A New Lord of Chaos

Before the group was an enormous gate. Easily large enough for a pair of full-grown dragons to walk through abreast. Carved and inlaid upon the gate was an enormous white tiger. They could only marvel at the beauty of it. Made of white gold and black onyx for the body. Its eyes were made of tiger-eye and polished to a high luster. Rarity was practically drooling at its opulence, not even the guards could find anything negative to say about it except.

“It’s locked.” Upon arriving, one of the guards had tried to push the gate open. Turning back to the group a voice pierces the silence.

The tiger’s eyes began to glow and then a voice echoed from the gate. “Each gate is a challenge should you wish to enter will you take my test?”

Luna cleared her throat. “What happens should we fail?”

“You get one riddle wrong and you must try a different gate.”

“Very well begin your task.”

“There is a thing that nothing is, and yet it has a name. It is sometimes tall and sometimes short, joins our talks, joins our sport, and plays at every game. What am I?”

Luna smiled “A shadow.”

“Correct. What lies in a bed, and stands in bed? First white, then red. The plumper it gets. The better the old mare likes it?”

Luna blushed and paused. Letting Applejack jump in. “A strawberry.”

“True. Not chest or box is now discussed. Money can be held in it, but just as we test its metal, within it there is rust.”

This time Twilight answered. “Trust.”

“Good. I am an animal of few letters, Remove the second and you can’t see, Change it to “L” and I’m a punishment, yet backwards I’m a game.”

Twilight was about to speak when Fluttershy cut her off. “A frog”

“Right. What herb heals and wounds?”

Pinkie began bouncing in place a huge smile on her face. “Oh, I know, I know. Thyme.”

“Accurate. Answer this and know my master. What walks on four legs in the morning, two during the day, and three in the evening?”

Every one of them was stumped. What sort of begin kept changing the number of legs it had. He did not transform in green fire so he was not a changeling. Looking at each other, they shared a sad shake of the head.

“We do not know.” Luna said somewhat sad.

“Shame that was the final question. May you have better fortune at the other gates.” With that, the gleam in the tigers eyes dim to a lifeless shine.

“Ah, pony feathers.” Applejack swore.

“I feel your frustration Applejack but we have three more gates to attempt.” Twilight said while laying a hoof on her shoulder to pacify her.

“Correct.” Luna added. “Let us keep heading north and try the next gate.”

With that the turned and once again marched north. For the better part of half an hour they walked. Making their way along the gentle curve of the wall before finding the northern most gate.

Before them emblazoned upon this gate was an enormous black turtle with a snake either curled upon it or it was its tail. Again the being depicted upon the gate was made of metal and stone. Its shell while nearly the same shade of black as its head and limbs had a luster that spoke of some types of gem.

“Black Diamonds!” Rarity gasped.

“Black diamonds?” Applejack questioned.

“Applejack dear, I cannot fault you for not knowing about them. They are some of the rarest gems to be found. Even growing those with magic can take fifty years to produce one the size of a mustard seed.”

Pinkie added her two bits. “Yeah, dad always said if we found one as big or bigger than a blueberry that either princess Celestia or a dragon would give us enough money to octuple the size of the rock farm and hire enough hands to work it.”

Applejack blinked. “So this feller here, has a fortune literally hanging where anypony could see or take it.”

“Indeed.” Luna replied. “It took us almost an eon to grow and carve the gem we used make our tiara from.”

This unsettled them all what sort of being could make such a gate.

“Ah, it feels good to be praised in such a fashion. Master only smiled at my creation and that was the last I saw of him.” The voice spoke in a slow almost sleepy and deliberate manor.

“…..” All of the ponies were stunned by this revelation. The tiger had seemed to hold no self-awareness or any personality.

“Wow, you sure are more talkative then the last guy on the gate. That big kitty didn’t say much besides his riddles.” Pinkie quipped

“I guess he was more like a cat then we thought. I mean I cannot get Opalescence to do more than look at me some days.” Rarity added.

“So, you failed Byakko’s test of understanding and thought. I’m guessing he got you with the old sphinx riddle.”

They all gave the guardian of the gate a blank look.

A sigh was heard. “That riddle is one of the oldest riddles known to my master’s race, but I guess you have never seen a being like my master Delirium.”

“So that is his name.” Twilight remarked.

“It seems I have been speaking to much. Let us begin my test. The test of reason.”

All of the ponies seemed to draw breath waiting for the test to begin.

“Why have you come here this day?”

“We came here to save our friends and recover the elements of harmony.”

A loud yawn echoed from nowhere. “Very well you wouldn’t be here if master was not expecting you.” With that the gate began sinking into the ground.

“How the hay could it be that easy?” Applejack.

“Of course it could.” The voice they heard sent chills down their spines. “My guard cat just enjoys his games, and I am not of a mind to dissuade him from them. What cat won’t play with their prey on occasion?”

“Show thyself coward! Surrender and thy punishment shale be swift.” Luna boomed in the royal Canterlot voice.

“Wow nice echo effect. I could hear that all the way in my throne room.” The voiced sounded like it had a smile on its face. “By the way congratulations on making it past the first round. Round two will begin once you meet me face to face Luna. Ready. Set. Go!”

With that the voice cut off and Luna’s scowl deepened and she charged towards the door at the far end of the path.

“After her ponies!” The leader of the guard bellowed. Spurring all of them to chase after Luna.

Less than a second after he had yelled every one of them began a headlong sprint after Luna when she disappeared. Shocking them all causing them to finch back some went tail over teakettle, other plowed furrows into the dirt on the sides of the path. Trying to stop they skidded before every male member of the guard contingent seemed to slam into an invisible wall.

All of the girls managed to stop before reaching the point from which Luna vanished. Turning around they watched as the stallions began beating at an object none of them could perceive. Some were flapping their wings to no avail, others had looks of worried concentration trying to use their magic, and the earth ponies seemed to be growing tired quickly as they battered themselves against what ever held them back all in eerie silence.

“Princess, what’s going on?” One of the female guards asked.

Twilight tried to reach out with her magic and felt nothing. She spread her wings and flapped. All that accomplished was moving some leaves off the path. Nothing she tried that required magic worked. In a panic she rushed forward and tried to reach the stallions. Just like them she hit a wall that should not be there.

Turning back to the guards. “Can anypony on this side use any type of magic?”

They all shook their heads after they tried flying, levitating objects, or causing the plants to grow.

A light flashed in Twilight’s eyes before she turned to Pinkie. “What about the party cannon?”

Pinkie tapped a hoof on her chin. Before reaching up into her hair and pulling out… nothing. “It’s gone!” she exclaimed nervously. She began to really dig through her mane in earnest.

Twilight watched as some confetti, a noisemaker, some crumbs and Gummy her pet alligator fell out but nothing else. With a feeling of dread washing over her she turned to Fluttershy. She began advancing on the mare. “Can you still understand animals? Does the stare still work?”

Fluttershy started backing away from Twilight. With each step the former unicorn took towards the timid pegasus she backed up one trying to keep the same distance from the frantic princess. She tried answering the questions as they came. “Twilight, understanding animals is something I learned and as for the stare I was never…. AH!”

In her haste to back up Fluttershy had tripped over a rut in the path made by a guard trying to stop and stumbled backwards. Trying to gain her balance with her wings proved fruitless as bringing them up for the down stroke only added to her backward momentum and made her fall faster. She hit the ground and rolled almost straight back and crossed the line were Luna vanished and disappeared herself.

Twilight looked on in horror as she realized she had just scared one of her friends into falling to some unknown fate. Tears began to fill her eyes as she charged the point Fluttershy had disappeared from.

She made it all of about two steps before Applejack tackled her. “Twi, I know how you feel; but we can’t lose you too.”

“She’s right Twilight. We need you here. You are the princess of magic, if anypony can figure out what is going on here it is you.” Rarity added

She blinked her tears away. Letting out a shuddering breath she nodded. “You’re right.” She turned back to look at the guards and her jaw dropped.

Before her eyes all of the guards began changing. Slowly the colors of all the night guards began brightening, and the few day guards began darkening their white coats deepening like cloth being died. Cutie marks appearing on all of them obscured by their armor. Twilight watched in mute fascination as the mare before her a bat pony who had pulled one of the chariots here began changing from a deep gray to a pastel green. Her eyes turned from golden disks to light silver. Finally as the color changes began to stop she suddenly sagged.

“What’s wrong?” Twilight asked suddenly panicked as she looked around and saw all of the guard suddenly burdened, some handling the weight better than others.

The bat pony mare turned to her and said. “The enchantments on the armor all just failed. Only seen that happen in training.”

“Enchantments?” Applejack asked.

Twilight nodded suddenly understanding what was happening. “Every guard’s armor is enchanted to one degree or another. Spells to dye their coats and manes to uniform standard, and a minor feather charm to make the armor itself lighter. I’m guessing that sense we cannot use our magic in here the armor can’t drain any ambient magic.”

A unicorn mare next to Rarity nodded. “That makes sense princess, it would take time for such long term enchantments to fade. I believe that the different rates must be when the armor was last serviced.”

Twilight smiled. “Of course the fading spell work would bleed magic faster the armor which just had the enchantments reapplied. Which means that either we passed through some sort of spell or this whole area is between the lines is a magical dead zone. Everypony spread out stay tight on the wall blocking the stallions look for anything out of the ordinary.”

In a flash of light Luna appeared in my throne room. She was looking in every direction but with her wings splayed out to make herself appear bigger, it opened up a nice blind spot. Directly behind her where I was seated on my throne staring. It was adorable watching the pony goddess of the moon fretting about right in front of me, but all good things have to come to an end.

I quipped. “As nice as your flank is. I think it would be more productive to be looking at your face.” I watched as she spun around in a panic. The expression on her face seemed equal parts angered, embarrassed, and … ‘Is she blushing because I complemented her ass?’. “Now there’s a good girl.”

Luna stood there taking in her surroundings and me at the same time. She opened her mouth for what I presumed would be a list of accusations and demands when I cut her off.

“Yes, I have the elements, and Rainbow Dash. No, I no longer hold your sister; she was a guest not a prisoner. Any of the obvious questions I missed?” My smile was a small and subtle one, clearly amused at her flashing facial expressions. First angry then surprised ending with confusion.

“What sort of entity art thou?” She retorted.

“Ah the olden tongue very well. We are the answer to the final riddle of Sphinx before she cast herself upon the rocks. A child of the earth and to the dust we shall eventually return. A beast of knowledge. An inheritor of the blessed curse. One of the species to transcend it’s kingdom. To speak plainly I am a man.” Each answer is true and paints wildly ranging pictures about what I was. “Or did thou inquire as to mine station and role upon this plane of existence?”

“Thou doth speak with a forked tongue. To answer plainly to any would have been welcome to mine ears.”

“While it tis most pleasurable speaking with thee in such a fashion with my dear. Thou would be better served to cast thine gaze up and upon my sigil.”

She hesitantly looked up and behind me and a look of horror crossed her face. “No. It cannot be.”

My smile went all the wider. “Oh, but it is. I really must thank your sister and Miss Fluttershy for taming Discord. By doing that they brought about my age, the age of Delirium.”

A voice rang out. “Fluttershy has entered stage two.”

“Ah, so the trials commence. Six players but seven goals.” I say in a contemplative tone.

“Seven goals?” She asks.

“I assumed you and the others came here to retrieve what I had stolen. Each player who makes it to this room may select a prize.”
She ponders at this for a moment before asking. “So I have already won?”

“Yes, yes, what do you want. Which element of harmony do you want, or is Rainbow Dash added to the game you desire.” I say spinning a hand to rush her along.

“No catch? I just choose a prize and that is that?” She asks skeptically.

I huff. “Fine, if you choose Rainbow Dash, the two of you trade positions. She takes your place as a player and you get to watch the game continue at my side. She and the others play for their elements. Happy.”

“Quite. Please release Ms. Dash.”