Chapter twenty six

A loan Pegasus colt trudges through a dungeon, armed with only a battle axe across his back, and clad in heavy dull iron armor. He pushes open yet another gated door, only to have it stop half way as if something is blocking it from the other side. Raising up his weapon, in one swing he takes the door off the hinges and sends it falling down in to the room before stepping in himself. The area is cold, wet, and miserable… but could he care less at this point? Not at all. His mission is simple, find his opponent, and kill them… No more no less.

Though he wasn’t counting on having an Arch mage as an enemy, that thought comes too late as a bolt of frozen energy from the mages horn shoots out across the room and impacts his chest armor, the cold magic meeting the cold metal and freezing it even more. Now forcing the colt to skid back a few feet as he prepares for himself. A follow up shot from the unicorn mage dressed out in a long cloak is blocked impressively by the broad side of the axe as the Pegasus uses his wings to dash up and close to the magical pony where her spells will be less effective.

Swiping left and right at its slender form, it is reviled when a blade cuts off the coat, narrowly missing the flesh. That the mage is in fact a young alicorn mare, black coat all over her with long almost bat like wings, and an ether blue mane and tail trailing her. Even donning armor put on her in the form of a breast plate, hoof bracers that ride up nearly to her knees, and a helmet that still allows her serpent like eyes to show through. All this with a crescent moon on her hind quarters as a cutie mark.

Not even taking a second to stop and think about killing one so beautiful. The colt continues to use brute force in his attempts to strike the mare down. Nearly cleaving her from head to hoof with a downward power swing over the top of his own head. The agile fit mare though is more than a match for his power attacks while he has put all of his eggs in to the basket of brute force.

She meanwhile has given some thought as to both strength, and skill. The final swing that he manages to pull off is enough to almost get her own heart beating as the axe blade cleaves in to the wall she stands next to, ducking just in time to have it miss her horn. It’s that lengthy attack that is his down fall as the mare lunges up close with her powerful legs and hits the super chilled area of metal. The brittle nature taking effect and cracking along the center of the breast plate now leaving him exposed for the next attack.

Using her own horn to pierce skin and puncture the heart causing the warm life liquid to pulsate out of the wound and even with a good pint or two to fall down her horn and dribble on to her face. The colt falls with a clang as both his weight upon the remaining armor, and his heavy weapon hit the floor. Heavy panting from what life he has in him is all that remains, while the opponent adds one more insult to injury. Powering up her horn, the mage prepares to cast a spell while the blood on her horn starts to singe itself off. A final beam of pure energy is shot and hits the colt, bathing him in its raw power.

A mild screech is heard from the colt as his hair and skin is burned off, in no time at all leaving just a charred skeleton in nothing more than a tin can. While a few puffs of smoke are seen rising off of him. The mare puts a fore hoof on the remains of her slain enemy’s skull triumphantly while soon afterwards crushing it underneath…

As the bright blood red words of ‘Victor’ appear on the screen.

Princess Celestia sits there next to her own sister on the couch in the morning, a controller hovering in their own magical auras in front of them as she sips on a cup through a straw. The straw now hanging from her mouth in complete surprise as she looks at her defeat on the screen and the slain colt that was once her player now dead. Looking over to her sister with the largest smug grin on her face, Luna knows very well where her skill is. Put her in front of a chess set, and she is lost at all thought.

However, give her a controller… the Princess of the night will wipe the floor with you.

“I don’t know how you do it…” the eldest says in utter bewilderment, “I had my colt done up in the strongest armor I could manage, yet you found a way to take it out in one go?”

“Iron armor is very susceptible to frost attacks…” Luna points out while casually laying back with her hooves put behind her head and her hind legs crossed, taking another sip from her drink, “…the subzero temperatures make them very brittle.”

“Okay now that makes sense, how didn’t I see that one coming? Though I never knew you could make the characters look like yourself... really though?” Celestia points out, remembering the look that Princess Luna had going for her in the virtual world, “you opted for ‘Nightmare moon’ as your character?”

“Hehe… well let’s be honest here, at least in that world…” she points to the screen while awkwardly scratching the back of her head, “my alter ego is free to go about her normal business and not really harm any other pony?”

“Plus on top of that… it does kinda give me a warm feeling to see Tia here get her rump dished out every so often,” they hear a third voice say from the door way, turning around to see Discord standing there with his arms crossed as he uses his own magic to hold an orange up to his mouth as he takes bite after bite from it without peeling it.

“Well good morning to you too, Dissy…” she humorously scolds him, “besides you and I both know who will win in a fight anyway. After all who spend centuries locked away in stone?”

Discord covers his lower gut like he just took a hit to his pride as he plays along with his wife for a second, “Oooh…” he groans in response, “that was a little below the belt don’t cha think? And in my defense though, you needed your sister also to help defeat me in the end.”

“We can argue this point later on tonight while in bed.”

“You mean like how we did the other night?” he raises a flirtatious eye brow, “after all who was the pony that used the word, Stallion?”

Luna covers up her ears by lifting a few pillows up and over her head, trying to drown out any more details that may be shared. “Okay, that’s enough information on your sex life for the day…” her face goes from playful to sullen after hearing the connection that the couple share, “you both know how depraved I am, without a colt of my own,” her vision wades off to the side away from them, “seriously…”

Without another word both Discord and Celestia look at one another and just nod in agreement. It’s not the first time they have sort of rubbed that in her face after all, not intentionally of course. “Sorry about that, Lulu…” Tia pulls her younger sister in to a warming embrace and starts to smother her in affectionate sibling kisses all over her delicate face, much to the younger ones disgust, “…we didn’t mean to do that…”

The attempts to get away from the princess now attacking her with a pair of lips only meets with failure as Luna pulled back in for more and more, “I… accept… thine apology!” Luna pulls old school Canterlot tongue on her sister while quickly being released and falling back in to the end of the sofa. Immediately crossing her hooves over her chest in a tuff, meanwhile the couple simply share another laugh, “You’re doing it again…”

Discord is the one to shut up finally as he snaps a claw and appears on Luna's shoulder in a miniature form, “we really are sorry you know,” he speaks while crawling his way in to her vision by standing on her muzzle, before getting batted off by the mare and becoming full sized once more. “If it would make you feel any better we could try and help you find a-” a lone hoof gets trusted over his mouth by the mare in question.

“I will have nothing of the sort as of now…” Luna passes off while holding her head up high, “as of now I have yet to find a colt who interests myself anyway.”

“And exactly how many colts have you tried to go out and meet, to come to such a conclusion?” Celestia persists. Only to draw ever the doubtful, awkward side grin from her younger counterpart that tells both herself and her husband all they need to know, “You haven’t have you?”

“Now how about we get ready to go see Twilight down in Ponyville, before I have to wipe the floor with Celestia yet again,” Princess Luna declares while she shoots up and starts to head towards the door. Leaving Celestia and Discord to just look at one another once more and leave the subject to come up later as they catch up to the midnight mare.

“I already got the kids ready to go see their aunt,” Discord explains while they part Luna’s gaming chambers, “as for Shining and Cadance, I got a letter from them and they should be there before us anyway.”

“Well then…” Celestia puts a little added pep in her step as she starts to trot down the hallway of the castle, “let us not keep them waiting.”

____________________________

Twilight checks the oven to make sure that the tarts are still baking properly, before turning the pots on the stove a little lower so that she doesn’t have them done too quickly and the tarts are left for last. This is the first time baking the little pastries, so she is rather determined to get it right. Thankfully though, she isn’t doing all this cooking on her own.

Flash is more than happy to help, while Pinkie Pie and Applejack have already shown up early to help with the cookery as well. A fresh tomato bisque, homemade with seasonings and all thrown in there from what her and Flash managed to pick up at the market the day before. Following the recipe that she has laid out in front of her from the cook book, one of many, found in her library. The alicorn ensures that every ingredient was measured to perfection in anticipation of the guests to come.

Taking out a hot spoon full of the soup, she blows on it a few times to cool it off so that some pony can taste… “Flash,” she taps him on the shoulder, the instant he turns around he gets the spoon hastily shoved in his mouth and just a quick yanked out as he is already being questioned about its flavor, “…what do you think? Any change to the instructions or should I stick to them?”

He gulps down the still steaming hot liquid as it almost burns the back of his throat, though through the scalding heat he laps his tongue against the top of his pallet, “Hmm… I would say a pinch of basil, just to be on the safe side, and put it to perfection. Though it already tastes great.”

“Thank you, Flash,” She tells him while looking through the cupboard for the spice, “I though always would like the second opinion… and… darn it!”

“What is it sugar cube?” AJ asks while churning a pile of dough with cheese in it to make a cheesy garlic bread.

“Basil…I’m out of Basil… how in Equestria am I out of such a simple thing as Basil?” she asks herself, almost beating her head against the counter in response. Though she feels a gentle hoof on her shoulder, looking up to see her guard there sliding on his helmet, weapon already on him to begin with.

“I’ll go in to town and get some, don’t worry…” Flash assures her.

“Just to get a bottle of-” Twilight starts to ask before a single raised hoof cuts her off from the guard.

“Twilight, I know you want it to be perfect, so yes,” he answers.

“Do you know the way?”

“It’s Ponyville… how could I miss the market,” he states the obvious to her, “besides you did show me around the first time I was here, and we’ve been there a few times now. I’ll be fine,” Flash watches as the bright smile returns to her face as even while her friends are there to watch them. The princess puts a hoof around him in a light embrace as he does the same to her. Only lasting for a short moment while they let go of one another.

“Thank you, Flash… you know where I’ll be,” she winks at him, unintentionally flirting with him a bit there as he grins back at her and steps out of the kitchen to head back in to town for what she needs. Once they hear the door close behind him though, the two earth ponies in the room look at their alicorn friend as she holds a hoof over her chest. Shaking her head when she realizes that she is being stared at. It doesn’t take but a moment for her to read exactly what is on their mind. “Oh, get over yourselves…” Twilight rolls her eyes at the two.

“Come on now, what did he say to ya when you two were cookin’ in the kitchen together yesterday mornin’?” Applejack persists as she tries to dig deeper, “after all you had to have remembered your little moment together at the table with one another the night earlier,” she raises a brow to her, keeping in mind the little dare they had before.

“Just the simple question of ‘what did I remember’ that night, to which I told him… though I can’t help but feel like there was something more,” she reminds herself as she thinks more about it. Still feeling as though there was some part of the night that is a blur.

“What do you mean?” Pinkie ask while she juggles a few eggs, “like it continued when he carried you up to your-”

“Pinkie…!” Twilight says sternly at her overzealous friend, watching her quiet down and finish breaking the eggs for frying batter, “to answer your question though, no nothing else happened, so get that out of your mind,” she answers for her friend while helping her with mixing the batter and adding a few pieces of apples, zucchini, and of course green tomatoes to that for the fryer later.

A little southern cooking from Applejacks family to her home. The mares all continue cooking with one another as the same subject keeps bouncing up in to conversation nonstop at this point. How have her and Flash been, what did they do yesterday when the friends left. What, if anything, did Celestia say about Flash being her guard? And of course though, what in all of Equestria did Shining Armor say about the colt staying under her roof.

Although Twilight will happily have girl talk with them on anything that they may want, though when it comes to this subject, that’s when it gets a little too close for comfort. Especially when the alicorn may not know exactly how to answer them without getting in deeper water with the subject at hoof. ‘So many questions, so many things to figure out…’ Twilight rubs the side of her head, half way tempted to break open another bottle of wine and start the day out early.

Though for the moment she is relieved to hear the welcome sound of a knock at the door. “I’ll get it!” the princess jumps at the opportunity to get out of the kitchen for a moment and away from her interrogators. Running over to the door, ‘is it him already?’ the mare beams with glee as she opens the door. As it swings open though, she is a little hurt that it isn’t the colt she was expecting. None the less though, she is more than happy to welcome this colt as well.

“Well good morning, Twily…” Shining says, stepping in to the house and putting an embracing hoof over her and squeezing his little sister in tight.

“Shining!” Twi squeals as she puts booth fore hooves around him and does her best to outdo the strength in his hug, but to no avail as she is lightly put back down before one of them gets hurt. “I didn’t know you were going to come here so soon?”

“Well it was some other pony’s idea to get out of the Empire before something happened, and I had to stay back,” he gestures behind him, as Princess Cadance comes up the steps to the door and is nearly dragged inside by the other alicorn in the room as she is crushed by Twilight.

“Cadance! You made it!”

“Would…I really have… missed this?” she manages to say between gasps of breath as she is eventually put down by Twi and the other mares in the kitchen come along. Applejack and Pinkie Pie both giving their warm greetings and hugs to the two as they come in.

“Cadance, Shining…” AJ puts a hoof around the pair, “glad you could have come by. I haven’t seen you Shinin’ in a while now.”

“I’m glad I could make it here as well,” Shining looks over his shoulder at his grinning wife, “though it’s not like I had a choice in the matter here. Otherwise I think I would be out in the dog house right now if I didn’t.”

“Or in your case the sables…” Cadance points out to him while they walk in to the kitchen.

Smelling the wonderful food already cooking, and having left early, skipping out on breakfast. The royal couple can feel their mouth salivating, hoping that they can hold off long enough till the others arrive. “Where is every pony else anyway?” Shining ask, hoping to get some sort of time line till they can eat.

“Celestia, Discord, Luna and the kids will be here shortly last I checked,” Twilight answers them, while her friends pick up with the rest of the gang.

“Rainbow was helping Fluttershy with some birds that got a little lost during a migration,” Apple jack explains for them, “They will be here after that though.”

“As for Rarity and Spike. Little Spiky is helping Rarity right now at the shop,” Pinkie says bringing out a few lemon squares that she brought over from Sugar Cube Corner to the couple in the room, already reading the expression on their face as a pony who can feel their own stomach eating at themselves right now, “we stopped by there before coming over here, and they are going to be here before noon or so.”

“Mhmm…” Shining takes a much needed bite out of the little treats, “so where is Flash then?”

“Oh he’s off running to get something I forgot from the market, to make lunches soup just perfect,” Twilight brushes it off her shoulder like it’s nothing, “he’ll be back here any moment now though as well.”

“I sign the papers to have him sent here as your guard,” Shining face hooves, “and you have him running lunch errands…”

“Oh please now, brother,” Twilight rolls a sarcastic pair of eyes at him, “I think I’ll be safe right now in my own home for a little bit. After all now there’s two alicorns’ here, the Captain of the royal guard, Applejack who has the apple bucking skills that can shatter ribs, and Pinkie Pie… who somewhere stashed on her, carries a cannon.”

“She’s right!” the pink mare yells as she pulls it seemingly out of thin air for display, to drive home her friends point.

“It’s nice to see you’re putting Flash to work…” Cadance beams at her while Twi offers her a cup of coffee to go with the sweet, “though I could think of more than on way you can get him to… work,” she starts to snicker.

Getting a heated expression from Twilight as her whole body goes nearly as hot as the drink Cadance is now having. At the same time her husband rolls his eyes at the comment from his wife. Meanwhile though the two other mares in the room are biting at their lips to try and keep themselves from dying of laughter.

Though through all this none of them hear the front door close, as Flash himself steps in to the door way of the kitchen. Standing there for a second to find out why Princess Cadance is grinning, the Captain is rolling his eyes, AJ and Pinkie have faces that are now blue and Princess Twilight looks about ready to jump up and kill Cadance where she stands.

“Umm…” he pauses giving them time to turn all their individual expressions around, “well I diffidently missed something here.”

Though the one that shows the biggest change is still Twilight, who now has a light smirk on her face as she comes up to the guard who went out to get what she needed for the dish.

“Trust me, you didn’t miss much at all…” she says to him as he passes off the bag, and faster than Flash can even get settled in, mixes the Basil in to the soup. Now giving it a moment to simmer before she tries again, “…we were just talking, that’s all…right?” she glares at all of them as they humor her for a second and agree with the lavender alicorn with a slight nod.

Slowly lifting a spoon up an out of the pot for the second time around, Twilight cools it off with her breath once more before passing it off to Flash. Who now sips the concoction out slowly so as not to torch his throat in the process… again.

“Hmm… perfect…” he beams at Twi.

“Just the way I like it…” the princess leaves it be while her and the others chat away.

The group shares in a few laughs, and more than a few embarrassing moments as AJ and Pinkie bring up some of the things about the day before and what they all ended up doing. Though thankfully, her friends leave out the part where Twilight ended up kissing Flash in her drunken mess of a princess self, though that doesn’t mean that they left out the bit of them playing their drinking games. All Shining can do is chuckle to himself under his breath as he hears the antics that Twilight and her friends got in to with one another. Trying to remember the last time he got completely plastered, the sad part being is that he really can’t.

‘Make a mental note… get trashed when I get back to the Crystal Empire…’ he tells himself while they go back and forth with one another.

It doesn’t take the others long as they said it wouldn’t to arrive at Twilights. Her other mare friends come in soon enough and Spike in tow with the fashionista as they all pile in to the spacious house. Now rather glad that Celestia didn’t spare any expense when it comes to her relatively new living arrangements. On top of this, there is more than enough snacks as some of the others even brought their own dishes from home. Spike brought over some fire-breath popped and glazed caramel corn, while Fluttershy brought a simple but delectable batch of chocolate chip cookies.

At the same time, Rarity had just enough time last night to put together a nice fresh fruit salad, which in all honesty on a summer day like this, it’s just the thing they need. While even RD managed to bring some chips and dip to go along. The gang all sits about with one another enjoying their own bowls of the diced fruit, with some lemonade that Pinkie so lovingly made for them, Albeit with a tad bit too much sugar. While at the same time, Twilight made a pitcher of ice tea with honey.

However though, Twilight is called off again when finally the hopefully last knock comes at the door. “I think I already know who that is…” she tells them all as she momentarily steps out of the living room to answer the door. Though once the door cracks open enough, Twilight is sent hurtling back in view of the others in the living room by the pair of royal offspring after they tackle her to the ground yet again.

“Auntie Twilight!” they both seem to say in unison while hugging her on the ground.

“Ah… It’s great to see the both of you as well,” she returns the hug, wrapping her wings around them as she uses her magic to set them atop her back while she stammers to her feet.

“Well you have been sorely missed, my student…” Celestia says to her while coming inside, her husband and sister soon following her. The three of them welcome the young princess with warm fore hooves, or in Discord’s case a lion paw and eagle claw.

“I’m so glad you all could have made it down here today, I hope the trip wasn’t too hard?” she says releasing the prince.

“Well flying with these two in tow,” Discord lifts up Havoc and Rosebud off her back in either arm, “it makes for an interesting trip… never the less we got here safe and sound.”

“Great to hear…” Twilight starts to grin as she calls out her brother from the living room so he can have his fair share of the twins, “Oh Shining…”

She steps out of their flight path so that when her older brother makes the mistake of walking right in to the line of sight, he is met with the same warm welcome that greeted her when she first opened to the door. A dull oomph is heard being pushed out of Shining’s chest as he slides back in to the living room, laying there for a few seconds, while he puts together what exactly just happened to him in his head.

“Ughhh…” he groans under the attack, “I just got assaulted by two foals here in my sisters own home…”

“And she had you walk right in to it,” Cadance walks over to her husband on the ground with the kids still wrapped around him.

“And we want one of these?” he sarcastically questions her while his wife takes one from his troubles from around him.

“Well one… or two,” she says, watching his eyes grow a little wider while the rest of the royal family comes in and welcomes one another, considering this is the first time they have all been with one another in quite a while now.

Havoc and Rosebud are still wrapped around their uncle even while they sit down, seeing as it’s rare that he gets the chance to come down and see them all. At the same time though, Discord and Celestia are more than happy to have the young colt handle the kids for a moment or two while the group chat with one another and catch up. For the most part the subjects stay rather clean.

Until Rainbow’s mouth brings up the previous night…

“Hmm how long has it been sense I’ve played spin the bottle anyway?” Celestia can’t remember the last time she did something so foalish, so juvenile, and so much fun.

“Probably sense you and I were Twilights age…” Luna answers her, “though as for this card game that you mention… that does sound like fun,” she beams at her older sister

“Perhaps that one you could best me in at least,” Tia snickers at her.

“Clearly you forget this morning when I wiped the floor with your knight…” she raises her glass of tea to her lips, with enough sight over the glass to see the look on her sister’s face as it purses when she is reminded of her defeat.

Discord sits next to her as he reads his wives face and starts to chuckle at the expression. “Oh shut it…” she prods her husband in the side while she gets up to help her student with the trays of food for them to much on in the living room. Along with them Shining and Flash jump up at the mares side to lend a helping hoof as in a short time they all take a load off and enjoy each other’s company.

Considering many of them have yet to have eaten breakfast, and on top of that the food is so good. The sounds coming up from their throats do their own talking when it comes to the taste of the meal, while at the same time they all try and complement on the various dishes. Applejack’s fresh fried vegetables and fruit in batter, that even has dried apple slices in it is a hit with the royalty. While the fruit salad gives a wonderful cooling sweet contrast to the tomato bisque that Twilight prepared.

They all finish their share in record time and are soon in their respective seats almost not even wanting to get up after such a meal is had, feeling the bloated bellies protruding from each of them. Celestia puts a gentle hoof over her husband who lies his head down in her lap, picking his teeth with his own claw. Though many of them are ready to take a nap, they all know that the day is still young for them.

“Twilight…” Celestia says to get her students attention while moving a bit so her lungs have a space to compete with her stomach, “…have you been practicing your spells? I already know that academics is no problem, but application is where the talent comes in to play.”

“Oh she’s been practicing…” Flash mutters over to her, “There’s still a Willow that needs to be replaced…”

“Yes, princess Celestia,” Twilight tires to muffle her giggle, “Flash and I went out to the park yesterday to give a few of them a go before you arrived here.”

“Very good to know,” Celestia thinks in her head a little challenge for her own student. After all, Discord did something similar to Flash, it’s only fair that Twilight contends with the same thing. However she keeps the true intentions off the table as she talks, “In time you will make a fine ruler of your own kingdom… for that I’m sure of,” she finishes off with simply to remind Twilight of why she originally had that little trial for her.

A mild chuckle comes from Shining Armor, who is half passed out next to his wife from eating too much, “I think Twilight would rather lose her wings, then have that happen anytime soon…” he responds, only receiving a scowl from his own wife as Twilight can already feel herself about to be sick just from the subject coming up on its own.

The last thing that Twilight needs on her mind is ruling her own kingdom. An army of her own? Even having one guard next to her all day is enough as far as she’s concerned. To have an entire battalion of them is a whole new matter. Not even to say the fact that she would really have subjects under her then, up to this point she has insisted that other ponies treat her no different than before she even had the wings that Shining mentioned.

“I think that Twilight will make a fine princess of her own kingdom one day,” Princess Luna backs her up with that, “though it’s nothing that needs to be rushed on its own, she still has plenty of time to learn from what my sister and I may be able to teach her.”

“Plus look at the bright side, Twilight,” Cadance chimes in to try and bring a smile back to the mare she considers a sister, “even as the ruler of your own kingdom, that doesn’t mean you stop being able to live your own life? I mean look all of us…” she gestures to the other princes and princesses, the extended family, and even to herself, “we all managed to get here just fine. But it wasn’t done alone, we have each other to rely on, and there is no way you’re going to be alone if, slash, when that responsibility comes around.”

The look on the young princess’s face does turn around a bit when she thinks about this. Considering that she used to never need friends, to now not being able to picture her life without them. Her friends have been there sense the start of her new life here in Ponyville, and they have yet to fail her. The same will go for if she ever picks up her own kingdom, just now she can count on Celestia, Luna, or even Cadance, and maybe to an extent Discord, to answer certain questions that her friends just may not know. “Thank you for that, Cadance,” Twilight says softly to her old foal sitter.

Though that little moment is somewhat broken when Princess Celestia lightly cracks her neck. Twilight own neck starts to hurt at the sharp sound that seems to pierce the air between them.

“Well… if you say you have been practicing Twilight, I would like to propose a little test to see this for myself,” Celestia gets up off the couch, seeing as if she were to sit there any longer she would have easily fallen asleep.

The others soon get the same feeling, especially after that meal that they devoured. This time though, Celestia and Twilight seem to lead the pack as they move out of the living room, being followed by the others.

“A test?” Twilight almost panics, she knew that Celestia was going to want to see her progress, but at the same time Twi has always been nervous about taking a test. No matter how much she may have prepared, “so which spell do you want me to do? And what do you want me to do it on?” she starts to ask, only getting a light chuckle from the eldest princess.

Celestia is at the front door ready to head out to the park where Twilight was before, “Which spells? Just the ones that you have been practicing, though they will be kept non-lethal for simple reasons that we don’t any pony to get hurt, well too much at least,” Tia watches as Twilight’s ears go lop sided while she tries to figure out what she means, “and as for what you’re practicing on, that’s simple…”

She pauses a moment, to see if her student catches on at all.

“…Me.”