Chapters (chapter 1) the hidden district
Three months later, the two sisters had begun to truly set their plan in motion, as they headed to the one place that sold maps of the different districts in Equestria. And though the organisation was built underground, a large guarded entrance gate kept out the suspicious characters that would destroy their bountiful amount of goods. The two sisters approached the guarded gate, as the two guards drew their spears.
“What is your business here?”
Nightshade simply smiled and adjusted her dark cloak, and stepped closer to the guards. Although she was no way taller than them she, made up for it in the way she carried herself.
“We mean you no harm, we simply seek a map of Equestria, with each district and city shown on it. If that isn't too much to ask of course,”
“We are not letting in outsiders, especially ones with no true wealth,”
“Surely this must be enough to get in, and believe me, there's a lot more than just that,”
“Why do I get the feeling that bending the rules is part of the ‘business’ in this place?”
“If that's what you're thinking we need to do, than I think dad would agree, it's a risk we have to take to fulfil his dream,”
“Most of all, stay professional, no flirting or fornicating. Or so help me I will knock you out and carry you through the city by myself,”
“Understood, fun comes after victory, not before,”
“I heard that,”
“Well, this going to suck,”
“What makes you think that it's going to suck?”
“Whenever there is a pony who puts their cutie markup like that on the front of the building they work in it's either so traders can know which building to go to, or..,”
Angel folded her ears back and looked at the large entrance way, which made it look more like a castle than anything
“It definitely requires a lot of money to do this type of work, so maybe this guy is just proud of his achievements?”
Nightshade just chuckled
Angel quickly tried to seem better conducted in front of the handsome stallion
“Please excuse my little sister, she has a thing again simply flaunting power…….and money,”
“Sir, is there somewhere we could discuss business, possibly somewhere more private,”
The stallion just looked her up and down before scoffing
“This foal is your sister? I'm so sorry for your bloodline.”
“Sir, I understand that you must be busy but we are only asking for something small, it would just take a second and we're probably just as busy as you so we should really just get this out of the way,”
In a hushed whisper, Angel quietly said
“Hey, Night, true spell said that he can give us the map we need, apparently he already has two,”
“How much do we owe you True spell?” nightshade said with so much forced joy it nearly hurt.
“That's simple, I want to be able to relocate to Canterlot, to work with the princesses as the true royal advisor I'm meant to be,”
“Awww um you see,”
“That can't happen, our current advisor is perfectly fine, think of something more logical.”
The stallion glared at her and looked lost for words,
“Well….what do you even need a map of Equestria for? And especially one with the place's where the most dangerous creatures live, I mean…it just seems so useless to me just thinking about it!”
“Unless you're trying to hunt them down and wipe them out, is that what you're trying to do you….you little mare!?”
“No sir, that is not what we are doing, but regardless of our intent we need a map to find those places. Since this is the main place to find the most accurate and recent maps we figured we’d come here, now please, let us just buy a stinking map so we can leave.”
“I can't believe you were so calm about all this, I think that's most calm I've seen you after being yelled at,”
“Ok, so the changeling forest is here and the vampire ponies are there, wow, it is going to be a long way before we execute this plan fully,”
“Um sis, are you sure we can do this? I mean we could get really hurt and the distance alone is enough to kill us if the changelings don't,”
“I wish this was going to be easy but it's not, most of the best things take the longest time and this is one of those things,”
“And I know you're scared, I am too, but if we don't avenge our father then who will?”
“What happened to you? You've become so much like him I don't know what to do anymore”
“I haven't changed but my feelings towards Equestria have, and I wish we could stop this but if we do we'll end up in a cell for the rest of our lives,”
“When he died nobody but we and Luna cared, but she didn't even care enough about him to that point to give him a proper memorial. Now we're reforming Equestria, we're fixing it so judgements don't fall on the creatures misunderstood and hated because of one mistake.”
“You're right, let's get going and fix Equestria,”
a buzzing hive
Soon after leaving the district the two sisters made their way to the most populated forest in Equestria, this forest was known as the changeling forest. Although they knew the risks that could come with trusting changelings, there were more than enough benefits to give them a reason to trust the love sucking creatures. During their long journey they discussed ways to not only get the creatures to agree but to trust them as well, so going to the vamp pony horde would be easier.
“Ugh, are we there yet? My wings hurt. Why couldn't we have just teleported there?”
“For the fifteenth time no, and in order to teleport long distances you need to know what the place looks like, neither of us have ever gone there so that's not really an option.”
“Jeez, you've been looking at that map so much I have to wonder if you have a crush on it or something,”
“How would you know what a lovestruck mare looks like? Since you've never had that feeling before”
“After all, all you really seem to want them for is sex and free drinks.”
“Why you little, get back here!”
“Hey Angel, check that out,”
Angel turned to her sister
“Are we really going in there? We'd hardly be able to see anything that may attack us,”
“Unfortunately, yes, and I know you're scared, I am too, but we're already here so we might as well continue with the plan.”
“I'll watch your back if you watch mine, deal?”
“Wow it's dark down here, we should really just get going before nightfall comes around,”
“You're right, especially since I have to deal with the moon’s rising and falling, I need to be at full power so I'm ready for anything,”
“What the heck was that?”
“ I-I don't know, but whatever it was….it's definitely close,”
“Oh nonononono, no Nightshade please, I need you I can't do this without you,”
When they woke up their cloaks were gone and they were chained up, the sound of loud buzzing filled their ears as the features of the room caught their attention. Nightshade shot up almost instantly, the way she usually would whenever her body finally fought off the poison, she panted heavily as if she had just woken up from a bad dream. Angel, on the other hand, groaned and instantly held her head as she carefully sat up and looked around, instantly going ridged at the sight of hundreds of changelings surrounding them.
“Um Nightshade, we might have a problem,”
“I noticed, we're chained up and in a throne room, Chrysalis should be coming soon so try to clear your head,”
“I'll try to, but what am I supposed to think about?”
“Angel, you are a riot”
“It's been so long since I've had guests I simply have no idea what to say,”
“What brings you here you? Besides a map of Equestria.”
Nightshade cleared her throat and looked directly at the Queen
“Your highness, we were wondering if you'd like to possibly be able to roam Equestria freely, and be able to feed your subjects as well.”
“I would love to be able to do that, but as you probably already know, the princesses have been very keen on keeping us…..caged,”
“Oh I think they won't give you any trouble anymore, and we came here with a simple plan to help you and the other ponies that were seen more as monsters. We are reshaping Equestria into place the way it should be, true unity and no more judgements to divide us.”
“What do you think of this plan? Does it sound good?”
“We will go through with this, but under one condition,”
“My dear sweet son needs experience with real ponies, he and some of my guards will go with you and your associate to execute this plan of yours. And when it's over they will come back and inform me.”
“Than it's a deal.”
Chrysalis looked at her son and quietly talked to him, while Nightshade turned to her now sober sister and sighed.
“You know this wouldn't have gone so well without you, come here,”
blazing a trail
Literally a day after leaving the hive Angel had attempted to get closer to the Prince, his name was Metamorph, bet Angel had given him the adorable nickname ‘Morphy’ just to make him flustered. Nightshade on the other hand just called him your highness and didn't seem to be interested in talking to him or even being around him. And during the long trek to the horde he had nearly gotten himself killed by dragons, gryphons and even a particularly bad group of ponies, and her opinion on having him around changed drastically. Eventually, they all got tired of walking and, after raising the moon Nightshade had chosen to stop and set up camp for the night. None of the changelings hesitated when they almost instantly laid down together and fell asleep, leaving the two sisters to watch out for them and create a fire to keep them warm.
“Darn changelings,”
“Don't be so mean sis, Morphy is actually pretty cute when you get used to him,”
“We'll get to the horde in 4 days, 5 if the Prince gets in trouble again,”
“Why don't you try to look for somepony at the horde? There's a good chance that those vampire ponies are attractive, and I know you haven't been with anyone in a while and it might be good to get you back in the dating game,”
“And who knows, maybe their nice.”
“I don't know, I've never seen or met a vampire pony but mother has told me that they are vicious and impossible to reason with. Is that really your next option for an ally?”
“Yes, who else would I go to to find strong enough ponies to help dig up the umbrum ponies? Oh wait, you're just a Prince, no pampered royal pony like you would ever understand such a delicate plan,”
“Goodnight!”
Metamorph laid down in front of Angel and sighed
“I guess your sister really hates changelings, so much for her plan for harmony,”
Angel put a hoof on one of his
“Oh no, it's not that at all, she's always hated high-class royal ponies. And maybe you shouldn't try to be friendly to every creature I meet, I can see why trying to save you from those can get annoying after a while.”
“She also hasn't been in a relationship for a while, so maybe you just remind her of those good times,”
“Maybe, I can help her fall in love with someone again, it might just cheer her up,”
“If that's what you want to try to do, then by all means, go ahead, just be careful; my sister can be rather picky at times,”
“Well, I'm going to call it a night, I suppose you do the same before she yells at you to wake up tomorrow,”
Early the next morning Metamorph was woken up by being shaken, and he looked around quickly, before looking up to see an annoyed but more or less calm Nightshade, standing over him.
“Why were you sleeping next to me?”
“W-well your sister said you might be upset because you don't have someone to love, s-so I just thought I'd give y-you some….company,”
“First rule of being around me: don't sleep near me unless you tell me before I pass out, got it?”
“Good,”
“To your feet! We have a lot walking to do today so we better start moving before it gets too late to move further.”
As the long trek continued Metamorph had avoided any danger he could, which resulted in them moving further and overall walking a day and a half's worth of travelling before they set up camp again. And rather than lying down with his fellow changelings while Angel and Nightshade started the fire and marked the map, he helped set up the sticks and tinder and offered his input on the places they passed and passed through. Although this change in behaviour was good Nightshade couldn't help by feel confused by it, was what Angel told him really that inspiring?
Later that night, after the moon had been raised and everyone was starting to fall asleep Metamorph walked over to Nightshade and gently nudged her awake, causing her to groan and roll over.
“Ugghh what is it, your highness?”
“Well, yesterday you said that if I wanted to sleep near you I should tell you,”
“Can I sleep near you tonight?”
vampires are romantic?
Nightshade woke up to the weight of Metamorph’s head on her, and carefully lifted a wing to push it off her, before getting up and walking over to her sister and nudging her with a hoof.
“Hey, if I'm awake the sun should be too,”
“We're getting close, in half a day we'll pretty much be on top of it,”
“That's great, how soon can we go back to sleep?”
“You didn't wake him up?”
“What difference would it make, he acts like lazy sleepy pony anyways,”
“Rise and shine sleepy head, we're moving again,”
“Wake up your guards too, we may need their help with this part of the journey.”
He gave her a confused look, and almost seemed to blink the sleepiness away
“What do you mean by that? Are they going to be bait or something?”
“Oh no no no, I would never do something like that to an ally, we simply need their numbers. More ponies means less of a chance of getting attacked,”
“We've never actually met any vampire ponies but I'm not taking any chances when we do, just wake up your bodyguards and fill them in on what we're doing.”
Angel trotted up to her sister's side while Nightshade watched for their expressions
“What exactly did you do to him, he looked a little scared just then,”
“A little trick dad was good at, it helps better if you seem weak first,”
“What the hell are you pulling us into?! We were sent to protect the Prince and it just sounds like our job is only going to get harder, especially since we might be dead after this!”
“Sir, I doubt that this plan is going to get any of a us killed, especially with our skills and power,”
“Not to mention, if you do get hurt we'll protect the Prince until you are able to again.”
“And what if we don't come with you, huh? What happens then, do you die when you get there?!”
“I think that's enough complaining for now, if you don't want to come with us that is one less changeling to deal with, and you can buzz those little wings back to your hive.”
“Or you can stay and not have to risk being questioned by your hive on why you left your Prince with two mare's you don't know well enough to hurt,”
“Ultimately it's your choice, everyone else move and let him consider his options in peace,”
After a good few hours of walking they noticed a place with less plants and more red ‘dirt’ around than anywhere else, and Nightshade held out a wing to tell the others to stop before she turned around to face them.
“Ok, so we're here, you five need to look like regular ponies, and just don't talk for now alright, we need to play this safe,”
“I said the five of you, you need to change, you too your highness,”
“I don't know if they've ever seen a changeling but I know that love filled blood might be something they're interested in,”
“I don't know, mare's seem to have the Sweetest blood,”
“Show yourself!”
“Hello my dear, have we met?”
Nightshade just stood in place as her expression turned from being surprised to disgusted slowly, and she pulled her hoof away from him.
“Right, do you have a leader or something we could talk to? This is kind of an important thing and we don't have that much time to waste on flirting,”
“But, my dear, we just met shouldn't we talk first and get to know each other better?”
“Maybe over dinner?”
Nightshade just smiled and lifted a hoof up to his chin and sighed as she gave him bedroom eyes
“You know, that sounds absolutely delightful, how about we run off and leave my friends as well?”
He smiled and his ears perked up
“Really?”
“No, what did you think when I said that? I'd never say yes to that kind of offer right off the bat. Now I need to talk to your leader if you have one,”
“Of course, just give me a second to tell him he has visitors,”
a bite too many
After a couple long hours the stallion came back and walked in front of Nightshade
“He agreed to talk with you, but only you, no one else should see our home let alone enter it,”
“Go on ahead, I need to talk to my group a little bit,”
“Alright, Angel, I need you to lead everyone to somewhere more safe and I need you to keep them in line. Do you think you can handle doing that without having sex?”
“I'll try my best sis, you be careful in there ok?”
“So um, how far is this place?”
“Not all that far, by the way, you seem to look a lot like that princess, you know, the one who raises the moon?”
“You don't remember their names? They are like, the most important royals ever,”
“I don't know if I can do this, what if I never get to survive this,”
“If anyone gets to taste you it'll be me, I just met a beautiful mare that rivals the night itself with her radiance, I'm not just going to let my kind suck her dry,”
Nightshade stood in the most militant stance she could to force herself to look bigger and cleared her throat before speaking.
“Sir, may I ask you about a possible chance to walk amongst ponies again? And a chance to feed on something more sustainable than prairie animals,”
“What are you proposing young mare?”
“Well, you see, we're trying to unify Equestria the way it should be and we've already made allies with the changelings in this region. We thought it would be wise to make allies out of the stronger creatures of Equestria first and work our way to the others, your kind happens to be one of them, sir.”
“Would this alliance be worth risking for a more abundant food supply!”
“how can we be sure that you will not betray us?”
“I will keep an eye on her sir since I met her first it should be my responsibility,”
“Then it's settled, you will go with this mare and inform us of any changes in the alliance, and in return, we will respect whatever new laws you make in this plan,”
“Thank you, sir, you won't regret this,”
“Why didn't you tell me you were an Alicorn?!”
“Is it that big of a deal? I mean I still bowed to him and showed him the respect that is required to make a proper alliance so what's really the big problem here?”
“So, how did it go? You didn't get hurt did you?”
“That was really brave of you, I never thought ponies could be so brave,”
“Is he coming with us?”
“Yes, but he's my responsibility so don't worry about it, now we have to head to Canterlot and send the message of unity to every region of Equestria, we're going to have a lot of work to do so let's get going.”
plans
As the group ventured on they began to discuss the details of the plan to the scared stallion, who was actually named Valour. And surprisingly, Angel didn't give him a nickname, which was probably the result of her being afraid of him.
“So, what exactly are you planning to do to make this work?”
“We were planning to send messages to the rulers of the cities in Equestria informing them that there will be an increase in population, and from there, we'd get your kind and the changelings to slowly fill the cities wherever they want. And after that, we'll make allies with more creatures and continue the process.”
The entire group looked a little surprised at hearing the plan in its entirety, and even Angel seemed a little worried as her wings flapped a little out of sync.
“I still can't believe we're doing this, Luna would have never approved of this but imagine our luck with actually getting this far,”
“We're going to finish the plan in its early stages and then we'll set them free, but only when we're sure they're not going to attack anyone,”
“You trapped them somewhere? I thought you killed them to take their place,”
“Do you really think we'd murder our mother and aunt just to rule Equestria alone, we've only started and it's already been too much stress to go through all at once.”
“We we're just going to execute this plan and then free the umbrum before giving them the reins again, this is too much of a strain on us,”
“Besides, we have other plans for our own lives before that becomes our lives if you know what I mean.”
Valour just thought for a little bit before saying
“But how are you even sure that that will go without a hitch? If it was me ripped away from my Kingdom and trapped for weeks and then suddenly freed to rule the land again I wouldn't be happy”
Nightshade flew down to hover at his side and smiled.
“It's what we'd expect, but we'll be handling the business regarding you and your societies, with your help of course; since you are the two closest things to royalty without actually being the head of your kind you're our best chance of making decisions that involve other tribes.”
“You mean we get to work with two attractive stallions that will help us make big decisions about Equestria's development?!”
“Oh my goodness I love you, I couldn't have asked for a better sister than you, never in a million years!”
“I don't mean to sound annoying or rude but do we have a say in the matter?”
“Yeah, not like I'm complaining or anything but it just doesn't seem all that safe, I mean for you”
“Well, yes, but I kinda assumed you'd be all for it, especially since you obviously like us, especially you Valour. You couldn't have made your affections more clear”
“Ok, so let's discuss what should happen next, boys, what do you think?”
A story told
The castle's interior glowed with the soft shine if moonlight while Nightshade was in her room finishing up the design of the letters, it had been a long few weeks of travelling and to be back in someplace familiar was a great feeling. But she dreaded what might happen to the peace if she was always working, constantly debating the next group of ponies or creatures that would be free to live among them. And on this bright night, she felt more pressured than ever and decided to take a break as she got up and walked over to her window. She drew the curtains away from it as more light shone into the room and she leant on the windowsill as she looked out over Canterlot and the vast land beyond it.
“Can't sleep?”
“Yeah, it's just been so long since I've been able to relax like this, it's hard to remember what freedom feels like sometimes,”
“You know, I've never imagined hearing something like that from a princess, let alone a mare so free at heart,”
“I'm free because that's what I want to be,”
“I can never truly be free, not after what I have done.”
Valour seemed more than a little puzzled with her statement but turned his attention to the sky
“I don't deserve it either,”
Nightshade's ears perked up slightly and she looked at him, she could see that his small smile was there to cover up the feeling of guilt radiating from him.
“What happened?”
His smile broadened and he chuckled softly before the shine of tears in his eyes forced him to stop
“We all have made mistakes Nightshade, but none compares to the mistake I have made.”
Nightshade sat down and lifted one of her wings to rest it on his back gently
“I doubt that very much, but if you tell me your story, I'll tell you mine,”
“Back when I was a young colt I thought the world was a beautiful place, and at a young age I found myself fascinated with alchemy. Although my mother was afraid that I'd blow my horn clean off my head someday she wanted to help me learn more about it, but on one particular day that I spent extra long time at the library reading, I was attacked.”
“At first, the bite only itched but then it got worse, I was prone to sunburns and with each day regular food stopped being enough. Eventually, I couldn't eat it and my mother wasn't pleased with my sudden change in appetite”
“And?”
“And then, I could smell and practically hear the blood running through her veins, I tried to stop myself but the hunger and rage made for a nasty combo. Before anything had happened I thought that maybe I should stop when things started to calm down, but that wasn't the case when I tasted her blood.” Nightshade folded her ears back and he looked at her.
“I sucked her dry, and true, she was probably dead way before all the blood was gone but it still bothers me,”
Nightshade looked away from him and slowly folded her wing.
“At least you're not alone, I accidentally killed my first official friend with my magic when I didn't know how to control it,”
“What did I tell you, we were destined to be together,”
“Keep thinking that casanova and I'll have to check to see if you really are crazy,”
“You can always mimic things or attempt to get things perfectly the same, but it's never as good as the original is it?”
Set in motion
After the night before Nightshade had sent messengers out to deliver the message of true unity to the rest of Equestria, and things were truly starting to finally change. She had asked Valour and Metamorph to go back to their kind and get ten of them for the first wave of change. They were kept on the border of Equestria still while Nightshade and Angel were going to explain everything to Canterlot exclusively, to make sure the high-class ponies knew to be nice to their future citizens.
She walked out onto the balcony and looked down at the crowd that had gathered in front of them, and she took a deep breath before addressing them
Angel stepped forward and looked down at them before saying
Nightshade flew out to the changelings and Angel went to the vampire ponies and let them know that they could go where they please, and not surprisingly, most of the vampire ponies went to smaller more rural towns while the changelings went to big cities. For the first few weeks Nightshade and Angel were swarmed with complaints about the changes, and each time it was a complaint about the change in their workplaces due to the new arrival.
To which Nightshade would say
While Nightshade was in her room examining the map of the other places more pony-like creatures lived there was a knock on her room door
“Um sis, Equestria is looking pretty good now, we hardly have any more complaints and I was wondering if mom and auntie Tia could come back,”
“I was thinking the same thing, let's do it now before night comes around,”
“It worked, I told you it would work,”
“We missed you so much mom, and we have a big surprise for you and auntie Tia,”
“How….how did you do this,”
“Well auntie,”
“We went to the changeling forest and the vamp pony horde first and made two allies, we're hoping to expand on our unity plan.”
“But why? Equestria has never had the need for such things before, and it couldn't have been easy to do,”
“It was hard, all the travelling and the stress of dealing with uptight ponies,”
“A lot of ponies had complaints as well for the first three weeks after we got back, but we made it work,”
“These two stallions were the first we had the chance to work with, and they are going to be our advisors, as well as the spokesmen for their kind,”
“Their names are Valour,”
Celestia looked at them and stepped closer
“Auntie, we've been doing that job so far, I don't believe it will be that hard to accept the title now,”
“Then it's settled, you shall be coronated in time for the gala,”
“Maybe we can get coronated at the gala instead,”
“It would lighten the blow and we can celebrate our work on that day, with all the ponies we helped,”
“Fine, we'll celebrate your achievement and your ascension at the gala,”
Gala/coronation
“I can't believe that mom was so calm, even after all the changes we made and the choices we made without her approval,”
“I still think we're going to get a lecture about taking over and imprisoning them in crystal statues,”
An old looking mare with a faded green coat walked into the room, said
“You're on in five,”
“I still can't believe this is happening, especially right after our plan, it was so lucky that we survived everything,”
“You and me both sis, you and me both,”
****
After the ceremony, Nightshade and Angel had parted ways and began to talk to the guests and enjoy the music, but halfway through the night Nightshade had taken a seat and played with the crumbs of her food as she now felt bored with the event.
“Not enjoying your party?”
“I'm no expert at throwing parties but I think the point is to have fun at them.”
“Great, just great,”
“I just started being a princess and I already suck at it, what a great start to my life,”
“Actually, I came over here to ask if you wanted to dance with me,”
“If you wouldn't mind your highness.”
Nightshade just smiled and got up, taking his hoof as they walked onto the dance floor, soon after they joined the other ponies on the ballroom floor she started to feel more happy to have male friends like Metamorph to talk to. And soon she found herself beginning to be more comfortable with him as she rested her head on his shoulder, the slow rhythmic movements of the waltz felt almost like a lullaby. Until it stopped and she looked up at Metamorph to see why he stopped, only to see his eyes fixated on Valour across the dance floor while he held Angel close to him.
“Are you two honestly competing over us? This is supposed to be a fun night remember,”
“In any case, I'd have to deal with old business before I'd ever choose between you or him, and honestly, I don't even know if I like either of you enough to make that decision yet.”
He stepped back from her and just stood there in shock
“You were leaning on me and seemed more than a little happy to be with me, how could it not be me?”
Nightshade shrugged and looked up at him nonchalantly
“I was really stressed out and you helped me calm down a little bit, maybe it's the fact that I know your mother and how you guys work better than I know his kind. The closest I got with him was swapping stories about our lives,”
He leant down to her and looked into her eyes
“What did he tell you exactly? A sappy sad story about not being accepted or something?”
“Than what was it?”
“You don't deserve to know, and now I realise I don't deserve to either but it's personal regardless so maybe you should just ask him yourself!”
“Nightshade wait!”
“Valour explained everything, is there really something wrong with being hit on by two stallions?”
“Who would you choose if you had to?”
“I can't say anything until I'm done with old business, when I come back I'll let you know who,”
“How long will you be gone?”
“Not long, but please tell mother and auntie, Tia, I went to visit an old friend in the gryphon Kingdom,”
“Please be safe” Angel said as she watched her sister fly into the night sky before returning to the ballroom, when she got back Metamorph and Valour were confused as to where she had gone but didn't ask, as Angel walked over to the princesses to tell them first. And even on Nightshade's flight away from the castle, she hesitated for a moment before continuing on her way.
Separation
It had already been three days since Angel last saw her sister, watching her fly off in such a bad mood made her somehow feel guilty for it. On the bright side of the situation, neither of the stallions bugged her about Nightshade's whereabouts, she guessed that they might have thought that she left because of them, which wasn't entirely wrong; they did annoy her enough to make her storm out and fly to the gryphon Kingdom. And although Angel knew that their job would be harder to do alone, she knew that having her sister constantly be upset would be far worse for all four of them. So while they waited for her return they looked at the places marked on the map and settled on seeing them separately after they read up on them, and so went on the long wait.
****
After three weeks of waiting Nightshade finally returned to the castle, but she didn't at all seem happy to be back at all: her mane looked messier than usual and her fur looked matted in some areas. All and all, she looked like a totally flipped version of herself. She took off her crown and saddlebags and set them down near her bed before slipping off her silvery-blue hoof covers and climbing into bed.
“Nightshade? Is that you,”
“I spent my whole life trying to preserve something that was already gone, and now I've got nothing to go back to,”
“Why don't you tell me about it? Maybe getting it off your chest will help you feel better,”
“I knew I should have just let myself stay, whatever would have happened would have been better than feeling myself die a little bit more on my way back,”
“You know, your mother and your sister missed you a great deal, maybe it would have been easier to bring one of them with you,”
“You know,”
Metamorph ran a hoof over the cheek she kissed and just sighed
After some searching Nightshade found her sister and Valour, as well as the two princesses, discussing the map from her room, she hadn't even noticed that it was missing before then. As she walked into the room they all looked at her and Angel sprung from her seat to hug her sister
“Oh I missed you so much,”
“Well, actually, it didn't go so well, especially since he got another mate already,”
“I'm so sorry, I really didn't know,”
“A relationship you wanted to rekindle has fallen apart, it's rather sad don't you think?”
Nightshade took a step back as her ears perked up before quickly dropping to the side
“If only I stayed long enough to enjoy the night properly, none of this turmoil would have happened,”
“Do you really think there is something wrong with me princess? Isn't that a little against what you've been trying to promote?”
“I know well enough that you don't want my affections as much as Metamorph does, and I don't understand why you keep trying to me when the odds of getting me are slim,”
“Such a ridiculous mare, thinking you can say no to me without any repercussions?”
“Your ok right? He didn't bite you?”
“We…..we need to get rid of him and check his kind for double-crossers, he might have had a more sinister plan in mind.”
Traitor
Angel sighed as she agreed with her sister's decision, and moved to sit beside her and lean back onto her bed
“And here I thought that maybe I could make him like me, this just ruins everything previously established by our plan. And now no one is safe from him,”
"No one is safe!”
Nightshade looked at her as the same thought ran through her mind as well and she got up quickly
“We need to get to mom and auntie Tia before he does. ”
“This is one of the reasons why we didn't want to make an alliance with them, Alicorn magic gives a boost to the blood they'd get from one and your sister is probably the most well versed in the dark magic she possesses,” Celestia said as she walked with Angel
“So, basically, what you're saying is if he drank her blood he'd get some of her magic and power?”
“In a way, the same would happen with you but the magic wouldn't be as strong,”
“But who knows what would have happened if he managed to drink her blood? I'd hate to see what would happen to Nightshade if it's not enough,”
“I can't believe such filth was right in front of us all this time, I really should have guessed from his dreams that he was no good,”
“I promise I'll never make the same mistake twice, but I really must know what you saw,”
“In his dream, he turned you into his kind and brought you back to his home and planned on using you and your title to take over Equestria, before killing you and taking over completely,”
“Is…is this going to be enough to hold him?”
“If cut down the amount of blood he gets, then yes, until then we have to just wait and hope this is enough,”
“If you don't rot here than you will in Tartarus,”
“Of course you were going to use me, I bet you didn't even kill your mother or feel sorry for any lives you've taken,”
“How else was I going to take over and make our kind the most abundant type of ponies? You really are cute, though, so bold for such a short princess,”
Nightshade's wings tensed
“It…is..a MEDICAL CONDITION!”
“And in case you were wondering, I'd choose Metamorph either way.”
“Fucking prick,”
“Nightshade, are you okay?”
“Don't worry Morphy,”
“It's not mine,”
“Then whose is it?”
“It's Valour’s, that prideful prick tried to double cross me and kill me to take over Equestria, and I popped him in the muzzle.”
“It was my mistake for trusting him, though,”
“I put everyone in danger, especially the ones I love the most.”
“Hey, everyone makes mistakes, even my mom made a mistake that wrecked the plan she had to take over Equestria because of one loose end. But we got back up and moved on,”
“Ow….on a better note, I choose you, out of all the things that happened you've been supportive and showed more emotion than I've ever seen from a stallion,”
“And I can't see myself with anyone better, Morphy.”
Old friends
Nightshade and Metamorph were outside on a brisk night under the light of the moon, laying down in the centre of the Canterlot gardens. It had been a couple crazy busy days after the incident with Valour, but after the change in the quantity of blood he got, he became tamer and less likely to attack. So after talking to the multitude of vampire ponies that had shown up, they were deciding to take a break from everything, and since Angel said that she'd come to join them after she dealt with one more thing they patiently waited.
Nightshade sighed
“What exactly do they look like?”
“lunar lilies, she planted them so they would bloom on our birthday and they're gorgeous when they bloom,”
“Is this what you were looking for?”
“Of course they do, but she told me that whenever they'd bloom she'd come out here and sing our lullaby to them.”
Metamorph just laid down beside her and looked at her
Her ears shot up and she looked at him with a small blush
He nuzzled her and gently grabbed her hoof with one of his own
“If you say so,”
“That was the most beautiful lullaby I have ever heard without knowing what the words meant,”
She just shrugged
“Why don't you ask her yourself?”
“Oh my sweet baby, you've grown up so much,”
“Whoa whoa whoa, who the heck are all of you?”
“These are our old friends from years ago,”
“Okay, so who's the little dragon?”
“My name is Sapphire, and it it nice to meet you Prince Metamorph,”
“She's right, but Angel, why did you bring them here to meet him now?”
“Well, you've been talking about how much you missed sapphire and I just thought that you'd like to see everyone again,”
“Yeah, we really missed you over the years,” Blossom said as she hopped up to Nightshade and hugged her.
“Not to mention you kind of disappeared when you gave sapphire to us to take off,”
“I trusted you two enough to take care of her because you two are mature enough for a baby dragon, and besides, you're together anyways so I thought doing as a team would be easy for you,”
“There you go analysing everything again, jeez, do you know how to act normal?”
“We all know you have a soft spot for Sapphire and Blossom,”
And all through the night, they swapped stories and eventually, everyone was smiling and pleasantly chatting about what they've been doing after they stopped working as bounty hunters, and little by little Metamorph began to be more fond of Sapphire and the rest of Nightshade's friends. But after a few long hours of talking they separated and left to go home and get some rest, while Sapphire chose to stay with her adoptive mother and new soon to be father, in Canterlot.
alliances
After the pleasant night before sleeping comfortably became an easy task; with no worry on her mind about her young dragon and a changeling mate willing to be with her and protect her, but sadly, their rest was interrupted. A firm knocking woke Nightshade up and she groaned as she rubbed her eyes, waking up Metamorph and Sapphire in the process.
“who is it?”
“um there is an important matter from out of town that needs to be taken care of,”
“who's here this time?”
“business from out of town, I suppose we'll have to hold a meeting to discuss what they want,”
“come on, the requested you personally and I think you might want to hear what they had to say,”
“princess Nightshade, we have come to discuss a possible alliance, after seeing how you changed equestria we figured you'd do the same for us,”
“we should discuss the details further, so we truly understand the reasoning behind why you want to do this,”
“very well then, lead the way,”
Nightshade turned to Metamorph and smiled
Metamorph put a hoof on her shoulder
“aren't you going to go rest as well? It really must have been a long trip from the griffin Kingdom,”
“I truly am sorry about what happened before, I just assumed after all that time you would have moved on,”
She pulled her hoof away and folded her ears back as she looked away from him
“can't you give me just one more chance?”
“that's not how it works, I did love you and I waited until it was safe enough for me to go to you, but after this long I've moved on” she pushed his talons away and got up
challenges
Nightshade walked to her room in the heat of mixed emotions from shooting down an old love of hers, and as she stepped into her room she flopped onto her bed. And after a few minutes Prince Metamorph walked in as well, holding a snarling and spitting Sapphire with him.
“I swear, that stallion is not worth the roomy cell your mother gave him, Sapphire nearly tore his hyde apart because of his rudeness,”
“he's staying at the castle, he's staying here today and I don't know how to feel about it,”
“who is staying here? And why does he bother you?”
“he's one of the griffin guards, after everyone left he asked me to give him another chance and…and” she struggled to get the words out and squeezed her eyes shut before covering her face with her hooves.
“and you miss him,”
“actually, I think I might just know a little more than you buzz bee,”
“Windbreaker!”
“hasn't it? I could hardly tell it was you,”
“yeah, mom took great care of me after we left, but you still look the same,”
“excuse me, but who are you?”
“I should ask you the same thing changeling,” Windbreaker shot back as he set Sapphire down and glared at him
Metamorph got to his hooves and floated down from the bed with the soft buzzing of his wings and stood in front of him
“I'd suggest that you keep your distance from my mare friend,”
“enough!”
fuel to the flame
Nightshade sat in the haze of the moment, Windbreaker had come all this way to see her and try to rekindle their relationship. And she had pushed him away, and the pain and fear of losing him made her feel stuck in place. Metamorph walked up to her side and snorted
“I was wondering how long it would take get rid of him, griffins are so territorial and rude,”
“I….I didn't want to do this, I…I need to go,”
“what's wrong your highness? Something bothering you?”
“why would you care? I've already made you hate me,”
“I could never hate you my little starburst, I just don't like knowing that we aren't together anymore,”
Nightshade nodded and lifted her head to look at him
“your highness, the prisoner is trying to escape,”
“what is wrong with you? Are you suddenly too hungry to be civilized?”
“well if it isn't the tiny princess, what are you going to do, Hug me to death?”
“the only reason why you are alive right now is because I don't know what your leader will do if he found out that you were dead. Besides, I don't hug I crush,”
“Oooooo, how terrifying, I'm practically shaking in my horseshoes,”
“I'd just love to end you right now,”
“go on then, what could you possibly do to hurt your tiny little body?”
“you know what, why don't we just muzzle you instead,”
bittersweet memories
Nightshade trotted back up the stairs and quickly to the room that now held the map, the two guards had left already but Windbreaker stayed close behind her as they walked.
“who was that?”
“that was Valour, he was one of my supporting allies but he tried to kill me a couple days ago, now we're keeping him at the close watch and he's probably going to get interrogated.”
“but won't word get out to his kind?”
“I'm no stranger to keeping secrets, just because my appearance isn't one anymore, doesn't mean I've given up on keeping them all together,”
“happy early birthday sweetheart.”
“you remembered!”
“yes, I figured I could give you a gift that could not only protect you but be memorable at the same time,”
“you're the best mother ever, I can't wait to show this to daddy,”
“speaking of which, where is your father?”
“oh, he said he was going to go to his room and try to think about how to make you happy,”
“thank you, I'll be right back to tuck you in, don't use up the magic in the gemstones before than ok?”
“Morphy? Are you alright?”
“I don't know whether I messed up or not, do you think that I was too harsh on your old colt friend?”
“you were at first, but that's not the reason why I left, the reason why I left was because I needed some air. I knew that if I didn't stop you two you would end up killing each other, and the stress of knowing that I could lose either of you didn't help.”
“why is love so difficult to understand? I mean it's good but it can hurt, and I don't ever want to hurt you,”
“because love is a battle, if you surrender too easy you may actually lose more than you think, and if you try to hold onto too much and don't think about surrendering you push them away. It has to have a balance, a harmony before it can truly be good,”
“how do you know more about the thing I need to survive?”
“I've been in my fair share of toxic relationships, they all ended in different ways but they all had similar causes; some were passionate but too close for comfort, others made me feel even smaller than I am now. But with you, I don't feel like I'm talking to a changeling or some dangerous creature,”
“right back at you Nightshade, right back at you.”
attack
The next day went without a hitch, with it being Sapphire’s birthday most of the day was filled with plans centred around her. After the long day of celebrating and making sure that she was having fun, Nightshade and Metamorph were just about ready to go to bed. So after picking up the happily sleeping dragon they both made their way back to their room
“well, today was definitely a trip, I hope I can have as much fun as we had today dealing with complaints from ponies again,”
“you know, you didn't have to wake up so early for the party, everything was ready before she got there anyways.”
“you know as well as me she can be picky about where certain things are or what food is served,”
“how about we enjoy the night again? We can sit in the gardens or find a nice cave near the castle.”
“I need to be here and ready for the ponies before the sun comes up, we have to stay in the castle so the gardens are our best choice,”
“my mother would just love you, you and your royal limits,”
Nightshade gazed down at the flowers and smiled
“the small princess and the Prince to be, just the ponies I wanted to see.”
“you…..you just killed that stallion,”
“it was us or him, I assumed that you'd want to survive.”
“Nightshade….your eyes…they're different,”
“they are? Different in what way?”
“they're like slits, your pupils I mean, and the rest of your eyes just look blue. I'm guessing this is normal for you,”
“it's not going away?….why isn't it gone?!”
“you mean this isn't supposed to be like this?”
“no, this has only happened one other time….and I don't know what to do,”
study and acceptance
After another long time of panicking Metamorph was finally able to convince Nightshade that her eyes might go back to normal after a good night of rest, and he escorted her back to the room while trying to keep her calm.
****
After that night Nightshade woke up feeling refreshed and smiled as she carefully got out of bed and went to the washroom, but upon seeing her own eyes still blue and still with slits for pupils her smile instantly changed to a look of horror. Immediately she tried to rub her eyes to get rid of it but didn't work, and she galloped out of the room all together and bounded down the hall to the library in the castle. When she got close enough the guard by the door opened it for her, she quickly thanked him on her way in and instantly began to searching for a book that would have a way to fix a magical defect. But after a long while of searching she began to feel more and more helpless, with each book she found, and each moment she spent scanning the pages for an answer she turned up empty hoofed.
“why is it not going away now?! This is probably the worst time for my eyes to look weird and unnatural,”
“your highness, are you alright? Your eyes look strange,”
“does it really look that bad?”
“w-well, they are unusual, but they aren't horrible and frightening,”
“thank you, sir, oh, and can you tell the princesses about this so they can help me find a way to fix it?”
“they didn't change back, was that why you left so early?”
“will you…still, love me with my eyes like this?”
“you didn't hate me because I was a changeling, I won't think of you any different,”
****
Weeks upon weeks went by and she slowly began to accept her title properly, although she still hated being called a princess it made her feel as though she had a purpose, it gave her the drive she needed to keep Equestria in line with each new decision she made. And for the first time in a long time, she felt like she belonged at her mother's and sister's sides, as an equal as well as a sister and daughter.
ascension, discussion, profit?
Angel paced in the main hall, a year had passed since the plan was set in motion, and she was trying to understand her sister's drive to stay in power.
“I just don't get it: what's so good about being in power to you? You never used to like talking about it so why do you like it now?”
“I never had the chance to truly move on before, but now I have a mate and a wealthy sufficient job with my family, I was just guessing that I could give it a chance,”
“but why? From the moment we began work on the plan you've been put in danger and forced to take lives, what happened to ‘screw the crown, I still have a life?’ you haven't even brought up anything that wasn't work-related.”
“I just thought…that maybe Metamorph and I could raise Sapphire better if I stayed in my royal title, that and the possibility of having a foal and growing up together,”
“oh ‘shade, you know as well as me that that can't happen,”
“I wouldn't expect you to understand, you've never been with a stallion long enough to fall in love with them, but fortunately for me I have.”
“don't you dare bring our Father into this!”
“he suffered trying to give us all a place to rule in darkness and night!”
“what happened to make you like this, Night? You're almost never this emotional,”
“how long do changelings live for?”
“I don't know, maybe 100 years, the oldest I know is 95, why?”
“isn't it funny how long Alicorns can live for? Angel doesn't want me to get too attached to you because I'll outlive you like there isn't anything I can do about it,”
“and you don't want to simply break it off, you want to stay with me?”
“and I'm helpless, I wish I could just make you an Alicorn like Celestia did for twilight, but I don't even think that's possible,”
“and as far as letting me go is concerned, I can't be let back into the hive if I already have a mate, and my mom already knows about us so I can't really do much either.”
“I love you,”
“I love you too, till death do us part,”
the royal sisters
Nightshade got up early the next day, and carefully slipped out of bed, going through her morning routine before leaving and heading to Celestia’s room. When she got to her door; decorated with images of the sun and it's orange rays of light and the bright beauty of the sun itself. She knocked on the door and waited for her aunt to allow her to enter,
“come in!”
“auntie Tia? Can I ask you something? It's kind of a weird question but um…can changelings become Alicorns?”
“is this about your changeling friend?”
“yes, and he is more than just a friend to me, he's my colt friend,”
“Nightshade, you really can't do this to yourself, the loss alone might kill you emotionally. But the pain of living without him-,”
“I know the risk and I know how to get over a death, I'm no stranger to sorrow and loss, I just want to know if that is possible.”
“I know you want this but I just don't know if that will be the best choice, for him and you, but I understand how much you've put into this and your love for him is true,”
“he can die if I'm not there?”
“but that's for a normal pony, I can't be sure what your love will do for him after that amount of time has passed, he may not even need love every day after that long.”
“thank you, thank you, thank you auntie Tia, I'll never forget this,”
“was that Nightshade I just heard?”
“it would appear that your daughter is in love with her changeling ally, she wanted to know if changelings could ascend like Twilight and Cadence did.”
“and what did you tell her?”
“I told her the truth; they can't ascend but they can live a long life with enough love to fuel them,”
“I thought it would have been something terrible,”
“your highness, the yak delicates came back to ponyville and a huge fight is going on between them and the griffins about superiority! Ponies are injured and 3 are dead.”
“mobilize our secondary fleet of guards and inform my daughters, we're going to need a little more help with this,”
peacekeepers
The guard ran to Nightshade's room as quickly as possible, and the moment she heard what was going she put on her cloak and told her to tell her sister, before flying off to the front of the castle. Angel immediately had the same response and galloped the same way, putting on her own cloak as she ran out. When they got to the front of the castle they were met with a fleet of guards in heavy armour, as well as Celestia and Luna in all their regalia.
“are you sure you two can handle this?”
“we are responsible for the protection and of other tribes and for keeping the peace,”
“we will do what we can to make sure that mission is accomplished,”
“then go forth and protect Equestria,”
“we're here to keep the peace, we will not hurt anyone unless hurt first, is that clear?!”
“then move out! we need to get there before more lives are lost,”
“you don't have to tell me twice,”
“I know you two are probably very reasonable folk, but this kind of thing isn't acceptable,”
“and things in Equestria have changed since you were here last, your highness, and we'd love to know what happened between you two so this can be settled properly,”
“yaks come for visit, griffin bumps into us and is rude, yaks get mad and fight back,”
“I was going to sugarcube corner to get something sweet for lunch, but that over furred Billygoat bumped into me and tried to start a fight!”
“that yak is a Prince, and he is meant to be treated with respect, the same goes for griffin royalty. But since you're not griffin royalty you shouldn't be so hostile towards other royals, I suggest you both go your separate ways and avoid violence.”
“where were you trying to go?”
“to talk with princess twilight,”
“of course, you were heading to sweet apple acres, the castle it behind you and to your right, it's near the whitetail woods,”
“well hello, how are you you attractive devil you?”
“I'm fine, thank you, and the citizens have been cleared from the streets and checked for injuries, as you ordered,”
“you know, my sister is looking for a strong handsome stallion to stand at her side,”
“no I don't,”
“maybe I can change your mind little sis, I just need time to work out the kinks,”
the general
After an hour and a half of sparring, and some fair rounds with wins and losses on both sides, Nightshade and Angel were finally tired out and decided to call it a day. Like usual, they both began to head to their rooms, longing for a much-needed shower, but on Angel’s way to her room, she spotted the general again. And for the first time, didn't think about asking him to go to bed with her, instead, she thought about her sister and what a good colt friend he would be for her. So, after some thought was given on the subject, she called him over and told him that Nightshade wanted to talk to him in her room. Obediently he complied, and bowed to her before walking away, not seeing the somewhat malicious smile Angel had as he walked away. By the time he got to Nightshade's room she was done with her shower, but far from dry: as her dark blue mane and tail hung over part of her face and cascaded down her shoulders. She was in the middle of drying her mane when she heard the knock come from her room door, and hurried over to it, ignoring the wetness of her coat for the moment. Upon opening the door her calm expression soon had a tinge of confusion strike through it, and the general was more than a little stunned, as his face went from a pale white to a faded pink.
“Oh, I'm sorry your highness, I didn't notice you were um…busy, I'll just come back later,”
“For what exactly? I don't recall requesting to speak with you,”
“Are you sure? Your sister just told me that you did and-,”
“Of course it was my sister, I'm so sorry she sent you here for nothing,”
“sometimes my sister doesn't like to leave things alone, and I think she's trying to hook us up,”
“Your highness, I actually wouldn't mind that; you seem like a rather competent mare, and you even have some skill on the battlefield. I can see us together in a way,”
“It would never work between us, I have more reason to not be with you than to actually be with you,”
“Hey, ‘shade, we're back,”
“And we got doughnuts!”
“Welcome home, you would not believe the day I just had,”
“What happened? Was it something bad?”
“Would you call my sister trying to hook me up with an alicorn general bad?”
“What did you say? Is he still around? Should he be fired?!”
“I turned him down, I'm never going to give you up and I'm not taking any chances with you either,”
“I will never give you up for a stallion I barely see anyways, it wouldn't be worth it, and I know you're scared for us but we'll be ok,”
“why of course my dear, and I'll be ready to reject him a second time if it happens to come to that,”
dragons
After a small chat over doughnuts, Nightshade had went to bed, along with Metamorph and Sapphire. But the sleep was any but peaceful for her, in fact, she had an old nightmare come back to haunt her, and for the first time in a long time, she woke up in a cold sweat. Her mind was reeling with fear, as well as the images that had flashed before her eyes. And regrettably, she rose to her hooves and trotted over to her window, flying out almost immediately. She knew that Metamorph would probably freak out in her absence, but she knew she also needed to go to her father's former home, the presence of his magic always used to give her the sense of closure. So after flying past the empire she sighed and flew down to land in a cave in the mountain range nearby, dark crystals filled in and the dark magic was almost overwhelming as she walked into it. She walked into the centre of it and sat down, as she did, she began to make more dark crystals, expelling her dark magic with a sigh. When she was done she got up and walked to the mouth of the cave, and began the long flight home, but when she had gotten halfway there a loud roar almost knocked her out of the sky. And when she looked around for where the roar came from, a large red dragon came into view, and it was quickly gaining on her. Although she was trying her hardest to get away from it, it's large talons grabbed her out of the sky and took her off her original path home. And short after she had been grabbed she passed out, due to the stress on her already physically drained body, when she woke up she was chained up and surrounded.
“the prisoner is awake, I hope your not in the mood to pass out again,”
“what…do you want?”
“you of all ponies should know, we want to be able to freely live on your land, while enforcing our tradition,”
“after doing this to me, you'd be lucky to live,”
“you must be joking, I've faced ponies larger than you and have won, being an alicorn makes you just a tiny bit stronger than them,”
“I didn't know fire breathers were so cold hearted and weak, I have an aquatic dragon as a daughter and I'm not afraid of you,”
“you may take the night to ponder your decision, but in the morning, you better have a good answer,”
rescue
Later on in the day, Nightshade had tried to reach Metamorph through his dreams, but most of her efforts proved fruitless and she gave up on trying. She laid down and rested her head on her hooves, quietly planning and waiting for something she could use to escape, but just as she began to fall asleep a tug on her chains woke her back up. When she looked around her eyes fell upon a green dragon a little bigger than a griffin, and instead of looking hateful, he looked more curious.
“your princess Nightshade right? I mean, the real Nightshade?”
“yes,and you must be a fairly small adult dragon,”
“is there anyway I can be a part of the combined and unbiased decision making? I've heard so much about it and I'd be extremely helpful in protecting equestria,”
“I don't know, it would require a lot of trust and red tape, and I can't be the only one who wants you to help with big decisions,”
“where should we go?”
“canterlot, but when we get there, you need to explain the situation completely. I can do what I can to defend you, but after going missing so early in the morning they'd probably assume the worst,”
“I understand, but if you're an alicorn, why didn't you fight earlier?”
“you really love your questions don't you? To give you the short answer, my magic flared up and I spent my time out of the castle to expel it, when I started to fly back I figured I was safe enough to be so weak, but then I you guys chased me and caught me.”
“I'm really sorry, but we didn't think you would have left the castle to talk to a bunch of dragons anyways, and we just really wanted to have more land to raise our young,”
“there is plenty of land for you guys now, and I can willingly give you guys a shot at living among us, as long as you don't try to eat anyone and help us understand you better,”
“but he's a dragon!”
After a flying a fair distance away from the other dragons, the green dragon had landed, waking up Nightshade in the process. When she woke up she yawned, feeling much more like herself before noticing that she was being held close to the dragon's chest, as he made a fire to keep them warm.
“you get too tired to fly?”
“well, Centerlot is really far away, I just figured we'd rest for the night,”
“that would be the better idea in this case, but um, can you please let me go?”
“my name is Pyrite,”
“isn't that a female name?”
“yeah, my parents thought that I was a girl because of how small my egg was,”
“it seems like we're both runts than, what an odd turn of events,”
“but even your name is cooler than mine,”
“That's where you're wrong, my name is the same name used for poisonous berries that are as black as night, and as tiny as blueberry buds. Even the strongest creatures find themselves falling prey to such a radiant Berry,”
****
By the time Nightshade woke up again they were already flying over Appaloosa, and Pyrite didn't take his eyes off the sky. And although she admired his determination, she couldn't help but feel that her plan to help him would be riskier than he'd expect. When they arrived in Canterlot, he set her down and let her lead the way to the castle, frightening a few upper-class ponies as they went by. Nightshade reassured the guards that they passed, that Pyrite was perfectly safe, and that they were going to the main Hall to discuss business. A few guards galloped off to relay the message to Angel, Metamorph and the two princesses, letting them know that Nightshade was back, and safe as well. After a while of waiting the sound of many hooves walking to the main Hall got louder and louder, and the first one to run in and check on Nightshade was, princess Luna herself. She practically knocked her over with a hug, before frantically checking if she was hurt in any way. And while Celestia and Angel walked in calmly, Prince Metamorph, bolted in to stand between Nightshade and Pyrite, hissing at him fiercely.
“stay behind me, these dragons can't be trusted,”
“what in the hay do you think you're doing?!”
“dragons are untrustworthy vicious beasts, that will devour anything in sight, and you expect me to let you just trust him?! He was probably the one who kidnapped you right!?!”
“what? I wasn't kidnapped, well I sort of was, but not by him, he saved me,”
“and you expect me to believe that? All dragons are the same: they steal and hoard anything that they want, and eat whoever tries to stop them. And I don't want you to go out that way,”
“you may not like fire-breathers, but this one deserves thanks from you, rather than a death threat,”
“you know, a dragon can live just as long as an alicorn, maybe you should try to be with him?”
“shut up Angel!”
“okay okay, fine, you didn't have to yell at me, it was just a suggestion,”
“well, at least you tried,”
“maybe I can try my luck with him then? After all, he might just be the most exotic male I've ever been with,”
“this is going to be a long meeting.”
years of malice
The discussion took hours to end, mostly because of the more obvious dangers of having a dragon be around, and also due to the rude comments Metamorph always had. It was hard to believe that he wasn't already plotting Pyrite’s death right in that room, he was practically killing him with the cold stare he would have whenever he spoke, and Nightshade was more than a little pleased to finally be done with it. As everyone began to leave the main hall she insisted on helping Pyrite find a place to sleep and settled on a cave that leads beneath the castle. But since Metamorph still didn't like him, he changed himself into a bird; so he could follow them and make sure that she was safe. Nightshade lead Pyrite out to the Canterlot gardens since it was open enough to give Pyrite some room to take off, and the both made their way halfway around the mountain. It was a tiring flight for Metamorph; not having the love for a while and changing his size so much was putting a toll on his body, and he was more than happy to stop when they finally landed.
“okay, this is it, buddy, it's a really deep cave and I'm sure you'll be happy to find many old gemstones the further down you go,”
“I can't thank you enough for this but, you didn't have to give me a place to live, I can always fly here from the dragon lands,”
“why is it glowing like this? It's not enchanted is it?”
“no, of course not, it's gem magic and it'll help you feel more satisfied than a gem without magic. Just take it easy on your first night okay?”
“you wouldn't believe it, but he's a runt like me, I don't even think he's a teenage dragon either, isn't that cool?”
“can I meet him? I bet he's never seen a sea dragon before,”
“absolutely not, those dragons are dangerous and not to be trusted,”
“what is your issue with dragons? Sapphire is a dragon and you like her,”
“those fire breathing sacks of rude are the ones responsible for our dropping numbers, they eat us, changelings, after we've eaten enough to taste sweet to them,”
“Pyrite is not like that, he talked to me when the other dragons wouldn't, he tried to negotiate a safe and harmless option, he freed me against the wishes of his kind. And the only one acting dangerously is you,”
“so if I just looked like this and ate your kind because they tasted sweet you wouldn't get upset!”
“that is the one thing that we're not supposed to do: we don't judge others based on one thing that they may have done, maybe if you put your differences aside and actually talk to him like an adult, he wouldn't seem so bad to you,”
vent and calm
Nightshade paced the shining floor of the deep cave, while Sapphire and Pyrite stayed at a safe distance. with a fuming and emotional alicorn in front of them, it just seemed like the best option they had.
“I spent months trying to work out this entire plan, and throughout all the mistakes and hiccups leading up to this point he never told me,”
“mommy? Can we just worry about this later? You said I could spend time getting to know Pyrite, and he clearly hasn't seen a sea dragon either,”
“you're right, we came down here for you and not me, you two can tell each other about yourselves until you get bored,”
“I can't believe a pony could raise such a spunky and tough little dragon, and I didn't even think changelings were a problem for them either, how did you even get her to like that changeling of yours?”
“in all honesty, he was just nice enough for her to be interested in learning more about, and he loves taking care of her anyways,”
“what happened anyway? All you've said about it up to this point is how annoyed he had made you, and that's too vague to assume anything,”
“he tried to explain why he didn't like dragons like you, but when I asked about why he wouldn't give you a chance he turned into a dragon that looked like you, and I hit him across the muzzle,”
“relationships are hard, being with a changeling is probably going to be difficult either way; they are pretty much Equestria's punching bags when it comes to it, even more than gryphons and they're more aggressive. Either way, you're going to have to make decisions, and you've made a huge one already.”
“how many relationships have you been in?”
“well, when you're as small as me, not many, but I learned a lot from the few I've been in. What about you?”
“15, they mostly didn't last because of work or the amount of toxicity it had, I've learned quite a bit in my years,”
“wow, why haven't any of them come back to try to marry into your wealth? I mean, it would probably happen a lot right?”
“I had a fake identity back then, after our coronation the existence of the mystery mare they liked just ceased to exist, and the only ex I've had come back has turned into an out of town ally and friend,”
“you really thought of everything, haven't you? It's so impressive how you hid so well within Equestria for so long,”
“easy, I just looked for a gem that could Change the physical appearance of a pony, and just tried to keep my past and lifespan a secret, and that worked for me,”
“why haven't we heard about this before?”
“gem magic is still being tested, and it hasn't been written down in a book because there are too many gems and variables for them, plus I kept it to myself and my team until now,”
“is there a way you can teach me about how it works?”
“of course, since you're going to be here you need to know what spells are dangerous or helpful for your kind, and I'd be happy to teach you,”
Prologue
The blast of magic that saved the empire was as bright as the hearts of the hundreds of crystal ponies within it, shattering the one pony who couldn't simply be crystallised like the others. While Equestria cheered and celebrated the return of the empire, one of the mare's he had raised to be his successor cursed the radiant ponies, vowing to fulfil her father's dream and show Equestria what true justice was.
Years later.
A mare dressed in a heavy pitch black cloak walked the streets of Manehattan, examining and scanning the structures for any sign of her sister; bigger, older and very much different in appearance she often stuck out on the darkest nights. And in almost no time at all, she was quickly spotted with a stallion at her side, he was obviously drunk while the pale white mare with him walked as though she had nothing alcoholic to drink at all. Nightshade pushed off her hood and called to her, and waited for her to get close enough to give her the details of the plan.
On the train to Canterlot the two sisters stayed quiet and focused, although they had gotten older since the last time they had heard their father's plan it was they made sure to remember exactly what he wanted them to do: overthrowing the highest rulers, making allies out of the most cunning and dangerous races, and taking Equestria by storm with fleets of skilled ponies until the entire continent fell to their hooves. It was vague but all the planning they had done made it easier to get what they wanted, especially when it came to the allies they chose. So when the train stopped and they both got to the castle, they tore through the guards on their way to the princesses, not hesitating to take every precaution they could. And soon, they had encased the two highest powers in Equestria in umbrum crystals, setting their entire plan in motion.
“Now that the biggest threats have been knocked off their high pedestals, nothing will stop us from getting to our allies, Angel, start writing, we have a lot of work to do.”