Landing on the platform was a smooth affair, and so was the act of disembarking from the mastership. Twilight understood the pecking order; Lance and his right hooves first complete with uniforms, then the entourage of soldiers, and then her group followed by Greenwood's ex-villagers. Heather got special treatment, being put on a gurney and walked alongside the soldiers by her aunt with the little one in a chitil baby carrier and Timber Spruce on the gurney as well. Next to them, on a second gurney, lay Cassida. With the bunch was Alexander and the changeling nurses, who were on the opposite side of said aunt to explain away the situation as the welcoming committee gave the group the gimlet eye.

Said welcoming committee consisted mostly of soldiers standing on either side in straight rows, ending at a massive set of double doors that opened into the mountain itself that was connected to the platform by a railed bridge. Some changelings were in white coats, and rushed to Alexander with concerned looks on their fanged faces as the gryphon medic regaled them with the tale of the young mother and the timberbaby. After a few nods and sighs, they went ahead with Cassida, the aunt and foals onto that bridge, then into those massive doors that parted to admit them.

The rest, however, hadn't budged from their positions. Some, though, eyed the rather larger-than-expected procession from the corners of their eyes; a few lips were twitching like they wanted to frown, but couldn't muster up the strength to do it. Perhaps they were awaiting orders, and Twilight guessed, some sort of explanation for this kerfuffle. The silence was palpable, thick enough to be cut with Ragnarok, and it held for several long moments. None dared to move a muscle, lest a stampede be initiated in the resulting chaos.

Finally, one soldier on the left side of the massive double doors shouted out an absurd question, "What is that, General? Did you get a harem like what you wanted the first time?"

Lance turned to that soldier in a heartbeat, shaking his head. "No. No I did not. And besides, why would I turn diplomats and villagers into breeding slaves?" he asked bluntly.

The soldier who'd asked began to sweat a little. "No… no particular reason, sir," he answered uneasily. "Just…"

Another soldier elbowed his yammering fellow, silencing him on the spot. "Dude, shut up. We do not speak of the failed harem plans in the presence of the General," he hissed, just audible enough for Twilight to hear after a great effort was spent straining her ears to catch it.

"You two," Lance began, shaking his head again. "You get cleaning duty… of not only our new residential quarters for the villagers, but the medicinal wing as well, all for your talk of…" Noticing that Twilight was staring at him, quite possibly in a new light, Lance huffed for a moment before finishing, "that which I was prevented from carrying out, which I'll probably have to explain to these fine diplomats now that you went and mentioned it."

Both soldiers winced and went rigid, nodding slowly to signal that they understood.

Lance nodded in return. "Excellent. You two may begin on said residential quarters… immediately. Seek help if you want, but you made your bed." With that, both soldiers trotted off into the double doors with inaudible grumbles bouncing back and forth between them. Turning to Twilight, he added, "So you might've heard I did one stupid thing…"

"Start a war?" Twilight guessed, causing half of her friends to turn to him with gasps leaving their mouths.

"Yes, that." Lance sighed and wilted, having the good graces to look chastised and mortally embarrassed about it. "Well… that had a dozen other stupid plans layered on top, had I succeeded. Didn't account for factors such as 'being stabbed in my sleep' and other basic things like that. I'll explain more… in detail… when we get to the audience chambers." He ruffled his wings. "Took quite the asskicking to have more than enough sense knocked into my head, and then another to make it stick."

Matt and Natalie turned to Twilight and her friends, nodding slowly. "And we also… threatened to geld him if he tried again. He hasn't made another attempt since," Natalie said, frowning rather apologetically.

That made Twilight level her brow so rigidly that Spike could have balanced Mr. Muffin on them. "Geld," she said, letting the word hang in the air.

"And then stitch his family jewels to his forehead so all of Fantasia would know what a dick he would've been otherwise," Matt added after a moment. He lifted his front hooves defensively, and even through his recast illusion Twilight could see the shadows on his body making a similar motion that suggested they were prehensile. "Look, he said something really, really fucking stupid after we hoofed out the beatings like they were candy, okay?"

"Subliety, Matt, subliety," Natalie muttered, shaking her head even as she elbowed him. Matt winced at the motion.

Anna rolled her eyes and turned to the Mythonians. "One time he said that stupid thing while I was in the room. Almost wedged three arrows up his ass." She smirked humorlessly. "Almost."

"Yeah, and you got in trouble for insubordination," Matt added as an aside, shaking his head pityingly as he said that.

Anna blew Matt a raspberry, lifted one of her sanded claws, and proceeded to send him a rude gesture. "But you talked him out of it that time," she countered.

"That time," Matt conceded with a bow and shake of his head.

Twilight started internally howling in laughter. That was how Lance was kept in check? It's not like it could work a second time, should that first time ever come to pass somehow, even with magic factoring into that if it were to be carried out. That internal laughter increased tenfold as she realized a teen chimera soldier was part of the 'Keeping Lance in Check' committee, and the sheer absurdity of it was something she just could not get over now that she had no chance to gloss over it.

That internal howling petered out when a colorful portal opened up between the rows of soldiers, the large and mishmashed herd and the doors. The soldiers jumped, and while more than half of them drew guns or summoned them, none of them layed hoof or claw on the triggers just yet. Lightning crackled, and Twilight noticed she could recognize that strange series of plaid-print bolts anywhere.

Lance spread and waved his wings, first arcing them upwards and bringing them down slowly, primaries parallel with the platform the whole time. The rows of soldiers shared glances, but gradually the guns lowered. Then, only then, did Discord poke his head out of the vortex with a grin. Paw and claw gripped the edges of the portal, and he established eye contact with Lance. "Aww, afraid I'm going to turn those weapons into swiss cheese?" Discord asked with his grin taking on a knowing cast.

"No, it's just that I don't know what you'd do to the bullets afterwards," Lance said matter-of-factly, face hardening ever so slightly into a glare. "What do you want now?"

Discord's smile widened. "Well…" His tail slinked out and flicked for a moment, before Twilight internally groaned as three particular fillies laden with saddlebags stumbled through the portal and looked around with wide eyes—three blank-flanked fillies that Twilight really did not want on Fantasia's surface right now. Alongside them came a white and fluffy cat that sat upon one of said fillies' backsides. "I'd rather you heard it from the horse's mouth." With his tail, he nudged the one with the bow in her mane.

Apple Bloom nodded and frowned. "Well, autumn break came," she said. "And Cheerilee was wondering where Applejack went."

Lance let his head drop upon hearing this. Twilight could've sworn she heard him grumble "Oh, joy," under his breath.

Sweetie Belle then piped up, "And Mom and Dad went on another one of their trips. I had to get Sparkler to watch Opal, but then Opal wanted to come with." That made Lance's wings curl and shudder in a manner reminiscent of a fist.

Finally, Scootaloo flapped her wings as she threw in her two bits, "And I didn't want to be left alone without my bestest friends, so I figured I could come too. My aunts were okay with it." She saw Lance seemingly simmering with rage and added, "It's only gonna be a week anyway."

Discord chuckled and nudged the trio forward. "I'll pick them up after the week's up. They might just have a chaotic time here," he said, grin somehow widening further, "and be able to make that boring essay Cheerilee gave them over the course of their little break a little more interesting. Ta-ta now." With that, he withdrew into the vortex and closed it behind him.

Matt's horn glowed, and he quickly recast his illusion on Katie before the Crusaders could even notice she was there. He turned to the Mythonians and gestured the trio over to them. After a moment, the Crusaders obliged and shuffled their way to their sisters and idol. He looked at Lance, who still stood there shaking with feathers puffing as though they'd been rustled. Then he turned to the rows of soldiers and addressed them when silence started to permeate, "The fillies are with the Mythonians. We'll… inform them of the rules around here."

Thankfully, that put the soldiers at ease; guns slung across backs, and legs once more became rigid. It did not stop them from sharing glances at this development; but what else could they do when a portal spontaneously opened, dropped off more ponies, then closed shut?

Natalie waved a hoof. She then stepped forward. "We'll split to take everyone to the different quarters they'll be sharing." She turned to Twilight. "Mythonians, and Maria with me. Matt, take Greenwood's ponies. The unaffiliated, the twin sister and recently-drafted, with Anna. Everyone else, with Lance." The Mythonians broke formation and converged to follow Natalie as she led them to the massive doors. Maria also went with, running up to trot at her side.

"Why not let me go with daddy?" Maria asked. Natalie sighed and shook her head.

"He needs some… time to cool off. You don't want to see him mad, trust me," Natalie answered with a frown forming on her face. Into the doors they went, revealing a cavernous hallway that branched off into several smaller halls, some with metal doors and others opening and closing in the rock structure as they pleased. Illuminant moss lined the walls, providing light in addition to pulsating crystals.

"Whoa!" Scootaloo piped up, turning to Maria. "So you live here? That's so cool!" She ran up to her, making Maria squeal and flinch simultaneously. "Say, I've always wondered what you use those talons—" Before she could finish the question, Twilight's horn glowed and she magically yanked the Crusader back to a more respectable distance. Scootaloo turned to Twilight, frowning. "What was that for?!"

"You give her a reason to, and she'll claw your eyes out," Natalie said bluntly. "I've seen her do it."

Scootaloo perked up a little. "Like… across them?" she asked.

Natalie shook her head. "No. Out. She blinded somepony," she clarified.

Blueblood leaned to Scootaloo and whispered in her ear, "That hippogryph foal can be meaner than most foals would dream of. I'd advise you to not provoke her."

Scootaloo scoffed and turned her head to meet Blueblood with a baleful, critical eye and one brow arching downward. "Really? What makes you say that?" she huffed. "She didn't seem that way last time I talked to her."

Maria turned to Scootaloo, frowning. "I did scratch a bad pony's face off. He tried doing bad things to me!" she hissed, feathers puffing up.

Blueblood jerked his head in Maria's direction. "See? She confessed to it," he said blithely. Scootaloo scowled, but turned ahead with nothing more than a tiny flap of her wings.

"She has the makings of a vicious one," Natalie added drolly, continuing to lead the group down the long, seemingly endless hall. Twilight noticed that, as the trip went on, the hall started to become less and less rock, and more and more magitek. Crystals pulsed upon many surfaces, some of them domed off with circular glass shields to act as overhead lights.

After an eternity—or what felt like one—had passed, they came across a T-intersection. This one had a sign in front of them, pointing to various rooms down either end in a runic tongue that Twilight was tempted to read with the aid of the translation book. The left hall was more of that stonework that had holes opening and closing as they wished, and to the right lay only more and more metal. Natalie turned right, and the herd followed her.

Sweetie Belle turned to Rarity, who wore a neutral expression. "You're mad, aren't you," she said.

Rarity nodded. "Mother and Father didn't take you with them?" she asked.

Sweetie shook her head. Opal meowed with a blunt nod of confirmation. "They said it was for adults only," she answered. "I'm still wondering what they meant when they told me I wasn't big enough."

Rarity frowned, albeit so slightly it seemed her lips hadn't moved at all. "And they left you with a nanny again, didn't they," she said.

Sweetie nodded, face falling and frown forming. "She's boring! She thinks I shouldn't play outside because it's too dangerous, and that I shouldn't have friends!" she pouted. "And Cheerilee's essay should be about her and not foreign cultures!" At this, Opal yowled and hissed, as if the nanny in question were present. "She even hit Opal with her hoof, saying that I shouldn't have cats because of some stupid fight between Godcat and Faust!"

Rarity's face darkened ever so slightly. Idly, she lifted a hoof and gave Opal a consoling pet, who returned the gesture with a rub of her head and a dainty purr. "Perhaps I should have words with her, then. Is that why you came here, with Discord's help?"

Sweetie nodded. "And I was also worried about you, sis. Princess Luna told me you were okay, but…" Her face fell further, and she turned her ears back. "But she said you had to be in Fantasia, without saying why."

At that, Rarity's stomach clenched. "Well… to cut a long story dreadfully short, something very bad is happening on Fantasia and it could get much worse," she said. "I have to help however I can, and—"

"Well why doesn't Luna send the Guards over here?!" Sweetie shouted, brow furrowing. That made Opal puff up and yowl disapprovingly. "She and Celestia could make things better here!"

Natalie halted. So did everypony but Sweetie Belle, who instead bumped into her hind legs. Slowly, Natalie turned to Sweetie, and nudged her with a hoof to get her attention. Then she knelt to her eye level and said, "Not many Mythonians trust us. As it stands, we're all on thin ice already. Further, if Guards came in droves? That would spark a war."

"And the Guards might be able to fight the Fantasians, but… against Lance and his crew, there would be at least many casualties," Twilight added bluntly. Sweetie turned to Twilight.

"But Celestia and Luna could take them on!" Sweetie protested. Natalie stood up and shook her head with a tired sigh.

"Yes, they could… and we wouldn't be able to contact Fantasia anymore after that," Twilight pointed out. "That's the thing about diplomacy; you have to build relations, and attacking first is just going to make a bigger mess that'll need cleaning up."

"Tiring, but worth it if you know what you're doing," Natalie said, watching Sweetie as she turned back to her. "You want harmony instead of fighting, right? Diplomacy is the way to go."

Sweetie huffed and puffed, but Rarity magically grabbed her and pulled her back before she could start squawking again. "They're right, Sweetie. We want peaceful relations with Fantasia," she said firmly.

"But—"

Rarity shook her head and hardened her expression into a stern glare that silenced Sweetie on the spot. "No 'buts,' young lady. We can't afford to fight with Fantasia when something could be waiting to strike while both sides are down," she said even more firmly. Sweetie wilted in her magical grasp, head dropping as she conceded defeat.

"Besides… me and my friends took on Godcat and won. Celestia and Luna would still have at least some trouble with us, if war were to start," Natalie said tartly, watching Sweetie's face as she paled. She stood up to full height, head shaking. "And I'd rather not use my full power against either of them. What got into your head that fighting us would be a good idea?"

Sweetie wilted. "The nanny was saying horrible things about Fantasia..." she muttered. Another sour nod from Opal followed, and the cat looked Natalie in the eyes prior to letting out a low, growling meow that may or may not have been a dainty swear in cat-tongue.

Natalie groaned, and turned to Rarity. Rarity made eye contact. "That nanny sounds like she needs her ass kicked," Natalie said bluntly. "I've had my fair share of them when I was a foal."

"Get in line, darling," Rarity hissed, eyes narrowing the tiniest increment. "What little I've heard makes me want to throw her off the nearest mountainside."

Natalie lifted and swept a hoof to the side. "We'll be sure to paint a target for when you do," she replied with a nod. Then, she turned to Opal. "Say… do you take any particular foods?" she asked. Opal perked up for a moment, floof returning to its normal, dormant state as she meowed with a bit of a purr. "Oh… you like the special stuff." The cat nodded with a small, ladylike smile. Natalie smiled back. "Fortunately, we have special stuff here." That made Opal purr and curl her tail around her little paws.

Rarity glanced back and forth between her pet and her escort. "You understand cat?" she said after a moment.

Natalie nodded, turning to Rarity. "Though, after Godcat took all the other Fantasian cats with Her to Her new world, I really haven't had the need to. Besides, NoLegs stayed behind, and he's telepathic," she retorted with a blaise shrug of her shoulders.

Fluttershy chipped in, grinning as Angel clambered to her head with his jaw dropped upon her mane. "I didn't know that there were ponies who could understand animals here!" she said. "Can you understand any other animals?"

Natalie shook her head. "Besides domesticated dogs, not really." She shrugged again. "It's like plants: I'm not that versed in such things. You'd be better off asking Anna about them."

Apple Bloom, who was tuning out much of the banter, looked around at the magitek in the hall. Some part of her brain was trying to work out the magitek's functionality, while another piped up in curiosity and wondered if Equestria could get a good load of this. "You guys use crystals for everything?" she asked once her gaze settled on Natalie.

Natalie beamed at the question, sitting on her haunches to clap her front hooves together as she tilted her head with a smile. "Except some of our weaponry, but yes. We've been using magitek for around four and a half years now," she answered.

"Four and a half? Isn't that a little… short?" Blueblood asked.

Natalie shook her head. "It really took off when we found the airships; before then, there wasn't much reason to use it outside of war," she said. "We have various teams researching, making new magitek, making magitek safe to use… only real downside is powering it, but nothing that can't be managed."

"Powering it shouldn't be difficult, then. It is enchanted, correct?" Blueblood asked, brow raising.

Natalie nodded. "That it is. But the enchantments and crystals require more… direct charging methods." She gestured to the Crusaders. "We'll show you how we go about it, but… when we do, cover their eyes and ears."

Shining sighed. "Since you arrived in Mythos, you guys were… off-kilter. Is charging magitek draining?"

Natalie nodded. "After charging, we can hardly trot for a little under three hours, and the day after? We can cast more, but nothing too advanced lest we collapse on the floor. Which makes me thankful that our magic replenishes itself in days," she said, her smile becoming rather strained as she said that.

"Which would probably make a lot of sense for one confirmed alicorn, one suspected alicorn, and a half-Umbrum," Shining's internal lawn gnome snarked in the back of his head. "Because no normal pony can replenish magic in their wellsprings as fast as that after a thorough draining."

Opal meowed again, and jumped off Sweetie to trot daintily to Natalie with a gleam in her eyes. Natalie watched as the cat circled her, face scrunching a little as she eyed the skulls of her uniform, but purring nonetheless. Batting a skull with her paw, Opal watched as it rattled a little, but did nothing else that was remotely interesting.

"I've been wondering… are those genuine?" Rarity asked, pointing to the skulls with a hoof as Opal batted the one that caught her attention again. Natalie, ears turning back as she had the good graces to look embarrassed about it, sighed.

"Well… had tests ran on them. Bad news: they are." Rarity gasped, but the sound partially died when Natalie held up a hoof. "Good news: they're older than I think Celestia is; they've been confirmed to belong to at least one of my ancestors." She dropped the hoof she had raised, and tapped at the skull with it. "And check this out." She grabbed the skulls with her magic and turned them just enough upwards that the Mythonians could see into the crevices where the brains were once housed.

Inside of those skulls were etched a series of pulsating runes, each as bright as the magic that cradled them, although some of them were obscured by the sash anchoring them to the dress. "And if you want to know where I got this outfit from, it was from a complete stranger who didn't want it anymore—skulls included. So I don't know where she got them from," Natalie finished, letting the skulls float back down to hoof level, where Opal started to bat at them once more.

Rarity and Shining exchanged glances, then Shining piped up, "The stranger was desperate to get rid of it?" At Natalie's nod, he snorted and shook his head. "Maybe it caused her no end of issues."

Natalie frowned and sighed with a hoof lifting up to run down the bridge of her snout. "I checked the runes; they're harmless, but make the skulls… well, do their thing," she muttered. "Maybe she was accused of necromancy or something." She turned to Sweetie Belle. "Discord mentioned… an essay?"

Sweetie fervently nodded. "Yeah. Miss Cheerilee wanted us to make a ten-page report on any country of our choosing. Extra credit's going to whichever group does one on a Fantasian country," she said, smiling faintly. She bounced up to Natalie with a spring in her step, eyes gleaming. "Are we in a country right now?"

Natalie donned a slightly fixed and exasperated smile. "I wouldn't say 'country' so much as 'city-state.' Does your assignment cover city-states?"

Sweetie nodded. "Those count too, if they're by themselves," she said.

Natalie's grin widened. "Welp, you're in luck; you're in one of the safest city-states Fantasia has to offer." She lifted a hoof and patted Sweetie's head with it, turning to the other two Crusaders. "You guys have to cover the history and how the city-state operates, right?" At dual nods, her smile went wider still. "Alright. I'll inform Lance about it once he cools off; in the meantime, I can share some of that critical information with you."

Twilight sighed. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Natalie nodded, beaming as her crystal sheen swept across her body to make it glimmer brilliantly. "Practically nobody else on this planet has wanted to know how we operate. And truth be told, I've been dying to share it with any diplomats who would actually set aside their rage at us and listen!"

That made Twilight jerk her head up. "Wait, so we're the first to…"

Natalie nodded once more. That time, the skulls of her dress rattled briefly. "Besides, what's a little tour without learning how shit works around here?" she pointed out. She winked to Twilight, her smile turning coy with the motion. Her horn glowed and her telepathic voice bounced around in Twilight's skull, "But we're not gonna give the Crusaders too much intel. Their assignment has to be kid-friendly, right?"

Twilight nodded, albeit reluctantly. At least it was good that Natalie was actually thinking of the children. Opal meowed and trotted to Rarity before jumping up on her back with a purr, smiling in satisfaction. Maria piped up, "What's a report?"

Natalie snorted and lifted a hoof to smother her giggles. Try as she might, though, some still executed their escape attempt flawlessly. When she calmed down, she turned to the young gryph and answered, "A report's basically something that sums up an experience, an event, or one's day." She gestured to herself. "Like, say 'I had a good day today.' That would be a very simple, but informative enough, report for the everyday hippogryph or pony."

Maria nodded, wings fluffing up a bit. "Does daddy like those kinds of reports?"

Natalie shook her head. "From me, Matt, and Anna, he doesn't. He'll want all the information we have on…" Her gaze averted briefly for a moment, seemingly scrounging for evasive words etched into the magitek all around them. "Well, whatever happens to rouse his curiosity and anger."

Maria wilted, feathers returning to their dormant state. "And something made him mad…"

Natalie nodded ruefully, turning her attention back to Maria. "Yes. And as of now, the one of us most informed about… the thing that flustered his jimbobs would be your mother." She sighed and turned to the Crusaders, who were looking at her with wide eyes and pleading looks. At this, her head shook. "It's not something we'll be allowed to share that easily… touchy, bad topic would be my first guess about the matter."

The Crusaders wilted. "Awwwww!" they whined in unison. Rarity reached Sweetie Belle, and put her hoof to her sister's withers with Applejack mirroring the motion for Apple Bloom. Both received consoling rubs, while Rainbow opted to ruffle Scootaloo's mane using her wingtips.

Upon turning to said siblings and idol, Rainbow huffed and shook her head. "Trust me on this, squirt… but I've seen a bit of the bad thing that made Lance angry. It was bad enough, we had to crack out the Elements of Harmony to fix as much as we could," she said. She shared a brief glance with Natalie, who slowly and carefully nodded to signal that she should continue with caution. "Like… we're talking 'what might be forbidden magic being thrown around everywhere before we even arrived' levels of bad."

"I'm not sure if such would be put in the same category as dark magics the likes of which King Sombra has used during his reign of the Crystal Empire, but… forbidden nonetheless," Rarity added. "Nevertheless, though, the source thereof has been dealt with accordingly, and never again shall that particular power scar the face of Fantasia." Worry gnawed at her brain, and it screamed an unheard "Hopefully! Maybe! Please Faust don't let this happen ever again it would be the worst possible thing!" that thankfully remained lodged in the depths of her skull.

"When y'all are older and the Fantasians decide to let us talk about it, we'll give ya the full story," Applejack finished, a nod of finality accompanying a pat on Apple Bloom's withers. Apple Bloom opened her mouth to protest, but all it took for that to be shot down before launch was her elder sister looking at her very sternly, with as neutral a face as she could muster. "Until then, our lips are shut, y'hear?"

The Crusaders wilted again, and chorused in resigned unison, "Yes, Applejack…"

Natalie smiled again, sitting on her haunches to clap her forehooves and get everypony's attention once more. "Now then… about your report…" She turned to the Crusaders, who looked up at her with some disappointment shimmering in their eyes. "What do you want to cover first: how Irongrey Aerie operates, its various wings, or what comes in and out of it?" Her internal hedge gnome shrieked, "Okay, that sounded way better up here than it came out of your cocksucking lips! Be more professional, you stupid oaf!"

"Actually, do you have food? We didn't get to eat dinner yet," Apple Bloom piped up, a gleam in her eye that Natalie matched with one in her own and a tilt of her head.

"Well… the mess hall is nearby. I suppose we can have that sorted out first." She stood up and turned around with a spring in her step. "Just stick with me, everypony! We'll have ourselves some scrumptious chow in no time!"

"Do you have dessert?" Scootaloo piped up, jumping up into the air with wings a-beating a mile a minute. She hovered there for a fraction of a second, and landed smoothly on her four hooves.

Natalie nodded, turning her head back to flash another smile. "Oh yes we do! We'll have plenty when dinner's over! Who wants a Burning Frost Special?" she chirped, eyes gleaming with warmth.

Rainbow shot into the air, wings pumping and forehooves flailing. "Me me me me me! I want a Burning Frost Special!" she yelled.

Pinkie joined her in the air, hovering at her side even though she didn't have wings to call her own. "Me me me me me! I wanna try one too!"

Natalie's smile widened. "Alright," she cooed. "Anypony else?" Some heads nodded, like Shining's, but most shook. Although, she was inwardly surprised to find Harry the bear and Angel amongst those nodding, as well as the Crusaders. "Okay. There'll be enough for seconds and thirds!"

The Crusaders jumped in the air, and shouted in perfect unison, "Cutie Mark Crusaders Ice Cream Testers, yay!" With that, the whole herd started to gallop, following after Natalie as she darted ahead with flames in her legs and skulls a-rattling with eagerness. The crystals in the walls rattled briefly at the stampede, then stilled as it passed.

Elsewhere in the base of Irongrey, at the very tip-top of the ever-changing mountain, silence lingered for a long, long while in a small and tight room. Nostrils flared irritably as red and green eyes locked, and hooves crossed over a desk wrought of wood and iron and crystals.

That impregnable silence held for an eternity before it was broken by a simple question. A question that pierced the air with its presence, accusing, curious, and angry in equal measure. A query asked by a superior to his tight-lipped, half-wooden subordinate with a whole army's worth of yet more queries backing it up. It was as damning as any one of its fellows, and only the least blunt and wounding amongst them. One that demanded immediate answers, no matter how unsatisfactory they were in their nature. It was tantamount to summoning Godcat Herself, looking Her in Her eyes unblinkingly, and asking why such horrors could be created alongside, and continue to walk upon without challenge and care, the very surface of Fantasia.

"You mean to tell me, Anna Aria Windwood… that when you and Sarah were seeded, you were also geased into silence alongside the rest of that damned village?"