A soft thudding echoed through the corridor of the dignitaries’ quarters as Tyra crept towards the door where the two ponies slept. Oh Jahurl, I hope they’re sleeping. She shuddered and, after arriving at the large doors to their room, reached out a hand to carefully turn the handles. The golden handles turned soundlessly, the doors having been well maintained, and were pushed open just enough for the girl to peek inside. She sighed in relief at the pair of resting mares and stood up straight. “I’m so glad they’re asleep.... I’d hate to catch them in the act.... Especially after hearing it last night.” Another tremor from haunting memories passed through her body, but Tyra shrugged them off before turning away.

“It’s impolite to watch a pony while they sleep, you know.” The minotaur stiffened and turned towards the source of the voice. Twilight was sitting up in the bed, eyes focused on her. “Did you need something?”

The girl sputtered out incomprehensible excuses as to why she had been spying on them, her mouth working too quickly for her mind to follow, but was eventually capable of proper speech after a few calming breaths. “Oh.... Umm, Tyro wanted me to come see if you were awake for breakfast. We have prepared food for you and I didn’t want to knock and wake you if you were sleeping soIjustopenedthedoortoseeifyouwereawakeandwhenIsaw-.”

“Shhh! It’s fine. You don’t have to explain it to me. You said breakfast is ready?” Tyra nodded quickly, her beige hair bouncing wildly in the braids she had it held in. “Okay, we’ll be just a moment. Could you close the door to give us a moment to get ready?” Another shake of assent and the pair were left alone, the soft clicking of the door’s latch clicking into place sounding in the silent room. Twilight couldn’t help but snicker at the minotaur’s reaction.

She leaned over Nightmare Moon’s body and planted a soft kiss on her cheek. “Come on, My Queen. You heard her. We both came out of the dream at the same time after all.” The black alicorn lifted her body from the bed, her limp mane quickly flaring into its astral form as she poured her magic into it. “I’m glad you let me address Tyra, though. You probably would have given her a heart attack.”

Nightmare’s expression remained passive as she rose and stretched her wings and limbs. “I did not wish to deal with the intrusive servant. She should know better than to enter a Queen’s chamber without first announcing her presence.” Twilight pressed herself against the alicorn’s side, nuzzling her neck affectionately, an act that was willingly reciprocated. “Let us eat. I do not wish to tarry any longer as we must return to Equestria as soon as possible. I do not doubt that the griffons are using this chance to attack more boldly.”

Twilight frowned briefly and hopped from the bed, wincing as the sudden impact made her scar twitch. “What do you think that he’ll ask for in return for his aid? Jahurl, I mean.” She watched Nightmare Moon gracefully climb from her place of rest and stride to the door. “Will we even be able to promise him anything for his help? We seem to be stretched a little thin already.”

“We will offer him whatever he needs that I deem fit to give. We, however much I am loathe to admit it, require the aid of the minotaur if we wish to win this. The griffons have spent their lives bolstering their armies and training them for battle. Our forces have received nothing in the form of combat training other than those we have recently sent off.” Her gaze was firmly locked on the door as she drew her armor to her body. “I will not allow the griffons to win this; even if I must seek the aid of something other than my own power.”

Twilight nodded solemnly. She could sense the strain in Nightmare from admitting her weakness and found it endearing that she would do so in her presence. “Do you have any idea of how many are going to come with us? I don’t doubt that they’d be formidable, but they are largely ground-based. I’m not sure how much help they’d be outside of surprise attacks.”

Nightmare Moon nodded as she pulled open the doors causing Tyra to fall into the room, splaying on the floor. She stood up as quickly as she could, a furious blush upon her face. “Oh! Uhh.... I was.... Ummm.... Just about.... Just about to see if you were ready and then.... You opened the door! Yeah! That’s it! Was gonna check on you, then you opened the door and pulled me in!” The pair glared at the minotaur, their eyes glowing in unison. “Really! I uhhh.... Fine! I was listening in case you were going to.... You know....” She looked away, clearly embarrassed, the spell of their stares broken.

“You should be thankful that I am in a forgiving mood, tonight.” Nightmare watched Tyra as she fumbled to compose herself, her face lit up with shame and embarrassment. “Lead us so we may dine. I am eager to return to my country so that I can continue planning for this war.”

Tyra nodded vigorously in an attempt to both clear away her blush and agree to the task. Twilight stepped up to the girl and whispered softly. “You really shouldn’t eavesdrop on ponies like that. Nightmare may be letting you go now, but she isn’t always so generous. She’s killed ponies for less.” She gave the minotaur a soft smile to reassure her, but Tyra was stunned by her words.

“I.... I didn’t mean anything by it, Queen Moon!” There was a frantic tone to her voice that was equally displayed upon her visage. “I just.... I was curious how ponies....” Another glare from the alicorn and she shut her mouth, squeezing her lips together. A final nod and she swiftly led them from the room and back towards the entrance hall. They passed into the elegant room and turned to their left where Tyro stood waiting by a pair of oak doors.

He looked towards them as they drew nearer and bowed lowly, carefully balancing on his hooves from years of practice. “Good morning, Your Majesty. Lady Sparkle. Were your sleeping arrangements to your liking?”

“It was adequate. I thank you for your hospitality, but I only wish to eat and meet with your Lord. We have much to discuss and the longer I wait, the longer it takes for me to return to Equestria.” She pushed past him and into the dining hall, a simple, rectangular room with a single long table positioned in the direct center. The room didn’t have any decorations and was lit by a few well-placed lanterns fueled by oil. The dim glow gave it a quiet ambiance that seemed to ease the ponies despite their urge to rush.

They enjoyed dishes of salads and fruits, most of the food completely new and exotic to their palates. They dined in relative silence, the only sounds being made were the clinking of silverware against dishes and the soft breaths as they chewed. The twins watched the ponies in awe. They had never seen magic in their lifetime and the skill with which the Queen wielded it baffled them. Twilight caught their attention and frowned slightly causing Tyro to speak up. “Why do you not use magic as well? I heard that all unicorns could use magic to some degree.”

Her frown deepened, but she found solace in the reason behind her loss. “I can’t use magic right now. Something happened and now I’m recovering.” She sighed contentedly after shoving a few more pieces of a small black fruit in her mouth. “Thank you for this! I’ve never even seen some of these fruits before. What are these black ones called?”

Tyra laughed. “Oh, those are blackberries. We can’t grow them here, but our Grandimian brethren have whole plots of their mountains sectioned off just for them. They trade a lot with the Zebras and those blackberries are by far their most exported item.” She stood and, after making sure Nightmare Moon had finished her meal, retrieved their dishes to return them to the kitchen, a room adjoining the one they currently occupied by a set of swinging doors.

Tyro also rose from his seat in the corner of the dining hall, standing to his full height before bowing. “I shall take my leave of you, Your Majesty. My sister will be your guide this night as I clean your room and draw new water for your baths. She will take you to see Lord Jahurl, or to wherever you wish to explore.”

“Very well, Tyro.” Nightmare Moon nodded her head in his direction, dismissing him. The minotaur quickly removed himself from the room just as his sister returned from her run to the kitchen.

“Ah, so my brother left already? Oh well.” She glanced between the two, nervous once more now that she was left alone with them. “So uhh.... Where do you want to go? Do you want me to take you to Lord Jahurl first, or would you prefer a tour of the town?”

“I believe I have already told you that I need to meet with Jahurl so that we are able to leave. I wish to go straight to him. No detours.” Tyra opened her mouth to protest, but a stern glance from the alicorn silenced any attempts to voice them. The girl nodded, a slight pout on her face, and motioned for them to follow her.

The trio moved swiftly, leaving the dignitaries’ quarters and heading to the northern-most building surrounding the oasis. The bright red insignia on its front door, lit by a pair of lanterns hanging from the roof, was the tell-tale sign that Jahurl had told them would signify the Lord’s Hall. Twilight examined it closely. The majority of the symbol seemed to be an island surrounded by a lake of water with a pair of curved horns gracing it like disembodied wings. The entire thing was surrounded by a plain circle. Her curiosity was piqued. “Is this the symbol for all minotaur? It seems like it would only be for Valtaura from the depicted island. If your brethren live in the mountains, I do not see how this would match them at all.”

“Oh no, that is certainly Valtaura’s coat of arms. Grandimino has its own as well.” She puffed her chest out with pride at her knowledge. “We may both be minotaur by birth, but we are vastly different. Where we do not feel the need to wear clothing all the time like you ponies seem to do, Grandimians find it improper to be seen naked in public. I find it quite silly myself. We were born naked, so why should we cover ourselves for any reason other than to look nice?”

They climbed the small ramp to the entrance of the building, its plain fa­­çade not giving any hint as to the true nature of the place, and softly pushed open the doors. They found themselves in a room just as plain as the outside of the building. Sandstone walls painted grey and sparsely furnished with inexpensive, but sturdy benches. Small paintings of varying quality dotted the walls, but other than the golden lamps, the place had no other decorations. “Wow, I was certainly expecting something more along the lines of our accommodations when I pictured the Lord’s Hall.” Twilight was baffled by the lack of decor, having spent most of her life under Celestia’s, and now Nightmare Moon’s, wing in their magnificent palaces.

“Lord Jahurl isn’t fond of useless clutter. This place used to be quite extravagant, but, after his father passed away, Lord Jahurl sold the rich furniture and paintings that he didn’t like so he could give the money to the poorer families of Valtaura.” She beamed, extremely pleased by the kindness of her current ruler.

“Lord Jahurl is certainly an interesting being.” Nightmare Moon kept her pace behind Tyra, her eyes set upon their path, but still managed to speak as if she were facing the minotaur herself. “I am not surprised that he has received much reverence in the short time that I walked through his city with him. My subjects would not accept me as willingly even if I was to do something of similar results. I do not care either way as I am their ruler now whether it is to their liking or not and, without me, Griffonia will surely destroy them.”

Tyra led them to the rear of the building, passing narrow halls that branched off on either side of them, until they came to another set of plain wooden doors inlaid with the Valtauran symbol. She clenched her hand into a fist and lightly rapped on the door, announcing their presence to her lord. “Lord Jahurl, Queen Moon and Lady Sparkle are here to see you.”

They heard a soft shifting from behind the door, a sound that Twilight recognized as a chair being pushed across carpeting, and Jahurl’s booming voice answered. “Excellent! Send them in!” Tyra nodded to the ponies and grasped the door’s handle. She pulled the door open and motioned for them to move inside before closing it just as they passed the threshold. “Ahh, Your Majesty, Queen Moon and Lady Sparkle. Did you two find the room provided to your liking?”

“It was fine, Lord Jahurl, but I must stress that we need to discuss the war. The griffons will not wait for my return to begin attacking.” Nightmare Moon strode towards the large desk the minotaur lord was situated behind and sat before it with the grace and poise of her status. “What is it you wish for your aid against Griffonia? I will offer you whatever is within reasonable price.”

“Straight to the point, eh?” He smiled broadly as he motioned for Twilight to sit beside her Queen. “It is not much, Your Majesty. I only wish to open trading routes with Equestria so that my and my sister’s people can expand their markets to more than Zebria and Drakenrange. Aside from that, I would also like to request a share of the griffon lands to help expand the minotaur kingdom. Nothing exceedingly large, but enough to start another town or two.” He sat back into the large burgundy chair behind him, reclining as it laid back under his weight.

“And what do we get in return other than having you as an ally during the war?” Twilight chirped before she could constrain herself. She covered her muzzle with her forehooves, blushing in shame.

Jahurl stared at her and gave a mountainous guffaw. “You are quite the pony, Lady Sparkle. Quite the catch, Queen Moon.” He leaned forward and smiled at them. “Do not worry, Lady Sparkle. You did not offend. I intend to ally myself with your nation and will come to your aid in your times of need whether it be the near or distant future. My successors will also follow this pact, however, I would expect for you to do likewise should the need arise.” His smile widened further, causing Twilight to wonder if it would be possible to expand it any more without tearing muscles and flesh. “You will also have the world’s greatest blacksmiths hailing from my very own Valtaura at your service. We don’t rely on our metal craft for export without reason, you know.”

Nightmare Moon nodded and rose to her hooves. “Your requests and offers in exchange seem reasonable to me and, given my current need for aid, I would be foolish to turn you down. I accept your treaty and swear by the moon in my sky that I shall uphold my end of the bargain.”

Jahurl stood once more and walked around the table to stand before the royal alicorn. “I pledge myself and my people as allies to your nation and swear that, should you require us, we will stand by your side. I swear under the name of my ancestors that I shall stay true to my word.”

The pair stared into each others’ eyes as Twilight watched them in awe. They just swore themselves into the others’ service without missing a single beat. It’s amazing what times of need can bring about. I never thought that Nightmare would ever declare herself a lifelong ally to anyone. Nightmare Moon shifted and her horn began to glow, the dark aura beginning to create a spectral scroll in the air. What is she doing?

The phantom scroll took on a more distinctive shape, the edges fraying as if it were centuries old, but retained the glossy finish of a fresh sheet of waxed paper. It unrolled itself into a long parchment of solid black and, as it drew itself out into its full length, glowing silver words began to form on its surface. “I am creating here a binding contract that will serve as written confirmation of our agreement. I have scribed the terms of our arrangement upon the scroll and now only await your signature to seal it.” Nightmare Moon flared her magic and her name began to scratch itself in silver upon the line created at the end meant for her signature.

“I shall read the words first so as to assure that I am accepting what we have agreed upon in words.” The moon queen glared at him, but he kept a serious look on his face. “I may be young compared to Your Majesty, but I am ruler of Valtaura for more reasons than my size and birthright. I do not hold my throne by those alone.” His smile returned as he skimmed the page, checking for any alterations that had not been discussed. To his surprise, there was not a single stray mention of anything outside what they had agreed upon and so he scratched out his name with a spectral quill provided by the queen. “I am most pleased that you did not try to fix anything to your liking in an attempt to trap me.”

“Do not think me a con, Lord Jahurl. I may be dark, but I will keep my word. I swore upon my namesake and shall not dishonor it over something as petty as a treaty.” Her indignation at his accusations showed plainly on her face, but she quickly hid it behind her mask of stoicism. “Now that the issues involving the terms have been resolved, I would like to know when we can leave to return to Equestria.”

Jahurl put a hand to his face, scratching his furred chin. “We should be capable of leaving tomorrow at the earliest. I still need to gather the soldiers that will be coming with us as the main force.” He looked at the alicorn, a frown on his muzzle. “That would not be ideal, however. If I am not mistaken, you probably need more armor and weapons for your troops, correct?”

“I think so, Lord Jahurl. We lost quite a bit of supplies from the battle with the Royal Guard and we’re gaining more troops than we had then.” Twilight looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. “If I remember from all of the books I’ve read, our only true forges are in Stalliongrad with a few in other industrial towns. They certainly don’t have the output that a race of master craftsmen would.”

“As I thought. If you wish, we can wait a few more days, maybe five, and my smiths can make more armor for your troops to have right away. Otherwise, you will have to wait for the second caravan to bring the gear when they have prepared a sufficient amount.” Nightmare Moon contemplated the situation and, after coming to a conclusion, began to speak, but was interrupted by a motion for silence from the minotaur lord. “I also ask this so we can requisition assistance from my sister in Grandimino. We could still leave tomorrow and I can have one of my aides sent to inform her, but it would be much quicker to go myself.” He stood and straightened himself to his full height. “I will give you until after noon tomorrow to decide. If you cannot come to a decision by then, we will gather and leave for Equestria by the twilight hours.” His serious demeanor fell and was once more replaced by his typical jovial grin. “Until then, feel free to explore Valtaura to your hearts’ content. I’ll give Tyra some money for you to use as you will should you find something you like.”

Nightmare Moon bowed her head slightly as a sign of respect, an action that was reflected by Twilight in the form of a full bow, and watched as the Lord of Valtaura sat himself behind his desk once more. “I shall have my answer for you when I awaken tomorrow. For now, I bid you farewell.”

The ponies left Jahurl’s office and watched as Tyra quickly stepped through the door closing behind them to speak with her elder. “Lord Jahurl is quite generous, don’t you think? He’s offering his services to use for an almost paltry gain and is even allotting us some of his currency to purchase goods from his people.”

The black alicorn nodded curtly. “He knows of my power and has likely heard rumors of other possible unicorns with power such as your own. He also knows it would be foolish to oppose me as the griffons have so blatantly done.” Twilight looked at her curiously, her confusion displayed openly on her features. “I could see it in his soul when we held eye contact. He fears my power along with any magic. Such is the way of the minotaur.”

The byzantium mare frowned. Why would minotaurs fear magic? Tyra and Tyro do not seem to mind it. In fact, they seemed quite enthralled by Nightmare’s display during breakfast. She looked into her lover’s glowing turquoise eyes and almost lost herself in their beauty. I can see why he’d fear Nightmare, though. Her power is just.... divine.

Moon Beam pranced happily through the halls, her eyes aglow with enthusiasm as she imagined all of the things that she and Cherry could do together. Her smile brightened as she came to the second story of the castle, her sight set on the closed door barricading her from Cloudy’s room. Ohh, I can’t wait! Today is going to be so much fun! I’m sure Cherry will love playing with me! She skidded to a halt, standing before the large doors, the only things preventing her from a day of joy and bliss. She readied herself to burst through the door, crouching into a lunging position, before she remembered the last time she’d barged in on the pair. Maybe I should knock this time.... Her grin broadened. Nah! I’m sure they won’t mind.

With a fierce howl, or in her case a cute, but ferocious squeak, she forced open the doors, much to the astonishment of the two ponies inside. “Hi Auntie Cloudy! Hi Cherry!” She trotted up to them, all smiles and happiness, ignoring their panting breaths and abating fear. “Can Cherry come out to play today? Huh? Huh? Pleaaaaase~?”

The filly in question was currently hiding behind the orange mare, her yellow mane just barely poking out from behind her back. Cloudy frowned at the intrusion, but spoke casually. “Moon Beam, I do not think she is in the mood to play today. As I said before, could you-?”

“I’ll play.” Cloudy stopped mid-sentence and looked curiously at the cherry-red filly. “I wouldn’t mind. It.... It could help me not think about other... stuff....”

Her mood dropped, but Moon Beam quickly jumped into action. “Really!? You really wanna play!?” Her excitement was poorly masked, if at all, and in seconds the navy filly was right next to Cherry, her eyes shining with eager glee. “Oooh~! What would you like to play? We can do so many things! We can play hide-and-seek, tag, knight and the princess, the tickle-.”

Cloudy placed a hoof to Moon Beam’s muzzle, effectively silencing her. “You don’t have to list everything, Moon Beam. I’m sure Tart knows what kinds of games you two can play.” She looked down to the filly and felt her heart flutter. She could see the faint traces of a smile forming and silently thanked the enthusiastic Moon Beam. “Why don’t you two go outside or maybe roam the halls to play? I need to talk with the soldiers some time today and I could do it now while you two are out. If you don’t feel comfortable going alone I’ll come and watch.”

Cherry shook her head and smiled softly. “I’ll be okay. You’ll come find us when you’re done, right?” Her eyes wavered, her hope on full display.

Cloudy nodded and stroked Cherry’s mane with a hoof eliciting a sigh of content from the filly. She’s trying so hard to be strong despite everything that happened. It’s... a little sad. She’s bottling it up like I did when my.... I’ll have to talk to her about it later. “Okay, Tart. You two go have fun. I’ll come looking as soon as I’m finished.”

Cherry nodded and followed Moon Beam to the door. She gave one last glance back at her caretaker and smiled as best as she could before racing off to catch up with her ecstatic guide. The pair of fillies moved swiftly through the halls, brushing past the servants and occasional soldiers. Moon Beam giggled in her excitement while Cherry did her best to maintain the ‘younger’ filly’s pace. They moved between ponies with the ease brought only by youth and small stature until they arrived at their destination: the castle’s inner courtyard.

The red filly gazed about the grassy grounds, admiring the giant black obelisk with the wonderment of a foal, until she was snapped back to reality by an eager face directly in front of hers. “Sooo~. What do you wanna do? I don’t care myself ‘cause I just want to play with you, so I’ll just let you decide!”

Cherry stumbled back, surprised by the intrusion of her space, but couldn’t help but to smile at her antics. “I don’t mind. I’m not really good at deciding....” Moon Beam frowned at her new playmate’s indecision. Cherry opened her mouth, shocked by the sudden mood change, and blurted out the first thing to come to mind. “Oh, uhhh.... I guess we could play knight and the princess?” Her statement came out more as a question, but Moon Beam didn’t seem to notice.

The smoke-maned filly reverted to her jovial mood and pranced about. “Okay! I’m going to be the knight and you can be the princess in danger! I’ll go find somepony to come be the big mean dragon!”

The two fillies were soon joined by an obviously confused mare being dragged along by the insistence of Moon Beam. The details were quickly explained and, after some heart-melting coaching by the ‘youngest’ filly, the trio began to act out their roles. Time flew by for them as they played, but out of the three, one’s joy stood out the most. Her worries temporarily forgotten, Cherry smiled warmly, laughter playing sweetly from her mouth.

Author’s Notes: Sorry this one took so long (after the competition, that is) to come out. Been fookin busy at work and then I got the bright idea to download 3 addictive ass games. Not the best idea, there Peppy. Totally not helping to get past the mental block or keep focus. Oh well, dealwithit.jpg. It happens to the best of us I guess (and I know. I am the best. lol) so, without further ado, Chapter 30 in all it’s righteous glory (or plot-moving glory. Whichever you prefer.) Peppy out~

Editor’s Notes #2: Wahey, I’m first time this? Wait, I think I did that wrong... A little delayed, but the chapter didn’t suffer for it. More plot, and some story advancement too! Should be fun to see where things go from here!

Editor’s Notes #1: Jekyll here and wooooooooo, even more Twi and Nightmare. And more D’awww with Moonbeam and Cherry. Well, I’m tired as all hell so Imma take a nap. See you guys next chapter. Hope you like it (as I know you will). Ciao.