//-------------------------------------------------------// The Earth Bound Resistance -by RespecdHyli- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// A Replay of History //-------------------------------------------------------// A Replay of History "Time is a very fickle master. Some allow it to rule them completely. Others,well, we like to try and break that tradition." Luna awoke on the floor of a white room. Everything was pearl, egg-shell white, which disoriented her greatly. She made an attempt to stand, but her legs gave out, causing her to fall on her stomach, groaning. "I understand that. Please,I have come to show Luna this timeline." "You do understand its unsure if you can remain safe. This universe... It needs help." "I know. But I- I mean we, together, have searched for a better one. There is no such line. Please." "Oh alright. Ah, your sibling has arrived. Do help her up Celti." 'Celti?' Luna's world pitched forward as she was lifted up and placed on her hooves. Her head swam with memories, her eyes spun with colors, until, at last, She could process the visual information. She was in a room, no longer stark white, but a classical study, complete with a fireplace, the smell of tobacco, and velvet cushions, a navy blue color. Celestia was standing behind her, holding her steady as Luna's balance returned to her. "Sister, where are we?" Luna asked, taking in her surroundings. There were immeasurable bookshelves, with easily every book every to exist. An Ursa Major skin rug lay on the floor in front of the fireplace. There were even slippers. "We are in Doctor Regnius's study. Here, you will be told the rules of interdimensional gazing." "No she will not." A baritone voice, very articulate and proper, seemed to come from everywhere in the room. "She will barely be told the basics of standing still, or sitting. As I just explained to you," a stallion, very well built and powerful, seemed to just drift into existence next to Luna, his voice immeadiately centralizing to his location, " this timeline is very dangerous. You may view into it, watch its entire history unfold, but you will not step on hoof into it." The stallion moved into the firelight, and for a sec, at least to Luna, he appeared to have no features at all, like a mannequin, save for it was moving. Then hey stared to form. Blind, neon purple eyes appeared first, followed by ears, a mouth, and a muzzle. Next, sun rays and moonbeams erupted from the top of his head and the base of his spine, and twisted together to form ever moving dreadlocks.A set of small reading glasses, square lensed, and black frame landed on a now red-orange Stallion. "Please excuse me Luna. Its been a while since I had to put my face on." "Regni?" Luna said in a shocked gasp. "In the flesh." "But I was told..." "You were told right." Regnius stated simply. "I do not exist anymore. Neither does Millennium. We are now one with Time, Space, and each other. I have many names, but Regnius fits just fine." Regnius turns the direction of his gaze to Celestia. "Everything will be ready shortly. Can I offer you tea? Cake? Maybe some Coffee?" "No thank you. We are ready when you are." "No time for even cake? Huh." Regnius slumped into a red and emerald recliner and reached up to stroke his mane. "Um, Regnius? What happened to your wings?" Luna asked abruptly. Regnius stopped moving, and a chill crept into the air. " Both Regni and Millennium had to give up a part of ourselves to understand our new purpose. I gave up my horn, she gave up her wings. So now," Regnius gestured to his form, "we have neither." Luna gasped as she realized he did not have a horn either. Regnius continued on stroking his mane, staring blankly forward. This persisted for some time. Finally, Regnius hopped off his chair and cleared his throat. Luna dropped her book very abruptly, as she had moved on to the bookshelves, and Celestia simply stood waiting. Both jumped slightly to the new sound. "You have been granted access to the Timeline you have chosen." Celestia muttered finally, and Luna Stood up, excited and jumpy. "However," Regnius looked at each sister in kind, his eyes changing for smoke grey to one crimson, one emerald eye, "I must first tell you the history of this universe. For one, it has a name, and next to ours, is the only one which does. Next, what you see in this universe must not be repeated anywhere outside this room. Not even if it is simply for discussion, and not even to each other. Am I clear?" "Yes." Celestia said with no doubts. "What happens if we do? That is, how would you know? What would be the consequences?" Luna asked. Regnius turned to her, both eyes black holes, pale as snow, and smiled. "Your timeline will die. And you will live here, with me, so that you can live with the fact that you caused it. I do not have to be told, it will just happen. Understand?" Luna stared at him in utter horror. "Y-yes! I agree. No further discussion is necessary." "Good," Regnius says cheerfully, his eyes and color returning to normal. "Then let us begin with the next step. This viewing of the Spine reprobari will only start after you return, Luna, and will end at your death in its Timeline." "Why hers specifically?" Celestia questioned. "This viewing is for her benefit, is it not?" "Yes." Luna answered. "Then it should be along her life line, not yours. But if it makes you feel better, you both are forever destined to die on the same day." "Even in our own world? How is that possi-" "Celestia, such question I cannot answer." Regnius responded. "It goes against my very own morals. I did answer a similar question once, to a very ambitious version of yourself, and instead of Luna rebelling, you rebelled for her, taking on the name Pulsar. You brought ruin upon your own people, and Luna banished you instead of you banishing her. To a very distant dead star. When you returned, you brought the Nightmare forces, and because of such, Nightmare Moon occurred anyway, something you were trying to avoid. However, Twilight Sparkle and her friends in Ponyville saved that universe by killing you both." "So like us, my student is a constant in every universe as well?" Celestia asked, not phased by that gem of knowledge that was her very own corruption. "Her friends too. As a matter of fact, Spine reprobari's story will be told following her pink friend, and what our decisions caused to her life." "Pinkie?" Celestia asked,"What could have happened to her?" "You will see." "When can we begin?" Luna inquired. "Whenever I can finish talking." Regnius stated bluntly. "Understood." Reginus shook his head slightly, his mind being overpowered by converging memory echoes. "The final step is the stating of the last rule and the telling of the history of Spine reprobari. Rule number three, you two will be able to affect the timeline, but do not do so. If it is not the Timeline's decision, the decision will occur elsewhere. Able clear?" Both sisters nodded in unison. "Good. This rule is in place because you are phantoms that can affect your alter selves minds. You can influence their thoughts. But you are only there to observe, nothing more. Understood?" Again, the sisters nodded. "Good. This Timeline's history is based off the method of Spine reprobari, or the Rejected Ideal. These are notions that, in your Timeline, would never be explored due to the lack of moral cohesion. Instead of the Draconequis attacking the Alicorn first, We attacked them. We caused Discord to occur because of an experiment in what our magics can do. We, as a race sealed him after a third of our number were split into the three pony tribes. Instead of centuries of technology being lost to the war, it developed exponentially. We as Alicorns decided that we were superior, and we should rule over all others. "So we split into nine factions: The Rulers, The Royals, The Nobles, The Judges, The Politicians, The Librairians, The Architects, The True, and the Warriors. Each faction played a rule into shaping a more unified, yet more militaristic Equestria. The Ruler faction consisted of the Alicorn Ruling Family. Headed by your father, King Galaxius, it consisted of your mother, Queen Graviga, you two, your uncle, Lord Decimation, and his sons, Sir Leo Stellar, and Libra Stellar. The Royals consisted of one half of the rest of the alicorn population. Nobles were bastard children, Alicorn born ponies and the like. The Judges, however, were another story all together. The Judges were a faction of Alicorn who specialized in the judgement of all things. Libra Stellar was part of this faction. The politicians, led by the queen, were Alicorn who decided which laws were passed and what actions were taken, giving the dual role of government and War council. The Librairians are everlasting Alicorn. Alicorn who have no end to their life span. The Warriors, Led by your father the King and his Brother, Lord Decimation, are the elite Fighting force of our armies, and the Architects were led by you Celestia, being Equestria's top minds and scientist." Regnius sighed, and took off his glasses. "The True are Gods. Alicorns whose abilities work on a god tier level. King Galaxius, Queen Graviga, Lord Decimation, The Librairian Nexus, The Judge Libra Stellar, and the Architect Pandora made up this faction. These are Alicorn who could only be killed by one of their own. And they were feared. The order from lowest to highest were Libra Stellar, Pandora, Graviga, Nexus, Lord Decimation and King Galaxius. The True were the nerve center of the government and all of Equestria. The were our hearts, our emotions, our knowledge. "About one thousand years before we being, after Discord was sealed away, a group of ambitious earth ponies spoke out against the Alicorn rule. Lord Decimation silenced them permanently. In there memory, and in honor of a lost kingdom before even us and the Draconiquis, seven earth pony families came together under the family of the Earthbound Resistance. These were exceptional ponies, Equal in cunning and strength to our own Warrior and Judge factions, that dedicated their very blood to the eradication of the Alicorn. And they gave us more of a fight than the Draconiquis, using modified technology and a mysterious family Blood trait of the original Earthbound Family. Leading them was the Legendary Pink Earth Mare, a filly of earth pony blood with all the abilities of our True Faction. She even fought both the King and his brother single-hoofed, managing to severely wound both of them. her name was Fuchsia Pie. Her family as the Pie Family. "Decimation recovered before his brother, and decided the resistance had to be silenced. Call forth all of his ability, he killed all but three of the families, the Apples, The Berries, and the Symphonies. With the Resistance ended, and King Galaxius recovered, we moved forward. Instead of Luna being Banished, she went on an exploration of the Moon, and came back with the power of a True tier Alicorn. This is where your story will being, with the day you come home. But you will not follow yourself, you will follow the life of Pinkamena Diane Pie, the Reincarnation of Fuchsia Pie. Everything in the room started to slide toward a distant origin. Celestia stood stock still, and Luna began to panic. She started trying to grasp for objects that past her, only for her to pass through them. Regnius slowly faded away, his voice echoing in the space around them: "Intergrition to Spine reprobaris in ten.Nine.Eight. Seven. Six." "Calm Down Luna. Everything will be fine." "Im not sure I wanna see these events anymo-" "Luna," Celestia says sternly," prepare for anything. That was mom's motto." Clyde Pie finishes his rounds of the north field when he hears his daughter's scream. taught to be calm, he waits for the second one. It comes, and is quickly hush with a thud. He sighs as he begins to trot over to the southern field. Pinkamena was not a bad child. Actually, Belinda was the problematic one. As Clyde acrobatically climbed up the small mountain of Iron ore the Currents had caused to fuse, he thought about his other daughter. His actual pride, his favorite, Ingrid. She was quiet, reserved, and very quick-witted. She had his calm and tactical demeanor and her mother's confidence. He clear the top and saw a sight he was use to; someone was attacking Pinkamena. What he had not expected, however, was that it was Ingrid. "Ingrid Belladona Pie! What in The Subterra are you doing?!" The scene was similar to the usual: Pinkamena on the ground, blood and beaten, silent and curled in a fetal position. Normally, either Belinda or a random child from Trottingham would be over her, usually with a bloody hoof. Ingrid did not have her hoof bloody. She had a piece of granite. And Pinkamena was not crying. She was not even in a fetal position, she was a crumpled heap. Ingrid inhaled deeply, and sighed.She closed her eyes, and let her arm fall to her side. When she opened her eyes, she looked her father in the eyes. "She called me Inkie again. I do not like that name. She asked me why. So," Ingrid nodded at Pinkamena's still form, "I showed her how much I did not like it. I will not repeat my disdain for the name again, nor will I assault her again. My anger simply......got the better of me for once." With that, she dropped the granite and walked back to the house, Belinda in tow. Clyde sighed, and bowed slightly to tap his daughter, when she started to glow slightly. Her body jerked, and she flipped upright, the glow intensified to a solid color: pink. Her eyes opened, and her Irises turned red. She pointed her hoof in Clyde's face. His reaction was instantaneous; he grabbed her arm, and slung her over his back. The crater formed in the mountain, and went straight through the iron. She landed on her hind legs and rushed Clyde. He slide his hind legs under her, caught her arm, and trapped her in an arm bar. With no expression, he snapped her arm, the sound resonating throughout the valley. Pinkamena stayed silent. Clyde stood up, scuffed, and preceded to turn and walk away. He heard a popping sound, and he turned and watched as Pinkamena's arm twisted and jerked back into place, her eyes filled with hatred. "You are the new Fuchsia." Clyde smirked. "Good, I was beginning to think you were utterly useless." Author's Note Sorry it took so long to write this Chapter. No, Luna and Celestia are not the main story, but Yes they will be back. Hope you enjoyed. //-------------------------------------------------------// The Precipce //-------------------------------------------------------// The Precipce The sun was low in the sky when Clyde brought Pinkamena into the house. He was covered in blood, hers of course, but she had no wounds. It amazed Clyde Pie that he did in fact father the newest incarnation of his ancestor. Of His Great Great Grandmother, and of his mother. Ingrid and Alexandrite were sitting at the table, whispering as to keep from waking Belinda, when Clyde walked in and plopped Pinkamena on the floor. Ingrid went to stand, but Clyde slapped her across the face, sending her sprawling across the floor. "Clyde!" Alexandrite gasped, jumping out of her chair, but Ingrid just put her hoof out, and shakeningly got back to her feet. "Clyde, what are you doing?" Alexandrite vicisously hissed, drawing herself into an agressive stance. "You realize that will leave a bruise, if not a fracture? How will she carry out miss-" "Don't worry about that. Ingrid, do you know why you were just stricken?" "An Earthbound most learn to control their very souls in order to carry out their duties." "No." Ingrid looked up at her father, stunned she answered wrong. Clyde, a stallion of average height, with a cream colored coat and gun metal grey mane, stared into his middle child's violet eyes. "No, Ingrid. The Earthbound have nothing to do with it." Clyde wearily walked over to his chair at the head of the table, and slouched into it. He inhaled slowly, and exhaled silently. "Alex, put Pinkamena in her room. Me and Ingrid have to talk." Alexandrite lifted Pinkamena onto her back and carried her to her room as Ingrid cringed in her father's gaze. "Sit, Ingrid." Ingrid moved to her knocked over chair, set it right, and set herself down in it, moving her gun metal grey bangs out of the way. "Pinkamena showed the aura after you left. All the abilities are there, I tested her in full. But, from now on,. I want you to watch her closely." "Father, why do you care? She is only just now starting to show the aura, where as I have been training since i could walk. You yourself thought she was worthless, why has that opinion changed?" "Ingrid," Clyde leaned forward on his fore legs, "are you allowing your home training to laspe because of your feels of what is justified?" "No sir. I only fee-" "Good. Because I was worried I would have to remind you that you are six years old. Six. I am in my late thirties, and your mother is in her early thirties. Yes, we may be relatively young, but we are finite. We can end. There are only us three active in the Resistance right now. We have to believe that we are the only family left. And regardless of whether you believe it or not, I have seen the Fuchsia gene in Pinkie. I have seen the monster growing inside Belinda, and I understand Pinkamena's reasons for calling you Inkie. But thats the primary lesson you seem to keep missing: Understanding. Ingrid, you and your sisters are the next generation. I have watched you slowly grow stronger, yet you are still so isolated from your sisters. There will come a point where you three are all you will have. You need to reorganize your priorities." "Yes sir." Silence ensued. Clyde could hear Alex cooing to Belinda, no doubt having another night terror. Clyde frowned at that thought. Somehow. he managed to father the Three Sisters: Ion the Elusive, Sacred the Nercomancer, and Fuchisa the True One. This meant hardships his family would have never seen, like Belinda's birth resurrecting Trottingham's Cemetery. Or Ingrid's third birthday, she disappeared for thirty six hours. She was found asleep in the Manehatton library, but they were living in Appoloosa at the time. Pinkamena had always been a handful, but each event, she had been the sole reason the children were found and calmed. As an infant, she had been calm, quiet, and very gifted. She never made a sound, just observed the world through her baby blue eyes. As they each got older, they got worse. Pinkamena went from quiet and calm to energetic and playful, trying lighten everyone's mood, but not knowing how. Ingrid became more reclusive, not interacting with anyone but her parents. She showed an aptitude for mechanics and basic combat, and had a unquenchable thirst for knowledge, but rarely spoke. And Belinda suffers from horrendous nightmares and experiences past memories everyday. Clyde sighed and looked down at the clean and smooth granite floor of their simple home. He and Alex use the last of their money to buy this little shack and the massive two hundred acre rock farm they operated. They moved shortly after Belinda's first Birthday and had been here for four years now. His daughters were mature and where becoming more capable, more attuned to their gifts. "Pinkie is asleep, Clyde." Alexandrite whispered as she walked back into the kitchen. "Did I hear Belinda whimpering again?" Clyde asked absentmindedly. "Yes. Clyde- She's receiving warnings from the family again. A storm is growing according to your ma." "We are not relocating." Clyde said sternly, locking eyes with his wife, Alexandrite the Siege Engine. A one pony elimination squad. "We have an assignment tonight. Ingrid is coming with us. And tomorrow night, we will begin training Pinkamena." "Why did you call her Pinkie?" Ingrid asked, looking at her mother. "Did I? I guess Belinda's nicknames are rubbing off on me." "Belinda's nicknames?" Clyde questioned. "Y-yes. My, you haven't heard her? Pinkie, Inkie and Blinkie. She likes them. Pinkamena likes them too." Inkie looked down at her hooves. Clyde shook his head. " And then Ingrid, she never said anything. Belinda fears you. Pinkamena doesn't. She wants you to embrace them." "They are foals. They do not know anything about me." "You're wrong." A small, light pitched voice stated behind Alex. Alex, Clyde and Ingrid turned to see Belinda standing in the hallway, her white mane falling between her shoulders. "Pinkie knows everything about both of us." "How?," Ingrid asked, slowly rising from her seat. "She never asked me anything. Neither of you do." "She never need to." Belinda said, blinking the sleep from her eyes. " She just has a natural gift for figuring ponies out. Its like, when her eyes turn red, she can see everything about you. Thats why she came to ask you if you wanted your nickname. I called you Inkie, and Pinkie said that you were going to hurt someone because of it. So she told me to stay quiet, and go to the house with you." Ingrid stood there, a shocked expression on her face. Clyde looked suspicious. "Belinda, does Pinkamena's eyes turn red often?" Belinda looked quizzically at her father. "Yes sir. Everyday in fact. She says that she needs to understand the world better than you and mom can, because me and Inkie will need her insight. Normally, she stays up with me." "But I put you to bed everynight." "Mommy, I don't sleep. I'm an extreme Insomniac. I wait till you and Daddy leave at night, and Pinkie comes into my room and sings to be.She tells me Belinda is training, and wants to escape the confines of being a child." "I also say that Dad and Mom are doing important work, and must trust us completely before they will tell us what it is." Everyone jumped, as Pinkamena seemed to just appear next to the Refrigerator. Her mane was combed, and her coat was not as vibrant. She was staring at the floor, her red eyes fixated on a particular tile. "Your mission tonight will take you to the San Palomino Desert. Thats a three day trek." "We will be back by Morning." Clyde respond, seemingly not shocked she knew this information now. "Ingrid is going?" Pinkamena asked. "Yes." "Then Pinkie's training should start tomorrow evening. I will return then. She will need me." Belinda's eye widened. "Thank you for gracing us with your presence, Fuchisa." Clyde said, bowing slightly. Fuchsia's spirit looked Clyde in the eyes. "Tonight, you will succeed. But prepare to fight tomorrow." And with that, she vanished. Clyde slide into the warehouse without a sound. He felt alive; blood pumping, senses heightened, and good ol' Oliver North, his ten gauge, double long barrel shotgun. He touched his hoof to the side of his head, and his vision became alive with the heads up display Ingrid had built. Working flawlessly, he saw that Alexandrite and Ingrid were in position. Their target, a "Prince Blueblood", was meeting with a faction of the United Pony Society Under San Palamino, or UPSURP for short. Not an assassination contract, but a tag 'em and bag 'em mission. Perfect for their new member. "In position." Clyde whispered into his micro mic. "Also in position." Alexandrite called off. Ingrid and Alex free ran over the built adjacent to the warehouse. Alex marveled over her daughter's quick wit in analyzing the schematics of the building, and thus Ingrid was put in charge of the mission. She looked back at Ingrid, unsure of what she should say. "Ingrid?" She murmured. "Yes ma'am?" "Are you ok?" Ingrid took a minute to think about her answer. "Yes ma'am." "We don't-" "We can discuss it after the mission." Ingrid responded, cutting Alex of. "Ok." The two got to their destination, a communications tower that allowed them to see directly into the building. Alex began to set up her tripod and sightscope, while Ingrid began to unload her homemade mission gear. As Alex went to finish her rifle, Ingrid cleared her throat. "Though, I kinda like the nickname Inkie. Maybe just for missions." Clyde nodded with approval at their haste in clearing easily three miles of buildings in an half an hour. "Mission Parameters." Ingrid appeared in his vision, her headset on and an ethereal green glow in her eyes. "Mission Objective is to capture Target, one "Prince Blueblood", and return him to the base for questioning. Clan Leader Zecora will have our Teleporter ready in fourty five minutes." A digital operations timer appeared in everyone's HUD, recording the passing time."We have until then to clear the building, capture the target, and return to the forest. "The target is meeting with the UPSURP for a treaty with the royal family. We can expect the room to have several armed guards. Our Tactical data in mind, we have arranged three plans: Plan Alpha, Father goes in Alone, drawing guard to the main area, where Mother will eliminate from a distance using a modified Whinney Rifle. When room is cleared, we will secure Blueblood and make our exit. Mission time estimated, twenty minutes. Back Plan Beta will occur if more than ten guards are in the vicinity. Mother will zipline into the top level of the building and assist in a more close range method, consisting of coverfire and her swordplay. Both of you will secure Blueblood, and make your exit. Mission time estimation, twenty minutes. Finally, Backup plan Omega is a contengency plan for if more than fourty guards are in the room, or if the Equestria Guard Patrol in the area investigate. Mother will zipline directly into the main room, directly assualting the guards from behind. As this is happening, I will rig the tower for destruction and will sniper from the platform. After securing the target, I will detonate the tower and meet you both at the designated teleportation spot. Mission Time Expected, fourty minutes." "Understood. Ready when you are." Clyde and Alex acknowledged. "Mission... Start." Clyde rushed around the corner, and immeadiately bumped into a sentry. quick on his hooves, he knocked the stallion off balance and snapped the colt's neck. A counter in his HUD appeared, clocking his total kills. As he continued to sneak toward the back room, a bullet whizzed by and killed a sentry walking the other way. The counter went up to two. The rest of the guards went down fairly quickly. A combination of Clyde's knife, hooves, and Alex's sniper fire. Clyde was slightly disappointed, as everything was going smoothly. Shrugging it off, he approached the back room door. Ingrid acknowledged his location and he breached the room. "Its empty." "What? " Ingrid asked. "The Back room is empty. Is there anywhere else they could have held a meeting?" Ingrid began sifting through the building schematics, searching for any entry points other than those they covered. "There appears to be a access tunnel under the building. Main room, left corner. The schematics do not cover the space past it. Be careful." "I'll deploy into the building." Alexandrite responded, propping the rifle against the banister. She pulled out a grappling hook and took aim at the building. "Understood. Ill update the mission data to show the change in events. Time still stands, ten minutes left." Alexandrite fired the grappling hook and slided into the building. Using her acrobatic skill, she anded on her hooves next to her husband, who had just opened the hatch. "We are entering now." "Then Radio Silence unless emergency calls for it." Ingrid responded. "Understood." Clyde and Alex responded in kind. It only took two minutes of silence to unnerve Ingrid. She started double checking the streets and the airways, monitoring radios and scanners, even checking the rifle. This got worse as her kill counter in her HUD started climbing again, going from twenty to sixty in mere seconds. Then sixty-five. Seventy-two. Eighty-four. Ninety even. Six minutes left on the clock, she heard her sonar ping. She scrambled to her computer to see that unidentified pegasi and unicorn were coming in, about three hundred of them. At first she thought maybe they were just a regime doing PT, but they altered their course straight for the warehouse. Ingrid hacked a traffic camera to view the force: easily three hundred ponies combined. They were Unicorns, Pegasi, and Earth ponies, all wearing sleek, espionage armor and high tech weaponry: Energy Disruption grenades, Zero point energy pistols, Modified Thompson Machine Guns, and Blitz Sabers. The Airborne section landed on the warehouse roof as the earth ponies entered on the ground floor, flash-banging the rooms and making sure everyone was dead. Ingrid studied their formations: each team was a four man cell, One Unicorn, one Pegasus, and two Earth ponies. The Earth ponies would breach the room, throwing flash-bangs. Then the Unicorn would teleport in and decimate anything in the room that was organic, and the Pegasus would swoop in from on high, grab the unicorn and drop a frag, ending the occupants of the rooms none existent in moments, and all before the flash was over. It didn't take long before the regime came upon the door leading to the service tunnel. They sent ten cells into the hole, and the rest dispersed into the surrounding buildings, away from her site. " Mother, Father, if you can hear me, Backup Plan omega is a go. Clocks reset for twenty three minute countdown." She did not wait for a response. Closing her Laptop, Ingrid dropped an industrial strength magnet on her command center. She grabbed the rifle and her saddle pack, and jumped onto the lower level of the tower. There, she proceeded to toss plastic explosives everywhere. Walls, floors, ceilings, didn't matter. She made it to the end of the room when a shadow passed the window. Dropping into a crouch, she snuck across the corridor, taking her time to place more plastic explosives in the hallway. As she neared the doorway to the stairway, voices drifted through the air vent above her. "Have you found any of the Resistance?" a deep, rough voice asked bluntly. Ingrid equated it to black coffee; bitter, sharp, and heated. "No sir." This voice was more of a tenor instead of the first one's bass. Very fluid and cool, he sound like a speaker, or a well trainer liar. Like water. "The Magi are scanning the area, the Wise Men cleaning the district." "Good. I want these rebels flushed out before U.M.B.R.A. gets involved." "Sir, why aren't we after the prince instead? He is the real renegade here." The tenor asked. Ingrid winced as the punch connected and the body hit the floor. "Even Im not authorized to speak of ~~Blueblood~~. He has been disowned. He is no longer a worry." the rough voice stated through gritted teeth."Remember that. His Father, the Lord, wishes he be stripped from our minds." "U-understood, Commander." the tenor said weakly. "Sirs! We've begun recieveing reports from the warehouse. The breaching team has descended into the underground." "Understood." The commander responded. "You m-may proceed." the tenor responded. 'I need to hurry.' Ingrid crawled to the end of the hallway and planted one last charge on the inner wall, when she heard the breathing behind her. Her senses kicked into overdrive and she just went with the flow of combat. The scuffle went quickly, but it was in slow motion for Ingrid. The Solider raised his rifle, intending to knock her out. she sidestepped and brought her foreleg up and hit him in the chest, fracturing his sternum. As he stumbled back, she smacked her hooves over his ears, disorienting him further. Checking her options quickly, she finished the fight by snapping the stallion's neck with a palm thrust and grabbed his service pistol, a Colt 45. As her heartbeat returned to normal, she raced to the end of the hall and threw open the door to the stairwell. Checking her rune, she saw she had nineteen minutes to get to the teleport site, and worse, her parents needed to know that their mark was a dud. Suddenly, an earthshaking explosion erupted from nearby. Ingrid looked over the railing to see the warehouse was in shambles. Her eyes immediately searched the surrounding area and saw the two outlines of her parents running for the Extraction site. 'Game on' she thought, as she heard the comrades of the now dead solider entering the hallway. "Rebel found. Beginning Capture routines." Ingrid Smile, and jumped over the railing, pressing the detonation button as she went over. The Tower erupted at the middle, and came toppling down with her, just as her secondary rune kicked on and she teleported away. Zecora and Dominion were waiting on the other site when the teleporter brought the Pies back to SubTerra. Clyde raised a hoof and stated the key phrase, the zebra warriors lowered their weapons and Zecora rushed over to help Alexandrite with Ingrid, who looked like she took quite a beating. "Is she alright? Did she fight the good fight?" Zecora asked, worry in her voice. "Yes Zecora. She just didn't land correctly from her emergency rune. She'll be fine." "And the Package?" Dominion asked. Clyde smirked. "The EX prince is right here." A small colt walked from behind Clyde and gawked at the large Zebra. "This,"Clyde placed a hoof on the colt," is Prince Cearulean Crown Stellar. The youngest son of Lord Decimation." "A strange instance you were born. Why are you not an Alicorn?" Zecora questioned, as Ingrid was already on the bed, her mother giving her water. "My mother wasn't an alicorn. My mother wasn't Lady Resurrection. My mother was just a lowly unicorn, like me..." "And yet, young prince, you will be better treated than I or my family would." Clyde repsonded. "Or that of my people." Dominion spat. Cearulean cringed and fled behind Clyde. "It does matter what he was or did. He's dead, by order of his own father..." Everyone looked at the injured Ingrid, who had raised herself into a seated position. "What?" Clyde inquired. "The Black guard were there. The Commander stated that Cearulean or 'Prince Blueblood" as it were, is disowned. Which means they can kill him legally without any consequences." Ingrid turned her gaze to the colt. "That makes him both useless to us and a deadman." Silence ensued. The Leaders just stood there, deep in thought, as Zecora and Alexandrite bandaged Ingrid. Ingrid never took her eyes off Cearulean. Cearulean whimpered. "Then he needs to be disposed of. " Both Dominion and Clde said at the same time. "Wha?" Cearulean responded, backing himself up to the wall. "But he is but a boy. Surely you must be speaking of a ploy?" Zecora questioned. "Yes." CLyde responded. We will let them believe he died in the warehouse." "And he will live with the Desert Mares of the San Palimino Desert." Dominion cited after. Ingrid nodded, impressed at the quick thinking. "That way, if he really wants to help, he can train and become one of the Warriors." She looked back at Cearulean. "Wouldn't you prefer to live a life that promotes Courage and Strength rather than fear?" "O-o-of Course!" Cearulean said, his blue eyes alight with a new hope. "You have to take a new name however." Alex nodded, patting her daughter's head. "I'll just be Blueblood then. I hated my full name anyway." Ingrid took in the surroundings, as the rest of the party continued with preparations. Dominion, a Black zebra with White tiger striping. Zecora, the little filly zebra with a rhyming disorder, grey with black striping. Blueblood now, with a pure white coat and blonde hair. How long until she starts losing them all to this fight. 'Fear not young one. My sisters and I will make sure they all make it. As will you and yours. Just wait. We will preveal.' "Lord, we have found their home." "Then use my name as a guide. Make them Despair." Author's Note Sorry it took so long to finish this. I have alot of projects Im working on. More to come soon. //-------------------------------------------------------// Lamenting Final Transgressions //-------------------------------------------------------// Lamenting Final Transgressions The sun had just started over the horizon as Princess Luna returned to Canterlot. Weary and sullen, she glided in toward her tower, aiming to sleep till high noon, when her stomach lurched. 'Food, it appears, is a bit more important' she thought to herself as she landed on the terrace. She looked out over her and her sister's kingdom, a kingdom she had to get readjusted to. 'I wonder what the others would have done in my stead' she thought as she readied herself to launch back into the sky. 'They surely would have helped subdue me...' It was barely morning, and the castle grounds looked amazing in the early morning beams. The pegasi of Canterlot were exceptional at dew placement, and took pride in their work, so Luna could not help but notice the small teaks they made to the morning due, a little silver dust here, an arrangement of images over there. The Banquet hall window was open, so Luna simply glided down and into the archway, tucking her midnight blue wings inward as she stepped inside. The Banquet hall was always as warm as the summer's breeze, making it delightfully cozy. Celestia sat on her personal throne; gold and ivory, it was an eloquently designed lounge chair with burgundy wine velvet cushions, and a small ornate bronze hook for her crown. Celestia immediately greet her sister with a nod, her horn aglow with lime green radiance as she continued to lift the sun higher in the sky. Luna decided to wait for a bit and inspect her sister's personage: her coat was neatly groomed, her mane and tail brushed neatly (not that it mattered due to the nature of its movement), her crown gleamed to show off its recent polish. Even her hoofs, currently positioned in the chair under her for comfort, had been recently scrubbed and manicured. 'The definition of elegance' Luna thought dryly. Celestia took a glance at her sister, realizing she had not yet taken a seat."Is everything alright, dear sister?" Celestia asked, her very smooth, gentle tenor tone slightly echoing in the spacious room. "Y-yes, sister" Luna responded, “simply tired." "I trust the evening winds did not give you much trouble? I had the weather ponies" "The winds were just fine." Luna stated rather glumly. It was this tone that caused Celestia to finally focus on her younger sister. All the signs of the strain had appeared: haphazardly brushed coat, casually combed mane and tail, but not much else. This was unlike Luna, as she was usually very well kept. "What is on your mind, Luna?" Celestia asked, concern creeping into her voice. "Was it too early to expect you to retake your duties?" Luna looked up at this, appalled. "Of course not. It is my royal duty to guide the moon through the night sky." "You are also supposed to guide our kingdoms dream dear sister. That is a lot to ask when you have only just return to your throne." Luna thought this as true. It had only been a month since she returned from the moon, and only a few weeks since she had been separated from the Nightmare forces by Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Maybe it was too early. "Do not be silly. I have been gone for a thousand years. That is a grievous absence and it cannot be allowed again. I simply must push myself harder." "You have been thinking of them again, haven't you?" Celestia asked, her tone confident. "The cook said that you have not been eating. Your guards also report that you spend much time in the Library, in an attempt to catch up on current events I presume?" Luna stamped her hoof down. "You dare use my own guard as informants?!" "There is nothing in there about the Golden Era Luna. Nothing about The Great war either. I made sure of it." Luna slumped into her throne. "I know." "Then why keep looking. You know what happened to them." "Most of them. Not Regni. Not Millennium." Luna stated sorrowfully. Celestia sighed. "I wondered about that too. But they came to visit. Still do on occasion." Luna perked up. "Regni and Millennium are still alive?!" "In a way, yes." "Then why have you not invited them to stay at the castle?" Celestia looked kindly at her sister. "I did. He declined." "What about Millennium?" "They are not the same as they used to be dear sister. They are one in the same." A moment of silence drifted through the room on the tail end of that comment. The birds could be heard clearly from the courtyard; tweeting and cleaning themselves. "What do you mean one in the same?" "Discord used those powers of his to fuse them together. They now call themselves Doctor Regnius Temporius. They have dedicated their existence to chronicling time's history itself. They do come by once in a while, to check up on me. " Luna looked shocked. "Does he... have the details on what happened that day? What Discord did to us? All of us?" Celestia sighed, heavier this time. For a second, she looked as old as she use to, young and scared. "Yes." "Then please, tell me." Celestia gulped. "Well, Discords fight inserted seeds of disharmony in all of us. Including me. It just took root after you all. Umbra went to take over The Crystal Empire. We defeated him: I, you, Chrysalis, Regni, and Millennium. By that point, He had given up his wings. Taken the name Sombra." "Yes, we banished him into the shadows." "Exactly. Next was Chrysalis. She began to become jealous of the bonds we still held dear, as her seed caused her to grow cold. She slowly began to change for the worse, becoming black from her gleaming white. Twisted and Wicked. A Changeling. I banished her myself. Regni witnessed it. When you began to change...” "I remember bits and pieces. I remember Regni begging me not to do it. Pleading. I just continued along my way, the path I had allowed myself to see." "I had enlisted Regni and Temporis's aid. They assisted in preparing the old palace. When you attacked, they were among the last line of defense. "As you charged in with your army, they helped from a distance, taking old your mages primarily. Soon, it was just us three against you. As you attacked, their seeds activated, and they just vanished from our existence. In my hysterics, the Elements of Harmony activated, and I banished you as well." Luna sat quietly, soaking it all in ."I did not stay in that ruin. I helped to heal all sides of the conflict, and then I left myself. I hid my wings and traveled the world. Much had changed since the Golden Years, and I wanted to understand it. All of it. According to Regnius, he reappeared about six hundred years after I left. He saw the three tribes’ war against one another. He summoned the windigos. He stood on the hills as they declared this Equestria. "I returned two hundred and seventeen years later. Imagine my surprise to find a nation where only a battlefield once stood. By that point, we were legend. These were tribe of ponies who were our own, just separated by a cruel trickster, and they thought that we were myth. They heralded me as a goddess, and made me their princess. I have been ruling ever since. Alone. The only comfort I had were your moon and my pupils. Even before that, I always saw too much of you in them. The worse being Sunset Shimmer. A Gifted mare, but too ambitious. Too ruthless. She left my tutelage long before I could confront her about it. And then I met Twilight Sparkle." Celestia smiled at the memory. "Always eager to study. Always willing to go the extra mile. Like we both were," Celestia met her sister's gaze. "Well, you know the rest. You have returned to us. Now my world is....." Luna looked up at her sister, who had a sudden expression of pure joy. "I just remembered." Celestia looked at Luna. "You wonder what a change of our choices would be? If we had saved everyone?" "Yes." "Then I will show you." Celestia stated as she rose from her seat and began trotting out of the room. Luna quickly followed suit, and the both descended into the dungeons. After multiple secret passageways and several detours, the sisters arrived at a wall. It was a perfect recreation of the night sky, complete with stars and celestial bodies. "What I am about to show you most never be shown again. You and I are the only beings left in this timeline who can gaze upon it. “ “O-of course." Celestia's horn began to glow as she moved the sun on the walk to high noon. The wall buckled, then began to roll away, revealing a cavernous empty room. Celestia and Luna Quickly stepped inside. "Welcome to the Timelines Luna." Suddenly the room light up with multiple threads of pure ghastly silver and gold. Translucent images followed of each one like snapshots of what they each had in store for the viewer. "Each one of these lines," Celestia explained, "represents a universe like ours, but different. There are ones where I became a nightmare general. Ones where I was the younger of us two. Ones where Discord was a kind god. And," Celestia used her magic to bring forth a scarlet red line it moved violently and angrily, like it hated to be disturbed, "one where we all defeated Discord before he wiped us out. Enough of us were ripped apart to create our little ponies. But we were still numerous. I want to show you what our world would have been like. Gaze in with me." Celestia leaned into the line, and vanished. Luna jumped back, startled. "Luna." Luna began to look around, searching for the whispering voice. "Come with me into the timeline. Do not fear it." Luna gulped. She only hesitated for a few moments more however. 'A view at a world where our race is still plentiful? I must see this.' Luna gathered up her courage and her might. Her sister would never betray her. With a final glance around the room, she swallowed and stepped forward into the line, her head held high. And Suddenly, Her world went black.