Hajaa’s eyes snapped open. He quickly sat up in bed, looking around. His room was empty. No sign of Thorax at all. The Zebra frowned deeply… it wasn’t like him to scurry off like that. The zebra was quick to get out of bed and pull his pants on. The changeling was probably in the bathroom or something, but it wouldn’t hurt to investigate, right?

The zebra walked towards the door, gripping the handle, but he was pulled from his thoughts when he heard a cry of panic. He knew that voice. It was his Jala’s voice. Hajaa instantly slammed the door open, rushing into what he thought was going to be the hallway. Instead, outside of his room were the grasslands of his home. Zebrica.

Hajaa looked around for a second until his eyes finally locked on Thorax, several feet away from him. The changeling was wearing nothing but a loincloth, but that wasn’t what caught his attention. No, it was the pole his back was pressed into.

The changeling’s wrists were tied at the top of the pole with thick ropes and a metal band sat around his waist keeping his elytra shut and his wings useless, but his legs were free. Hajaa immediately knew what it was. His suspicions were reinforced when an all-black figure with white stripes formed from shadows in front of his Jala. The figure wore an elaborately carved bronze chest plate, a bronze full helmet with golden spikes that resembled a crown, but nothing else. In one quick motion, the armored shadow grabbed the ‘ling’s loincloth and violently ripped it off, exposing his shame to the world.

Then the shadow reached a hand forwards, cupping Thorax by the chin and forcing him to lock eyes with it. Slowly, an all-white smile formed across its face. Panic’s icy fingers gripped the zebra’s heart as he instantly tried sprinting towards the ‘ling. The second he made hoof fall, however, the ground below him turned to sand, swallowing his leg up to the knee. The zebra immediately lost his balance, falling to his hands and knees, both of which were similarly submerged in the near liquid sand. His eyes shot up, staring up at his changeling.

The shadow grabbed Thorax by the legs, lifting them up and pressing him even further against the pole until the two were in something similar to a stand and carry pose. Then it brought its hips back and thrust forwards. Hajaa’s breath caught in his throat when he heard Thorax cry out in pain as tears started pouring from his eyes.

The zebra started hyperventilating, before he let out a roar of rage, instantly standing up and kicking the sand off him. Then he started to wade forwards through it like it was nothing but deep water, but the closer he got, the more he sank. He was up to his chest when suddenly, Thorax’s cries of pain turned into saddened moans and whimpers. Tears still poured from the ‘ling’s eyes, but Hajaa watched as, in real-time, the ‘ling’s gaze turned from one of pain to one of empty sorrow.

Hajaa’s eyes widened, Thorax’s look making him stall, for just long enough for tendrils made of sand to whip up from underneath him, wrapping around his wrists, chest, and neck, pulling him downwards. The zebra hissed and roared, trying his hardest to fight them off, but more and more kept coming, slowly dragging him into the dark.

Hajaa’s roars ceased when Thorax let out a cry… one that was equal parts agony, and ecstasy. His eyes instantly snapped to the ‘ling. He watched with weak breath as Thorax threw his head back, eyes closed. Slowly, a wave of pure black darkness slowly spread from where his rear met the shadow’s rod, consuming him. First, it covered Hajaa’s mark, then it covered the stripes on his hips, then it covered his legs and chest.

Thorax’s head shook from side to side, the ‘ling cried out in pure panic, trying not to give in… but he was always weak… The darkness soon covered his head, leaving not a single one of Hajaa’s stripes on him. All that was left of Thorax was an all-black silhouette. Slowly he opened his glowing cyan eyes, but they were empty and hollow. Broken.

The shadow laughed, turning its gaze to Hajaa. Only the zebra’s head was above the sand now, allowing it to savor his look of betrayal and despair. The last thing Hajaa heard before he was pulled into the darkness was its voice.

“He’s mine now.”

And then he was in darkness. He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t cry.

Then everything started to shake…

Hajaa sat up instantly with a gasp. He was back in bed, in his room in the Crystal Empire. The zebra’s breathing was quick and shaky, he could barely focus… it took him almost a minute to notice the pair of hands on his shoulders. Slowly he turned to see who was holding him.

His fears instantly disappeared when he saw Thorax, staring down at him wide-eyed. “A-are you ok? You were having a nightmare.”

Hajaa stared up at him before his eyes started to water slightly. The zebra nodded. In a slow movement, he wrapped his arms around his Jala and pulled him against his chest, like a giant teddy bear.

“I am now…” He said quietly as he laid back down, keeping Thorax pressed against his chest. The changeling let out a pleasant chitter as the two lay there for what felt like an eternity. The quiet moment ended when Thorax looked up at Hajaa and spoke up.

“What was the nightmare about?” Thorax said in a quiet voice. “I tasted so much fear, more than I’ve ever felt in my life before…”

“You tasted it?” Hajaa said, raising an eyebrow. “I thought you only ate love…”

Thorax nodded. “We changelings can taste emotions. All emotions but love is the only one we can eat.” He explained.

Hajaa was quiet for a second then shook his head. “It was about you.” He said. Instantly, a look of dejection formed on Thorax’s face.

The changeling averted his gaze. “I see…”

“No, nothing like that,” Hajaa said, a firm tone filling his voice. “I just… I dreamt I lost you.”

The look on Thorax’s face instantly disappeared, replaced by one of surprise… and wonder.

“R-really?” He replied, bringing his gaze back to the zebra.

Hajaa nodded, pulling Thorax even closer to his chest. His response was simple. “Yes.”

Thorax silently stared at him, before he brought his head closer to Hajaa’s, and the two instantly locked lips. Hajaa’s eyes widened for a second before he closed them and gave into the changeling’s unexpected advance.

The zebra was quick to dominate the ling’s tongue with his own, battering it into submission, then he forced his way into his Jala’s mouth, exploring it with wild abandon. All the while, he brought his hands up, grabbing the ling by his sides. Slowly and sensually, he ran his hands downwards, sending thunderbolts up and down the weak ling’s spine.

Thorax seemed to melt on top of him, going limp when his hands arrived at his supple rear, cupping and kneading his tender spots like a master baker. It rapidly became apparent to them that neither of them had bothered to get dressed the night before, as their rock-hard rods pressed against one another, causing them to both buck their hips against their lover.

Hajaa was just about to flip over, pinning the changeling to the bed, when the door slammed open again, causing Thorax to let out a quick cry and flop off of the zebra onto the bed, trying to hide both behind the zebra and under the covers.

Hajaa growled, sitting up. “I swear to the gods Shining Armor, if you just want to ask a bunch of questions again I am going to-” He was stopped when he saw a squad of three Crystal Guards. Their faces were locked in looks of stern discipline, but Hajaa could tell they were scared… and not of him.

“The Princess wants to see you.” They spoke simply.

“Cadance? Isn’t she in the dungeon?” He said, his look of annoyance replaced by a slight amount of fear. He really didn’t want to have to entertain her again…

“Not Cadance.” One of the guards said, then the guard gulped. “T-Twilight Sparkle.”

That fear suddenly turned from a spark into a raging wildfire. Instantly Hajaa shot up and he turned to kick the covers off himself and get up. “R-right. Allow me to get dressed and I will be there shortly.”

The lead guard held up a hand. “We’re sorry sir. We weren’t talking to you. The Princess wants to see Thorax.” Hajaa blinked twice, then he turned to the changeling.

Thorax was quiet for a second, similarly confused, until he let out a truly pathetic whine.

“Are you sure about this?” Spike said as he looked himself over in the mirror of the room. “I mean, I’ve never really ever worn clothes before.”

To say clothes, however, would be pushing it. It was a tan loincloth that left little to the imagination. Not that anything about Spike left room to the imagination before of course. As he previously said, the drake never wore clothes before. The drake let out a sigh as he turned one way than the other, looking himself over. The loincloth at least hid his slit, so he supposed it was a little more modest than before.

“Of course!” Dansaar cheered, clapping his hands together. The zebra was currently in the nude, he was going to get dressed for his new role as an Irra as soon as Spike was done hogging the mirror. “Jalas are supposed to wear as little as possible to show themselves off, at least back in my old tribe. It’s to make other Irras jealous of the fact that they won’t have you… or something.” He explained with a laugh.

“Is that how it is in all Zebra tribes?” Spike asked, looking over to Dansaar with a cocked eyebrow. “Besides, wasn’t I already showing as much as possible before?”

“I think?” Dansaar said, rubbing the back of his head. “I dunno all of the northern tribes make the Jalas wear loincloths… Except for Qwarhe, they make the Jalas wear collars and something called a bedlah. I want to do things traditionally though, which means loincloths.”

“What about the southern tribes?” Spike responded, stepping aside so Dansaar could take his place.

“Well, I never actually went down south, but apparently they make the Jalas wear these weird black robes called burqas.” Dansaar replied thinking back. “Maybe cause it’s a desert and you have to shield yourself from the sun, or maybe they don’t like people looking at them, I don’t know why, you’d have to ask one of the southern exiles in our tribe, we have a couple of them.”

“Wait a second,” Spike said, what Dansaar had claimed earlier suddenly hitting him like a brick. “If you want to do things traditionally, why did you get me to make you a suit!”

Dansaar paused, looking up at Spike, then he looked down to the clothes he was about to dress in. A two-piece suit Spike had sewn for him. Apparently the - not so little anymore - dragon was actually quite good with his hands, something about being friends with a professional seamstress. The dragon had made him stay still and model for several hours, constantly having to redo his measurements due to a lack of experience in sewing for dudes - again, because of said seamstress - but he had managed to churn out a rather decent suit… though he hadn’t tried it on yet, so he really didn’t know for sure…

“Urm… because…” Dansaar struggled to find an explanation. Spike crossed his arms over his chest.

“You just wanted to see someone else in a loincloth instead of you huh?” Spike said a slight glare coming to his face.

Dansaar blushed, his ears going flat against his head. “Maybe?” He chuckled slightly.

Spike rolled his eyes, chuckling slightly. “Fine… I guess I’ll humor you.” he exclaimed in a fake angry voice.

Dansaar nodded, then he turned to the mirror. “So… could you help me get this on? I have no idea how pony clothes work…” He said, looking at himself, then the suit. He suddenly pointed to the buttons running up and down the white undershirt. “These are for hanging jewelry off right?”

Spike shook his head. “Uh, no they are for making sure the shirt stays on. And stuff…” He said, shrugging. “Honestly, it's kinda hard to describe it.”

Dansaar nodded as Spike approached him. He took the suit from his grasp, setting them aside, except for underwear and the white undershirt. Dansaar understood how one of those worked so he quickly slid it on when Spike tossed him said tighty whities.

“Hold your arms up like this,” Spike said, making a T-pose. Dansaar nodded, doing as instructed. Spike started with the right arm first, slowly sliding it on.

Dansaar shivered slightly as Spike helped him out, a pleasant tingle going up his spine. The zebra stared into the mirror, flexing his free arm like a bodybuilder. “You know, having you dress me like this… it kinda makes me feel like an Inkosi!”

Spike raised an eyebrow.

“T-that means king…” Dansaar sheepishly explained.

Spike smirked and rolled his eyes. As he did, though, he remembered a different kind of ruler that he knew. He paused and went quiet for a second. “So, since I sent that note, Twilight is probably coming to the Empire…”

Dansaar shrugged, almost knocking the one shirt arm he had off his shoulder. “She’s an alicorn right?”

Spike nodded as he went around to Dansaar’s left side, sliding on the left arm as well.

“Then she can’t be that bad,” Dansaar laughed, “We beat Cadance. They’re similar right?”

Spike rapidly started shaking his head. “Nohoho… No. Nope. Not at all,” He said, turning white slightly. “Besides, you didn’t really beat Cadance.”

“Yeah, we did!” Dansaar said as the dragon stood up and walked around to his front. “Why else would she be in the dungeon?”

“No, you tricked her,” Spike said, rolling his eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day. “That kind of thing happens in comics all the time. The powerless underdog beats and captures the super-powered villain because they trick them into putting on a ring or necklace that saps their power away or something. Now hold still for a second.”

Spike knelt down and started buttoning up Dansaar’s shirt from the bottom up. He suddenly felt something hard pressed against his neck. He looked down slightly, to see Dansaar’s hard rod tenting his underpants.

“Sorry… force of habit…” Dansaar said, an even larger blush coming to his face.

“It’s fine, I have been in this position a lot this past week.” Spike laughed as he ignored the rod, though it took a rather large amount of willpower. He decided he had better return the conversation to the important topic. “And before you ask, no, I don’t think you’d be able to trick Twilight too.”

“Why not?” Dansaar asked as Spike moved to buttoning over his stomach, then his chest.

“Well, Twilight is the smartest pony I know,” Spike said as one of his claws brushed over Dansaar’s deliciously flat chest. This time it was his turn to tent his undergarment. “Plus, if To’Achuu captured her as well, Celestia and Luna would one hundred percent get suspicious and come to investigate themselves. And that would not end well for you guys.”

Spike suddenly frowned a very very dark frown, which made Dansaar shiver slightly. “Not to mention, I’d get very, very angry if anyone did anything to her.” And considering how much he had grown over the past week, well, things probably wouldn’t have ended well for his ‘enemies’. He was now almost Garble-sized after all.

“Well,” Dansaar trailed off as Spike went off to fetch the suit’s navy blue coat and navy blue dress pants. “You mentioned you had a plan to make it uh… not end as bad?”

“Not really a plan, more an idea…” Spike said, rubbing along the spines on his neck. “Remember that thing I mentioned the first night we… became Irru and Jela?”

“Irra and Jala,” Dansaar corrected. “And yeah. Something about To’Achuu putting Shining Armor in charge instead of himself?”

Spike instantly nodded as he stepped behind the zebra. “Yeah, if we could convince To’Achuu to agree to that, maybe Twilight can talk down Celestia and Luna from kicking all of you Zebras to the moon.”

Dansaar chuckled slightly. “That’s a funny allegory.” He said. His smile instantly disappeared when he saw Spike’s deadpan look in the mirror.

“No, they could actually send you guys to the moon,” Spike said before he held up the coat. “More likely they’d just send you back to Zebrica though…”

Dansaar instantly flinched. “I don’t want to go back to Zebrica…”

Spike’s face filled with determination as he gently slid the coat onto the zebra. “And I won’t let them send you back. I promise.”

Dansaar smiled, nodding up at the dragon’s reflection. “Right.” He said straightening up with a newfound sense of confidence. “You know, I look great in this! You did a great job!”

Spike nodded down at him. “Yep, only the pants left to put on and you can finally walk through the Crystal Castle as a full-on out Irru!”

Dansaar frowned slightly. “Irra.” he corrected one last time.

“Right.”

Just then, there was a knock at the door. The two quickly turned as it opened and a crystal guard stepped inside. Spike was quick to try to cover the fact that he was wearing a loincloth with his hands, but Dansaar did little to hide his bare legs. He was actually wearing more than normal.

“Spike the Brave and Glorious,” The guard exclaimed in a harsh voice. “Princess Twilight Sparkle is here, and she has requested your presence.”

Spike gasped so hard he hurt his throat. The dragon braced himself against the wall as he rather violently coughed. As soon as he was done, the dragon took off in a sprint towards the door.

“I’ll be right back Dansaar!” Spike roared as he almost tackled the guard over and rushed down the hall.

Dansaar merely cried back a simple phrase. “Wait! I don’t know how to put on pants!” There was no answer in return.

It suddenly dawned on Shining Armor that he had never sat on this side of his desk before in his life. Usually, a recruit was in his place being dressed down by him. This time, however, he was the one being scolded.

“I don’t even know where to begin with all of this,” Twilight said, rubbing her brow with her index finger and thumb. Sitting across from her, were the previously mentioned prince, Spike, Sunburst and Thorax.

Thorax and Spike were both wearing nothing except loincloths, and Thorax’s new signature stripes. Sunburst and Shining by contrast had gotten dressed in their usual attire for this meeting, though Shining looked rather disheveled.

It had taken him several hours to actually convince her not to disintegrate To’Achuu, and several hours more to convince her that he wasn’t, in fact, a changeling. Then came the additional hour of scanning him for every type of magical mind altering spell in existence, then checking his dietary and blood systems for any and all aphrodisiacs and/or drugs. All in all, it had been an exhausting night.

Twilight lowered her hand and sighed, looking over the four of them.

Shining Armor was a mess, with visible bags under his eyes, and she knew no one was to blame but herself. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Spike looked like he was a second away from either jumping up to dump a massive amount of exposition on her or running out of the room like a kid running from their parents. Thorax was obviously terrified, visibly shaking, whimpering, and flinching every time her gaze passed over him. Sunburst was the only one who had any degree of calmness on his features, merely looking at her with pursed lips.

Silence reigned for several more minutes, the quiet whimpering of the changeling, Spike nervously tapping his foot and the ticking of a clock on the wall were the only noises seemingly in existence.

Shining Armor broke the silence first. “Well… I did say it wasn’t an emergency.” He said. It instantly became apparent to him as soon as the words left his mouth that that was the wrong thing to say.

Twilight gawked, her jaw slamming open. “Wasn’t an emergency! The entire Crystal Empire government was just deposed by a potentially radical foreigner we know next to nothing about, Cadance is currently locked up in its jail, half of the ponies in the palace are doing everything the zebras are telling them to, and the four of you are-”

“Ok, ok I get it,” Shining responded, raising his hands in surrender. “I meant that like… compared to the normal disasters you guys face, this doesn’t seem so bad.”

“Honestly, I think I’d rather that happened instead.” Twilight sighed, bringing her index and thumb back to her brow.

After another several minutes of awkward silence, she finally spoke up again. “Ok… Ok ok ok. We need to figure out what to do.” She exclaimed. She put her hands behind her back and started to pace back and forth behind the desk. “First things first, we need to talk about Cadance.”

Shining felt the bags under his eyes double in size at the mere mention of his former wife’s name.

“First and foremost, I need to go down to the dungeon to check her for any mind control spells or anything like that.” She said, turning towards the door. Shining stopped her by raising a palm.

“Don’t even bother. She isn’t under any mind control,” he coldly exclaimed, sitting up in his chair. “I know my wife, and we’ve been drifting apart for months now. There is no way the zebras could have gotten to her months ago.”

“And how are you sure of that?” Twilight asked in response. This time Spike spoke up.

“They are an exiled tribe, Twilight. They don’t have the resources or anything like that to possibly plan that far ahead.” Spike said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“And you believe that?” Twilight said, spinning on her hooves to stare him dead in the eyes. “We know next to nothing about zebra culture or society. The only zebra I’ve known up until recently was Zecora, and she never brought up any of the things you are claiming are an important part of their culture. You’d imagine that would come up wouldn’t you?”

“Forgive me if I am speaking out of turn…” Sunburst spoke up. “But Zecora is a mare. If zebra society is as heavily segregated as they claim it is, it stands to reason that mares and stallions would have different cultures.”

“I just… Cadence couldn’t have acted like that out of nowhere. She’s the princess of love for Celestia’s sake!” Twilight cried, bringing the hands to the sides of her head. These had to be something going on.

“And Princess Luna was the Princess of the Night, one of the two alicorns most responsible for keeping the world in balance, and she almost destroyed the planet out of nowhere.” Shining countered.

“Twice!” Spike chimed in.

“W-well… what if that isn’t Cadance down there,” Twilight sighed, rubbing her forehead. “This kind of thing has happened before. Cadence starts acting weird out of nowhere. It could be Chrysalis again.”

Shining shook his head. “There is no way Chrysalis would get herself caught so stupidly like that.”

Sunburst sat up, eyes wide. “No… she might be right. Changelings obviously have an adverse relationship to lust, I mean, look at Thorax here. Only one week in and his lust has driven him to completely adopt zebra culture.” Said changeling shrunk under everyone else’s gaze.

Spike stood up, glaring daggers at Sunburst. “Hey, whose side are you on here! Do you know what could happen if we don’t manage to convince Twilight to let them stay!?”

“Yes, the princesses will send them back to Zebrica. Which is something I obviously don’t want.” Sunburst said, sitting up. “But I am merely trying to give credence to both sides of the argument. Unlike our new friends, this isn’t a black and white issue right now.”

Spike growled slightly as Shining put a hand on his shoulder, gesturing for him to sit down.

“Lust or not, you both heard what she said in the throne room,” Shining said, turning his gaze to Twilight. “She was… obsessed. She wanted the zebras to… to enslave her. To rape her and every other mare in the empire. To drive ponies into extinction. Chrysalis doesn’t act like that.”

“But, how can you be sure?” Twilight responded. Suddenly, Thorax piped up, his voice quiet and squeaky.

“I-it wasn’t Chrysalis.” He said, nervously tapping his hoof and slouching in his chair. “I w-would have been able to tell if it was. Changelings can’t taste the emotions of other changelings, but I could taste hers.”

Twilight was quiet for a second, then she sat down across from them. “And? What did you taste?”

Thorax gulped and sat up straight before he started speaking. “I tasted lust. Obviously, like Shining said, she was driven crazy by it. But… whenever she looked at Shining Armor, all I could feel was… disgust. Hatred. Regret. And not regret because of what she was doing. Regret over ever… marrying him.” He spoke simply. His words cut like a knife, directly into Shining and Twilight’s hearts. The two of them looked down at their hooves, Twilight’s eyes watering.

Thorax’s lips quivered as if he was expecting to be yelled at for saying something wrong. Instead, Shining merely set a hand on his shoulder.

“This doesn’t make any sense. Back in Canterlot, during the wedding-” She started, but Shining interrupted her.

“Real life never makes sense.” He said, shaking his head.

Twilight covered her eyes for a second. There was another moment of silence before she leaned back in her chair and looked up at the ceiling. “Even if I wanted to help the zebras, I don’t know if I can.” She sighed.

“What? But you’re a princess! You totally could!” Spike said, standing up and putting his hands on the desk.

“I’m one of four princesses Spike,” She said, shaking her head. “And if Celestia and Luna decide to hear out Cadance, it’s going to be her word against yours. And even if we did convince them you weren’t brainwashed by the zebras, you are still very obviously under their influence, meaning anything you say to them could be instantly thrown out and ignored.”

“But-”

“Not even mentioning the Equestrian Noble Houses, who might see Shining as committing treason for siding against the crown, and use their influence to remove him from his post and declare the Crystal Empire a rogue state,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “And what about the ponies of the Empire? Do you think they are going to side with the zebras against the princess who helped save them from Sombra? I can’t wave a magic staff around and make them all change their minds and follow the zebras instead.”

“But I am equally loved by the Crystal Ponies, not even mentioning Spike the Brave and Glorious.” Shining Armor said, sitting up. “Surely that would count for something.”

“Celebrity status only gets you so far when dealing with ponies, Shining.” She responded. “Especially considering you aren’t the ruler of the Empire right now. To’Achuu is.”

Silence once again returned. Spike opened his mouth to speak, but Twilight stopped him by clearing her throat.

“Sunburst, you are excused.” The unicorn nodded. He stood up and started walking towards the exit.

“Sorry I wasn’t more helpful.” He said just before he stepped into the hallway.

“You three. I understand you’ve all taken zebras as… partners.” She said, staring at the remaining stallions.

When the three of them blushed and sheepishly nodded she straightened up.

“Go get them. I want to talk to them.”

The pony, changeling, and dragon Twilight had been replaced by three zebras. She knew the one in the middle, To’Achuu. She still couldn’t look him in the eye after their… introduction. The other two, she hadn't yet met. On To’Achuu’s right was a sheer giant of a stallion. Almost 7’ tall standing up, with bulging muscles and rippling abs. When he first came in she had to look away with a blush, it didn’t feel right being turned on by these zebras… especially considering she knew their… orientation.

The zebra on his left, by contrast, was a rather lithe and curvaceous figure, wearing a suit - the pants of which were backward. He was small, only about 5’2 or so, with a short mane and overall feminine qualities. This was Spike’s partner if she had to guess, she had seen his… ahem… magazine collection back home and rapidly figured out his type.

Twilight shook her head. Now wasn’t the time to be distracted, now was the time to act. She put her elbows on Shining’s desk and clasped her hands in front of her face.

“What’s your angle?” She got right to the point.

“Angle?” To’Achuu said, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Twilight responded, eyes narrowing. “You overthrow the princess of the empire in a matter of days on arrival to the Empire, you seat yourself as absolute ruler, and you manage to wind everypony in the palace around your little finger. You’re plotting something.”

To’Achuu shook his head. “I am not plotting anything, and I am not an absolute ruler. I have kept your niece as my heir, and Shining’s position as second remained intact. All I did was replace Cadance.” he spoke calmly.

“Cadance was clearly not in her right mind then. You played her along instead of getting her help so you could put yourself in charge.” Twilight replied. “You were clearly planning this for a long time. How else could you have pulled it off? What did you do to her?”

To’Achuu’s eyes widened slightly. He opened his mouth to talk, but was stopped by Hajaa slamming a fist on the desk. The stallion stood up, towering over Twilight.

“We did nothing to her,” Hajaa said, eyes narrowing in rage. “And I will not sit back for a second and allow you to claim otherwise. That… bitch hated her own daughter because of Shining Armor. She wanted us to act like the dogs of Qwarhe, and every second of it made me feel sick, but it was our only option.”

“No matter what Shining says, I know Cadance.” Twilight sat up two, her wings flaring and horn igniting. “There is no way she started acting like this until after you zebras arrived!”

“She invited us!” Hajaa said, not backing down even in the face of a near goddess. “And we have the letters to prove it!”

“Stop.” To’Achuu said, putting a hand on Hajaa’s arm. The other zebra looked down at his chief for a second, before growling and sitting down. Twilight was silent for a second, before she let her wings fold against her back and horn dim.

To’Achuu cleared his throat as she sat back down. “He is right. We have these.” He said, sitting down and placing the folder containing Cadance’s many letters and pictures down on the table. Twilight instantly snatched it up, reading it top to bottom. The three zebras watched in real-time as Twilight’s stern face turned to one of horror, then despair, then finally acceptance.

“T-there is no way this is…” She trailed off.

“I know it is hard to accept, I trust you have known her for a very long time.” To exclaimed, sitting up. “But this would have likely happened eventually. We understand this empire was once ruled by a king of darkness. Sombra. If he had shown up while she was suffering like this… well… better us than him.”

Twilight growled. “Stop.” She hissed through clenched teeth. “Being the lesser of two evils doesn’t make you good.”

To’Achuu nodded. “I will admit… what I just said was somewhat manipulative…” He sheepishly said.

Twilight turned around in her office chair, showing her back to the zebras. She paused for a second, thinking.

“You said you were exiled from your homeland. What would happen if you were sent back.” She said quietly, prompting both Hajaa and Dansaar to gasp. To’Achuu remained calm, however, though… Twilight could tell there was a distinct shake in his voice.

“Hajaa and I, alongside every Stallion strong enough to defend himself, will be put to death,” He said quietly. “And those like Dansaar here will likely be… enslaved.”

Twilight felt her throat go dry. “Do you have anywhere else you could possibly go?”

“No.”

The alicorn’s hands tightened their clasp. “Then we are at an impasse. Because as things currently stand, there is no way I can convince Celestia and Luna to let you remain in the Empire.”

And then, Dansaar spoke up, the first time he had since arriving in the room. “What if To’Achuu were to give up his throne to Shining Armor, and put him in charge?”

Instantly Twilight whirred around in her chair, eyes wide. Similarly, Hajaa and To’Achuu looked at him, jaws dropped.

Twilight was quiet for a second before she brought a hand to her chin. “That might actually work…”

“Really?” Dansaar said, picking himself up slightly, a smile coming to his face. “Because I and Spike were thinking about that exact scenario.”

Twilight stood up and started to pace. “Well… it isn’t a foolproof plan, Celestia and Luna might still think you are using him as a puppet, but it could potentially help convince them that you aren’t a tyrant… and that Cadance really has gone crazy.”

To’Achuu straightened up. “If it allows my tribe to stay in the empire, I will accept this.” He said simply.

Twilight nodded slightly, sighing. “Fine… I’ll draft up a document giving Shining control of the Empire, and you will sign it. But I want to make this absolutely clear.”

Twilight’s horn ignited once again, a deep frown coming to her face. “I am doing this for my friends, and for your tribe. Not for you. Understand?”

To’Achuu calmly nodded. Twilight glared down at him for a second before sighing and turning away from him.

“I am going to have to do a lot of explaining to Celestia and Luna…”

Author's Note

I went fast with this chapter update huh? XD