snaked out toward the kibble as the animal began to emerge. Two beady little eyes followed light brown fur and hundreds of slim spines as the echidna fully burrowed out of the pillows. The little creature sniffed at Chris' hand for a few minutes as its tiny eyes scrutinized the muscular Human. After a short time it seemed to come to a decision. It waddled forward cautiously and began licking up the tiny bits of kibble from Chris' hand.

The sight was daw-inducing for Chris,
"Well aren't you just the cutest little guy." he reached out and gently stroked the echidna's back, being very mindful of its spines.

The echidna seemed friendly-ish, and Chris had an idea. He looked around for something to use as a scarf and his eyes alighted on Luna's armoire. Smiling to himself, he rose from the bed and made his way to the armorie. Clicking open the doors, he realized he was being really intrusive and closed them quickly. A discarded dark purple scarf drifted down onto his right shoulder as he was turning to leave. The scarf was roughly eight feet long, so Chris wrapped it around his neck. If Luna came back, he could gauge her actions before she realized he had managed to remove the a'dam.

Chris turned toward the heavy wooden double doors which led out of the room and walked over casually, 'Luna said I could order somepony to bring me something.' he pulled hard and the doors swung open quietly. Just outside the door stood two Ponies. They were armored like the Royal Guard, but they wore silver armor and they had bat wings, tufted ears, golden slotted eyes, and were dark gray.

Chris cleared his throat and spoke loudly in clear Velensovth,
"Princess Luna . . . said I could ask for something . . . I would like to know the name of her . . . pet, I would like a . . . glass of water, and a bit of . . . what her pet's . . . favored food is."

The two imposing Guards exchanged a silent look before the one on the right headed off down the hallway, the other Guard spoke quietly in as monotone,
"The echidna is Persephone."

Chris mulled over the name in his head, 'That doesn't sound like a normal Pony name, but it's cute.',
"So what is your name?" he asked the Guard.

The Guard kept staring straight ahead as he answered,
"Evening Tide."

"And who is your partner?" Chris asked.

"His name is for him to give." Evening Tide answered plainly.

Chris clasped his hands in front of him,
"So if I yell . . . 'guard' how many will come running?"

"Depends on how many hear the call." Evening Tide replied.

"I'm actually a . . . guard back on Earth. I don't get to . . . protect people, just . . . property really. Your job is . . . much more interesting than mine. You must get . . . very bored looking at that wall all day. What do you do in your off time? Do you have any hobbies?" Chris asked, proud of the seamless flowing of the last two sentences.

"If you must know, I like to make pottery." Evening Tide said stoically.

Chris leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms,
"What is the . . . funniest joke you know."

Evening Tide sighed lightly and resisted the urge to roll his eyes,
"What are the similarities and differences between a dried nut and a Changeling? They both crunch when you stomp on them but only the Changeling squeals."

Chris grimaced,
"How . . . macabre." he then shrugged, "Guard humor, not bad."

"I hope I'm not going to make you upset or anything, but what type of Pony are you Evening Tide?" Chris asked.

"I'm a Pegasus. The armor is enchanted to make us look different." Evening Tide said.

Chris scratched his chin and nodded, not knowing what else to do,
"Well, thanks for not being offended."

"You asked politely instead of running in fear." Evening Tide said.

Chris bravely patted the stoic Guard on the back and closed the doors to Luna's chambers. As the doors thundered closed with a deep booming resonance, Chris wondered what to do. Persephone stood on the bed staring at him silently. She was strange and prickly, but Chris had to admit she was actually really cute in an spiny, insectivore kind of way. Her curious, honest, beady little eyes and constantly twitching little button nose were admittedly quite adorable.

Chris sat down on the massive bed, to the right of Persephone and reached out his left hand for her to sniff. The echidna slowly waddled over the dark blue colored bed spread and sniffed Chris' hand for several long seconds. Chris moved his hand slowly, up and over Persephone's head and slowly and gently began petting her spines. The little echidna shuffled her spines but she didn't stick her her quills outward, instead she laid them flat and nestled down into the bed spread again, tucking her snout into her belly while Chris pet her.

After a few minutes there was a knock on the door. Chris rose from the bed, careful not to disturb Persephone, and opened the right side door. The other Guard had returned with the glass of water and also carried a large, heavy, glass jar willed with dirt and ants, both objects were held on a flat, circular, metal tray.

Chris received the tray holding the two objects,
"Thanks."

The Guard didn't say anything but closed the door quietly. Chris picked up the glass and chugged the water in one long swig. He walked over to Luna's desk and set the glass down on top, then turned to Persephone. Seeing the little echidna was asleep again, Chris slid the tray onto Luna's desk and admired the bed.

It looked exquisitely comfortable,
"It's been ages since I slept in a real bed and Luna did leave me here. I think I'm going to take a little nap."

The section of dialogue between Discord and Celestia is supposed to emphasize their growing mercurial nature. Remember to comment and Like the story if you like it. Be sure to double check that you actually clicked the correct button as I've had several folks tell me they accidentally his Dislike and had to go back and change it.