“You’ve got three seconds to explain that sentence before I beat you to death with your own severed head,” I warned as my anger rose. Blocked magic, abysannite chains across her back and through her leg holes, and two guards. What colossal fuckup had given the bug any chance to escape?

“The guards we posted are dead and confused, as for the insect… I think you’d better see for yourself,” Harry responded, managing to fit all of that into two point nine six seconds. He actually spent half of it on that dramatic pause. I grumbled internally about how literally he took everything and moved to follow him through the portal, though I was forced to pause for a moment when I noticed Luna following as well.

“What?” Luna asked when she saw my look.

“Why do you look more angry than I feel?” I asked seriously, causing Luna to stop as well and drawing a sigh out of Harry.

“That thing worries me. Not for myself, but for the rest of the world. She’s got that look like she’s planning a thousand schemes at once and none of them are good,” Luna confessed.

“Boss, we could save a lot of time if you’d authorize me to mobilize the palace guard and the rippers at large,” Harry offered, looking more than a little impatient.

“Denied, the guards will remain at their posts in case she’s still in the palace. Toll the bells, put out a notice to all of them. Greater status awaits whoever catches that bug, dead or alive, to include all the benefits and lands that come with it. Incubi can keep her as well if they want, I’ll endorse their continued existence,” I countered, making Harry’s eyes widen.

“Moon and stars, is that really appropriate? You’d condemn Chrysalis to that life? I’d approve of killing her but leaving her alive as an incubus’s slave just seems too far, it’s downright mean,” Luna queried, sharing Harry’s look of surprise.

“I tend to agree, Boss, that’s a bit much for one bug,” Harry added.

“It’s not about any of that, she spat in my face after I offered her an out. I cannot allow her to go unpunished if I want to avoid a full scale revolt, she has to be found and eliminated. As such, incentives need to be offered,” I explained silencing both of them as they thought it over.

“I’ll make it so,” Harry responded quietly before hustling out of sight.

“I’ll make sure she can’t escape through our portal,” Luna offered as she moved to guard the tear in reality.

“Then that leaves me to inspect her prison for clues and start tracking her,” I replied, getting a nod of understanding and agreement from Luna before I turned and strode towards where the bug had been kept.

I was quietly glad that I had gotten my armor before meeting with Chrysalis, it would give my instructions more weight when I dealt with the rabble. The protection against her magic was just cheating in this place.

I was the one in stunned silence when I threw the cell door open and saw what lay inside. Two scorch marks revealed where the guards had been killed, but it was the chains that caught my attention more than anything. They were exactly where I’d left them, still running through the leg holes of a changeling queen and everything. Most of a changeling queen anyway.

The legs were still there, the head and magic dampener were still there, even the wings remained exactly as they’d been when I left her to rot. But it was all hollowed out. Chrysalis’s back had been torn open from the inside, splitting her chitin open and covering the walls with gore. She had likely blinded the guards with her own organs and blood before dispatching them with her newly freed magic.

I was glad Luna wasn’t with me, this was a new level of nightmare fuel. Those vacant eyes seemed to mock me as I drew closer to see what she had done to herself in order to escape, daring me to give up on ever bending the changeling to my plan.

I grinned, there were two fatal clues Chrysalis had left behind. Her scent was now revealed through the shredded remains she’d once called a body, and she was still dripping wet with her own viscera. I could follow the scent from drop to drop until I found her.

I managed to track the bug down a seemingly random assortment of hallways, occasionally having to double back as I realized she’d done the same to take a different route. All of them led in the same general direction however, roughly south-southeast. Nothing significant about the direction, it wasn’t towards anything truly significant or the shortest path out. I understood almost instantly, she was lost as fuck and had picked a direction at random to eventually lead her to a window. Been there, done that. A few times. Not all of them before this was my palace.

I sped up, hoping to catch the changeling before she made it out into Tartarus. I wanted to catch her myself, simply lying to me would have been easier on everyone. Now I was contending with a potential rival if she escaped, which would lead to an unending stream of problems as the Greaters tried to back her play for the crown. Unacceptable.

I caught up just in time to see a fleshy pink pair of hooves disappear out a window, but they were gone by the time I stuck my head out to continue the chase. She had escaped, condemning me to the worst possible outcome.

“Fuck,” I sighed, now forced to bank on a ripper or short-sighted incubus to finish the job for me.

I guessed it wasn’t so bad, the upstarts would quiet back down eventually and Chrysalis was still trapped in Tartarus with no provisions or ability to scavenge. Her biology had let her escape, but now it would be her undoing. Demons had no love in their hearts, she would never find a food source while she was here. I could simply post extra guards at the portal for insurance and let her starve to death. Simple, effective.

“She got away,” Luna deduced when I returned to her.

“It doesn’t matter, she’ll either get cut down by a ripper or starve to death,” I replied.

“Did you see Fluttershy while you were there? I don’t think she’s come back yet,” Luna asked.

“I’ll get her, she’ll have to stay in Equestria with everyone else until this gets sorted out,” I responded before turning back and diving back into the labyrinth of the palace to get Harry. It took me only a few minutes, as he was still delivering my decree to the assembled masses of demons.

“The insect is weak, but magically powerful. It will kill you if it can catch you by surprise. For now. It weakens further in both magic and body with every passing second, and will not recover. It will wither and die on its own if ignored, but I want its head brought to me before then. It has slighted me and will face my strength and fury for this transgression,” I added when Harry paused, turning all of their attentions to me, “Tell your Greaters that this one is skilled only in deception, but lacks the capability to beat me. She will not be my rival, she will die from her own weakness within days. It is not worth the gamble to back her, it will only anger me.”

That got them moving, some into search groups and far more as messengers to inform their lords about this development. With that little speech, I guessed that I’d only have to deal with one or two Greaters turning on me.

Who was I kidding? This was going to be a complete shitshow.

I signaled for Harry to follow me as I walked back inside.

“Call the banners and claim the tithes?” Harry guessed bare seconds after the door was sealed. He was referencing the few Greaters that openly supported my rule and had fought in my name before. The tithes were a sort of tax I could impose at will, a way to siphon rippers and other combat capable demons away from the Greaters and add them to my palace guard. It was a holdover from Belial’s days, but it was too useful to get rid of. As a rule, the Greaters that supported me were generally treated much better whenever I tithed the lot of their breed.

“Yes, and steal their logistics specialists as well. We’ll need to feed our new soldiers,” I sighed.

“This is more than just a preemptive move against a rebellion,” Harry stated, it wasn’t a question.

“I’m afraid. The war plans are proceeding well and I’ve been sabotaging the gryphons and minotaurs as much as possible, but the Equestrians are slightly worse than a knee high pile of steaming dogshit when it comes to a standup fight. I’m afraid that I’ll have to fall back on my last resort and unleash the hordes,” I confided. I had faith that Harry would keep this to himself, just as he always had. He wasn’t unique in that, any ripper could be trusted not to talk, but Harry and I had a history that made him easier to talk to and even less likely to speak to the wrong people.

“We will be ready if it comes to that,” Harry promised with a nod.

“Thanks,” I replied, reassured that the endless horde was there if I needed it. I prayed that it wouldn’t come to that, there was no telling the damage they’d do to the landscape. I shuddered at the thought of there being any civilians in their path.

I didn’t have anything else to say, so I settled for sighing and making my way back to Luna and the surface world.

This was as far from good as it could get. I heard the clawed ones relaying their orders from my hiding place under a merchant stall; they were to take me alive for execution. I had scored a hit against his pride if nothing else; it was better than all of my forebears combined. I could take pride in that, though it was but one step along the road.

My next step was to find a way out of Tartarus, a mission somehow even more difficult than it sounded. I knew there was a staircase… somewhere. Which was guarded at the surface by that three headed beast and no doubt guarded on this end as well. My captivity was a clue I could use, I couldn’t have been out long enough for them to journey to the gate. That meant they had another way in, a way I could use to get out.

This would be risky, but nothing could be worse than getting stuck down here. Even the air made my chitin itch, though that could’ve been because it hadn’t hardened yet.

So breaking into a labyrinthian palace… in a massive prison built to contain the demon hordes… while surrounded on all sides by foes much stronger than myself… and having no way to feed.

“I’m going to die down here,” I whispered as a sliver of panic slipped into my mind. I’d quash it in a moment, but I found that allowing the dread to take over for a few seconds made my thinking clearer after it passed.

“Maybe,” a deep voice behind me replied before a bag was thrown over my head and I was dragged to my fate. No, dragged wasn’t the right word for it. They weren’t unnecessarily rough with me, only striking me when I tried to free myself with magic. Otherwise, they were almost gentle.

I decided to settle down and see where this turn of events led, an act that caused my captor to push me the rest of the way into the bag and sling me over his shoulder. I did my best impression of a bunch of potatoes to keep from raising suspicion, as I assumed the one carrying me wasn’t with His group. Perhaps there was a rival faction I could exploit, that would be helpful.

I was eventually set down and allowed time to compose myself before the bag was torn away, a kindness I hadn’t expected but took as a very good sign.

“Smaller than I expected,” a large demon commented from what appeared to be a throne. As I took stock of my surroundings, I saw the telltale signs that this was a great hall similar to that of the older gryphon villages.

“An unfortunate side effect of my method for escaping,” I replied coolly, taking some offense to the demon’s tone.

“I’m well aware of your conditions and how you got out, they don’t interest me. I’m interested in how adamant the false king is that we turn you over, he sounds afraid of you from what I heard. Why?” the demon asked.

“Because I’m going to kill him,” I replied evenly and without fear, I knew this demon’s type, he’d only respond to strength and arrogance that matched his own.

“You think you can? None before have managed to deal a lasting wound, what makes you different?” the demon pressed.

“I’m not stupid,” I quipped, making the demon bristle as he caught the insult, “I’m not going to challenge him until I’m ready and at my peak, and then I will strike him down with everything I have.”

“Every changeling before you said those exact same words,” the demon retorted as he settled back down.

“But they had lower standards and underestimated him. I shall do neither. I have been running tests for months, seeing how well he can detect infiltrators, experimenting with different weapons and methods of defense. Information collection will be my key to victory. Once I have all the information I could want, I’ll gather more love than he can counter and destroy him while I stand safely behind drones built and equipped to hold him back,” I revealed, leaking only enough of my long-term plans for it to be convincing.

“You will still die screaming,” the demon countered, making me frown.

“Excuse me?” I asked, now intrigued and wondering what I could have missed.

“He’ll loose the Horde. How do you intend to keep a million rippers from tearing you apart while you enact this plan?” the demon mused as it leaned forward to better see and hear my reaction.

“By taking Tartarus from him first, removing it from his options,” I answered as though I had thought of it before just now.

“You think you can take the Infernal Palace alone? You will die-”

“Screaming, I know. That’s why you’re going to help me. You want him dead almost as much as I do, locking him out of here would allow you to take over and take a massive bite out of his strength,” I tempted.

“I like the way you think, insect. We’ll fail and you’ll die, but it should be fun while it lasts. I’ll call my allies and begin amassing our forces to storm the palace,” the demon agreed with a hearty laugh that chilled my soul, “You amuse me, Chrysalis of the Changelings. I will remember you after you die.”

“I intend to be more than a fleeting amusement, I intend to win,” I retorted confidently.

“Ha, if that is so then feast and regain your strength. The support of Malphas will do nothing if you are too weak to carry yourself to victory,” the demon, who I could only assume to be this Malphas, laughed again.

I grinned internally, maybe this would turn out to be even better than just wounding His pride.

“Do you intend to tell me this secret that’s on your mind?” Luna interrupted, disrupting my truly riveting story of my first encounter with Rainbow Dash and how I had forced her at spearpoint to fix the damage she had done to my shack.

“No secret, you just forgot about it already,” I replied simply, endeavoring to resume the story as soon as I was sure Luna wouldn’t cut in immediately.

“Stars above, just spit it out,” Luna snapped, clearly tired of my evasive bullshit.

“What’s today’s date?” I asked in lieu of a real answer.

“I’m an alicorn, not a calendar. How should I know?” Luna grumbled.

“By paying attention, otherwise you’d know not to bother with the sun and moon tomorrow morning,” I hinted, making Luna’s eyes narrow for a moment before they shot wide in shock.

“My-My birthday? Tomorrow is my birthday? Is it that late in the year already?” Luna stammered.

“Yes, yeah, and yep. Which is why the sun is still up even though it really should be late evening, your sister keeps it up for as long as possible today and the day after your birthday to make up for the lost light. Looking back, an odd solar event every single year around this time should have been a pretty big tip off that Chelly wasn’t lying about controlling the sun,” I responded.

“That’s good to know, anything else I should be aware of?” Luna asked.

“Costumes are generally a thing tomorrow, but Spike told you-” I began.

“You weren’t there for that,” Luna cut in, “Were you following me?”

“No, I was watching through Jeff. I do that when I’m feeling paranoid. Anyway, Spike told you about the costumes; they’re so Nightmare Moon doesn’t eat you,” I continued, pausing when I saw Luna’s disgusted look.

“She never did that, it would have repulsed something as evil as her. It feels like slander,” Luna commented.

“It’s always been accepted that the whole eating ponies thing is bullshit, but it makes it more fun for the foals. That faux risk makes it ‘dangerous’,” I explained, coaxing a smile out of Luna.

“I suppose it can stay. Now the question is… do we follow the trend?” Luna proposed.

“I don’t know about you, but I am,” I replied as Hugo the Red, privateer captain and scourge of pirates.

“I guess I don’t have much choice in the matter,” Nightmare Moon reasoned. Even Luna’s voice had changed to match the villain's, but her tone hadn’t been altered at all and ensured that there was no confusion over who was in control.

There was something missing, something critical. The armor Luna had been wearing as Nightmare, it was too iconic to neglect. I made a split second decision to keep quiet about it and have the gear commissioned in secret, making it a surprise birthday present. Jragden would get over copying a design.

There was one thing that bugged me about that set though, it seemed very spartan.

“Hey Lu?” I asked after a moment, “When you came back, that armor you were wearing… was it broken?”

“The Elements shattered it when they restored my mind, you know that,” Luna replied quizzically.

“No, I mean, all you had was a helmet, chest plate, and shoes. Was that all there was to it?” I clarified.

“Yes,” Luna replied easily, seeming to miss the implications of having such little actual armor.

“Did Chelly’s armor cover that little?” I pressed.

“Yes, it was the exact same pattern but with a gold tint instead of silver. Both sets were supposed to be ceremonial, that’s why they don’t meet your standards,” Luna allowed.

“That makes more sense,” I agreed.

“However, you’re raised another question. What made you ask?” Luna asked suspiciously, a ghost of a smile crossing her face.

“Seeing you like that without the helmet seemed off, which led to me taking a more critical look at the gear,” I partially lied.

“I don’t believe you, you’re hiding something. If I were a betting mare, I’d wager that there is an enforcer in Tartarus right now having a replacement set made as a birthday gift,” Luna teased. Her horn had remained dark the entire time, ruling out any mind tricks.

“So much for the surprise,” I sighed as I looked away in mild frustration while Luna laughed.

“Oh, don’t be like that. I doubt anyone else can predict you as well as I can,” Luna offered, knowing exactly how to ease my temper.

I humphed in acknowledgement, “It’s not a problem if it’s just you, that was never the issue. But things are starting to ramp up more quickly than I’d like and being predictable has caused some major problems for the people around me over the years. It makes my teeth itch.”

“I’m going to assume that’s a turn of phrase,” Luna commented, prompting me to shrug. It was a little of both, “I understand and can relate, I’ll try to keep it to myself when I can if that would help.”

“No, don’t hold back. It’ll make it easier for me to find my patterns and change them,” I countered, turning analytical on reflex as the faces of those I’d let down flooded my mind. Many of them would have lived longer if I’d kept from forming a routine or stopped others from exploiting it.

“Your patterns?” Luna repeated quizzically, tilting her head, “But that’s the easiest thing in the world to see. It’s circles.”

“Circles? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I pressed, utterly confused by her words. I was sure I didn’t follow any kind of regular cycle, I’d learned that lesson already.

“Yep, though perhaps loops would work as well. Round and round you go, wrapping yourself tighter around my hoof,” Luna teased, shattering the tension and making me bark a laugh.

“That may have been the worst joke you’ve ever made,” I chuckled.

“You laughed, so it still counts as a victory,” Luna declared as she grabbed my hand with her wing and started strutting deeper into the leviathan.

“Off to bed already?” I guessed as I easily kept up and mentally kicked myself for proving her right immediately after being called out.

“Not quite, Cat and I have some unfinished business. Then we’ll go to bed,” Luna replied.

“Sounds good, I’ve got some pap-” I managed before a beam of un-light darkened everything around me. Luna’s glare was truly something to behold, particularly with her eyes as black as the void and draining all light from the area, “-erwork to finish up.”

“Nah, you should just wait. It’ll only take a few minutes,” Luna suggested forcefully.

“Luna, I have fought your sister hundreds of times, often when she’s actually angry. Your little fake glare isn’t going to scare me, but it is impressive,” I noted, causing Luna to blink and end the darkness.

“Eh, worth a try,” Luna shrugged before releasing my hand and starting to walk away.

“Hey Lu, one last thing,” I called getting her attention. When Luna turned to see what I needed, she completely locked up and her eyes widened in fear. She hadn’t held back with the force of her glare, but I was restricting it to only my bottled rage. Luna was facing down a glare built of loss and pain and tempered with the fire of a military command. I had caused heart attacks by letting even a little bit of demon magic slip into that stare, though I generally preferred not to cause this level of trauma to those around me.

When I relaxed my face a second later, Luna stumbled back. Her legs seemed shaky now, as though adrenaline was still flooding her veins.

“Moon and stars, what in Tartarus just happened?” Luna demanded.

“My definition of a glare,” I replied easily.

“Dammit Jay, why do you always have to one-up me?” Luna protested.

“Because you’ve figured out all of my mannerisms, I need to find a new contest for you,” I lied. It was my insecure need to have something over everyone around me, but I was sure Luna already knew that.

“Whatever, I’m gonna go fix whatever Cadence broke in Cat before calling it a night,” Luna responded, still cross.

“I’ll catch up when I’ve finished up in the office,” I replied, knowing this wasn’t over.

“Competition my plot,” I grumbled as I wandered off, my hooves still rattling from that look. I had seen the look on that caribou when it had tried to kill me, I had seen Tia’s eyes when she had fought me, but nothing compared to that level of hate and malice. It made me wonder, not for the first time, if Jay was using me to get at Tia. Would he kill me if I acted against his plan for the world? Could I act against his plan? He always avoided describing what it was, so there was no way to know his intent. I needed to find something else to think about or this would ruin my week.

“Uh, hi?” Cat greeted awkwardly, alerting me to the fact that I’d walked right into her room and up to her face while I was thinking and complaining to myself. I was nearly kissing her when I looked outside of myself, which made me stumble back in surprise, “No offense taken. I just wasn’t sure if you knew what you were getting into, you seemed pretty out of it.”

“Yeah, I’m back to wondering if Jay has my best interests at heart or if I’m just another asset,” I confessed.

“And what was the answer I gave you last time?” Cat prompted.

“Both can be true without either being malicious,” I parroted.

“Does that make sense in this context?” Cat continued.

“I don’t know, the hate in his eyes...it seemed so-” I stumbled before Cat raised a hand to stop me.

“I know that look, you don’t have to go into any more detail. He can do that on command, it isn’t personal. I don’t think he’s even seeing the person he directs it at, he’s deep in the past when he lets his anger out. That’s all I really know on the subject, other than that he gave me a heart attack once with only that look,” Cat explained, doing absolutely nothing to quell my fears. She had shifted them though, I was now worried for the world instead of myself. What could someone with that much hidden anger be planning for the entire world? No, panic later, fix your friend's brain now.

“So about what happened earlier today,” I began clumsily, “I still need to undo whatever Cadence did to your mind.”

“Feel free to look, but I’m pretty sure I solved that already. Not much carries over after a few suicides,” Cat replied with a shrug, though she tensed when my horn lit.

“I’m not going to do anything to you, I’m just looking for a magical outlier. It’ll feel different from your natural magic and stand out, then I can cast a counterspell to reverse whatever she did to you,” I explained calmly as I looked into Catrix’s mind. I thanked the stars that this wasn’t a read, I really didn’t want to know what went on inside this demon’s head at any point.

I cursed loudly after a couple minutes of digging around ineffectually, I couldn’t see anything that was different from Catrix’s demonic aura. That meant one of two things, either Cat had been successful in removing it herself or… a memory had been altered.

After explaining this to Cat, I was waved off.

“If that’s all she did, then I don’t care. I’m honestly tempted to go find her and have her do more if she’s erasing my worst memories, it’s only something I’ve been trying to do for the past millennium though head trauma,” Cat protested.

“That is so far from being a healthy attitude,” I commented, noting the irony.

“My life has been far from being a healthy one,” Cat countered. I found it difficult to argue with that.

“Very well, I won’t push it. You should know though, there is no spell I’m aware of that allows for the complete removal of memories. Alteration perhaps, but nothing major and no changes to your internal timeline,” I cautioned.

“Then what did she do?” Cat asked.

“I have no way of knowing without looking though one by one, but I get the impression you’ll kill yourself if I even suggest doing that,” I responded.

“You are correct,” Cat replied curtly.

“Then we’ll have to ask her and hope she’s honest. But my confusion is more about why she altered a memory when she was focused on relationships. It seemed to me that she’d intended to make you open to the idea, but nothing in your thought patterns shows signs of tampering,” I mused, talking more to myself as I puzzled though what might have happened.

“Honestly Luna, I don’t even care anymore. You totally lost me when you said that she hadn’t fucked up my mind,” Cat stated plainly, prompting me to back off. Cat never pushed anyone away, I must’ve been making her supremely uncomfortable for her to do so now.

“Sorry, I’ll drop it,” I allowed, embarrassed that I had gone on so long without realizing how upset I was making Cat.

“Don’t worry about it, it doesn’t matter,” Cat responded distantly before bringing her thumb to her neck and opening an artery with a casualness that was not dissimilar to how anyone else would scratch an itch on their scalp. I could only stare at where she had been as her body burned to nothing.

“Moon and stars, I need to find a team of therapists to help the one I already have,” I sighed before walking over to the door and heading directly into my own room, Cat would return both to life and to her room shortly. It was still disturbing, even after all the times I’d seen Catrix die before.

“Let me guess, she killed herself?” Jay assumed, startling me as I realized he was already sitting on our bed.

“Again,” I replied.

“She’s getting worse about it, something’s really bothering her,” Jay commented as I crawled onto the bed beside him.

“We should look into getting her some professional help, maybe have her restrained at the same time so she can’t bail on it,” I suggested.

“Tried that. She has to have a free jaw to speak, a free jaw means she can bite her tongue off. I could rip her teeth out, but I feel like that would be the exact opposite of the damn point,” Jay groaned as he sympathized.

“I’ll think on it tomorrow, but Cat’s not going to be an easy nut to crack,” I agreed before settling in and closing my eyes for the night.

Luna’s costume armor was waiting for her when she stirred, though this set was not made for anything close to fighting. Jragden had clearly been miffed by the order, as my casual inspection revealed it to be constructed from several different metals. My guess was that he had thrown it together out of scraps he had lying around. Or the trash; that was only slightly less likely.

I had ordered my actual coat and old sword retrieved from storage, giving my Hugo look a touch more authenticity. Both had seen better days but were in good enough condition for this. The coat in particular was looking a little threadbare despite the precautions I’d taken against some of time’s more malicious effects.

“Did you steal that from a museum?” Luna teased when she saw me attempting to put it on without tearing the fabric.

“Yeah, mine,” I replied with matching levels of snark.

“Sentimental old coot,” Luna continued, to which I couldn’t disagree.

“I think this one might have to go in a real museum, I’ll just destroy it at this point,” I sighed as I surrendered this battle to the concept of time and formed an exact copy out of my flesh. I replaced the sword and belt as well, seeing no need for them to suffer either.

“Don’t, not yet. I have an idea for keeping that old scrap alive. Besides, I still need to pay you back for…. What the fuck did Danny do to my armor?” Luna responded, looking into the wooden box her new armor set had some in. Her upper lip was raised in disgust.

I took a look inside the box but failed to notice anything off, “What?”

“The shoulders are completely different, they’re not supposed to cover my legs at all. And what is this thing coming up towards my neck? Damn it all, is it really that difficult to copy something one fucking time?” Luna raged as I lifted one of the offending segments.

“This is silver,” I noted as I felt the metal, “Odd for him to let actual defense enter a set this blatantly ceremonial. I’d just shear those parts off if I were in your shoes, maybe even send them back to spite him.”

“I guess I’ll have to,” Luna grumbled as she started parting the metal and removing the embellishments. It took another minute for her to find the straps and clasps, then get it attached to herself, “He did manage to make it more comfortable, I’ll give him that. Much better strap positioning.”

“Looks strange on you instead of Nightmare,” I commented, prompting her to complete her look before responding.

“You never saw it on me, I wore it more often than she did,” Luna countered with Nightmare’s voice.

“Kinda assumed that. No offense, she wears it better,” I replied.

“I’m aware,” Luna sighed, “What’s our itinerary look like?”

“Don’t have one. It’s somewhere around ten in the morning and festivities go until about midnight. Between those hours, it’s a nationwide party. On top of that, today is your day. I’m not about to make you a birthday schedule,” I responded, somewhat confused and answering what I thought was her question.

“Okay, but when are the meet and greets scheduled and where? Will there be time to explore each city between them or will it be all day?” Luna pressed.

“You’re not listening,” I chided, “There is no schedule. At. All. No meet and greets. No cities. No ballrooms. No speeches. No formality.”

“Oh. OH!” Luna exclaimed, finally catching on, “Then I know exactly where to begin.”

One hour later we finally made it out of the room, only for Luna to change her mind and drag me back in.

“Lazy shit,” I mocked as I was tossed back onto the bed.

“Shut up and be warm,” Luna replied as she settled in to continue dozing.

It was about four in the afternoon when Luna and I arrived in Ponyville, Luna’s nightmarish grin eliciting playful screams from passing groups of children and nearly as excited smiles from their parents.

“I figured you’d arrive earlier,” Twilight commented loudly when she spotted us, drawing the attention of the ponies she’d been chatting with.

“You’re one for talking about punctuality, Starswirl,” I countered, very nearly saying the wrong name.

Luna snickered, “I see you crossed paths with him as well, one was lucky if he got the day right.”

Twilight bristled at our casual disrespect towards her hero, “Hey, he was-”

My attention shifted to Twilight in an instant, looking for a reason as to why she had stopped talking. She seemed to be in mid sentence, but frozen in place. Looking around and listening, the whole world seemed to have come to an abrupt halt. Even the fire from a nearby candle didn’t flicker, though I didn’t put too much thought into how it still produced light and how I was able to cast a shadow when I moved my hand.

“Nee…” A ghostly voice whispered behind me. I whipped around just in time to see a pair of glowing white eyes fade away.

“You again? This is my third time seeing you hanging around,” I commented conversationally, attempting to throw off my stalker while I prepared an attack and mapped my surroundings. It wouldn’t do to accidentally behead a random pony.

“Nee…” the voice said again. This time I led with a claw swinging through the apparition and dispersing it like so much smoke.

“I have elbows too,” I critiqued, hoping to draw out at least the rest of the word it was trying to say. Apparently that was the wrong move, as it suddenly appeared a few feet in front of me and closed the distance rapidly. It vanished before my claws could make contact though, “Either talk or fight, this shit is getting on my nerves.”

It came from my left this time, then the right, then behind me. I was quickly assailed from all directions and was unwilling to see if I could weather an attack from what seemed to be a ghost without taking an unacceptable amount of damage. My solution was to add more arms and eyes, watch every direction at the same time and be able to strike out immediately.

That also appeared to be a mistake, as the ghost only increased the volume of its charges. Not seeing a better option, I entered into the arms race with gusto. My form twisted, split, merged, and contorted to continuously counter the offensive. By the time I finally managed to land a hit on the creature, I resembled a tree more than my original form. My legs had thickened to hold up my upper body without allowing me to become unstable, my head no longer existed in favor of just putting eyes along the whipping branchlike tendrils. All of that, building a new form out of pure necessity, had paid off. In the instant I made contact, I saw the true face of my assailant before he vanished once more.

“You,” I accused, “What are you doing here?”

“Pushing you,” Fate replied, dropping his game and resolving a few feet away. I didn’t have any evidence for giving him that name, but I didn’t need any. I knew this was the puppeteer behind the scenes.

“I should kill you,” I threatened.

“You wouldn’t be the most powerful to try, not even in the top ninety percent,” Fate mocked, though I knew he spoke honestly. It was really weird to be on this side of the conversation for once.

“Then speak your piece and leave me be, you seem to have been content with that for damn near a thousand years,” I demanded as I reverted to my normal form. Fighting this thing was out of the question, for now.

“Shame, your previous look was so beautiful. No matter, I’ll see it again soon enough. So onto the business at hand, eh? Luna’s return started you down your path, I want you to take your foot off the proverbial brake. Stop dragging this out and embrace what you are,” Fate insisted, spreading his arms for some kind of dramatic effect.

“I doubt I could embrace what I am any more than I already have,” I countered.

“Hmm? No, not what you’ve become. What you’re meant to be! The grand antagonist, the villain of the story!” Fate corrected.

“Perspective. I’ve been the villain for every two-bit merc that set out to kill me. Use one of them for your bullshit,” I argued.

“No no no, that’s not near grand enough. You need to be the world’s enemy, their great beast to struggle against in vain,” Fate refuted.

“No.”

“What? What do you mean ‘no’?” Fate asked, seeming confused.

“I won’t do as you say, I’ll defend me and mine but no more,” I clarified, visibly angering what could only be called a god.

“Stubborn and spiteful, bah! You don’t even know how many of you failed to even live this long and you’d just throw it all away,” Fate raged.

“Indulge me then. How many have died?” I asked, sweetening my tone to continue trying to worm my way under his skin.

“All of them, every other version of you has died. Suicide usually, one natural disaster, and two to Celestia,” Fate hissed.

“I see, and how many were there to begin with,” I pressed, not expecting the thing to laugh as though I’d said something remarkably stupid.

“You have no idea how this works, do you? There were infinite versions of you,” Fate replied, still laughing.

“That math does not work,” I pointed out.

“Perspective. It doesn’t work out to your limited mind,” Fate countered, attempting to throw my words back at me.

“Or we have different definitions of infinite,” I offered.

“Endless, eternal, without number? No, our meaning for the word is the same. But not how it exists, all infinite parallels eventually fall down to one strong line, no matter how straight their path when first setting out. You’re the last Jekyll and you aren’t following your path,” Fate continued, making my teeth itch with his inane rambling.

“So now you’re stepping in to make sure your investment doesn’t fail outright?” I guessed.

“Correct,” Fate sighed with some relief.

“Kay, then the first thing I’m going to do is kill myself,” I replied, causing the god’s eyes to shoot wide with shock.

“NO! You can’t! Wait, perhaps you’d respond better to a stimulus than an idea. You are the cause for this world to exist, I made it just for you. It will burn to ash when you die, then the ash will burn into oblivion and I’ll use the space for a new game. Luna won’t survive your death, she never does. Neither does Freydis,” Fate attempted, changing tactics. Now he was under my skin.

“Do not say her name,” I warned.

“PROGRESS!” Fate cheered. I hated that he was right.

“What do you want?” I relented, recognizing that I was defeated for now. I’d have to find another way to spite him going forward.

“Two things. Firstly, I’m having the Alliance abandon their timetable and move in early. You will break your oaths and be yourself during the conflict,” Fate began, making me snarl. I knew exactly what he meant by that, “Secondly, Chrysalis has managed to get herself in a pretty bad spot. You will retrieve her from Malphas and turn her loose.”

“Piss off, I’m not helping the bug. Fuck your deus ex machina bullshit, she can have all the benefits of shacking up with the Architect of Self Destruction,” I snapped.

“I suppose that was a bit much to ask. Still, worth a try. Refusing me further will have consequences though, like Luna’s little immunity,” Fate threatened.

“Someday I’ll figure out how to kill you,” I replied.

“No, you won't,” Fate responded calmly. Shit.

“Anything else? You want fries with that?” I asked sarcastically.

“I don’t think I do, but I’ll be sure to let you know going forward. I think this is the beginning of something cosmically dreadful and I look forward to when I can finally claim you,” Fate chuckled.

“Do what now?” I asked, though time was already starting up again.

“Farewell for now… Stranger,” Fate bid. And then he was gone and time was moving normally again.

“-brilliant, for his time and compared to modern mages,” Twilight finished before noticing that I had miraculously moved more than thirty feet.

“Shitfire,” I swore as I processed what had just happened.

“Jay?” Luna asked.

“Figured out who Fate is, just had a nice chat with him,” I replied, assuming Fate hadn’t wanted me to disclose his manipulations. Fuck him, I’d talk about whatever I pleased.

“You’re joking,” Luna stated, refusing to believe I’d just sit by and allow an enemy like that to leave.

“Nope, he was here. He was faster than me too, I couldn’t kill him. I guess that makes sense, he did make me after all,” I revealed, there was no forgetting that pale face.

“Anything we can do?” Luna asked, not unkindly but it was clear she wasn’t expecting much.

“No, just ignore it for now. We can deal with it in a couple days,” I replied, hiding my frustration. I really wanted to break something.

Jay was angrier than I’d ever seen. He could hide it from his face, but his eyes burned hatefully in the dim light. I’d need to cause a distraction before he could brood too mu-

“Higuyandgirlswannagoapplebobbing?” a sudden and unexpected voice suggested, drawing my attention to a strikingly pink mare in a chicken costume. I supposed that it was for the benefit of the children running around, so that they could have a few adults to hide behind that weren’t frightful to them.

“Pinkie, why are you dressed like a chicken?” Twilight asked, sounding like she regretted the question as she was asking it.

“For the candy, silly. Everypony knows you’ve gotta be dressed up on Nightmare Night to get candy,” Pinkie replied instantly, prompting Twilight to hold a hoof over her eyes. There went that idea.

“Aren’t you a little old for that?” Twilight continued. I cast a glance at Jay, who looked much more content as he watched the pair bicker with amusement.

“You’re never too old for candy,” Pinkie countered, “Are you coming or what? Those apples won’t bob themselves.”

Twilight looked at Jay and I, then shrugged and followed after Pinkie as she bounced along. I didn’t see a better option, so I followed suit and Jay fell in behind me.

Somehow, they had snuck an entire carnival into Ponyville without me noticing at all. There were games, both new and old, everywhere. I scarcely knew what more than half of the games even entailed, and many of the ones I could figure out were only in that category because I could see others playing them.

Bobbing for apples was as old as time, that one predated even me. Jay caught a lightning bolt from above after I called him on cheating, though the one responsible flew off with a cackle before any retaliation could form.

“Well, that was one way to get a snack. Any ideas for what to do next?” I asked, turning my head away from the barrel to speak.

“Well, that’s a good question. What do you think looks-oh my gosh!” Twilight attempted, breaking off to cry out just as water splashed across my face. I spun back to the barrel to see a tail sinking below the surface.

I was the closest and went in after the foal, pulling him out to see a small colt dressed up like a pirate. He even had a little wooden sword and everything, it was adorable.

“Oh wow, thanks Princess,” the colt offered with no difficulty, I must’ve gotten to him before he could get too much water in his nose.

“And who might you be, sailor?” I asked, attempting to keep with the tradition.

“I’m Pip-er-Torn Sail, scou… sker..? bad guy of Baltimare Bay!” The colt answered with some difficulty.

“Torn Sail? My old nemesis, we meet again at last,” Jay greeted dramatically as he assumed a mock fighting stance.

The colt just looked confused, though Applejack and Applebloom were close enough to hear and started laughing.

“Oh, don’t you recognize me? It hasn’t been that long. I’m Hugo the Red, breaker of the Baltimare Bay Blockade. That should at least be familiar to you, my old enemy,” Jay continued.

“Woah, you actually know that story?” the colt gushed with amazement.

“Well, of course I do. Did’ye fall off your ship?” Jay teased.

“Not to ruin the moment, but I’m not comfortable with calling you Torn Sail. What’s your real name?” I requested, recalling the gruesome way that outlaw had met his end.

“Okay, I’m Pipsqueak. My friends call me Pip though,” Pipsqueak replied happily.

“Ah yes, good. Pipsqueak the Foal, now I can eat you,” I responded playfully, giving just enough time for Pipsqueak to connect the dots before I dropped the act and smiled so show I was kidding.

That...That did not work. He was around the block before I figured out that my fang filled grin had only added to the idea that I actually intended to eat him. Jay was not being helpful as he rolled around laughing, Pinkie, on the other hoof, took off after Pipsqueak without a word.

“I forgot about Nightmare’s teeth,” I admitted, raising more chuckles from onlookers at my expense. Why she’d twisted them like that was beyond me, I had her memories of struggling to eat.

I quickly joined in with their mirth, noting the mistake and ensuring it wouldn’t cause any more misunderstandings.

“Perhaps that spider toss game, it looks pleasant enough,” I commented, answering the original question from before Pipsqueak had gotten himself into trouble.

“Only if you don’t eat anyone,” Twilight teased.

“I promise noth-” I managed before a searing pain deep in my chest drove me to my knees. My eyes burned, watering in an effort to sooth whatever was happening to me. I coughed up something coppery, my chest heaving as everything burned.

“You son of a bitch, FINE! I’LL STEP UP!” I heard Jay shout, which oddly removed all trace of the pain and the blood in my mouth. There wasn’t even any lingering sensation, it was just gone as though it had never been there to begin with.

“What’s going on?” I asked, clueless and more than a little terrified.

“Someone just made it clear that I’m no longer allowed to procrastinate. I’m sorry Lu, it looks like I’m going to miss your birthday. I have to go to work,” Jay apologized, “Jeff, let Tzu know I’m leaving. Send sixty squads if I’m not back by tomorrow evening.”

Sixty squads of enforcers? Where in Equestria was he going?

I still felt guilty about leaving Luna alone, though she did have Twilight and the others to keep her happy and having fun. At least I’d return soon, I’d made good time travelling to Minos.

I kept a high altitude to avoid detection until it was too late for them to interfere, which wasn’t hard given the few numbers of gryphons in the minotaur city. Each of them seemed more focused on the ground anyway, likely aids for Cragcliff going about their duties.

Brazen Castle was not built in anticipation of an aerial attack, it had far too many skylights to ever be strategically viable in that regard. Besides, what kind of psychopath would divebomb directly into a meeting hall from forty thousand feet in the air?

The table utterly shattered as I made my explosive entrance, launching drinks and papers nearly as far as the splinters. It was a shame, this table had a lot of history. It had seen the rise of several good kings and bore the blood stains of poor rulers that had been overthrown. All of that sacrificed because I wanted to make an impression. More so, it was a circular table and braced at four points halfway to the perimeter. It buckled inwards and threw it’s shrapnel above those that had been seated around it. I had no intention of committing regicide today.

I left my wings limp, draped over the rubble dramatically as glass shards rained from my chosen point of entry. My head slowly raised to face Brey’ten, king of the minotaur clans, in his own home. To his credit, he wasn’t pissing himself or visibly enraged. Brey’ten was a good king, a little too proud but level-headed and fair. He was showing those better qualities now.

Cragcliff, Emperor of the Gryphon Isles, was only slightly less implacable. He had leapt from his seat and pressed against the wall, though this seemed to have more to do with how I had arrived than who I was. I didn’t care for Cragcliff, he was the fourth generation of his dynasty and had done nothing to earn his title as far as I could see. Decent politician, but he had nothing to back that up with. No military competency, no economic insights, nothing. He wasn’t stupid however, he was willing to appoint experts in those fields to his cabinet and did so frequently.

The last individual of note at the table was High Shaman Zeliren, who had leaned forward in interest and nodded a greeting when she saw my eyes turn her way. I knew next to nothing about Zeliren, except that she was well liked by her people and tended to avoid public speaking. To that end, not one of my spies had ever heard her voice.

The countless aids and servants were below my attention, the sharpshooters were not.

“Stand down, Jekyll didn’t come to us to die,” Brey-ten instructed, the knowing caution in his tone was all but refreshing. I nodded my thanks as I collected my wings and stepped out of the debris to address the assembled royals directly.

“I know about Fate, and that he’s pushing you into this. I also know this isn’t about Celestia or me anymore. Not for you, anyway,” I announced.

“True,” Brey-ten allowed, getting a quiet glare from Cragcliff, “Shut it bird, I’ve trifled with Jekyll before. It is better to speak honestly.”

“Brey-ten’s words are wise, our guard forces are not to size,” Zeliren agreed, giving me a taste of her voice for the first time. It was a kind voice, gentle and soft. She wasn’t a warrior, that much was certain.

“I don’t care for bullies,” Cragcliff responded, opting for agitation for now. I didn’t care what face he put on, he’d listen intently to every word spoken. That’s all I wanted from them.

“Fate wants me fighting you directly, I’m not getting an option. I would recommend backing off; or, failing that, keeping to your original schedule. I don’t want to fight and would rather avoid bloodshed if possible,” I stated, making the trio exchange looks as they considered my words.

“Is that your sole concern? The war? Not your traitorous kin?” Brey-ten confirmed.

“Cut off the head of the serpent and the body dies, Fate is undermining me with that as well. I seek to remove his influence and restore the status quo,” I insisted honestly, I could deal with the rogues later.

“What does that shade have over you? Some plague or famine that can appear and disappear at his whim? I don’t see you caring much about either of those like we do,” Cragcliff asked before wincing as I looked his way and he realized I didn’t know how Fate had coerced them.

“You’re right, I don’t care overmuch about plagues or famine beyond what it would do to those around me. It isn’t enough to drive me into this room. He threatened everything, then made sure I knew he would act if I didn’t obey,” I replied with a nod of sympathy for the situation they’d been forced into.

“You save the world from destruction? This is quite the introduction,” Zeliren responded skeptically.

“Not your world, just mine,” I corrected, “You might call me selfish, but he hinted at slowly killing my family.”

“I find I cannot agree, family is a powerful plea,” Zeliren allowed, offering a somber smile.

“I can’t imagine this will do much to alter your course?” I attempted.

“Nothing could, we have our people to consider. Their wellbeing has to come first, access to the fertile lands of Equestria is a consolation prize for playing his game,” Brey-ten replied, though he clearly wasn’t happy about it.

“Your people will die, I’ll be taking the field with everything at my disposal. Enforcers, demons, leviathans, and my own power all work to stop your invasion. You’d still send your children to die in that grinding machine of war?” I pressed.

“We’d prefer Equestria’s surrender when our ships land, our terms aren’t unfair. Luna will be instated as governor and a slight tax will be imposed based on which region of the land belongs to which party. It isn’t cruel,” Cragcliff insisted. He wasn’t wrong, Brey-ten wouldn’t allow terms that were too heavy handed.

“They won’t accept and I’m prevented from agreeing by our mutual manipulator, not that I would anyway. I’m an independent force within Equestria first and the King of Tartarus second, neither of those do much bowing to anyone,” I responded.

“Yes, we heard that rumor. I suppose we’ll see if you’re blowing smoke about the demons, until then we’ve accomplished precisely nothing aside from sharing a little information,” Cragcliff commented snidely, earning himself a quick glare from the other two.

I dismissed the insult with a gesture, “I suppose you’re correct, but I had to make the effort. I’m going to assume you catch my meaning.”

“We do,” Brey-ten granted before either of the other two had a chance to speak, “I’d offer you the usual customs, but you broke my table and I’m limited to being petulant about it.”

“Fair,” I allowed. I wouldn’t let him arrest me and the ramifications of killing me would be too severe, a table wasn’t worth all of that.

“I am, however, bound by honor to offer you a bed before you leave for your home,” Brey-ten continued.

“I’ll pass, thanks though. I should make my way back as soon as I can, I’m missing Luna’s birthday because of Fate’s insistence,” I replied more affably.

“Had I known this was her day, I’d have an offering to pay. Though now I know this news, maybe this will halt any blues?” Zeliren offered as she removed one of the bracelets from her left foreleg and held it in her upturned hoof.

“Luna collects bracelets, I’m sure she’ll love it,” I replied warmly as I accepted the gift and stowed it away within my shoulder. It struck me how polite Zeliren remained despite planning to attack Luna’s country, making me scour the loop for any toxins a second time. I was wary of this one now, she was more cunning than she was letting on.

“You’ll forgive Brey-ten and I if we don’t send your marefriend gifts,” Cragcliff scoffed. Now that he knew nothing would be gained from me and that I wouldn’t be attacking him, I was just another irritation. His type never changed, no matter what time period or species. I didn’t hold it against him, it was an effective coping mechanism for the stresses of ruling a nation.

“Wife,” I corrected before launching myself out the same destroyed skylight I’d entered through. It was the eleventh hour, giving them that detail to chew on would keep them distracted for days if I was lucky. Hiding my marriage was no longer useful.

I spent the flight back processing all of the recent information and planning around it, finding only one result every time I tried to envision a grand strategy. We were going to lose unless I initiated a massive preemptive strike against all three of our opponents, which came with even more problems and justified every ill word ever spoken about me.

There weren’t enough enforcers to carry out an attack of that size, not even if just one was tasked to each target, demons would need to be utilized, which meant a global scale Awakening. I could control individual portals and police what came through, but there would be trouble if I opened millions of them all at once. Greaters, incubi, pretties, these did not respond well to the surface and couldn’t be controlled.

No, there had to be a different solution to this...this...what the hell was that?

My reverie had looped upon itself enough times to carry me all the way to ponyville, where the sun was just cresting the horizon on the day after Luna’s birthday. The light had caught something outside Rosebud’s house, in her side garden. Something that should not have been.

I glided in for a landing next to the impossible plant and plucked a leaf for analysis. I had never seen its like anywhere in this world, though just from looking at it I knew what it was.

“What in the goddamn?” I asked aloud, keeping my voice low. This plant was several months old and yet had not existed yesterday. The soil was well packed, it hadn’t been recently planted either.

“Now I know you aren’t trying to steal from me,” an accusatory voice demanded.

“When did this get here?” I responded, ignoring Rosebud’s question.

“That does it, now I know you’ve been smoking my crop! Shoo, get away before I have to scream for help,” Rosebud threatened, enraged by something I must’ve missed. I relented and backed off before the mare could get too worked up. I’d need to ask Luna if she’d seen it before anyway.

“Chillax Rosie, we got this. He won’t steal any of your crop with us watching,” Vinyl offered from behind me, prompting me to glance over my shoulder at the new arrivals. Vinyl Scratch led Octavia and an undisguised Six over to where I was ogling the impossible plant.

“Hmph, I don’t trust you either Vinyl. Be glad you brought Octavia with you,” Rosebud huffed before walking back inside. Despite her words, I could still see her watching through her window with a paranoid stare.

“This was not here yesterday,” I declared.

“Of course it was, what’s the matter with you?” Octavia asked, sounding more confused than anything.

“No, he’s right. That did not exist before last night,” Six corrected, “It poses so many questions, especially since its appearance altered the memories of everyone in town. I suppose the best place to start is asking where it came from?”

“I met Fate last night. Well, it was yesterday, but all of yesterday was night. He could make this exist and alter the memories, I can’t see why though,” I mused.

“Who’s Fate?” Six asked.

“In a word? Capital ‘G’ God, and he’s a dick,” I replied. Why had he done this? Was it all to get under my skin?

I chuckled at my remembered arrogance. I suppose it made sense at the time, having just been told I was the center of the universe per se. Lot of good I turned out to be.

I broke another piece off the empty bottle just to hear something other than the wind howling past the mouth of my cave. She hadn’t visited, maybe she never would again. Maybe it was just me and my ghosts.

Maybe I could hear the scratching of someone outside. Maybe I wouldn’t kill them.

Author's Notes:

2020 has been one hell of a rough year. That's about all I can say. I am still alive though, so there's that. And I've only just now realized, almost a week later, that google added in all of the editor's comments and alterations without putting any notes on the doc. I've gone through and fixed the really odd spelling errors and double punctuation that resulted from this.

Militia's Editor's Note:
After many a trial, tribulation, and even a tribunal, we're happy to get this next piece out. Enjoy, and stay safe.

Eric's Editor's Note:
Guess what nerds? 2020 still sucks, but now you have something to read whilst waiting for it to go away!